Theft of fire

Prometheus Brings Fire to Mankind (1817) by Heinrich Füger

The theft of fire for the benefit of humanity is a theme that recurs in many world mythologies. Examples include:

  • According to the Rigveda (3:9.5), the hero Mātariśvan recovered fire, which had been hidden from humanity.
  • In Polynesian myth, Māui stole fire from the Mudhens.[1]
  • In Greek mythology, according to Hesiod (Theogony, 565-566 and Works & Days, 50) and Pseudo-Apollodorus (Bibliotheca, 1.7.1), Titan Prometheus steals the heavenly fire for humanity, enabling the progress of civilization.
  • In the Book of Enoch, the fallen angels and Azazel teach early humanity to use tools and fire.
  • In one of the versions of Georgian myth, Amirani stole fire from metalsmiths, who refused to share it – and knowledge of creating it – with other humans.
  • In Norse Mythology Loki gains the secret of fire from an eagle in exchange for the hams and shoulders of sacrificed oxen.[2]
  • In the mythology of the New South Wales of Australia, people steal fire from Bootoolgah the crane and Goonur the kangaroo rat.[3]
  • In an African myth it is narrated how after Obassi Osaw, a creator god, refused to give fire to humanity, a boy stole it and taught humanity how to use it.[4]
  • Among various Native American tribes of the Pacific Northwest and First Nations, fire was stolen and given to humans by Coyote, Beaver or Dog.[5]
  • In Algonquin myth, Rabbit stole fire from an old man and his two daughters.[6]
  • In Cherokee myth, after Possum and Buzzard had failed to steal fire, Grandmother Spider used her web to sneak into the land of light. She stole fire, hiding it in a clay pot.[7]
  • According to the Muscogees/Creeks, Rabbit stole fire from the Weasels.[8]
  • In Ojibwa myth, Nanabozho the hare stole fire and gave it to humans.
  • According to some Yukon First Nations people, Crow stole fire from a volcano in the middle of the water.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Westervelt, W.D. Legends of Maui – a Demigod of Polynesia, and of His Mother Hina. Honolulu, 1910. Ch. 5.
  2. ↑ Stephany, Timothy (2010). "The Theft of Fire: Prometheus and Loki" (PDF).
  3. ↑ Roland Burrage Dixon. The Mythology of All Races. Vol 9: Oceanic, 1916, page 284.
  4. ↑ Williams, Carolyn. "Learning and Living through Mythology". Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  5. ↑ Judson, Katharine B. Myths and Legends of the Pacific Northwest. Chicago, 1912.
  6. ↑ Alexander, Hartley Burr. The Mythology of All Races. Vol 10: North American. Boston, 1916.
  7. ↑ Erdoes, Richard and Alfonso Ortiz, eds. American Indian Myths and Legends. New York, 1984.
  8. ↑ Swanton, John. "Myths and Tales of the Southeastern Indians." Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 88: 1929.
  9. ↑ Janke, Daniel (2008). "How People Got Fire (animated short)" (DVD). National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
  • Wikisource Reclus, Élisée (1911). "Fire". In Chisholm, Hugh. Encyclopædia Britannica. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 399–401.
  • O fogo e as chamas dos mitos (in Portuguese) by Betty Mindlin Essay about the origin of fire, stealing of fire, keeping of fire in different South-American indigenous cultures


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