The archetype of the Trickster is common in many cultures. In comparing two cultures that are polar opposites in many ways, the Trickster persona remains similar. In both Native American and Hindu myth, Trickster is both mediating force and god.

Depending on who is retelling the story, Trickster may be both. In western Native American culture, the Trickster may be either Raven or Coyote. In the Raven Trickster we see mischievousness, and sometimes salacious deeds, but all with the good of Man in his heart. Native stories are told with a tinge of humor, and the Raven stories between tribes are no exception. In the Pacific Northwest up to Canada and Alaska, Raven brings Light and is responsible for the birth of rivers; Raven uses social convention and family to achieve his goals, sometimes for good, and sometimes for the fun of the trick. "In The Trickster, Paul Radin argues that there is good evidence that Native American trickster-heroes were always divine culture-heroes as well as being divine buffoons. He also shows that, in the stories of many Native American tricksters, there is a development or evolution of the character of the trickster himself. According to Radin, tricksters often start their careers as simple figures who perform tricks to satisfy their own appetites. However, as the trickster develops, his tricks are directed toward the needs of others. He becomes a savior who undergoes difficulty and suffering to provide the necessities of life to others. This change or evolution may occur in a subsequent part of the same story, or in other later versions of the adventures of the trickster." Coyote as Trickster is often associated with more earthly pursuits, such as death, pain, or work. Coyote is often known to travel with bears or foxes as mediators. Raven is of a more "airborne" Nature, and associated with Light, Water, and the spreading of seeds. Comparatively, in Hindu mythology, the Trickster template is relative to the function of the god that they serve. Hindu beliefs are polytheistic, and many archetypes exist within this parameter. Native Americans are actually shamanistic, so they have one Creator, but through a shaman they speak with many animal spirits, so Natives walk a fine line between mono and polytheism. As such, Trickster can play many roles, but those roles have commonality. Trickster in both cultures can be shape shifters, deceivers, situation inverters, and rogues. Fundamentally both ambiguous and anomalous, Trickster can also be mediators between humans and the gods. In India, much like the shared Trickster persona of Raven and Coyote, Tricksters have abilities relative to the gods and humans they serve. India's main Trickster is Ahswhrat, a god of trickery and sometimes wisdom, and mediator between the two worlds, and the one who has the closest relationship with humans. The more "serious" Tricksters in Hindu myth are Indra, protector of Kings, and King of Gods, wielding supernatural powers; Narada, the traveler between planets and dimensions, and Shakuni, a revenge trickster. Over time, the stories have been shaped and changed through dispersion, often subject to kings and the sociopolitical climate of changing hierarchy, but their mythos remains constant. Allegorically, myth shapes the sociology of the culture it represents. Carl Jung would presume that we understand myth collectively and through dreaming, which to an extent may be true, but it is in the passing down of the stories that we create the importance of myth in our everyday lives. The spread of myth is largely through oral storytelling, and reshaped over time. The template of the stories is absorbed in our unconscious, and retold through dispersion and time. Culturally, this would account for the variations in similar myths, yet the template of archetypes remains the same. The Hero, the Trickster, the Flood all cross into the myths of other cultures. This may be Jung's collective unconscious at work: we all have similar stories.

In the Raven stories, Raven comes to spread seeds that will create rivers, agriculture, and light. Very often these "seeds" are spread through a pregnancy and birth of a human child that channels the Raven spirit. In Coyote Trickster stories, Coyote is more earth centric, traveling with other animals, and the dealings with Man are earthbound and usually practical and resourceful lessons. In the Pacific northwest, Raven and Coyote stories are shaped by the storytellers. Raven is a liminal spirit, not a god, but a creator nonetheless. Coyote has a human form as well, and allows the people to exercise their own concerns by embodiment. "(William R.) Bascom's observations point up the importance of understanding the function of a story to the community that tells it. In fact, there are two interconnected ways to look at mythology. One approach is to consider it from our own point of view, as we have been doing with urban legends, looking at the insights we gain about the lives of the people who tell a particular story.

This is seeing mythology from the outside looking in. Another way to look at mythology is to think about its role inside a culture, examining the uses a story has for the people who tell it. Bascom points out the anthropological function mythology plays in what he calls "validating culture," which he explains as justifying "rituals and institutions to those who perform and observe them" as well as educating members of a community on how to perform the rituals which are being performed as part of their culture." Conversely, in India, the gods and trickster archetype more closely "resemble" humans. The Ramayana is based on the core social and philosophical values of India. Hindu religion can claim itself the "oldest living religion," with its function both anthropological and sociological; thusly, Tricksters within Hindu myth often represent human foibles, and one's dharma (the work one does to achieve good karma, and eventually transmigration of the soul, samsara), the path humans choose, becomes the basis of Hindu ideology. Within the culture, the significance of Hindu myth is to aid Man in making good choices of kindness, generosity, and wisdom. These choices will lead one away from the cyclic nature of Birth and Death, known as moksa. The significance of tricksters such as Indra (vanity and hubris) and Shakuni (revenge) is to mirror Man's lesser qualities that lead him away from good karma- good deeds, and keep humans on an endless cycle of reincarnation. The function of myth in both Native American and Hindu cultures is at once pedagogic, cosmological, and metaphysical: a learning tool to guide each to a good life, for the good of humanity itself.

The evolution and value of mythology within any culture is multifaceted. Certainly, mythoi represent basic tenets and values of a culture, helping shape law and belief systems in an orderly and sociologically healthy way. Through mythology, we see syncretism in overarching themes of "good works", the importance of agriculture, the value of political and ideological wisdom, and the creation of the laws that govern society in general. This is the role that myth and religion continue to play in shaping modern day society. We see traces of myth in everyday life, and modern words derived from ancient stories: "lunacy" for instance, the belief that the full moon makes people erratic (or turns them into werewolves!); "herculean", meaning tasks that require lots of effort; "tantalize," to tempt or torment; "narcissism," the word for vanity; and even the word "cereal", which is based on the Greek goddess of agriculture, Ceres. In modern day Native American culture, the stories empower the tribes by fostering ancient ancestors and traditions. Considering the plight of Native Americans under the US government in the last 250 years, the stories and myths provide a cultural stronghold for the People. Myths are told at pow-wows, accompanied by drum circles and traditional food. The strength of the tribes is a continuum within the power of their stories. In Hindu culture, myth serves a similar purpose, giving valued and time honored principles of religion, law, and society to advance the culture. To illustrate the importance of myth in Hindu culture: Mahatma Ghandi was murdered on a "bet" by Islamic soldiers during the Islam/Hindu civil war that he wouldn't say "Rama" upon dying. This was hotly debated by the believers in Islam in India (who account for about a third of Indian society). A Hindu myth extols the virtues of the holiest, who die with the word "Rama" upon their lips, achieving samsara. The soldier who drew the "short straw" was to assassinate Ghandi. After making his way through a very large throng of followers, the soldier approached Ghandi, stabbed him, and looked him dead in the eye. Ghandi looked back at him and said, "I forgive you, son. Rama" and died. This sad and true story is captured in the 1963 film, "9 Hours to Rama." If myth lends credence to Truth, Gandhi's life will be the stuff of myth and stories well into the future. Carl Jung said in his essay, "Dream Symbolism in Relation to Alchemy," "The symbols of the process of individuation are images of an archetypal nature which depict the centralizing process or the production of a new center of personality ...the Self is not only the center, but also embraces both conscious and unconscious; it is the center of this totality ..." Jung based his studies on the archetypal images that humans all share. Looking at archetypes on a "higher level" as Joseph Campbell and Jung did, it isn't such a stretch to imagine that all cultures share archetypes on an unconscious level. That is the stuff of dreams, and maybe working outward, mankind is looking from the Self within to the Universe (without) for connection. In Navajo tradition, all doorways must face east, so the new spirit may pour in with the sunrise. In the story of the Buddha, he sits under the Bodhi Tree facing east to let enlightenment in. We are not so far apart knowing that the rising sun in the east and each new day brings Light to this circle called Earth. Or as Joseph Cambell says, "The whole world is a circle; all of these circular images reflect the psyche."

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