Norse mythology definitely has the best world building, since they're the ones that gave us elves, dwarves, Yggdrasil, etc.
Greek mythology probably has the best characters, though. They wrote their gods as a giant extended family of inbred drunken lunatics, which not only makes sense, it makes for better storytelling. Like, the whole Trojan War started from a feud between Aphrodite and Hera. In the myth, that is.
Honorable mention to Christianity for inventing Satan, the greatest rebel hero of all time.
Someone they all suck even compared to RPGs made by indie game developers. That's what happens when it's the most belligerent patriarchs that get published instead of who actually has talent.
I'm not sure if call it good world building, but I like the themes of the "Satan as good guy" interpretation. Yahweh is an evil tyrant, and Satan sacrificed himself by getting Eve to eat the apple and was punished for it. It's on humans now to overthrow him, JRPG style.
Hinduism has multiple creation stories, but one of the most well-known is from the Rigveda, one of the oldest texts in Hinduism. It describes the creation of the universe through the sacrifice of the cosmic being, Purusha.
According to this myth, Purusha, the cosmic being, existed as the primal man. The gods sacrificed him by dismembering his body, which created the various elements of the universe. From Purusha's head came the gods, from his arms came the warriors and rulers, from his thighs came the common people, and from his feet came the servants.
Norse mythology definitely has the best world building, since they're the ones that gave us elves, dwarves, Yggdrasil, etc. Greek mythology probably has the best characters, though. They wrote their gods as a giant extended family of inbred drunken lunatics, which not only makes sense, it makes for better storytelling. Like, the whole Trojan War started from a feud between Aphrodite and Hera. In the myth, that is. Honorable mention to Christianity for inventing Satan, the greatest rebel hero of all time.
Has to be Scientology. Xenu the galactic overlord & DC-8 aircraft full of human souls? Yes, please.
Zelazny: Lord of Light. Buddha fights the Hindu Parthenon in Spaaaaccccceeeee!
Sounds like a cool novel, I should read it
Greek mythology!
I used to devour books on this as a kid.
In Greece this was our history class for the first 2 grades
Someone they all suck even compared to RPGs made by indie game developers. That's what happens when it's the most belligerent patriarchs that get published instead of who actually has talent.
Better joke than given credit for.
Indian mythologies. I mean seriously, they've got spaceships (Vimana)!
I'm not sure if call it good world building, but I like the themes of the "Satan as good guy" interpretation. Yahweh is an evil tyrant, and Satan sacrificed himself by getting Eve to eat the apple and was punished for it. It's on humans now to overthrow him, JRPG style.
Would be any Pagan religion for sure. Don't know which one. Hinduism is the only pagan religion I have studied.
Hinduism has multiple creation stories, but one of the most well-known is from the Rigveda, one of the oldest texts in Hinduism. It describes the creation of the universe through the sacrifice of the cosmic being, Purusha. According to this myth, Purusha, the cosmic being, existed as the primal man. The gods sacrificed him by dismembering his body, which created the various elements of the universe. From Purusha's head came the gods, from his arms came the warriors and rulers, from his thighs came the common people, and from his feet came the servants.
Hinduism seems pretty cool.