Jovan+Lewis

The Christian, Hindu, and Muslim Creation Myths.

In many ways these myths are similar but I want to know what sets them apart here are the three stories.

The Christian Creation Story The Christian God, Jehovah.

The following creation story is found in Genesis 1 and 2 in the Old Testament section of the Bible, the Christian holy book. Provided by http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/

(In the beginning, God created the universe. At first the earth was shapeless and covered in darkness, and God's spirit hovered over the waters. God said, "Let there be light". And there was light. God divided the day from the night, naming them ' day' and 'night'. This was the first day and God saw that it was good. On the second day God made the heavens to separate the water from the earth and on the third day he raised the dry land up from the waters below the heavens and commanded the earth to bring forth all plants. God saw that it was good. God then made the greater light for the day and the lesser light for the night, and he saw hat it was good. This was the fourth day. On the fifth day God commanded the waters to fill with living creatures and the air to fill with birds. And he was pleased with what he saw. On the sixth day God commanded the earth to bring forth all kinds of living creatures and he saw that it was good. God then said " Let us make man in our own image". So God created man and woman in his own likeness and gave them authority over all living things. God looked at everything he had made and was very pleased. On the seventh day, God rested. Now the first man, Adam, was created by God out of soil and given life by God's breath. Adam named all the animals and birds that God had made, But Adam had no companion of his own so God caused hem to fall into a deep sleep and created woman - Eve- from one of Adam's ribs. God told them that together they could live in the Garden of Eden eating whatever they wished except the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But the most cunning animal, which God had made -the serpent -, tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. So Adam and Eve both ate and suddenly saw what they had done ant that they were naked. Covering themselves with fig leaves they tried to hide from God. But God knew of their sin and called out to them. Then he cursed the serpent and Adam and Eve, and in shame they were driven from the beautiful Garden. God told Adam he would now have to toil and sweat to work the very soil from which he had been created. Then God blocked the entrance to the Garden with a great fiery sword so that no one could enter in.)

The Muslim Creation Story Provided by http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/ The Symbol for the Islam God, Allah.

(In the time before time, God was. And when God wants to create something, all he needs to say is "Be", and it becomes. So it was that God created the world and the heavens. He made all the creatures, which walk, swim. Crawl and fly on the face of the earth. He made the angels, and the sun, moon and the stars to dwell in the universe. And consider, as the Qur'an says, how God poured down the rain in torrents, and broke up the soil to bring forth the corm, the grapes and other vegetation; the olive and the palm, the fruit trees and the grass. Then it was that God ordered the angels to go to the earth, and to bring seven handfuls of soil, all of different colors, from which he could model man. God took the seven kinds of earth and moulded them into a model of a man. He breathed life and power into it, and it immediately sprang to life. And this first man was called Adam. God took Adam to live in Paradise. In Paradise, God created Eve, the first woman, from out of Adam's side. God taught Adam the names of all the creatures, and then commanded the angel to bow down before Adam. But Iblis, one amongst the angels, refused to do this, and thus began to disobey God's will. God place the couple in a beautiful garden in Paradise, telling them that they could eat whatever they wanted except the fruit of on forbidden tree, But the evil one tempted them to disobey God, and eat the fruit. When God knew that Adam and Eve had disobeyed him, he cast them out of Paradise and sent them to earth. But God is merciful. The earth was created to give food, drink and shelter to the human race. The sun, moon and stars give light. It is a good world, where everything has been created to serve people. And people, the Qur'an teaches, should serve God and obey his will. For those who submit to the will of God will be saved, and taken to live for ever in Paradise.)

The Hindu Creation Story Provided by http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/ The Hindu God, Brahma.

(This is not the first world, nor is it the first universe. There have been and will be many more worlds and universes than there are drops of water in the holy river Ganges. The universes are made by Lord Brahma the Creator, maintained by Lord Vishnu the Preserver and destroyed by Lord Shiva. Since the universes must be destroyed before they can be recreated, Lord Shiva is called the Destroyer and Re-creator. These three gods are all forms of Supreme One and part of the Supreme One. The Supreme One is behind and beyond all.After each old universe is destroyed nothing is left but a vast ocean. Floating on this ocean, resting on the great snake Ananta, is Lord Vishnu. Some say that a lotus flower springs from his navel and from this comes Lord Brahma. And it is from Lord Brahma that all creation comes. How dies Lord Brahma create? Some tell of how he grows lonely and splits himself in two to create male and female. Then he becomes one again and human beings are created. In the same way he creates all the other living things, from the great animals to the tiniest insects. Others say that everything comes from different parts of Lord Brahma's body. All the different animals and all the people come from his mouth, arms, thighs and feet. Everything comes from one - Lord Brahma, who is part of the Supreme One - so everything is part of the Supreme One. For this universe, this world and this Lord Brahma, like all those before and all those to come, will be destroyed by Lord Shiva.How long is the life of a universe? Its length is beyond imagination. One day to Lord Brahma is longer than four thousand million of the years that we know. Every night when Lord Brahma sleeps the world is destroyed. Every morning when he awakes it is created again. When the Lord Brahma of this universe has lived a lifetime of such days the universe is completely destroyed by Lord Shiva. Everything disappears into the Supreme One. For an unimaginable period of time chaos and water alone exist. Then once again Lord Vishnu appears, floating on the vast ocean. From Lord Vishnu comes forth Lord Brahma of the new universe and the cycle continues for ever.)

"Let There be light" The famed quote stated by the Christian and Muslim gods, appears in both creation stories. On command light shone on the new world.
 * Similarities:**

In the beginning there was nothing In the Christian and Muslim creation stories the world was non existent until the god created everything.

A single God Created everything from animals to plants. In all three stories a single god created everything with ease as everything happened on command.

A tri-body in Hindu and Christianity In christianity there are 3 parts of god; the father, the son, and the holy spirit. In Hinduism the 3 parts are Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.

"The Breath of Life" In the Christian and Muslim creation stories everything was brought to life with a single breath from the god.


 * Differences:**

It is a different god in each one. Christian god, Jahovah Muslim god, Allah Hindu god, Vishnu

The Hindu creation story says that this is not the first world or the first universe. The hindu creation story says that this is not the first universe and that they get destroyed and recreated over vastly long periods of time.

Brahma seemingly changed into the animals and creatures then changed back. Brahma, the hindu god, created the creatures by shapeshifting, multiplying, and changing back to himself. The Christian god and Allah seemingly made everything from soil and clay.

After reading these stories multiple times over I have come to the conclusion that there are no major differences between the three stories of creation from these religions. They are basically the same story just told in different ways with different gods. In conclusion I see no reason for religious disputes on who's god is the real one. I believe they are all one god. The creation stories prove it, from the breath of life to the fact that there was a tribunal, therefore I believe that there is no reason for religious disputes over the creation of everything because basically the same thing happened in each religion. Even though they have different names these main gods they still do similar things and have similar roles in how things work therefore I think they are the same god.


 * Final Thoughts:**

From what I gathered in similarities and differences between these three creation myths I have come to the conclusion that these three stories have more in common than they have thats different. For example the let there be light and the breath of life and the tribunal in the gods all appear in each one. If religions could realize the similarities that outweigh the differences then maybe that would stop all these religious disputes about who's god is real and what really happened. I have come to the conclusion that these are all the same god.

Bibliography "Christian Creation Story." //Innovations Learning - Welcome to Innovations Learning //. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. 

"Hindu Creation Story." //Innovations Learning - Welcome to Innovations Learning //<span style="background-color: rgba(0,0,0,0); font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/subjects/re/information/creation/hindu_creation.htm>.

<span style="background-color: rgba(0,0,0,0); font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">"Muslim Creation Story." //<span style="background-color: rgba(0,0,0,0); font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Innovations Learning - Welcome to Innovations Learning //<span style="background-color: rgba(0,0,0,0); font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.innovationslearning.co.uk/subjects/re/information/creation/muslim_creation.htm>.