Cosmological interpretations of the universe continue to predominate in many Eastern cultures, and a majority of Americans, knowing their zodiacal sign intimately, read their horoscope every morning with their coffee and Pop Tarts. Many people still celebrate Easter, although its connection with Ishtar might cause some of them pause, and Christmas and New Year's are modern ceremonial rituals connected with these early creation myths on a level that must be considered important to people today.
Conclusion
The research showed that ancient peoples were simply doing the best they could with what they knew about the universe with their creation myths. As the body of knowledge grew, these early myths were replaced with others that smacked of science but were still dominated by religious dogma that disallowed a comprehensive explanation of the facts. Clearly, early researchers such as Isaac Newton and Galileo were right on the money,...
Today, the average individual accepts the modern
theories about creation according to their religious views and subjective preferences of one explanation over another; after all, who really understands what a quark is, or how strange particles interact with each other at subatomic levels? For most people, the important questions continue to be "Where is the rent money?" And "Can you use a computer?" Nevertheless, these scientific explanations of how the universe was created continue to serve the same function the ancient creation myths did: They provide comfortable solace for those of us who may be uncertain or profoundly confused about our
place in the universe and how it all began.
Works Cited
Bergmann, Peter G. General Theory of Relativity. In Encyclopedia Britannica [premium service].
Brandon, S.G.F. Creation Myths. In Man, Myth & Magic: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of the
Supernatural, Vol. 4. New York: Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 1970.
Dauber, Philip M. And Richard a. Muller. The Three Big Bangs: Comet Crashes, Exploding Stars, and the Creation of the Universe. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books, 1996.
