By the Gods!
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Abraham
Abraham, whose name means “Father of a Multitude,” is a major character in the Old Testament, and is referred to by the oldest sources simply as “the Hebrew.” The Bible states that Abraham (originally named Abram) was the tenth generation from Noah, and the twentieth generation from Adam. He was sent to Canaan, the land promised to the Israelites by Yahweh. It was Abraham who began the covenant with Yahweh, granting Abraham and his descendants ownership of the land in exchange for recognition of Yahweh as their only god.
He was a devoted guy, to be sure. When Yahweh told him to take Isaac, his son, up a mountain and sacrifice him, he didn’t hesitate. It turned out to be one of those “I just wanted to see if you’d actually do it” situations, and Isaac was saved at the last second by divine intervention.
He was the first of the three great patriarchs, his son Isaac and his grandson Jacob being the other two. Abraham was said to live around 2,000-1,800 BCE, and his importance in relation to Yahweh is such that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are all referred to as the “Abrahamic religions.” In Islam, Abraham is known as “Friend of God,” and is regarded as the propagator of the original pure monotheism, which was restored and perfected by the prophet Muhammad. Muhammad, in turn, was said to be a descendant of Abraham, through the line of his other son, Ishmael.
Izanagi and Izanami (Part One)
According to Shinto belief, Izanagi and Izanami were the eighth pair of deities to appear after the heaven and earth had been formed out of chaos. They were ordered to create the islands of Japan, and did so by standing on the bridge of Heaven and lowering a spear into the sea and stirring. When Izanagi removed his spear, a droplet fell from its tip and became the first island. The two gods descended to the island, and built it up real pretty like.
One day, Izanami realized that her body was not fully formed in one place, and Izanagi realized that his had been formed in excess in that same place. You get what I’m saying? Might be a good pick-up line in the future. So, they brought these parts together, and Izanami bore a child, Hiruko, dubbed “Leech Child,” as he was deformed. They assumed he was deformed because Izanami, the woman, had spoken first during their courting ritual. They tried again with Izanagi speaking first, and this time Izanami gave birth to the islands of Japan, as well as to the gods and goddesses of waterfalls, mountains, trees, plants and the wind. Ouch. While giving birth to the god of fire, Kagutsuchi, however, Izanami was burned so badly that she died. Mega-Ouch. Even while dying she continued to bear more and more gods, but eventually disappeared to Yomi, the land of the dead.
There’s more to this story! Stay tuned for the conclusion of the tale of Izanagi and Izanami!
Romulus and Remus
The twin sons of Mars, the God of War, torn from their mortal mother at birth by a king nervous of their power and lineage, Romulus and Remus were thrown into the river Tiber. The river couldn’t get the job done, however, and their cradle washed up on a mud bank a few miles away. Mars sent his sacred animal, the wolf, to look after his sons, and they were nourished by the wolf’s milk and protected by her until being found by a shepherd.
Time passed, and long story short, they founded the city of Rome. At one point, the twins got into a bit of a tiff, and Romulus killed Remus with a spade. Romulus, though, went on to rule Rome with a strong hand, and the city flourished.
The Romulus and Remus myth for Rome’s founding was about as popular as that of Aeneas. The she-wolf became the symbol of Roman nationhood around 500 BCE.
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