The OLDEST Creation MYTH in World, and its Origins

The first and oldest stories in the world maybe lost to us, but we can reconstruct them by finding their motifs and piecing them together. In this video I look at the earliest creation myth motifs, focused particularly on the Earth Diver and Tree of Life, to do this. I will tell a few different creation stories, and discuss how motifs have evolved, mixed, and dispersed. And finally I tell a story, reconstructed from all these motifs.
If you want to support my research and see behind the scenes work, watch my videos early, and other insights then please become a *Patreon*: / crecganford
References
Berezkin, Yuri (2007). "“Earth-diver” and “emergence from under the earth”: Cosmogonic tales as evidence in favor of the heterogenic origins of the American Indians". In: Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia 32: 110-123. 10.1134/S156301100704010X.
Dundes, Alan. "Earth-Diver: Creation of the Mythopoeic Male". In: American Anthropologist, New Series, 64, no. 5 (1962): 1032-051. Accessed August 20, 2021. www.jstor.org/stable/666952.
Napolskikh, Vladimir. "The Earth-Diver Myth (А812) in Northern Eurasia and North America: Twenty Years Later". Frog; Siikala, Anna-Leena; Stepanova, Eila (2012). Mythic Discourses: Studies in Uralic Traditions. Finnish Literature Society. pp. 120-140. ISBN 978-952-222-376-0.
Nagy, Ilona. "The Earth-Diver Myth (Mot. 812) and the Apocryphal Legend of the Tiberian Sea". In: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 51, 3-4 (2006): 281-326. Accessed Aug 20, 2021. doi.org/10.1556/AEthn.51.2006...
Chapters
=====================================
0:00 Introduction
2:28 The Beginning was made from The Nothing?
3:52 The Research
5:50 The Underworld and Earth Divers motifs
7:30 Understanding motif changes, The Bird Scout
9:42 The Oldest Creation Myth Motifs, The Earth Driver
11:59 Creation Myth Structure
13:30 Looking for the Motifs of Voids and Chaotic Waters
16:02 The Tree of Life or World Tree
18:13 Mixed Motifs in the Creation Myth
20:20 North American motifs
22:07 Where did the Creation Myth with these motifs originate?
22:48 But why an Earth Diver?
23:57 The earliest mythology of our ancestors?
22:57 The Magic of Wind from Vedic to Abrahamic religions
27:37 Putting it all together and conclusion

[@Crecganford]

Do you have any old stories you would like me to look into?

[@50hzlegend56]

On a more academic note, I think it was Dumazil who talks about the Asir Vanir was as a indo-european through line of the first two functions asserting over the third (or something to that effect, it's been a long time since I read it). Or just something on the war in general. Please excuse the spelling, dyslexia, and auto correct falls short on these topics

[@whatever41421]

Sorry not really related to your question but do you know where would be a good starting place to find a collection of these various myths- not really for study but I'd like to read them to my kids one day so more of a storybook style

[@whatever41421]

Oh but also a question related to your original question: are there any stories we can trace back to a time where there were multiple 'species' of hominid? And are other species of hominid likely present as motifs in any of our ancient stories?

[@uponeldritchshores]

Vidar and his possible relationship to Vishnu- a silent god who is spoken little of in the Edda but plays a major part in the world returning and Ragnarok! Tapadh Leat! Your channel and work has been nothing short of awesome!

[@jessicaclakley3691]

I’d love to know the story and lore behind the beautiful tattoo art on your chest if you would care to share (if not too forward of me and/or too personal for you)

[@davidjuby7392]

I am Native Canadian and as part of Cayuga mythology there is the story of the Sky woman who fell to earth. As the story goes, other people believe other things but this is what we believe. Early on the world was all water and there were the sky people who lived in the clouds. One day a sky woman was looking down through a hole and accidentally fell to the waters below. all the animals gather together to try and help her but they soon realized that she needed land for her to survive. All the animals tried to dive down and bring up some earth so she could have some land upon which to live. One by one they all tried and failed until finally the muskrat was able to dive deep enough to find earth and bring it back up. Eventually the land grew and became solid. The sky woman was then able to populate the land.

[@jimmysmith2249]

I remember hearing about the Otter mythology long ago in my childhood. I think it was on cbc.

[@littlejourneyseverywhere]

What a beautiful path you tread, sister ❤️ a gorgeous story of the creation of humanity and the Earth as we know it

[@tigerlily2941]

Similar to the legend I grow up with, that being a large tuna brought mud up from the waters below and placed it on the back of a turtle. Thus land was formed. Well after the bever used their tale to pack the mud.

[@timefoolery]

Interesting! Thanks for sharing.

[@davidjuby7392]

@@littlejourneyseverywhere thank you

[@Haran888]

"Holy Diver, you've been down too long in the midnight sea" - Dio

[@Sammenluola]

The Finnic creation myth is a combination of the Earth Diver Myth (EDM) and the World Egg Myth (WEM), with the World Tree also present. The EDM survived in a more complete form among eastern Finnish tribes, as well as among Karelians, not to mention some of our eastern relatives further away; people like the Komi, Nenets, Khanty etc. While the Kalevala is a historic book from the mid 19th century, the sacred runic poems it contains belong to a huge corpus of Finnic mythology, collected over the past four or five centuries. The original poems are sung in an octosyllabic meter.

[@hermanhale9258]

Like the poem "Hiawatha" that used to be taught to American school kids.

[@enjarichards8100]

There is an interesting creation myth from the many and varied beliefs of the ancient Egyptians. The lotus plant grows from a seed at the bottom of the water, shooting up until it hits the surface, then growing leaves which fan out and rest over the water. Some imaginative scribe saw this as a way that land could be formed from the water, a cosmic lotus seed that anchored the floating land spread out above.

[@hermanhale9258]

There's one where a god comes out of the water and starts producing the world when he blows his nose.

[@user-pv4mn6dn6d]

Well their is the creation myth where Atum ejaculates, and the Ennead are created; Ptah Tatenen was the patron god of Memphis who created the Ennead from the waters of Chaos; Ra in one myth is the creator of the world. There is no unitary Egyptian creation myth, ever nome likely had their own variation of the creation story.

[@hermanhale9258]

@@user-pv4mn6dn6d They probably even said to their kids, "Some people believe that story, this is what we believe." Or, "This is what I believe."

[@kp-legacy-5477]

​@@user-pv4mn6dn6dedfu texts are pretty close to what I'd say was the accepted Egyptian idea.

[@Astro-Markus]

I'm simply fascinated by the fact that we can reconstruct pieces of the culture of our ancestors from tens of thousands of years ago. This is yet another example of doing away with the prejudice about early humans being grunting and primitive imbeciles. We have to realize: they were probably very much like us today - just starting civilization from scratch. They have been asking the same questions we are looking into today. Who are we? Where did we come from? Where did the world/universe come from?

[@vampiricagorist6979]

That, right there, is why I’m so obsessed with this field of research. I enjoy learning about the ancestors that we’ve forgotten. I absolutely hate the common conception of our ancestors as idiots who didn’t understand technology. I’d actually argue that they were a lot more remarkable than many of us today in the sense that, as you said, they quite literally tamed the natural world and started civilization without knowing anything that we do today. I’d love to speak to some of these people. I’m sure they were absolutely awesome people, those early human scientists and engineers.

[@derekfume8810]

@@vampiricagorist6979 You shouldn't be so optimistic about them too. Don't overestimate. The key observation is - they were exactly the same 10k BC as humans now days.

[@vampiricagorist6979]

@@derekfume8810 I don’t doubt that. I’m just trying to emphasize how remarkable these people were to figure out things like agriculture with no prior help. That isn’t to discount the many innovations made my our more recent ancestors, but there’s a level of respect that I think we ought to apply to the most ancient of our ancestors, even if we may never know their names.

[@TheSulross]

@@derekfume8810 I don't know, the WW2 generation were loads more capable people on average than people today. Even today's farmers don't hold a candle to the abilities of that generation so can well image the generations from tens of thousands prior were very different than moderns - just as a generation barely removed from the current crop of moderns were a far more resilient and capable people

[@sir.sturat]

@@TheSulross People today are being just as capable / resourceful / ingenious today as they ever have been. Whatever the environmental, social, survival challenges encountered, the generation(s) experiencing them respond to them by discovering, inventing, making, applying new techniques in order to create the necessary tools and technology required to mitigate or better still eliminate said challenges. That's the point - it's inherent in our species' evolution and we are the exact same species today as we were during WW2 or indeed 125K years ago for that matter. Only the environment, its resources and the nature of the challenge change. Today's farmers simply work in a different way from those that have come before - likely a more efficient and effective way I would guess. And why is this? Because of the continued application of the very same human capability and resourcefulness that contributed so effectively as part of the war effort.

[@Kompieter]

If you stay until the end of the video... who stops watching these before they end? They are fascinating from beginning to end and absolute gems. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and insights Jon.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you

[@citizenbxtr883]

Punch line reveal while I was on the porcelain throne. I’m not sure what to make of this but I might stop watching videos until the end

[@yinyangsaladgang8789]

I dunno the whole "male pregnancy envy" thing from the notoriously debunked Sigmund Freud kinda turned me off. Freud was enamoured with his own theories and applied them to everything, it's as absurd as taking the Oedipus complex seriously as a psychological phenomenon and then inferring that the Hindu texts must've been written by a bunch of men who wanted to sleep with their dominant mothers. Honestly I think the assumption that because the stories sometimes featured men was some form of ancient sexism is quite dubious, it seems much more like a modern feminist interpretation of ancient writings, and seems to ignore of the symbolic idea of the father and the masculine principle (or yang) as being an energy or force that is ascribed male attributes, and does not actually refer to biological manhood in any way.

[@jeffo4817]

I quit

[@juanmiguelreyesguerr]

@@yinyangsaladgang8789 You have just provided a case in Freud’s point.

[@mo0nstonegirl]

My daughter is Maori, we're a Kiwi family. I didn't even know much about the New Zealander creation story, so thank you for mentioning it! I always love it when our little country gets included :)

[@worstplayer4521]

What's a kiwi family?

[@islandercirce2]

@@worstplayer4521 It's a colloquialism for a resident of New Zealand. It originates from the flightless bird called a kiwi which is a symbol of NZ.

[@JohnnyWalker1077]

Your daugher is Maori and you´re not? How is this supposed to work acutally?

[@worstplayer4521]

@@JohnnyWalker1077 she could be adopted

[@mo0nstonegirl]

@@JohnnyWalker1077 her father is Maori :)

[@theeddorian]

In Central California your "Earth Diver" pattern is recounted by several societies. In that version, three creatures are floating on a raft in the middle of a huge flood. One is Coyote, the next is Mud Turtle, I don't recall the third but I think it was a bird. A shining being comes down to the raft from the sky on a feather(?) rope. After a discussion with the raft's occupants it transpires that all three are heartily sick of the narrow confines of the raft. The shining being then suggests that one of them dive down and bring up some material from the surface beneath the flood. Coyote can't dive well, the bird can't at all, so mud turtle dives down and it is a long difficult dive. By the time he reaches the raft again, he has lost the entire load he started to the surface with. But the shining one takes out a small stone knife and scrapes beneath the mud turtle's nails and collect enough mud to make a small ball of mud. This is cast by the shining one out into the water creating the first dryland. A primal oak tree myth also circulated.

[@hermanhale9258]

That's interesting that the California story has a girl coming down from the sky and the Finnish myth he told does, too.

[@theeddorian]

@@hermanhale9258 Not a girl, a "shining one," though the transcription by Kroeber(?) uses the pronoun "he" IIRC. Gender is an odd topic in folk lore. I've always thought it curious that the genders of the sun and moon swap north and south of the Alps in Europe.

[@hermanhale9258]

@@theeddorian Sorry, somehow I saw a picture in my head of a girl on a rope when I read that. Thanks for the correction.

[@jach99]

In the Romanian creation myth, we have an Earth Diver(called not-kinsnman or the Devil) who brings out mud from the depth of the primordial sea at the behest of another being(called the kinsman or God) when said being appears out of nothing. I knew it was very old and shared by many peoples, but it's really great to hear more about it! Unfortunately we were christianized very early on so all of our mythology is coated in thick a layer of Christianity, but I always found it curious how this very obviously pagan story survived even tho it has some Christian influence because of the interpretation of the two beings as God and the Devil.

[@ChrissieBear]

Heh. I mentioned a few variations of the Romanian Creation myth in the comment section of his Indo-European Creation Myth video a while back, and he replied to the comment saying he hadn't heard of that creation myth before. I'm sure we'll hear more of it in future videos in this series.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for sharing this, I love hearing these stories and information.

[@afischer8327]

When you write that the Earth Diver is a 'not-kinsman', is it a member of another tribe, or perhaps even with a different language? And then maybe the 'kinsman' would have been an important tribal leader. It might be difficult to confirm or deny these guesses, because of the changes over time, and the inevitable influence of Christianity, as you wrote. I agree, it's a wonder that this story has survived!

[@ChrissieBear]

@@afischer8327 He's translating it awkwardly, the actual translation is "Not-Brother", because the other character (who is supposedly God), replies with "You are not my brother, you are my Not-Brother." when the Earth Diver (who is supposed to be Satan) excitedly calls the other character "Brother" upon first meeting him. These myths are known in Romania as "Brother and Not-Brother" stories, where Brother is God and Not-Brother is Satan.

[@Floral_Green]

Reminds me of a certain song sang by a Mr Ronnie James Dio.

[@algernoncalydon3430]

The Noah story is a good example of later writers not understanding what went on in the earlier story. Ravens were often taken on sea journeys in order to find land. If they let the raven out of the cage the raven flew up and if it didn't see any land , and being smarter than most other birds, would return to the boat. But if it saw land it would fly that direction. The sailors could then see which direction the raven flew, therefore knowing where there was land. Noah released the raven but it only flew back and forth. People assume it was that the raven was bad and the dove found land and so doves are good. Assuming the raven failed and the dove succeeded. But the phrase is odd. The raven flew back and forth until the water receeded from the land. Like it's an incomplete story which has had a lot of info deleted. Later commentators just made up the additional parts of the story making it into black is bad, white is good type.

[@aariley2]

Ravens are beautiful and really sweet. They have a purple cast in their feathers that you can see on the sunlight.

[@gaiasguardian205]

The raven flew back and forth until the waters receeded from the land, and then he flew the coop to escape his confinement and food rationed by hand.

[@KebaRPG]

There are actually two versions of the Noah Bird Scout Myths... One painted ravens as villains for flying around for three days without proof of land... The Other the two pairs of Raven did not return; but since doves often return to home nest areas to make new nest stole from raven's nesting area.... Thus Noah followed where the doves were going to collecting twigs for nest.

[@leroybrown9143]

The raven didn't return because ravens are carrion eaters and it was feasting after months of being fed it's non-preferred diet on the Ark. Genesis was written by Moses, Moses was educated among Egyptian royalty, they knew far more about seafaring without modern technology than we do, after all both the Egyptians (and Israelites) traded all over the Red Sea, Arabian sea and Mediterranean region via ship, so its highly unlikely they would be unaware of how either ravens or doves behave when released from a vessel at sea as they were very close to the invention of such techniques and employed them routinely, which is why Noah released the raven in the first place, because of his knowledge of raven behavior. He subsequently released the dove knowing that it would have to return if it didn't find vegetation on dry land, because he was knowledgeable about dove dietary requirements as opposed to raven dietary requirements. Additionally, the white dove is not found in nature, it's an invention of ca. 1000 AD artificial selective breeding techniques from Greece. Noah's pigeons (doves) would not have been white and no one in Noah's day, 4500 BC, would have ever seen a white dove, as even today they are vanishingly rare in nature. Therefore, this superficial, fictional conctruct has zero explanatory power within the actual historic context to which it's being shoehorned, as a little knowledge clearly indicates. The black =evil , white= good analogy is an entirely fictitious construct that cannot be derived from the biblical text, only imposed upon it, that's why this is the first time I've ever heard of it, because it's logically, culturally, historically and biologically absurd.

[@KebaRPG]

Ravens Seek Shelter rand food beyond the ship' doves came back with nesting supplies

[@wendychavez5348]

My first year in college, I took a course called: "Creative Writing: Mythology." For the final project, we each had to develop our own creation myth. Wow, I wish mine had been as well formed as the one you just told! I'm thrilled to have found this channel.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you.

[@alexandrahenderson4368]

I'd just use my grandmas tribal one cuz it's only oral

[@ayyylien7066]

Whenever I watch videos like this I start to feel emotional in a very profound and almost indescribable way. Like I just feel a deep sense of connection to all of humanity, and an appreciation for our shared roots, and for the ancestors we all descend from, who made myth, and art, and whose lineage survived so we could be here today. A deep sense of oneness really, for all of humanity across all of space and time. Just beautiful.

[@jgr7487]

it may not only be pragnancy envy, but excrement also does look like mud & undigested seeds do grow into sprigs out of it. if not for seed dispersal, just the fact that fungi & plants grow in areas with manure can be seen as the relining of creation

[@loled123]

You don't need to go far down into a desert to observe plants and life clinging to valuable excrements. Merely going up in elevation to Alpine tundra or alpine areas is enough. And: Once you get into farming, before nitrogen fertilizer your only real option is refining manure. We now live in a society where we don't understand what nutrition is, and as such we have no idea on the value of fecal matter. Land being black dirt would be a sign of fertile soil, which is undersold when telling such a myth.

[@jgr7487]

@@loled123 savannas & such are dry enough for this to be observable

[@yggdrasild755]

@@loled123 shit = life

[@loled123]

@@jgr7487 savannas are dry. The alpine environment is barren of life outside of grass, being harsher.

[@eardwulf785]

What I saw when we had a contract at Blackburn Meadows Water Treatment Plant would be a good example of what you mentioned. In all the sewerage sludge which gets everywhere were growing great forests of tomato plants, you'd have to see it to believe it.

[@majidbineshgar7156]

Your reference to "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" is interesting , I have always found Douglas Adams books fascinating, with latent underlying spiritual / philosophical revelations , he came up with the idea that dealing with current events/ phenomenae one should seek a holistic ( historic, rational, mythical, scientific ...) causality explanation . also all our universe with all living beings might be merely a giant super-computer designed by Gods / Archons/...mice ! to find the " ultimate answer ".

[@Crecganford]

I found his work inspiring and fascinating too, a sad loss to the craft.

[@KincadeCeltoSlav]

42

[@crowolfe290]

I absolutely love this research and commend you for your rigorous work. As an anthropologist, I often wish I could peer into the minds of our ancestors. I believe I catch little glimpses within your stories created from your hard work. Thanks for sharing this.

[@JohnSmith-wo2fz]

He references volume 34 of Journal of Indo-European studies p 153-181, 2006. When he brings up a 'celtic world tree'. I've read the document years before watching this video but went back and re-read it as I didn't remember any mention of a world tree in it. And yes, there is no mention of a world tree in it, the document is about Indo-European dragon slayers. So he got that wrong. To my knowledge there is only one instance in Irish mythology that might be considered even a hint at a 'world tree', but he made no reference to that text. So look, it's all very nice and scholarly looking to put up references, but if they don't reference what you're talking about then you need to take anything they say with a pinch of salt.

[@vemuriyasaswini803]

Its really interesting. In Hindu stories we believe the goddess (Mata) who was a Shaktiswarupini (who is the form of energy) existed in dormant state and was surrounded by Om (believed as the first sound of universe) and when Om requested Mata to wake up, seeing the vast nothingness around her she created 3 entities Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara who had to attain knowledge and once they were ready each was given a task to perform. Brahma was to create life, Vishnu was to help it sustain and thrive, Maheswara was to end it to continue the cycle. Brahma's creations were the Rishi's one of whom along with his wives gave rise to Suras, Asuras, Pakhu, Naga, Manushyas. Suras and Asuras had conflict of interest and later came to be known as Devas and Danavas respectively whom most people translate to Gods and Demons. According to Hindu Myths there is a difference between Good and Evil however all Suras(Gods) aren't Good and all Asuras(Demons) aren't bad. Either way, only after Suras were created is when humans came about. We have many instances when creation might cease to exist in our mythology however one of the three main entities Vishnu helps in sustaining us. One of such times is when Vishnu takes the form of a tortoise to save Earth and another time he takes the form of a wild bore to save Bhudevi (probably land but usually depicts the entire earth).

[@sandra.helianthus]

I also wonder how much influence other humans as Neanderthals had on our myths? How interesting that would be! Perhaps there are several original stories after all, coming from different human species... 🌻

[@kellysouter4381]

I'd love to know what the Neanderthal creations myths were.

[@fnamelname9077]

Highly Compelling Evidence had a video where he looked at the possibility that certain ancient stories came to mankind by way of the Denisovans. Through Siberia. I forget which video.

[@sandra.helianthus]

@@fnamelname9077 interesting, thank you. It would make sense to me

[@red2blackprofits]

Denisovians had 3 genes for Autism Their stories would have been more conceptual rather linear.

[@fnamelname9077]

@@red2blackprofits TBH that actually makes sense as an origin for some of the weird "geometric" stories of constellations and such. Maybe all ancient stories are people remember things that autists said.

[@MidnightsEdge]

Recently discovered your channel. Love it. Already one of my absolute favorites.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for you kind words.

[@PerksJ]

I keep getting more and more Survive the Jive vibes from this channel. I’d love to see a strong anti-folkish statement from you. I genuinely want to study PIE and IE languages and I’d like to feel confident promoting your content in Discords discussing such topics. Everyone is cropping up white supremacist in these circles.

[@vtheawesome]

@@PerksJ he made a statement on Reddit about this, but it might be best if he made a video about this

[@umwha]

I think the earth diver myth may be counted as the single most primitive form of the ‘journey to the underworld’ archetype. Someone goes into a subnautical realm, questing, and retrieves his prize or treasure, and brings it back to the Normal world. From which his treasure brings a revolution or regeneration in some way. It’s the heroes journey at its very simplest .

[@Crecganford]

Yes, exactly, which it is why we think it came from the “humans coming from the underground, usually via a tree” motif

[@beachchickensmedia]

well said!

[@OldOneTooth]

Maui's hook likely connects to scorpios, the time to travel to NZ from the cook islands is when this is smeared with blood, ie at dawn or dusk, which as the hook is descending is dawn mid winter. This happens to be the best time to travel by the sailors almanac due to wind, following where the hook descends gives you a direct bearing to the coast of the fish known as the hook of Maui. There's also a reference to the star associated with Maui hiding below the canoe (there are 2 such, both associated with solstice.) The hook also slows the sun rising above it at dawn mid summer, while it's counter part pelaides rises mid winter. A possible reason for north south split in stories incidentally.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for your comment, I do lover reading other's views and thoughts.

[@noblesavage4895]

It is connected to Scorpius. Te Murua o Maui-The Fish Hook of Maui.

[@dragonfox2.058]

I'm VERY interested in the male womb envy thing. It seems many myths are pretty intuitive almost magically so. It also explains a lot of what the cave paintings were about, making sure the animals returned for the hunt...and the colleges of artists who painted the masterpieces underground

[@szymonbaranowski8184]

In Vedic religion they literally have temples of Womb with sculptures of primordial foetus. As well as sculptures of delivering babies in standing position. The dualist concept of light changing darkness into day must have compete with another myth explaining baby being created in two variations from dual source, and maybe one perfect god of all sexes. This premyth somehow seems off without thunders lightning's and supernatural events hahaha Modern humans are much more into fairytales than our ancestors. Even Vikings were much more grounded than we try to think reading their myths (usually not getting how they simply understood them). Their metaphysics were materialistic. Bird moves, tree moves, water moves ergo all are equal, intelligent and human-like. Since our native myths say stork brings children or are found in cabbage I think that one of humans spawning from world tree is fully believable despite logical me looks for something deeper of reason... Haha

[@3rdeye671]

Animals painted deep inside the Earth Mothers womb. Hoping for their abundance to be born into the outside world.

[@dragonfox2.058]

@@3rdeye671 yup. It's so beautiful

[@jennifermurphy2226]

@@3rdeye671 ugh that’s amazing!!

[@bethbartlett5692]

Interesting, considering Freud introduced the Female "Penis Envy Theory", and during the era of the Early - pre 1940's 20th Century, *"a time notable for 9bservaboe actions reflecting Lower Mind and Material Focused value of worthiness, all influence by and from Rome and the Roman Emperor Constatine established Ideology, heavy in Male Dominance, lack of value in the feminine, and Fear based Dogma. Present time offering a growing draw up and into Higher Mind, Spiritual Discoveries (Quantum Physics studies), and emerging greater Facts of History. Realized in the Nonphysical very much the greater part of the Physical experience. *Comprehending the Soul energy, and knowing the secure reality of our eternal self, our infused in a Human vessel, and the value of the "Universal Laws" particularly the "Universal Law of Attraction".* These value all giving a flow towards Centered in Harmony.

[@Drbob369]

Good work, very informative and without the standard KZbin narcissism of most content makers.

[@zipperpillow]

Well observed.

[@Floral_Green]

His logistikón is well nurtured, that’s for sure.

[@eardwulf785]

This was an incredible episode, I love it when variations of the same creation myths are retold by different cultures half a world away from each other. That's what's amazing and that's why this episode was super interesting. Surely these ancient myths have been being told ever since humans started to try and make sense of the world and learned to communicate with each other. Definitely one of your best Jon. I love having little eureka moments when you connect the dots.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you so much for your kind words.

[@allianabogado1617]

Imagine how much of our folklore and mythology were lost just because the men recording them only chose to preserve male-centric stories. It was always a mystery to me as a child why many stories referred to men as the source of life when childbirth has existed since the dawn of time but they couldn't reference that.

[@chucknorris277]

How bout no

[@chucknorris277]

How about no

[@peytonwensaut6876]

Earth-diver myths and the existence of only a primordial sea before the world is a basis of a lot of indigenous creation stories as well. Love your content!

[@dominikotmianowski6943]

Idea of the oldest myth being a glorified poop joke would be the most human thing ever actually, counting the fact we still find such stuff funny. I support that xd

[@yggdrasild755]

shit happens

[@gaiasguardian205]

I felt like this was a prime example of a primitive mind trying to comprehend that life and planets exist in a star cloud created by the back end of a wormhole.

[@aplaceinthestars3207]

"Life-giving fart" is possibly the greatest concept I've heard in a while.

[@DamienZshadow]

I really wonder if they took it way more seriously than we did or if we're taking it more seriously than they did!

[@suzz1776]

Lol

[@ergomate9092]

I adore these videos. Many of the stories are familiar, or elements of them can be recognised from how they've been passed down and evolved over time. But as much as hearing something close to the original versions is profound, the story of how we come to develop, interpret and understand these tales is even more interesting.

[@ske-pho3049]

As you were describing more and more on the earth diver motif, there was a thought I couldn’t shake. That everything that is, came from the deep. That land, life, everything was tilled from it like a farmer tills the land. Everything was tilled from nothing. It made me think of why people would see it like this in early times. As they were surrounded by life, they saw that plants and “trees” came from the ground and as such people and other life did too. Then where did the land come from? From the deep. And where did the deep come from? From nothing. Or the void. Thus begs the question is who or what started tilling. What set it in motion? Gods, super beings, big bang, etc.

[@loricrane5315]

The older you get and the more you learn the more you see the basic pattern. Fascinating.

[@Nuclearw4rhead]

in Mordovian mythology (part of Finno-Ugric mythology) there is a myth about a god, whose name is Mastor, who turns into a duck and raises the earth from under the water. Also, in this myth there is a Birch that separates the Skye's from earth and the underworld

[@dndsl3436]

Your comments about the world-tree holding up the sky make me think of the Maori legend of Rangi and Papa, two primordial parents (the Earth and the Sky) locked in an embrace. One of their children, Tane, god of the trees and birds, eventually separates them by laying on his back and pushing up with his feet.

[@miyaiun4723]

There is a sacred place în America which they call Devils tower. Many believe its an ancient tree. If you see it, its covered by solid stuff, rock or something like that. But its the only one on the planet. And all around the world we have the tree of life motif. What if it really was an enourmous tree of life from milions of years ago?

[@rockyhill3]

The amount of research and groundwork to be able to collect all of these stories to later analyze and abstract is just mind boggling to me. This is just more evidence that we are all truly related. Thank you fro sharing!

[@50hzlegend56]

A mate put me on to your channel recently, excellent stuff, thank you. Nice to see propper academic coverage of these topics, something youtube sorely lacks.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for watching, I hope you enjoyed this latest video.

[@IonAeon]

Peering in to the minds of our ancient ancestors like this is absolutely amazing experience. Ancient people believing them or not, these are some the first stories of fiction ever conceived, the echoes of which have stayed with us through millennia of technological progress and societal growth. Fiction may be an inferior genre for some, but these are the first stories, the first beautiful flashes of brilliance from human creativity.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for watching, and for commenting such thoughts. It is appreciated.

[@bishopwhite1822]

One of the most stable pieces of knowledge humanity has is that all energy cannot be created or destroyed. We come from somewhere and go somewhere else. The universe is forever, and forever changing.

[@redlaundrybeauty7082]

We "Cherokee" Keetoowah have the water Beatle creation story.....So thankful for all the work u put into this channel 💯

[@hermanhale9258]

Water Beetle makes me think of the Egyptian scarab beetle who seems to be carrying the sun.

[@julianaguilera998]

I enjoy recreation videos of the oldest Mythology's but there are times that I get a little sad that alot of those myths are unfortunately lost to the sands of time but these kind of recreation videos are the closest thing we have and the best attempt to put the pieces together.

[@michaelbailey1684]

I hope this is not our best attempt!

[@jacobrodriguez8510]

This is fascinating information and a very enlightening video. I've always been personally interested in what the core ideas and mythos of our earliest ancestors would have been and this is a spectacular introduction to that. I have also personally noticed these trends myself, for example with many Indigenous American stories (a personal point of interest for me) the motif of the Earth-diver is very prevalent and features in many of the legends. Great work on this video and I can't wait to see more!

[@arthurkoopmanswatercolors]

The idea that many of the oldest motifs emerged somewhere before or around 75k years ago may suggest that the Toba Super Eruption played some role in the formation of creation myths. This super eruption was likely caused by a rogue planet disturbing comets which then disturbed the earth, according to astrophysicists. The excrement part may be linked to more than psychological matters alone. It reminds me of Odin taking the Mead of Poetry in the form of a giant eagle. He is chased by a giant eagle which crashes into a bonfire. That sounds like a late echo of the earth diver myth, symbolizing a cosmic impact. Odin excretes the mead from its mouth, but also from its behind, again the excrement idea, which then creates bad poetry. I have reasons to believe these are "comet birds". One crashing into the earth and causing an inferno, the other excreting some kind of substance. Comets are known to excrete all sorts of chemicals, gases, dust, and even ethanol alcohol and other liquids, also known as blood rain, golden rain etc!

[@gaufrid1956]

You know Jon, it comforts an "old fart guy" to know that wind from the behind appears to have played a part in creation. I always enjoy your videos!

[@hermanhale9258]

I'm a pure minded mildly gnostic Christian type who hates fart jokes, but I kind of like the stories of a god who emerges from the waters and sneezes, poops, pees, cries, bleeds and digs gunk out of various bodily orifices to create the world. In fact, I consider God's Spit and Shite to be the probable origins of Set and other devil gods.

[@ichigoapanchal9935]

you forgot the famous earth diver and and the 3rd avater of Vishnu, Vahara where he lifted earth from ocean, turtle one is reused in samudra manthan, another they called it Pangu myth or something :3 keep up the great work love your videos .

[@Crecganford]

Yes, the Pangu myth is influenced from the Veda, or that is the academic consensus.

[@ichigoapanchal9935]

@@Crecganford so this means Chinese folklore might be part of indo-Europeans family as well, for some reason i though it was related to tengrism. damn i need to read vadas again lol

[@colterwebb6382]

talking about breaking wind and divine wind being used for creation is super interesting. especially with the clay reference. cause did not god breathe life into adam? not dissimilar to the downward breathe in the vedic tradition you mentioned. this channel is great

[@ZsiZsiSzabad]

I only found this channel in the last month or two and I’m so glad I did! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us in such an entertaining and accessible way. Cheers 🍻

[@Crecganford]

And thank you for watching, and for taking the time to comment.

[@Thunderfork]

This is probably the most fascinating channel I have found in the past years, I really love your content.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for your kind words, they are very much appreciated.

[@mumblingmercian3386]

Grab a cuppa tea lads, it’ll be the perfect temperature when it gets to the really good bits.

[@Crecganford]

Top tip!

[@Soarcio]

Brilliant video mate I really like how you tide in multiple mythologies of multiple cultures and tie them together to tell an expected earlier mythology. Great job! By the way have you done a video about the Norse creation myth? That'd be great to see, or you've already made it.

[@Crecganford]

I have touched on the Old Norse mythology in my Comparative Mythology video, as the Old Norse myth parallels the Indo European Creation Myth. I hope you watch that as it really is a fascinating insight on the modern day religions all coming from one source.

[@Soarcio]

@@Crecganford Thanks I'll check it out now

[@briant.v.5799]

So glad I just found this channel today. Love the work you’re doing here and excited to hear more! 🍻

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for your kind words, and for watching the videos.

[@VchaosTheoryV]

I had a vision on mushrooms that was similar. It was a hand of a Jotun, or Titan that sprung from the waters and pushed its finger across the beach sand. As the wet sand continued to become pushed along, the more form the being took as it eventually walked off. Time drew on in the trip, and the fully formed "human being" walked back to the beach where the finger of the Titan folded the "human" like clay back into the watery depths.

[@bennyvangelder7624]

Thank you Jon for making a video about the Earh Diver! 🙏 That the beginning starts with water after the void makes sence because water is also formless like chaos. (In fysics the theories of fluids (cf. Water) their behavior is used to explain some models in quantum mechanics (cf. Chaos, the void))The primordial waters seem to be a transition between chaos and water itself. To imagine the waters without end is ofcourse the ocean. And I gues that is why water appears before land and the only place to look for land on an infinite sea is at the bodem ...

[@aariley2]

One of my favorite creation myths is from a Native American tribe. I can't recall the tribe, but once the earth was created, stings of mud came down from heaven and all the people and animals shimmied down these mud strings. Then the world and earth were separated by cutting the mud strings.

[@hexmark21]

Interesting, this is really the first time I've ever heard or realized the scatological view on creation myths. Really fascinating stuff

[@Ivan-ny5xp]

Dear sir, your channel is one of the most valuable and enjoyable discoveries on youtube this year. My sincere gratitude for your work.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for you kind words, they are appreciated.

[@OldieBugger]

I heard this story: A waterfowl (I forget which) laid an egg, which broke. The white became seas, the yolk became land. That's how our world came to be.

[@liquidconstellations]

Another great video 👍 The twenty-something philosophy major in me would be in the back of the ancient bonfire storytelling sesh ruining the mood with “but how can something come from nothing?” 😂 But anyway, I wanted to say I’m grateful to see academics on KZbin create scholarly content. It’s my favorite use of the platform. I enjoy creators like you and Justin Sledge over at Esoterica. It’s a way to keep some academic studies alive and circulating at a time when education costs are astronomical and kids just want degrees that make them a lot of money. Guys like you keep interest alive and information in circulation. I wonder how many comparative mythology and linguistics studies majors you’ve inspired? I hope to find more of you on KZbin and Patreon. Keep up the good work!

[@matthewpagenhardt5084]

KZbin suggested your videos to me and I am so happy it did. Great videos bud I'm watching all of them back to back tonight that's how I'm spending my day off thank you keep em coming

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for watching them, and for letting me know. Happy feedback inspires me to do more!

[@nono9543]

It's like a KZbin channel made out of all the questions I asked as a child. I love it.

[@kimwarburton8490]

This is amazing! i would never have thought we would be able to piece together and re-create such ancient myths!

[@hermanhale9258]

They are just guessing. These stories are found all over the place. That is what we know.

[@jamiegallier2106]

Another enjoyable and informative video. Really appreciate your in-depth work and integrity here! Too often these subjects are handled poorly, regurgitating the same old information, inserting incorrect opinions, or worse- woo.

[@ahuddleston6512]

I just stumbled upon your yt channel and have enjoyed every split second....I immediately subscribed. Keep up the awesome work!👍

[@Crecganford]

Thank you so much.

[@ricksmith9177]

Maori here,thank you for exploring our mythology

[@dangerwolfdavis]

Yay! Thank you for this! I've been looking forward to it. It is really amazing to think that the stories told by some of our first ancestors are still being shared with us today. What a powerful connection to the past. Thank you for sharing this. I can't wait for more. I did have one question. What is the difference between a myth and folklore?

[@Crecganford]

A good question. Myth is considered ancient fact, where folklore is known just to be a story, not necessarily related to fact.

[@dangerwolfdavis]

Thank you! I love myths and folklore but I never understood what the difference really was. I am so glad to have found your channel. You do amazing work. I have learned so much.

[@aariley2]

I don't know why more people aren't watching these. They are absolutely brilliant and non-preachy.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you

[@wonderpeter5231]

I think this story motif is beautiful. It really makes me wonder about the underlying psychology. Diving into chaos until you've reached its bottom, retrieving order out of it.

[@samantha_lawrence5100]

Incredibly informative, a coherent and straight forward explanation. Thanks for posting!

[@zipperpillow]

Marvelous. I never could understand the "floating land" idea, because even little children would find that contrary to experience, but it shows up everywhere. You'd think that one kid, somewhere, would call that storyteller out.

[@chrissiek8706]

Hm, floating land is quite logical for people, living in islands or near the sea

[@zipperpillow]

@@chrissiek8706 I've lived on many islands, and they were all connected to the bottom of the ocean. I've lived on several coasts, and it's the same thing. I think you're thinking about a boat, or a raft.

[@chrissiek8706]

@@zipperpillow you know they're connected, but you think people thousands years ago had such geological knowledge?

[@zipperpillow]

@@chrissiek8706 I think they had feet, like me. I think they could tell if they were moving, drifting, bobbing, twirling, rising up and down, or headed towards somewhere else, farther away from where they used to be. Many islands are volcanoes. Is the volcano the entire beast? or just the head of the beast? or just the tip of its jaws?

[@donnalambs9578]

Oh your definitely floating on this stuff

[@matthewhecht6580]

Your content is fascinating. Thank you for putting in the time and effort. Keep up the great work.

[@Crecganford]

And thank you for watching it and enjoying it

[@Ashley-tz2ww]

Just started watching your channel and I am in love! ❤ Thank you so much for the work you do!

[@txtardis7887]

All info is good info - Have not heard of the EDM before - Thank you for enlightening me 🙏

[@battelchicken2]

I've been working on a table top campaign that uses a lot of creation myth motifs. It begins with the characters being created by the players deep under an ocean before they are spit up on a beach to discover the mysteries of the Lands. I had no idea my beginning was literally a The beginning! That's so rad! Thank you for your videos!! They're so inspiring!

[@battelchicken2]

P.S I'll have to add that someone takes a shit in the lore I guess now...

[@Crecganford]

Always good to have a such a character in any story.

[@karenlankford8558]

I always learn a lot form you. I am fascinated by the way that people tried to make sense of their world before they had any scientific understanding of the nature of the sun and moon and stars and weather.

[@justish9600]

You make it a fun journey, wonderfully pieced together and related, thank you!

[@sarahlynn4798]

I'm going thru all your videos, watching them all & liking all of them. I used to have a love for mythology but I love the way you deliver the information so I shall be returning to support the channel. Duces.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you, I'll apologies now for my older less well recorded videos; I will re-record them in the future.

[@sarahlynn4798]

No way, I was positive I'd never get any eyes on this comment, let alone from the creator himself 😁

[@jamesmckenzie4572]

It occurred to me several times in this discussion that the myths reflect ancient peoples' growing understanding of plants; perhaps the earliest comprehension of how seeds grow into plants, and using that to provide a clue to our own creation. But then, I'm vegetarian so my thinking often revolves around such notions. Thanks.

[@owaissaaltheadickey9341]

I am a Wabanaki Native (Penobscot,Passamaquoddy and Central Maine MicMac)as well as Irish,Scottish,Welch/English.I was brought up to love and embrace my Native heritage as well as my European ancestors contributes to the American culture.I have also learned the Creation stories from my Maliseet,Monhegan and Pequoit Native friends too. I love all Creation Stories;esp the ones where huge Ocean dwelling creatures... Whales,Sea Turtles,etc. carries soil on their backs and thus creates life sustaining "Earth"/World Tree,and all other forms of life(including the first humans). I also love Grandmother Spider and Glooskup/Glooskubi,Manabozo,Kokopelli and many other First Nations( From All the Americas and Canada with great respect) Legendary Folks. My Grandma used to tell me these stories and many others when I was a small child. I shared her stories with my youngest brother so they would remain alive through me. RIP and thanks for the memories Grammy. May all Folklore,Creation Stories, Legends Worldwide continue to exist and shine on for endless Millennia to Come. All of Them are Beautiful and Still Needed. Love to All from a friend in Maine,USA.

[@lolurnotkelly]

This is excellent material, I didn't realize how long I'd been looking for a channel like yours!!!

[@Crecganford]

Thank you!

[@holycopy]

I am so in love with your voice! Now I wish that you'd narate all my favorite audiobooks haha subbed!

[@douglaskingsman2565]

Really bold synthesis. Really well researched, however. Really, really impressive. Thanks!

[@douglaskingsman2565]

Noah's celebration of the dove finding a twig was enormously (if darkly) funny. Thanks!

[@chriskleinlein3408]

I appreciate your fine work. I am also enjoying David Reich lately, I studied some linguistics in college, and spend a great deal of time on genealogy, in a micro and macro sense. I appreciate your ability to flesh-out and articulate the ramifications of our current understanding of history, genetics, and linguistics in tangible terms.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for watching, and I have read much of Reich's work too. It's very useful in understanding human migration and dispersal.

[@farahgiovanna]

❤ I just found you, giving a reference from david lightbringer, another KZbinr, who watches you and loves your content, I teach world mythology to freshman college students, and I am fascinated by your work! Thank you so much❤

[@johnym1]

This is incredible. Interesting how these stories have changed over time. I love to hear and learn more.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for your kind words, and I have a number of videos like this on my channel, and will continue to make many more. Perhaps look for the Dragon Myth video next.

[@JCetto.2612]

I loved this video so much... so many stories that I, as a not European, never heard about... Thank you, Crecganford, for sharing all this wonderful creation motifs.

[@Crecganford]

And thank you for watching it

[@treybrandenburg904]

Another absolutely fantastic video. I love your channel. Thanks for the care you put into your work- I'm learning a lot, and I love your passion.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you so much.

[@robpatterson3133]

Loving this channel.. I'm baffled that your not spread out more of KZbin.. took two or more years of deep diving in the origins and more of human kind and I just found these ... It's criminal

[@Crecganford]

Only a few months ago I had 5,000 subscribers, so I'm starting to grow :) Thank you for watching, and I hope you enjoyed what you've found.

[@marteenie7189]

im a psych and anthro student. it’s just so cool to me how these 2 disciplines influence how i perceive your mythology videos. now i really wanna take classes on mythology if my university offers some 😯

[@Crecganford]

There are PhD's in different aspects of Story Telling, which give a lot of flexibility. I hope you find a course that suits you, and it's ok to change your path as you travel :)

[@MatthewCaunsfield]

Creation myths are such a fascinating aspect of human history, great vid!

[@Crecganford]

Thank you

[@laoluffu6906]

I am in the early stages of building a fantasy world. It will have many stories slowly exploring the development of the world through individual perspectives. This is an excellent model for seeing how early humans perceived the world and how I can write the evolution of myths as humans travel to different lands. This video has been inspirational.

[@Crecganford]

I'm glad I could help, I have many authors and world builders follow my work.

[@zoehayward3100]

Love this channel :) Very well researched and well presented, very enjoyable to listen to!

[@Crecganford]

Thank you for your kind words, and for watching, it is appreciated.

[@TTTzzzz]

I find it truly fascinating that 'all' was water and land was then created. All people that ever lived, lived on land/earth. It seems they had an understanding of where life started and evolved and that life on land evolved from life in the seas.

[@eardwulf785]

I have thought about this too and it's uncanny sometimes just how close to reality the mythology can be. Also the 'something from nothing' and then the 'only darkness in the beginning' (before the first stars begin to form) is pretty much how science has it today

[@TTTzzzz]

@@eardwulf785 It gives me goose bumps!

[@0x41f13]

Thank you for this content. It’s interesting to hear about the Bible’s creation myth with the myths that came before as context for its origin. This kind of thinking has opened my mind to the importance of all myths and the purposes they serve.

[@kp-legacy-5477]

Not enough focus on the idea they might be allegory for real science and history

[@StoicParadigm]

Been spreading your content when needed. Keep it coming. 💯

[@Crecganford]

Thank you.

[@Jensildur]

The (psychological) conclusion is brilliant. And the more I think about, more and more probable!

[@Robert-gc9gc]

I love this series, can’t wait to see all the creation myths discussed. Love that you mentioned the Finnish Kalevala, hard to find information about it.

[@bodnica]

I just bought Kalevala last week. I am looking forward to reading it.

[@raserapps8230]

Really got into this area of interest lately. A family member had an ancestry search done on our family surname, and in short it revealed that our name goes back to 7th century norse with the first recorded person using the surname around that time, but even more interesting was the deeper origin and translation of the name which simply put translated to Wodens Feld. So Woden is a very old variation of the name Odin, Wodens Feld translated to Dwellers of Odins Country. I also read that the day Wednesday was once called Wodensday or Odins Day! So since reading a bit into this I've found an urge to learn more about history, but specifically the mythology side of the tales and legends and their deeper meanings! I found this very interesting thank you! Earned my like and sub 🙂

[@Crecganford]

Thank you, and I do have some older videos that explain some of the origins of Odin, as he is a very complex character.

[@jackvanderburgh6599]

Your videos have a lot of style bro! The mix of accepted "Science", with very, Very, VERY good guessing, leads to these extremely logical conclusions, Finally!! Searching for answers using total Common Sense ...Brilliant! Why hasn't this been done before?? Amazing.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you so much for your kind words, it is very much appreciated.

[@TheRealMagicBananaz]

I'm imagining a tired paleolithic parent giving a snarky answer to a kid asking questions he didn't have the answer to. "Where did the world come from?" "I shit it out, it came from my ass"

[@bradbyers7505]

So well presented! Thank you for all your hard work in preparation. I'm a fan!

[@Crecganford]

And thank you for watching and your kind words.

[@equilibrum999]

im a wind then [no]

[@d.c.monday4153]

That was really interesting Jon, and I am impressed with the genteel way you referred to the creation from faeces part of your video! Very good! Other people may have used less discrete terms.

[@Crecganford]

Thank you.

[@chemiguel940]

Hey man, thank you for this cool info. It helps me understand some things in this world. Cheers!