Category Archives: Drowning
Poseidon
Pronunciation: Po-si-dun
Etymology: Greek – Husband (of Wheat)
Alternate Spellings & Other Names: Ποσειδων
Epithets: Aegeus (“of the High Sea”), Alidoupos (“Sea Resounding”), Asphaleios (Protector from Earthquakes), Domatites (“of the House” in reference to his shrine near Sparta), Empylios (“At the Gate”), Enosichthon (“Earth Shaker”), Ennosidas, Ennosigaios (“Earth Shaker”), Enosichthon, Ennosidas, Epactaeus (“god worshiped on the coast”), Epoptes (“Supervisor”), Eurykreion (“Wide-Ruling”), Eurymedon (“Widely Ruling”), Eutriaina (“with Goodly Trident”), Gaieochos (“Earth Shaker”), Genesios, Genethlios (“of the race or family”), Helikonios (of Mount Helikon), Helikonios anax (“Lord of Helicon or Helike”), Hippokourios (“Tender of Horses”), Isthmios, Krenouchos (“Ruling over Springs”), Kyanochaites (“dark-haired, dark blue of the sea”), Kymothales (“Abounding with Waves”), Kronios, Patrigenios, Pelagios (“of the open sea”), Petraios (related to rocks), Phratrios (“of the Brotherhood”), Phykios (related to seaweed), Phytalmios, Pontomedon (“Lord of the Sea”), Porthmios (“of strait, narrow sea”), Posidaeia (This is probably a feminine counterpart to Poseidon found on the Linear B script), Poseidon Aegaeus, Poseidon Hippios (Horse Poseidon), Poseidon Temenites (“related to an official domain”), Ptorthios, Seisichthon (“Earth Shaker”), Semnos (“August, Holy”), Tavreios (related to bulls), Themeliouchos (“Upholding the Foundations”), “Savior of Sailors,” “Averter of Earthquakes,” “The Creator and Tamer of Horses,” Nymphagetes (“The Leader of Nymphs”), Poseidon Erechtheus
Poseidon is the god of the Oceans and not just the seas in Greek mythology, but all the waters from streams to rivers, lakes, and storms. The middle brother to Zeus and Hades. As a god of storms, Poseidon could also be very moody and mercurial in his demeanor.
Attributes
Animal: Bull, Coral, Dolphin, Fish, Horse, Sea Lion, Tuna
Color: Blue, Green
Day of the Week: Thursday
Element: Water
Patron of: Sailors
Planet: Neptune
Plant: Kelp, Pine, Seaweed, Wild Celery
Sphere of Influence: Earthquakes, Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, Protection, Storms
Symbols: Coral, Trident
Time of Day: High Tides
Early Greek Depictions
Poseidon is often considered a moody and sometimes quarrelsome deity. When Poseidon is in a good mood, that is when new lands will appear, and the sea will be calm. When Poseidon is in a foul mood, that is when earthquakes could happen, and portions of land and island can sink into the seas to be claimed by him. Storms at sea are attributed to Poseidon, especially if there are shipwrecks and drownings.
Greek art will show Poseidon as a bearded man with curly hair wielding a three-pronged fish spear or trident. Other art will show him in a chariot pulled by either horses or hippocampus. In some art, Poseidon can be shown holding a boulder with various sea creatures on it.
Homeric Hymns – There is a brief invocation, comprising seven lines that address Poseidon as an earth-shaker and God of the deep, that he is the lord of Helicon and Aegae. Homer also says that Poseidon has a shriek as loud as ten thousand men.
Cult & Worship
In pre-Bronze Age Greece, Poseidon was worshiped in Pylos and Thebes as the chief deity. When looking at Arcadia, there is a very regional-specific myth told of Poseidon and Demeter in horse forms. There is some thought that these early Greeks entering the area only had Poseidon, Zeus, Eos, and Dioskouroi among the deities that they brought with them and worshiped.
The early worship of Poseidon clearly links him to horses and as a Chthonic deity of the underworld. As Poseidon Wanax, he is the male counterpart to a goddess of nature, Demeter. A similar myth is seen in Minoan myths where Pasiphae mates with a white bull, giving birth to the Minotaur. The Bull is an old pre-Olympian symbol of Poseidon. In the Eleusinian cults, there is mention of how Potnia gives birth to a strong son in relation to Poseidon being the father.
In Mycenaean culture, we don’t have enough evidence or information to know if Poseidon was connected to the sea during this time. We don’t know if the female counterpart “Posedeia” was a sea goddess either. In the writings of Homer and Hesiod, they say that Poseidon becomes the lord of the sea after the defeat of his father Cronos, and the world is divided among his three sons.
The scholar Walter Burkert puts forward the idea early Hellenic worship of Poseidon as a horse god may be due to the introduction of the horse and war chariots from Anatolia to Greece around 1600 B.C.E. In the local Arcadian myths and Poseidon’s cult in Peloponnesos, we see Poseidon worshiped as a horse.
During the Hellenic era of Greek culture, Poseidon is the protector of sailors and ships out at sea. Poseidon was also the patron god of several Greek cities, though, in Athens, he was second only to Athena.
Corinth – This is the ancient city that Poseidon is often associated with. This port city was regarded as being close to Poseidon’s heart due to how important a sea route it was. Clay plaques dating from the Archaic era have been found to connect Poseidon with maritime trade and navigation. Local games known as the Isthmian games were held here in honor of the sea god. These games would be held once every two years with athletes, charioteers, and horse races. Early on, a crown of pine would be awarded and later, it would be a crown of dried celery.
Sounion – Located some 69.5 km to the southeast of Athens in East Attica, this is the site of a 5th-century temple dedicated to Poseidon that still stands overlooking the Saronic Gulf. Boat races were held every four years to honor Poseidon.
Delphi Oracle – Pausanias writes that Poseidon was once one of the caretakers at Delphi before the arrival of Apollo. The two deities worked in tangent with many aspects. For example, Apollo gave approval for Greek colonization and Poseidon provided safe travels for those crossing his seas.
Sacred Disease – The Greek gods are known for causing or inflicting madness and various mental illnesses upon people. There is a Hippocratic text from 400 B.C.E. that notes Poseidon is responsible for certain forms of epilepsy.
The Panionia – This was a festival that the Ionians held every year near Mycale.
Pohoidaia – This is another game and festival held in Poseidon’s honor at Helos and Thuria.
Poseidon’s Palace
It should come as no surprise that as a sea god, that Poseidon’s abode is found on the ocean’s floor in a palace of coral and gems.
Aegae – In the Odyssey, Poseidon is mentioned as having his home here, the once capital of Macedonia.
Atlantis – In Plato’s Timaeus and Critias, this island is said to be Poseidon’s domain.
What’s In A Name?
The earliest mention of Poseidon’s name are found in the Linear B script in Mycenean Greek where the name appears as Poseidaon and Poseidawonos. Other variations of Posedion’s name are Poteidaon (Aeolic), Poteidan (Doric), Poteidaon, and Poteidas.
As to the meaning of Poseidon’s name, that part is unclear. There is a theory put forward that it means “husband” or “lord” seen in the Greek posis or potis and the last part meaning “earth.” The Doric Greek links Poseidon as being a spouse to Demeter, the “Earth-Mother.”
Another theory is that the second element in Poseidon’s name relates to dâwon meaning “water” and that would interpret the name as Posei-dawon as “the master of waters.” In Plato’s Cratylus dialogue, he gives two ideas for an etymology to Poseidon’s name. The first is “foot-bond” and the second is “knew many things.”
Hesiod in his Theogony describes Poseidon as “the earth-holder who shakes the earth.” Both Hesiod and Homer call Poseidon the “deep sounding Earth-shaker” and “dark-haired-one.” Both poets refer to Poseidon as the “encircler of the earth,” which alludes to this era of history when people believed that all the waters of the Earth were connected and that the land merely floated on top of them.
Parentage and Family
Parents
Cronus and Rhea
Consort
Amphitrite – The daughter of Nereus and Doris and granddaughter of the Titan Oceanus
Cleito – Poseidon’s wife in Plato’s myth of Atlantis. Cleito is the daughter of the autochthons Evenor and Leucippe.
Sometimes the goddesses Aphrodite and Demeter are given as consorts.
Siblings
He is the fifth child born of Cronus and Rhea.
The birth order is Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus.
Chiron – a half-brother by way of Cronus and the nymph Philyra.
Children
Theseus – with Aethra through rape
Benthesicyme – son with Amphitrite
Rhode – daughter with Amphitrite
Triton – A half fish, half human with Amphitrite
Monstrous Offspring – Chrysaor and Pegasus with Medusa
Plato’s Atlantis – with Cleito, Poseidon is the father of Ampheres, Atlas (the first king of Atlantis), Autochthon, Azaes, Diaprepes, Elasippus, Euaemon, Eumelus (Gadeirus), Mestor, Mneseus
Other Children
Antaeus, Arion (a talking horse), Atlas, Desponia, Eumolpus, the Giant Sinis, Polyphemus (a cyclops), Orion, King Amycus, Proteus, Agenor and Belus from Europa, Nauplius, Neleus, Pelias, and the King of Egypt, Busiris, Laistrygon
Alebion, Bergion, Otos, Ephialtae are all noted as being giant children of Poseidon.
In general, there are a good many mythical creatures, a tribe of giants known as the Laistrygons, barbarians, cannibals, savages, and other uncivilized peoples like thieves who were said to be descendants of Poseidon.
Grandson
Periclymenus – Through his son Neleus, the king of Pylos, Poseidon granted him the power of shape-shifting. He is listed as one of the Argonauts and is later killed by Herakles.
Olympian God
Poseidon is counted among the twelve major deities who resided on Mount Olympus, the highest mountain peak in Greece and all of Europe. For the Greeks, this was the perfect location where the gods would preside while keeping watch on humankind down below them.
As there are several deities within Greek mythology, just who numbers among the Olympians vary. It’s generally agreed that the twelve major Olympians are: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, and then either Hestia or Dionysus.
Trident
Where Zeus has his thunderbolts and Hades has his bident, the mighty Poseidon is known for his trademark weapon, the trident!
A trident is a three-pronged weapon that Poseidon is often shown with. It has also been pointed out that Hades has a bident, a two-pronged weapon, and that Zeus has his thunderbolt, which is a one-pronged weapon. Just in case someone thought there should be some sort of connection.
With this trident, Poseidon could shatter anything in his way, much like Hades does with his bident.
Birth Of A God
We start with Cronus and Rhea, the parents of Poseidon and all his siblings.
As the story goes, Cronus defeated his father, Uranus, overthrowing him to become the leader and King of the Titans. Shortly after, Cronus receives a prophecy that just as he killed his father, so too, would a child of his kill him.
This prompts Cronus to decide to devour and swallow his children whole as soon as they are born. This would happen five times. Poor Rhea just gets to where she can’t take it anymore. With the birth of her sixth child, Zeus, Rhea hides him away and manages to convince Cronus that this large stone is their latest child. Bon Appetit, Cronus eats the “stone baby” none the wiser that he’s been tricked.
Rhea takes and hides Zeus, so that later, when he is older, he can come to fulfill the prophecy killing his father Cronus. During the battle, Zeus splits open Cronus’ stomach, freeing all of his brothers and sisters: Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hera, and Hestia. Incidentally, Hades is the last of Cronus’ children that is either regurgitated or comes out after Zeus splits their father open.
In other versions I have found of this story, Zeus meets with Metis who concocts a drug for Zeus to give to Cronus so that he disgorges or vomits up the stone and all of his children.
Poseidon’s Infancy
There is a version of the birth story of gods in that Poseidon does manage to get secreted away by his mother Rhea and is not eaten by his father. That Rhea gives Cronus a colt to eat instead of an infant. Poseidon is then placed in a flock of sheep in either Arcadia or Rhodes to conceal him.
There is a well in a Mantineia neighborhood where this event is believed to have happened and is called the “Lamb’s Well” or Arne.
Kourotrophos
This is the name that a group of ancient Greek deities were given for their roles as protectors and caregivers, essentially the nurses or nannies to children.
Arne – Poseidon’s kourotrophos was Arne, a spring nymph and daughter of Aeolus. Arne denied knowing where the infant was when Cronus came searching for him. The town of Arne gained its name from this nymph.
Telchines – According to Diodorus Siculus, Poseidon was raised by the Telchines, the original inhabitants of the island of Rhodes just as his brother Zeus was raised by the Korybantes on the island of Crete. Capheira, an Oceanid nymph would become Poseidon’s nurse.
Titanomachy
There is a ten-year-long divine war known as the Titanomachy, and by the end, Zeus takes his place as ruler and king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Hades and the other gods take up their roles as part of the newly formed Pantheon.
During the war, Gaia gave a prophecy to Zeus that he would have victory over the Titans by freeing the Cyclops who were then prisoners in Tartaros. Zeus slew Campe, the jail-keeper of the Cyclops. As a reward and thanks for releasing them, the Cyclops forged weapons for the three brothers. Thunderbolts for Zeus, a Trident for Poseidon, and a Bident for Hades along with a magical helmet of invisibility.
During this war, Hades used his helmet of invisibility to sneak into the Titans’ camp and destroy their weapons. After the war, the Titans were imprisoned within Tartoros and the Hecatoncheires were placed in charge of guarding the new prisoners. One titan, Atlas would be punished by forever having to hold the earth up.
Dividing the Spoils of War – After defeating Cronus and all of his father’s followers, the three brothers, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus divided up rulership of the cosmos between them. Hades would become ruler of the Underworld; Poseidon would become ruler of the seas and Zeus would become ruler of the air. The earth, the domain of Gaia, would be available to all three gods.
Iliad – The Iliad describes the three brothers as pulling lots to determine who would rule which realm.
Gigantomachy – Battle For The Heavens!
After the battle with the Titans, Zeus would still need to secure his throne. During this battle, Poseidon would use his trident to break off part of the island Kos and use it to entomb the giant Polybotes. Today, this island is known as Nisyros.
When The Oceans Were King!
You see remnants of this in the story of Perseus & Andromeda and certain stories of Elysian Mysteries where Poseidon is Persephone‘s father and not Zeus. Even Homer’s Odyssey shows this connection where Poseidon is the primary instigator of events and not Zeus.
In the Linear B script, Poseidon is listed as the chief deity.
After the collapse of the Mycenaean culture in the Mediterranean, we see a dark age period for Greek culture that resurges again some hundreds of years later, and now, it is Zeus who is the head of the pantheon and Poseidon is second only in power.
When we look at the Linear B tablets from Mycenean Greece, we find that Poseidon’s name as po-se-da-wo-ne appears more frequently than Zeus’ name di-u-ja. There is also a feminine form of po-se-da-ia which suggests there is a potential lost consort goddess to Poseidon. One who is a precursor to Amphitrite.
Chthonic Deity
In the same Linear B script previously mentioned, Poseidon has a title of wa-na-ka or “wanax” that suggest the role of king of the Underworld. Other titles for Poseidon-Wanax are seen in the title E-ne-si-da-o-ne in Mycenean Knossos and Pylos, an epitaph that references the earthquakes that saw the collapse of the Minoan culture.
In Crete, in the cave of Amnisos, we see the name Enesidaon connected to the cult of Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth. Eileithyia also has a part in the annual birth of a divine child.
There is evidence in the Bronze Age, that a goddess of nature held a dominant role in both Minoan and Mycenean religions. That Wanax is her male consort in the Mycenean cults. Some scholars have tried to make a connection to Demeter where her name might appear as Da-ma-te, but this is still disputed.
Looking at the Linear Be scripts found at Pylos, the name E-ne-si-da-o-ne in association with Poseidon, and the name Si-to Po-tini-ja is associated with Demeter giving a suggestion of these two deities as consorts.
This fits when looking at the Eleusinian mysteries and seeing how they predate the Olympian pantheon. Inscriptions from Pylos show records of sacrificial offerings to “the Two Queens and Poseidon.” Those two queens just might be Demeter and Persephone when trying to look at the archeological evidence.
This association also makes sense as the ancient Greeks would have seen rivers and streams flow from the rocks and then disappear beneath the land in other areas. Plus there was a belief anciently during this period that the land merely floated above the water. That Poseidon could create the land as much as swallow it back down into the depths with earthquakes.
Lord of the Sea Gods
So, Poseidon may no longer rule over all of Olympia and be the head of the Pantheon by the time we get to the Classical, Hellenistic era of Greek history that everyone is more familiar with. Poseidon is still the lord over all the gods of the oceans, various rivers, and lakes. Poseidon was also regarded as a protector of many cities located near the sea as they relied on their whole economies from the sea trade and bounty provided by the deeps of the ocean.
Mediterranean Ocean
It should also be noted by many people that Poseidon should be seen as the god of the Mediterranean Ocean as that is the sea that many of the ancient Greeks and even Romans when they renamed Poseidon to Neptune are familiar with.
God Of Storms
While this aspect seems to be more connected to Zeus in his roles as a Sky God and god of thunder, Poseidon also has power over storms, particularly those out at sea.
God Of Earthquakes
Another aspect of Poseidon is that of earthquakes, giving him an epitaph of Earth Mover or Earth Shaker. As a deity representing the forces of nature, this aspect is another reason why Poseidon could be seen as unpredictable and moody.
The connection of Poseidon to earthquakes is not hard to make when you understand that the Greeks believed that the cause of earthquakes was due to the erosion of rocks by water, where there are rivers that disappear below the earth and then seemingly reemerge later. The Greeks also believed that just as Poseidon’s earthquakes caused the land to sink into the sea, he also created the land with the appearance of new islands. This belief is seen in the philosophers Thales, Anaximenes, and Aristotle in how they explained the natural world around them.
God Of Horses
There are a couple of different stories I have come across about Poseidon’s role as a god of horses. One story holds that Poseidon created the first horse named Skyphios when he struck a rock with his trident.
A fragment of papyrus reveals that people would offer up horses by drowning them as a sacrifice to Poseidon to curry his favor for a safe sea voyage. Poseidon’s chariot is said to be pulled by horses, though more modern depictions show this chariot being pulled by a half-horse, half-fish creatures known as hippocampus.
In pre-Bronze Age Greek culture, there is a strong connection between horses, the element of water, and the Underworld. This is a connection we see continued with later, northern-European folklore with the Kelpies, Nuckelevee, and Puca.
Athena & Poseidon – In this story, the two gods are in competition for the favor of the future city of Athens. The two deities created all sorts of animals such as hippopotami, giraffes, camels, and zebras. In the end, when Poseidon created the horse, he was so pleased with the creation that he rode away on the mighty steed, forgetting about his desire to claim the favor of Athens, hence the city becoming named after Athena.
Demeter & Poseidon – In this story, Demeter is trying to put off the advances of Poseidon and asks him to create the most beautiful animal ever. To impress her, Poseidon creates the first horse. Of course, in the process of getting there, there are several other animals that Poseidon created before he achieved perfection and by this time, Poseidon has lost interest in Demeter.
God Of Fertility
As a god of the Oceans and waters, it leads handily to Poseidon being a god of fertility as he bestows the life-giving waters.
Droughts – Just as he giveth, Poseidon also taketh. So, a lack of water and rainfall leading to droughts would also be Poseidon’s doing.
Your Reputation Precedes You Sir!
On the heels of being a fertility deity, it must be noted that Poseidon has a reputation much like Zeus for being rather promiscuous. Granted, this is an aspect that we can find in numerous stories of the Greek deities.
There are numerous stories of Poseidon’s love affairs, romances, and some of which are just outright rape stories no matter how euphemistically later rewrites try to retell them. The most famous of which is Poseidon’s affair with Medusa before she’s turned into a Gorgon by Athena. I’ll cover several of these stories later so I’m not repeating them in this section.
There’s a certain prestige, especially seen in the ancient Egyptian culture where all the Pharaohs are earthly incarnations of Ra. This divine birthright is what justifies them to be the rulers over the common, ordinary people.
I can imagine a similar thing happening among the Greeks where they want to claim a divine heritage to justify their rule over various cities states. Stories that often just served to explain how a thing came to be, why something is, and to explain the divine right of rulership.
We also know there are two major areas of Greek history, the Mycenean Greek era and those whom we think of as the Ancient or Classical Greeks with a dark age period in between. If you look at the myths carefully from these periods, Poseidon had been the ruler of the Olympian gods during the Mycenean era of Greek history. This later changes to Zeus being the head of the pantheon.
There is also a Neolithic, Cycladic culture that is best known for its female idols. Couple this with Hera and her vehemence towards Zeus and his numerous affairs. Now it appears to be clear that the Greek myths we get of Zeus are the result of revisionist history and storytelling.
As there’s a theological takeover of replacing Poseidon with Zeus as the head of the pantheon and a patriarchal takeover of the regions that reduce goddesses like Hera’s importance. Just taking a close look at some of these myths, you can see the hints of it and some of the discrepancies that come up as Greece and then Rome expanded, trying to absorb all of these local myths and to equate local deities and variations with their own.
The most obvious is the Titanomachy story where Zeus and his siblings all displace the older pantheon, and the survivors get absorbed into the new divine order.
Male Lovers – Poseidon is also said to have had a few male lovers in the way of Nerites, Pelops, and Patroclus. There are not a lot of these myths that I could find to support this other than a footnote.
Marriage To Amphitrite
Like his brother Zeus, Poseidon has also had numerous lovers. His consort and wife is Amphitrite, a nymph, an ancient sea goddess in her own right, and the daughter of Nerus and Doris.
In the story told by Eratosthenes, Poseidon desired to marry Amphitrite, however, she had other ideas and ran away, hiding with Atlas. Off Poseidon went in search of her to no avail. Finally, it is the dolphin, Delphius tracked Amphitrite down. Delphius talked Amphitrite into accepting Poseidon as her husband.
At Amphitrite and Poseidon’s wedding, Delphius presided over the ceremony. In gratitude, Poseidon placed Delphius up into the stars. Amphitrite would give birth to the merman Triton who also wields a trident like his father.
Variation: According to Oppian, Delphius actually betrays Amphitrite’s location to Poseidon who comes and carries her off against her will to be married.
Medusa & Poseidon – Birth of Pegasus & Chrysaor
Poseidon is also known to transform into a horse too. A suggestion I came across is that Poseidon may have come to Medusa in Athena’s temple in the guise of a horse before changing to his true form and forcing himself on her. Unfortunately, instead of punishing Poseidon, Athena punishes Medusa by turning her into a Gorgon. Later, when the hero Perseus comes along and slays the gorgon, the winged horse Pegasus and the winged boar Chrysaor spring up from the blood from Medusa’s severed neck and head.
In Hesiod’s Theogony, Poseidon and Medusa were out in a field of flowers and not Athena’s temple. The whole being in Athena’s temple and sacrilege being committed comes to us courtesy of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, where Poseidon comes in the form of a bird to seduce Medusa.
Birth Of The Minotaur
Poseidon cursed Mino’s wife, Pasiphae to have sexual intercourse with a white bull after the Cretan king Minos wouldn’t sacrifice the bull to him. This resulted in the birth of the hybrid monster called the Minotaur.
I strongly suspect that we are seeing a rewriting of this myth from the fall of the Mycenaean Greece culture and the later rise of the Hellenic Greece culture when Poseidon ceases to be the main deity and is replaced by Zeus as the head of the Pantheon. Bulls are an old pre-Olympian symbol of Poseidon. Rewrite the myth so that instead of a divine child born of Poseidon and a nature goddess, there is instead a monster to whom the youth of vassal city-states are sacrificed to.
Poseidon & Aethra (Birth of Theseus)
With Aethra, the princess of Troezenian, Poseidon is the father of the Greek hero Theseus. King Aegeus of Athens is also reputed to be Theseus’ father as he had lain with Aethra on the very same night. This is still enough for Theseus to have a demigod status and to be the hero who would eventually volunteer to set sail to the island nation of Crete with the other Athenian youth who could be sent into a labyrinth to be eaten by the Minotaur.
When Minos heard that Theseus was the son of Poseidon, he mocked the youth by taking off his own ring and throwing it into the sea. If Theseus really was Poseidon’s son, he was to go and retrieve the ring. Theseus immediately dove in, and dolphins came to guide the young demigod down to Poseidon’s palace. There, both Poseidon and Amphitrite greeted Theseus, not only by giving him the ring but a purple wedding cloak and crown as well. Theseus swam back up to the surface and proved himself to King Minos.
In Crete, Theseus would kill the Minotaur. Theseus eventually succeeded his father as king of Athens and would have children. Poseidon promised Theseus three favors. One of which was called upon when his wife, Phaedra accused Hippolytus, the son Theseus had with an Amazon, of forcing himself on her. Poseidon granted this favor by sending a sea monster to spook Hippolytus’ horses as he was driving by the sea and thus dragging him into the ocean to his death.
Poseidon & Alope
Alope is Poseidon’s granddaughter through Cercyon, his son, and the King of Eleusis. Through this affair, Alope gives birth to the Hippothoon, an Attic hero. As a result, Cercyon has Alope buried alive and Poseidon transforms her into a spring near Eleusis.
Poseidon & Amymone
Shortly after the city of Argos came under Hera’s rule and Poseidon sent a drought to plague it, an Argive woman, Amymone came across a rather lecherous satyr who tried to rape her. Amymone prayed to Poseidon for help and he answered by scaring off the satyr. After rescuing her, Poseidon then fathered a child with her by the name Nauphus.
Poseidon & Caenis
In this story, Poseidon spotted the maiden Caenis walking along the shore. Overcome with lust, Poseidon forced himself on Caenis and raped her. Having satisfied himself, Poseidon offered Caenis a wish, of which she made the request to be turned into a man. Granting her request, Poseidon transformed her into the male warrior Caeneus.
Poseidon & Corone
Corone is the daughter of Coronaeus who was out walking along the shore. Poseidon saw her and attempted to court Corone only to have her reject him and run away. Poseidon chased her down, this time trying to rape her. Athena saw what was happening and changed Corone into a crow so she could fly away.
Poseidon & Halia
In the stories where Poseidon grows up in secret on the island of Rhodes with the Telchines, the young god fell in love with Halia, the beautiful sister of the Telchines. With Halia, Poseidon fathered six sons and a daughter.
By this time, Aphrodite has already been born and rose up from the sea. When she made an attempt to stop at the island of Rhodes while heading to Cyprus, the sons of Halia and Poseidon denied the goddess hospitality. Out of anger, Aphrodite caused the sons to fall in love with their mother and rape her. After seeing this, Poseidon made the sons sink beneath the sea.
Poseidon & Tyro
Tyro is a mortal woman married to Cretheus and by whom she already had a son, Aeson. Tyro loved a river god, Enipeus who spurned her advances. One day, Poseidon becomes infatuated with Tyro and lusts after her, disguises himself as Enipeus, and from their union, Tyro gives birth to the twin heroes Pelias and Neleus.
Poseidon & Asteria
In this story, we first see Zeus falling in love with this goddess who changed herself into a qual in order to escape his advances and being raped, only to have Poseidon equally enamored and lustful for her give chase with the intent to rape her. Asteria transforms herself a second time, this time into the small rocky island known as Delos.
At best, this could be an archaic myth that shows a changeover of when Poseidon and Zeus changed prominence during the fall of the Mycenaean Greek culture.
Poseidon & Demeter
Demeter is the Goddess of the Earth and Poseidon is the God of Water. That’s a good match and they’re consenting adults and gods.
Mycenaen Greek – This is Bronze Age Greece, there is a script known as Linear B found in Mycenae and Mycenaean Pylos where both Demeter and Poseidon’s names appear. Poseidon is given the epitaph of E-ne-si-da-o-ne “earth-shaker” and Demeter’s name is given si-to-po-ti-ni-ja. In these inscriptions, Poseidon’s title and epitaph E-ne-si-da-o-ne (Enesidaon) links him as a King of the Underworld and gives him a chthonic nature.
Touching back to the Eleusinian Mysteries, there are tablets found in Pylos that mention sacrificial goods for “the Two Queens and Poseidon” or “to the Two Queens and King.” It’s agreed that the Two Queens very likely refer to Demeter and Persephone or it’s later precursor goddesses who are not associated with Poseidon later.
Eileithyia – Demeter is a local Minoan goddess found in Amnisos, Crete where she is a goddess of childbirth who gives birth to a divine child. Her consort is given as Enesidaon, the “earth-shaker” whom we just mentioned is Poseidon. Her cult and worship would survive within the Eleusinian Mysteries. Plus, we see where local deities’ worship gets absorbed and conflated with a more popular, well-known deity.
Arcadia – We’re still in Bronze Age Greece! Here, Demeter and Poseidon Hippios or Horse Poseidon give birth to a daughter, Despoina, who is a goddess in her own right before some of the myths confuse her with Persephone or make her an epitaph of Demeter.
In this myth, Poseidon is a river spirit of the Underworld, appearing as a horse. In this form, Poseidon pursues Demeter, who is also in horse form. Demeter hid among the horses of King Onkios. Due to her divinity, Demeter couldn’t remain hidden for long and Poseidon caught up with her and forced himself on her. When the two gods copulate, Demeter gives birth to a goddess who is also in horse or mare form. This is a myth that sounds very similar to another one between Poseidon and Athena and more accurately, Philyra and Cronos when Chiron is born. The horse motif is very common in northern-European myths and folklore.
As a mare-goddess, Demeter is known first as Demeter Erinys due to her fury with Poseidon for forcing himself on her. She becomes Demeter Lousia, “the bathed Demeter” after washing away her anger in the River Ladon. There’s something to be said for this as you can’t hold onto your anger forever, you must let it go or otherwise it consumes you.
The whole myth of pairing up Demeter and Poseidon is to connect Demeter as a Goddess of the Earth and Poseidon as a God of Water with their connection over nature. Despoina is the daughter who results from their union and whose name could not be spoken outside of the Arcadian Mysteries. Demeter and Poseidon also have another child, a horse by the name of Arion who is noted as being able to speak, immortal, swift, and having a black mane and tail.
Poseidon & Scylla
This is a bit of an obscure myth I came across, as an alternative to Scylla’s origins found in the Tzetzes on Lycophron & Servius on Aeneid writings.
Scylla and Poseidon were having an affair. Out of jealousy, Amphitrite mixed some magical herbs into Scylla’s bath, transforming her into a monster with twelve feet and six heads. Scylla would then join Charybdis to terrorize the coastlines of Italy and Sicily, sinking many ships.
In Nonnus’ Dionysiaca, Poseidon still sleeps with Scylla and then transforms her into a rocky cliff along the coast.
Poseidon & Nerites
Nerites is the son of Nereus and Doris and thus Amphitrite’s brother. In some accounts, Poseidon takes Nereus as his charioteer as they’re lovers. As a charioteer, Nereus was said to be very good and fast.
The myth isn’t clear why, but one day, the sun god Helios turns Nerites into a shellfish. The Greek author who recorded this story isn’t sure why, but puts forward a theory that Helios may have been offended by Nerite’s skill or was a rival lover to Poseidon. Helios may have wanted Nerites to travel among the constellations instead in the sea.
It is known that from the love that Poseidon and Nerites have, comes Anteros, mutual love.
Plato’s Atlantis
In this dialogue, Plato tells of a mortal woman who lived on an isolated island by the name of Cleito. Poseidon fell in love with her and created a sanctuary on top of a hill in the middle of the island and surrounded the place with rings of water and land to protect her. Cleito would give birth to five sets of twin boys. The firstborn, Atlas would become the first ruler of the legendary Atlantis.
Descendant of Poseidon – Plato was regarded by his fellow Greeks to be able to trace his lineage to Poseidon through his father Ariston and to the demigod kings of Codrus and Melanthus.
Centauromachy
There are several Greek heroes such as Herakles and Theseus who killed several centaurs. There is also a story of the sirens luring the centaurs to their death in the sea. In the Apollod, it is stated that the island of Sirens is where Poseidon crushed the centaurs instead of giving them refuge.
Ares & Aphrodite’s Love Affair
A version of the story found in Homer’s Odyssey has Hephaestus refusing to release the lovers unless Zeus returned the bridal gifts. Zeus staunchly refused as he felt that Hephaestus shouldn’t have made the affair so public. Though in the Odyssey, Poseidon does agree to play Hephaestus’ price to release both Ares and Aphrodite.
Though it is just after this story happens that Poseidon brings charges against Ares in the Areiopagus for having killed his son Halirrhothius.
The Founding Of Athens
This story is similar to another story where Poseidon creates the first horse. In this version of the story, the two gods are competing for the city of Athens (at this time the region is called Attica) ruled over by Athens’s legendary first king, Cecrops. Even after Athena became the patron goddess of the city, Poseidon still had a presence at the Acropolis through his avatar Erechtheus. By the Athenian calendar, at the end of the year, a festival would be held, and the priests of Athena and the priest of Poseidon would hold a procession under the canopies to Eleusis. There, the gods would give a gift to the Athenian people and the people would choose which one they preferred.
To start things off, Poseidon throws a trident into the ground, creating a spring at the Acropolis. However, the water that sprung up was rather salty. Athena won the competition with the creation and gift of the olive tree. In anger, Poseidon flooded the Attic Plain as punishment to the Athenians for not choosing him. Both deities eventually worked together with Athena creating the first chariot and Poseidon creating the first horse. Athena also built the first ship to sail over the oceans that Poseidon rules.
The place where Poseidon’s trident struck the ground; filled with salt water was closed off by the northern hall of the Erechtheum and remained open to the air.
The story of this conflict between Poseidon and Athena can be found on reliefs along the western pediment of the Parthenon and is the first such relief that a visitor sees on arriving.
Many scholars have interpreted this myth as a clash between the Mycenaean Greeks and newly arrived immigrants to the area. The city of Athens was at one point a major sea power that defeated the Persian fleet at the island of Salamis. The scholar Walter Burkert notes that Poseidon led his son Eumolpus against Athens and killed Erectheus.
Further, Poseidon sent another of his sons, Halirrhothius to cut down Athena’s olive tree. While Halirrhothius was swinging his axe, he missed and managed to kill himself. In anger, Poseidon accused Ares of the murder and the matter would eventually be resolved on the Areopagus, or “hill of Ares” in favor of Ares. Another version of the story has Halirrhothius raping Alcippe, Ares’s daughter and understandably so, Ares kills him. And that is what leads to Ares’ trial and eventual acquittal.
The Divison of Corinth
In a similar story to that of Athens, this time it is Helios and Poseidon clashing over who would be the patron deity. The dispute was bad enough that the two gods brought the issue before one of the Hecatoncheires, Briareos, an elder god to settle the matter. Briareos awarded the Acrocorinth to Helios and gave the isthmus of Corinth to Poseidon.
This tale is noted as representing the conflicts between fire and water. Helios being a sun god gets the area closest to the sky and Poseidon being a sea god, gets the area closest to the water.
The City Of Argos – Poseidon & Hera
This dispute is over the city of Argos. The two deities chose a local king Phoroneus to settle this matter. Phoroneus decided in favor of Hera to award her the city to become the patron goddess. An enraged Poseidon then sent a drought to plague the city.
Exchanging Islands & Temples
Then there is this story, where Poseidon and Leto decided to exchange islands to be patrons of. Poseidon gave Leto the island of Delos and he got the island of Caluria where a temple to Poseidon has stood since antiquity.
With Apollo, Poseidon gave him Delphi in exchange for Taenarum.
These are likely just quick little stories to explain the change of worshipers and who a patron deity was for a certain region.
Heavenly Revolt
Sometime after Zeus has succeeded in overcoming all the previous challenges from Gaia, the various giants, and titans to become ruler of the heavens, a young Zeus had gotten rather prideful, temperamental, and arrogant in his rulership.
Enter Apollo, Hera, and Poseidon (and depending on the source, all the other gods except Hestia join in) and decide that Zeus needs to be taught a lesson.
Hera’s part was to drug Zeus so that he fell into a deep sleep. While Zeus is sleeping, they come in to steal his thunderbolts and tie him up with some one hundred knots. Powerless, Zeus lays there until the Neriad, Thetis comes and seeing the god’s predicament, calls the Hecatoncheire, Briareus who comes and unties Zeus.
With Briareus’ support, Zeus is able to put an end to the rebellion and punish those involved. Most notable is Hera’s punishment as she led the rebellion. Zeus hung her up in the sky with golden chains. Hera’s weeping kept Zeus up all night and the next morning, he agreed to end the punishments after Hera and all the gods swear never to rise up against him again.
As for Apollo and Poseidon? They were stripped of their godly powers for a time to serve King Laomedon of Troy.
The Marriage Of Thetis
Both Poseidon and Zeus had pursued the goddess Thetis’ hand in marriage. However, when Themis gave the prophecy that Thetis’ son would be greater than his father, both Poseidon and Zeus withdrew and decided that it would be better if Thetis married the mortal Peleus. The same marriage where the goddess Eris tossed her golden apple among the goddesses after she wasn’t invited and leading to the Trojan War.
Trojan War
Divine Set Up – If we go by the “lost” epic, The Cypria attributed to Stasinus, this whole Trojan War was planned by Zeus and Themis. There are only about 50 lines of text from the Cypria and it’s seen as a prequel to Homer’s The Iliad and explains how the events came about.
Because of Apollo and Poseidon’s part in helping Hera with her rebellion, Zeus stripped the two gods of their power for a time, and they were sent to serve King Laomedon of Troy. There, King Laomedon had the two gods build a huge wall around the city with the promise of reward. When it came time to pay up, King Laomedon refused. By this time, Poseidon had regained his godly powers and out of vengeance, he sends a sea monster to attack the city of Troy. The legendary hero Hercules defeated and killed this monster.
Book XX sees Poseidon rescue the Trojan Prince Aeneas after Achilles drops them in combat.
At first during the Trojan War, Zeus forbids any of the gods to take part. When Zeus rescinds this ban, Poseidon sides with the Greeks against the Trojans, causing earthquakes. Poseidon would also help the Greeks indirectly by appearing in the guise of an old seer named Calchas.
In Rome, Troy is called Neptunia Pergama.
The Odyssey
After the events of the Iliad and Trojan War, the titular hero, Odysseus earns Poseidon’s wrath after blinding his Cyclops son, Polyphemus. Such was Poseidon’s wrath, that it would take Odysseus ten years to make the return trip home to Ithaca.
The Aeneid
A Latin epic poem written by Virgil, this involves the story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the city after the fall of Troy and his travels to Italy and become the ancestor of the Romans.
Because of how closely the Greek and Roman gods are equated with each other, we read in this epic how Poseidon, under the name of Neptune is still angry with wandering Trojans. However, he is not as vindictive as Juno (Hera). In Book I, Neptune rescues the Trojan fleet from Juno’s attempts to wreck it, even if the only reason was to prevent Juno from interfering with his domain of the sea.
Hepom Nepōts – Indo-European
This is the name of a reconstructed proto-Indo-European deity that historians, etymologists, and linguists have hypothesized when tracing a prehistoric Eurasian population and the language that may have been spoken. The name Hepom Nepōts translates to “Descendant of the Waters.”
Nethuns – Etruscan
An Etruscan deity from the region of Umbria in Italy. Nethuns is a god of springs and water who is identified with the Grecian Poseidon and Roman Neptune. Their name is found in the Latin expression “flere Nethuns,” meaning “the divinity of Nethuns.”
Neptune – Roman
Where Poseidon is the god of the Ocean, his Roman counterpart is Neptune.
Thanks greatly to the influence of the Romans, many people will identify and equate Poseidon with Neptune. The Romans were famous for subsuming many deities in their conquest across Europe, particularly the Mediterranean area, and identifying their gods with those of a conquered culture. The most famous being the Greeks, where many deities were renamed to those of Roman gods. Prominent examples like Zeus and Jupiter, Hera and Juno, Ares and Mars, and so on down the line.
With the Hellenization of Latin literature, many Greek writers and even Roman writers rewrote and intertwined the myths of these two deities so that they would virtually become one and the same. And that’s the tradition passed down through the centuries and has become accepted. Just that there are still some differences that separate the two.
Pontus – Greek
The oldest of the Greek Water deities, Pontus is regarded more as the personification of the sea.
Krampus
Also called: Krampusz (Hungarian)
Pronounciation: krahm-pus
Etymology: Claw (Old High German, Krampen)
Also Known As: Bartl or Bartel, Klaubauf (Austria), Krampusz (Hungarian,) Niglobartl, Parkelj (Slovenian,) and Wubartl
Once more December is upon us with its many familiar Winter Celebrations and Holidays.
In the Alpine regions of Austria and Germany, and even to Bavaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, northern Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland, there is the familiar horned and sometimes hairy figure of Krampus who arrives on Krampus Night to punish misbehaving children. Where Saint Nicholas is who gives gifts to good children. Krampus, like Zwarte Piet and other characters of Christmas, are seen as the companions of Santa Claus or Sinterklaas.
Krampus is a figure who seems to originate in Germanic paganism before the arrival of Christianity in the region.
Description
While there are a few variations to the appearance of Krampus, many descriptions do agree on this figure being very hairy with brown, black or gray fur, cloven hooves, and horns of a goat. He will have a particularly longer than usual tongue that hangs out.
Krampus will also be carrying or wearing chains that symbolize the binding of the Devil by Saint Nicholas. These chains will be shaken and sometimes have bells on them. The other items that Krampus is known to carry are ruten or bundles of birch branches that he will either hand out to naughty children or beat them with. Sometimes this branch is replaced with a whip instead. Krampus can also be seen carrying a sack or washtub on his back that he uses to carry off naughty children whom he either eats, drowns, or takes to Hell.
Crime & Punishment
On December 5th, Krampusnacht, the figure of Krampus is known for going about and punishing naughty children, similar to the role that Zwarte Piet has in the Netherlands. Unlike Zwarte Piet, Krampus never gives out treats or gifts. They are one of the original Nightmares before Christmas. Or, if we do like with the 2015 Krampus movie, Krampus is who comes when all hope dies at Christmas.
Some of the punishments that children might expect are:
- If a child is lucky, they only get handed a birch branch.
- If said child was particularly naughty, they could expect to be beaten with the birch branch.
- In the cases where children were extremely naughty, they would get carried off by Krampus in either a sack or washtub that he carries on his back. What happens now to the child varies on the legend. In some cases, Krampus might eat the child, drown them or simply carry them off to Hell. These older legends where Krampus carries off a child do make a connection to the time when Moors would raid the European coast and carry off people into slavery. A connection also seen with the previously mentioned Zwarte Piet.
Ancient History
The history of Krampus is a bit murky and many scholars do agree that this figure has to date before pre-Christianity. Some try to make a connection back to the Epic of Gilgamesh and Endiku, the original Wild Man. Even if that source is flimsy and suspect, the European traditions of going out in disguises and mummery have long been a part of the Winter Solstice celebrations and have survived in some form or another.
The description of Krampus shows him as being demonic with a half-human, half-goat appearance for the long fur, horns, and hooves. It has been theorized that Krampus may have been a fertility deity before the arrival of Christianity in the region. At this point, anything that didn’t fit under the umbrella of Christian beliefs or couldn’t be incorporated tends to be labeled as evil and demonic.
God of the Witches – This connection seems a bit speculative. Maurice Bruce makes a connection of Krampus with the Horned God of the Witches. That the birch branches may have been part of initiation rites into a coven. That the chains that Krampus carries are part of the Christian tradition of “binding the Devil” much like Sinterklaas is to have done with Zwarte Piet with binding the devil. It’s easy to see a connection of the horns and hooves, woodland entity, and connect Krampus to satyrs, fauns, and possibly Pan. A horned god of the forest is a fairly common image in many of the early European religions and beliefs.
The Son Of Hel
This aspect of the myth is fairly recent and is introduced in Gerald Brom’s 2012 novel “Krampus: The Yule Lord.” In it, Krampus is stated to be the son of Hel, the Norse goddess of death. Even if it’s a recent addition, it does show an expanding and evolving folklore surrounding Krampus that seems to be gaining popularity.
However, do note that many serious scholars of Norse and Germanic mythology do not accept this connection of Hel and Krampus.
Mileage will vary, this is a decent book that expands on the conflict that Krampus and Santa Claus have with each other over Christmas and Yule celebrations.
The Wild Hunt
The Wild Hunt is a phenomenon found in many different European countries and cultures. It is a nightmarish, supernatural force led by some dark spectral hunter on horseback and accompanied by a host of other riders and hounds as they chase down unlucky mortals, either until they drop dead of exhaustion, are caught, and forced to join the Wild Hunt or if they can evade the Hunt until dawn.
Just exactly who it is that leads the Hunt does vary country by country in Europe. The Wild Hunt is known for making its ride during the Winter Solstice or New Year’s Eve. It’s possible that Krampus is a representative or aspect of the darker and harsher winter months.
It does tie in for one legend that the Krampus parades stem from an ancient rite to parade through town and run off ghosts. This seems further tied in as an explanation for the bells on the Krampus’ chains as there are traditions that the ringing of bells at the Solstice would scare off or banish evil spirits.
A Krampus By Any Other Name…
There are a few other figures in the Saint Nicholas/Winter Solstice celebrations who are similar to Krampus.
Bartel – Also called Bartl is a local name or variation for Krampus in Styria.
Belsnickel – A figure who follows Santa Claus in some regions of Europe such as Germany and Austria, he is similar to Krampus in that he will punish naughty children.
Hans Trapp – A sinister scarecrow from France that scares children around Christmas time.
La Pere Fouettard – “The Whipping Father,” Pere Fouettard accompanies the French Pere Noel on his nightly visit of December 5th where like Belsnickel, Krampus and Zwarte Piete, he will punish naughty children.
Knecht Ruprecht – Another figure from Germany who punishes children.
Percht – The percht are an offshoot of an older goddess, Perchta from the Alpine regions who guarded the beasts of the forest. The percht would be depicted as humanoid goats with elongated necks and wearing animal furs. These same percht are believed to become the basis for Krampus.
Ru Klaas – Another figure from Germany who punishes children.
Schabmänner or Rauhen – In the Austrian state Styria, these “Wild Man” figures will appear in addition to Krampus to dole out birch rods and punishments.
Zwarte Piete – A helper and companion to the Dutch Sinterklaas. Early depictions of Zwarte Piete show him as a punisher while later depictions have tried to soften the image.
Krampusnacht & The Feast Of Saint Nicholas
Where many American children get excited for Santa Claus on December 25th, in Europe, children get excited for Saint Nicholas’ arrival on December 5th (Aruba, Curacao and the Netherlands) or 6th (Belgium and Luxembourg). The celebrations of Saint Nicholas gained popularity in Germany right around the eleventh century. It is also around this time, that the patron saint of children would get paired up with a dark counterpart. With Saint Nicholas giving gifts to good children and Krampus punishing the bad children.
In Germany, things are a little different. The night before Saint Nicholas’ Day is December 5th, all well and good for the most part. However, December 5th though is known as Krampusnacht or Krampus Night and is a night of riotous revelry and fear for Krampus is known to come, punishing naughty children, or carrying them away in a basket on his back.
The next morning on December 6th, children will look to see if their shoe or stocking has gifts and presents in it or if a rod or twigs have been left for them.
Austrian Urban Centers – In many Christmas markets, watered or toned-down images of Krampus will be sold, presenting him in a humorous light to tourists. Some people have complained that by softening the image of Krampus, he may be getting too commercialized.
Bavaria – The celebrations surrounding Krampus have seen revivals that include artistic traditions of hand-carved wooden masks.
Croatia – Here, Krampus is described as wearing sackcloth around his waist and chains on his wrists and ankles, not just around his neck. If a child misbehaves too badly, Krampus will keep the gifts that Saint Nicholas would have given for himself and leave a silver birch branch behind.
Northern Italy – In the Udine province of Italy, there is the Cave del Predil. An annual Krampus festival is held here where the Krampus comes out just before sunset to chase children and whip them. To satiate the Krampus’ anger, children and young people would need to recite a prayer.
Slovenia – In many areas of Slovenia, Krampus is called Parkeli and is one of the companions of Miklavž, the Slovenian name for Saint Nicholas.
Styria – In this Austrian state, Krampus has a few different appearances. Here, Krampus will present a bundle of birch rods, painted gold to families so they can be hung in the house as a reminder to children to be on their best behavior. In smaller, more remote villages, other horned or antlered figures known as Schabmänner or Rauhen, “the Wild Man” will make appearances too in addition to Krampus.
United States –The figure of Krampus is catching on in many places and there are more and more movies and shows that will feature Krampus as a main antagonist, even if for one episode. Some cities will hold their own Krampus Runs and there are parties held celebrating Krampus, even if they are nothing more than an excuse to drink.
“The Great War On Christmas”
In the 12th century C.E., the Catholic Church tried to banish the Krampus celebrations due to their pagan elements and Krampus’ resemblance to the devil. This would prove difficult as people in the more rural areas would keep alive their traditions.
People wearing devil masks and acting riotously with drunken revelries and causing trouble have been recorded since the sixteenth century. It was not uncommon for animal-masked devils to appear in Medieval Christian church plays. So, the appearances of Krampus masks at this time may very well have been part of these celebrations and the mummery that happens with many Winter festivals. The 17th century would see a full integration of pairing Saint Nicholas with Krampus. If they couldn’t stamp the Krampus traditions out, they would adapt him to the Christian religious observances.
When we get to the 20th century, the Austrian governments tried once more to prohibit the Krampus antics and displays. After the 1934 Austrian Civil War, the Dollfuss regime with the Fatherland’s Front and Christian Social Party tried to ban the Krampus traditions. The 1950’s saw the publication of government-issued pamphlets titled: “Krampus is an Evil Man.”
But you can’t keep a good Krampus down and by the end of the 20th century, Krampus celebrations and parades came back in force. So much so, that Krampus celebrations have been spreading around the world to places like the United States as part of an “anti-Christmas celebration.” He certainly does represent a darker side to the holiday where not everything is not always so joyous. It does play to earlier celebrations of Christmas with drunk revelries and anyone wanting to push back again the heavy, over-commercialization of Christmas.
Krampusfest
Also known as Kränchen, this is a village-wide celebration held in southeast Austria. It is often held on the Saturday after Krampus Day. These festivities are typically held at local community centers, schools, or any facility large enough to hold some 300+ drunk revelers. Sometimes, Kränchen will be held a week before or after Krampus Day. It’s a way that some villages will turn Krampus Day into a three weekend-long celebration, particularly one for drinking and booze.
Krampuslauf
The great Krampus run is an annual parade held every year in many Alpine towns. For the first two weeks, especially on the eve of December 6th, young people will dress in Krampus costumes and parade through the town, ringing bells and scaring parade watchers. Some participants may dress up as perchten, a wild female spirit from Germanic folklore. Alcoholic beverages of Krampus schnapps and brandy are common during this celebration.
Perchten – These wild spirits are known to be active between the Winter Solstice and up to around January 6th, Epiphany if you were in Italy.
Krampuskarten
These are the holiday greeting cards that feature Krampus on them. Krampus cards have been exchanged since the 1800’s during the Holiday Season. A typical greeting card reads: “Gruß vom Krampus” or “Greetings from the Krampus” and likely accompanied with some humorous rhymes or poems within.
Older versions of Krampus cards are likely to show a more sinister and frightening Krampus while newer, modern cards might show a more toned down, cuter, or humorous-looking Krampus figure.
Perchtenlauf
This is a seasonal play that is found throughout the Alpine regions. It was known as Nikolausspiel or “Nicholas’ Play” at one time. These plays stem from the Medieval Morality Plays from Antiquity. The Nicholas plays feature Saint Nicholas reward children for their scholarly efforts instead of good behavior.
As I mentioned above, the percht are an offshoot of an older goddess, Perchta from the Alpine regions who guarded the beasts of the forest. The percht would be depicted as humanoid goats with elongated necks and wearing animal furs. These same percht are believed to become the basis for Krampus. Villagers living in the more remote regions of the Alpines would parade around in percht guises.
Kappa
Also Called: Gataro (“River Boy”), Kawako (“River Child”), Kawataro (“River Boy” or “River Tiger”), Komahiki (“Horse Puller”), Suiko (“Water Tiger”)
There are some eighty names for kappa depending on the region they’re found in. Next to the oni and tengu, kappa are some of the best known yokai found in Japan.
Some of these other names are: Dangame (“Soft-Shelled Turtle”), Enko (“monkey”), Gawappa, Kawappa, Kawaso (“otter”), Kogo, Mizuchi, Mizushi, and Suitengu.
Etymology – “River-Child” from the words kawa for “river” and wappo, an inflection of waraba meaning “child.”
In the Shinto Religion of Japan, Kappa are mischievous water spirits or yokai who will pull young children and the unwary into the river and ponds where they live and drown them. Kappa are also known for attacking travelers and animals. Even today, many towns and villages keep signs out warning of the dangers of kappa near a river.
Some of the less deadly pranks that kappa will pull are passing gas loudly and looking up women’s kimonos. They will also steal crops, flat out kidnap children and rape women.
The kappa are curious about human culture, they are not mindlessly aggressive and many can be appealed or reasoned with as they do speak Japanese. Wisemen were known to befriend kappa and learn the art of setting bones from them. It’s thought that somehow, kappa were once wise monkeys.
Kappa will also sometimes challenge people to different tests of skill such as shogi or sumo wrestling. People have been known to befriend kappa by giving gifts and offerings, often of food and especially cucumbers.
The kappa are a major folkloric figure that people have reported seeing for centuries. They have remained a staple of literature and even the tourist industry in some towns will tell visitors to be wary of kappa and to be careful.
Suijin
In Shinto, the Kappa are viewed as one of many types of Suijin or water people or even water deities. Many of these water deities or spirits are often depicted as snakes, dragons, eels, fish, turtles and kappa. It is believed that belief in kappa can be traced back to China, though much of the kappa lore is native to Japan.
With the arrival of Chinese and Koreans during the 2nd century C.E. along with the arrival of Buddhism in Japan, the imagery of kappa would be begin to take on these attributes.
While the name for the most powerful Suijin in Japan is Mizu no Kamisama or Goddess or God of Water, the kappa are more accurately referred to as Kawa no Kami or River Deity reflecting a less powerful status.
The offering of cucumbers to kappa may have come from a tradition of giving the year’s first crop of cucumbers and eggplants to the local river to either appease local water deities or hungry ghosts.
Festivals – There are still some festivals held in places, twice a year during the equinoxes to placate the kappa and ensure a good harvest. These festivals also mark the time of the year when the kappa travel down from the mountains to the rivers and back up.
Kappa Odori Dance – This is a sacred Shinto dance used to pray for abundant crops. Young boys dress up as kappa and jump and bounce around in time to the humorous music as it’s played.
Jozankei Hot Springs – A local spa near the Toyohiragawa River to the southwest of Sapporo. Named after the monk who found the place, the kappa are local guardian spirits. Some 23 kappa statues stand around the area. The Kappa Pool becomes very lively in early August during the Kappa Festival. A local legend holds that the story of the Kappa Buchi occurred here.
Ancient Origins?
Ainu Folklore – The Ainu are Japan’s earliest inhabitants who live mostly on the northern island of Hokkaido. The connection here is very tentative as some believe that the kappa come from Ainu folklore. There’s just not enough known of their mythology to really make a concrete connection. What does get cited is that near the main city Sapporo on Hokkaido is an area known as Jozankei where the legends for the “Great Kappa King” and the “Kappa Buchi Legend” can be found, though these stories are not likely to be of Ainu origin and mythology.
Nihon Shoki – Chronicles of Japan – One of Japan’s earliest and official records, it was compiled sometime around 720 C.E. It is the first text to refer to kappa where it is called Kawa no Kami or River Deity in this text.
Wakan Sansaizue – Kappa don’t really take on popularity until around Japan’s medieval era, during the Edo period. The Wakan Sansaizue is a 105-volume encyclopedia dating to about 1713 C.E. and is the first to depict a kappa.
Gazu Hyakkiyagyō – Or the “Night Procession of One Hundred Demons” is a four volume text that next shows and depicts kappa within it.
From here, the popularity of kappa in continues in the Edo Period, appearing in a serial called Kasshiyawa where the kappa called Kawataro. Another document is the Mimibukuro, a 10-volume text written by Negishi Yasumori.
Portuguese Monks – When Portuguese monks arrived in Japan during the 16th century, their appearance of cloaks that hung down in back like a kappa’s shell and their shaven heads resulting in a bald head crowned with hair known as a Capa for the Portuguese word for this hair style would easily become absorbed into Japan’s Kappa lore…. After all a homophone of words Kappa and Capa sound very alike.
Drowned Monkeys – Some legends will hold that the first kappa come from monkeys. Yanagida Kunio records a story where he notes that some regions of Japan referred to kappa as enko or monkeys.
There is a famous Buddhist story from China in which a group of monkeys tried to capture the moon’s reflection. For their trouble and efforts, the monkeys were drowned.
The Monkey King Versus The Water Demon – There are a number of tales for the Indian collection of Buddha stories called Jataka. Dating from the 3rd century B.C.E. India and Sri Lanka, the story in question features the monkey kingdom under attack from a monkey-eating water demon. The wise monkey king outwitted the demon with bamboo.
So, what’s the connection? In Sanskrit, the word Kapi translates to monkey. It’s possible that Kappa is a distorted form of Kapi. It would explain some of the descriptions of kappa being monkey-like is a carry over of this distortion. Further, there is a kapi jembawan, a monkey sage in Indonesian folklore based on the Dwarka kingdom where Lord Krishna ruled. The famous Hindi poet, Tulsidas who wrote the Ramayana some 500 years ago, uses the word kapi in place of the Vanara or monkey folk in the South who help Rama defeat Ravana.
If we’re looking at linguist connections, that could all hold up.
Description
Kappa look like child-sized humanoid turtles or more often monkeys with scaly limbs and thick tortoise shells. Some kappa are depicted with ape-like faces while others are more beaked. Skin coloration ranges from green to yellow and even blue.
The most distinguishing feature of kappa are the bowl or saucer-shaped depressions on the top of their heads called a sara (meaning “dish,” “bowl,” or “plate.”) When leaving the water, kappa makes sure that the sara is kept filled with water. The sara is surrounded with scraggly hair in a bobbed hair style known as okappa-atama. Should the kappa loose this water, it loses its strength and powers, possibly even dying in this weakened state if water isn’t refilled. Some kappa are reputed to have taken to wearing a metal plate or cap to cover their sara so the water doesn’t pour or dry out, thus weakening them.
Depending on the story, the arms of a kappa are said to be connected to each such, that the kappa can slide their arm from one side to the other. I can see that trick, the kappa is wearing a shell, pull one arm in and stuff it out the other arm hole, much like a person does when wearing a t-shirt. I’m sure it’s a simple enough illusion and magic trick to pull off.
Aquatic creatures who live in ponds and rivers, Kappa also possess webbed hands and feet. People have commented that Kappa smell like fish. Some of the legends involving kappa have them spending spring and summer down in the water during autumn and winter, heading up to the Yama-no-Kami (“Mountain Deities”) mountains. While kappa can be found throughout much of Japan, they’re often found in the Saga Prefecture.
Hyosube – This is the name for the kappa’s hairy cousin. The two are identical otherwise in terms of physical attributes and what they do. The biggest distinction of the two aside from hair, is that kappa are more prone to staying outside. The Hyosube are more likely to sneak into people’s homes to cause mischief, namely to take a bath. Being so hairsute, the hyosube are known to shed hair which is deadly to those who encounter it in Japanese folklore.
Shibaten – Also called Shibatengu, is a more turtle-like kappa where the kappa can be more ape or monkey like in appearance.
Diet
The kappa feed on a diet of blood and cucumbers.
Blood – Young children are told to be wary when playing near the water’s edge of ponds and rivers. Children are a kappa’s favored meal though they’re not above eating an adult.
Eww… so what makes humans so appealing to a kappa is a shirikodama that they will suck out of a person’s anus. Alrighty then.
And the shirikodama? Depending on the source and legend, that’s a mystical ball containing a person’s life force or soul that’s found near the anus, entrails, in the blood or liver.
Cucumbers – The only thing that kappa love more than small children. Its customary for some Japanese parents to write the names of their children or themselves on a cucumber and toss it into a pond or river where the kappa are believed to dwell.
Other Food Offerings – Cucumbers aren’t the only food item a kappa will accept. Offerings of eggplant, soba noodles, natto (fermented soybeans) and kabocha (winter squash) are accepted by kappa.
Powers
Being an aquatic yokai, it goes without saying that kappa are master swimmers with a vast knowledge of water and it’s importance.
Strength – Much of a kappa’s strength is tied to the waters of the pond or river it calls home. The water that a kappa keeps in the depression on its head is a source of its strength and even life.
Flatulence – I’m not sure that I would call this a power. Suffice to say that a kappa can use a particularly noxious gas attack in self-defense much like skunks do. A kappa is known to release this gas not just as a prank but to get someone like fishermen to let it go.
Flight – So those cucumbers offered to the kappa, not only do they eat the cucumbers, the kappa uses them to fly around on like dragonflies. Okay….
Weaknesses
So how does one manage to thwart and defeat a Kappa you might ask?
Arms – If we go off the idea that the arms of a kappa are connected to each other, they can be easily pulled off. If a person manages to get a kappa’s arm, they will perform a task in order to get it back. Assuming the arm can be reattached.
Challenges – Kappa aren’t mindlessly aggressive, and a person can reason with them. If they don’t have an offering of cucumbers to give, a person can try challenging the kappa. Most challenges usually take the form of feats of strength with wrestling matches.
One challenge found in a folktale sees a Farmer’s daughter get promised to a kappa in marriage in exchange for the yokai to irrigate his land. The daughter challenged the kappa to submerge several gourds in water. When the kappa failed at this task, the daughter was freed from the marital arrangement.
Fire – Being water creatures, it stands to reason that Kappa are held to be afraid of fire and loud noises. Some villages in Japan will have fireworks festivals each year to try and scare away spirits.
Land – Kappa can’t survive for long on the land and must always keep their heads wet, especially the sara filled with water.
Etiquette – That in mind, the kappa are overly found of etiquette, so if you bow deeply to them in greeting, they will bow as well, spilling the water from their sara. With this water spilled, the kappa loses its strength and any powers, becoming weakened and possibly die if this water isn’t refilled. It must be water from their home river or pond that is poured back in. If a human is the one who refills this water, it is believed that the kappa would the human in question for the rest of eternity.
Cucumbers – Offering the Kappa a nice tasty cucumber is sure to do the trick and placate them instead of trying to haul you into the river to drown.
Instead of offering the cucumber, a person would the vegetable themselves as a means of protection before swimming. Though some will say this is sure to guarantee an attack.
Miscellaneous – There’s a variety of other items that supposedly drive away kappa. These items include ginger, iron and sesame.
A Friend For Life
Those who have successfully befriended a kappa find that they truly have a friend for life. Kappa are known to help farmers in any number of ways such as irrigating fields. The kappa are very knowledgeable in the way of medicine and have been known to teach the art of bone setting to humans.
There are shrines to kappa that have been established, especially of a particularly helpful kappa. You could trick a kappa into service via the bowing and refilling the bowl on their head with water. He’s not likely to be so nice about the help he gives then.
The kappa, like the European Fae won’t break an oath as their sense of etiquette and decorum is such, they just won’t. So yeah, a human can trick a kappa into service and get one to swear an oath to them, the kappa’s sense of honor says they will follow it through to the end.
Japanese Expressions
There are a few expressions associated with kappa.
Kappa Maki – A cucumber sushi roll named for kappa.
“Kappa-no-kawa-nagare” – This phrase translates to “A kappa drowning in a river” is used to mean that even an expert can make mistakes.
“Kappa no He” – Much ado about nothing, the literal translation is water-imp fart. This is my new favorite.
Okappa – the bobbed hairstyles that look like those kappa sport.
Koppojutsu
This is a martial arts style invented by Kappa who will sometimes teach it to humans. The name of koppojutsu translates as “attacks against bones.” It is a hard-martial art compared to another, koshijutsu that is a soft-martial art that targets an opponent’s muscles.
Kappa-Buchi
The Kappa Pool is a legend found in the Jozankei region of Japan.
A young man was out fishing in a deep pool and he ended up falling in. He never surfaced. Some months later, as his father slept, the son came to him in a dream and told his father that he was living happily with the Kappa, that he even had a kappa wife and child. Shortly after, the pool came to be known as the Kappa Buchi.
Kappa Bashi
The Kappa bridge found in Tokyo used to be farmland that was surrounded by canals prone to flooding. During the late Edo period, a raincoat dealer, Kappaya Kihachi spent his entire fortune on building a better drainage system. The work proved more difficult than expect and taking longer to complete.
Falling into despair and about to give up, the man was visited by a kappa whose life he had saved many years before. The kappa had arrived to help and in no time at all, the new drainage system was completed. Further, the story goes that those who saw the kappa were blessed with good fortune. Shortly after, the Kappa Temple was built to honor and enshrine the kappa as a local deity.
Saiyuki – Journey West
When the Chinese epic of Journey to the West arrived in Japan, the character of Sha Wujing’s name is changed to Sangojo or Sagojo. Where Sha Wujing or Sandy is often depicted as a Water Buffalo or some kind of water demon, in Japan, he is frequently identified as a kappa.
Horses & Livestock & Monkeys!
Continuing a connection of Kappa to the Journey West story, in which kappa come from drown monkeys. In Chinese lore, monkeys are shown riding horses and in Journey West, the Jade Emperor appoints Monkey or Son Goku to a position of a Stable Hand or Protector of Horses.
This connection could explain a few different folktales and stories of kappa harassing people’s horse and cattle. There is a story recorded by Lafcadio Hearn in Kawachimura where a horse-stealing kappa was captured and forced to sign an agreement never to harm any people or steal from them again. The kappa even went so far as to swear he would get his fellow kappa to swear to the oath of leaving humans alone.
Of course, it could be too much of a stretch and horses were just one of many animals and objects that kappa would try to steal from humans.
Possible Reality Behind The Myths
Drowning – It’s likely stories of kappa developed as a means to scare and warn children from wandering too close to the water’s edge at any pond or river.
Kappa are even blamed for drowning deaths and signs are still posted near bodies of water that warn of kappa dangers.
Giant Salamanders – It makes sense, that inspiration for the kappa could come from the Japanese giant salamander or hanzaki. It is a large, aggressive salamander that grow up to five feet in length that will grab its prey with powerful jaws.
Miscarriages & Leech Babies – Touching back on that idea of kappa rapping women. There is an 18th century Ukiyo-e picture by Utamaro showing a kappa rapping an ama diver while underwater. That’s a bit unpleasant. More relevant might be a belief found in Kunio Yanagita’s Tono Monogatari, in which women who were raped by kappa and became pregnant often had repulsive babies born. These babies, called Leech Babies, would be buried shortly after.
Sometimes these stillborn babies would be tossed into a river and children would be warned to stay away from the water’s edge to avoid seeing these dead babies. Sadly, sometimes a poor family might have tossed an unwanted baby into the river if they couldn’t afford to care for it.
It’s possible a woman might say she had been raped by a kappa in order to try and explain why a baby was born deformed and likely stillborn. It would provide a way of saving face to explain a stillborn and deformities. That’s my take after reading in Celtic folklore and comparing it the myths regarding Changelings and parents who have a child that dies of SIDs, you just say the fairies came and took your baby and that the one isn’t real. Because somewhere, your real baby is still alive.
Similar Folkloric Figures
There are a few other, similar figures found in other cultures from around the world that have been used to scare young children from straying too close to the water’s edge.
Kelpie – A fearsome water horse in Scottish folklore known to drown those who try to ride it.
Näkki – A water monster from Finnish folklore.
Neck – Also called Nix or Nixie, a similar shapeshifting creature to the Näkki, only from Germanic and Scandinavian folklore.
Shui Gui – Water Ghost or Water Monkey is a similar creature found in Chinese folklore.
Siyokoy – Found in the Philippin islands and known for kidnapping children. Their description is very similar to those of kappa.
Vodyanoy – A frog-like water spirit found in Slavic folklore.
Vodnik – A green humanoid spirit or creature found in western Slavic folklore, particularly in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Narcissus
Pronunciation: nahr-sis’-uhs
Etymology: Uncertain, the name Narcissus has come to be associated with a species of daffodil. Pliny the Elder wrote that the flower is named for its fragrance. There’s a connection to “narko” meaning “I grow numb” and not for mythological figure.
Alternate Spellings: Nárkissos
Narcissus hailed from Thespiae in Boeotia and was very well known for his beauty. He was so proud of his beauty that he held disdain and scorn for those who professed their love for him. This of course, attracted the attention of Nemesis, the goddess of retribution who sought to punish Narcissus for his arrogance.
Parentage
Father – Cephissus, a river god or Endymion by Nonnus in his Dionysiaca
Mother – Liriope, a nymph or Selene by by Nonnus in his Dionysiaca
There are several variations to the story of Narcissus.
For one, with Narcissus’ parentage of a minor river god and nymph, Narcissus himself is a minor god. This makes it a little more likely for why other gods, albeit minor take an interest in him.
Conon’s Narrations
Conon was a contemporary of Ovid. Unlike Ovid’s telling of the story, in this one, there is a young man by the name of Ameinias who falls in love with Narcissus. Now, Narcissus had already spurned the love and advances of several other male suitors already. So Ameinias is just merely the latest of who’s been turned down.
What makes Ameinias different from the others is that Narcissus gives him a sword. Ameinias prays to the gods, specifically Nemesis, that Narcissus would get his comeuppance and feel all the pain that he has caused others. The prayer said, Ameinias takes his own life on the steps to Narcissus’ home with the sword given to him.
In answer, when Narcissus walks by a pool of water, he sees his own reflection after stopping to get a drink. Falling in love with his own reflection, Narcissus kills himself as he’s unable to have what he wants, his reflection.
Or, when Narcissus realizes that he is cursed for the humiliation he inflicted on Ameinias, he kills himself. From Narcissus’ blood, a flower springs up, bearing his name.
Sometimes it is the goddess Artemis who answers Ameinias’ call for vengeance.
By Conon’s account, Narcissus is still in the Underworld, gazing at his reflection in the waters of the Styx river.
Edith Hamilton’s Mythology
One story mentioned in this volume is that Zeus had created the narcissus flower in order to help Hades with kidnapping Kore (Persephone), the daughter of Demeter down to the Underworld while she was out with friends gathering flowers and playing. When Kore went to pick the strange, new flower, that is when a chasm leading to the Underworld opened up and Hades carried her away to become his wife.
Ovid’s Metamorphoses
Ovid’s Metamorphoses has the version of Narcissus’ story that most people are familiar with.
The son of Cephissus, the river god of the Boeotian river and the nymph Liriope, Narcissus was born in Thespiae, Boetia. Liriope was worried about the fate of her baby boy and took him to a blind seer by the name of Tiresias. The seer told Narcissus’ mother that the baby would enjoy a long life so long as: “he didn’t get to know himself.” In some accounts, in response to this prophecy, Liriope removed all mirrors to try and prevent Narcissus from ever catching sight of his reflection.
When Narcissus reached sixteen years of age, he spurned the love and advances of all those, men and women alike, who showed any interest in him. Yes, the ancient Grecian heart-throb leaving a trail of broken hearts behind him without any second thoughts.
Narcissus is out wandering the forests one day with some friends hunting deer when Echo, a mountain nymph or Oread sees and instantly falls in love with him.
What’s not told when starting off with just Narcissus’ side of the story is that Echo had been cursed by Juno, Jupiter’s wife after finding out that Echo was only running distraction to keep her from finding out about her husband’s affairs. Angry, Juno curses Echo that she can only repeat what someone else has said.
With that context in mind, when Narcissus gets separated from his friends and calls out: “Is anyone there?” That Echo can only repeat back what he says with: “Is anyone there?”
This startled Narcissus who then asked: “Come here.”
Because of the curse, Echo could only respond with the same “come here” reply.
When no one came out into the glade he was standing in, Narcissus figured that the other person must be moving away from him. So, he called out again: “This way, we must come together.”
Echo, taking this to heart as confirmation for her love, called back: “We must come together!” As she came running out, ready to throw her arms around Narcissus.
On seeing the nymph running towards him, Narcissus became affronted and pushed Echo away exclaiming: “Hands off! May I die before you enjoy my body!”
Hurt, all Echo could respond with was: “Enjoy my body.” Before she turned to flee back into the woods, rejected and humiliated by Narcissus. By this account, Echo wasted away, her body becoming stone until only her voice remained.
Narcissus would have his own comeuppance coming, for he continued to spurn the advances and loves of others. Including the previously mentioned Ameinias, who in his love-sickness, called out: “O may he love himself alone and fail un that great love.”
Nemesis, the goddess of revenge heard Ameinias’ cure and decided to respond. She cursed Narcissus, attracted him to a pool where he fell in love with his own reflection. Not realizing it was merely an image and unable to leave the beauty of his reflection, Narcissus lost his will to live. He stared at his reflection until he died.
Echo, her own love unrequited and unable to do anything, watched on as Narcissus pined away for his reflection.
It is said, that just before he died, Narcissus told his reflection: “Oh darling boy, I loved you in vain, good-bye.”
Echo repeated the words: “Good-bye.” As she was now completely stone and unable to do anything else.
When the nymphs came to gather up Narcissus’ body for funeral, it was gone and in its place was a flower.
Nemesis – It should be noted that she is sometimes seen as an aspect of Aphrodite and not a separate entity.
Another note, Ovid connecting Echo to Narcissus’ myth seems to have been his own invention. However, its now the official one.
Pausanias’s Guide To Greece
In a Greek travelogue, Pausanias retells Narcissus’ story in which he ends up falling in love with a twin sister, not his own reflection. When his sister died, Narcissus would go to a spring and look at his reflection, imagining that it was his own sister that he saw. Narcissus eventually dies, pinning away for the loss of his sister.
Pausanias doesn’t think the story of Narcissus falling in love with is reflection and not being able to recognize it as such is unlikely.
Mirror, Mirror On The Wall….
One idea I came across says that Narcissus’ story may originate in an ancient Greek superstition that it is unlucky, possibly even fatal, to see one’s reflection.
Drowning
Other sources to Narcissus’ story have him drowning in the pool as he tries reaching for his reflection.
Suicide
That’s a bit heavy and deep to take. Ovid, Parthenius of Nicaea and Conon all have versions of Narcissus’ story where he commits suicide as he’s unable to what he desires, that being his reflection give love back.
Narcissus Flower
After Narcissus’ death, a flower sprang up in the very place that he died. This flower of course bears Narcissus’ name and is a genus of daffodil.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Or Narcissism. Obviously, Narcissus’ story is the basis for a personality disorder in which a person is very self-absorbed, vain and everything is always about them whether that is their own physical appearance or public perception. Psychologist have studied this disorder for years.
A little bit of self-care and self-love is good. We should care about ourselves and want to do good as well as look good. When taken to the extremes and a narcissus is that self-absorbed with themselves that they don’t care about others or make everything about them, then you get a problem.
Mamlambo
Other Names – “the Brain Sucker”
In the Zulu mythology of South Africa, Mamlambo is a large serpentine river goddess as well as a goddess of beer. In some legends, Mamlambo appears during lightning storms.
For the Xhosa of South Africa, the Mamlambo is a giant river snake that will bring good fortune to the one who can claim it. Witch doctors are believed to use Mamlambo to extract revenge on their enemies.
Goddess Of Beer!
Yes, beer. This aquatic, serpentine deity is also known for brewing beer. This is a job that women in many Southeast African tribes do.
Cryptozoology
Mamlambo’s myth entered the realm of cryptozoology in 1997 when various South African newspapers began reporting sightings of a “giant reptile” monster in the Mzintlava River (also known as the Umzimhlava River) near Mount Ayliff in South Africa. The reports also mention how between 7-9 people and even a number of animals were all killed by this monster by dragging its victims underwater and drowning them. After which, the Mamlambo would suck out the blood and brains of the victims, earning it the name of “the Brain Sucker.”
Description
There are a few different accounts what Mamlambo is to look like.
One version has the creature being some 20 meters (67 feet) long, with the torso of a horse and lower body of a fish, short legs and neck of a snake. That it also shone green at night. Some have commented that this description fits that of a Mosasaur, a variety of giant marine reptiles that went extinct with the dinosaurs.
A slight variation to this description says the Mamlambo is half-fish, half-horse with short stumpy legs, crocodilian body and the head and neck of a snake. This version of the description also says the Mamlambo has a hypnotic gaze that it uses to lure its victims to a watery grave. Much like crocodiles do, the Mamlambo is able to leave the water to snag its potential victims that come to close to the water. The Mamlambo is also believed to glow an eerie bioluminescent green when it is dark.
Possible Reality Behind The Myths
In April of 1997, there had nine bodies found in the Mzintlava River. According to local police, all of the bodies had been in the water for a long time, long enough for scavengers such as crabs to come and eat the soft parts of the heads and necks. When the bodies were pulled from the water, river crabs were still clinging to the bodies. The local villagers on the other hand insist that these mutilations are the result of the Mamlambo eating people’s faces and then sucking out their brains.
Another idea put forward is that the Mamlambo may be an elasmosaur-like animal an ancient type of archaeocete from the cetacean evolutionary branch. Basically, a member of the whale family before whale legs became flippers.
Cryptid Cousins
Brosno Dragon – Or Brosnya, is a Russian Lake Monster that some have described as being a mutant beaver or a giant pike that’s around 100-150 years old.
Dobhar-Chú – A cryptid from Irish folklore described as being a water hound and known for dragging victims to a watery death.
Each-Uisge – A Scottish shape-shifting water horse, that much like the Irish Kelpie is known for drowning victims.
Glashtyn – Or Cabyll-Ushtey, it is a shape-shifting goblin that inhabits of the waterways in Manx, one of it’s favored forms is that of a horse.
Kelpie – A water horse, this is another creature from Irish folklore known for its shape-shifting abilities and drowning victims.
Lau – A dinosaur-like lake monster with tentacles from Sudan.
Loch Ness Monster – A similar aquatic and serpentine creature found in Scotland.
Mahamba – A reptilian cryptid from the Congo, it is often described as being similar to a giant crocodile or thought to be a fresh water living fossil mosasaur.
Mokele-Mbembe – A famous reptilian cryptid from the Congo described as looking a sauropod and herbivore in nature.
Reality T.V.
The Mamlambo has indeed featured on an episode of the SyFy channel’s Destination Truth.
Tartalo
Other names: Alarabi, Tartaro
There’s a lot of ancient Basque mythology that didn’t survive the arrival of Christianity between the 4th and 12th centuries C.E. Most of what is known and has survived is from the study of place names and the scant historical references of pagan rituals practiced by the Basques.
In Basque mythology, Tartalo is a giant, cyclops being much like the one-eyed giants of Greco-Roman mythology. In Biscay, he is known as Alarabi. Depending on the story of Tartalo being told, he may be described as being a hunter or a shepherd who lives up in the mountains. Sometimes he is described as a monstrous animal or spirit.
Like many giants, Tartalo is known for being incredibly strong and fearsome. He makes his home in the mountain caves where he will catch young people in order to eat them. Aside from humans, Tartalo will also eat sheep.
The Greek Connection
There is speculation that the name Tartalo may be related to the Greek name for the underworld of Tartaros. Which could make sense as caves in many folklore and legends around the world are entry ways to the underworld and Tartalo is known for living in them. There’s also a chance that it is coincidence for the similarity of the Basque and Greek words without any actual linguistic connection.
Tartalo’s Story
One of the stories related to Tartalo seems to be inspired by and come from the Odyssey. Further, Wentworth Webster seems to feel there is an element of Celtic themes in the stories of Tartalo, as seen in a talking ring he will offer his victims. In many of the stories, Tartalo is often beaten by being outwitted and trickery.
In one legend, two brothers were out hunting up in the moutains when a storm rolled in. They decided to take shelter in a cave in order to wait out the rain. Unknown to the brothers, this particular cave belong Tartalo.
Shortly after, Tartalo returned with his flock of sheep, also seeking to get out of the rain and storm. On seeing the two brothers Tartalo called out: “Bat gaurko eta bestea biharko!” Which translates into English as: “One for today and the other for tomorrow!”
Tartalo proceeded to roll a huge stone in front of the cave in order to trap the brothers. The night, Tartalo took the eldest brother and skewered him on a spit to roast over his fire before eating him. His grisly meal done, Tartalo went to sleep.
If you ask me, in both versions of the story, this is where Tartalo made a mistake. He should have caged the younger brother or tied him up. But, even if he had done so, there would still be a portion of the story where the younger brother manages to escape his bonds.
While Tartalo is sleeping, the youngest brother steals Tartalos’ ring and then proceeds to take the roasting spit and jams it into Tartalo’s eye, blinding him. Screaming and in a rage, Tartalo starts flailing about, searching for the boy.
The youngest brother hid himself among Tartalo’s sheep and used a sheep skin to make it more effective. Either way, hiding from Tartalo now wasn’t hard to do with the now blinded giant.
Morning finally arrives and Tartalo decides to remove the huge stone from his cave entrance. He has the idea that as he would call his sheep out for the day, that’s when he would catch the younger brother. Tartalo stood at the entrance of the cave, his legs spread apart, making it so that the only way out from the cave was underneath him.
Variation Including Tartalo’s Ring
The younger brother was still wearing the sheep skin and knelt down to all fours, hoping to still elude the giant. The plan worked, that is until, in the versions of the story where the ring is involved, it started calling out: “Hemen nago, hemen nago!” The English translation of this phrase being: “Here I am, here I am!”
Hearing the ring, Tartalo took off in hot pursuit of the younger brother. The younger brother found he was unable to take off the ring once he had it on to escape the giant. When he got to the edge of a cliff, there in desperation, he cut off his own finger and threw it over the edge of the cliff. Still chasing after the sound of his ring, Tartalo fell off the cliff to his death.
Variation Without Tartalo’s Ring
As mentioned before, the younger brother was still wearing the sheep skin and knelt down to all fours, hoping to still elude the giant. The plan worked until Tartalo realized the younger brother was getting away. The giant chased after him, following the sound of the younger brother’s footsteps.
The younger brother came to a Well where he proceeded to leap in and swim to his safety. Tartalo on the other hand, could not swim and he ended up drowning when he tried to follow the younger brother in.
Brickthology 