Great Mythologies of the World

The ancient Greek myths are popular stories in Western civilization; knowing when these tales emerge and the earliest sources for them; looking into father-son conflicts between Uranus, Kronos and Zeus; the first-generation gods known as the Titans.

Three iconic goddesses whose personalities and stories reflect how the ancient Greeks view women; Athena emerges fully-formed from Zeus's head; Aphrodite is known for her wild love affair with Adonis; Hera presides over marriage and childbirth.

Insights into several Greek myths that teach about the relationship between gods and humans; learning whether Prometheus is a troublemaker or a liberator; knowing what happens after Pandora's box of evil spirits is opened; the Eleusinian Mysteries.

The mythological legacies of the powerful, but flawed, Greek hero, Herakles; common threads that run through some of his twelve labors; the slaying of the Hydra and the cleaning of the Augean stables; Herakles's role in ancient Greek society.

Odysseus is the hero of Homer's "Odyssey"; his plans for the Trojan horse; his tricking of a murderous cyclops; Odysseus's scheming and lying leads to heroic triumphs that make his story relatable to everyday ancient Greeks and modern readers.

A darker mythological adventure story is Jason's quest for the Golden Fleece; the best-known versions of both Jason's story and his wife, Medea's; seeing Jason as a failed hero and Medea as more than just the woman who murders her own children.

Uniquely Roman myths about the Roman Empire's founding, including the lives of the brothers Romulus and Remus; the abduction of the Sabine women; the difference between creation and origin stories; traditional mythic elements found in ancient Rome.

Discovering why Aeneas, the ancestor of all Romans, and Tarpeia, who betrays Rome for personal gain, are two sides of the same coin; how they offer inspirational testaments to Rome's values; character types seen in almost every civilization's myths.

Learning what Cybele reveals about the great mother goddesses of mythological traditions; this classic figure evolves over thousands of years; it adapts to different cultures; it becomes connected in Rome with power and aristocracy.

Using the intriguing tale of Dagda and his magic harp as a framework; Professor McClymond introduces the often unappreciated world of Celtic mythology; heroes like Cu Chulainn and Lugh; powerful magical items and treasures; the Stone of Fal.

Dark and brooding, Norse mythology reflects the harsh living conditions of ancient Germanic and Scandinavian people; two of the most well-known Norse gods are Odin, the god of war who sacrifices himself on a tree and Thor, the god of order.

Skidbladnir is the ship of the gods that can also fit in one's pocket; Andvarinaut is a powerful ring that inspires a cycle of mythological stories; such magical items are the prized possessions of Norse kings, warriors and heroes; their legacies.

Looking at the Epic of Gilgamesh; learning how this foundational Babylonian myth reflects real historical tensions between ancient Eastern city-states; tensions mirrored in the myth's concerns with civilized and untamed human nature.

Learning what the ancient Babylonians believed about the world's origins; startling similarities their account has with the Bible's; the Enuma Elish; a creation story that casts the average Babylonian as a mere afterthought in the eyes of the gods.

A destructive struggle between order and chaos; the mythography of Ancient Egypt, which includes multiple creation stories; a fantastic pantheon of gods; different mythic timelines; maat is the overarching concept of morality and justice.

Three Egyptian gods are inextricably linked with the pharaohs; the murdered and resurrected Osiris is associated with nature; Horus is responsible for unifying Upper and Lower Egypt; Ra is known for his nightly journeys through the land of the dead.

The pharaohs play a vital role in Egyptian culture, maintaining cosmic order throughout the land; the lives and deaths of Ancient Egypt's 330 pharaohs; King Amenhotep IV tries to become a supreme god; Cleopatra is the civilization's last pharaoh.

Examining the biblical Book of Job through a mythological lens; it addresses the same basic questions of other myths; Job's trials and tribulations at the hand of the Hebrew god force one to look at the world from a fresh perspective.

Indian culture's two great epics are the "Ramayana" and the "Mahabharata"; both are frame narratives that bring together hundreds of smaller stories; establishing Vishnu's importance; lasting effect on Indian spirituality, politics and literature.

A section of the Mahabharata known as the "Bhagavad Gita"; the layers behind the popular story of the warrior Arjuna; learning how to read the literary piece as a devotional story and a manual for life; how it shapes Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy.

Professor McClymond states that it is best to understand Buddhism as a grand anthology of short stories; the life and beliefs of the Buddha; the teachings of Buddhist myth as told through its stories; Buddhism and other religious traditions.

The Book of Kings is widely regarded as the national epic of the world's Persian-speaking community; this 11th-century epic poem traces 50 generations of Persian kings and heroes, including Rostam; his famous battle with the crown prince of Persia.

Exploring whether a secular text can be read as mythology; the "One Thousand and One Nights" is known in the West as "The Arabian Nights"; insights into heroes like Sinbad the sailor, mythical creatures like jinns; use of the supernatural.

It is not surprising that many myth traditions in South Asia and the Middle East include fire and flood in their stories of destruction and eventual renewal; this theme at work in Gilgamesh, Zoroastrian mythology and "Sermon of the Seven Suns".

The elements of African mythology; Shango is a fearsome king of the city-kingdom of Oyo who becomes a god; the cyclical structure of the story; African myths may start in the middle, seem to end, circle back to the beginning and then conclude.

Many myths found across the globe wrestle with the concept of how the world starts; African mythology is no exception; it embraces a variety of philosophies including ex nihilo myths, chaos stories and cosmology tales to explain one's existence.

The hierarchy of African religious myths is similar to many Western cultures; a single god occupies a position of authority, responsible for the world's creation; this creator has different names; Cagn, Jok and Ngewo; spirit beings and shamans.

The archetype of the trickster has resonated in storytelling worldwide; tricksters in African myth are troublemakers who are skilled at deception; often humorous, they sometimes represent human drives and weaknesses that explain calamities.

A recurring theme in African myth is the physical separation between the original creator god and humanity; there are parallels to biblical stories of the banishment of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden; how the theme is explored offers insights.

Lesser divinities are often involved in human affairs; the interactions between African gods and mortals express ideas about the relationship between mortal life and the divine; Mregho and Ruwa's story; Tricksters get involved in mortal ties.

The earliest superheroes are the cultural heroes of mythology; their stories inevitably capture something essential about the societies that tell them, comparing the Mongo story of Lonkundo, the Maasai story of Le-eyo and the Fon story of Sogbo.

Stories play a role in maintaining a code of behavior and morals; the inevitable gray areas; morality tales provide no clear right or wrong answers; seeking answers in discussions with one another; explorations of the nature of truth and virtue.

Because of their customary length and level of detail, epics provide a comprehensive sense of the early cultures that generate them; many incorporate genuine historical information; African mythology's captivating epics; "Dausi", an ancient epic.

The epic of "Bakaridjan Kone" is much more recent than the "Dausi"; it comes from almost the same part of Africa; much of its history is wracked by war and tensions with the peoples of the surrounding communities; traces of strong Muslim influence.

It is no surprise that death and the afterlife are major themes throughout African stories; these myths draw links between the importance of following divine instructions and adhering to law; the consequences of disobedience; the great beyond.

Three African mythological characters brave the land of the dead; how the experience affects them; the deeper meaning of those visits; viewing them in the context of the greater journey of each character; challenges that he or she faces.

The mythology of Asia and the Pacific with the story of Fu Xi; a profound truth about Chinese society and the mythology of the Pacific Rim; the importance of social networks; the omnipresence of water; the value of sacrifice; this region's myths.

Chinese myths of heroes and rulers engage with questions of what ought to be; utopian stories of sage-kings are often told alongside dystopian tales of evil leaders; the legends of Yao, Shun and Yu the Great; the two degenerates Jie and Zhou Xin.

The myths and sayings of rural peasants are transformed into formal verse; a highly sophisticated body of writing that profoundly shapes subsequent literature; much of the originality of the myths is often removed in the name of moral lessons.

Early Koreans interact with the spirit world through spirit mediums, primarily women, who perform shamanic rituals and preserve the culture; these traditions incorporate borrowings from Japan and China into a distinctively Korean syncretic blend.

Some pivotal figures of Korean mythology include Mireuk and his rival Seokga, the king Hyokkose of Silla and magistrate Pak Che-sang; the porous border between mythology and history; a trick for telling which myths are altered by scholars.

Stories of decaying goddesses; befouled maidens from the underworld; deities emerging from a parent's dirty nostrils; the contamination of the gods' most sacred spaces with divine excrement; the mythology of this culture which prizes purity.

Centuries of borrowing religious and political mythology from China and Korea; a syncretic blending of political myth-making that is influenced by Buddhism; the myth of Okuninushi and his 80 brothers; brothers Hoderi-no-mikoto and Hoori-no-mikoto.

Polynesian tales center around spirits of the natural world, some are helper-deities and some enjoy causing trouble; Ku and Hina have myriad subordinate versions; Lono has power over seas, clouds and storms; Maui brings many gifts to humanity.

Versions of the same myths found all over Micronesia; the creation story of the cosmic spider and the acts of the Trickster Olofat; how the missionaries, anthropologists, and other Westerners who record these myths leave their indelible marks.

Delving into variations of myths about the sun and moon; knowing how humans and other creatures are created; the development of anthropology as a field of study; how cross-cultural misconceptions and fascinations can fuel false reports.

Many variants on common mythological themes in this region; humanity emerging from eggs; tales of the origins of different animals; stories of how humans acquire fire; trickster tales of the delicate mouse-deer with those of the mischievous ape.

Australian mythology has features found nowhere else; the mystic underworld, from where most of life arises; the Totemic Ancestors; tales of the world's creation during Dream Time; the mystical songlines; colonial occupiers create their own myths.

Nature spirits take on a variety of forms in various cultures; discovering the maize myths and other stories about the origins of nature in the Americas; these stories demonstrate the way people answer questions about how the world comes to be.

A riveting Inuit story of Sedna, the old woman who lives under the sea; encountering the Nanabushu stories; the archetype of the Trickster, who is often a cultural hero; he is responsible for aiding in the creation of what one knows today.

The earth-diver creation myths; myths that deal with the founding of various groups, different from what one normally thinks of as Native American myths, since they do not deal with the mythic past; rather with a more recent, historical past.

The Southeast region of the United States is home to many Native American cultures; five key languages are spoken in the area; a sign language is created for easy intergroup communication; an encompassing body of myths that tie the peoples together.

Visiting the Great Plains to look at new myths involving creatures and environments that cannot be duplicated in other regions; the story of the Buffalo Woman; myths connect different groups of people; they serve as a beacon of individuality.

Life on the Northwest coast does not fit one's image of typical Native American civilizations; myths help create these governing systems and an economic hierarchy that is not seen in many other regions; mirrors some aspects of broader society today.

The concept of earth-diver and emergence origin stories; how they differ in the Southwest as one explores air-spirit people; a deeper understanding of the duality of the trickster as he both thwarts and contributes to the cultivation of the world.

An emergence myth from the Zuni people, involving Awonawilona All-Father, his two boys and the first writhing creatures of the deep; a similar story from the Hopi, which stars Tewa the Sun Spirit, Spider Grandmother and Masauwu the Skeleton Man.

In-depth with the trickster example; the trickster is a popular character in Native American myths.

In South and Central America, learning about the Maya, the Aztecs and the Incas; there are many shared stories and common origins; these people maintain cultures and myths that are significantly different from those of their cousins to the north.

Mesoamerican gods have several "manifestations" or "aspects"; each manifestation has a different appearance and powers, and is responsible for different things; meeting some of the major characters; how to follow the stories in all their iterations.

Comparing the Incas to the Roman Empire; finding some parallels in history and mythology; hearing the Kolla creation story from the Incas based on their understanding of their world, which can still speak to people across the years.