Why Does Mythology Even Exist?
How mythological stories are born
Today, wherever we go, we hear stories specific to that region. It could be a scary story of an abandoned house, or a story of a lonely man. The purpose of such a rumor is to make those who are not like us a part of society with a story. As I explained in this article, mythology actually consists of rumors among the public and we can understand that it is a tool for modern times to get to know the ancient world.
The purest form of culture is the rumors we call mythology. I would like to support this with a few examples.
Founding stories of cities:
Byzantion/Constantinople/Istanbul:
According to the founding myth of Byzantion, a group of Greek colonists from the city of Megara established a settlement in the 7th century BC on the European coast of the Bosporus, which would later become the city of Byzantion. The myth is attributed to Byzas, the leader of the colonists.
Legend has it that Byzas consulted the Oracle of Delphi for guidance on establishing a colony. The Oracle told Byzas, “Go opposite to the land of the blind, stand against your enemy, and find a city.” Byzas followed the oracle’s advice and crossed to the opposite shore of the Bosporus. There, he founded a settlement, standing against his enemies, the Thracian tribes. This settlement eventually grew into the city of Byzantion.
Ephesus/Apaša:
According to one legend, the foundation of Ephesus is attributed to the Amazon queen Ephesus. Ephesus was the legendary queen of the Amazons, a tribe of warrior women. She was said to have founded and ruled over a city named after her.
The main purpose of founding myths
In ancient Greece, each city had its own founding myth, and in these stories, it is said that cities were founded from the very beginning, but this is not true. When we compare Greek mythology and Roman mythology, we can see how talented the Greeks were in literature. They used these abilities by making up founding stories for actually existing cities when they conquered them. In other words, the founding myths of cities are a tool used to convince the people living there that they are Greek.
Of course, mythology is not always a propaganda tool. Mythology is full of dozens of stories told to people to learn lessons. For this title, I will write only one story and I want to examine it in every sense.
Prometheus’ Gift to Humanity
Prometheus was a Titan sympathetic to humanity. At that time, humans didn’t have access to fire because it was kept as a special treasure of the gods on Mount Olympus. However, they knew fire could help them overcome various challenges.
Prometheus decided to help humanity and, with the assistance of Athena, stole fire from Mount Olympus and gave it to humans. With fire, humans could cook their food, build a shelter to live in warmth, and develop skills such as metalworking.
Zeus, the king of the gods, was displeased with this situation. He was angered by Prometheus giving fire to humans and sharing the privileges of the gods with them. To punish Prometheus, Zeus chained him to Mount Caucasus, where each day an eagle would come to eat his liver as punishment. However, Prometheus was immortal, so his liver would regenerate every night, subjecting him to torture again each day.
Prometheus gives fire to people, so fire is attributed a sacredness here. Zeus is jealous of humanity and punishes Prometheus for giving his fire, and he also takes fire away from people.
Even today, in most countries there are fires that have been burning for a long time and often represent freedom. Most likely, a fire burning in ancient times suddenly went out, and then people were told this story.
Additionally, Prometheus gives fire to humans by stealing it from the gods. This symbolizes humanity’s quest for wisdom, innovation and freedom. However, this action causes the wrath of the gods. This story emphasizes the importance of human courage, innovation and independence, while also describing the necessity of considering the consequences of every action.
Mythologies are stories that need to be examined in depth in every sense and read again and again, helping us understand the present while searching for the past.
Thank you for reading.
