What are the similarities and differences between eastern and western myths and civilizations?

Culture is one of the important topics in the modern and contemporary world. Now all countries are trying to export their own cultural values, and the cultural gap seems to have become a common term in all countries. If it is different from other cultures, it must be that our own culture is stronger, especially in Chinese and western mythology and culture, and this difference is magnified to the greatest extent.

The collision and communication between Chinese and western cultures actually existed as early as the last century or two. So is culture, and so is myth culture, which belongs to one of the big plates of culture. It is because of the collision and communication that people find that the differences between the mythological civilizations of the East and the West are too great. Westerners look down upon the introversion of orientals, while East Renye Fang people look down upon the generosity and enthusiasm of westerners. There are irreconcilable differences in the understanding of myth and civilization between westerners and orientals. However, even though the differences between mythical civilizations are so great, there are still many similarities, that is, they are * * *.

There are many such examples. Let me summarize a few first. For example, China used snakes as totems, and Nu Wa, who created human beings, was the head of a snake. In western mythology, Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden to breed human beings because they were bewitched by snakes.

Then, there are eschatological plots in Chinese and foreign myths. The west is flooded, and the east is the collapse of heaven and earth. Moreover, Fuxi and Nuwa are brother and sister, and they are related by blood, while Eve, as Adam's rib, is related by blood, and the two couples are related by blood, which coincides with mine.

In addition, Adam was made of dust by God, and Fuxi was conceived by his mother in the footsteps of Thor, which was also inseparable from the land. Even Nu Wa created human beings with clay, which is one of the same sex of Chinese and Western civilizations.

In fact, there are many such examples. In this article, we will study WU GANG in the East and Sisyphus in the West in detail to strengthen this argument. Although these two stories are born out of two completely different cultural environments, the situation is so similar, so this is actually the most prominent relationship between Chinese and Western civilizations, that is, homosexuality in human civilization.

First, from the experience, both of them were punished similarly.

Everyone in Wugang should be familiar with the Mid-Autumn Festival. The most famous story is the goddess the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon and WU GANG of WU GANG, one of the protagonists in this article. In fact, the story of Wu Gang's cutting Guangxi should have appeared in Youyang Miscellanies at the earliest. The book says: "The laurel tree is 500 feet high, and one person often squats under it, and the tree is the same length. His name is Wu Minggang and he is from Xihe. " It can be said that Wu Gang's cutting Guangxi was a punishment for WU GANG.

There are many different versions of stories about why WU GANG was punished for cutting down a tree that will never be cut down, such as Chang 'e's cheating, greedy for money and injustice, killing Sun Boling, and Yan Di who cheated on his wife. In the earliest edition of Miscellanies of Youyang, WU GANG was punished for cutting down trees because he made a mistake on the way to cultivate immortality, but in any case, WU GANG did make a mistake and had to cut down trees day and night.

Coincidentally, in addition to China, the west also has such an image, that is, Sisyphus, who is described as the king of Collins in ancient Greek mythology in Homer's epic. He was born greedy, sinister and unscrupulous for profit, so he was severely punished in hell after his death-he wanted to push the boulder up the mountain.

After reading the punishment of the two, let's talk about it in detail. The protagonists of these two stories are "people", not gods. No matter in which myth system, Wu Gang is an ordinary monk image, and although Sisyphus is a man who can compete with God, he is still a person after all, and he has not escaped from this category. Both of them have been punished by God.

Regarding punishment, whether in China or in the West, there are always many legends and stories, such as the goddess the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon in China, which is related to punishment, beheading in the sky and stars, and so on. In the west, there are many records about this kind of story. For example, Prometheus was punished for stealing fire and locked in the Caucasus Mountain. Humans were retaliated by Pandora's Box, and the world was full of hatred and pain. But in fact, no matter how these punishments are compared, in the long run, they are not as cruel as those suffered by WU GANG and Sisyphus.

The punishment of these two men is not cruel in other criminal laws such as beheading or being eaten by vultures, but it is necessary to know that what they endure is not short-term pain, but long-term suffering-WU GANG needs to cut down trees day and night, endlessly, and Sisyphus has to push the boulder to the top of the mountain every day; Sisyphus's hard work in pushing stones is recorded in the myth, while WU GANG is facing a 500-foot tree, and it is not easy to cut it down.

In addition to this kind of physical toil, the most terrible thing is the mental damage caused by this kind of mechanical labor. I succeeded almost every time, but failed at this juncture, which is a delay to the human spirit. If the laurel tree will never be cut off and the boulder can't be pushed to the top of the mountain, these two people will have more comfort in their hearts-it's not that I don't work hard, there is really no way. I'm not competent enough. At most, I will blame myself for my lack of ability, so that I can at least affirm myself through repeated efforts.

However, this is not the case. Whether they cut laurels or push stones, they can do it, so they will naturally affirm themselves again and again, but in the end they failed. The regret brought by this sense of gap is multiplied. After giving them hope, they despair. This is the most terrible.

Cutting down WU GANG can liberate laurel, and pushing the boulder to the top of the mountain can liberate Sisyphus. They know that they may still be desperate, but they dare not do it, because they all have an idea in their hearts, and maybe the next time will be the last time. This hopeless mechanized movement is very cruel.

Second, judging from the story, there are symbolic objects representing "God".

WU GANG is a laurel tree, and Sisyphus is a boulder. These two objects are referential, that is, they are symbolic, that is, "God".

The first is trees. In primitive civilization, trees have a very close relationship with people. At that time, people lived in trees, covered their bodies with leaves and filled their stomachs with fruits from trees. Trees are very important to people from both east and west. In fact, they are more like a cultural symbol, representing life.

In western civilization, trees are the source of life. For example, in ancient Egypt, the sun was the child of the goddess of trees. Without the sun, human beings could not survive. In ancient India, trees were also regarded as the highest belief, called brahmins and immortals, and it was believed that all the stars lived in them. In modern times, there are still obvious class divisions in India, among which Brahmins have the highest status, which shows the importance of trees to Indians.

Trees are also very important in China culture. For example, a bronze sacred tree was unearthed in Sanxingdui. Some people speculate that this is the Fusang recorded in Shan Hai Jing, but this statement can't be proved with clear evidence for the time being. But it does prove that China has worshipped trees since ancient times. The osmanthus tree in Wugang is the representative of the tree, which brings punishment to Wugang. The laurel tree is a god here and a symbol of the majesty of the rules.

The boulder pushed by Sisyphus is synonymous with pressure in many civilizations. Generally speaking, it is the gods who can exert pressure on people, so stones are regarded as the representatives of the gods. In ancient Greek mythology, stone can even replace the position of the gods in the Pantheon, which once again proves the symbolic significance of stone.

In China mythology, the laurel tree is the representative of the god in charge of WU GANG. In Greek mythology, stone is also the representative of God, and it also represents majesty and pressure. Although the subjects and objects of the two stories are different, and even the things they do are completely different, the essence of their experiences and the objects with the highest frequency of stories are similar, and even the same in some aspects, which is a very interesting phenomenon in itself.

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Comparing the same punishment experiences of Sisyphus and WU GANG from two aspects really proves that there are some similarities between eastern and western civilizations. Therefore, see the big from the small. Although we often say that the cultural gap between China and the West is a fact, there are still many similarities between Chinese and Western civilizations, which is the most essential similarity of human beings.

Therefore, for Chinese and western civilizations, we should seek common ground while reserving differences. There is no need to blindly think that any civilization is flawed. The development of civilization is interlinked at the starting point, but the subsequent cultural processes are different according to different environments, but they are all brilliant civilizations in essence, regardless of grades.