The First Of Us Concept & Theory

The First of Us (First Humans)   

Many of us know the modern or biblical creation myth with Adam and Eve. Many of us have also heard the scientific stance of human creation based on humans belonging to the primate family and evolving over time to become what and who we are today. But do you know the other human creation myths? If not you might be surprised at the similarities that are shared between what we may believe today and what the ancient people believed.

 

Greek

   So let's go ahead and have a peek into some stories revolving around human creation. Let's start with one of the most popular western mythologies. The ancient Greeks didn’t have just one understanding of human creation, I mean most mythologies don't, but we are going to point focus to the most popular understanding of Greek mythology which involves Prometheus. I will just mention the others honorably making it short and sweet.

   Honorable Mentions 

Instead of one act of creation, Hesiod described five successive races of humans.
Golden Age – Ideal, carefree beings under Cronus.
Silver Age – Childlike and foolish, destroyed by Zeus.
Bronze Age – Warlike and violent, destroyed themselves.
Heroic Age – Semi-divine heroes like those of Thebes and Troy. Like Heracles, Orpheus, Theseus
Iron Age – Hesiod’s present day: hard labor, injustice, decline.

  Here, humanity declines over time morally and spiritually but grows in ideology and technology. In other words we as humans may decline in a spiritual manner as we advance in a technological manner.

   The Orphic Tradition, a mystical religious movement, offered a more cosmic and spiritual story of human origins. After the Titans killed and dismembered the god Dionysus Zagreus (a form of Dionysus), Zeus destroyed them with his thunderbolts and from their ashes a mixture of Titanic wickedness and Dionysian divinity was born henceforth human creation.

   Moving on to the myth revolving around Prometheus. Prometheus either received this task or took it upon himself. The Titan Prometheus (whose name means “Forethought”) shaped the first humans out of clay and water. He carefully molded their bodies, and then Athena breathed life (psyche) into them, animating the clay. There isn’t any widely agreed upon reason as to why humans were created in Greek mythology, but a popular belief is that humans were only really created for worship, sacrifice and to show the gods reverence. This view can be backed up with the trick at Mecone (mee-kon-ee) when the gods and mortals met to discuss how sacrifices should be divided.

   Zeus wasn’t a big fan of mortals from the start but these were Prometheus’s creations so he valued humans extremely. At the meeting Prometheus prepared a sizable Ox and cut it into portions covering the good meat in an awful looking fashion, but making the bones and fat look delicious to the eye but worthless when eaten, worthless and disgusting. Zeus chose the fat covered portion and the gods were forced to receive that share for the rest of the future sacrifices while humans kept the good meat. After being tricked Zeus angrily took fire away from man, but Prometheus brought fire back to man without Zeus’s knowing. When Zeus found this out he had Hephaistos craft the first woman named Pandora and sent her to the humans to live among men with a box that she was forbidden to open, but her curiosity got the best of her and she opened the box unleashing disease, sorrow and all the evils of the world upon man. As for Prometheus, Zeus had him chained with unbreakable chains on Caucasus Mountain where he was tormented day and night by a giant eagle tearing at his liver.

   So you may ask why did humans not place Prometheus at their Pinnacle of worshipping? I mean he was the reason that they have anything right? Okay, so let's look at this from Hesiod’s view. Hesiod saw Prometheus as a self-serving trickster that got humanity punished for his own selfish reasons. You may think how Hesiod could think like this after what Prometheus had risked for humanity. Well lets take some pieces and put them together, honestly it just halves. Zeus is king of the gods, the most powerful of all and clearly doesn’t have great love for humans. If you believed you were under the rule of a god like this why the heck would ever say anything bad. You would actually want to please this being because you don’t want to end up like Prometheus. Yes it is being a bit of a coward but we see that in Greek life it was more about appeasement, fear and respect to the gods than affection or actual love. So, being that Prometheus had no connection to how the Greeks would be able to enjoy their day to day lives as far as rain, crops, or physicalities around them not to mention he had been punished and could do nothing to save himself they had no reverence toward him, but they possibly did still love him. Prometheus was also a Titan and around this time the Titans were not sought after to be worshipped especially in the new coming of age into the gods being the almighty force of the cosmos after they overthrew the Titans. 

 

Egyptian

   Now let's move into the Egyptian human creation story. There are a couple myths just like in Greek but the most popular today is probably the Heliopolitan myth but I will mention the others making it also short and sweet only because I feel they are interesting as well.

   The Memphite version is more of a philosophical stance on human creation. In this version, Ptah creates everything through thought and speech. He first conceives all beings in his heart (mind) and then speaks them into existence through his tongue (word). Humans, along with the gods, are thus the result of intellectual and verbal creation. Humanity is spoken into being, showing the power of divine consciousness and language.

   Next we have The Elephantine Myth involving Khnum the Ram headed god as the creator. Khnum is described as the divine potter. He shapes each human on his potter’s wheel from clay taken from the Nile. Once molded, he places the figure in a womb to be born, or gives it to Heket, the frog-headed goddess of childbirth, who breathes life into it. This is similar to most of the human creation myths you will naturally hear because of the actual molding of humans being done

   Now on to the Heliopolitan myth. Humans were said to be born from the tears or sweat of Atem. When Atem wept, his tears fell to the earth, and humankind was born. Once humans were created the gods established Ma’at. There isn’t much to this one because that is what it just was. Humans emerge from divine emotion, not mechanical will. The feelings of the divine given form.

   This myth is interesting because it is not like most that you would here being that humans come directly from the god figure most of the time there is some kind of craftsmanship that takes place. This myth seems to point more of a focus to the divine essence that humans have rather than the worldly parts. Tears can reflect joy or sadness and even anger, so being that humans formed from tears can point focus more so to our connection to the divine than more so our body parts. There is a chance that this myth describes humans as just an emotional extension of the consciousness in the cosmos which is very interesting. The most important matter in this myth is the establishment of Ma’at. Ma’at was basically established in essence to keep humanity under control in a much less harsher way than the Greek gods but still an interesting concept. One interesting story is when Ra, who is basically Atem turned on humanity as they started to speak against him and mock his authority, which is described as straying away from Ma’at, so he sent Sekhmet to destroy most of humanity. At this moment he would mark the end of divine closeness to humanity and ascend to the heavens even though the story tells of Ra regretting his decision to cause this to humanity it does contradict the essence of the gods upholding to divinity and Ma’at themselves, showing that they also were capable of imbalance just as humans were.

 

 Sumerian

  In the earliest days heaven and earth were united and there were only gods, no humans. The world was fertile, but it required labor as in digging canals and growing crops to maintain order. The younger gods were called the Igigi and they were the ones assigned all the hard labor by the older gods called the Annunaki. The Igigi dug riverbeds, raised embankments, and carried baskets of soil for ages. Eventually, they grew weary and rebelled so they marched to the home of Enlil, the chief god of air, and surrounded his temple shouting for change. The higher gods panicked at the rebellion so Enlil (lord of the air and authority) called for advice. Enki (also called Ea), the god of wisdom and the freshwater abyss, proposed a revolutionary solution to create new beings that would take over the task of the Igigi. This new being would take over the physical labor and provide offerings so that the gods could live in comfort. Enki’s mother, the primeval goddess Nammu who is the personification of the cosmic sea (similar to the Egyptian Nun) was asked to help. She brought forth clay from the depths of the Apsu (the fresh, life-giving water beneath the earth). Enki and the birth goddess Ninhursag (also called Ninmah or Aruru) shaped the clay into the first humans. The clay represented earthly matter and the blood of the gods represented divine intelligence and spirit. The goddess Ninhursag formed the figures of clay, while other birth goddesses assisted. The first humans were weak, so Enki adjusted their design by shaping their limbs, giving them breath, and strengthening their hearts.Then the goddess of birth (Nintu) placed the clay figures in her womb and birthed humanity. The first humans were called LU.LU (literally “mixed one” or “laborer”). Once alive, humans took over all the gods’ heavy work for example farming and irrigation, building temples and offering food and drink to the gods.
All of the gods rested for the first time since creation after the new beings were created. Humanity’s duty was to serve, feed, and honor the gods and this is the reason civilization existed in Sumerian thought. 

   As you can see humans were created in this myth the same way that we see in the Greek and Egyptian myth with a divine essence and clay. It seems that the ancient sumerians were a bit more straight forward with their belief of servitude to the gods, stating that they were created solely to serve the gods is more direct than you will hear in most myths which is interesting considering this is one of the oldest recorded mythologies.

 

Dogon

   Now let’s move on to the last myth that we will break down, the Dogon Myth. In the beginning, there was Amma the supreme god, the divine intelligence, the one representing both male and female. Amma existed alone in the void containing all potential within himself. He was both order and possibility, symbolized as a round egg of the world, called the “cosmic egg.” Inside this egg were all things, the stars, the sun, the earth, the ancestors, and the seeds of life all waiting to unfold. The cosmos does not begin with chaos here but potential it seems. From this primordial egg, Amma created the four elements  air, fire, water, and earth  and arranged them in balance. Then he created two pairs of twin beings male and female called the Nommo. These were amphibious, spiritual beings, part human, part serpent and part fish who lived in both water and air. The Nommo represent the life force, order, and the sacred word because they were the first souls of the universe. According to Dogon oral tradition the Nommo descended to Earth in a great ark made of clay, an object shaped like a shining, spinning vessel. The ark was filled with the seeds of life, plants, animals, and the essence of humanity. It landed upon the earthly waters, from which land and life would later rise.
The Nommo emerged from the ark, bringing rain, fertility, and sound which are considered the elements of rebirth. The Nommo, carrying the divine essence of Amma, formed the first humans from the earthly clay mixed with Nommo’s own life force, the sacred water and blood that had purified creation. The first human beings were twin souls, male and female in one, symbolizing balance. Later, Amma separated them creating man and woman to reflect the duality of creation for example sun and moon, day and night, also sky and earth. Each human received three parts the body (from the earth), the breath (from Amma’s spirit), and the soul (from Nommo’s blood and water). The Nommo are 8 beings, not just one. After shaping humans, Nommo became the teacher of humankind teaching the first people how to cultivate the soil and grow crops, how to weave cotton and make clothing, how to build homes, how to perform rituals, music, and dance to maintain cosmic order. They also gave them symbols and numbers, the foundations of Dogon astronomy and metaphysics. The Nommo taught man to speak,
and through speech, man became the image of Amma. The Nommo’s descent is not only about creation, it’s also about responsibility. Humans were given the knowledge to keep the balance. Humanity’s purpose is to continue the Nommo’s mission to bring order, fertility, and truth into the world. For reference balance was interrupted through rebellion of one of the Nommo which is Ogo. Among the first beings within the cosmic egg was Ogo, the Pale Fox, one of the male Nommo twins. But unlike his twin, Ogo was impatient and restless, driven by impatience, Ogo broke out of the cosmic egg prematurely. By doing so he disrupted the balance of creation the four elements became unbalanced, the symmetry of heaven and earth was disturbed and time began because perfection was no longer eternal and still. He carried away a piece of the cosmic placenta which is described as the divine material of creation  and used it to form his own false world. Ogo descended into the unformed world and tried to replicate Amma’s creation, but because he was acting alone and without his female twin, his work was flawed. His world was barren and lifeless and his actions distorted the pattern of creation making it asymmetric. He could not create true life because he had lost the creative word (Nommo’s power of divine speech). When Amma saw the disturbance, he understood that his creation had been violated. The perfect order was broken because the cosmic symmetry (the twin pattern) was shattered. So, Amma cast Ogo down to earth. Thus, Ogo became the Pale Fox, the spirit of disorder, solitude, and trickery. He was given the role of the messenger of chaos, the one who reminds creation of its imperfection. To restore balance, Amma sacrificed one of the obedient Nommo twins, the pure one who remained faithful. From his blood and body came the stars, the rain, the plants and the renewal of life. The sacrificed Nommo became a redeemer, balancing Ogo’s disorder with divine harmony. After being cast out, Ogo wanders the earth as Yurugu, the Pale Fox, trying to repair what he broke but he cannot. He steals things, lies, and imitates creation, but everything he makes is hollow. He is always searching for his missing twin, the female principle that would make him complete again. Ogo is forced to wander the Earth endlessly. 

   We still seem to get the human creation from divine essence and clay in this myth. In this one we can see that humans were more so created to restore balance.

 

Human Creation Theory

   There are many more myths that have a similar human creation story, but the commonality that we see in these myths of human creation is something I guess I have said probably about 20 times on this episode “humans formed from clay and were given a divine essence.” What does this mean and why is it important? Some people may believe that we are only here to worship and some may believe that we are just here for no specific reason, just the way of the universe. From an ancient point of these myths and many more I did not touch base on in this video describing us as being placed here for a purpose. Whether that purpose is to serve the gods, worship or just simply maintain cosmic balance the ancients believed in purpose. Now I am not one to put validation toward any of these ideologies because I can truly only speak from my point of view and you yours. Through my research of the past and today much has not changed in the ideology of our purpose for being here based on religion, science and philosophy because the truth is that it is one’s own perspective right. See existence is a mystery to us, but that is the beauty of it because the ability to question it is what gives us meaning and reason to keep on seeking further information. I mean some people may think they already have it figured out, scratch that a lot of people think that they already have it figured out through modern day religions or philosophies. The ancients thought that they had it figured out to an extent, but what happened to them and their culture, they were washed away and they had to begin anew. A new religion, a new tradition, a new philosophy not because they couldn’t keep record because we have record of their beliefs, but because they were dispersed because they all thought that their way was the right way. 

   The myths that I just told and the religion and stories that we have today do differ but very faintly I mean it's barely a difference because all have the same beginning and the same end just told in different ways. The world is created, the god comes and gives knowledge to humanity, the god leaves, humans suffer and seek ways to find that nostalgia again leading primarily to their doom. The point of focus is always what god or which god, but I wanted to go into the human creation stories to tell you that it doesn’t matter what god or which god because all of them had the same chaotic and peaceful embodiments of emotion and personality that we humans also have. The main point that should be focused on today and should have been focused on back then is that the god who created us put their divinity inside of us and for some reason that may differ upon beliefs needs us. If not there would be no point for the creation of us. The common belief is that no god is like us through modern day practice and ancient practices and traditions, but the stories heavily contradict this belief if you actually know the stories. These gods may have been way beyond human comprehension at the time and still may be beyond the comprehension that we have today, but I have not read or come across anything that has stated a god saying out of their own lips that they are nothing like humans only humans. In fact the highest entity described throughout the stories for example the primordial deities that represent chaos and balance that seem to be symbolisms of pure consciousness are the only type of beings or entities that do not seem to thrive in human characteristics and these are described as the supreme beings or principles not gods for example Olodumare in Yoruba, Nun in Egyptian, Chaos in Greek, ame-tsuchi no keiton (Ah-meh-tsu-chee no kon-ton) in Shinto or Amma in Dogon. All of these entities or forms came first and they basically represent the potential for creation from a formless void which sounds a lot like consciousness. Even in monotheistic religions such as Christianity but this verse is in relation to all “The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.”— Genesis 1:2 So it is not worth getting caught up in what god or which god when they all seem to derive from the same consciousness in different ways and this is why we miss the most important part that speaks of the divinity put inside of us when the first humans were created in the stories. That divine breath is already inside of us but we are constantly looking outwardly trying to find it.