The Hindus have a tradition of the Deluge, which in its details hear a close resemblance to the Bible narrative. It represents the god Vishnu as visiting a pious prince named Satyavratu, and warn ing him to prepare for a great flood that was about to destroy the earth. A capacious vessel was miraculously prepared into which the prince en tered, with his sons and their wives, pairs of all kinds of animals, and an abundant supply of vege table food.
The Chinese legend of the Deluge has little in common with the Mosaic account, save in the facts that the mountains were all covered and the people perished.
The sacred books of the Parsees refer to a flood of waters that deluged the earth, and washed away all the wickedness and impurity that had been brought about by Ahriman, the Evil One.
The version given by Berosus, the Chaldean, records that among the Antediluvians (who were all giants) there was but one, named Noa, who reverenced the gods, and that he, foreseeing a deluge, built a large vessel, in which he saved him self and his three sons, Sem, Japet, Chem, with their wives.
There is an Assyrian tradition which has also preserved very faithfully the original details of the Deluge. According to this version the god Chro mes appeared to Xithurus, tenth king of Babylon, and warned him of a flood that would shortly anni hilate mankind. The king built a vessel of huge dimensions, stored it with all things needful for the sustenance of life, together with every variety of bird and beast. Into this vessel be entered, tak ing with him his family and friends. The deluge began, and the ark floated away until after the episode of the freeing of the birds, and their sub sequent return. The vessel stranded on the moun tains of Armenia.
In the wild Scandinavian Edda the earth is allegorized as the great giant Ymir, whose bones and flesh are represented by the rocks and soil. This giant was killed by the Gods, and his blood (the ocean) poured forth in such a flood that it drowned all the lesser giants—his offspring—save one, who saved himself and his wife by escaping in time to his ship.
In the new world, also, the memory of this great event is still preserved among many of the tribes. The Indians of Peru, Brazil, and Terra Firma retained it. According to Humboldt, it was still fresh among all the tribes of the Orinoco. He mentions that the Tamanacs believe that from a great flood which devastated the world, only one man and woman escaped by betaking themselves to a lofty mountain, and that the earth was peopled anew from the seeds of a certain tree which the two survivors cast behind them. In
Cuba there used to be a legend of an old man who, knowing a deluge was about to overtake mankind, prepared a great ship, into which he entered, taking with him his family and abundance of animals. While the flood continued he sent out a crow, which delayed its return to feed on the float ing carcases, but afterwards came back with a green branch. The race which preserved this tradition has been long extinct. The Mexicans held that a deluge destioyed all living things, except a man and his wife, who saved themselves in the hollow trunk of a tree. Some curious Mexican paintings of this catastrophe still exist. The North American Indians say that the father of all their tribes, with his family, and pairs of all the animals, made his escape on a raft which he had made in anticipation of a mighty deluge, fore told to him in a dream.
Thus we see that the records of this great judg ment have been preserved by man how far soever he may have wandered from those plains of Ararat whence the race began its second dispersion. The occurrence of these traditions over all the world, however, does not prove that the deluge was uni versal ; for, of course, we should then have to believe that there must have been many Noahs. But it may indicate that all the tribes of mankind have had a community of origin.
With regard to the extent of the deluge, two opinions have been entertained, one that it was general over the whole globe ; the other, that it was partial, affecting only those regions over which the human race had extended. In all inquiries into this subject, it is well to bear in mind the design to be fulfilled by the flood of waters.' That design was plainly not to destroy and re model the surface of the earth. Although the inferior animals were involved in a like fate with the human race, it was not for their destruction that the great catastrophe came. The wickedness of man had evoked the Divine anger ; to sweep him and his crimes, therefore, from the face of the earth, the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. Hence, we may reasonably infer, that no greater devastation would be permitted than was unavoid able to secure the destruction of the human family.