Abassi
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(African mythology)
The zealous god of the Efik. Although on the advice of his wife Atai, the sky god Abassi let a human couple settle upon the earth, he greatly feared that they might not only become his equals, but excel him in wisdom. Atai promised to see that such a thing did not come about. Therefore, the man and wife were forbidden either to procreate or to work, and even their meals were to be taken in heaven ‘when Abassi rang his dinner bell’. In the course of time the couple began to disregard these rules: they tilled the soil, cooked for themselves, and produced children. They had forgotten Abassi, who pointed out this deplorable state of affairs to his wife. Once again Atai promised to take a hand in the matter. She sent death to the husband and wife, and caused discord between the children. The price of apparent independence for mankind, this Efik myth suggests, was the advent of death and evil.
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary:
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A·bas·si
[Ar. & Per. abāsī, belonging to Abas (a king of Persia).]
A silver coin of Persia, worth about twenty cents.
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Abassi
Abassi was the creator god in the pantheon of the Nigerian Efik people. After a suggestion by his wife Atai Abassi created the first humans and introduced them to the world. However, to prevent them from exceeding his wisdom, he ordered the first humans to neither procreate nor labor. This prohibition was followed for some time, but eventually the first couple did have children and work, thus doing some "creation" of their own. Unfortunately, they quickly created a terrible overpopulation problem, which made Abassi feel insecure. This led his wife Atai to give humanity two gifts, Argument and Death, which would help keep the numbers of humans down.[1]
See also
References
- ^ Cotterell, Arthur, ed. (1997), "Abassi", Oxford Dictionary of World Mythology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-217747-8, http://www.enotes.com/wm-encyclopedia/abassi
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Copyrights:
Oxford Dictionary of World Mythology
A Dictionary of World Mythology. Copyright © Arthur Cotterell 1979, 1986, 2003. All rights reserved.
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