Why are there 2 creation stories?

[Krilly]

The rainbow story is interesting...

We know the AoT exists. So if that story and the others are true, the children must have done all this AFTER the Worm went into slumber but BEFORE the AoT was created. Why? Because it says that the Enemy is amidst in the Creator's cosmic world... this is all before the AoT was erected and Foul cast down. But what's puzzling is if the AoT was not there... why could the Creator not come and save then?

I'm thinking that the only possible answer is the AoT was the Creator's replacement for the marred rainbow (the "cure" spoken of). And upon completion he saw it was too late... his children were down there and trapped. So he turned angrily on his Enemy and cast him down as well (the story we're all familiar with).

So if all these biblical-esque stories are true... I'd piece it together as such:

- In the beginning there was Creation and Despite.

- The Creator dwells amidst the cosmos, creating children to rejoice and keep him company.

- A Worm of unknown origin travels amongst the children, devouring them. It's believed the Creator built this as a "shell" for his greatest creation, only needing the "power" of his children to nourish it.

- The combined potency of them lulls the beast to sleep, and the power within creates the shape of the Earth on the Worm's hide. It is assumed the Creator then nurtures this world, creating living creatures and engraving wild magic in the hearts of all things whilst the Despiser casts malignancy into the recipe.

- The Creator sees that it is good and erects a rainbow about the Earth as celebration. His remaining children dance upon it, but find an ugly hole set in place by the Despiser and venture through it unto the Earth.

- The Creator sets about to fix the rainbow, not knowing of his children's plight. It is believed the Arch of Time was forged at this time.

-The Creator places the Arch of Time about the Earth, unintentionally trapping his children inside the Earth. In his anger he turns on the Despiser, his Enemy, for all the ill things he has done and hurls him down through the Arch as well.

- The Despiser is trapped and makes plans to ruin the Earth and escape. The Creator must find an outside source to battle Despite.

- With Time set in place, the history of the Earth begins.

- The power of the children is manifest in the Worm's blood (Earthblood) and incarnate in the Elohim (Earthpower).

- When the Worm awakens, Time will crumble and the Earth will be destroyed.

[dlbpharmd]

Good post, Krilly - makes all the sense in the world to me.

[wayfriend]

I'd piece it together as such

Unfortunately, Krilly, I think that 'Arch' and 'Rainbow' are too similar that their relationship cannot be discounted. As in, the Rainbow 'is' the Arch, in a story-symbolism sense. SRD had both the Arch and the Rainbow well in mind when he wrote about this. So I have to presume that the Rainbow story is an intentional simplification of the Creator story.

There's also too much similarity between the Creator pulling down the Rainbow, trapping the children in the Rainbow, and the Creator throwing down the Dispiser, trapping him in the Arch. It cannot be discounted.

It seems obvious that the second creation myth didn't exist in SRD's mind until he wrote the second chronicles

Equally obviously, the author did have the Rainbow story before him when he wrote the Second Chronicles. I cannot believe that the similarities are accidental.

We can see a similarity between the Rainbow's wound and the Wurm's hunger - both devour the stars. But are they consumed, or captured, thereby? And, again, there is a common destructive element - the Creator destroys the Rainbow(=Arch of Time), and the Wurm, when it awakes, destroys the Earth (in the Arch of Time).

So it's fairly obvious at this point that Foul is the Wurm.

world-building is of secondary importance to him.

Ah, but the Creation Myth is of primary importance to him.

My best bet is that the author intends it to be befuddled, so that a true answer cannot be discerned.

perhaps the existence of the second creation story represents the presence of another 'real world' person in the Land - ie, Linden. If so, then logically (and logic may not be a good guide) the two stories should reflect the two characters in some way.

Ooh ooh ooh.

And Covenant has a link to the Creator. So Linden would need to have a link to the Wurm.