MsMarvelDuckie
09-27-2014, 08:01 PM
I couldn't seem to find anything that really delves into this rather weighty subject, so, here we are. As part of my research into turtles in mythology and folklore, in particular the symbolism and possible mythological connections that that surround the TMNT, I came across some interesting tales that made me start thinking about the origins of the Turtles in terms of a soul. We know the mutagen created their physical forms, but how did they gain their "souls"? In other words, what is it that makes them "human" in intellect, personality, morality, etc....? So I started trying to piece together some of the myths in a context that makes sense for the TMNT.
Here's what I've found: The Hindu mythos mentions that Vishnu- who is one of the chief gods, and also the creator who has witnessed the creation and destruction of the universe several times over- has undergone several incarnations, one of which is Kurma, who takes the shape of a giant turtle to steady the churning stick that is used to stir the elements used to recreate the world during its (and his) second incarnation. Coincidently, this incarnation's name sounds somewhat like the character of Kerma from the OT in Planet of the Turtleoids. And of course, the Hindu creation of the world says that it is supported on the back of an elephant that in turn stands on the back of- a turtle.
They also believe strongly in the concepts of karma and reincarnation, with the person's deeds in a previous life determining how they are reincarnated in the next. This might not seem to have anything to do with the TMNT- save for one thing; people can return as animals according to their "sins" or deeds in a previous life. For instance, a glutton might return as a pig, a lecher as a bull, etc. Not sure quite where turtles fit into this, but it leads me into the next discovery, which is.....
The Zuni Indians of North America have a tradition of making ritual sacrifices of their tribal totem animals during religious ceremonies to commemorate the death of relatives. Why? Because they believe that the souls of their people take residence in the bodies of their totem animals after death. The sacrifice is intended to send them on to the next world. What is interesting about this is that there is one tribe whose totem is the turtle! They catch turtles from a "haunted" lake, perform a communal dance and ritual to commune with the departed spirit, and then bring them into their homes, performing various acts to honor and seek blessings from the spirits within the animals. The next day, they ritually slay them and use the various organs as part of further rituals, before cleaning the shell and hanging it in the home or using it as ceremonial rattles or other items.
This led me to wonder- could this be how/why the TMNT came to be? Since the idea of destiny is so integral to the TMNT origin, what if this was part of it? Buddhism is part of Japanese culture and religious belief, which includes the idea of karma borrowed from the Hindus. So if they had somehow been reincarnated (for whatever reason) as turtles, and retained their human souls from the past life, perhaps this would explain how four otherwise "ordinary" turtles could have human minds and "souls" after being mutated! After all, they weren't born as mutants, so where would the souls have come from, otherwise? In fact, IDW seems to have taken a similar track in their origin tale, although they simply explained it as a plea to the gods from Yoshi in their previous life in Japan, without ever explaining how their souls could have ended up in the bodies of four turtles and a rat. I like that the Zuni belief fits nicely into that version of the origin.
Any thoughts? I'd like to hear other's take on these ideas, or if you think it makes sense, works for the various incarnations of the TMNT, etc. IDW seems to fit almost perfectly. (With Yoshi and sons souls taking residence in those particular animals as part of the scheme of destiny to avenge their murders, even though it could have been just as easily done with new human bodies.) and might also explain the Mirage origins as well. Other versions are open to interpretation, I suppose, but it makes one wonder, doesn't it?
Here's what I've found: The Hindu mythos mentions that Vishnu- who is one of the chief gods, and also the creator who has witnessed the creation and destruction of the universe several times over- has undergone several incarnations, one of which is Kurma, who takes the shape of a giant turtle to steady the churning stick that is used to stir the elements used to recreate the world during its (and his) second incarnation. Coincidently, this incarnation's name sounds somewhat like the character of Kerma from the OT in Planet of the Turtleoids. And of course, the Hindu creation of the world says that it is supported on the back of an elephant that in turn stands on the back of- a turtle.
They also believe strongly in the concepts of karma and reincarnation, with the person's deeds in a previous life determining how they are reincarnated in the next. This might not seem to have anything to do with the TMNT- save for one thing; people can return as animals according to their "sins" or deeds in a previous life. For instance, a glutton might return as a pig, a lecher as a bull, etc. Not sure quite where turtles fit into this, but it leads me into the next discovery, which is.....
The Zuni Indians of North America have a tradition of making ritual sacrifices of their tribal totem animals during religious ceremonies to commemorate the death of relatives. Why? Because they believe that the souls of their people take residence in the bodies of their totem animals after death. The sacrifice is intended to send them on to the next world. What is interesting about this is that there is one tribe whose totem is the turtle! They catch turtles from a "haunted" lake, perform a communal dance and ritual to commune with the departed spirit, and then bring them into their homes, performing various acts to honor and seek blessings from the spirits within the animals. The next day, they ritually slay them and use the various organs as part of further rituals, before cleaning the shell and hanging it in the home or using it as ceremonial rattles or other items.
This led me to wonder- could this be how/why the TMNT came to be? Since the idea of destiny is so integral to the TMNT origin, what if this was part of it? Buddhism is part of Japanese culture and religious belief, which includes the idea of karma borrowed from the Hindus. So if they had somehow been reincarnated (for whatever reason) as turtles, and retained their human souls from the past life, perhaps this would explain how four otherwise "ordinary" turtles could have human minds and "souls" after being mutated! After all, they weren't born as mutants, so where would the souls have come from, otherwise? In fact, IDW seems to have taken a similar track in their origin tale, although they simply explained it as a plea to the gods from Yoshi in their previous life in Japan, without ever explaining how their souls could have ended up in the bodies of four turtles and a rat. I like that the Zuni belief fits nicely into that version of the origin.
Any thoughts? I'd like to hear other's take on these ideas, or if you think it makes sense, works for the various incarnations of the TMNT, etc. IDW seems to fit almost perfectly. (With Yoshi and sons souls taking residence in those particular animals as part of the scheme of destiny to avenge their murders, even though it could have been just as easily done with new human bodies.) and might also explain the Mirage origins as well. Other versions are open to interpretation, I suppose, but it makes one wonder, doesn't it?