The Handy Mythology Answer Book by Leeming, David A. -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Cover Page Title Page Copyright Page Contents Photo Credits Introduction Definitions and Origins

Definitions Prehistoric Mythology Myth-Makers Mythographers and Mythologists Types of Myths: Creation, Gods, and Heroes … Philosophy and Psychological Myths

Middle Eastern Mythologies

Sumerian Gods and Heroes Inanna’s Descent The Semites Mythology of Babylon The Gilgamesh Epic The Hebrews and Canaanites The Bible and Judaism The Arabs and Islam Muhammad The Christian Story Iran: Zoroastrianism and Mithraism The Phrygians

Egyptian Mythology

Egyptian Religion and Mythology The Egyptian Pantheons Egyptian Creation Myths The Myth of Isis, Osiris, and Horus Other Egyptian Myths and Influences

Cycladic, Minoan, Mycenaean, and Archaic Greek Mythology

The Cyclades and Crete Daedalus, Icarus, and Theseus and the Minotaur Minoan Religion and Mythology The Mycenaeans and Homer The Trojan War and the Iliad The Odyssey Hesiod, the Greek Creation Myth, Wars among the Gods

Classical Greek Mythology

The Greek Pantheon and the Olympians The Greek Gods and Human Life Origins of the Greek Gods The Greek Mystery Cults and Hero Sagas Herakles and the Twelve Labors Theseus Perseus and Medusa Jason and the Golden Fleece The Meaning of the Greek Hero Myths The Dramas of Ancient Athens Aeschylus and the Oresteia Sophocles and the Oedipus Cycle Euripedes, Medea, and Dionysus Orpheus, Orphism, and Philosophical Myths

Roman Mythology

Indo-Europeans Latins, Etruscans, and Archaic Rome Romulus and Remus Mythology of the Roman Republic Aeneus and Virgil’s Aeneid Ovid and the Metamorphoses The Emperor-God and Foreign Borrowings

Celtic Mythology

The Insular Celts: Ireland and Wales The Tuatha de Danaan Cuchulainn and the Tain Fionn and the Fenian Cycle Welsh Mythology The Welsh Pantheon Heroes of Wales King Arthur

Norse Mythology

Snorri and the Eddas The Norse Pantheon The Norse Creation Myth and Wars in Heaven The Hanging of Odin and Ragnarok The Norse Hero Sagas: The Volsungs Norse Mythology and the World

Indian Mythology

The Indo-Iranians and the Indus Valley Culture Vedic Culture Post-Vedic Hinduism The Indian Creation The Hindu Pantheon Vishnu Krishna The Mahabharata The Rāmāyana Shiva Devi: The Great Goddess Buddhism

East Asian Mythology: China and Japan

Sources of Chinese Mythology The Chinese Pantheon The Chinese War in Heaven, Creation, and Flood Chinese Heroes Historizing Chinese Myths; Confucism and Taoism Buddhism, Shamanism, and Chinese Mythology The Japanese Sources of Japanese Mythology The Creation: Izanagi and Izanami Amaterasu: The Great Goddess The Japanese Buddhist and Shinto Pantheons

Central Asian Mythology

Central Asian Themes and Gods Master Spirits and Shamans Central Asian Creation and Devil-Tricksters Central Asian Heroes

Oceanic Mythologies: Australian Aborigine and Polynesian

Australian Aborigines and the Dreaming Australian Creations and Floods The Polynesians: From New Zealand to Hawaii Polynesian Pantheons Polynesian Creation and Flood Myths Maui, the Hero and Trickster

African Mythologies

The African Supreme Being and Creation African Goddesses and Tricksters Legba and Ananse African Heroes

Mesoamerican and South American Mythologies: Maya, Aztec, Inca

Mesoamerica The Maya and the Popol Vuh The Mayan Gods and Heroes Monte Alban and Teotihuacan The Toltec and Aztec Huitzilopochtli and Quetzalcoatl The South Americans The Inca

Native North American Mythologies

Native American Spirits and Creators The Native American Great Goddess Native American Tricksters Earth Divers and Emergers Native American Hero Myths

Modern Myths

Modern Attempts to Explain Existence Psychology and Myth The Heroic Monomyth and Modern Gods

The World Myth

Principal Components of the World Myth The Supreme Being and Great Goddess Fertility and Animal Gods Tricksters War in Heaven and the Creation The Flood The Hero The World Myth

Appendix 1: Parallel Mythology

Chart of Universal Mytho logical Types and Themes

Appendix 2: Selected Mythological Texts

The Descent of Inanna (Ishtar) into the Lower World The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI, The Story of the Flood Noah’s Flood The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Papyrus of Ani The Odyssey Metamorphoses The Words of Odin the High One

Characters in Mythology Glossary Bibliography Index