Category Archives: Mythology

November 15, 2016 · 11:16 pm

ARKOANYO: A GOD OF THE TUPARI

Tupari live near the Rio BrancoARKOANYO – The bird-creating deity who often protected his fellow divinities, especially from the storm god Valedjad. That god often grew so angry with his fellow deities that he unleashed powerful storms on them, sometimes destroying lesser deities who dared to oppose him.

At one point Valedjad grew so angry he caused a storm so powerful it flooded the Earth, killing many of the other gods and goddesses. The surviving deities struggled to devise a way of at last ending Valedjad’s reign of terror. Arkoanyo, the bird-creating deity was the one who took action.  Continue reading →

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November 10, 2016 · 10:33 pm

TOP DEITIES IN AINU MYTHS

Ainu mapThe Ainu people of Japan suffered oppression at the hands of the Japanese which was similar to that suffered by various conquered peoples around the world at the hands of the Western World, Russia, China and the Muslim World.

The Ainu migrated south to the Japanese islands from the northern lands of the Inuit. Regular readers of Balladeer’s Blog will recognize the similarities between the Ainu and Inuit belief systems and methods of worship. In addition certain linguistic similarities will be noted between the Ainu and the Japanese. The Shinto “kami” becomes the Ainu “kamui”, to cite the most prominent example. 

As with the Inuit, exact names and aspects of the following deities can vary, with the most pronounced differences being in Saghalien.

  • NOTE: I am still working out my entry on the Ainu bear god. If you know the Ainu then you know that that entry alone may double the size of this article. And as always, anyone curious about my source books can just ask.

RUKORO – The Ainu god of the male privy. No, I’m not kidding. The powerful stench from his domain serves the useful purpose of  fending off evil spirits. Because of his association with evacuation and expulsion of things unclean he is regarded as a powerful exorcist. There is no corresponding goddess of the female privy, owing to primitive taboos about menstruation.

CHUP – The sun god of the Ainu. His wife is Tombe, the moon goddess. Ainu homes orient their sacred window toward the east to greet the rising sun. Until recent decades it was customary to salute the sun upon exposure to its rays, similar to the practice of genuflecting to the center of an altar, but done without kneeling.

It was considered disrespectful to bodily cross the rays of sunlight striking the hearth through the sacred window. It was better to wait until the position of the sun changed. An inau, one of the idols or totems of the Ainu people, would be set up to honor the sun. That inau bears an incised outline of the orb of the sun and during rituals libations and praise are offered up to Chup.    Continue reading →

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November 5, 2016 · 2:47 pm

FORTY MONSTERS OF THE NIGHT AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

fantastic-beasts-and-where-to-find-themTo celebrate the upcoming release of Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, the Sleep Matters Club have rounded up 40 bedtime monsters for a fearsome fact file.

As far-fetched as it may seem, some of the most menacing monsters aren’t from the pages of books or the silver screen; they’re from real-world myths and legends. To create the infographic, we’ve scoured the darkest dungeons and most frightening fortresses across the globe.

Each monster has been awarded a danger rating, so you’ll know how safe it is to approach it. You’ll also discover their key traits and where they’re most likely to lurk. It’s short and sweet so you’ll be able to quickly identify them when they’re coming at you!

On the lower end of the scare scale is Frankenstein’s Monster. He’s generally a good guy, but his anger is unleashed when tormented by mad scientists. We (The Sleep Matters Club) think he deserves a danger rating of two.
Continue reading →

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November 4, 2016 · 9:28 pm

KAITAHITAHI: GOD OF BELLONA AND RENNELL ISLANDS

bellona-and-rennellBalladeer’s Blog’s recent examination of the myths of Bellona Island and Rennell Island has been pretty popular. Here is a look at the god Kaitahitahi. FOR THE FULL LIST OF BEL-REN GODS CLICK HERE

KAITAHITAHI – A very unusual deity who had a peculiar specialty. Kaitahitahi would cure constipation, which, joking aside, CAN be fatal if not treated properly. This god would be invoked to clean out the bowels of a person already afflicted with constipation (think of the Disemboweling Goddess from Inuit myths) and would be prayed to in order to prevent people from becoming constipated in the first place. Continue reading →

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October 16, 2016 · 9:26 pm

POLYNESIAN GODS: MAUTIKITIKI OF BELLONA AND RENNELL

bellona-and-rennell-2Balladeer’s Blog’s recent examination of the myths of Bellona Island and Rennell Island has been pretty popular. Here is an extended look at Mautikitiki, the Bel-Ren equivalent of Maui. FOR THE FULL LIST OF BEL-REN GODS CLICK HERE

MAUTIKITIKI – The most popular of the Bel-Ren divine entities classified as Kakai. Obviously this brother of Sina was the Bel-Ren counterpart to Maui (Hawaiian) and Ti’i Ti’i (Samoan). Like those figures Mautikitiki was famous for fishing up islands – in his case Rennell Island.

In Bel-Ren myths Bellona Island was the upper part of the shell of an enormous sea-snail, similar to Iroquois myths in which the world rests on the back of an enormous turtle. Bellona was considered the center of the entire world – an example of the type of ethnic chauvinism common to nearly ALL belief systems.

Rennell Island was beneath the waves and was the special hideaway of Mautikitiki’s father ‘Atanganga, from whose feces he was born. Resenting the way his father kept hiding from him, Mautikitiki created the first canoe, fished up the island and from then on Rennell has been on the surface of the ocean. Continue reading →

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September 29, 2016 · 10:02 pm

GODS OF BELLONA AND RENNELL ISLANDS: POLYNESIAN MYTHS

bellona-and-rennellIn the style of Balladeer’s Blog’s separate examinations of Hawaiian and Samoan myths as a subset of Polynesian Mythology comes this look at the deities worshipped on the Polynesian outliers Bellona Island and Rennell Island. Despite its much smaller size Bellona had a larger population for much of their history.

NGE’OBIONGO – The goddess of the stone ovens used by the people of Rennell and Bellona. The ovens were shown such reverence that it was forbidden to eat near them or to scatter firewood or even to speak in raised voices in their vicinity. Nge’obiongo would punish anyone who violated those taboos, just as she punished women who were bad or lazy cooks or who prepared meals without first properly cleaning their hands.

Undercooking the food would also invite this deity’s wrath. On rare occassions some of the prepared food would be left in the ovens as an offering to Nge’obiongo.

bellona-and-rennell-world-heritageMAHUIKE – The earthquake god of Bellona and Rennell Islands (henceforth Bel-Ren). Like his counterparts in Hawaii and Samoa, Mahuike lived far underground and caused earthquakes by pushing at the earth with both of his arms.

Once, after a particularly destructive earthquake, the god Tehu’aingabenga fought Mahuike for injuring his worshippers and broke off one of the earthquake god’s arms. After that the quakes caused by Mahuike were never as severe. (In Hawaiian versions it is Maui who breaks the earthquake god’s arm off and in Samoan versions it is Ti’i Ti’i who does it. Bel-Ren myths do feature the figure Mautikitiki but he is less prominent than Tehu’aingabenga.)

Continue reading →

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August 19, 2016 · 11:56 pm

NAVAJO EPIC MYTH: THE WAR GOD VS THE ANAYE

Nayanazgeni

Nayanazgeni, the Navajo god of war.

Readers have been asking for a Chapter Guide to my exhaustive examination of God Slayer, my title for the Navajo myth about Nayanazgeni, their god of war, and his quest to destroy the Alien Gods called the Anaye. Here it is:

I. BIRTH OF THE ANAYE – This chapter deals with the Separation Myth and how Navajo women’s unnatural sex acts (or liasons with Coyote or possibly Begochidi) spawned the dark, alien gods called the Anaye – click HERE

II. WHEN A GOD DIES – Nayanazgeni (“Alien God Slayer”) notches his first kill as he takes down a gigantic, double-headed Anaye who rides upon a Kaiju-sized cougar – click HERE    Continue reading →

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August 14, 2016 · 2:53 pm

GNA: NORSE GODDESS

GnaGNA – This neglected Norse goddess was one of the Asynjur (female Aesir) and served as the messenger of the female nature deity Frigga. Gna was as swift as Hermes from Greek myths and rode a horse named Hofvarpnir, a steed capable of galloping across the sky and the seas in addition to land. Gna wielded a spear and could travel as quickly as the breeze when she was astride Hofvarpnir.

During the 8th Century war between the Langobards and the Vandals the goddess Frigga put Gna to a lot of work. Frigga and her husband Odin were quarreling, so since he supported the Vandals in the conflict Frigga made a point of supporting the other side. She would frequently send Gna to the Langobards with information on Odin’s plans to help the Vandals.  Continue reading →

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August 9, 2016 · 10:45 pm

GEFJUN: NORSE GODDESS

GefjunBalladeer’s Blog’s previous looks at neglected deities from the Norse pantheon of gods have been pretty popular, so here’s another one.

GEFJUN – This fertility deity is one of the most misunderstood goddesses from Norse myths and that’s saying something. Gefjun is sometimes referred to as a virgin, but her four sons might disagree with that notion. (Most likely it’s another misunderstanding about how ancient goddesses were often called “virgins” simply because they weren’t married, not because they were celibate.) Those sons were the product of Gefjun mating with Jotuns (Giants). 

In the same way that the Korean goddess Halmang was a localized “Mother Earth” for just Jeju Island, Gefjun filled a similar role for Zealand, the largest island in Denmark. By one account Gefjun convinced (or tricked) the Swedish King Gylfi into granting her as much land as she could plow and cultivate for herself. Continue reading →

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June 23, 2016 · 10:32 pm

HITTITE MYTH OF THE MOUNTAIN GOD AND THE DEER

Hittite empireBalladeer’s Blog takes a look at the Hittite myth involving a mountain god and a deer.

Zaliyanu, the god of the mountain which bears his name, was kind enough to shelter a deer that was fleeing hunters. The pursuit had begun on a neighboring mountain whose god didn’t dare risk the wrath of the hunting god Kurunta by sheltering the terrified creature. Zaliyanu, the greatest of the mountain deities, had no such compunction. Continue reading →

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