Collectioncreation
In the Beginning
Stories of how the cosmos came to be - from primordial chaos to ordered creation, featuring the first gods and the birth of worlds.
Across traditions
The figures
They share a theme; their roles, beliefs and histories differ from one tradition to the next.
Chinese PantheonNuwaIllustrationThe serpent-bodied goddess who created humanity from yellow clay and repaired the broken sky after a great catastrophe.
Mesopotamian PantheonTiamatIllustrationThe primordial goddess of the salt sea and chaos dragon.
Hindu PantheonBrahmaIllustrationThe creator god and first member of the Trimurti.
Egyptian PantheonRaIllustrationThe supreme solar deity and creator god.
Norse PantheonOdinIllustrationKing of the Aesir and god of wisdom, war, and death.
Japanese PantheonIzanagiIllustrationMale primordial deity who, with Izanami, created the Japanese islands and many kami.
Japanese PantheonIzanamiIllustrationFemale primordial deity who created the Japanese islands and kami with Izanagi.
The stories
The Creation of the World from YmirNorse PantheonIn the beginning was the void Ginnungagap, with Muspelheim (fire) to the south and Niflheim (ice) to the north. When fire and ice met, they created the giant Ymir.
Enuma Elish - The Babylonian Creation EpicMesopotamian PantheonThe Babylonian creation myth tells how the young god Marduk slew the primordial chaos dragon Tiamat and fashioned the universe from her body, becoming king of all the gods.
The Creation of JapanJapanese PantheonThe primordial gods Izanagi and Izanami create the Japanese islands and countless kami, establishing the divine origins of Japan and its imperial line.
The Heliopolitan Creation MythEgyptian PantheonIn the beginning was the primordial waters of Nun, dark and chaotic. From these waters arose the primeval mound, and upon it stood Atum (later identified with Ra), the self-created god.
Oduduwa and the Creation of the EarthYoruba TraditionAfter Obatala fails his divine mission, Oduduwa descends from heaven to create dry land and establish the sacred city of Ile-Ife.
About this collection
By Elizabeth Stein for Mythos Atlas. About the author. Editorial notes are grounded in the site's cited sources and can be challenged through the contact page.
Collections group figures and myths by a shared theme. A shared theme is an editorial lens, not evidence that the traditions borrowed from one another.