Mystical monsters. European mythical creatures

Almost every one of us has heard about certain magical and mythical creatures that inhabit our world. However, there are many more such creatures, the existence of which we know little or do not remember. In mythology and folklore, many magical entities are mentioned, some are described in more detail, others less.

Homunculus, according to the ideas of medieval alchemists, a creature similar to a small person, which can be obtained artificially (in a test tube). To create such a little man, the use of a mandrake was required. The root had to be plucked at dawn, then it had to be washed and "saturated" with milk and honey. Some prescriptions said that blood should be used instead of milk. After that, this root will fully develop into a miniature person who will be able to guard and protect its owner.

Brownie- Slavic peoples have a home spirit, a mythological master and patron of the house, ensuring the normal life of the family, fertility, health of people and animals. They try to feed the brownie, leave a separate saucer with treats and water (or milk) for him in the kitchen on the floor. The brownie, if he loves the owner or hostess, not only does not harm them, but also protects household well-being. Otherwise (which happens more often), he starts to dirty things, breaks and hides things, encroaches on the light bulbs in the bathroom, creates an incomprehensible noise. It can "strangle" the owner at night by sitting on the owner's chest and paralyzing him. Brownie can change shape and pursue his master when moving.

Babai in Slavic folklore, a night spirit, a creature mentioned by parents to intimidate naughty children. Babai does not have a specific description, but most often he was represented as a lame old man with a bag over his shoulders, into which he takes naughty children. Usually parents remembered Babai when their child did not want to fall asleep.

Nephilim (watchers - "sons of God") described in the book of Enoch. They are fallen angels. The Niphilim were physical beings, they taught people the forbidden arts and, taking human wives as wives, gave birth to a new generation of people. In the Torah and several non-canonical Jewish and early Christian writings, nephilim - nephilim means "who cause others to fall." The Nephilim were of gigantic stature, their strength was enormous, as was their appetite. They began to eat up all human resources, and when they ran out, they could attack people. The Nephilim began to fight and oppress people, which was a huge destruction on earth.

Abaasy- in the folklore of the Yakut peoples, a huge stone monster with iron teeth. Lives in a forest thicket away from people's eyes or underground. It is born from a black stone, similar to a child. The older he gets, the more the stone looks like a child. At first, the stone child eats everything that people eat, but when he grows up, he begins to eat the people themselves. Sometimes referred to as anthropomorphic one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged monsters as tall as a tree. Abaasy feed on the souls of people and animals, tempt people, send misfortunes and illnesses, and can deprive them of their minds. Often the relatives of the sick or deceased sacrificed an animal to Abaasy, as if exchanging his soul for the soul of the person they threaten.

Abraxas- Abrasax is the name of a cosmological being in the ideas of the Gnostics. In the early era of Christianity, in the 1st-2nd centuries, many heretical sects arose, trying to combine the new religion with paganism and Judaism. According to the teachings of one of them, everything that exists is born in a certain higher Kingdom of light, from which 365 categories of spirits come. At the head of the spirits is Abraxas. His name and image are often found on gems and amulets: a creature with a human body and a cock's head, instead of legs - two snakes. Abraxas holds a sword and shield in his hands.

Baavan shi- in Scottish folklore, evil, bloodthirsty fairies. If a raven flew up to a person and suddenly turned into a golden-haired beauty in a long green dress, it means that a baavan shi is in front of him. They wear long dresses for good reason, hiding under them deer hooves, which the baavan shi have instead of feet. These fairies lure men into their dwellings and drink their blood.

Baku- "Dream Eater" in Japanese mythology, a good spirit that eats bad dreams. You can summon him by writing his name on a piece of paper and placing it under your pillow. At one time, images of Baku hung in Japanese homes, and his name was written on pillows. They believed that if Baku was forced to eat a bad dream, then he had the power to turn the dream into a good one.
There are stories where Baku does not look very kind. Eating all the dreams and dreams, he deprived the sleeping of beneficial effects, and even completely deprived them of sleep.

kikimora- a character of Slavic-Ugric mythology, as well as one of the types of brownie, causing harm, damage and minor troubles to the household and people. Kikimors, as a rule, settle indoors if a child has died in the house. child. Swamp or forest kikimora was accused of kidnapping children, instead of whom she left an enchanted log. Her presence in the house could be easily identified by wet footprints. A caught kikimora could be turned into a human.

Basilisk- a monster with the head of a rooster, the eyes of a toad, the wings of a bat and the body of a dragon that exists in the mythologies of many peoples. From his gaze, all living things turn to stone. According to legend, if the Basilisk sees his reflection in the mirror, he will die. Caves are the habitat of the Basilisk, they are also its source of food, since the Basilisk only eats stones. He can leave his shelter only at night, because he cannot stand the cock crow. And he is also afraid of unicorns because they are too "clean" animals.

Baggain- in the folklore of the inhabitants of the Isle of Man, the insidious werewolf. He hates people and harasses in every possible way. Baggain is able to grow to gigantic sizes and take on any appearance. He can pretend to be human, but if you look closely, you can see pointed ears and horse hooves, which will still give out baggain.

Alkonost (alkonst)- in Russian art and legends, a bird of paradise with a maiden's head. Often mentioned and depicted along with Sirin, another bird of paradise. The image of Alkonost goes back to the Greek myth about the girl Alcyone, who was turned by the gods into a kingfisher. The earliest depiction of Alkonost is found in a book miniature of the 12th century. Alkonst is a safe and rare creature living closer to the sea. According to folk legend, in the morning on the Apple Savior, the Sirin bird flies into the apple orchard, which is sad and crying. And in the afternoon, the Alkonost bird flies to the apple orchard, which rejoices and laughs. The bird brushes off the live dew from its wings and the fruits are transformed, an amazing power appears in them - all the fruits on the apple trees from that moment on become healing

Water- the owner of the waters in Slavic mythology. Water graze at the bottom of rivers and lakes their cows - catfish, carp, bream and other fish. Commands mermaids, undines, drowned men, aquatic inhabitants. More often he is kind, but sometimes he drags some gaping person to the bottom to entertain him. It lives more often in whirlpools, likes to settle under a water mill.

Abnahuayu- in Abkhazian mythology ("forest man"). A giant ferocious creature, characterized by extraordinary physical strength and rage. The whole body of Abnahuayu is covered with long hair, similar to bristles, he has huge claws; eyes and nose are human. It lives in dense forests (there was a belief that one Abnauayu lives in every forest gorge). Meeting with Abnauayu is dangerous, the adult Abnauayu has an ax-shaped steel protrusion on his chest: pressing the victim to his chest, he cuts it in half. Abnahuayu knows in advance the name of the hunter or shepherd he will meet.

Cerberus (Spirit of the Underworld)- in Greek mythology, a huge dog of the Underworld, guarding the entrance to the afterlife. In order for the souls of the dead to enter the underworld, they must bring gifts to Cerberus - honey and barley biscuits. The task of Cerberus is to prevent dead living people from entering the kingdom who want to rescue their loved ones from there. One of the few living people who managed to penetrate into the underworld and emerge from it unharmed was Orpheus, who played beautiful music on the lyre. One of the feats of Hercules, which he was ordered to perform by the gods, was to bring Cerberus to the city of Tiryns.

Griffin- winged monsters with a lion's body and the head of an eagle, guardians of gold in different mythologies. Griffins, vultures, in Greek mythology, monstrous birds with an eagle's beak and the body of a lion; they. - “dogs of Zeus” - guard gold in the country of the Hyperboreans, guarding it from the one-eyed Arimaspians (Aeschyl. Prom. 803 following). Among the fabulous inhabitants of the north - the Issedons, Arimaspians, Hyperboreans, Herodotus also mentions Griffins (Herodot. IV 13).
There are also griffins in Slavic mythology. In particular, it is known that they guard the treasures of the Riphean mountains.

gaki. in Japanese mythology - ever-hungry demons. They are reborn those who, while living on Earth, overeat or throw away completely edible food. Gaki's hunger is insatiable, but they cannot die from it. They eat anything, even their children, but they cannot get enough. Sometimes they get into the Human World, and then they become cannibals.

Vuivre, Vuivre. France. King, or queen of snakes; in the forehead - a sparkling stone, a bright red ruby; the form of a fiery serpent; keeper of underground treasures; can be seen flying across the sky on summer nights; dwellings - abandoned castles, fortresses, donjons, etc.; his images are in the sculptural compositions of Romanesque monuments; when he bathes, he leaves the stone on the shore, and whoever manages to take possession of the ruby ​​will become fabulously rich - he will receive part of the underground treasures guarded by the snake.

headdress- A Bulgarian vampire who eats dung and carrion because he is too much of a coward to attack people. It has a bad character, which is not surprising with such a diet.

Ayami, in the Tungus-Manchu mythology (among the Nanais) the spirits-ancestors of shamans. Each shaman has his own Ayami, he instructed, indicated what kind of costume a shaman (shaman) should have, how to treat. Ayami appeared to the shaman in a dream in the form of a woman (to a shaman - in the form of a man), as well as a wolf, a tiger and other animals, moved into shamans during prayers. Ayami could also have spirits - the owners of various animals, it was they who sent Ayami to steal the souls of people and cause them illness.

Duboviki- in Celtic mythology, evil magical creatures living in the crowns and trunks of oaks.
To every person passing by their dwelling, they offer delicious food and gifts.
In no case should you take food from them, and even more so taste it, since food cooked by oak trees is very poisonous. At night, oaks often go in search of prey.
You should know that it is especially dangerous to pass by a recently felled oak tree: the oak trees that lived in it are angry and can do a lot of trouble.

Damn (in the old spelling "devil")- an evil, playful and lustful spirit in Slavic mythology. In the book tradition, according to the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, the word devil is a synonym for the concept of demon. The devil is social and most often goes hunting with groups of devils. The devil is attracted to people who drink. When the devil finds such a person, he tries to do everything so that the person drinks even more, bringing him to a state of complete madness. The very process of their materialization, popularly known as “get drunk to hell”, is colorfully and in detail described in one of the stories of Vladimir Nabokov. “By prolonged, stubborn, lonely drunkenness,” the famous prose writer reported, “I brought myself to the most vulgar visions, namely: I began to see devils.” If a person stops drinking, the devil begins to wither without receiving the expected replenishment.

Vampal, in the mythology of the Ingush and Chechens, a huge shaggy monster with supernatural powers: sometimes Vampala has several heads. Wampals are both male and female. In fairy tales, Vampal is a positive character, distinguished by nobility and helping the heroes in their battles.

hyanas- in Italian folklore, mostly female perfumes. Tall and beautiful, they lived in the forests, were engaged in needlework. They could also predict the future and knew where the treasures were hidden. Despite their beauty, hyanas, among which the majority were women, had difficulty finding a mate. There were extremely few male hyanas; dwarfs were no good for husbands, and giants were real brutes. Therefore, the hyanas could only do work and sing sad songs.

Yrka in Slavic mythology- an evil night spirit with eyes on a dark face, glowing like a cat, is especially dangerous on the night of Ivan Kupala and only in the field, because the goblin do not let him into the forest. They become suicidal. Attacks lonely travelers, drinks their blood. Ukrut, his assistant, brings him a sack of scoundrels, from whom Yrka drank life. He is very afraid of the fire, he does not approach the fire. To save yourself from it, you can’t look around, even if they call out in a familiar voice, don’t answer anything, say “stay away from me” three times, or read the prayer “Our Father”.

Div- The demonic character of East Slavic mythology. Mentioned in medieval teachings against the pagans. There are echoes of the latter meaning in the episodes of The Tale of Igor's Campaign, where the expression "spreading divas to the ground" is perceived as a harbinger of misfortune. Div turned people away from dangerous deeds, appearing in the form of unseen. Seeing him and being surprised, people forgot about the unrighteous deed that they wanted to commit. The Poles called him esiznik (“There is a sign”, there is and disappeared), that is, a god-vision.

Ayustal, in Abkhazian mythology, hell; harms people and animals. According to beliefs, if Ayustal moves into a person, he falls ill, and sometimes dies in agony. When a person suffers greatly before death, they say that Ayustal took possession of him, but often a person defeats Ayustal by cunning.

Sulde "life force", in the mythology of the Mongolian peoples, one of the souls of a person, with which his vital and spiritual strength is associated. Sulde ruler is the spirit - the guardian of the people; its material embodiment is the banner of the ruler, which in itself becomes an object of worship, guarded by the subjects of the ruler. During the wars, human sacrifices were made to the Sulde-banners to raise the morale of the army. The Suldi banners of Genghis Khan and some other khans were especially revered. The character of the shamanic pantheon of the Mongols Sulde-Tengri, the patron of people, apparently, is genetically connected with Sulde of Genghis Khan.

shikome in Japanese mythology, a warlike race of creatures vaguely similar to European goblins. Bloodthirsty sadists, slightly taller than people and much stronger than them, with well-developed muscles. Sharp teeth and burning eyes. They do nothing but war. They often set up ambushes in the mountains.

Buka - scarecrow. A small, vicious creature that lives in a child's closet or under a bed. Only children see it, and children suffer from it, since Buka loves to attack them at night - grab them by the legs and drag them under the bed or into the closet (his lair). He is afraid of the light, from which the faith of adults can die. He is afraid that adults will believe in him.

Beregini in Slavic mythology, spirits in the guise of women with tails, living along the banks of rivers. Mentioned in ancient Russian historical and literary monuments. They protect people from evil spirits, predict the future, and also save small children left unattended and fallen into the water.

Anzud- in Sumerian-Akkadian mythology, a divine bird, an eagle with a lion's head. Anzud is a mediator between gods and people, at the same time embodying good and evil principles. When the god Enlil took off his insignia while washing, Anzud stole the tablets of fate and flew with them to the mountains. Anzud wanted to become more powerful than all the gods, but by his act he violated the course of things and divine laws. In pursuit of the bird, the god of war, Ninurta, set off. He shot Anzud with his bow, but Enlil's tablets healed the wound. Ninurta managed to hit the bird only on the second attempt, or even on the third attempt (in different versions of the myth in different ways).

Bug- spirits in English mythology. According to legends, the bug is a "children's" monster, even in our time, English women scare their children with it.
Usually these creatures have the appearance of shaggy monsters with matted, tufted hair. Many English children believe that bugs can enter rooms by using open chimneys. However, despite their rather intimidating appearance, these creatures are completely non-aggressive and practically harmless, since they have neither sharp teeth nor long claws. They can scare in only one way - by making a terrible ugly face, spreading their paws and raising the hair on the scruff of the neck.

Alraunes- in the folklore of European peoples, a tiny creature that lives in the roots of a mandrake, the outlines of which resemble human figures. Alraunes are friendly to people, but they are not averse to making fun, sometimes quite cruelly. These are werewolves capable of transforming into cats, worms, and even small children. Later, the Alrauns changed their way of life: they liked the warmth and comfort in people's homes so much that they began to move there. Before moving to a new place, alrauns, as a rule, test people: they scatter all kinds of garbage on the floor, throw clods of earth or pieces of cow dung into milk. If people don't sweep the trash and drink milk, Alraun understands that it is quite possible to settle here. It's almost impossible to drive him away. Even if the house is burned down and people move somewhere, alraun follows them. Alraun had to be treated with great care due to its magical properties. You had to wrap or dress him in white robes with a gold belt, bathe him every Friday, and keep him in a box, otherwise Alraun would start yelling for attention. Alraunes were used in magical rituals. It was assumed that they bring great luck, in the likeness of a talisman - a quatrefoil. But possession of them carried the risk of being prosecuted for witchcraft, and in 1630 three women were executed in Hamburg on this charge. Due to the high demand for Alraunes, they were often cut from bryony roots, as genuine mandrakes were hard to come by. They were exported from Germany to various countries, including England, during the reign of Henry VIII.

Authorities- in Christian mythological representations, angelic creatures. The authorities can be both good forces and minions of evil. Among the nine angelic ranks, the authorities close the second triad, which, in addition to them, also includes dominions and powers. As Pseudo-Dionysius says, “the name of the holy Authorities signifies equal to the Divine Dominions and Forces, slender and capable of receiving Divine illuminations, the Chin and the device of a worldly spiritual dominion, which does not autocratically use the granted domineering powers for evil, but freely and decently to the Divine as itself ascending who brings others holy to Him and, as much as possible, becomes like the Source and Giver of all power and portrays Him ... in a completely true use of his sovereign power.

gargoyle- the fruit of medieval mythology. The word "gargoyle" comes from the Old French gargouille - throat, and with its sound imitates the gurgling sound that occurs when gargling. The gargoyles seated on the facades of Catholic cathedrals were ambivalent. On the one hand, they were like ancient sphinxes as guard statues, capable of coming to life and protecting a temple or a mansion in a moment of danger, on the other hand, when they were placed on temples, it showed that all evil spirits were fleeing from this holy place, since it could not bear the temple purity.

Grima- according to medieval European beliefs, they lived throughout Europe. Most often they can be seen in old cemeteries located near churches. Therefore, scary creatures are also called church makeup.
These monsters can take on a variety of forms, but most often they turn into huge dogs with jet-black hair and glow-in-the-dark eyes. You can see the monsters only in rainy or cloudy weather, they usually appear in the cemetery in the late afternoon, and also during the day during the funeral. They often howl under the windows of sick people, foreshadowing their imminent death. Often, some kind of makeup, not afraid of heights, climbs the church bell tower at night and starts ringing all the bells, which is considered by the people to be a very bad omen.

Ahti- a water demon among the peoples of the north. Neither evil nor good. Although he likes to joke and with jokes he can go too far so that a person will die. Of course, if you piss him off, he can kill you.

Atsys“Without a name”, in the mythology of the West Siberian Tatars, an evil demon that unexpectedly appears in front of travelers at night in the form of a shock, cart, tree, fiery clod and strangles them. Attsys was also called various evil spirits (Myatskai, Oryak, Ubyr, etc.), whose names were afraid to pronounce out loud, being afraid to attract a demon.

Shoggoths- creatures mentioned in the famous mystical book "Al Azif", better known as the "Necronomicon", written by the crazy poet Abdul Alhazred. Approximately one third of the book is devoted to the control of shoggoths, which are presented as shapeless "eels" from bubbles of protoplasm. The ancient gods created them as servants, but the shoggoths, possessing intelligence, quickly got out of submission and have since acted of their own free will and for their strange incomprehensible goals. It is said that these beings often appear in narcotic visions, but there they are not subject to human control.

Yuvha, in the mythology of the Turkmens and Uzbeks of Khorezm, Bashkirs and Kazan Tatars (Yukha) is a demonic character associated with the water element. Yuvkha is a beautiful girl whom she turns into after living for many years (among the Tatars - 100 or 1000) years. According to the myths of the Turkmens and Uzbeks of Khorezm, Yuvkha marries a man, setting him a number of conditions in advance, for example, do not watch how she combs her hair, does not pat on the back, perform ablution after intimacy. Violating the conditions, the husband discovers snake scales on her back, sees how, combing her hair, she removes her head. If Yuvha is not killed, she will eat her husband.

Ghouls - (Russian; Ukrainian upir, Belarusian ynip, other Russian Upir), in Slavic mythology, a dead man attacking people and animals. At night, the Ghoul rises from the grave and, in the guise of a bloodshot dead man or a zoomorphic creature, kills people and animals, sucks out blood, after which the victim either dies or can become a Ghoul herself. According to popular beliefs, people who died an "unnatural death" became ghouls - violently murdered, drunkards, suicides and also sorcerers. It was believed that the earth does not accept such dead people and therefore they are forced to wander around the world and harm the living. Such dead people were buried outside the cemetery and away from housing.

Chusrym in Mongolian mythology - the King of fish. He freely swallows ships, and when he sticks out of the water, he looks like a huge mountain.

Sharkan, in Hungarian mythology, a dragon with a serpentine body and wings. It is possible to distinguish between two layers of ideas about Shambling. One of them, associated with the European tradition, is presented mainly in fairy tales, where Sharkan is a ferocious monster with a large number (three, seven, nine, twelve) of heads, the hero’s opponent in battle, often an inhabitant of a magic castle. On the other hand, there are beliefs about the one-headed Shuffling as one of the assistants of the sorcerer (shaman) taltosh.

Shilikun, Shilikhan- in Slavic mythology - hooligan small spirits that appear on Christmas Eve and before Epiphany run through the streets with burning coals in pans. Drunk people can be pushed into the hole. At night they will make noise and roam, and turning into black cats, they will crawl under their feet.
They are as tall as a sparrow, their legs are like those of a horse - with hooves, fire breathes from their mouths. At Baptism they go to the underworld.

Faun (Pan)- spirit or deity of forests and groves, god of shepherds and fishermen in Greek mythology. This is a cheerful god and companion of Dionysus, always surrounded by forest nymphs, dancing with them and playing the flute for them. It is believed that Pan had a prophetic gift and endowed Apollo with this gift. The faun was considered a crafty spirit that stole children.

Kumo- in Japanese mythology - spiders that can turn into people. Very rare creatures. In their normal form, they look like huge spiders, the size of a man, with burning red eyes and sharp stingers on their paws. In human form, beautiful women with a cold beauty, trapping men and devouring them.

Phoenix- an immortal bird personifying the cyclical nature of the world. Phoenix is ​​the patron of anniversaries, or great time cycles. Herodotus recounts the original version of the legend with marked skepticism:
“There is another sacred bird there, its name is Phoenix. I myself have never seen her, except as painted, because in Egypt she rarely appears, once in 500 years, as the inhabitants of Heliopolis say. According to them, she arrives when her father (that is, she herself) dies. If the images correctly show her size and size and appearance, her plumage is partly golden, partly red. Its appearance and dimensions resemble an eagle. This bird does not breed, but is reborn after death from its own ashes.

Werewolf- Werewolf - a monster that exists in many mythological systems. It means a person who can turn into animals or vice versa. An animal that can turn into people. This skill is often possessed by demons, deities and spirits. The classic werewolf is the wolf. It is with him that all the associations born by the word werewolf are associated. This change can occur either at the will of the werewolf, or involuntarily, caused, for example, by certain lunar cycles.

Viryava- the mistress and spirit of the grove among the peoples of the north. Appeared as a beautiful girl. Birds and animals obeyed her. She helped lost travelers.

wendigo- spirit-eater in the myths of the Ojibwe and some other Algonquian tribes. Served as a warning against any excesses of human behavior. The Inuit tribe calls this creature by various names, including Windigo, Vitigo, Vitiko. Wendigo enjoy hunting and love to attack hunters. A lone traveler who finds himself in the forest begins to hear strange sounds. He looks around for the source, but sees nothing but a flicker of something moving too fast for the human eye to see. When the traveler starts to run away in fear, the Wendigo attacks. He is powerful and strong like no other. Can imitate people's voices. In addition, the Wendigo never stops hunting after eating.

Shikigami. in Japanese mythology Spirits summoned by a magician, an expert on Onmyo-do. They usually look like small oni, but can take the form of birds and beasts. Many shikigami can possess and control the bodies of animals, and the shikigami of the most powerful magicians can possess humans. Controlling shikigami is very difficult and dangerous, as they can break out of the magician's control and attack him. An expert on Onmyo-do can direct the power of other people's shikigami against their master.

hydra monster, described by the ancient Greek poet Hesiod (VIII-VII centuries BC) in his legend of Hercules ("Theogony"): a many-headed snake (Lernean Hydra), in which two new ones grew instead of each severed head. And it was impossible to kill her. Hydra's lair was near Lake Lerna near Argolis. Under water was the entrance to the underground kingdom of Hades, which was guarded by a hydra. Hydra hid in a rocky cave on the shore near the spring of Amimona, from where it came out only to attack the surrounding settlements.

Fighting- in English folklore, water fairies that lure mortal women, appearing to them in the form of wooden dishes floating on the water. As soon as any woman grabs onto such a dish, the fight immediately takes on its true, ugly appearance and drags the unfortunate woman to the bottom so that she can look after his children there.

Sinister- pagan evil spirits of the ancient Slavs, the personification of Nedol, Navi servants. They are also called kriks or hmyrs - swamp spirits, which are so dangerous that they can stick to a person, even move into him, especially in old age, if a person did not love anyone in life and he had no children. Sinister can turn into a poor old man. In the Christmas game, the villain personifies poverty, poverty, winter darkness.

incubi- in medieval European mythology, male demons seeking female love. The word incubus comes from the Latin "incubare", which means "to lie down" in translation. According to old books, incubus are fallen angels, demons who are addicted to sleeping women. Incubuses showed such enviable energy in intimate matters that entire nations were born. For example, the Huns, who, according to medieval beliefs, were the descendants of "outcast women" Goths and evil spirits.

Goblin- the owner of the forest, the forest spirit, in the mythology of the Eastern Slavs. This is the main owner of the forest, he makes sure that no one in his household does any harm. He treats good people well, helps to get out of the forest, to not very good - bad: he confuses, makes him walk in circles. He sings in a voice without words, beats his hands, whistles, hoots, laughs, cries. Leshy can appear in various plant, animal, human and mixed forms, can be invisible. Most often appears as a lonely creature. Leaves the forest for the winter, sinking underground.

baba yaga- a character of Slavic mythology and folklore, the mistress of the forest, the mistress of animals and birds, the guardian of the borders of the kingdom of Death. In a number of fairy tales it is likened to a witch, a sorceress. Most often - a negative character, but sometimes acts as an assistant to the hero. Baba Yaga has several stable attributes: she knows how to conjure, fly in a mortar, lives on the edge of the forest, in a hut on chicken legs surrounded by a fence of human bones with skulls. She lures good fellows and small children to her, ostensibly in order to eat them.

Shishiga, an unclean spirit, in Slavic mythology. If he lives in the forest, then he attacks randomly wandering people, so that later he can gnaw their bones. At night, they like to make noise and gossip. According to another belief, shishimora or shishigs are mischievous restless house spirits that mock a person who does things without praying. We can say that these are very instructive spirits, correct, accustoming to the pious routine of life.

Everyone is familiar with the concept of "mythical creatures". In childhood, everyone dreams of a miracle, children sincerely believe in beautiful and kind elves, honest and skillful godmothers, smart and powerful wizards. It is sometimes useful for adults to detach themselves from the outside world and be carried away into the world of incredible legends, where magic and magical creatures live.

Typologies of magical creatures

The encyclopedia and reference books give approximately the same explanation of the term "magical creatures" - these are characters of non-human origin, a certain magical power that they use for both good deeds and evil ones.

Different civilizations had their own characteristic characters. These magical animals belonged to a specific species and genus, which were determined based on who their parents were.

People tried to classify mystical characters. Most often they are divided into:

• good and evil;
• flying, sea and living on land;
• demi-humans and demigods;
• animals and humanoids, etc.

Ancient mythical creatures are classified not only by description, but also in alphabetical order. But this is impractical, because the collection does not take into account their appearance, lifestyle and impact on humans. The most convenient variant of classification is by civilizations.

Images of ancient Greek mythology

Greece is the cradle of European civilization. Ancient Greek myths open the door to a world of unthinkable fantasies.

To understand the whole originality of the culture of the Hellenes, you need to get acquainted with magical creatures from their legends.

1. Dracains are reptilian or female snakes that have been endowed with human features. The most famous drakains are Echidna and Lamia.
2. Echidna is the daughter of Phorkis and Keto. She was drawn in the form of a humanoid creature. She has a beautiful, bewitching girlish beauty face and body of a snake. It combined a vile character and beauty. Together with Typhon, she gave birth to a wide variety of monsters. An interesting fact is that a mammal completely covered with needles and a poisonous snake were named after Echidna. They live on an island in the ocean, located near Australia. The myth of Echidna is one of the explanations for the appearance of dragons on Earth.
3. Lamia is the queen of Libya, the daughter of the Sea Lord. According to the myth, she was one of the lovers of Zeus, for which Hera hated her. The goddess turned Lamia into a monster that kidnaps children. In ancient Greece, ghouls and bloodsuckers were called lamias, who hypnotized young girls and boys, killed them or drank blood from them. Lamia was depicted as a woman with a snake body.
4. Grai - goddesses of old age, Gorgon sisters. Their names are Horror (Enio), Anxiety (Pefredo) and Trembling (Deino). From birth they were gray-haired, they had only one eye for three, so they used it in turn. According to the myth of Perseus, the Grays knew the location of the Gorgon. In order to get this information, as well as to find out where to get an invisibility helmet, winged sandals and a bag, Perseus took an eye from them.
5. Pegasus is a fabulous winged horse. Translated from ancient Greek, his name meant "stormy current." According to the myth, no one before Bellerophon could saddle this wonderful white horse, which, at the slightest danger, flapped huge wings and was carried away beyond the clouds. Pegasus is a favorite of poets, artists and sculptors. A weapon, a constellation, ray-finned fishes are named in his honor.
6. Gorgons are the daughters of Keto and her brother Phokis. Mythology suggests that there were three gorgons: the most famous is Medusa Gorgon and her two sisters Stheno and Euryale. They evoked indescribable fear. They had female bodies covered with scales, snakes instead of hair, huge fangs, a body. Everyone who looked into their eyes turned to stone. In a figurative sense, the word "gorgon" means a grouchy and angry woman.
7. Chimera - a monster whose anatomy was awesome and amazing at the same time. It was three-headed: one - goat, the second - a lion, and instead of a tail - the head of a snake. The beast breathed, destroying everything in its path with fire. The chimera was the personification of a volcano: there are many green pastures on its slopes, a lion's den at the top, and snake coblas at the base. In honor of this magical creature, detachments of fish were named. Chimera - the prototype of gargoyles.
8. Siren is a female demonic folklore character who was born from Melpomene or Terpsichore and the god Achelous. The siren was drawn in the form of a half-fish, half-woman, or half-bird, half-maiden. From their mother they inherited a beautiful appearance and a unique voluptuous voice, from their father - a wild disposition. The demigods attacked the sailors, starting to sing, the men lost their minds, sent their ships to the rocks and died. Merciless maidens fed on the bodies of sailors. Sirens are the muses of the other world, so their images were often applied to tombstones and monuments. These mythical creatures became the prototype for a whole detachment of mythical sea creatures.
9. Phoenix is ​​a popular mythical character, represented in the form of a magical bird with golden-scarlet feathers. Phoenix is ​​a collective image of different birds: peacock, heron, crane, etc. Most often it is depicted as an eagle. The distinctive quality of this fabulous winged character was self-immolation and rebirth from the ashes. Phoenix has become an indicator of a person's desire for immortality. He is a favorite poetic symbol of light. A plant and one of the brightest celestial constellations were named in his honor.
10. Hecatoncheirs (Cyclops) are little-known, but interesting magical giants, outwardly similar to men. A distinctive characteristic of the hecatoncheirs was that they were many-eyed. And one body contained fifty heads. They lived in dungeons, because immediately after their birth, Uranus imprisoned them in the earth for his own safety. After the complete defeat of the titans, the Gecotoncheirs volunteered to guard the entrance to the place of the titans' imprisonment.
11. The Hydra is another female offspring that, according to myths, was produced by Echidna and Typhon. This is a dangerous and terrible creature that struck with its description. She had nine dragon heads and a snake body. One of these heads was unkillable, that is, immortal. Therefore, she was considered invincible, because when her head was cut off, two more grew in her place. The monster was constantly hungry, so she devastated the local neighborhood, burning crops, killing and eating animals that came across on the way. It was of enormous size: as soon as the mythical creature rose on its tail, it could be seen far beyond the forest. The constellation, the satellite of the planet Pluto, and the genus coelenterates are named after the Hydra.
12. Harpies are pre-Olympic creatures who are the daughters of Electra and Taumantus. Harpies were portrayed as beautiful-looking girls with long hair and wings. They were constantly hungry and, due to their origin, invulnerable. During the hunt, the harpies descended from the mountains into the forest thickets or into the fields near the settlements, attacked the cattle with piercing cries and devoured the animals. The gods sent them as punishment. Mythical monsters did not allow people to eat normally, this happened until the moment when the person was exhausted and died. The name "harpy" is inherent in extremely greedy, insatiable, evil women.
13. Empusa is a little-known mythical demoness who lives in an otherworldly realm. She was a ghost - a vampire with the head and body of a woman, and her lower limbs were ass. Her peculiarity is that she could take on various forms - cute and innocent maidens, dogs or horses. Ancient people believed that she stole small children, attacked lone travelers and sucked blood from them. To drive away Empusa, you need to have a special amulet with you.
14. Griffins are good mythical creatures, because in mythology they personified vigilant power and unique insight. It is an animal with the body of a lion, huge and powerful wings and the head of an eagle. The eyes of the griffin had a golden hue. The griffin had a simple functional purpose - to guard. The ancient Hellenes believed that these creatures were the guardians of the gold reserves of Asia. The image of a griffin was depicted on weapons, coins and other items.

North American magical creatures

America was colonized quite late. For this, Europeans often called the continent the New World. But if we return to historical sources, then North America is also rich in ancient civilizations that have sunk into oblivion.

Many of them have disappeared forever, but various mythical creatures are still known. Here is a partial list of those:

• Lechuza (Lechusa) - the ancient inhabitants of Texas called the werewolf witch with a female head and the body of an owl. Lechuzes are girls who sold their souls to the devil in exchange for magical powers. At night, they turned into monsters, so they were often seen flying in search of profit. There is another version of the appearance of lechuza - this is the spirit of a slain woman who returned for revenge. Lechusa was compared with such representatives of the ancient world as harpies and banshees.
• Tooth fairies are small and very kind fairy-tale characters, the image of which is actively used in modern Western culture. According to legend, they got their name from the fact that they put money or gifts under the pillow to the child in exchange for a fallen tooth. The main use of this character with wings is that they encourage the child to take care of their appearance and compensate for the loss of a tooth. It was possible to make a gift to the fairy on any day except December 25, because at Christmas, such a gift would entail the death of the fairy.
• La Lorona is the name given to a ghostly woman mourning her children. Her image is very common in Mexico and the adjacent North American states. La Llorona is depicted as a pale woman in white, wandering near the reservoirs and through the deserted streets with a bundle in her hands. Meeting with her is dangerous, because after that the person started having problems. This image was popular with parents, who intimidated their naughty children, threatening that they could be taken away by La Lorona.
• Bloody Mary - if you open the atlas, then this mystical image is associated with the state of Pennsylvania. A legend appeared here about a small and vicious old woman who lived in the depths of the forest and practiced witchcraft. In nearby villages and villages, children began to disappear. One time, a miller tracked down how his daughter came to the Bloody Mary's dwelling. For this, the villagers burned her at the stake. As she burned, she screamed out a curse. After her death, buried children's bodies were found around the house. The image of Bloody Mary was used for divination on Halloween night. A cocktail is named after her.
• Chihuateteo - this word in Aztec mythology refers to rare creatures, unusual women who died during childbirth and later became vampires. Childbirth is one of the forms of the battle for life. According to legend, chihuateos accompanied male warriors at sunset. And at night, they, like succubi, seduced the representatives of the stronger half, sucking energy out of them, and also kidnapped children to quench their thirst. For charm and submission, Chihuatéo could practice magic and witchcraft conspiracies.
• Wendigo are evil spirits. In the ancient world, people meant by this word "all-consuming evil." Wendigo is a tall creature with sharp fangs, a lipless mouth, he is insatiable and the features of his silhouette are similar to those of a human. They are divided into small groups and pursue their victims. People who find themselves in the forest initially hear incomprehensible sounds, looking for the source of these sounds, they could only see a flickering silhouette. It is impossible to hit a windigo with conventional weapons. It is taken only by silver items, it can also be destroyed by fire.
• A goatman is a humanoid that is similar to a satyr or a faun. He is described as having a human body and the head of a goat. According to some reports, he is depicted with horns. Growth up to 3.5 m, it attacks animals and people.
• Hodag is a strong monster of an indefinite kind. It is described as a large animal resembling a rhinoceros, but instead of a horn, the hodag has a diamond-shaped process, thanks to which the fairy-tale character sees only straight. According to legend, he ate white bulldogs. According to another description, he has bone growths in the region of his back and head.
• The Great Serpent is the central religious and social symbol of the Mayan tribe. The serpent is associated with heavenly bodies, according to legend, it helps to cross the space of heaven. The shedding of old skin is a symbol of renewal and a full rebirth. He was depicted as having two heads. With horns, the spirits of previous generations came out of his jaws.
• Baycock is a prominent representative of the mythology of the Cherokee Indians. He was represented as an emaciated man with scarlet fiery eyes. He was dressed in rags or ordinary hunting clothes. Each Indian could become a baycock if he died shamefully, or committed a bad deed: lying, killing relatives, etc. They hunted only warriors, were fast and ruthless. To stop the lawlessness, you need to collect the bones of the baycock and arrange a normal funeral. Then the monster will calmly go to rest in the afterlife.

European mythical characters

Europe is a huge continent that accommodates many different states and nationalities.

European mythology has collected many fairy-tale characters that are associated with ancient Greek civilization and the Middle Ages.

At all times, people have tried to explain what they could not control and what to interfere with. So many legends and mythological characters appeared. Different peoples had approximately the same idea of ​​\u200b\u200bmagical creatures. Therefore, the little mermaid and the undine, the banshee and La Llorona, are identical.

The world is not as simple as it seems at first glance. Scientists have repeatedly said that somewhere there are parallel worlds, from which various mythical creatures come, previously unknown to man. It turns out that fairy tales, legends and myths are not fiction, they can most likely be called epics.

There is a certain bestiary - a medieval collection, which provides a detailed description of various fictional mythical creatures. Below in the article a description of mythical creatures will be presented - a list with pictures and names.

Unicorns

If we talk about "good" mythical creatures, then we cannot fail to mention such like a unicorn. But what are unicorns? Most often, beautiful white horses are depicted in photos and pictures in the form of a unicorn, in the forehead of which there is one sharp horn. Unicorns have always been considered a symbol of chastity and the struggle for justice. Esotericists also argue that they should be with blue eyes, a red head and a white body. Previously, unicorns were depicted with the body of a bull or a goat, and only recently their body has taken on the form of a horse.

If you believe the myths, then these creatures have an incredible supply of energy. It is very difficult to tame them, but they can obediently lie down on the ground if a virgin approaches them. In order to ride a unicorn, you need to get a golden bridle.

As for the life of such a mythical creature, it is also very complex. Unicorns eat only flowers and drink only morning dew. They bathe only in clean forest reservoirs, in which after that the water acquires healing properties. The main power of unicorns is concentrated in their horn, which is also credited with healing powers. Esotericists say that a person who has met a unicorn will become insanely happy.

Pegasus

Pegasus is another mythical creature which is similar to a horse. Many encyclopedias write that this winged horse is the son of Medusa Gargona and Poseidon, the God of the seas who lived in Ancient Greece. The main function of Pegasus was to be on Olympus, where he transmitted lightning and thunder to his father. When Pegasus descended to the ground, he knocked out Hippocrene with his hoof. Hippocrene is the source of muses, which performed the function of inspiring all creative personalities to useful actions.

Valkyries

Special attention is paid to female mythical creatures, among which it is worth mentioning the Valkyries. Valkyries are called some warrior maidens, who also play the role of companions and performers of the will of Odin - the supreme God in German-Scandinavian mythology. Valkyries can be called symbols of honorable death in battles. When a warrior died during the fighting, the Valkyries flew to him on winged horses and took the deceased to the heavenly castle of Valhalla, in which they begin to serve him at the table. These creatures have another distinctive ability - they can predict the future.

Names of other female mythical creatures:

• Norns are spinning women who can determine the birth, life and death of a person;
• Parks are three sisters and daughters of the night, who also have the ability to predetermine the life of any person. The first daughter's name is Clota. She spins the thread of life. The second daughter, Lachesis, is the guardian of life. Atropos is the third daughter who cuts the thread of life;
• Erinnia - Goddess of vengeance. As a rule, in photos and pictures they are always depicted with torches in their hands. Such creatures push a person to commit vindictive actions for any offense;
• Dryads are women who guard the trees. They spend all their lives in trees, and also die with them. Dryads have their own wards who help them plant and grow trees;
• Graces are mythical creatures that are the personification of youthful charm and beauty. The main purpose of the graces is to excite love in young girlish hearts. In addition, graces have always brought joy to those who come across them on the way.

mythical birds

Speaking of mythical creatures, birds must be mentioned, since they also occupied leading places in various tales and legends.

Griffins and the like

Monsters continue the list of mythical creatures, resulting from the crossing of two or more powerful animals.

• Griffins are winged creatures that have the head of an eagle and the body of a lion. Griffins guarded the gold and treasures of the Riphean mountains. Their cry is very dangerous for all living things. From the sound that the griffins make, everything in the area dies, even a person;
• Hippogriffs are the result of crossing a vulture and a horse. Hippogriffs also had wings;
• Manticore is a creature with a human face. The manticore has three rows of teeth, a lion's body and a scorpion's tail. Her eyes are filled with blood. Manticores move with lightning speed. Only human bodies are eaten;
• The Sphinx has a female head, chest and lion's body. His main task was to guard Thebes. To everyone who passed by the Sphinx, he asked a riddle. If a person could not guess it, then the sphinx killed him.

dragons

Monsters are also included in the list of mythical creatures which look very much like dragons.

Russian mythical creatures

Now it is worth considering the mythical creatures that lived in Russia.

• Sinister - lived in swamps and molested people. They had the ability to move into an old person who has no children. Sinister people were the personification of darkness, poverty and poverty. In the house, these creatures settled behind the stove, jumped on the man's back and rode him;
• Khukhlik is a disguised water devil. This unclean spirit lives in water bodies and loves to play tricks on people and arrange various dirty tricks for them. Khukhlik is most active during Christmas time.

Cradle of human civilization.

Having considered such a list of mythical creatures, it should be noted that they are all fictional. And it will be considered that way until some facts are provided that testify to their actual existence.

Oleg and Valentina Svetovid are mystics, experts in esotericism and occultism, authors of 14 books.

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mythical names. Mythical male and female names and their meaning

Good afternoon, dear movie lovers and readers who just happened to be here. Every blogger knows the importance of keeping a blog active as often as possible. But bad luck - today is the most boring day. On July 13, 2013, nothing happens in the world of cinema. In connection with such a boring, to the same rainy day, I'll deviate a little from the topic. If you have noticed, there are articles about mystical films in my blog. As part of the "" section, today we will recall mythology and draw the top female mythical creatures.

The most interesting thing is that the word " Banshee"The translator translated me as" a spirit whose moans portend death. "In principle, Google translation has already revealed the intrigue of this creature. It is better not to anger such a lady, otherwise her cry promises you a short life.

Banshees are cool because they belong to Irish myths, and Irish women have a cool accent. If the banshees were real, they would have a cooler cry than Nuki from the Slot group (if anyone is in the subject).

Dryads are the souls of trees. From here follows two news. First, trees have souls. I just remember, I said something like that to my teacher in the 3rd class, and she said that trees have no souls and slapped me two points. I hope the dryads will take revenge on my ignorant teacher in mythology, well, or the Banshee will shout in her ear.

Ah yes, the second news. Dryads are only women - does that mean all trees are women? A bit of a rush of information, I found the answer to this question. Dryads take the form of hot chicks, and the souls themselves are sexless.

The disadvantage of relations with the Dryads is that they are rooted to the ground and you can’t go to the movies with this. But they are immortal as long as their tree is alive.

8 Mystical Creature: Centaur

I want to note right away that female centaurs are practically not mentioned in movies or books - what kind of sexism is there in relation to these creatures? The ancient Greeks did not say that the Centaurs were only men - and how would they reproduce then?

Centaurs are famous enough to be talked about, but anyone can read this post, therefore: centaurs are half-humans / half-horses. It would be difficult for centaurs in our time to live. There are cars all around, and people smoke here and there. And a drop of nicotine...

Gargona is a very ancient creature. According to the description, she looks like a woman, except for snakes instead of hair ...

The most famous Gargona was Medusa-Gargona, well, the one that fell at the hands of the hero Perseus. I previously thought that Gargona is the name of a jellyfish, but no - bite it, this is the name of a creature.

The gargons died out a long time ago, probably due to the fact that they turned everything into stone. Or because of the popularization of mirrors, because Gargona can turn himself into stone if he sees a reflection. Another point about snake hair, what is going on with these creatures in the bikini area? o.o

Closes the top five female mystical creatures is a very interesting character. Harpies are winged beauties who love to steal children like witches. I don't know why so many movies show Harpies as monsters with sharp teeth when the Greeks imagined them as graceful girls?

Harpies usually had long luxurious hair. The harpy, in principle, could not steal the young boy, since he himself could gladly wish to visit such a lady .. The most negative from the relationship with the harpy is her sharp bird claws. The back will be scratched be healthy.

If we analyze their proportions of wings and body, we can conclude that the wings of a harpy are not able to lift a woman's body. Harpies, in fact, turned out to be more like chickens, which is why they probably died out.

Snake? This is what my mother-in-law looked like when she was young! Just kidding, where is she up to the grace of this mystical snake ...

All Lamia are female, and they are all demonic creatures with snake tails instead of legs. These evil creatures are able to take the form of an ordinary woman. If you ever met real bitches in your life, maybe it was Lamia?

Like the harpies, these cold girls are greedy for young guys. That's just they are not interested in sex (remind about the snake's tail?), They prefer to literally gobble up a young guy.

These creatures are usually lured by the male population, seducing them. So, if a girl seduces you - think twice, maybe she will turn out to be that snake. (Damn, how vital - well done Greeks.)

We continue the snake theme. They are often confused with the creatures described above, but although both species have a snake tail, Nagas not demonic beings. Another difference: Nagas are also men - this is a full-fledged biological species, and it also reproduces biologically, therefore there are both males and females. How exactly do snakes breed, to be honest, I don't know... I'm a shitty biologist.

Nagas, unlike Lamia, have 4 hands. Although the Nagas were always friendly to people, people probably exterminated them, as they took them for Lamia.

Sirens seem to have an unrealistically wide range of voice, as they lure sailors from far away. An interesting fact is that it is easy to confuse a siren woman with a siren man (oh yes, my dears, there are such). It turns out that sirens look like Korean prostitutes...

So the attempt to present boring mythology in a funny entertaining style has come to an end. The first place in the top goes to the Succubus.

Succubi are a typical type of girl who gets anything for sex. These demonesses completely immorally and shamelessly seduce men and make them slaves in hell. According to legend, the slaves of the Succubus mine hellish gold by working in hellish mines (Well, at least they are not boiled in a cauldron, as Catholicism promises us...).

Succubi love to have fun and are only women. Usually seductress demonesses have small horns, hooves and wings. The wings do not allow them to fly, but rather cushion the fall as Succubi jump from rock to rock in Hell.

Do not look for logic in the distribution of seats - there is none, it's just a psychological device to attract attention. See more posts.