Importance of Mythology
The set of myths and legends that have emerged and taken root in various cultures constitute the source of most of their customs, beliefs and even the origin of their values, establishing mythology as the cultural bastion par excellence that tells us the most relevant aspects of human history that have driven the evolution and development of all cultures. From this perspective, mythology has been at the service of humanity in terms of: 1) preserving the history and culture of indigenous peoples; 2) generating spaces and encounters with ancestral knowledge, rituals and beliefs; 3) creating a cultural identity according to the context of each people; 4) developing cultural activities for educational and recreational purposes; and 5) being a source of inspiration for the creation of countless past, present and future literary works.
The mythological construction for the narrative of phenomenological and human matters that surpassed the understanding and knowledge existing in the past, was presented as an ideological tool that allowed the generation of answers to questions and needs that covered all aspects of life, thereby laying the foundations for the analysis that gave way to the development of philosophy.
About heroes, villains and fantastic creatures
The development of creativity has largely been the result of the stimulus provided by the generation and dissemination of various fables, which in addition to being provided as a resource for entertainment, also serve as food for the collective imagination, representing an effective means for the transmission of values, through the construction of instructive anecdotes that, without the barrier of personal allusions, allow the natural development of self-analysis and reflection necessary for the correction of one’s own conduct in circumstances similar to those experienced by mythological characters.
Inspired by mythology, multiple representations in paintings, sculptures, drawings and countless other resources also emerged, the various mythological characters, allowing through them the creation of wonderful works of art that have complemented the artistic legacy of each time with the semiotic value that defines them and for various purposes, such as gargoyles in cathedrals and churches to ward off evil spirits, the Venuses that worship feminine beauty and honor and the figureheads on the bow of ships for the fortune of sailors.
Psychological influences and other adventures
But myths are not only involved in art, they also transcend the fanciful image of the explanations found in their stories in the deepest aspects of the human psyche, encouraging the creation of a distinctive cultural identity for each people, which in turn provides the ideological foundations that guide spiritual development based on the set of beliefs promoted, a fact that allowed the development and maintenance of the vast majority of religions in the world.
Beyond this, the psychic influence of mythology, acting as a means of transmitting history and traditions from one generation to another, has allowed the construction of a sense of belonging to one’s own culture by people, contemplating a direct proportionality between the level of preservation of their beliefs and traditions, and the harmony of their relationship with nature, in those who still keep their mythological cultural roots alive.
Also, personal identification with the image and history of the various elements of mythology allows the revelation of deep aspects of the psyche, and, based on the foundations laid by Jung, through the establishment of the unconscious and subconscious meanings of the archetypes, the level of understanding of the phenomena of the collective unconscious and the human psyche has increased, helping to advance psychology and psychiatry.
The need for a higher force
Although mythology is considered in modern times to be a resource from the past, the scale of its impact transcends beyond any era and generation, demonstrating an adjustable timelessness in its use, especially in terms of the sustainability it grants to religious beliefs and the infinite need to be able to have faith in that which there is still no way to confirm, nor to refute, providing calm, guidance and peace, according to what myths and beliefs could provide as a response to the case.