Comets and Their Appearances’ Impact on Cultures
Comets are the most beautiful of all the types of fossils left behind by the solar nebula (Seeds, 2006). They do not occur frequently but can remain visible for many weeks. During their appearances they can be described as the most remarkable object in the sky (Goldman, 2006). Many various cultures think of the appearances of comets as momentous. However, the appearances of comets have rarely been thought of as positive. Comets have been thought to be involved with both the beginning and end of human life. In the past, comets have been unjustly blamed for many major cultural events such as the Great Fire of London in 1666 (Goldman, 2006). The sight of them has inspired dread, fear, and awe (Goldman, 2006). The have been thought of as bad omens, angry messages from the Gods, or bringers of death, destruction and war far more often than as pretty objects in the sky.
The majority of cultures saw comets as something to fear. Some call them “the Harbinger of Doom” or “the Menace of the Universe” (Goldman, 2006). Quite a few cultures have myths or legends that reference them as “fires from the sky” (Comets as Harbingers of Momentous Events, 2004). A lot of cultural legends tell of a comet crashing to Earth. For example, the Roman’s Sibylline Oracles speak of a great conflagration from the sky falling to earth (Goldman, 2006). Babylonian astrology also features comets, describing them as fireballs. Legend of the Ojibwa tells of a “Long Tailed Heavenly Climbing Star” coming down to Earth, burning everything on the ground and making the world a different place (Fabian, 2001). Even in the Bible, The Book of Revelation references a comet when it talks about a vast mountain plummeting from the sky and shedding hail and fire on Earth (Comets as Harbingers of Momentous Events, 2004). The Old Testament may also be speaking of a comet when it says that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by heaven’s rain of fire...