Week 7 Reading Diary: Lightning Origins

Another origin story about lightning, but rather being an African tale about the origins of lightning, this one is an Asian one. I chose to do this reading over the same subject to compare and contrast how the two different cultures told their tales of origin (lightning). This story involves reincarnation which also caught my interest as well as the morals it is teaching. In the end of this story the most beautiful woman marries an old man and upsets everyone; thunder ends up being the sound of the gardener shooting at this old man. The cause of lightning was said to be the wreath of this beautiful woman who marries the old man. This Asian origin tale of lightning is more complex and meaningful when compared to the African lightning origin tale. Though the African version may be more simple than this one, they both share two very different perspectives which are equally interesting!

(Wreath of Lightning: Source)

These thoughts were recorded after the reading of The Origin of Lightning, by W.A.Briggs in 1899.