Parallel Myths and Islam Essay Example

in the world by himself. However, due to loneliness, in his embodiment he split into two man and woman after taking the form of Brahma the creator. “He yearned for someone to keep him company and his thoughts split the temporary body he was using into two parts” (Brahma is Lonely 39).The two, man and woman soon fell in love and they gave birth to a human being. After giving birth to a human being, the woman transformed to a cow as she was looking to elude the man, but the man instead changed into a bull and they conceived a calf. The woman kept eluding the man changing to different animals and they kept conceiving different animals that are on the face of the earth.

The myth looks to give the creation process of man and woman and all animals in the earth. The myth is however different from the Quran, since the animals and everything all over the world is believed to have been created by God. Adam and Eve were however, tasked with the role of filling the earth and God also created man from his own image. These are accounts that are similar to the Indian myths where Brahma split himself into two to create man and woman. The Four Ages of Man is also one of the Indian myths that look to give different conceptions and aspects of the human life. It gives an account of the different aspects that can be cited in the present world and how the changes can be extrapolated from the different phases of life.

The myth indicates that the world has changed many times before as

Brahma controls the world in four ages. The myth asserts that there are four ages that is the goodness age, then the age of energy follows with a third age that is a mixture of the two ages being next. The final age is the darkness age where everything is destroyed completing the cycle. The different ages are marred with individual qualities that are unique depending on people’s behavior. There is a chronological approach that is highlighted with the different ages taking a specific number of years before they end.

The myth is meant to highlight that people should ensure that they live righteously if they are to see the final stage. There are those who are believed to survive past the final age due to their behaviors and concepts while living. “For those few wise people who survive the Dark Age, there will be opportunities to penetrate the illusions and find rare insights.” (Four Ages of Man 101). This is in line with the Quran that reckons that there is a greater glory in heaven.

For the righteous living according to God’s teachings they will see another age once they leave the world. The King, The Hawk and The Pigeon, is also one of the mythical stories that has been conceptualized in the Indian beliefs. The story gives an account of a King who was willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the pigeon. The Hawk being the Pigeon’s adversary was adamant that it wanted the Pigeon’s meat.

However, the King having promised the Pigeon protection even if it meant losing his life stood up for the Pigeon. At the point of losing his life, the

skies opened and the King was replenished completely and elevated among others (The King, The Hawk and The Pigeon 103). The story aligns with the story of the sacrificial lamb in the was offered to Abraham as he was about to kill his only son as a sacrifice to God as has been written in the Quran (37:99). As noted in the story, it is one thing to say that one wants to do something, and another to give up one’s life in pursuit of fulfilling their word. The four myths have different teachings and look to augment different aspects of creation and societal beliefs.

However, the myth of Brahma is Lonely is an intriguing myth. The fact that the woman was always transforming to elude the man gives a different twist that adds humor to the story. It is indicative of different aspects of the present society that have been creatively conceptualized within the creation story.

Works Cited

• Brahma is Lonely
• The Four Ages of Man
• The King, The Hawk and The Pigeon
• The Thoughts of Brahma