FLOOD MYTHS
There are myths about great floods from different cultures around the world. From the ancient Near East, to South America, to ancient Greece, and North America (just to name a few).
Please keep in mind that just because ancient cultures from around the world have a similar story does not mean that a global flood really did happen. Lots of cultures have centered themselves near bodies of water, many of which flooded regularly. Many of these stories were likely used to explain why a particularly big flood in their area may have happened.
ATRAHASIS
Atrahasis is an Akkadian myth. It is a story that was told through speech for a long time before being written down on clay tablets. It tells the story of how humans were created and of a great flood in ancient Mesopotamia.
The myth of Atrahasis
The king of the gods, Enlil, decided that humans were being too loud and annoying down on earth. The gods had made the humans so that they would have less work to do, but the number of humans was growing. The gods were not able to enjoy their rest because the humans were becoming too noisy.
Enlil decided to try and decrease the number of humans on earth. He sent a drought, but the people were still too noisy. He sent sickness to the humans, but they were still too loud. He even sent a famine, but the sound was still too much for him to bear. Each time, the people asked the gods to help them, but Enlil would not help them. Finally, Enlil decided that he would send a great flood to end all the noise.
The god Enki did not agree with Enlil's decision. It was Enki's idea to make the humans in the first place and he liked them. Although he was sworn to secrecy by Enlil, he decided to warn one person about the flood and help them to survive it. He warned the wise man Atrahasis and told him to build an ark for himself, his family, and his animals. Atrahasis did not know how to build an ark so Enki drew plans for him on the earth. When the flood came, Atrahasis stayed safe. The flood lasted for seven days and seven nights and washed everything off the land.
During the great flood, Enlil started to regret his decision. The gods were sad that the humans were gone, and Enlil started to think that maybe the humans were not so bothersome after all.
Enki excitedly told Enlil that he had actually saved a human from the flood. He thought that this would make Enlil happy, but instead, Enlil was mad at Enki for breaking his promise of secrecy and telling a human about the flood. While they were arguing, Atrahasis made a sacrifice to the gods, something that would not happen if there were no more humans. This made all the other gods happy and wanting to keep humanity.
Eventually, Enlil decides that humanity will get to continue, but that they will need to make sure that they never become too noisy again.
Clay, A. T. (1922). A Hebrew deluge story in cuneiform: And other epic fragments in the Pierpont Morgan library. Yale University Press.
Please note that the following are stories that are part of a current belief system, not from a culture that is long gone, as is seen above. These stories come from living and breathing cultures, and although they have similar themes to the myth above, they are not myths themselves.
LAUWELNEW
LAUWELNEW is the story of the great flood from the Saanich peoples. It is written by Earl Claxton and John Elliot.
To access the story, please click on the link bellow to access a PDF version.
K'ÓMOKS ORIGIN STORY
This K'ómoks origin story describes how the sea receded and flooded.
Please click on the following link to read the story. It is the second origin story on the web page.