Epics of India

"Greetings one and all! This is  Dating Deities , and I'm your host, Kamadeva, resident Goddess of Love. We have a great show for you today, so let's welcome our eligible Goddess, Aadya, to the stage."  Aadya floated across the stage in a long gown bejeweled with precious stones. She sat down gingerly on the gold chair on the right end of the stage, looking out over the audience with the demeanor of a queen gazing upon her subjects. Kamadeva the host walked over to her.  "Aadya, welcome. Why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself and what kind of man you're looking for?" "I am the primal Goddess, and my essence permeates all of creation. I am looking for a man who can match my power but respect me as the supreme Earth Mother." Kamadeva said, "Wonderful! Now let us meet the eligible male Gods." The darkened left side of the stage suddenly lit up, and Aadya's choices were bathed in light. Kamadeva...

-Rural cultures valued fertility     -Fertility rooted in women -Urban cultures valued obedience     -Obedience enforced by men Yang - dragon in the sky Yin - the phoenix, regenerating from its own ashes Patriarchal societies... -Link men with culture -Link women with nature The domination of women; men begin to "domesticate" women -A female monster being defeated by a male God in a Mesopotamian epic -Zeus raping nymphs -The first Japanese man and woman create the earth together and go around a pillar from opposite ends, intending to copulate when they meet     -The woman speaks first in their interaction and demon children are born     -One the second go around, the man speaks first and normal children are born In cities... Battle of power ---> desire to be king ---> competition between men ---> youth seeking to overthrow elders ---> elders constantly suspicious of youth -Women are the trophies of this rivalry P...

Important Figures Gaia: Earth mother in greek mythology Cronus: Kills his father in order to be born, then eats his children to prevent them from doing the same thing he did to his father Zeus: The only child of Cronus saved by Gaia, kills his father and "declares himself father of Gods of men" Theme in Mythologies Around the World A primal female deity is at first adored, and then "brutally sidelined" by a male deity Sedna -Inuit story -Sedna marries a seagull; unhappy, she asks her father to take her home in his boat -A flock of seagulls attacks -Sedna's father throws him overboard to save himself -As she tries to climb back, he cuts off her fingers -He then also cuts off her arms -As she sinks into the ocean, her dismembered limbs turn into the creatures of the sea: fish, seals, whales, ect. -Those who wish to hunt the children of Sedna must appease her through the "soothing words of Shamans" Aadya -From tantric Hindu tradition -...