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Genesis and the Navajo Creation Story are both myths teaching their people how to act
appropriately and how to be grateful for what they have. While Genesis begins with one
world, which is desert or water (Stein 84), the Navajo Creation Story: Dine Bahane takes
place in four worlds (Stein 99). Moreover, in Genesis, men and women are created by God
from the dust of the ground (Stein 84). In the Navajo Creation Story, four Holy People
created humanity from ears of corn (Stein 99-101). Also, the Genesis myth is about one and
only one God, the Lord God (Stein 81-84). The Navajo Creation Myth is an emergence myth
involving its people travelling from previous worlds into this world emerging from a
cramped space (Stein 98).
A consequence of the oral transmission of myth is that its stories can be frequently and
unconsciously altered with each generation, resulting in different versions of the same myth
existing within a society (Stein 79, 80). Oral myths might change to account for new
circumstances or events as well (Stein 79, 80). Just like how the Navaho creation story has
multiple versions with each collected by a different anthropologist (Stein 79, 80).
On the other hand, written myths are more durable through the test of time, keeping its
originality (Stein 80). Genesis is an example of a written text originating from oral
narratives (Stein 81). There are also changes in written texts, but these changes are due to
translation or scholarly discourse regarding specific words and ritual (Stein 85).
