Are stories and legends not as validated as written history?Originally Posted by tc101
People who kept great written records were Egyptians, Romans, (Egyptian thought influenced early Greek and Roman thought greatly). Usually large empires (ie China). The Mayans kept records but were mostly destroyed by the Conquistadors. In North America, records we can still see were recorded in Petroforms, rock art, stone pecking, etc. In other cases, birch bark scrolls were used, and Wampum belts. Some claim that the Cherokee alphabet, attributed to being written by George Guess in the 1800's, was actually a different version of their already existing alphabet that George Guess revised to match up with English better.
What about folk traditions and the oral tradition of the rest of the world- what about when mythology of the cosmos (astro-theology) that all cultures around the world expressed, and how this helped people understand when to plant, harvest, move on to another village, etc. In this way, a serpent-god legend that is passed down through oral tradition could just sound like a fanciful story to the untrained person, but actually has it's roots in the cosmology and belief system of a people (when certain constellations appear, etc.), who would need to understand this in their everyday/seasonal activities.
As far as martial arts I understand there may be exaggerated claims about a war general, or a great Emperor, but those claims (history becoming legend) should be understood better in their context. Why would it be important to remember certain iconic figures in such a way. Why are certain places like Mount Wudang, or Mount Hua, so relevant, and thus martial arts styles associated with these places (even if there is a lack of hard-core evidence of an art originating there). It almost seems like something in the conscious memory of the people that makes it important. Why are the 8 Immortals so benevolent? What is the source of their power? What lessons may we learn from them that we can incorporate into our understanding of human behavior, etc.
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