11
votes
What was the role of the bear in Norse mythology? (Are there bears in Asgard?)
You raise a really good point. It is strange that there are no bears in Norse myth. The wolf seems to have really engaged them, perhaps because of the duality of wolf/dog, tame and wild, while the ...
- 5,920
9
votes
What was the role of the bear in Norse mythology? (Are there bears in Asgard?)
Bears do not feature much in Norse mythology, at least when it comes to the stories involving the gods. The one story I can think of which even mentions them is how Gleipnir, the chain that fettered ...
- 6,037
8
votes
Accepted
Why are cows sacred in India?
As you say, cows are sacred and respected in India. Indeed, a cow is often referred to as Go-Mata, meaning Cow-Mother.
There are a pretty high number of reasons why the cow is so sacred.
When ...
- 567
8
votes
Why are cows sacred in India?
Very good question!
In the ancient vedic texts and in Srimad Bhagavatam (composed about 5000 years ago) in particular, there is a mention of the 7 mothers for a human being who are as follows:
(1) ...
- 171
7
votes
Why are cows sacred in India?
I would like to add a point. Surely, as answered by Malay, there are many references to different forms of cows playing a major role in various pastimes. However, along with those references and the ...
- 171
7
votes
Accepted
Is there a myth that dolphins were humans who chose to return to the sea?
In Ovid's Metamorphoses, book III, there is of course the story of the Tyrrhenian pirates that Bacchus turn into dolphins, but it's against their will, and as a punishment for betraying him.
Here is ...
- 3,559
7
votes
Accepted
Are there tales where people are turned into rats?
There are certainly tales where humans are turned into rats. The Aarne-Thompson motif index, which categorizes fairytale tropes, includes one for “Transformation: man to rodent” (with the identifying ...
- 483
6
votes
What animals were represented in gods in ancient Egypt?
Animals representations are quite common in Egyptian mythology. Here is a partial list of Ancient Egyptian deities with animal associations and attributes:
Lion: Aker
Pat Remler: Egyptian Mythology,...
- 14.2k
6
votes
Where does the idea of counting crows come from?
I did some quick searching and found this page recounting a British nursery rhyme, with the oldest version accounted to be:
One for sorrow,
Two for mirth,
Three for a funeral
And four for ...
- 14.2k
5
votes
Trying to find a hunter myth I was told as a child
There is a Dutch folktale about a hunter who waits for a giant hare. Here is a tentative translation:
A hunter once had heard rumors about an extraordinarily large hare, which every
night around ...
- 581
5
votes
What animal did Demeter transform into?
I can't find anything on Demeter at present. Wikipedia seems to be drawing from the Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis, which has no mention of additional divine transformations:
Apollo became a ...
- 14.2k
5
votes
Origin of "horses that instinctively open a vein with their teeth in order to breathe more freely"
Here is the original Goethe text: http://www.deutschestextarchiv.de/book/view/goethe_werther02_1774?p=24
Man erzaͤhlt von einer edlen Art Pferde, die, wenn ſie ſchroͤklich erhizt und aufgejagt ſind,...
- 581
5
votes
Is there a myth that dolphins were humans who chose to return to the sea?
Are there any myths or stories about dolphins being humans who chose to return to the sea?
I've long suspected that dolphins are the real subjects of Mermaid mythology. And I wouldn't be surprised to ...
- 416
5
votes
Accepted
Are there any deities or mythological beasts inspired by snow leopards?
There is a collection of snow leopard myths on the Snow Leopard Conservancy website:
Nepalese Myths Surrounding Snow Leopards (1)
Nepalese Myths Surrounding Snow Leopards (2)
Tibetan Myths ...
- 2,998
5
votes
Accepted
What bird species is associated with Pallas Athēnē?
The animal that is commonly associated with Athena is the γλαῦξ (glaux), which is often translated simply as 'owl', but actually refers specifically to the Athene noctua. See for example the γλαῦξ ...
- 2,073
4
votes
Accepted
Why do snake (serpent) and bull often come together as symbols of deities?
This is only a partial and working answer until I can look into Cerunnos, Veles, and Shiva.
My first inclination is that this is a case of the Texas sharpshooter fallacy. These four gods have ...
cmw♦
- 7,401
4
votes
Why are goats associated with Satan?
Leviticus is mentioned as a source on the scapegoat as noted by @Obie 2.0.
Then Aaron shall offer the goat on which the lot for the LORD fell,
and make it a sin offering. 10"But the goat on ...
- 4,068
4
votes
Why is the Indian Dragon at war with the Elephant?
This sounds to me like a (very exaggerated) description of Python molurus, the Indian python; they will sometimes climb trees and kill by constriction, but I don't think they've ever been known to eat ...
- 141
4
votes
Accepted
Are there any gods or similar beings other than Nemesis that laid eggs?
Yes. A really close fit, fulfilling all of your criteria in one narrative is the origin of a Burmese king called Pyusawhti, who is hatched from a dragon's egg and raised by peasants. Pyusawhti has a ...
- 9,870
4
votes
Accepted
When did chicken become a synonym of cowardice?
According to this Quora answer on the exact same topic:
The primary uses, however, remain those that suggest weakness. Thus the early use to mean a girl or woman, which would become the more recent ...
3
votes
Did a pagan cult remove the gallbladder of animals before sacrificing them?
My esteemed brother-in-law just emailed me an answer. He wrote:
Shalsheleth Haqabbalah may not be as good as a bona fide dead clock
which (assuming it is analog) is exactly correct twice a day, ...
- 1,327
3
votes
What animal did Demeter transform into?
From the birth myth of Arion, we are told (Pseudo-Apollodorus) that the horse was birthed by Demeter while she was in 'the likeness of a Fury'.
We are also told that Despoina is the daughter of ...
- 567
3
votes
Why is the Indian Dragon at war with the Elephant?
According to Indian mythology,the demon Vritra( an indian dragon) representing drought is enemy of Indra (the king of gods and god of rain). Indra rides elephant named Airavata. So elephant ...
- 31
3
votes
Accepted
Which ancient cults would cut out the hearts of live animals and offer them as sacrifices?
Out of interest of spreading information, I'm copying here the answer I wrote yesterday to this question on Judaism.SE, with a few alterations:
A possible answer:
Maimonides on the mishnah states that ...
- 984
3
votes
Accepted
Is this a real myth? Pembroke Welsh Corgis as mounts for fairies
This got too long for a comment, so I hope it's all right to post here. The Writing in Margins blog is mine, so I'd like to offer a few addendums.
It's always hard to disprove something rather than ...
- 483
3
votes
Which culture believed in a bird whose flight sustains the universe?
Just to provide a full answer:
According to your own finding. It is a political essay in Sam Kriss blog, titled from White skin, black squares (2020).
It refers to Turkic-Mongol chief deity Tengri, ...
2
votes
Accepted
Is there any reference to this story about Inari?
That reads to me like an embellished, Western take on the common "fox wife" stories ubiquitous in Japanese folklore. The prototypical version of this theme appears in the 8th century nihon ryōiki (...
- 7,877
2
votes
Where does it says that snakes can kill birds by looking at their shadow?
I think this is a really really great find! I did some research and found nothing. South American myths contains a lot of kinds of Snakes, but this quite new for me. I think we will be waiting for ...
- 415
2
votes
Which cultures worship boars?
Boars have been revered and worshiped by many cultures and regions throughout history. In ancient Greece, the wild boar was associated with the goddess Artemis, who was often depicted with a boar at ...
2
votes
What is the origin of a tale of hummingbird extinguishing a fire in Mesoamerica or South-America?
As much as we might want it to be, as it stands, there is no evidence that this is a traditional story from any culture, Mesoamerican or otherwise.
This appears to be the work of author Michael Nicoll ...
- 1,623
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