In Efik mythology, Abassi is the creator god. His wife is Atai, who convinced him to allow two humans (their children, one man and one woman) to settle on Earth, but to forbid them to reproduce or work and they returned to heaven when Abassi rang the dinner bell; these rules were designed so that they would not exceed Abassi in wisdom and strength. Eventually, they broke this rule and Atai killed them both, as well as causing strife, death and war between their children. Abassi and Atai were so disgusted that they withdrew from the affairs of their descendants.
Others believe the creator, Abassi, created two humans and then decided to not allow them to live on Earth. His wife, Atai, persuaded him to let them do so. In order to control the humans, Abassi insisted that they eat all their meals with him, thereby keeping them from growing or hunting food. He also forbade them to procreate. Soon, though, the woman began growing food in the earth, and they stopped showing up to eat with Abassi. Then the man joined his wife in the fields, and before long there were children also. Abassi blamed his wife for the way things had turned out, but she told him she would handle it. She sent to earth death and discord to keep the people in their place.
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This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original article was at Efik mythology. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. |