(Creation) Myths

Hey there. Lotsa campaign journals here. How bout something a bit different. Submit the Myths that you use to give a sense of wonder in your campaign! Heck, criticize this one!

Dwarven Creation Myth

In the beginning the earth was white with ice and the sky black with emptiness. But high in the sky, even from the beginning, were the stars that shine down. The light from the stars fell down to the earth as warm snowflakes, and these formed into mounds of snow upon the earth.

When the sun arose the next day, the mounds awoke upon the hillsides and in the endless valleys of ice. These giants of ice were the first creatures to walk upon the earth. They were cruel and capricious, and spent much of their time warring against one another. They threw boulders and spikes of ice into one another, until one by one they dwindled, and the earth was almost completely barren of life.

But during the many battles of the elder race, there was one of the brothers, smaller in physical prowess, but keener of mind and hand. He was called Harr. While his brothers fought upon the surface, he delved into the earth. There, he was the first of all creatures to discover gems, and from them he fashioned a wonderous necklace (which he used as a brideprice). Delving deeper and deeper, he finally found a realm beneath the ground, full of living gems and fountains of steaming water, and he made friendship with the King of the underland, and wed with his daughter Rangah, queen of the earth.

Above ground, only two of his brothers remained, Jari and Nari. They were the two greatest and largest of all the giants, and they had slain all the rest of their brothers. Jari was the largest off all the giants.

Once, years before, when exploring close to the ice waters of the north, he had fallen through some weat ice and would have surely died had his younger brother and companion, Hom (o with a dash) pulled him out. Hom brought Jari back into a cave and sheltered him with his body, but the giants had no knowledge of fire, and Jari was sure to die.

Suddenly, out of the white blizzard raging outside the cave, they began to hear singing. Jari's eyes had been frozen shut, but Hom had warmed them with his tongue, and as he opened them he saw what seemed to be a hallucination, for out of the blizzard came a warm wind, as though made of breath and sweat and musk. Jari saw before him the visage of a woman of beauty never before imagined. Driven insane by jealousy and desire, Jari grasped a rock and bashed his companion Hom in the head, killing him instantly. Jari then took the Lady of Mists as his wife, and from them spring the races of giants.

Nari was even more wild and foul than his brother, and if he was less strong he was quicker of foot and hand. When the killing whiteness came he burrowed into a fox den or fought his way into a bear cave (and many other animals' homes). Before settling down in the animals' homes he killed off the males and took the females as his wives. From him spring all the accursed ones who change their skins.

Harr was happy in the underland for many years, and learned much from the King there of working stone and metals, and indeed made friendship with many of the living veins there. But there came a time, when he had dwelt with Rangah for a full third of his life, when Harr desired to be master of his own home, and to build his own kingdom in the snow, where he could see his mother the stars.

And so it came to pass that Harr dwelt upon the surface of the earth, with Rangah his wife, and their eight daughters, who are called the Snow Maidens, the mothers of our race.

Now it happens that Harr came to the surface at the same time Jari and Nari were fighting each other, and the whole earth shook from their terrible battle. Their wrath was terrible as Jari flung mountains and lightning at Nari, while Nari clawed at Jari with tooth and nail. Finally, from his many cuts and bruises, Nari's body let loose its last hold to the world. Nari's body fell and made the great mountains to the East. His blood fell and made the great river that cuts through the valleys of the world.

Harr and his folk were terrified from the upheavals that the world experienced, and found themselves in dire straits, both freezing and starving to death.

But Jari, wounded but alive, saw Harr and his family from afar. He was smitten with the beauty of the ice maidens, who of all creatures in the world were the most fair. Only they, of all creatures below the sky, had skin as white and smooth as ice, their hair as dark as night, and their eyes the lightest blue.

Leaving his home, Jari strode down to where Harr and his family were camped. There he offered to save Harr and his family, but only if Harr would give his eldest daughter to be one of Jari's wives. Having no choice, Harr agreed. Rangah, Wara the eldest daughter, and her seven younger sisters all wept at this cursed fate, for not only was Jari rough and untender, but his first wife, the Queen of the Mists, was even more cruel to all Jari's other wives.

So it came to pass that Jari brought them food and drink to keep them alive, and brought the warm breath to keep the cold from their bones. But Harr was not of a mind to give away her eldest without conflict, and Rangah was of like mind, being the proud daughter of underworld.

Rangah gave each of her daughters supplies and sent them in different directions out into the white void. "For only far away will you be safe, for truly Jari desires not only Wara, but all of you to be his wives."

When Jari returned home he asked Harr where his daughters were. "Pray forgive their absence brother, for they are preparing for the journey back to your halls. Eager they are to see their magnificence, and also to meet your wife, the glorious Queen."

"Yes!", responded Jari "I am eager to return to my halls with my lawful wife Wara. Yes, and her lovely sisters as well. We will set out at dawn!"

Hiding his loathing, Harr feigned to be pleased with this, and proposed a toast to the mingling of their houses. But unbeknownst to Jari, Rangah has sprinkled a magical dust from underland into the wine, and Jari fell into a great sleep. So it was that Jari slept, and outside the snow covered the tracks of the eight snow maidens, and Jari could not find where they had went.

When Jari awoke, he had found he had been decieved. "If I cannot have what is mine by right for a wife, then I will take your own wife as one of mine!"

With that Jari advanced upon Rangah and Harr lept forward to defend her. Jari struck Harr down without a second though, and he lay dying on the ground. Then Rangah, calling on her last strength as Princess of the underland, caused the stones of the cave they were in to fall down and crush all three of them to death together. Thus passed the last of the first children upon the earth.

Walking apart from one another in every direction from their home, the snow maidens trekked through the wastes of the world until their food was nearly gone and their energy and hope exausted. Then, as one (though they did not know it), they lay down in despair and waited for death to take them.

As Wara (the eldest) lay dying, she felt a strange warmth on her skin. "Ah," she thought "This is what death is like. The next world must be warm, and for that I am glad to leave this world of sorrows."

Then, before her, she saw a figure engulfed in what looked like flame, though it did not burn her.

"I am the spirit of fire. You are the most beautiful thing I have lain my eyes upon. I will put my fire into you, and from our mingling, fire, ice, stone and star will make a race to cover this earth."

Then Wara's ice was melted, and she lay together with the spirit of fire, and was saved from the blizzard outside. But the next morning he was gone, and no one knows from where he came. But the dwarves do know something more of him, for on that same night the spirit came to quicken all eight of the daughters of Harr, and from them come the nations of dwarves upon this earth.

i won't willingly let this one drop down without comment

OK, I'll Play...

The Gospel of Creation from the 1st Book of Osirian

In the time before time began, the Great Mother that is the earth was shrouded in Shadow, so that nothing could grow upon the land. The Great Mother Earth despaired, for all that she brought forth from her womb withered and died in the face of the Shadow. So it came to pass that she took a great part of her essence and placed it into three great jewels from the depths of the earth. The Great Mother Earth then let her tears fall onto the first jewel and behold, Osirian, the Light-bringer, first child of the earth mother, was born!

Osirian was tall and strong and fair and the light blazed forth from his eyes, driving the Shadow back and for the first time, the Shadow knew fear! Instantly, trees and flowers bloomed, hills and mountains formed, seas filled and rivers flowed with water, for the Great Earth Mother was freed from the curse of the Shadow.

The Shadow formed a dart of darkness and hurled it at Osirian, seeking to slay him. The dart struck Osirian near his heart and four great drops of blood welled from the wound and fell to the breast of the Great Earth Mother. As Osirian’s blood drops struck the seas, each transformed into a lesser likeness of the light-bringer and rose to stand at his side. Thus were the archangels Tyrial, Gabriel, Myriel and Uriel born and the Shadow again knew fear.

The Shadow formed more darts of darkness and hurled them at Osirian and his minions. Tyrial, Gabriel, Myriel and Uriel were all struck near the heart and from each of them, four drops of blood welled, falling to the earth and being transformed by the Great Mother Earth into lesser likenesses of themselves – thus were the 12 greater angels born.

Osirian was struck in the loins and again, four drops of blood welled. The first fell into the newly grown forest. The second fell onto the newly raised mountains. The third fell onto the newly formed hills. The fourth fell into the newly flowing river. From these drops rose four lesser aspects of Osirian, the four Elder Races – born of the blood of Osirian’s loins, each touched by the elements they had landed among. From the woods rose Corelian, father of the Elves. From the mountains rose Moradin, father of the Dwarves. From the hills rose Garilin, father of the gnomes. Lastly, from the river rose Avorin, father of the halflings.

The Great Earth Mother could see that her firstborn was hard-pressed by the Shadow and she closed her eyes to shed tears unto the next great jewel. The Shadow sensed what she was about and formed another dart of darkness and hurled it at the great jewel, just as the earth mother’s tears fell. The dart of darkness pierced the jewel a moment before the Great Earth Mother’s tears covered it and know one saw, for the Earth Mother’s eyes were closed and Osirian and his minions were busy binding their wounds. Thus was Arhiman, second child of the earth mother, born.

He was tall and strong and fair, just like his brother. But deep inside him, the dart of darkness took root and began to slowly grow. Arhiman strode forward to stand beside Osirian and the two brothers, along with the archangels and the lesser angels and the fathers of the Elder Races contested with the Shadow. Still they were hard pressed and so the Great Earth Mother closed her eyes once again and let her tears fall on the third great jewel. She had used much of her essence on the first two jewels and so the being that sprang from the third jewel did not have the strength of the first two, but the Great Earth Mother empowered her in other ways. Thus was Seluna, third child of the earth mother, born.

Seluna was slight and pale, yet possessed an inner power as great as the physical prowess of her brothers. She summoned forth-great magics and with her help, Osirian and Arhiman and their minions defeated the Shadow and locked it away in a great prison, far from the lands of the Great Earth Mother. The earth mother, exhausted from the birth of her three children, fell into a deep slumber, from which her children could not awaken her.

Osirian and Arhiman and Seluna rejoiced at their victory and set about ordering the world. Osirian made Arhiman captain of the Hosts of Heaven and his most trusted advisor. Seluna took the Elder Races under her wing and taught them the secrets of magic and they flourished and multiplied. Osirian busied himself with creating birds and fish and beasts to populate the lands.

For many ages, all was well and all were content with their lot. Over the ages, however, the dart of darkness within Arhiman slowly grew, and he began to resent the sovereignty of his older brother Osirian. Arhiman quietly began to sown discontent among the archangels and angels, the host of heaven. His fair face and words belied his false words and corrupt heart. The Archangel Uriel tried to tell Osirian of Arhiman’s machinations, but such was his faith in Arhiman that he dismissed the warning and berated Uriel for his pettiness.

Uriel, angered at his rebuke, allowed himself to be persuaded to Arhiman’s cause. Arhiman persuaded his brother to create a new being, using all of his skill. Arhiman argued that all of the other minions had been created by chance and that Osirian deserved a minion that was truly of his own creation. Osirian agreed, and for seven days and seven nights, he worked unceasingly to create his perfect being. Just as Osirian was about to finish and breath life into his creation, Arhiman and Uriel stole into his chamber and struck him down.

They bound Osirian with a specially forged chain and cast him into a deep pit, where they thought that he would perish. Arhiman then claimed ruler ship over the heavens and the earth and all of the races that dwelt therein. He took Seluna, whom he had secretly lusted after, to be his wife, in order to father a new race of beings. He also prepared the final creation of Osirian to be sacrificed to celebrate his nuptials.

For three days, Seluna resisted his advances, so Arhiman taunted her with the knowledge that Osirian was still alive, bound and in a pit, slowly dying. Seluna agreed to yield to Arhiman’s lust if he told her were Osirian was. Such was his desire and confidence that he told her, after setting Uriel to watch the host of heaven and the door to his chamber. Seluna yielded to him and he begat himself upon her.

Such was Seluna’s strength and friendship with the Elder Races that she was able to tell Corelian, Moradin, Garilin and Avorin the whereabouts of Osirian with a dream. The fathers of the Elder Races braved many obstacles to rescue Osirian and free him from his bindings.

On the next day, Arhiman and Seluna stood before the assembled hosts of heaven and the Elder Races and prepared to sacrifice the last creation of Osirian so Arhiman could bless their union. Freed from his imprisonment, Osirian burst into the ceremony and denounced his brother, tears streaming down his face. As he leapt to attack his brother, one of his tears fell upon his creation, imbuing it with life!

Great was the battle that followed, for Uriel and the three angels that had sprung from him stood with Arhiman – thus the host of heaven was sundered. And Arhiman had been busy with his own creations – golems and dragons and giants all rose up and assaulted the Elder Races and the minions of Osirian. In the end, the power and righteous anger of Osirian and the Archangels Tyrial, Gabriel and Myriel and the assembled hosts of the Elder Races where too much and Arhiman was cast down and his heart was cut from his chest and flung upon the ground and his body was burned.

As Osirian wept over the heart of his brother, he noticed his last creation lay on the ground next to Arhiman’s heart, bathed in the tears of Osirian and the blood of both Osirian and Arhiman. He named his creation man, in honor of his fallen brother and vowed never to create another creature. He then banished Uriel and his followers to the dark places beneath the earth and scattered the mad creature of his brother to the winds. Seluna told him off her rape and that she was with child and brother and sister left the field to mourn their losses. So to did the host of heaven and the Elder Races quit the field, leaving man standing alone on the field with the heart of Arhiman.

The heart of Arhiman contained the dart of darkness that had struck Arhiman at the moment of his birth and that dart whispered to man, biding him to take the heart of Arhiman to the sea and cast it in. Man, being touched by the blood of Arhiman as well as the blood and tears of Osirian, obeyed. He took the heart to the nearest sea and cast into the depths, then he made his way out into the world, touched by both the light and the darkness.

Within the year, Seluna gave birth to twins, a boy, Azrael, and a girl, Moritiana. Azrael resembled both his father and his uncle. He grew quickly to be a tall and fair child, yet there was always a brooding quality within him. His sister was slight and pale, like her mother, yet she also contained an inner reservoir of strength. When the children were 16, they were playing by the seashore when Azrael found a strange gem among the flotsam. When he retrieved it, the spirit of Arhiman possessed the lad. Driven mad by years of isolation and despair, the spirit of Arhiman caused Azrael to strike out at the closest thing to him, his sister Mortiana. Horrified that he had struck his sister down, Azrael-Arhiman fled into the wilds and eventually made into the realms carved out by Uriel and the fallen angels.

Alerted by Mortiana’s cries, Seluna rushed to seashore to find her daughter dying. She carried her to Osirian, who prevented her from traveling all the way into the Deathsgate, but he could not bring her back to the living. There she remains to this day, standing astride the Deathsgate, neither alive nor dead, judging those that come before her.

Mortiana’s fate proved to be too much for Seluna. She requested that Osirian remove her from the world that had caused her so much pain. Although it grieved him to do so, he agreed to her request and placed her among the heavens, where she could escape the pain of the world, but still follow what happened in the world. There she remains to this day, Seluna, the moon, watching over the body of the Great Earth Mother while Osirian rests.

So it is that Osirian, Lord of Light, Overlord of the Heavenly Host, the One True God, seeks to keep the darkness at bay. His three Archangels, Tyrial, Gabriel and Myriel, the nine greater angels and the spirits of the saints that served in life and were judged by Mortiana to be worthy to serve in the afterlife serve him faithfully. He is worshipped on the lands by his faithful, the Church of Light, whose adherents revere the Lord of Light in all of his aspects and also give homage to his Archangels, greater angels and saints.

Azrael, corrupted by the heart of Arhiman, the Great Deceiver, the Prince of Lies, and the Corrupter of Souls, opposes him. At his right hand stands Uriel the Damned, Captain of the Hosts of Hell. They are served in turn by the three fallen greater angels and the countless hordes of corrupted souls, judged and found lacking by Mortiana. The twisted adherents of the Church of Darkness, or the Cult of Shadow worship Azrael-Arhiman, as it is more commonly known. They revere him in all of his aspects and also give homage to Uriel, Duke of Hell, and the demons and devils that follow them.

Those that have a special bond of nature and seek to remove themselves from the struggle between the Church of Light and the Cult of Shadow quietly worship the Great Earth Mother. Her adherents are the druids that watch over quiet groves and places of great natural beauty. They seek to maintain the balance that is the Great Earth Mother and protect the quiet places from harm. Those that follow the path of the Arcane often revere Seluna, for it is she who replenishes their power as they sleep though the night, bathing the lands with her soft moonlight.

~ Old One

Interesting Old One. Is this the mythos for your campaign world? Also, did you get the Heart of Ahriman from the Conan stories?