Myths and Me (A Love Story)

[The Grand Nudger]

[thesummerqueen]

Something that's always reminded me of you that was on the beginning of The Power of Myth TV series that I think you'll get as relates to what you're trying to describe:

There’s a story that Joseph Campbell tells. An American delegate at an international conference on religion was trying to figure out what a Japanese Shinto priest was about. “We’ve been now to a good many ceremonies and have seen quite a few of your shrines. But I don’t get your ideology. I don’t get your theology.” The priest paused as though in deep thought, and then slowly shook his head. ‘I think we don’t have ideology,’ he said. ‘We don’t have theology. We dance.”

[thesummerqueen]

[passionatefool]

I love myths, I love Greek Mythology, alot of orientals' myths as well.

[Erinome]

I love myths too. I recently read a book about Norse mythology by John Lindow. I think they are awesome, I just wish that the world had become enlightened enough to recognize a myth when they see one. In a world where a ton of people believe in their specific sky-father, why can't they see it's just as valid a concept as the sky-fathers of antiquity?

I happen to think the Judea Christian myth is pretty boring compared to some.

[thesummerqueen]

It is. What's funny though is that Jewish folklore, while not as rich in my opinion as others, is quite lively and even humorous. Doesn't get played up much though. Probably an acquired taste, and requiring a healthy love of irony.

[Shell B]

It all stems back to war and ethnicity, though most of those who dismiss the myths of others today would deny it. Want to take over Greece and suppress its people? Tell them their religion is wrong and make them worship yours. You can trace changes of religious demographic, in terms of ethnicity, through history. Do not forget to destroy their temples while you are at it. Being anti- a specific myth is racism, a lot of the time. I will say that it is only currently with the exception of Christianity. That religion has been responsible for enough slash and burn conversions that it is now separated from race.

I love myths too, Rhythm, though I have to admit that the Abrahamic myths are boring when compared with others.

[Epimethean]

I don't think it all goes to war and ethnicity. The earliest myths were numenistic etiologies, set in place to explain why nature was as it was. War and ethnicity came later, and with them came anthropomorphism on a wholesale level.

By the by, there still is no greater frame of reference on myth than Dr. Campbell: Metaphorically speaking, he is a god of gods.

[Shell B]

I'm not saying that myths go back to war and ethnicity. The rejection of them does. Why would tribe A. agree with Tribe B. when disagreeing with Tribe B is an excuse to wage war and take over the tribe?

[Epimethean]

Tres Vergilian, Shell, and on that I tend to agree.