I'm working on developing a D&D campaign setting, and one of the
        things I'm currently working on is the development of the deities
        of the setting and the myths surrounding them. I'm the kind of
        person who wants to study something before writing about it (and
        mythology is an interest of mine besides), so I've been reading
        various Wikipedia articles on the topic.
        
        One of the things that I stumbled upon is the Myth and ritual
        article:
        
 (TXT) Myth and ritual
        
        This article explores the relationship between myth and ritual.
        There are two positions given in the article that are relevant for
        this discussion, namely that ritual stems from myth or vice versa.
        While I have an interest in the subject, I'm not qualified to have
        an opinion on this debate. Thankfully, I don't need to be an
        expert to design a campaign setting. Instead, I can read the
        summaries of the positions in the article and decide, by fiat, that
        things happened differently in my world.
        
        I certainly have a preference, in a narrative sense, for myths
        informing rituals. This is the position I will be exploring for my
        campaign setting. I find it intuitive, logical. In reality, that
        position may be wrong. But this is one of the many joys of
        worldbuilding: within reason, you're not restricted to doing things
        the way things are done in the real world. And, in this case, I
        don't think my players would realize that I took a position in this
        debate. If they did, it's likely that theye're as into mythology as
        I am (or more so) and there'll likely be interesting discussions
        about it rather than disagreements at the gaming table.