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A world egg or cosmic egg is a mythological motif found in the creation myths of many cultures and civilizations. Typically, the world egg is a beginning of some sort, and the universe or some primordial being comes into existence by "hatching" from the egg.
Chinese mythology
In the myth of Pangu, developed by Taoist monks hundreds of years after Lao Zi, the universe began as an egg. A god named Pangu, born inside the egg, broke it into two halves: the upper half became the sky, while the lower half became the earth. As the god grew taller, the sky and the earth grew thicker and were separated further. Finally Pangu died and his body parts became different parts of the earth.
Egyptian mythology
In the original myth concerning the Ogdoad, the Milky Way arose from the waters as a mound of dirt, which was deified as Hathor. Ra was contained within an egg laid upon this mound by a celestial bird. In the earliest version of this myth, the bird is a goose (it is not explained where the goose originates). However, after the rise of the cult of Thoth, the egg was said to have been a gift from Thoth and laid by an ibis, the bird with which he was associated.
Finnish mythology
In the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic, there is a myth of the world being created from the fragments of an egg laid by a diving duck on the knee of Ilmatar, goddess of the air:
- One egg's lower half transformed
- And became the earth below,
- And its upper half transmuted
- And became the sky above;
- From the yolk the sun was made,
- Light of day to shine upon us;
- From the white the moon was formed,
- Light of night to gleam above us;
- All the colored brighter bits
- Rose to be the stars of heaven
- And the darker crumbs changed into
- Clouds and cloudlets in the sky.
Sanskrit scriptures and Vedanta
The earliest knowledge/ideas of "Egg-shaped Cosmos" comes directly from revaled Vedic-Avestan scriptures notably the part dealing with Ritual-mantras. The Sanskrit term for it is BRAHMANDA where Brahm=Cosmos and Anda=Egg, a word also found in Hindi. The BRAHMANDA PURANA and other puranas/shastras deal authouritatively on the Cosmic Egg Brahmanda, and its relation to Heaven. The creation of the world also has an epithet "The Big Bang Brahman". Here the word Brahman means explosion.
The MAHASANKALPA Mantra describes it synoptically as follows: " .... Adi Narayanasya Achintyaya Aprimitaya Shaktya Bhriyamaanasya Mahajalaughasya madhye Paribhramatam Anekakoti BRAHMANDANAM ekatame Prithvi-Ap-Teja-Vayu-Akasha-Ahankara-MAHAD-Avyakta-Avana-Avruta asmin-mahati BRAHMANDA-KARANDA-Madhye Bhu-mandale Sapta-Jambu-Plaksha-Shaka-Shalmali-Kusha-Krauncha-PushkaraDveepa......."
"....The Lord AdiNarayana created the multi-crore cosmic-eggs through his powers. (1Crore= 10000000= 10 to the 7th power). These Cosmic-Eggs float in the Waters, out of which One is endowed with Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether, Ego, Mahat- The Gross Principle of Shivas, Avyakta-Known and Unknown creations of several creators, Avana-Another principle, Avruta-Revolution; inside this great basket of cosmic eggs, one contains the earth and 9 planets-bhumandala. The earth has 7 regions known as: Jambu-Plaksha-Shaka-Shalmali-Kusha-Kraunca-Pushkara........."
See also
External links
References
- Eino Friberg, trans., The Kalevala: Epic of the Finnish People. Otava Publishing Company, Ltd., 4th ed., p. 44. (1998) ISBN 951-1-10137-4
- Elias Lönnrot, Kalevala. (1849)
"World egg"