Author : Rumana Reza
Our early discussion was about the evolution of dinosaurs and dragons ; how they were connected to some mythological,religiously established super heroes. Here I'll focus on some relevant subjects and characters which will also be a clue for you to discover their origin.
Some other Myths and Religious Beliefs:
Griffin:
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Greek: γρύφων, grýphōn, or γρύπων, grýpōn, early form γρύψ, grýps; Latin: gryphus) is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back legs of a lion; the head and wings of an eagle; and an eagle's talons as its front feet. Because the lion was traditionally considered the king of the beasts and the eagle the king of birds, the griffin was thought to be an especially powerful and majestic creature. The griffin was also thought of as king of all creatures. Griffins are known for guarding treasure and priceless possessions. Adrienne Mayor, a classical folklorist, proposes that the griffin was an ancient misconception derived from the fossilized remains of the Protoceratops found in gold mines in the Altai Mountains of Scythia, in present day southeastern Kazakhstan, or in Mongolia.In antiquity it was a symbol of divine power and a guardian of the divine.
Bronze griffins from ancient Luristan (Iran) (1st millennium BC) Vorderasiatisches Museum Berlin
Several ancient mythological creatures are similar to the griffin. These include the Lamassu, an Assyrian protective deity, often depicted with a bull or lion's body, eagle's wings, and human's head.
Sumerian and Akkadian mythology feature the demon Anzu, half man and half bird, associated with the chief sky god Enlil. This was a divine storm-bird linked with the southern wind and the thunder clouds.
Jewish mythology speaks of the Ziz, which resembles Anzu, as well as the ancient Greek Phoenix. The Bible mentions the Ziz in Psalms 50:11. This is also similar to Cherub. The cherub, or sphinx, was very popular in Phoenician iconography.
In ancient Crete, griffins became very popular, and were portrayed in various media. A similar creature is the Minoan Genius.
In Hindu religion, Garuda is a large bird-like creature which serves as a mount (vahana) of the Lord Vishnu. It is also the name for the constellation Aquila.
Olmec Mythology:
Various hypotheses have been put forward to identify the actual ethno-linguistic affiliation of the Olmec civilizations.In 1968, Michael D. Coe speculated that the Olmec were Mayan predecessors.
The beginnings of Olmec civilization have traditionally been placed between 1400 and 1200 BCE. Past finds of Olmec remains ritually
deposited at El Manati shrine (near San Lorenzo) moved this back to "at
least" 1600–1500 BCE. It in any case, following the decline of San Lorenzo, La Venta became the
most prominent Olmec center, lasting from 900 BCE until its abandonment
around 400 BCE. La Venta sustained the Olmec cultural traditions, but with spectacular displays of power and wealth. The Great Pyramid
was the largest Mesoamerican structure of its time. Buried deep within La Venta lay opulent, labor-intensive "offerings" – 1000 tons of smooth serpentine blocks, large mosaic pavements, and at least 48 separate deposits of polished jade celts, pottery, figurines, and hematite mirrors. |
| Great pyramid in La Venta, Tabasco |
The most recognized aspect of the Olmec civilization are the enormous helmeted heads. As no known pre-Columbian text explains them, these impressive monuments have been the subject of much speculation. Once theorized to be ballplayers, it is now generally accepted that these heads are portraits of rulers, perhaps dressed as ballplayers. Infused with individuality, no two heads are alike and the helmet-like headdresses are adorned with distinctive elements, suggesting personal or group symbols.The flat-faced, thick-lipped heads have caused some debate due to their resemblance to some African facial characteristics.
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| Olmec Chief or King. Relief from La Venta Archaeological Site in Tabasco. |
Many other Olmec figurines combined human and animal features, including were-eagle . Although figurines showing such combinations of features are generally termed "transformation figures", some researchers argue that they represent humans in animal masks or animal suits, while others state that they likely represent shamans.
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| Olmec eagle transformation figure, 10th–6th century B.C. Jade (albite), with cinnabar. Height: 4.5 in. (11.4 cm). |
This transformation figure displays bat-like features. Most common, however, is the jaguar transformation figurine , which show a wide variety of styles, ranging from human-like figurines to those that are almost completely jaguar, and several where the subject appears to be in a stage of transformation.
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| Las Limas Monument 1, considered an important realisation of Olmec mythology. The youth holds a were-jaguar infant, while four iconic supernaturals are incised on the youth's shoulders and knees. |
As Olmec mythology has left no documents comparable to the Popul Vuh from Maya mythology, any exposition of Olmec mythology must be based on interpretations of surviving monumental and portable art , and comparisons with other Mesoamerican mythologies. Olmec art shows that such deities as the Feathered Serpent and a rain supernatural were already in the Mesoamerican pantheon in Olmec times.
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| Monument 19, from La Venta, the earliest known representation of a feathered serpent in Mesoamerica. Courtesy George & Audrey Delange |
Maya mythology:
Maya mythology is part of Mesoamerican
mythology and comprises all of the Maya tales in which personified
forces of nature, deities, and the heroes interacting with these play
the main roles. Other parts of Maya oral tradition (such as animal tales
and many moralising stories) do not properly belong to the domain of
mythology, but rather to legend and folk tale.
Creation and end of the world
The Popol Vuh describes the creation of the earth by the wind of the sea and sky, as well as its sequel. The Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel relates the collapse of the sky and the deluge, followed by the raising of the sky and the erection of the five World Trees. The Lacandons also knew the tale of the creation of the Underworld.Creation of mankind
The Popol Vuh gives a sequence of four efforts at creation: First were animals, then wet clay, wood, then last, the creation of the first ancestors from maize dough. To this, the Lacandons add the creation of the main kind groupings and their 'totemic' animals. The creation of humankind is concluded by the Mesoamerican tale of the opening of the Maize (or Sustenance) Mountain by the Lightning deities.
National Museum of
Anthropology in Mexico City. Maya mask. Stucco frieze from Placeres,
Campeche. Early Classic period (c. 250 - 600 AD. Joyce Kelly 2001 An Archaeological Guide to Central and Southern Mexico, p.105. ISBN 0-8061-3349-X.
Actions of the heroes: Arranging the world
The best-known hero myth is about the defeat of a bird demon and of the deities of disease and death by the Hero Twins, Hunahpu and Xbalanque. Of equal importance is the parallel narrative of a maize hero defeating the deities of Thunder and Lightning and establishing a pact with them. Although its present spread is confined to the Gulf Coast areas, various data suggest that this myth was once a part of Mayan oral tradition as well. Important mythological fragments about the heroic reduction of the jaguars have been preserved by the Tzotziles.Marriage with the Earth
This mythological type defines the relation between mankind and the game and crops. An ancestral hero - Xbalanque in a Kekchi tradition - who's the daughter of an Earth God; the hero's wife is finally transformed into game, bees, snakes and insects, or the maize. If the hero gets the upper hand, he becomes the Sun, his wife the Moon. A moralistic Tzotzil version has a man rewarded with a daughter of the Rain Deity, only to get divorced and lose her again.Origin of Sun and Moon
The origin of Sun and Moon is not always the outcome of a Marriage with the Earth. From Chiapas and the western Guatemalan Highlands comes the tale of Younger Brother and his jealous Elder Brethren: Youngest One becomes the Sun, his mother becomes the Moon, and the Elder Brethren are transformed into wild pigs and other forest animals. In a comparable way, the Elder Brethren of the Popol Vuh Twin myth are transformed into monkeys, with their younger brothers becoming Sun and Moon.The Feathered Serpent:
The Feathered Serpent was a prominent supernatural entity or deity, found in many Mesoamerican religions. It was called Quetzalcoatl among the Aztecs, Kukulkan among the Yucatec Maya, and Q'uq'umatz and Tohil among the K'iche' Maya.
The double symbolism used in its name is considered allegoric to the
dual nature of the deity, where being feathered represents its divine
nature or ability to fly to reach the skies and being a serpent
represents its human nature or ability to creep on the ground among
other animals of the Earth, a dualism very common in Mesoamerican
deities.
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| .Feathered Serpent heads cover the Temple of the Feathered Serpent in Teotihuacan |
The earliest representations of feathered serpents appear in the Olmec culture (circa 1400-400 BCE). Most surviving representations in Olmec art, such as Monument 19 at La Venta and a painting in the Juxtlahuaca cave , show it as a crested rattlesnake, sometimes with feathers covering the body, and often in close proximity to humans. It is believed that Olmec supernatural entities such as the feathered serpent were the forerunners of many later Mesoamerican deities, although experts disagree on the feathered serpent's importance to the Olmec.
The pantheon of the people of Teotihuacan (200 BCE – 700 CE) also featured a feathered serpent, shown most prominently on the Temple of the Feathered Serpent (dated 150–200 CE). Several feathered serpent representations appear on the building, including full-body profiles and feathered serpent heads.
Buildings in Tula, the capital of the later Toltecs (950–1150 CE), also featured profiles of feathered serpents.
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| Aztec era stone sculptures of feathered serpents on display at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. |
The corresponding Mayan god Kukulkan was rare in the Classic era Maya civilization. However, in the Popol Vuh, the K'iche' feathered serpent god Tepeu Q'uq'umatz is the creator of the cosmos.
Along with the feathered serpent deity, several other serpent gods existed in the pantheon of Mesoamerican gods with similar traits.
In Hinduism:
According to the Kalki Purana, the twin brothers Koka and Vikoka serve as generals under the demon Kali, overlord of Kali Yuga. In their battle against Kalki, the 10th and final avatar of lord Vishnu, the brothers display their mastery over the dark arts by raising themselves from the dead faster than Kalki can kill them.
A handful of early 20th century scholars noted similarities between the Hindu figures Koka and Vikoka and the Abrahamic Gog and Magog or Quoranic Yajooj and Majooj21; french metaphysician René Guénon went further22, comparing the concept of the "great wall" (which in the Abrahamic tradition protects humanity against Gog and Magog) with the Hindu notion of a "circular wall" (Lokâloka) which separates the "world" (loka) from "outer darkness" (aloka).
Gog and Magog:
Gog and Magog are names that appear in the Hebrew bible (Old Testament), the Book of Revelation, sometimes indicating individuals and sometimes lands and peoples. They are connected with the "end times", and the passages from the book of Ezekiel and Revelation in particular have attracted attention for this reason.
In the Book of Ezekiel Gog is the name of an individual and Magog the name of his land, in Genesis 10 Magog is a person, and in Revelation both Gog and Magog are nations ("the hostile nations of the world")20
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| Ezekiel on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican between 1508 to 1512, fresco, restored. |
(Revelation 16:15, 16) . . .“Look! I am coming as a thief. Happy is the one that stays awake and keeps his outer garments, that he may not walk naked and people look upon his shamefulness.” 16 And they gathered them together to the place that is called in Hebrew Har–Ma·ged′on.
(Revelation 17:12-14) . . .“And the ten horns that you saw mean ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom, but they do receive authority as kings one hour with the wild beast. 13 These have one thought, and so they give their power and authority to the wild beast. 14 These will battle with the Lamb, but, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, the Lamb will conquer them. Also, those called and chosen and faithful with him [will do so].”
(Revelation 19:19-21) . . .And I saw the wild beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage the war with the one seated on the horse and with his army. 20 And the wild beast was caught, and along with it the false prophet that performed in front of it the signs with which he misled those who received the mark of the wild beast and those who render worship to its image. While still alive, they both were hurled into the fiery lake that burns with sulphur. 21 But the rest were killed off with the long sword of the one seated on the horse, which [sword] proceeded out of his mouth. And all the birds were filled from the fleshy parts of them. . .
(Revelation 20:10) . . .And the Devil who was misleading them was hurled into the lake of fire and sulphur, where both the wild beast and the false prophet [already were]; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
To be continued…………
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