ABSTRACT
A Tahitian creation story closely parallels the “Turtle Tower” and “The Navajo Story of Emergence.” For instance, Ta’aroa begins creation contained in a shell, analogous to the Navajo People in the closed cavern of the First World. Ta’aroa’s shell then breaks open, and he steps out into a vast, unknown world, just like the Navajo breaking out of the First World and entering the vast, unfamiliar Second World. The parallels continue through the other basic comprehension modes. Even more astonishing are parallels with the contemporary creation story from modern physics – the “Big Bang.” The universe begins with a tiny singularity, which contains everything that will be, paralleling Ta’aroa in his shell. The singularity then unfolds into space and time, like Ta’aroa stepping out of his shell, initiating the process of transcendence. The subsequent stages of the Big Bang provide further metaphors for the emergence of the basic comprehension modes. Thus, the story of the cosmos mirrors the story of comprehension.
