Creatures of the Mythological World

Vampires and the Undead

Vampire
Vampires are mythological creatures who feed on blood of living creatures Although vampires appear in the history of many cultures which go back to the prehistoric. Vampire superstition flooded into Western Europe from areas where vampire legends were recorded first, such as Eastern Europe. This brought a series of mass hysteria and the vampire superstition in Europe it led to bodies being staked and people being accused of being vampires.



Vampires have existed for eons; cultures such as the Greeks and Romans had tales of demons and spirits. However, the vampire as it is known today comes from early 18^th century Europe. Many of the regions where folklore began has been recorded and published. Belief in these legends became so instilled that in some areas it caused the executions of people believed to be vampires and included witches and werewolf hysteria.



Vampires were usually described as being bloated with a dark reddish countenance; these characteristics were seen to be from the recent drinking of blood. Blood running from the mouth and nose when in a coffin and wearing shroud the burial shroud.



To the Slavs and Chinese a corpse that an animal that had jumped over was predicted to become a vampire



Many rituals were used to identify a vampire no signs of decomposition in a corpse was the most popular evidence. Signs that a vampire was active included death of cattle, sheep, relatives.
Several items were able to ward off vampires, are common in vampire folklore. Garlic was used either on a door or as a necklace around one's neck and in Europe, sprinkling mustard seeds on the roof of a house was another way of repelling them. Other instruments used were sacred items, holy water, crucifix or rosary beads.. Vampires are said to be unable to cross running water. Also vampires do not have a reflection and do not cast a shadow. Most traditional folklore agree that that vampires were more active at night, they were not generally considered vulnerable to sunlight.



Destroying vampires varied but the most common method was to drive a wooden stake through the heart of the suspected vampire, particularly in southern Slavic cultures, though the mouth was used in Russia and northern Germany^.. In Romania, garlic would be placed in the mouth^.






Tales of supernatural beings subsisting off of the blood of the living have been found in nearly every culture around the world for many centuries. In ancient civilizations these activities were attributed to spirits and demons.



The vampire is now a major part of popular fiction that began with 18th-century poetry and continued with 19th-century short stories, The vampire theme continued in serial publications and captured worldwide fame in the foremost vampire novel of all time: Dracula by Bram Stoer.



The world of the supernatural beings such as vampires, werewolves and other demons brings us face to face with our deepest fears yet we a re avid readers and listeners to the tales and legends of their heinous deeds. The realm of the unknown is a journey to the be taken one cautious step at a time.

The Journey from the Unknown bywena: Mythological Creatures

The Journey from the Unknown bywena: 

The Glory of the Norse Gods

The Norse gods are divided into two major groups, the Aesir and Vanir, in addition to the giants who came first.

According to Norse mythology, the beginning of life was fire and ice, with the existence of only two worlds: Muspelheim and Niflheim. When the warm air of Muspelheim hit the cold ice of Niflheim, Ymir and the icy cow Audhumla were created. The cow Audhumbla licked on a salt stone a man’s hair appeared on the stone, on the third day an entire man emerged from the stone. His name was Búri and he fathered Bor, the father of the three gods Odin, Vili and Ve.

In Norse mythology, Andvari guards treasures, including a cape of invisibility, and gives Loki the magic ring of the Aesir, which is called Draupnir.

Odin the King of the Norse Gods called the God of poetry, battle and death. He was the God of the Aesir. Also known as the one-eyed and father of battle.. A group of warrior Gods were led by Odin who inhabit ed Asgard.

Balder was the son of Odin and Frigg. Known as a gentle and wise god. He was illed accidentally by his brother Hod. He will return after Ragnarok.

Frigg was a main goddess. She was the wife of Odin and mother of Balder.  The Norse patron Goddess of motherhood and marriage, also a fertility Goddess. Frigg had the knowledge of the destiny of every person.

Hel the ruler of Helheim, the realm of the dead

Loki the sly, trickster of the Norse gods. He was the son of two giants. nown as the Sly One, the Trickster, the Shape Changer. He became more evil and was responsible for the death of Balder. He was bound until Ragnarok.

Thor was a God of thunder, the son of Odin. Thor's wife wass Sif. He smashed giants' heads with his mighty hammer. The fifth day of the week is named Thursday after Thor. Thor's possession a his hammer which when thrown, returns to his hand. He possesses the belt of strength. when he puts it on his divine might is doubled.

Brunhilde was a female warrior, one of the Valkyries, and the daughter of the god Odin. She defies Odin and is punished by imprisonment within a ring of fire until a brave hero falls in love and rescues her. Siegfied (Sigurðr, Sigurd) brakes the spell, falls in love with her and gives her the ring, This character and her adventures are numerous and vary but all tell if her honor and prowess as a warrior.

Buri was the primeval man in Norse mythology. He did not have father nor mother, but was created by the cow . As she licked the salt blocks of Ginnagagapthe shape of a man formed. Buri had a son named Bor. And Bor had three sons who were gods: Odin, Vili, and Ve.

Bragi was the god of poetry, and the patron of poets. He was a son of Odin and Frigga. He inspired poetry in humans. Bragi is married to Idun, the goddess of eternal youth.

Ve was one of ancient gods and, the son of the pair of giants Bor and Bestla. He and his three brothers one of which was Odin created heaven and earth from the slain body of the primeval being Ymir and built the twelve realms. They also created the first pair of humans.

Bor is a primordial Norse man, the son of Buri. He married the giantess Bestla, who is a daughter of the frost giant Bolthorn. Bor and Bestla had three children who became the first gods.

These tales of the Norse rich and colorful created by a civilization of ice and snow yet they still retain the roots of a culture which was neither cold or unimaginable. These myths and beliefs from a people of a world alive in the myths and lore are a world in itself.

Russian Gods and Creatures

The Gods of Russia are a race of superhuman humanoid beings who were once worshiped by the ancient Slavic tribes of Eastern Europe from about 500 BC to 1000 AD. Christianity was first introduced approximately after that time.. Very little is known about their history today.

The Russian Gods dwelt in the realm known as Other world, The worshipers in the Baltic area called their gods by names that differed from the names that they were were known as in ancient Russia: The Russian gods are still believed to concern themselves with the welfare of humanity, and visit Earth in human for. 


The earliest Russian gods were the primeval ancestors of the Slavic gods. It is believed that Erce was , the primordial Earth mother who survived the destruction of the Elder Gods of Earth . Many of the Elder Gods were destroyed by Atum. Atum had been born from Gaea .
Erce conceived several children, many with names that are still unknown. Their worship was sporadic and covered the areas throughout Eastern Europe and Western Asia, At some point, Svarog was named as ruler of the Slavic gods, but some of the Gods such as Chert, the god of misfortune, want to accept him as a ruler.
Around 980 AD, the worship of the Russian gods started to lose believers in favor of Christianity. Hundreds of statues and symbols of pagan beliefs were destroyed.

The Russian Gods unlike the Greek Olympians and of the Norse, the Russian Gods have had very little contact with humans, The Russian Gods are lived an indefinative time, but they are not immortal like the Olympian gods; they age very slowly upon reaching adulthood, but they are not invulnerable to death.
The Russian Gods possess superhuman strength, stamina , and longevity with mystical powers for magic, the often alter their appearance teleport through dimensions and casting spells. n gods as far as honor and skills in war. They are exceptional warriors and use magic.
To this day much is not known about the Russian Gods. Much is shrouded in mystery. There are still believers in the Gods.

The Beliefs of the Celtic People

King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table

Mythological Characters

The Sirens Song

Journey From the Unknown bywena

The Sirens Song

The Graeae


The Graeae were a trio of ancient goddesses sisters in Greek mythology. They were depicted as three old gray women sometimes they are shown as being half swan. They were called Deino

(Dread), Enyo (Horror) and Persephredo (Alarm). The Graeae were the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto and sisters of the Gorgons. They were said that they had the wisdom dating from to primordial days of the Titans. They symbolized old age and were born as old women.

They had only one eye and tooth which they shared among them in order to protect their sisters the Gorgons...The hero Perseus stole the eye, as they passed it to each other and held is as a ransom they were forced to reveal to him where the objects that he needed to kill Medusa were to be found. When he had the answer he did not return it but threw it into a lake and set forth to continue his adventure.

In one myth it has said that the Gaeae witnessed the abduction of Persephone but did not interfere The Goddess Demeter then transformed them into the old gray hags.

Mythological Greek Creatures

The all seeing. A man with many eyes was called Argus Panoptes. He had a hundred eyes.and was in many adventures: He killed a bull who ravaged Arcadia and satyrs for stealing cattle. However, Argus himself was killed  by Hermes  while he guarded Io, inpreganated by Zeus, for the Goddess  Hera..

The Cyclopes were gigantic one eyed monsters. They are named Brontes, Steropes, and Arges. They were born from Gaiea and Uranus. Cronus  imprisoned the Cyclopes in Tautaus.  Zeus released them from their fate and fought against the Titans with him. Zeus granted them with freedom.

Giants

The Giants were were born when from the blood from Uranus when he mutilated by Cronus. They became powerful and attempted to destroy Zeus and the other Olympians in their war against the Titans. When the gods won they imprisoned the Giants in Tartaras.

Typhoeus

Typhoeus, was a fire breathing dragon with a hundred heads. Gaeia gave birth to him in an attempt to keep the Zeus  from defeating her children the Titans. Zeus destroyied Typhoeus with his lighting bolts. Typhoeus is said to be buried under Mount Etna in Sicily.

Nymphs in Greek Mythology

Nymphs in mythology are female deities who are associated with natural environments there are different types of nymphs, those that dwell in the sea, the forests and the Underworld nymphs. Nymphs are divine spirits and are depicted as young girls who love to dance and sing. They are believed to dwell in mountains and forests, by rivers, and also in the sea.

They were imortal in the sense that they did not die of old age or illness, and they also gave birth to immortal children by a god, they were not immortal.

Other nymphs were were in the company of Goddesses or Gods as with the goddess Artemis, Apollo who played music for them to dance and sing to on his lyre. And they also associated with the superior divinities and god of wine and drunkness Dionysus and woodland gods such as Pan and Hermes.

Nymphs childlike and virginal were by nature the lovers of creativity especially music and dance they spent their time reveling in nature they are considered to being one with the natural world.Some say that they have seen the nymphs in their travels that is a belief that is still held strong in some parts of Greece.

The Mystery of Lilith

And before Eve there was Lilith. A jewish myth that puts a twist on the Bible history of the creation of mankind.

Who was Lilith and how does she live on in womankind's evolution to the present day?

Lilith according to the old Judaic myth was the first wife of Adam. Refusing to submit to Adam as a subservient wife she deserted him and found her own place in history. Lilith was replaced by Eve who, made from the rib in his side, was condemned to being obedient to him and sit at his side.

Lilith became a demon and fled to a cave where she consorted with demon lovers. From these different unions demon children were born. These demons visited the Earth through mirrors they returned at will to their own world. According to the myth Lilith lives on through mirrors and enters the bodies of young girls through their eyes and leads them to indiscretions and promiscuity.

Mirrors have long been believed to be portals to the Other World and that demons inhabiting that world frequently visit the Earth through them . After they committed evils deeds in the earthly world they return at will to the Other Side.

Lilith became the epitome of promiscuity and disobedience. Many modern day women, who some call feminists, view Lilith as a role model symbolizing the equality of the sexes. Lilith did not believe in male dominance; when faced with it she cursed Adam and left to create her own world.

In folklore and mythology there is always the essence of truth. The tale of Lilith contradictory to the religious beliefs of today brings a truth which many have come to believe; and that is that there is an equality between all of mankind and womankind.