The Man Made of Clay

The Creation of Adam. Great Canterbury Psalter. 12th century miniature / BNF

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Apparently, the idea of similarity in qualities or external features did not work here: after all, a human being is absolutely unlike clay in manners or habits. Most likely, our ancestors, unaware of the role of microorganisms in the natural cycle of matter, believed that bodies, when decomposing, turned into dirt because they had a deep affinity with it.

The Old Testament says "For dust you are, and to dust you shall return." This is how the Creator made a man, taking a piece of clay and even giving him a name - Adam, which actually means "made from red clay” and this concept is echoed in many legends around the world. Ceramic manufacturing of humans was known in Mesopotamia: the god Enki and the goddess Ninmah decided to make themselves servants out of clay, but first, they ate and drank quite a bit, so Ninmah got drunk and made all kinds of freaks, for which Enki scolded her heavily as people he made turned out beautiful, and from them came all the noble classes, whereas Ninmah's creations still offend the eye with their pitiful appearance, although they multiplied in abundance.

In China, the goddess Nüwa engaged in artistic molding and also did not try too hard. In other words, at first, she sculpted beautiful and perfect people from beautiful clean yellow clay called loess, and, of course, all emperors originated from those. Then the goddess got tired and simply dipped a rope into a vessel with some dark clay and spun it around, this is how all the other people came alive from the pieces of clay that flew off. Sometimes those pieces would get mixed into cattle manure and this produced the low class or common people. Well what we learn from all above is that the ancient myths definitely seriously stand out from modern social justice and political correctness.

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