Chapter 334 - Eighteen Years of Waiting (1/2)

Chapter 334 Eighteen Years of Waiting

“So, you want to know more about mythology now, huh?” Father Zhang was a little surprised, “I thought you lost interest in such things after you graduated from sixth grade?”

The four had finished their dinner, and after cleaning up the tableware, Mother Zhang and her father were going through some old photos in the study room. Outside, Zhang Heng and his dad were in the living room, eating fruit while watching TV.

“Okay, what do you want to know? I will try my best to tell you everything I know. Just go ahead and ask me questions,” said Father Zhang after picking up an apple and taking a bite.

Zhang Heng silently pondered for a moment.

“Is there really a G.o.d in the world we live in?”

“Hack!”

Father Zhang almost choked on the apple he just swallowed. He coughed twice and asked, “What’s the matter, do we really have to pretend that you are still a sixth-grader?”

He took a sip of water to soothe his throat.

“I remember us discussing this a long time ago. Although your mother and I are theology majors, we do not have any beliefs. In fact, I am interested in mythology, but only the history and humanity parts of it. Your mother… well, she is just interested in all the weird stories. She likes to travel around, take pictures, and taste food in the name of the archaeology of religion and cults. If I remember correctly, her master’s thesis was about the diet of medieval believers.

“From my point of view, the so-called myths are just stories written by mortals, just like fairy tales, but myths are for the adults. For example, ‘Odyssey’ was said to be written by Homer, a blind poet in ancient Greece. And we all know that the book’s theme was about the Trojan War. There weren’t only mortals, but there was also the demiG.o.d, Achilles, the Sun G.o.d Apollo, and Poseidon, G.o.d of the sea.

“But in reality, the Trojan War was the only actual historical event. The rest are Homer’s artistic add-ons. Academicians generally believe that even if Homer was real, there were no proper historians in the era he lived in, which was in the ninth century BC. At that time, no one paid too much attention to history’s authenticity. Thanks to that, people concocted their versions of history and incorporated real events with myths and legends. Hence the birth of Odyssey.”

Father Zhang paused, “In fact, if you properly study the system of myths and legends, you will find that they all have their origins. Usually, these tales are pa.s.sed down verbally, constantly evolving based on the society they originated from. For example, Celtic mythology originated from Celtic folklore and was influenced by ancient Rome and Christianity. If the stories in it were real, why then would they be influenced by the civilization of the time? Greek and Roman mythology are typical examples.”

Father Zhang continued while gnawing at the apple. “Roman mythology was completely born out of Greek mythology. Many G.o.ds have different names because of different p.r.o.nunciations. As for their legendary tales, they are all the same. How could this stuff be true?”