Myths Related to Aspects of the Earth

Early civilizations had many myths about gods and goddesses associated with what they experienced in their daily lives at the surface of the Earth. This section provides a glimpse of myths associated with aspects of Earth - storms, precipitation, lightning and thunder, winds, clouds, rainbows, water and the seas, aurora, volcanoes and the underworld - which early civilizations used to help understand the sometimes frightening world around them.
<a href="/mythology/tlaloc_rain.html&edu=elem&dev=1">Tlaloc</a> was an important deity of <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/precipitation/rain.html&edu=elem&dev=1">rain</a> and fertility of the Aztec mythology, associated with caves, springs, and mountains. Tlaloc was depicted as a man wearing a net of <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/cloud.html&edu=elem&dev=1">clouds</a>, a crown of heron feathers, foam sandals and carrying rattles to make thunder. While he was thought to sustain life, he was also feared for sending <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/precipitation/hail.html&edu=elem&dev=1">hail</a>, <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/tstorm/tstorm_lightning.html&edu=elem&dev=1">thunder and lightning</a>. This image shows Tlaloc on a multicolor ceramic vessel from the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of the Museo del Templo Mayor, Mexico.</em></small></p>

Explore Myths Related to Aspects of the Earth

Norse: Freya

Norse mythology associates the aurora with the beautiful goddess, Freya, daughter of Njord ...Read more

Norse: Valkiries

In Norse mythology, it is believed that the northern lights (the aurora) were light reflected ...Read more

Chinese: Pan-ku

Chinese people thought the universe had the shape of a chicken's egg. After 18,000 years. the ...Read more

Pawnee: Tirawa

According to the Pawnee, the world was created by the god Tirawa. Tirawa sent the stars to ...Read more

Greek: Pan

Pan is the Greek god protector of shepherds and their flocks. He has horns and legs of a goat, ...Read more

Roman: Faunus

Faunus was a Roman pastoral god. The Romans identified him with the Greek god Pan . Like Pan, ...Read more

African: Shango

Shango was the king of the Oyo kingdom in West Africa. This was where the Yoruba people lived ...Read more

Japanese: Susanowo

According to the ancient Japanese religion Shinto, Susanowo was the god of the sea and the ...Read more

Aztec: Tlaloc

Tlaloc was an important deity of rain and fertility of the Aztec mythology. Aztec people were ...Read more

Navajo: Tonenili

Tonenili is the Navaho God of Water.  He is also called the Water Sprinkler because he sprinkles ...Read more

More about Myths Related to Aspects of the Earth

Historical Events

Full Earth and Space Science    History Calendar (Members only)

Teacher Opportunities

Full Teacher Events Calendar (Educator Members only)

Did you know?

Did you know that seismic waves can travel through the Earth and produce earthquakes?

Do you know what Giovanni Cassini discovered?

 

Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day

Do you know what this word or phrase means?

Umbra
xUmbra : The shadow cast by a celestial body

Click on the word to find out!

Research Highlights

Caribbean Coral Reef Protection Efforts Miss the Mark

Corals in the Caribbean are threatened by global warming and climate change. Most of the efforts to conserve corals in this area have focused on the most diverse corals in the center of the Caribbean....Read more


Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA