Parallel Myths (39 page)

(India)

T
he earth has been created, destroyed, and re-created many times—only the Eternal knows how many times this has taken place. Or perhaps he does not know. The laws of the universe are fixed: the Four Ages of man naturally occur and recur as Dharma—the four-legged stool of truth—is established and disintegrates, one leg at a time, until there is nothing for the world to stand on. However, the destruction of the universe is inevitable in every cycle.

At the beginning of each cycle, the world is created by Brahma; during the cycle, the world is sustained by Vishnu; then, it is destroyed by Shiva.

A cycle, or “Day of Brahma,” lasts 12,000 years of the
devas
, or 4,320,000 human years. At the beginning of each such “Day,” when the Eternal One wakes up, the world is re-created.

Every cycle is divided into fourteen
manvantaras
, each of which is ruled by a dominant
Manu
, or “teacher.” Each
manvantara
is followed by a great flood that destroys all living things, except those saved to repopulate the earth. During these floods, the continents are rearranged.

The Day of Brahma may also be divided into 1,000
yugas
with each consisting of the Four Ages, discussed earlier. Four
yugas
together last 4,320,000 years—the first, 1,728,000; the second, 1,296,000; the third, 864,000; and the last
yuga
, 432,000. The year 1993 was the 5,093rd of the Kali
yuga
. This is ominous as Kali is believed by some to be the destroyer of the world.

By the time the last
yuga
has come and gone, the earth is completely exhausted of its resources. This is the point in the cycle of history where the universe is eradicated and prepared for re-creation. The god Vishnu now takes the form of Rudra the storm god, the destroyer of all things. First comes a horrible drought that lasts for 100 years, by which all life on earth is decimated if not extinguished.

Rudra then enters the sun, and all the water on earth—the seas, oceans, lakes, and rivers, as well as the water beneath the earth—dries up. All of the water is drawn off the earth into the sky. The ancient teachers called this “the sucking of the waters by Rudra,” for it is as if all of the moisture on earth has been sucked up by a straw. What is left of the earth is then burned and cleansed by the power of the superheated sun, so that all things are purged on earth and then throughout the universe.

Then Rudra breathes out great clouds filled with the moisture drawn from the earth. He begins sending thunderbolts out of heaven, the harbinger of a rain in sheets that lasts for 1,000 years, extinguishing the fires. The water rises and rises until it reaches the realm of the seven sages, far above the surface of the earth.

Then Brahma sends a wind that drinks up much of the water, establishing clouds in heaven. The world is now a watery chaos, the primordial state from which a new world can be created.

T
he Believer of the True Faith:

Ormazd the Wise Lord answers:

There will be three saviors sent to earth by the Wise Lord before the final, inevitable battle that will result in the ultimate triumph of good over evil, the Last Judgment, and the resurrection of the dead. First will come a period called the Period of Iron, in which demons will attack the earth relentlessly, sparing no one. They will be more interested in causing the faithful to suffer than in killing them. The darkness will be so pervasive that the light of even the sun and moon will be dimmed. At that time a shower of stars will occur to herald the birth of the first savior, the champion of the faithful, named Anshedar.

A virgin, fifteen years old, will bathe in a sacred lake in Iran that has been miraculously impregnated with the sperm of the prophet Zoroaster; the virgin will then conceive the child Anshedar. When Anshedar reaches the age of thirty, the sun will be motionless in the sky in the noonday position for ten days. After the appearance of this heavenly portent, Anshedar will meet with the angels and return to earth to preach the teachings of righteousness—exhorting all humankind to resist evil. When Anshedar leaves the earth, it will be better than when he found it. However, evil will only be temporarily subdued. At the end of this time of Anshedar, people will no longer die of disease, which is now inflicted by demons; they will only expire as the result of advanced age, accidents, or homicide.

A thousand years later, evil will again be ascendant and humankind will experience a hardship that had been long forgotten. Out of nowhere, suffering, disease, war, and hunger will appear. Again, a fifteen-year-old virgin will bathe in the sacred lake, become pregnant, and give birth to the second savior, Aushedarmah. Once more, when Aushedarmah reaches the age of thirty, the sun will remain in the noonday position, only this time for six days. Evil will again be subdued, but not entirely conquered. At the end of this period, no one will eat meat anymore and, as vegetarians, the people will be less aggressive.

But while Aushedarmah is on earth, the evil dragon Azhidahaka will awaken from his sleep in a cave and terrorize the earth, killing
one third of all humans and animals. However, the ancient hero of the Persians, Keresaspa, will be resurrected by the Lord and slay this beast. Good will again be temporarily ascendant over evil.

The third and last savior, Saoshyant, will appear one thousand years after that; it is he who will herald the final judgment of the living and the dead, as well as the unchallenged rule of the Wise Lord over all things. He too will be born of a virgin in the same manner as the first two saviors. All the world will know him as the great champion of good on earth. A great flood of molten metal will sweep over the earth, killing the wicked in great pain; for the righteous, it will seem like a refreshing warm bath.

After this purge of the earth, the bodies and souls of all who have ever lived will be rejoined in the resurrection. After this will come the Final Judgment. The Wise Lord will appear out of the heavens, attended by angels. His light will be reflected in all those who follow good; the righteous will shine like the sun. The evil, on the other hand, will be seen for all the filth that they are.

It is Saoshyant who will preside over the last judgment. The wicked humans and Ahriman, the Evil One, will be consigned to hell forever, even as the Wise Lord rules uncontested over the universe. All death, disease, and suffering shall cease forever. The earth will be re-created and the blessed will enjoy immortality in a new Paradise.

Take heart, O righteous ones, and live in hope!

NOTE
: For Muslims the Koran (or Qu’ran) is not myth, nor is it even the word of God revealed and written by man. Rather, Muslims believe their Scripture to be the actual words of God dictated to the prophet Muhammad.