Mythology & Religion
Discover gods, heroes, world myths, and spiritual traditions across cultures.
Some of the stories included
The Legend of Saint PatrickThe story of St. Patrick, who was kidnapped by pirates and sold into slavery in Ireland before returning as its patron saint.
The Birth of AphroditeHesiod said Aphrodite rose from sea foam and landed on Cyprus, while Homer made her Zeus's daughter. Two stories, one goddess.
The RamayanaThe ancient Indian epic of Prince Rama's 14-year exile, his quest to rescue his wife Sita, and his return to Ayodhya, which is celebrated today as Diwali.
Icarus and DaedalusThe classic myth of the inventor Daedalus, who built wings of feathers and wax, leading to the tragic flight and fall of his son Icarus.
Noah's Ark and the Great FloodThe biblical story of Noah, who built a 300-cubit-long ark to save his family and the world's animals from a divinely sent flood.
Anansi the SpiderTo win all the world's stories, the trickster Anansi must capture four 'impossible' creatures for the sky god Nyame.
Susanoo and the Eight-Headed SerpentThe exiled storm god Susanoo battles an eight-headed serpent, finding a divine sword in its tail that became one of Japan's Imperial Regalia.
Gnosticism: The Secret KnowledgeAn exploration of the early Christian movement that believed salvation came from 'gnosis', or secret knowledge of one's divine origins.
The Birth of AthenaZeus swallowed his pregnant wife Metis, and Athena later sprang from his head fully armed, a birth carved on the Parthenon.
The Bhagavad GitaThe Bhagavad Gita, the Hindu scripture set on a battlefield: Prince Arjuna's crisis and Krishna's teaching on duty, the self and action.
Jason and the Golden FleeceJason lost one sandal in a flooded river, and it sent him and the talking ship Argo after a golden fleece.
Orpheus and EurydiceThe Greek myth of Orpheus, the musician who went down to the underworld to bring back his wife Eurydice, and lost her by looking back.
The Judgment of ParisGreek myth: a shepherd prince took Eris's golden apple dispute, chose Aphrodite, and her gift led to a ten-year war.
The Origins of DiwaliDiwali, the Hindu, Jain and Sikh festival of lights: the stories behind it, from Rama's return to Ayodhya to the release of Guru Hargobind.
Medusa and PerseusThe myth of Medusa features two distinct origins: one where she was born a monster, and another where she was cursed by a goddess.
Prometheus and the Theft of FireThe Greek myth of Prometheus, who tricked Zeus over the sacrifice at Mecone, stole fire for humanity, and was chained to a mountain until Heracles freed him.
Osiris and IsisThe Egyptian myth of Osiris: his murder, Isis's quest to restore him, and his final role as eternal judge of the dead.
Cain and Abel: The First MurderThe story of Cain and Abel from Genesis 4, Adam and Eve's sons whose rival offerings end in the first murder, alongside details later Jewish and Islamic traditions added.
The Tower of BabelIn Genesis, a united humanity tried to build a tower to heaven, but God confused their language, scattering them across the Earth.
Amaterasu and the CaveHow Japan's sun goddess plunged the world into darkness and founded a divine imperial line leading to the first emperor, Jimmu.
Baba YagaThe witch of Slavic folklore travels in a mortar, lives in a hut on chicken legs, and tests all who enter her forest domain.
Jainism and the Path of Non-ViolenceJainism, the ancient Indian religion that makes non-violence its highest rule, and how it shaped the young Mahatma Gandhi.
The OdysseyHomer's epic of Odysseus's 10-year struggle to return home to Ithaca after the Trojan War, a journey cursed by the god Poseidon.
Pandora's BoxThe myth of Pandora explains humanity's suffering, unleashed from a great jar, but also why Hope remains even in the darkest of times.
Ragnarök: The End of the WorldThe prophesied end of the Norse world begins with three years of winter and ends with the earth sinking into the sea, consumed by fire.
Romulus and RemusThe Roman foundation legend tells of twins abandoned on a river and suckled by a wolf, in a saga that culminates in the founding of Rome.
Persephone and HadesThe myth of Persephone, whose abduction by Hades led her mother Demeter to create a global famine, explaining the cycle of the seasons to the Greeks.
Sun Wukong, the Monkey KingThe Monkey King of the Chinese novel Journey to the West: born from a stone, he wages war on heaven, then guards a monk on the road to India.
Judas Iscariot: Why Did He Do It?Judas asked the priests for a price and got 30 pieces of silver. Why he did it, the ancient sources never agree.
The Epic of GilgameshThe Epic of Gilgamesh, the world's oldest surviving great story: a Mesopotamian king, the wild man who became his friend, and a search for eternal life.
SisyphusThe myth of the king who cheated death twice and the punishment of the boulder, re-examined by philosopher Albert Camus in 1942.
Odin's Sacrifice for WisdomThe Norse myth, told in the Hávamál and Prose Edda, of how Odin gave an eye at Mímir's well and hung nine nights on the world tree to win the runes.
The Creation of MjölnirThe Norse myth, told in Snorri's Prose Edda, of how Loki's prank on Sif led to a wager with the dwarf smiths who forged Thor's hammer Mjölnir.
How Ganesha Got His Elephant HeadIn the Shiva Purana, Shiva beheads the boy guarding Parvati's door, then replaces the head with an elephant's.
The Story of Heracles' LaborsThe Greek myth of the twelve labours Heracles performed for King Eurystheus, a penance that would earn him immortality.
Thor Dressed as a BrideThor wore a bridal veil and housewife's keys to win back a hammer a giant had buried eight leagues deep.
The Popol VuhThe K'iche' Maya creation story of gods, heroes, and the first people made from maize, a text that survived the Spanish conquest.
The Death of BaldurIn Snorri's Prose Edda, Baldur dies when blind Hodr throws a mistletoe shaft that Loki handed him.
Ask and Embla: The First HumansThe Norse myth of the first humans: Odin, Vili and Vé find two pieces of driftwood on a shore and give them breath, mind and senses, making Ask and Embla.
Narcissus and EchoOvid's myth of Echo, who could only repeat, and Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection, leading to the term narcissism.
The Valkyries, Choosers of the SlainThe story of the warrior maidens of Norse myth who decided who lived and died in battle, escorting fallen heroes to Valhalla.
The Origins of RamadanThe story of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month commemorating the first revelation of the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad in a cave outside Mecca.
Durga and the Buffalo DemonDurga was made from the combined radiance of the gods to defeat a buffalo demon that no man or god could kill.
The Creation of the CosmosThe Norse creation myth: how fire and ice met in the void of Ginnungagap, and the gods built the world from the body of the first giant, Ymir.
The Four Horsemen of the ApocalypseThe story of the four riders from the Book of Revelation who symbolize conquest, war, famine, and death, written around 95 AD.
The MahabharataThe Mahabharata is the world's longest epic poem, chronicling a devastating war between two families of royal cousins, the Pandavas and Kauravas.
The Fall of ManThe biblical story of Adam, Eve, and a serpent in a garden, culminating in their exile and the birth of human mortality.
The Printing PressJohannes Gutenberg's press used a special metal alloy and oil-based ink to print 250 sheets an hour, sparking a revolution in knowledge.
Akhenaten and the Aten: Egypt's Religious RevolutionAkhenaten renamed himself in c. 1348 BCE and swapped Egypt's many gods for the sun disc, the Aten.
The Trojan WarThe Trojan War, a timeless tale of pride and fate, began when the prince of Troy, Paris, awarded a golden apple to the goddess Aphrodite.
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