EVOLUTION OF HUMAN BEINGS WITH RESPECT TO

MYTHOLOGY

SUBMITTED BY:

NAME: RHYTHM KATYAL

DIV: C

PRN: 17010223034

BATCH: 2017-22

SYMBIOSIS LAW SCHOOL, NOIDA

SYMBIOSIS INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

In

August 2017

Under the guidance of

Dr. Pooja Kapoor

Professor

Symbiosis Law School, Noida

CERTIFICATE

The Project entitled “Evolution of Human Beings with Respect to Mythology”

submitted to the Symbiosis Law School, NOIDA for History – I as part of
Internal assessment is based on my original work carried out under the
guidance of Dr. Pooja Kapoor from JULY 2017 to AUGUST 2017.

The material borrowed from other sources and incorporated in the project
has been duly acknowledged.

I understand that I myself could be held responsible and accountable for

plagiarism, if any, detected later.

Signature of the candidate

Date: 31st August 2017

Acknowledgments

I would like to express my greatest thanks to the people who have helped
me the most, throughout my project. I am grateful to Dr. Pooja Kapoor
(Professor, SLS Noida) for her non-stop support for the project.

A special thank of mine goes to my friends Pranav Dwivedi (Student, BBA

LLB, 2017-22) and Adwitiya Chakrabarti (Student, BA LLB, 2016-21) who
helped me out in completing the project, where they all exchanged their own
interesting ideas, thoughts and made this possible to complete my project
with all accurate information. I wish to thank my parents for their personal
support or attention who inspired me to go my own way.

At last but not the least I want to thank my sister Chhavi Katyal (Student,
M.A in Psychology, AUD) who treasured me for my hard work and
encouraged me for taking up this topic as my project.
INTRODUCTION

Universe has fascinated humans from time immemorial. Human Beings

questioned the existence of the sun, the roundness of the Earth, the force
that makes us fall down every-time we try to jump, the moon and stars, the
natural calamities and what not! The sole explanations came from the very
experiences and the observations. The presence of a spirit in every being
was regarded as the reason of being alive and this world was considered a
miraculous place. The idea of surrendering the soul and the life to a supreme
power or the God was believed to be the solution of every problem, whether
a natural calamity or a personal and emotional problem. The very early
civilizations like the Indus Valley Civilization 1 witnessed the initiation of
cultures and with these came the running myths which were carried on by
each generation.

The major faiths and beliefs that today we know of were explained by the
first organized religions, most of which believed in a supernatural being
controlling the world and the human existence. The ancient time or the
theological period2 saw the emergence of church as the explanatory body for
the existence of human beings and the world. This period was followed by
the medieval or the renaissance period, which saw the emergence of people
and communities that questioned the theories of church and the human
existence and evolution. The Early Modern Period followed the period of
Renaissance and witnessed a scientific revolution. People like Isaac Newton
came up with new theories of a gravitational force and Charles Darwin came
up with theory of “Darwinian Theory of Evolution” 3. This project will highlight
the divine approach and the scientific approach towards the human evolution
and discuss about how mythology became a part of human life.

1
Upinder Singh, 2008
2
G.Evans, 2001
3
Charles Darwin, 1859
RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. Is Mythology another way of approaching evolution?

2. Were mythical creatures like Rama named after first human fossils
discovered?
3. What theories of evolution combine?
4. Does science play an important in Indian Mythology?
5. What was the impact of Bhakti Movement?

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The research has been based on secondary resources. Analytical study of the
topic has been done from the perspective of the researcher. References to
researches conducted around the world through history have been made.
Actual book theories have been applied to reach the conclusion. Collection of
analytical data is one of the sole sources for the research.
DIVINE THEORY OF EVOLUTION – THEOLOGICAL
SCHOOL OF THOUGHT

‘God’ is the creator and destroyer, is probably the first thing that we hear
about “him”. From creating something out of nothing to the fall of the
Roman empire, ancient time has beliefs that many beginnings and
foundations were created by god, including the first human beings. These
foundations included not only history but also art, music, dance and drama.
The story of Adam and Eve4 and how they populated the entire Earth,
leading to the creation of early civilizations in Egypt, Greece, Rome and
others.

Yahweh5 is considered as the creator of the world and human beings in

Jewish and Christian beliefs. According to these beliefs, Yahweh created the
Earth in certain number of days and contrary to the Darwinian Theory of
Evolution which states that it took billions of years for humans to evolve,
this theory just mentioned that the human evolution happened in not more
than 100 years.

In Quran, which is the holy book of Islam, it is mentioned that the Earth was
created in just a week and that the human evolution happened within this
period with no specific idea of how modern-day Homo Sapiens originate.

In Hindu mythology, it is believed that the Earth is controlled by three main

gods; Brahma – The Creator, Vishnu – The Maintainer and Shiva – The
Destroyer6 and it is believed that the first life form which was present on
Earth came from a small ‘diya’ of fire and the life was of Adi Shakti, the half
male half female god.

4
Bible, Gen 2:4-3:24
5
Bible, Exodus 3:15
6
The Bhagavat Geeta, Ch. 10 Verse 42
Gradually, people in every continent developed cultures and each culture
had their own set of beliefs. Many tribes in India believe Sun, Moon and
Earth to be gods and believe that these gods created the human beings. In
Babylonian creation myth7, it is believed that the human beings were formed
due to the bloodshed of a war between their two gods.

Many more theories from across the globe believed a supernatural being as
the sole creator of human beings but with the renaissance period emerged
people who questioned these beliefs and used metaphysical approach to
reach for an answer. The later stages gave us the most famous, Darwinian
Theory of Evolution.

7
Enûma Eliš, P. 1849
THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES – MODERN SCHOOL OF
THOUGHT

Charles Darwin, a scientific polymath came up with his theory of evolution

with his book called ‘Origin of Species’. He made observations and
considered various facts that connected the human beings to the Earth. The
requirement of water and air for survival, the carbon compounds, the ability
to grow and the presence of RNAs and DNAs were some of the conclusions
he drew out from his observations and the experiments that were conducted
before him.

According to Darwin’s theory of ‘Survival of the Fittest’ 8, the human

evolution occurs as the nature chooses its best formed species or the fittest
species and organisms evolve and adapt accordingly. Scientists other than
Darwin had already given theories of how chemical reactions lead to creation
of life on Earth and contradicted the Theological School of Thought.

The earliest metaphysical theory stated that the world before the arrival of
life, witnessed a major blast or ‘bang’ which lead to separation of the
continents and hence life originated. This popular theory is called The Big
Bang Theory9.

The Modern School contradicted the Theological School of Thought but still
people believed in mythological stories which stated god as the supreme
power. This belief in god gave them hopes and this lead to various
movements in history which spread the idea of god. One such movement
witnessed in India was “The Bhakti Movement”10.

8
Darwin, 1859
9
Simon Singh, P. 2004
10
Upinder Singh, 2008
THE BHAKTI MOVEMENT

The Bhakti Movement started in the 7th century CE and originated from
southern states of India, though the movement was at its peak from the 15 th
to the 18th century. This movement was a theistic devotional social reform
movement of Hinduism and focused on spreading the idea of gods and
promoted mythological stories. This movement was initiated when people
from medieval times interpreted Vedic texts and this lead to the idea of
beliefs.

The Bhakti Movement saw an emergence of art, music, dance and other
forms of expressive art forms through which the message of god(s) was
given to the people. Famous poets like Kabir are known to exist during the
period of the Bhakti Movement and the reflection of theism is clearly shown
in the writings. The movement influenced the people in the same way in
which the Protestant Reformation of Christianity11 influenced the people of
England.

The Bhakti Movement in later stages saw the emergence of Jainism and
Buddhism, the religious texts of these religions referred to practice of
‘Bhakti’/Devotion. Sikhism was influenced by this movement and spread of
Christianity was also a part of this movement.

The epics Mahabharata and Ramayana were being considered as a separate

age in history and the characters of Rama, Krishna, Hanuman etc. became
gods for people with people relating to these gods and appreciating their
intellect, bravery and power.

The Bhakti Movement had a great impact on the minds of the people and we
still see that people believe in many theories which were given during this
movement. The emergence of spiritual saints led to modern day profession

11
Hillerbrand, P. 2007
of becoming saints and gurus. The idle worship came into picture and people
started making sculptures and idles which in modern times is another
profession for people. The rise of rituals and beliefs in other myths rose
during this period and people started living in a world where science existed
and was studied but no one questioned the presence of god, especially in
countries like India.
MYTHOLOGY - ANOTHER WAY OF APPROACHING
EVOLUTION

Human Evolution took billions of years while science as well as mythology

are modern concepts. Science believes in experimentation and observation
and is a normative approach towards everything while mythology believes in
a supernatural being which guides everything on this planet and is a
positivist approach towards everything. With the mention of the “God
Particle” in the book ‘Theory of Everything’ 12, the science and mythology are
being connected to explain things with a new approach and to end the age-
old debate of “Science vs. Mythology”.

With modern fiction writers like Dan Brown emerging, science and religion
can be connected through dots and they ultimately answer the same
question of how and why human beings exist. In the Shiva trilogy 13, the
writer Amish Tripathi writes a fictional story of how he believes that Shiva
was not a god but a normal human being like us and attained his powers
through meditation. In the stories, the writer describes every aspect of
mythology with the help of a scientific and philosophical approach.

Ultimately, it can be said that mythology is nothing but another way to reach
the answers which science is still trying to find. Scientific experimentation
takes a lot of time and mind so mythology can be said to be an easier
approach towards the question of human existence. In modern world, to
keep law and order and to help teach moral values, the parents prefer
mythology and religion over science to create a feeling of respect out of fear
of punishment. Hence, mythology is just another way to reach the areas
where science will reach in a few years.

12
Stephen Hawking, 2002
13
Amish Tripathi, 2010
MYTHICAL CREATURES AND THE EARLIEST FOSSILS
DISCOVERED - ANALYSIS

The earliest fossils which were discovered were of two types;

 RAMAPYTHICUS: Which were more human like fossils discovered.

 DRYAOPHYTHICUS: Which were more ape like fossils discovered.

If these scientific findings relate to Ramayana then we can find a connection.

RAMApythicus was more human like so it ca inferred that Rama was named
after this fossil and Rama’s devotee and protector Hanuman, who was an
ape in the epic can be related with Dryaopythicus.

Not only mythical creatures but even the flying vessels show that the epic
was written with something scientific in mind of the writer. Hence it can be
assumed that magic and miracles were used in that age to prove what
science is proving in today’s world.
CONCLUSION

Science and Mythology, both can be said to have the same destiny just with
different ways to reach. Science as a field is based more upon normative
approach towards this world whereas the mythology is more of a positive
theory. Both the theories have always connected dots and provided people
with answers of life throughout history. While science is value neutral,
mythology tries to inculcate value driven lifestyle approach. What can be
right or wrong is debatable but both the theories in their own approach are
right.

While evolution has been experimentally traced with the help of fossils and
other remains but the alternative divine theory provides uneducated people
with a better understanding and a view of life is provided. With faith driving
the whole mythology, it can be said that contemporary to the faith the
science too has certain beliefs which are yet to be proved.

In conclusion, science and mythology are two different areas of study and
like every other subject, are co-dependent on explanations of the world.
BIBLIOGRAPHY

Singh, Upinder, History of Ancient and Medieval India, 2008, LexisNexis

Darwin, Charles, Origin of Species, 1859

Elis, Enuma, Babylonian Creation Myth, 1849

Singh, Simon, The Big Bang Theory, 2004

Hawking, Stephen, The Theory of Everything, 2002

Tripathi, Amish, The Shiva Trilogy, 2010

The Holy Bible

The Bhagavat Geeta