As we mentioned in our group discussion this week, Satan’s temptation of Christ represents three different temptation; hedonism, egoism, and materialism, which are the three main temptation for people. In contrast to Satan’s temptation of Christ, The Story of Harut and Marut comes to a different ending. While Jesus maintained his position of being faithful to God, Harut and Marut could not resist the temptations. Although the ending of these myths are quite extreme, as it is all or nothing. I think The Story of Harut and Marut is more realistic than Satan’s temptation of Christ. Harut and Marut represents most human beings as people tend to cave into their temptations unless there are extreme consequences. Satan’s temptation of Christ represents humans desire to be like him and to remain strong despite temptations.
Vasily Surikov. (1872). Satan’s Temptation of Christ [Online Image].
Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/372954412877207834/
The Tale of Harut and Marut. [Online Image].
Retrieved from http://muslimsincalgary.ca/the-tale-of-harut-and-marut/
Another component of the myth mentioned from our group is that God intended for Jesus to face these temptations and to overcome obstacles in order to prove that he is the “perfect man”. Other myths that carries similar narrative as this could be Buddha by the Demon Mara and The Book of Ester. All of these myths do not mention God directly but contains implications of God’s purpose and activities. Buddha by the Demon Mara is a story of Buddha maintaining his position despite the temptations the demon Mara has sent to him in order to fail Buddha’s enlightenment. This story does not mention or indicate God directly but implies God’s intention to test Buddha. The Book of Ester, also does not mention God, but contains implications of God’s activities with numerous coincidence and ironic reversals.
The Book of Esther at VBS. [Online Image].
Retrieved from https://www.nativitygreenwood.org/news/2018/6/1/vbs-the-book-of-esther
Buddha, resisting the demons of Mara. [Online Image].
Retrieved from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buddha,_resisting_the_demons_of_Mara,_Wellcome_V0046085.jpg
Myth is a story. Some myths could simply be a story that entertains you and some of them might have a hidden meaning that if you understand what it is, you would earn information and learn something out of it.
A story in my opinion could also be something that someone would make to fulfill their desires or insufficiency. Myths such as Satan’s temptation of Jesus, The Story of Harut and Marut, and etc. could be myths that people created to have a form of a “perfect” human being. A mortal, who is same as others, but stronger, either mentally or physically. It reflects human’s desire of wanting to be “perfect” and to be someone who others can look up to and admire. Satan or any other form of evil represents obstacles that prevents people from becoming “perfect”, in other words preventing them from achieving something they desire or admire. Only people who overcome these obstacles could get what they want or reach to the place.
Since myths are a type of story and majority of them are created based on religions, one of the purpose of myths was to be widely spread and share its beliefs and thoughts to people. Because of this, myths are interesting and catches peoples’ attention. Considering this factor, many of these temptation myths contains high risk factors. When evil succeeds in tempting challengers, they often take away their souls, which means death. And when challengers succeed, they earn the highest and most valuable “prize”.
Reference:
O’Brien, B. (n.d.). Mara, the Demon Who Challenged the Buddha. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/the-demon-mara-449981
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew 4:1-11&version=NKJV
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://d2l.ucalgary.ca/d2l/le/content/309867/viewContent/4092798/View
Staff, B. (2018, April 12). The Temptation of Jesus – Bible Story, Verses and Meaning. Retrieved from https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-stories/temptation-of-jesus-bible-story.html
The Buddha triumphing over Mara (article). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-asia/beginners-guide-asian-culture/buddhist-art-culture/a/the-buddha-triumphing-over-mara
- The Temptation Of Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://bible.org/seriespage/6-temptation-jesus-matthew-41-11
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