Not All Myths Are Bad But Some Are Killing Us

Not All Myths Are Bad But Some Are Killing Us

When most people hear the word myth, they think of lies, illusions, or outdated superstitions. The word carries an air of something false, something to be discarded. But myths are not inherently bad. In fact, they are the stories that knit human beings together. They’ve always been our way of explaining the unexplainable, building a sense of belonging, and transmitting values across generations.

The problem is not that myths exist. The problem is when they stop evolving.

Myths are like software for the human mind. They give us frameworks for meaning, helping us understand who we are, where we came from, and why our lives matter. Creation stories, hero journeys, ancestral traditions — these myths provided psychological scaffolding long before science could map genomes or track galaxies. They comforted, guided, and inspired.

But when myths clash too harshly with reality, they become toxic. They stop guiding us and start trapping us. A myth that once held communities together can calcify into dogma, used to divide the world into “us” and “them.” A myth that once encouraged humility can be weaponized into arrogance. And in the modern age, some of these myths are no longer just outdated — they’re actively dangerous.

Consider the myths that tell us infinite growth is possible on a finite planet, that violence will bring lasting peace, or that one group of people is inherently superior to another. These are not harmless fictions. They’re scripts that lead to ecological collapse, endless wars, and cycles of oppression.

So the challenge is not to rid ourselves of myth but to let our myths breathe, adapt, and grow with our expanding knowledge of the world. Just as our understanding of medicine, physics, and technology evolves, so too should the stories we live by. A living myth inspires courage, compassion, and curiosity. A dying myth demands conformity and fear.

The myths that survive the future will be the ones that align with reality rather than deny it. They will speak not just to one tribe, but to all humanity. They will remind us that meaning is not found in domination or delusion, but in cooperation and truth.

Not all myths are bad. They never were. But some are killing us — and the only way forward is to write new ones worth living for.