Creation Myths

Stories of the beginning, both of humankind and the universe itself have fascinated us for thousands of years. This comprehensive new book offers tales of creation from the many different traditions around the world, each one reflecting the climate of their origins, with water, or desert, or the heaving mountains taking centre stage. In China the cosmic egg sprouted limbs that became the earth, in Ancient Egypt the primeval ocean spawned the God Amen and in India there are so many intriguing and magical stories, some of them philosophical, others more brutal. From the tribes of Africa, and North America, to the crucible of religions in the Middle East the desire to understand the world and its origins continues to fascinate us, and this is the perfect book to enjoy these multi-faceted views.

Organised by type and theme, each section offers a short introduction, followed by the retelling of the creation myths from around the world: Ancient Egypt, the Norsemen, Ancient Greece, Babylonia, the many tribes of native Americans, the Chinese, Burmese, Japanese, Aboriginal Australian, to the Pacific Island tribes, and the multiple, co-existing creation stories of Indian tradition.