Karam al-Bustani: Eastern Myths

Myth! It is such an incredible phenomenon. It is also the playground of the human heart and the entertainment of the human soul. Myths have accompanied man since his early beginnings and still do and will continue to occupy him until God reclaims His inheritance of this earth and everything on it. The human soul needs mythology in as much as the human body needs nourishment because human life is essentially based on these mythical tales.

Nevertheless, no myth, ancient or modern, is exclusively national or belongs to one particular nation over another. Instead, they are a wide open field that is the property of all nations, regardless of their beliefs, race, or habitats. Myths constantly migrate among nations and peoples carrying on their wings the dust of ages and the additions and mounds of consecutive days and events. Among the most ancient myths that man created were undoubtedly those which related to the formation of this world and the story of the flood.

Since I began to show serious interest in Phoenician and Arab mythology, I wanted to collect a select number of myths in a small book that will entertain, amuse, and inform the reader and transport him to a world of fantasy and adventure after a hard day of dull work in a closed office. I spent a considerable amount of time researching and reading books of historians and poets whether Greek, Arabs, Romans, French, and British, and basically I selected the myths whose central arena was the East. I re-wrote them in a way that is both entertaining and beneficial.... In most cases I used the Roman names of the gods and heroes because of their popularity and familiarity.

Needless to say, this book demanded tireless effort and endless time to collect these myths from various sources and re-write them in an easy and accessible way that pleases and informs both the scholar and the average reader alike.

Karam al-Bustani