The Greek term mythos, which means “word” or “story,” is where the word myth originates.
For the believer, the anthropologist, the folklorist, the psychologist, and the literary critic, a myth has diverse interpretations. One of myth’s purposes is to praise ambiguity and inconsistency. It is pointless to expect a myth to convey a single, distinct, and unchanging meaning, just as it is pointless to attempt to reduce one of Shakespeare’s sonnets to simple English.
Like poetry, mythology provides a metaphorical lens through which to see the world. Myths are not set and dogmatic but rather flexible and interpretative; they vary and adapt depending on the narrator and the situation.
Many mythology begin before the dawn of time, when a creator god, like the Egyptian Re, comes into consciousness (see p. 12). The consciousness of an all-pervasive divine being, Nebertcher, the ruler without bounds, is characterized as Re.
In contrast to clock time, mythological time is cyclical.
It is predicated on what author Mircea Eliade referred to as “the myth of the perpetual return.” A specific occurrence—in Egypt, the cry of the Benu bird as it landed on the first land—set it into action. It will ultimately come to an end, and then the process of creation will start all over again.
This world is referred to as the fifth in the mythology of Native American tribes including the Navajo, the Aztec, and the Maya. The first four worlds, according to the Navajo, were underneath this one, from which mankind sprang in the story of the emergence.
Four suns had previously illuminated the land of the sun Nahui Ollin, which is blown across the sky by the breath of the god Quetzalcoatl, according to the Aztecs.
The Maya thought that on August 13, 3114 BCE, the present cycle of creation started. They estimated that the current course of events would go until at least 4772 ce, but they did not believe it would last forever. According to the Chilam Balam, their holy book, all moons, years, days, and winds come to an end and perish.
All blood eventually comes to its calm place as it ascends to positions of authority and power. The amount of time they had to extol the glory of the Trinity was measured. The amount of time it took them to understand the sun’s goodness was measured. The amount of time that the star grid would glance down on them and allow the gods imprisoned within the stars to keep an eye on them while monitoring their safety was measured.
When the deity of endless time, Zurvan, gave birth to the twin gods, the dualistic Zoroastrian worldview with its antagonistic gods of good and evil, Ahura Mazda and Ahriman, was set into action.