AboutTed Nesbitt Expertise I can answer questions related to classical Greek and Roman mythologies, as well as the myths and folklore of other regions [Norse, Egyptian, Mayan, Incan, etc.]
Experience I am a reference librarian at a four-year liberal arts college. For the last ten years, I have been an Allexpert volunteer in the areas of grammar and writing, poetry, literature, etymology, and politics.
Education/Credentials Master's degrees in philosophy, English, and library/information sciences.
Question I've just learned about the concept of Ragnarok in Norse mythology and I was wondering if a destruction-of-the-world myth is present in other cultures, particularly Celtic, American Indian, African, and Egyptian. I'd like to do a project on this, but I can't find any information about this idea in any other cultures.
Answer Ashleigh:
The problem with your topic is that there is TOO MUCH information. Even as all cultures -- including mythological ones -- have stories about the creation of the world, they all have stories about its destruction.
For example, the great flood and Noah with his ark are not restricted to the Judeo-Christian tradition. Many civilizations or cultures have similar stories.
You have asked ONLY for sources, and with THAT I can help you. I will caution you, however, that you must be prepared to spend some time at these recommended websites.
I have prepared Internet Resource Guides for a number of topics, including mythology. Go to this link:
I have written an annotation -- brief description -- for each site. Ignore those that do NOT mention your topics.
I found by searching briefly, the following information:
NORSE
Fenrir (or Fenris) is a gigantic and terrible monster in the shape of a wolf. He is the eldest child of Loki and the giantess Angrboda. The gods learned of a prophecy which stated that the wolf and his family would one day be responsible for the destruction of the world.
There is more about the Norse "end of the world" at this site:
The origin and eventual fate of the world are described in Völuspá, one of the most striking poems in the Poetic Edda. These haunting verses contain one of the most vivid creation accounts in all of religious history and a representation of the eventual destruction of the world that is unique in its attention to detail.
In the Völuspá, Odin, the chief god of the Norse pantheon, has conjured up the spirit of a dead Völva and commanded this spirit to reveal the past and the future. She is reluctant: "What do you ask of me? Why tempt me?"; but since she is already dead, she shows no fear of Odin, and continually taunts him: "Well, would you know more?" But Odin insists: if he is to fulfil his function as king of the gods, he must possess all knowledge. Once the sybil has revealed the secrets of past and future, she falls back into oblivion: "I sink now".
The beginning
In the beginning there was the world of ice Niflheim, and the world of fire Muspelheim, and between them was the Ginnungagap, a "grinning gap," in which nothing lived. In Ginnungagap, the fire and the ice met, and the fire of Muspelheim licked the ice shaping a primordial giant Ymir and a giant cow, Auđumbla whose milk fed Ymir. The cow licked the ice, creating the first god, Búri, who was the father of Borr, in turn the father of the first Ćsir, Odin, and his brothers Vili and Ve. Ymir was a hermaphrodite and alone procreated the race of giants. Then Borr's sons; Odin, Vili, and Ve; slaughtered Ymir and, from his body, created the world. From his skull, Odin, Vili, and Ve created the vault of the sky, which was supported by four dwarfs: Austri, Vestri, Sudri, and Nordri.
The gods regulated the passage of the days and nights, as well as the seasons. The first human beings were Ask and Embla , who were carved from the wood of two trees and brought to life by the gods Odin, Hśnir/Vili, and Lóđurr/Vé. Odin gave them life; Vili gave consciousness; and Ve provided senses. Sol is the goddess of the sun, a daughter of Mundilfari, and wife of Glen. Every day, she rides through the sky on her chariot, pulled by two horses named Alsvid and Arvak. This passage is known as Alfrodull, meaning "glory of elves," which in turn was a common kenning for the sun. Sol is chased during the day by Skoll, a wolf that wants to devour her. Solar eclipses signify that Skoll has almost caught up to her. It is fated that Skoll will eventually catch Sol and eat her; however, she will be replaced by her daughter. Sol's brother, the moon, Mani, is chased by Hati, another wolf. The earth is protected from the full heat of the sun by Svalin, who stands between the earth and Sol. In Norse belief, the sun did not give light, which instead emanated from the manes of Arvak and Alsvid.
The sybil describes the great ash tree Yggdrasil and the three norns , who spin the threads of fate beneath it. She describes the primeval war between Ćsir and Vanir and the murder of Baldr. Then she turns her attention to the future.
The end times
The Old Norse vision of the future is bleak. In the end, it was believed, the forces of chaos will outnumber and overcome the divine and human guardians of order. Loki and his monstrous children will burst their bonds; the dead will sail from Niflheim to attack the living. Heimdall, the watchman of the gods, will summon the heavenly host with a blast on his horn. Then will ensue a final battle between order and chaos , which the gods will lose, as is their fate. The gods, aware of this, will gather the finest warriors, the Einherjar, to fight on their side when the day comes, but in the end they will be powerless to prevent the world from descending into the chaos out of which it has once emerged; the gods and their world will be destroyed. Odin himself will be swallowed by Fenrir.
Still, there will be a few survivors, both human and divine, who will populate a new world, to start the cycle anew. Or so the sybil tells us; scholars are divided on the question whether this is a later addition to the myth that betrays Christian influence. If pre-Christian, the eschatology of the Völuspá may reflect an older Indo-European tradition related with the eschatology of Persian Zoroastrianism.
***** ASHLEIGH, if you want to use Celtic, instead of Norse, the Celtic "end of the world" is called "Mag Tured." You'll find information about it at the following sites.
***** All the sites are found within the Mythology Internet Resource Guide that I have compiled. You will have a lot of "exploration" to do, but, if you're willing to work on your project, I'm sure you will benefit from the "ease" of having all the material at one central location, the guide.
Also, you can search the American Indian, Egyptian, and African texts for similar "destruction of the world" stories.
Good luck. Get back to me, if you have any SPECIFIC questions.
