This semester, I am taking 18 credit hours which I thought wouldn’t be too difficult, but I was wrong. The hardest part of my schedule is that dozens of events, classes, meetings, assignment, or people are simultaneously demanding my attention; meanwhile, I try to balance academics, social life, professional development, and extra-curricular’s. All these demands are swirling in the back of my head as giant formless mass, much like the egg of matter from Pan Gu and Nu Wa, an Ancient Chinese creation myth.
Finally, after some time, though I’m not there right now, I will finally have a full handle on my situation. I will have my Garden of Eden, such as the Genesis story, where every tree is in its proper place and every animal is named. However, life is not always so smooth. I will have interruptions in my schedule and demands will shift. There will be a falling out in my mind, and a conflict will arise. The initial creation will be destroyed because it no longer behaved as initially intended, thus a second creation will arise.
Parallels can be drawn between creation myths from various cultures. These connections serve to expand an individual’s understanding of who he or she is, where he or she fits into the world, and how his or her understanding of the world relates to other individuals. The use personal experiences applied to various situations creates an expanded understanding of these concepts.
References:
Jan Walls and Yvonne Walls (translators and editors), 1984, Classical Chinese Myths: Hong Kong, Joint Publishing Company, 135 p. (BL1825.C48 1984)
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