Questions tagged [myth-identification]
For questions about identifying a particular myth based on certain known facts or a basic description of its context, characters and events.
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What is the origin of these creatures in Appalachian folklore?
My family (for these intents and purposes) comes from the mountains of Appalachian southern Virginia.
The older folks told tales of three specific monsters as warning against wayward children ...
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Is there a Maori legend about a demon's heart at the bottom of a lake?
In the second episode of the first season of the television series Top of the Lake, a beautiful Maori legend is mentioned:
You know there's a,
Maori legend about this lake
That says there's a ...
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Are there any instances of defying a prophecy?
In Greek mythology, there are many prophecies. Usually, in spite of someone's effort to prevent it, what is prophesized still happens.
As far as I'm aware, the only one to successfully avoid a ...
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Who did Zeus punish by having poison/acid dripped on them?
I am not sure if this is a real myth, as I learned about it from a Tumblr post:
charlesoberonn:
Hades was the least evil entity in the entire Greek pantheon. Just look at the ...
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Did Zeus give Pandora the box?
Did Zeus give Pandora the box?
So the version I'm most familiar with is that Epimetheus had a box containing the evils of the world, but in some other versions e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...
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Please help identify creature/character on necklace!
I have this necklace that I bought at antique shop long ago and I’ve had no luck with identifying what the creature may be. Does this happen to look familiar to anyone?
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Creature that feeds off personal attachment?
New here. I did search for this in several different forms and places. Not sure if this is the right place, but I saw similar questions here, so I'll give it a shot.
I'm looking for the word for a ...
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According to Hindu Mythology, why do people produce smoke, light and ring the bell?
Could you please explain, while doing worshiping, according to Hindu Mythology, why do people produce smoke through burning joss sticks; light a candle-like light called "Dip jyoti" prepared from ...
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What was the parentage of the Korean King Suro?
According to Korean myth, King Suro of Geumgwan Gaya was one of six eggs that descended from heaven.
Does he have any parentage other then that? Any details about who laid the eggs? Or any other ...
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What is the story behind Thor wearing a wedding dress to get Mjölnir back?
I often hear of a story of Loki taking Mjölnir away from Thor and selling it to giants. Thor then gets angry and makes Loki join him in wearing wedding dresses to enter the giants place unnoticed to ...
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Why was Tenes made king?
Tenes was a son of Apollo or King Cycnus and was falsely accused of forced intercourse. He was found guilty. As punishment, he and his sister were put in a box (much like the legend of Perseus and his ...
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What mythology is the story of Alduin The World Eater and The Dragonborn (as seen in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim) based on?
I'm a big fan of both the Elder Scrolls and Mythology, Skyrim has its own in-game mythology. But I have no clue what myths the story of the Dragonborn and the World Eater is based on.
Key Points:
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What scripture describes humans as being morally superior to angels?
At the climax of Fate/stay night's Heaven's Feel route, the main antagonist, Kirei Kotomine refers to a religious scripture that says humans are morally superior to angels because humans can choose ...
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A rock on a beach
I've heard of a story in greek mythology, but I am missing a lot of details. Can you help me recover the place where, supposedly, everything happened ?
A guy goes alone to a village to steal wine and ...
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Planctae vs. Symplegades
In the Argonautica, both the Planctea and the Symplegades are mentioned. One on the way in search of the Golden Fleece and the other on the way back. The Planctea was also known as, "the Wondering ...
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Who invented writing, or who taught writing to the mortals, according to Greek myths?
There are legends in several mythologies about who invented writing, or a particular writing system (script). For example, the futhark runes used to write Norse were invented by the god Odin, and ...
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What do you call a human who can take energy from other living objects?
I'm not exactly sure what to think but after doing it so often I was just curious if there is a name? I've noticed that when I'm tired while say I'm at work I can place my palm to a tree and it begins ...
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Looking for a character's name
I recently heard a reference to a character the gods sentenced to live long enough to see the results of his bad advice. I am looking for a reference for this story, specifically the name of the ...
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Which ancient hero is most associated with confronting the unknown?
I came across this quote from Jordan Peterson:
Well what would you want to be king? You could say king of the world or king of your own soul: What do you wanna subordinate yourself to. How 'bout your ...
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Is there a Western (Greek, Roman, Egyptian, or Norse) god of the cosmos?
I have heard of the Greek god, Chaos (the manifestation of the void), and of the Greek god Aither, (the manifestation of the upper air that gods breathe most often), but I can't find reference to any ...
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How did Homer describe Mycenae?
Did he link his description with myth of Perseus? Could we imagine how it looks like ?
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Are there any other mythological beings that got a replacement metal arm, other than Nuada, Lugh Llaw Ereint, and Sigurd?
Are there any other mythological beings that got a replacement metal arm, other than Nuada, Lugh Llaw Ereint, and Sigurd?
I found these three from the Mythology section in TV Tropes:
The Battle of ...
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Japanese Trickster Demons
Are there any trickster demons in Japanese mythology, I am aware of the somewhat tricksy Japanese god Susanoo-no-Mikoto, but are there any demons known for tricking people in Japanese mythology?
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Who wrote about gorgon's blood?
I came across a portion of Myth a while back. It said something like gorgon's blood taken from one side of the body can heal any malady but the other side can kill instantly. Who is this writing (for ...
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Why is Atabey specifically the goddess/spirit of horizontal water?
Atabey, goddess, is one of two supreme (major) gods in Taino Mythology (Caribbean islands). She was worshiped as the goddess of fresh water, though her representation as an Earth Spirit connects her ...
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First appearance of the Delphi Oracle in Greek myths
The history of Perseus begins with the oracle of Delphi, when the King of Argos is told that one day a son of his own daughter will kill him.
Being Perseus one of the most ancient Greek mythological ...
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What are the 365 virtues?
I was researching and I came across Abraxas, a daemon(inferior god), an archon, an aeon, the "Supreme" god, an angel...
He has a place in many mythologies, and the number 365 keeps coming up. 365 ...
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Help me identify this damsel-in-distress tale
I remember reading a long time ago about a knight and his wife. It was implied that this was the continuation of many adventures:
After marrying, and with the intention of keeping their love alive ...
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What is the Myth that had Shakespeare inspired to write Romeo and Juliet?
In my last question, I mentioned a love story that Shakespeare based his Romeo and Juliet story on. I said I tried and failed to find their names. The following is what I know of this story.
They ...
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What is this myth about Helios?
Well, there was a guy who wanted to get on the sun chariot, but eventually he died or something happened to him, but he got too close or something. What is the name of the boy, and what is the time ...
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A battle between Maximo and Digenis in Greek Folklore
While working on an essay, I came across a book called the "The study of Russian folklore" which mentions encounters between an Amazon Maximo and Digenis Akritas and also between Siegfried and a ...
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Who said Hermes helped Hades?
Retrieved from here.
This is a mosaic depicting Hades abducting Persephone. Helping him, is Hermes. I do not recall a version of the myth in which Hermes helps Hades. Is there a version, or is this ...
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Are dragons intelligent?
Intelligent can mean a number of things, so to simplify, lets limit it to capable of human speech. It is a common quality in movies and books to give dragons the power of human speech, but are such ...
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Mythologies with goddesses as the main deity?
In most mythologies, there is often a male god who is the chief god, like Zeus of Greek mythology and Ra of Egyptian mythology. As far as I know, the only mythology that has a female ruler of the ...
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Why is easter called 'easter'?
The Christian feast of 'easter' is based on the ancient Yewish religious feast (their main one), is widely spread and was linked to remember the 'Passion of Christ'. Recall that 'Christianity' started ...
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Who says Abraxas is a prince of hell?
I asked a previous question about Abraxas here, briefly talking about what he is and asking how the number 365 relates to him in so many ways.
A few days later, I was talking to someone who happened ...
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What is the mythological status of the 'goethia' demons?
The 'goethia' is a list of numbered (Christian, as in rulers of hell) demons of which their benefits are documented (this one only speaks the truth in a magical circle, this one provides great riches, ...
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Hittite story similar to the story of Jason and Medea?
The BBC History article Ancient History in depth: Jason and the Golden Fleece. BBC - History mentions a Hittite story similar to the story of Jason and Medea:
Thus the classic triangle of hero, dark ...
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Pre-Tolkien Orcs in myths or folklore?
So what I'm trying to understand is what exactly pre-Tolkien orcs were like in regards to folklore. I understand that Tolkien has had a massive influence on how we conceptualize many creatures from ...
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What is the earliest story of summoning the dead we know of?
This is a followup to: What is the earliest ghost story we know of?
In this question, I am looking for stories involving mortals summoning the spirits of the dead from the underworld. The spirits ...
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What is the earliest ghost story we know of?
I am looking for early stories that follow the popular theme of the ghost story: A spirit of the dead appearing amongst the living. Bonus points if there's a haunting involved.
I'm only interested in ...
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What are some iconic legends of human depravity and spiritual pollution?
My purposes are non-salacious, I promise. There's an undercurrent in mythology and folklore that I didn't get a lot of in school, but which I've noticed more and more of as I've read on my own.
...
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Is there a myth that dolphins were humans who chose to return to the sea?
In the Fantasy Island (1998) episode "Dreams", Michael Allen is a stockbroker who finds a mysterious woman (played by Jennifer Garner) who says this to him when they first meet.
Sally: You ...
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What is the Norse equivalent to the Great Flood?
I have constantly heard that every mythology has its own version to explain why the ocean rose after the last ice age ended(roughly 10,000 years ago). But, I have only heard the christian version with ...
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Are there any ancient myths about human body parts said to be benefical or detrimental when eaten?
Additionally, do we know why they were said to be beneficial/detrimental? I think I remember a myth in some culture believing that eating your enemy's heart would give you their strength, but I'm not ...
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What humanoid gods have had skin colors other than that of the people who worship them?
I know that the Egyptian (and therefore presumably Roman, since they incorporated those) gods had a rainbow of skin colors; and the Hindus have a really elaborate system of significant colors for gods ...
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Why is Aether shown battling a lion-headed giant?
In this picture, the primordial god of the upper air, Aether, is depicted wrestling a lion-headed giant.
Is there a myth/story for this anywhere?
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What are some myths involving Capricorn?
I'd like to understand the astrological sign Capricorn more fully.
Are there any myths related to this sign? I am interested in both stories about Capricorn, or stories that reveal the goals of ...
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Tales of bats as witches' familiars?
One of the superstitions in the article 13 Halloween Superstitions & Traditions Explained is about bats:
Medieval folklore also described bats as witches' familiars, and seeing a bat on ...
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Have any dragons in mythology been able to breathe fire underwater?
Are there any dragons in any mythological canons that have been able to breathe fire while underwater?
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