Sun Gods
Below are descriptions of Sun Gods that have been worshipped by different cultures across the globe. Read through each of the descriptions and then answer the questions that follow on the next available page of your notebook.
Egyptians
They called their sun god Ra and considered him the creator of light and all things. It is believed that humankind was born from the tears of Ra and that he created the first couple: Shu and Tefnut. They were the parents of the earth and sky. Ra was usually depicted in human form with a falcon head, crowned with the sun disc and encircled by a cobra. The sun itself was taken to be either his body or his eye.
Greeks
Helios was their sun god. The Greeks believed he drove the sun across the sky from east to west in his golden chariot every day. After sunset the sun sailed back across the ocean. Over time, the Greek God Zeus had a son named Apollo, who replaced Helios as sun god. Greek literature will often depict the citizens praying to Apollo for guidance.
Eskimos
Malina was and continues to be the sun-goddess of the Eskimo people who live in Greenland. Malina and her brother, the moon-god Anningan, lived together. They got into a terrible fight and Malina spread dirty, black grease all over her brother's face. In fear, she ran as far as she could into the sky and became the sun. Annigan chased after her and became the moon. This eternal chase makes the sun alternate in the sky with the moon.
Chinese
According to Chinese mythology, there were ten suns that used to appear in turn in the sky during the Chinese ten-day week. Only one would go on a journey into the skies at a time. But after some time they decided to appear together in the sky. The heat was too much for the people to handle. They asked the suns to fly solo, but the suns refused. So the father of the suns sent the archer Yi down from the heavens to reprimand the disobedient suns, but he ended up killing nine of the suns and the one that remains is the sun they see in the sky.
Answer the following questions in complete sentences:
- In what specific ways are the stories of these cultures alike?
- Name two specific ways that the Greek and Chinese stories differ from each other.
- What do you suppose the Eskimos would say happens during an eclipse?
- According to the Egyptians, where do humans come from?
- Why do you suppose that all of these independent cultures came to recognize the sun as a god?
Another Perspective…
The Serrano Indians of California believe that an eclipse is the spirits of the dead trying to eat the Sun or Moon. So during an eclipse, the shamans and ceremonial assistants sing and dance to appease the dead spirits while everyone else shouts, beat drums, and make as much noise as possible to try and scare the spirits away. Meanwhile, everyone avoids eating food with the idea that it would starve the spirits out.
Write a paragraph explaining your opinion of the Serrano’s beliefs. What do you think about the Serrano perspective of an eclipse? Does it make sense? Is it just plain wrong? Imagine that you were able to walk into a Serrano village today. Would you participate in this ritual during an eclipse or attempt to explain your perspective instead? Why?