Stories are Important

For pre-literate societies of the ancient world, stories served a variety of roles. They taught behavioral codes and consequences, recorded and recalled history; they entertained. Flood stories, for example, appear in the canon of much of the world’s folklore. Scholars and scientists have used these stories in their research on climate and geographical change following the last ice age. A collection of flood stories can be found at the web site, Flood Stories from Around the World. A National Geographic lesson comparing flood stories is also available.

From: The Illustrated Jataka and Other Stories of the Buddha, by C.B. Varma
www.ignca.nic.in/jataka005.htm

Cultural connections among people throughout the Himalaya region, Asia and Europe can be found by comparing folktales and myths. Stories made their way from culture to culture along the ancient trade routes. Indeed, the Central Asian trade routes known today as the Silk Road are credited for spreading both Buddhism and Islam by word of mouth as well as by written texts. On a more mundane level, stories such as the Cinderella tale, which originated in China, are found on nearly every continent. The Cinderella tales belong to the vast body of stories dealing with the problems and events of everyday life. Cinderella stories are widely available in book form and on the Internet. A lesson plan comparing them is found at the National Endowment for the Humanities’ EDSITEment web site.

Traditional explanations of how the world began are given in creation stories. Modern cultures often refer to these stories as myths, yet this is a misleading term. What may appear as myth to one group—supernatural, unbelievable—to another group are credible explanations of reality, part of a sacred tradition. The following narratives are offered to compare creation stories found in India, Tibet and the Middle East. Terms that may be unfamiliar to a Western reader are highlighted in red and found in the glossary.

Hindu Creation Story

Tibetan Creation Story

Biblical Creation Story

Muslim Creation Story

Glossary