Many mythic creatures have worked their way into modern literature and especially movies throughout the years. Medusa with her stony glare, dragons galore, vampires, werewolves, sea serpents, and the occasional flying horse all have walked, flown, swam or slithered across the screen, the more cinematic, the better.
Many more haven’t made the cut, however (at least not yet). This may be due to their not being interesting enough, or not having shown up in entertainment mythology in a sufficiently popular movie. But many of these creatures do have potential.
One monster is the manticore, a man-eating creature from Persian (modern day Iran) mythology.
Like many mythic beasts, it is an odd amalgamation of various animals. It has the head of a man with three sets of formidable teeth, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion. In some illustrations, like the one above, the tail is a bristle of poisonous spines which the creature can shoot like arrows. Later accounts placed it in India as by then Persia was well known enough so that scholars noted the decided lack of manticores in that land. In modern times, the manticore is sufficiently unfamiliar that some artists have erroneously given it a lion’s face. But this is a bizarre enough monster that it will surely make its way onto the big screen at some point, if it hasn’t already.
While fire-breathing dragons are a staple in many fantasy movies and tv series, the Chinese dragon is profoundly different.
More correctly named the loong or lung, it is drastically different from the western dragon. Instead of fire, it is strongly associated with water and is considered a manifestation of chi, bringing good fortune, power and strength. It doesn’t waste time accumulating treasure or devouring virgins. It has no need for them. The loong can shapeshift as it wishes, from the size of a tiny caterpillar to as great as the universe itself, even on occasion, taking human form. It is often accompanied by a flaming pearl representing wisdom, spirituality, immortality and other valued attributes. While loongs are usually presented as beneficent, they do have their wrathful moments, deluging mortals who displease them with floods and violent storms. Hmmm, you know, this sounds familiar. If you’ve been watching the news, you no doubt noticed the nasty weather which has been hitting us lately. Maybe it’s time we got our act together and stop doing stuff to infuriate the loong.
Native American stories are replete with tales of various creatures,some friendly, some very dangerous. Among Cherokee people is the tale of the creature known as a nun’yunu’wi, literally translated as dressed in stone.
Humanoid in appearance, the nun’yunu’wi has sorcerous powers, among them a stone cane which the creature uses to locate prey, namely humans. Nearly unstoppable due to his arrow-proof stony skin, he does have one fatal weakness; a menstruating woman. One tale has a warrior running to warn his village after spotting an approaching nun’yunu’wi. The village elder locates seven menstruating women and lines them up along the road leading to their village. As the women are stark naked, there is no mistaking their condition. The nun’yunu’wi encounters each one, much to his horror, as he tries to near the village. Working like kryptonite, the women’s menstrual blood reduces this menace to utter helplessness so the villagers can destroy him.
One twist to this story which I find very interesting is that the nun’yunu’wi doesn’t seem to resent his destruction by the villagers. In fact, there’s no animosity, at all. He doesn’t curse them out or bewail his fate. While they set fire to a great pile of logs over him, he accepts it all philosophically and proceeds to teach them prayers and magic spells which can help them in day to day living. Once he is burnt to ashes, the people sweep away the ashes only to discover a lump of red paint and a magic stone, again which are used for their benefit. This tale reveals a striking difference in attitude from stories we might tell. There’s no abominable evil creature spewing hateful bile whereever it goes, no unredeemable nihilistic demon and no gleeful celebration over its death. Instead it’s just a very dangerous monster which, while it needs to be destroyed for the people’s safety, still can be helpful even in its dying moments and beyond.
Australia is also brimming with supernatural wonders of every kind. The local people speak of a being called a mimi, a kind of aboriginal fairy. It has a long, spindly fragile body and because it’s vulnerable to winds that could tear it to pieces, it lives in rock crevices.
Native people tell how mimis lived on the land before aboriginal people came. They were and still are regarded as generally friendly and even playful, though they may get annoyed if you are disrespectful. It is said that the mimi taught the humans how to build fires, hunt kangaroos as well as showing them how to dance, sing and paint. Art depicting the wonderful wispy mimis can be found on many outcroppings and in artwork done by native peoples.
Another mysterious creature, found mainly in England but also in Europe as well, is the Black Dog. This spectral being, obviously in the form of a black dog, is often described in countless folktales.
One form is the Black Shuck, a strange ferocious brute, a terrifying black dog with one eye. It’s said that if you meet it, it can be the worst of luck for you and may even presage your death. Arthur Conan Doyle used this creature as an inspiration for his Sherlock Holmes novel, Hound of the Baskervilles.
Many times these mysterious canines are seen along roadsides or near bridges. Sometimes the spectral hounds are white rather than black. But not all Black Dogs are evil however. Some have been known to guide lost travelers to safety. A good book to read about these spirit forms is Black Dog Folklore by Mark Norman
Interestingly the Black Dog has made its way to the Americas, apparently immigrating along with Europeans, spawning tales in both South and North America. An area called the Bridgewater Triangle, a section of land in southeastern Massachusetts noted for paranormal phenomenon has had sightings of the Black Dog along with countless other strange beings.
So what’s your favorite mythic creature?