Mythic Origin Stories—What's Yours?

MYTH AS THE MODEL

There are many places in the world that have two origin stories—one based in fact and another in myth. What if people had mythic origin stories, too?

The legend of Rome is that it was founded by Romulus who, with his twin brother, Remus, were rescued and raised by a she-wolf after being abandoned as babies in the Tiber River. Another example is the mythical origin story of Thebes, Greece. The city, we are told, was founded by Cadmus, the exiled prince who was guided by a cow. Where the cow lay down, Cadmus established the city of Thebes, populating it with warriors grown from the teeth of a dragon he slew.

‘Cadmus Slays The Dragon’ by Hendrick Goltzius (c.1600 - c.1617)

Archeological evidence suggests this is just a bunch of nonsense—Rome was founded by Latins and Etruscans, and Thebes by Mycenaeans—which is how we gradually lose contact with these anchoring narratives. A record of history is created instead, like a picture formed by connecting evidentiary dot-points. Where the dots are missing, we fill in the blanks with logic.

That is not to infer that the benefits of scientific rationalism are insignificant. Our capacity for rational thought and scientific endeavour is the irrefutable cornerstone of modern humanity. Rational intellect empowers critical thinking, drives progress, shapes our understanding of the world, and how we frame knowledge.

However...

When we reduce reality to only the observable and measurable—when we dissect things into evidentiary fragments—we may not in fact gain a clearer understanding of the big picture, especially when we apply the principle to ourselves.

When we look at our own lives through a scientific lens, what do we see except cells and biological processes? Is it any wonder, then, that we have plunged into materialism? If one's model of oneself is purely physical-material, what else is there to do except compare and consume?

We are incredibly smart in so many respects, but do we understand the full extent of who we are? Isn't it a kind of hubris to assume that we possess all the requisite senses to experience the total extent of the universe? How can we know what we don't know?

The inner realm of the self is part of the unknown universe. We are ill-equipped to explore what drives and inspires us—the invisible parts that make us whole—because they can only be explored by experience. There is no scientific measure of direct personal experience; no objective perspective when it comes to individual meaning-making.

Exploring the Inner Realm: Digital Art by Myth Meets Modern

The secondary challenge is that self-exploration is a contemplative process—a narrative process—that we don't teach or value in modern times. Much of contemporary storytelling (books, songs, movies) is designed to be consumed, not contemplated. Our stories have been shrunk to match the size of our distracted attention spans and packaged for easy digestibility. We've lost our narrative appetite for the ineffable.

This is also how we've come to lose touch with the spirit of the past, with the psychic energy of our ancestors. We've forgotten how to read the symbols and metaphors of our ancestors, or we disregard their breadcrumb messages because their interpretation is too subjective. We fail to see that enduring myths are models for successful living or that ancient storytelling is a sophisticated cultural technique for passing timeless wisdom from one generation to another.

Is it possible…

There is perhaps no better place to found a new home than where a cow chooses to lie down in thick grass? Or in the protective custody of the wilderness?

How might these symbols apply to our own lives? What "cow" might each of us follow to greener pastures? Are we fighting the current or going with the flow? You never know—the wilderness and beasts we fear might actually turn out to help us.

Cadmus and the Dragon: Digital Art by Myth Meets Modern

Can we take courage from Cadmus' example to face our own dragons? What if the challenges we encounter are more like initiations—tests designed to grow our character and strengths; to reconnect us with our innate capacities?

Instead of elevating material existence, what if we were to place equal importance on the inner journey; on personal transformation and fulfilment; on finding and pursuing purpose? What if that inner process of became the foundation, the origin story, upon which our own, personal ‘cities’ of meaning are built?

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Art Sources

‘Cadmus Slays The Dragon’ by Hendrick Goltzius (c.1600 - c.1617) via WikiArt.org