A Pagan Creation Story and the Human Condition

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[wiscidea]

I learned about the following account while reading Gardens: An Essay on the Human Condition, by Robert Pogue Harrison...

Once when Care was crossing a river, she saw some clay; she thoughtfully took up a piece and began to shape it. While she was meditating on what she had made, Jupiter came by. Care asked him to give it spirit, and this he gladly granted. But when she wanted her name to be bestowed upon it, he forbade this, and demanded that it be given his name instead. While Care and Jupiter were disputing, Earth arose and desired that her own name be conferred on the creature, since she had furnished it with part of her body. They asked Saturn to be their arbiter, and he made the following decision, which seemed a just one: “Since you, Jupiter, have given its spirit, you shall receive that spirit at its death; and since you, Earth, have given its body, you shall receive its body. But since Care first shaped this creature, she shall possess it as long as it lives. And because there is now a dispute among you as to its name, let it be called homo, for it is made out of humus (earth).”

You can read an excerpt from the book, including the above text, at:

http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/317892.html

Aside from the amazing parallel between this story and another popular creation story, I'm interested in Care, the goddess who shaped humans and imbued us with a characteristic that might separate us from other animals.

THEORY: Care does distinguish us from other animals. It is both a blessing and a curse. We are almost obsessed with a desire to take care of everything and everyone around us. We want to manage EVERYTHING. Sometimes it gets us into trouble, as we try to "care" about people who would rather be left alone. But, never-the-less, it sort of set the stage for our success as a species.

The direction of this thread is up to you:

Other Pagan creation stories that define what it means to be human?

Does care distinguish us from other animals?

[Gorm_Sionnach]

I learned about the following account while reading Gardens: An Essay on the Human Condition, by Robert Pogue Harrison...

Once when Care was crossing a river, she saw some clay; she thoughtfully took up a piece and began to shape it. While she was meditating on what she had made, Jupiter came by. Care asked him to give it spirit, and this he gladly granted. But when she wanted her name to be bestowed upon it, he forbade this, and demanded that it be given his name instead. While Care and Jupiter were disputing, Earth arose and desired that her own name be conferred on the creature, since she had furnished it with part of her body. They asked Saturn to be their arbiter, and he made the following decision, which seemed a just one: “Since you, Jupiter, have given its spirit, you shall receive that spirit at its death; and since you, Earth, have given its body, you shall receive its body. But since Care first shaped this creature, she shall possess it as long as it lives. And because there is now a dispute among you as to its name, let it be called homo, for it is made out of humus (earth).”

You can read an excerpt from the book, including the above text, at:

http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/317892.html

Aside from the amazing parallel between this story and another popular creation story, I'm interested in Care, the goddess who shaped humans and imbued us with a characteristic that might separate us from other animals.

THEORY: Care does distinguish us from other animals. It is both a blessing and a curse. We are almost obsessed with a desire to take care of everything and everyone around us. We want to manage EVERYTHING. Sometimes it gets us into trouble, as we try to "care" about people who would rather be left alone. But, never-the-less, it sort of set the stage for our success as a species.

The direction of this thread is up to you:

Other Pagan creation stories that define what it means to be human?

Does care distinguish us from other animals?

I'm not all that familiar with Roman mythology, but I've never heard of a Roman Goddess named Care. Did the author mean Ceres? I'm also unsure why Jupiter would receive the spirit after death, as that was the role of Pluto/ Dis Pater (the Roman deities who were associated with Death)

As far as Pagans go... there isn't much of a consensus as to the place of animals vs humans. Many Pagans are vegetarians or Vegans, but an equal number eat meat, and some even perform animal Sacrifices (another topic; but it is seen (by those who practice it) in the same light as the kosher/halal slaughter of animals).

GRP's (so far as I can speak) certainly tend towards the traditional, and so most of the one's I know do consume meat, offer it, and some even perform ritual sacrifices (with their own livestock of course) and there is not much about the creation of animals vs people (since we lack a definitive cosmogenic myth too boot), though there are numerous proscriptions about not treating animals with cruelty. Certainly most support slaughtering the animals we consume be as humane as possible (Though I'm not sure how much the issue is in regards to eating meat vs other issues, it seems to be the predominant issue in such discussions.)

Numerous mythic figures are associated with animals, Cuchulain after all is named after a dog. He also had a geas to not consume the flesh of dogs, one of the things which lead to his eventual death. Other figures have parentage among the peoples of the other world, often associated with Birds.

[wiscidea]

The quoted text might be from Ovid's Metamorphoses.

I suppose I trusted the author, who is a professor of Italian Literature at Stanford, to get his facts right. But after seeing your question, I realize I'm going to have to do some fact checking. His writing style includes mixing parallel myths—as a means of examining them—and it is sometimes difficult to sort them out. I was focused more on the meaning of the myths while reading, not on the precise culture they emerged from. My bad.

Anyway, the professor in question matter-of-factly uses the designation Cura and Care interchangeably. I believe intellectual leap is the Cura, translated into English, is Care. If you Google this, you will find two Curas, one a creator of humankind and the other somehow tied to the Underworld. Each distinct from Ceres, I think.

That's all I can type write now. We are off to see the latest Harry Potter movie.

Namaste.

[Shirley]

The quoted text might be from Ovid's Metamorphoses.

I suppose I trusted the author, who is a professor of Italian Literature at Stanford, to get his facts right. But after seeing your question, I realize I'm going to have to do some fact checking. His writing style includes mixing parallel myths—as a means of examining them—and it is sometimes difficult to sort them out. I was focused more on the meaning of the myths while reading, not on the precise culture they emerged from. My bad.

Anyway, the professor in question matter-of-factly uses the designation Cura and Care interchangeably. I believe intellectual leap is the Cura, translated into English, is Care. If you Google this, you will find two Curas, one a creator of humankind and the other somehow tied to the Underworld. Each distinct from Ceres, I think.

That's all I can type write now. We are off to see the latest Harry Potter movie.

Namaste.

Not to put a to fine point on it but you should trust the professor.

[Gorm_Sionnach]

The quoted text might be from Ovid's Metamorphoses.

I suppose I trusted the author, who is a professor of Italian Literature at Stanford, to get his facts right. But after seeing your question, I realize I'm going to have to do some fact checking. His writing style includes mixing parallel myths—as a means of examining them—and it is sometimes difficult to sort them out. I was focused more on the meaning of the myths while reading, not on the precise culture they emerged from. My bad.

Anyway, the professor in question matter-of-factly uses the designation Cura and Care interchangeably. I believe intellectual leap is the Cura, translated into English, is Care. If you Google this, you will find two Curas, one a creator of humankind and the other somehow tied to the Underworld. Each distinct from Ceres, I think.

That's all I can type write now. We are off to see the latest Harry Potter movie.

Namaste.

I did find a few stubs on Cura, though as I mentioned Roman mythology is hardly my forte... I'm also unable to find any notions of the souls of the dead going to Jupiter, as there are two fairly well attested Roman "Gods of Death", I could be wrong, there very well may be a tale where Jupiter does just that...

I know that Jupiter over threw Saturn to become the principal Roman deity, but that Saturn does have an arbiter aspect as well, though if Jupiter would have asked his own deposed father to settle a claim for him... it sounds a bit like myth mixing.

[wiscidea]

I FOUND IT!

The story in question was written down by the Roman mythographer Gaius Julius Hyginus (ca. 64 BC – AD 17).

There is an online version of his Fabulae at www.theoi.com/Text/HyginusFabulae1.html, which looks like an interesting website.

The story in question is Fable #220 if you wish to go directly to that portion of the record.

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