Why does Dream Time end? Using any or all of the myths studied in this course, present a cogent theory of the transition of Dream Time to "normal time".

University Degree Historical and Philosophical studies

Why does Dream Time end? Using any or all of the myths studied in this course, present a cogent theory of the transition of Dream Time to “normal time”.

In the field of mythology, Dream Time refers to this period of time, usually in the very distant past, when things were different from now; when people lived differently, and their activities and interactions were very dissimilar compared to normal time. Simply put, everything had an extraordinary, almost magical aspect to them and everything was possible, hence the name “dream”. In Dream Time, for instance, animals could talk just like men and even participated in certain activities. Also, gods roamed the Earth, some people conversed and interacted closely with them and other people had almost godlike status, which allowed them to accomplish supernatural tasks.

To be able to develop a theory that would explain the transition of Dream Time to “normal time”, I think it is important to understand what Dream Time exactly is. It was previously defined as this far away past when everything was magical, but it is helpful to consider the most important aspects that exist in Dream Time more closely, since this helps determine when the transition is taking place. In the various myths studied the transitions are not exactly similar even though the argument we’re trying to show is that man is the common factor in all of them. However there exist some recurring aspects in most of the mythological stories that can help us discern if it is Dream Time. One of the aspects that are common in most of the myths studied is the active presence of one or more gods in Dream Time. We can clearly see in most of the myths that there is usually a period with significantly more involvement from gods and later a period with little if any. A next detail that we can assign to Dream Time has to do with the animal world. In Dream Time, not only can animals talk, they hold activities such as feasts and even weddings. One other distinguishing aspect of Dream Time is that people on earth usually lead peaceful lives with barely any problems, such as diseases and other such attritions. Furthermore different myth stories

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Also, in the different myths studied, Dream Time usually starts with a creation story, the creation of the world or the creation of new life on earth. In the legends of the Sandy Lake Cree, for instance, the story begins with O-ma-ma-ma giving birth to several god-like creatures and in this particular story; this is when Dream Time starts. Similarly, in Genesis, Dream Time begins with God’s creation of earth and then later on, Adam and Eve. In both Babylonian and Greek mythology there is a quite similar creation story involving gods and a power struggle. However in most of the myth stories, it does not last forever. Usually there is a transition to a very different era, “normal time”, when all the magical and extraordinary aspects are not present anymore. In most of the myths we studied where there was a change from Dream Time to “normal time”, the reason behind the change was most of the times, men’s actions.

Dream Time seems to usually be a period when most people led an easy, care-free life and everything seemed to be going on peacefully, until there came about a transition to “normal” time. In Genesis for instance, Adam and Eve led quite a care-free existence; Adam just cared for God’s garden and in return both enjoyed everything in Eden. Another important aspect of Dream Time is the presence of a god or gods in people’s lives. For example, In Greek mythology, gods and men used to have feasts and banquets together, some gods were present on earth and others simply interacted with men. Such ideas can be found in Babylonian myths and in Genesis also. However, at some point, there came about an event or sometimes more than one event that brought about a change to the way things were, leading to the transition away from Dream Time to “normal time”. In some of the myths, the change can be quite sudden while in others it takes place over a period of time.

In most of the myths we studied, man is usually the reason for the disappearance of Dream Time. Man makes mistakes or bad choices that have consequences such as the anger of the gods, which in turn leads to man losing certain privileges they had. This idea of man angering the gods is present in Genesis. In this particular case, the snake tempted Eve to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This ensues in Adam and Eve being punished for their actions. They are kicked out of the Garden of Eden and from then on also had to perform things they did not have to before, such as working for their food and going through labour to bear children. However in Genesis the transition to normal time does not take place immediately at that point; it is more gradual. Adam and Eve’s mistake led them to lose certain privileges but mankind still enjoyed others, like the company of God. However, they lost some other privileges later, for example when God reduces man’s life expectancy and wipes the earth of most of mankind for their sins, and the only people left are Noah and his family. Henceforth, compared to the day of Adam and Eve, there exists a significant difference between the two eras, and it can be said that it is not Dream Time anymore.

Yet another example depicting the idea of man’s actions bringing about a departure from Dream Time comes from the Sandy Lake Cree legends. One of the short stories describes how Wee-sa-kay-jac organized a race between animals to find out who would live with men as their companions. Dogs won that right but, however because men ended up treating the dogs badly, the latter got upset and decided not to ever talk again in fear that their talking would lead to even more abuse from men. Hence this aspect of Dream Time whereby animals have the ability to talk is lost in this particular tale. This represents a transition to normal time based on the.

Dream Time is also a period when man lives peacefully without all the troubles that people from normal time now face. The example of Adam and Even to some extent supports that idea that with Dream Time gone, peace is disturbed. Most of the times, this is caused by the anger of gods. In Greek Mythology, a famous example of how man suffers from god’s wrath is when Zeus punishes Prometheus and mankind. Prometheus, known as the creator and protector of men, angered Zeus in several occasions. He namely stole fire from the gods and gave them to man and at a feast he also tricked Zeus to taking the worse share of the meal. Zeus eventually sends punishment in the form of Pandora. The latter ends up opening a jar that Prometheus had forbidden Epimetheus to keep closed. When it was opened it let loose ills and calamities such as Old Age, Sickness, Insanity, on Earth. Here again a conflict between mankind and god results in the former facing some punishment, in this case, man faces calamities and diseases that they did not have to before.

In Babylonian mythology a quite similar event takes place. In the story of Adapa, the latter curses the wind and makes it stop blowing, which displeases Anu the main god. Then when Adapa goes to see Anu, Adapa makes the wrong choice of not choosing to drink or eat what the gods were offering him, and hence loses chance at immortal life. This also displeases Anu and in the end Adapa brings disease upon mankind for having broken the south wind. Hence Adapa squandered an opportunity to gain god-like status and also brings disaster on mankind. In this particular story the mistake of one man brings a transition from Dream Time to “normal” time. Prior to Adapa’s unfortunate adventure at sea, everything was peaceful between man and gods. Mankind had no particular troubles, but having displeased the gods, Adapa brings ill upon mankind. This is quite similar to Epimetheus and Pandora letting loose ills upon mankind. I think this represents a change from Dream Time, since before that, men were free of problems on earth.