Analysis of Symbolism and Comparison in Pima Creation Story
The number four is used many times in The Pima Stories of the Beginning of the World. It is the pattern number of the Pimas and corresponds to the importance of three and seven as pattern numbers in the Western culture. The number four can represent the four seasons and four directions. Light is also an important factor in the Pima creation story and the story of Genesis in the Bible. In both stories, light was a major priority and one of the first things to be created. Due to the fact that light is an essential symbol in these stories of creation, they easily can represent rebirth or establishment and cleansing of a new world about to be made. The Pima creation myth has many differentiating factors from the Bible story of creation, Genesis. Regarding importance of numbers, Genesis has the pattern of number seven and this is important because God created the world in seven days. Christianity, in general today, also has other signs of the number seven such as the seven sacraments and seven deadly sins. This shows that the creation stories of certain religions and cultures lead the people to follow and believe the stories of how their world came about because they use them as guidance. The role of women is also contrasting in The Bible versus the Pima Stories from the Beginning of the World. This is because in the Bible, Eve, is looked upon as being curious rather than afraid of what will happen to her unlike the young woman afraid of marriage in the Pima creation story.
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