I got to thinking and realized that once a long time ago, many nations worshiped several gods and goddesses for a variety of tasks. They had one for weather, sky, earth, moon, stars, sun, water, woodlands, merriment family, and just about any other you can think of. All members of the community in these nations had a vast knowledge and understanding about these deities, if not all of them then at least the ones that mattered most to that individual. They also knew the names and purposes of each and knew which they should call upon for different circumstances.
Then one day a new religion was born, this one taught more about morals and what is right and wrong and simplified things so that there was only one deity to remember, one to understand and go to for help. They made it more difficult to "sin" and easier to atone for it. Perhaps they were just trying to help the people and giving them more time to be prosperous by not having so much. Perhaps it was some guy who realized that all the deities were a part of one whole massive being that was beyond our comprehension. However things got out of hand quick.
Those of the new religion began forcing their beliefs onto the others, damning and destroying any that still believed in the old ways. Crying out for truth and justice and purity of the world by removing the ones that weren't on the true path. People of the new religion didn't bother learning about the other deities, instead focusing all their attention on the whole to the point that they forgot the deities they used to know was part of the whole.
In modern days, many studying the mythology of any nation speak of how complex it is and how it isn't the easiest to learn all the old stories and tales for each. I've considered the idea that once a long time ago we were smarter (even if we weren't as humane and more superstitious) so that such a complex thing seemed so simple to us. It seems every generation things get less and less complicated and more convenient. Though we have more and more to learn, and school gets more challenging in each generation, we don't seem to need to put as much effort into anything as we once did. We can buy our meat rather than hunt it, we can buy our flour rather than grow and grind it, we can buy our clothes rater than make it, we can buy our supper rather than plan, prepare and cook it. Have we evolved to where a part of our minds is no longer needed and now lies dormant within us?
