what about other cultures' end of the world beliefs?

didnt know where to put this...

my question i simple. what about the other cultures??? the mayans aren't the only ones that have an "end of the world" prediction.

let's explore some others!!!

Hindu-

at the end of this present cycle, Vishnu's tenth avatar, known as Kalki, will appear as a winged white horse. After destroying evil in a final epic battle, humanity will prepare for its next cycle of existence.

Norse-

you all know it! RAGNAROK! the Nordic gods were fated to be destroyed by the forces of evil led by Loki. as the battle raged on over a series of severe winters that lasted 3 or 7 years, known as the Fimbul winter, the Midgard serpent came out of the ocean breathing poison and causing great floods, while the wolves Hati, Managarm, and Skoll ate the sun and moon. Garm, Fenris, and Loki broke there bonds, and Nidhogg, the dragon finally ate through the roots of the Yggdrasil. The cockerels crew, and Heimdall blew his horn to signal the end.

Loki had brought many great evils to the battle of the Vigrid plain, where the gods were defeated. Odin was eaten by the wolf Fenris; Frey was killed by Sutr, Heimdall by Loki, Tyr by Garm, and Thor drowned in the pool of poison of the Midgard serpentafter he had killed it.

Vidar, who had arrived late, killed Fenris by ripping his head in two. Sutr then set the world ablaze with his flaming sword and the world sank beneath the waves.

Lif, a man, and Liffthrasir, a woman, survived being sheltered beneath Yggdrasil. they repopulated the Earth, and, as predicted, the gods Vali and Vidar survived, as did Magni and Modi. they retrieved Thor's hammer from the ashes. Balder and Hoder, after being reunited, ruled a regenerated world.

Native American-

The Cheyenne believe that the world is propped upon a pole. a beaver is at the bottom of the pole gnawing continuously. when the beaver makes it through, the world will plunge into an abyss and that will be the end.

The Sioux, however, envisage an old lady weaving porcupine quills. when she rests, her dog chews part of it off, and the old lady must always work more and more to finish. when the woman does finish her work, the world will end.

Persian-

------Early Version----------

this states that the forces of good will defeat those of evil, and that the original cosmic god, Rapthiwin, will rule over a regenerated world.

------Later Version----------

in the Zoroastrian version, the savior, Saoshyant, will supervise the world when all demons, other than Ahriman and Az, who will be confined to hell, will be killed. Men will be resurrected and reconciled with their souls, and the universe will revert to its original pure state free of evil.

and now, what is the true South AMerican one???

many tribes, many, claim that the world will be destroyed by a fire caused by demons, a spark from the sky, or a piece of the moon (some even claim of the sun), falling to the earth.

Some blame the men of fire, who, insulted by a bird, set the world ablaze in retaliation. others say the blaze will come when the props beneath the Earth are removed by the creator god.

some also claim that in the cold south, that a bird will cause a great amount of snow to fall, and the melting of this would cause a great flood that would end the world.



And this in turn raises a question. if the prophets that developed these were all coming from one true god, why are they not all alike???

Thoughts?

Why are there differences in "the end" if all came from same religion?

Why are there differences in 9/11 when we all saw the same footage?

I believe there are more common aspects of "the end" than differences... a change of name maybe, but many are the same.

For instance, the Hopi believe a white spirit wearing a star and named the beginning and the end will return to their people and signal the end... sounds familiar.

Woops i forgot plains natives-

a woman in the form of a white buffalo will return to the world and we will return to a purer existence.

the couple i think bare alot of similarity to biblical prophecy are the norse and hindu.
the problem appears to be the symbols used, which are cultural. otherwise, really quite similar.

[edit on 15-5-2010 by undo]