Myth myth, a story that a community holds as foundational—about how the world began, why we suffer, or what the gods require—carries meaning that goes beyond a single event. Myths are often old. They are told again and again. They answer big questions: Where did we come from? Why do we die? What must we do to be right with each other? They do not have to be literally true to do that work. They have to be meaningful. They have to give the group a shared frame for understanding life. First, there is a question that has no simple answer. Then a story grows. It might mix memory and imagination. It might use symbols—a flood, a sacrifice, a journey. The story is passed on. Each telling may add or trim. The myth lives in the telling. It binds the group together. It says "This is who we are. This is what we believe about the world." Myths can be misused. They can be used to justify harm. They can be treated as the only truth and used to silence doubt. So the same myth that gives meaning can become a cage. When we pass myths on, we can pass them on as living stories—open to question, open to retelling—or as fixed doctrine. The first supports continuity that can adapt. The second can break when the world no longer fits the story. What is a myth or founding story you know? What does it explain? What does it leave open?