Category Archives: Myths

Sacred narratives

Huo Yi and Chang’e

Text:

“So one time there was the world and there were nine suns, so it was really hot on earth, like unbearably hot, all the plants withered away, like it was so hot people would just stay in their house, it was a terrible time to live on earth. And so this archer, Hou Yi, decided to do something about the suns. So he got his bow and shot down eight suns, so now there was only one. But that meant the divine beings were really made that eight of their suns are gone from the celestial world. So he kind of got punished to live as a mortal – basically he was a divine being that’s how he was able to shoot down the suns – so he ended up finding a beautiful wife, Chang’e. And they are happily married and the villagers were very thankful for him to get rid of all eight suns because there is only one left and now the plants can grow, they can go outside, life was much more bearable. So they gift him with this elixir of immortality so he can go back to being a divine being. But he didn’t want to leave because he has a wife with him and that would mean he would have to choose immortality over her. So they just had a random elixir of immortality in their house. So one day he [Huo Yi] was just out in the field working, doing his archery stuff and his wife was at home. So he has an evil apprentice, who learns about this elixir of immortality and feeling jealous or greedy he wanted to get it for himself because he wanted to be immortal. And then he goes into their house and is looking for it, but Chang’e learns about his plan so instead of letting him [the evil apprentice] have it she drinks it and she ends up flying to the moon and becoming a divine being.”

Background:

The informant first heard the myth when she was in school. It’s a popular Chinese myth depicting the story of the moon spirit. The story also gives background to the Chinese Mid-Autumn festival. The informant says that there are many different variations of the story that have been told, though they all include Huo Yi and Chang’e.

Analysis: 

This is an extremely popular Chinese myth that many people of Chinese descent likely know. The first time I heard the story was in elementary school, though there was no evil apprentice. In another version, there are ten suns rather than nine. Sometimes the elixir of immortality is given by another divine being or immortal. It is typically told during the Mid-Autumn festival as an origin myth of Chang’e, the moon deity. Often during the Mid-Autumn festival, people make offerings of food and other things to the deities, including Chang’e, and pray. The moon is very significant in many Chinese traditions as the Chinese calendar follows the Lunar cycle. It’s often associated with women and feminity, and it was once believed that a woman’s menstrual cycle was connected to the lunar cycle. The moon in Chinese culture is also associated with yin, from the Chinese philosophical concept of yin and yang which describes the balance of opposing forces.

Nián (年)

Text: 

“There was this mythical beast that used to hang out in the bamboo forest, or the forest near a rural small town. And every year he would come up and cause a rampage, break the houses, eat everything and just cause a mess, eat humans, all these bad things. And they named the beast, Nián (年), because it comes every year, so his name is literally year. And so one day they realized when they were making lots of noises Nián gets scared of loud noises, so they started making really loud noises and they also learned that Nián doesn’t like the color red. So whenever the new year starts they would have explosions and fireworks and they’d make everything super red to scare away the beast. And ever since then he stopped bothering them.”

Background: The informant first heard this story from her mom when learning about the lunar festival. 

Analysis: 

This legend is often told during the Lunar New Year. It describes the origins of Chinese Lunar New Year traditions. When I first learned of the legend I was not told that the beast had a name. Though now thinking about it, the name, Nián, is fitting for the beast as it comes every year. Traditionally, people dress in red on Lunar New Year believing it will bring luck and wealth. People also set off fireworks and firecrackers to chase away bad spirits that may wish them harm. The legend has become a very important part of Chinese Lunar New Year traditions and has little variation despite its age. Often legends, myths, and tales have multiple variations from circulating around for such a long time, but this legend has more or less stayed the same.

Angel Childhood Musical Ballad: Legend/Myth

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 3/23/23
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish

Text: 

Me: “Did you grow up hearing any bedtime stories?”

CC: “Um not really, instead my mom used to sing me a song before falling asleep about an angel”.

Me: “Can you sing it for me?”

CC: “Sure…Angél de mi guardia…dulce compañero…no me dejas sola…de noche ni de dia”.

Me: “Who is this angel?”

CC: “Well in my Catholic Mexican household we often believe that angels are here on earth to protect us especially at night and during the day. Growing up I was told that the angels will come in our dreams and we can see what they looked like if we really believed. Usually they are said to be dressed in white and have a calm demeanor. Part of the reason why my parents would sing this song to us during bedtime was to make sure the angels would come to protect us as we rested. If they didn’t sing it to us, the angels wouldn’t be in our dreams and we wouldn’t be protected at night”.

Translation: “Angel of my guard, sweet companion, you do not leave me alone, night or day”

Context (informant’s relationship to the piece, where they heard it, how they interpret it):

-CC’s relationship to this piece stems from her Catholic Mexican culture given that her Mexican household consisted of religious beliefs that resulted in comfort. CC would hear this musical legend/myth from her mother as she would often sing it to her when she would go to sleep or had trouble falling asleep. CC interprets this musical legend/myth as a calming coping mechanism that helps her fall asleep quicker. In actuality, CC interprets this musical ballad as a prayer-like story that helps her connect to her faith. 

Analysis(what kind of personal, cultural, or historical values might be expressed) YOUR interpretation:

-The overall cultural value within this musical legend/myth stems from the Mexican Catholic culture that can be seen represented in the childhood home of CC within her family’s overall spiritual and religious beliefs. Not to mention, the personal values that can be expressed within this musical legend/myth is that it allows the individual to inherit the calmness and the overall reassurance that results from their conscious beliefs. I see this musical legend/myth as an overall concept of protection and safety that is implemented by a caring caregiver. Considering that I have heard about similar legends/myths regarding angels myself, I interpret this musical legend/myth to be a validating motive that can be seen as a stress reliever or as an act of reassurance considering protection is granted as you rest. Considering that I don’t have similar experiences with hearing this specific musical ballad, I can still relate to it given the fact that I have grown up hearing mythical legend stories revolving around angels within my Catholic religion as well. The mythical legend that I grew hearing about was the guardian angel named Michael. The similarity within the angel named Michael and the guardian angel within CC’s ballad is that both angels are called upon for protection and guidance. Unlike CC’s ballad, the angel guardian Michael is said to heal those who are sick while they rest. Considering the similar approach between these two mythical legends, it is safe to assume that these two stories can be claimed as different oikotypes. Considering this mythical legend stems from religious perspectives, it can be claimed as an overall supernatural-individualistic process that plays into the category of sacred myths.  

Myth – Hindu Cosmology

Nationality: Indian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student

Text: 

“One of the biggest beliefs in Hinduism is the belief of reincarnation and that kind of stems from how the universe started. For Hindus, the universe was created by Lord Brahma who was the creator who made the universe out of himself. There are different beliefs on how he created the universe. One of the beliefs was that after he created the universe, the power of Lord Vishnu, which is part of the power that the universe carried, turned into a kind of you could say the responsibility of life and death and the cycle. It’s more specifically described as karma; the more good you do the better your next life will be until you achieve a kind of enlightenment stage. The third part is Lord Shiva who is responsible for the destruction of the universe; we believe that at some point that’s going to happen. As for how the universe came into origin specifically, one of the theories was that Lord Brahma divided himself into two parts one man and one female to start life. Another theory is that after he created the universe, Lord Vishnu grew a lotus flower and that flower was divided into three parts: the sky, the earth, and the heavens, which brought life.”

Context:

This story was told by my roommate who is from India. Her religion is Hinduism so she hears this creation story from a young age. She always remembered this story as it is a part of her religion as well as a part of her identity. When she explains this story to people it is not just a belief that’s written somewhere, it is her belief as well.

Analysis: 

I think for each religion there are differing beliefs in the creation of the universe. In Hinduism, there are three main gods with powers that are divided between the three; one represents destruction, one represents destiny, and the other represents the cycle of life and death. Even though the three gods are separated all three are needed in the creation of the universe symbolizing this idea of completion and divinity. Also, the god that represents the cycle of life emphasizes karma; the better you do in this life your destiny for the next life will be better.

The Color Changing Rosary

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Houston, Texas
Performance Date: 3/30/23
Primary Language: English

Context:

19-year-old S was raised Catholic in Houston, Texas. When she was in 9th grade, she attended her first overnight church retreat. During this retreat, she experienced the Catholic tradition of Adoration, in which the body of Christ in the form of the sacramental bread is displayed for prayer in the church.

Text:

During Adoration, S prayed her rosary, which was a gift from her grandmother. It had lavender-purple faux crystal beads. While praying she was overcome with emotion and started to cry. She put the rosary away and went to confession. Once adoration ended, she left the church and returned to a different building where they broke off into small groups to talk about the experience.

S opened up the little white bag containing the rosary and suddenly noticed that the beads were a bright baby blue. She believed that the rosary had changed color during Adoration, coinciding with her intense emotional experience. This belief was affirmed by the adults leading the retreat, who told her that blue is the Virgin Mary’s color, meaning that she must have performed the miracle. S told her story to the whole room (50+ people) and called her mom in tears to tell her about the miracle. This moment was the strongest she had ever believed in God, but it was probably the last moment she ever believed to that extent as well.


The next morning when her mom came to pick her, S pulled out the rosary to show her. Her heart sank as it was purple again. She snuck back into the youth center and realized the grave mistake: it was only the lighting of that room that had changed the color of the rosary. Immediately she felt embarrassed for having believed such a miracle could have occurred. S says that her belief in Catholicism pretty much declined from there, largely due to other factors but also the humiliation of such an underwhelming event.

Analysis:

S thought she had a personal experience of myth, or the occurrence of a miracle, which is central to Catholic mythology. Often, for people growing up in christian communities, they are instilled with expectations for God’s incessant greatness and love for all his creation. Catholicism especially holds the notion of every-day miracles at its core, preaching that the divine can send little miracles, or head-nods, to acknowledge his creation and the hope of their eventual salvation.

The Christian doctrine creates endless promises to its followers, giving them hope for when hope is absent. However, when such promises are not conceived in any way, people tend to drift away from God. It is an underwhelming and confounding experience, which in turn deters followers from Christian doctrine and introduces them into a realm of harsh reality.

S believed she had experienced a miracle, which was so central to her belief system at the time. However, once she realized her miracle was false, she not only snapped back to reality, but also realized the prospect that much more than just the color-changing rosary was an underwhelming lie. Although she mentioned that other factors played a role in her rift from the church, this instance is symbolic of what happens with many when religious beliefs get flipped on their head.