Ratovantany
Ratovantany also known as (Andriantompo) is a self-creating malagasy deity associated with the earth. He is most prominently featured in the malagasy creation myths, where he makes a deal with the sky god Zanahary to create humanity; having crafted human beings from soil, Ratovantany reclaims the corpse upon death and decomposes it, while the soul belongs to Zanahary and thus the sky or the sun.[1][2] Unlike Zanahary, Ratovantany appears to not have been a prominent deity to any malagasy peoples, though this creation myth is ubiquitous in malagasy cultures.
References
- ^ https://www.scilt.org.uk/portals/24/passeport2/educationscotland/Images/MadagascarCreationMyth_tcm4-730169.pdf
- ^ Arthur Cotterell, A Dictionary of World Mythology, Oxford University Press, 17/04/1986