Blogpost 4: Mythology of Immortality

There are different myths of immortality. When I was kid, the only immortal I know is the gods of the Greek and I don't know why they become immortal. I found out that each culture and religion have different ways to achieve immortality. According to Robert Ingersoll, "Our hope of immortality does not come from any religions, but nearly all religions come from that hope." 

When I read an article called "Mythological Ways to become Immortal" by Pallavi Tyagi in the site of Speakingtree.in. There are different myths from different cultures.

According to Japanese Mythology, when you eat a ningyo (mermaid). It is famous for its pleasant-smelling flesh that whoever eats it becomes immortal. Example is when one girl ate that fish not knowing it is a ningyo, she grew up and got married. She stayed young become widowed and had been married many times until she decided to become a nun. She died at 800 years old because perhaps of her good deeds.

According to Hindu Mythology, if someone consumes Amrit/Amrita, you become immortal. The gods teamed up with the demons so that they can make this drink and promised the demons that they will give them some. But, the gods trick the demons and did not give them the holy drink.

In Greek Mythology, there are two myths to become immortal.
Ambrosia is a food or drink that whoever consumes it becomes immortal. It is for the gods but for demigods, if they consume it they gain back their health but not immortal. They said that ambrosia was brought by the doves.
If you trick the gods, they will get angry at you and you will be punished for eternity in which you also became immortal. One of the stories is that King Ixion try to rape Hera, Zeus found out and he was punished by strapping him to a flaming wheel forever.

In Christian Mythology, according to the legends, the Holy Grail is where Jesus drank at the Last Supper. Many of the knights has the quest to search for the Holy Grail but most of them failed. Sir Galahad, son of Sir Lancelot and Elaine, was the only one to have gained immortality because he was the one who touched it.

According to Norse Mythology, there is an orchard in Asgard where golden apples started to grow. The Norse people believed that the apples were connected to immortality and resurrection. If someone they cherished is dead, they buried the apples with the dead so that it would sustained their trip on the other side.


According to the Chinese Mythology, peaches symbolizes immortality in the Chinese. The immortals celebrate a feast called "Feast of the Peaches". It happens during the 3rd day of the 3rd moon month. They waited for like six thousand to gather the feast. For the first three years, the peach tree will put forth leaves and for the other three years, the fruit will ripen.

While in Sumerian Mythology, Gilgamesh has a quest which is to find the source of immortality. He goes to Utnapishtim and tells him that immortality is a special gift but then again, there is a plant that gives eternal life. Gilgamesh find it. However, he loses the plant to a snake.

When I read another article in listverse.com entitled "10 Mythological Ways to become Immortal " by Michael Van Duisen. In this article, it has the same content as the previous one. Except he indicated one myth which is in Taoism. There is a common ore of mercury is called Cinnabar in which it is the central ingredient to the Taoist elixir of immortality.  But their belief changed due to that they said that these materials were poisonous and many people died including their emperors.
 
Well there are a lot of myths to become immortal. But these are just myths meaning they are FICTION. Still, some people believe in these myths. If these are true, where is the evidence? They are immortal right? They should be living until now. So for me, I do not believe that these myths are true.