It is also precisely to this fact that refers the legend of Atlas, the Pillar of Heaven. Unable to bear the load of an earth overpopulated with gods, Atlas collapsed, and let the sky fall dawn over the earth, destroying it.
The name of Atlas indeed derives from the Greek radix tla meaning “to bear”, preceded by the negative affix a, meaning “not”. Hence, the name of Atlas literally means “the one unable to bear [the skies]”. Such is the reason why Atlas (and other Titans like himself) are often portrayed with weak, serpentine legs. The collapse of the skies is, of course, a clever allegory of the fall of volcanic dust and debris from the afar explosion of Mt. Atlas. In Hindu myths, one layer buries the former one, giving rise to a new heaven and a new earth, just as we read in Revelation.