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ASS

The most frequently described symbolism for the ass, or its lowlier brother the donkey, focuses on its stupidity, stubbornness, inferiority and fertility, as well as its lasciviousness. An ass in a lion’s skin is said to suggest a blustering coward, or a fool pretending to be wise. The earliest depictions of the ass come from Egyptian and Syrian monuments, and these represent not the humble donkey, but the wild ass – the onagar – a much larger animal which is more ancient than the horses described in Semitic traditions. This beast was used like a horse to draw the heavy chariots of the Sumerians and as a baggage animal for their armies. As a desert animal, the ass was associated with the Egyptian god of evil, Set, to whom it was sacrificed, and in later Egyptian symbolism Set himself was sometimes personified as a donkey.

For the classical Greeks, the ass represented sloth and infatuation; it was sacred to Dionysus and Priapus and the god Typhon was sometimes depicted with the head of an ass. It was also sacred to Cronos, and Silenus, the god of wine, is sometimes shown riding an ass. During the Roman holiday of Vestalia, donkeys were garlanded and given sweet honey cakes to eat. In China, the Taoist immortal Chang Kuo-lao, a bringer of fertility to childless mothers, rides on a magical donkey which, when not required, becomes a drawing of a donkey on a sheet of paper, and can be folded up and put away. In Hindu mythology, asses drew the chariot of the underworld god Ravana when he abducted the beautiful maiden Sita, and is thus seen as an inauspicious animal by the Hindus. For Buddhists, the ass is a symbol of simplicity and asceticism and is portrayed as sleeping by the roadside on a bed of leaves.

Plutarch, the Roman writer, says the ass was revered by the Jews, because it found springs in the desert during the flight from Egypt. The biblical wild ass was symbolic of wildness and desolation. People of wealth drank asses’ milk and, like Cleopatra, occasionally bathed in it. Early Christians were accused by their opponents of worshipping the ass, and the Roman writer Tertulian mentioned the existence of caricatures of ‘the ass-hoofed god of the Christians’, which was also believed to have ass’s ears. The 1st-century Gnostics believed that the Lord Sabbaoth, a being of great evil, had an ass’s head.

During the medieval era, on 14 January every year, the Festival of Fools was celebrated, and the Feast of the Ass was an important part of this. Sacred individuals and royalty were caricatured at this event with impunity, and the biblical stories of Baalam’s Ass and the Flight into Egypt were burlesqued. More seriously, in Christian tradition, the ass or donkey symbolized Christ’s entry into Jerusalem. In later Christianity, however, it came to represent the devil, as it brayed in the night and was said to bring bad luck. This notion was shared by the followers of Islam, who held the ass to be an accursed creature that desired to bring misfortune to its owner and brayed to call up evil things.

In the ancient Persian religion of Zoroastrianism, the three-legged ass is often equated with the Unicorn because it has a single horn of gold growing from its forehead. In the Bundahish, a 9th-century commentary on the works of Zoroaster, the three-legged ass is described as pure white with eyes in the usual place and a further two in both the forehead and the crown of its head. It has three mouths, each the size of a house, a further three in its forehead and three more on its body. It is thus able to know whatever evil is being plotted or any attempt that might be made to harm it. The creature is so vast that the hooves of its three legs as it stands in the ocean cover an area large enough for a thousand sheep, while a similar number of horsemen could hide beneath a single spur of its hoof. It is considered to be a symbol of righteousness, a servant of the divine Lord Ahuramazda in the fight against evil. It purifies the putrid oceans with its urine, and the amber that washes up on the shore is believed to be its dung. Its white body is considered a symbol of purity and it is known as a champion of the oppressed.

In Welsh tradition, a king named March had been cursed with ass’s ears, which he kept hidden beneath a hood. But in the end he could not contain the secret any longer, and whispered it into a bed of reeds. Later, a poor musician made a flute out of one of these reeds, and found that when he blew it, instead of music it would only repeat over and over, ‘King March has ass’s ears.’ The musician was able to make use of this information when the king imprisoned him – in return for freedom and a purse of gold, he promised to destroy the flute. But, before this could happen, a gust of wind blew through the flute causing it to play on its own so that the secret was out.

The great sacred novel of the classical world, The Golden Ass by Lucius Apuleus, tells the story of a man turned into an ass for mocking the gods. His subsequent adventures teach him a great deal about the sacred mysteries and, in the end, he receives a vision of the goddess Isis who restores him to human form.

ASS-BITTERN

A strange hybrid creature found in heraldic bestiaries. It had the head of the large water bird, the bittern, and the body of an ass.

ASTERION

The name of the Minotaur in classical Greek mythology.

ASTROPE

One of the horses responsible for pulling the chariot of the sun god in classical Greek mythology. Like its fellows, Astrope was described as pure white, with fire-breathing nostrils. Each morning the nymphs of Time harnessed the great steeds to the chariot of Helios, which they drew across the heavens throughout the day. At night they were stabled in the Blessed Isles, where they fed on magical herbs. (See Horses of the Sun.)

ATARGATIS

In Semitic and Syrian myth, Atargatis was the moon goddess who became a mermaid after having given birth to Semiramis. Her shame was so great that Atargatis killed her lover Hadad, and assumed the tail of a fish. The Syrians would not eat fish out of respect for their goddess.

ATHACH

A monster from the folklore of the Scottish Highlands. The Athach may in fact be more than one creature, since the word athach simply means a monster or giant and was applied to several such beings as the Ludeag, a female demon who haunted Loch Nan Dubh, or the Bochan, which can assume a variety of monstrous shapes. Perhaps for this reason, descriptions of it are unclear, though it is said to haunt high places such as cliff sides or steep ravines.

ATRAOIMEN

A monstrous fish-like creature from Caribbean tradition.

Atraoimen became the host for the soul of the hero Kalinago who, tiring of life on the mainland, set sail in search of new lands, eventually arriving at the island of Santa Domingo. There he settled, married and sired many sons. But the sons grew jealous of their father and administered poison to him, at which point his soul passed into the Atraoimen and in this form he pursued his murderers. The sons fled in all directions and were dispersed across a number of islands. In each case, the sons killed the men of the islands, married their women and set up the heads of the slain warriors in caves so that, in time, their own sons could see them and would honour their fathers’ strength. Eventually Kalinogo, in the form of the Atraoimen, caught up with his sons and slew them. In the process of this pursuit, the Carib people spread across the islands, where they remain to this day.

ATTERCROPPE

A curious and malicious fairy creature from Saxon folklore. Its name means ‘Little Poison Head’, and it resembles a small snake with human arms and legs.

ATUA

A name for elemental spirits in the folklore of the Maori people of New Zealand. They inhabit the bodies of other monstrous creatures, such as the Aria or, on occasion, animals such as the gecko. They are extremely venomous. The Atua have many different names and attributes, among which are the Mokotiti, who cause diseases of the lungs; the Korokiorwek, who cause birth defects; the Tarakiki, who inflict swelling to the ankles and toes; the Makawe, whose favourite trick is to drive people into hot pools where they are scalded; and the Titihal, who cause pains in the feet.

They are also known among the Polynesian tribes where they are called Nukir Mai Tore or ‘People of the Otherworld’. Here they have a less fearsome aspect and are akin to Western fairies. They live in the trees and, though shy and reclusive, are known occasionally to marry human beings. It is not permitted to mention their real names and any one who discovers such a name will find their tongue afflicted with paralysis to prevent them from speaking.

ATUNKAI

A strange creature from the folklore of the Native American people of Oregon, Atunkai is said to resemble a gigantic beaver, though it is believed at one time to have been a bear which fell into one of the Wells of Ahuluk. These wells, which contained a number of great water serpents, are said to have the power of transforming anything that falls into them into a monstrous shape.

AUDUMLA

The primeval cow in Norse and Teutonic mythology, who was created out of the melting of the primeval hoarfrost in the vast darkness of Niflheim, the ancient Underworld. Her name means the ‘Horned Cow with Plenty of Milk’. Great streams flowed from her udders and fed the giant Ymir, whose body was later used to form the Earth, while at the same time Audumla licked Buri, the progenitor of the gods, free from the salty ice.

AUFHOCKER

A gigantic demon dog in the folklore of Germany. The name Aufhocker may be translated as ‘Leap Upon’ – and the creature is often seen to do this to its victims. Once it has leapt upon the back of its prey, it grows heavier and heavier until the person is virtually crushed to death. At other times, it will come upon an unwary traveller and walk for a time by his side, then suddenly rise up upon its hind legs until it is tall enough to tear out his throat. These characteristics are similar to that of the Black Dog in British folklore and the Kludde in Belgian tradition.

Though generally portrayed as a dog, the Aufhocker may occasionally appear as a wild black horse, which invites weary travellers to ride on its back. Once mounted, they find that they cannot dismount, while the horse gallops faster and faster, usually ending by throwing them from its back into deep water or swamp. It thus resembles the Kelpie or water horse of Scottish folk tradition. The Aufhocker almost always attacks at night, and it is believed that if its victims can survive until morning they may get free.

AUNYAINA

According to the Pare natives of Brazil, the Aunyaina was an enormous humanoid creature with tusks projecting from its face like those of a wild boar. It hunted humans for its food and chased anyone foolish enough to wander into the forest. Once it had caught them, it ripped them to pieces with its tusks and consumed them entirely, crunching their bones.

One day, some children who were being chased by the Aunyaina climbed into the trees to escape. The children began to swing from tree to tree on the vines which grew there, but the Aunyaina still followed them. Seeing their plight, a parrot flew into the tree and bit through the vine, causing the monster to crash to the ground. From its broken body came the reptiles and lizards which now inhabit the Earth. The children were too afraid to come down from the tree, and eventually became the monkeys which live there to this day.

AURGELMIR

Another name for Ymir, the primordial giant of Norse mythology.

AVAGRAH

In Burmese mythology, Avagrah is one of the names of a great Nyan or Graha, a giant serpent.

AXEHANDLE HOUND

One of a number of bizarre creatures from the folklore and tall tales of American lumberjacks. The Axehandle Hound is one of a group of beings, often called Fearsome Critters, which originated in the minds of men enduring the isolation and wildness of the landscape around Wisconsin and Minnesota during the 19th century. The Axehandle Hound is described as having a long thin body in the shape of an axe handle with small squat legs, and a head resembling the head of an axe. It is said to consume the handles of any axes left unattended!

AYIDA

An alternative name for the great Rainbow Serpent in the folklore of the people of Haiti in the Caribbean. Also known as Aida Hwedo, among the people of Benin in Africa. He is the partner of the Vodun cosmic serpent, Damballah, god of rivers and springs.

AZEMAN

A type of vampire described by the people of Surinam on the north coast of South America. The Azeman is in fact a female, who every night dresses herself in the skin of an animal, and travels around the villages and through the forests attacking and killing anyone she encounters. As with many such creatures, there are ways of defeating or capturing her. In this case, she may be prevented from entering your home by the simple method of placing a broom across the doorstep. Another way of defeating the Azeman is to lay several brooms on the floor of your house – for some reason the Azeman becomes obsessed with counting every bristle in each of the brooms, and is often caught when the sun rises, still counting, and turns to ash. A third way of defeating her is by, during the day, finding the dried animal skin in which she dresses, and sprinkling pepper over it. This makes it impossible for the Azeman to don her cloak of power, and she eventually starves from lack of sustenance.

AZI DAHAKA

The name of a great cosmic serpent or dragon in the Zoroastrian mythology of ancient Persia. Originally, its name was translated as ‘snake’; however, the modern translation in the Farsi language is ‘dragon’. Ultimately, the Azi Dahaka seems to combine something of each of these beings, being portrayed as a winged dragon-snake with three heads, said to represent pain, anguish and death respectively. Each head has six eyes and three pairs of fangs, and the wings of the Azi Dahaka are so huge that when spread they blot out the sun. The great Zoroastrian mystical text Shanamah describes the Azi Dahaka as roughly human in shape save for the two serpents growing out of its neck. Zoroastrian mythology describes the creature as the son of a female demon or as the descendant of Angra Mainu, the original spirit of evil. The myths also say that Azu Dahaka began by eating only cattle, but soon acquired a taste for human flesh. He conspired to overthrow the first human being, Yima, and as a punishment for this, was chained under Mount Demavand by the hero Atta. This is not the end of the story, however, as it is said that at the end of time Azu Dahaka will break free and destroy the greater part of humanity, until itself being defeated by the god Keresaspa. Azu Dahaka is a kind of destroying monster, not unlike the Norse wolf Fenris.

AZ-I-WU-GUM-KI-MUKH-TI

A bizarre and frightening monster from the traditions of the Inuit people of Greenland. It resembled a giant walrus with the head of a dog, dog’s legs, gleaming black scales, and a huge fish’s tail. One blow from this tail could dispatch a human being, and the Az-I-Wu-Gum-Ki-Mukh-Ti was much feared among the Inuit. The 19th-century explorer E.W. Nelson heard much of this creature from the native people and dubbed it the ‘Walrus-Dog’; however, he does not appear to have seen one himself.

AZIZA

Small nature spirits in the folklore of the Dahomey people of West Africa, the Aziza live in the depths of the forest and are very shy, but the Dahomey have encountered them many times and learned from them. They are considered as luck-bringers and as such are frequently invoked by the native people.

B
BABA YAGA

Throughout Russian and East European folk legend, Baba Yaga is famed as a hag who rides through the air in a mortar propelled by the pestle, or in a great iron kettle with her sweeping fiery broom. She lives in a moveable house which has chicken’s legs, in a forest clearing fenced by a palisade made of bones with skulls on top of them, from whose sockets spectral light is emitted. She has teeth of stone or knife-blades. Her mouth can become so huge that passing travellers may mistake it for a cave and so are drawn in and devoured. She is sometimes said to travel with Death and eats the souls of his victims.

Although Baba Yaga has become the archetypal bogey-woman with which to frighten children, she is actually a primal goddess whose knowledge of the world is unequalled. Baba Yaga can also appear as an old peasant woman of kindly disposition. To those who go to her for help, she lends her mirror, her ring, balls of yarn or a self-cutting sword – objects that enable heroes and heroines to achieve their quests. She is helpful to women and a guardian of good order and behaviour, punishing those who outrage it. Her broom shows that she cleanses and cleans, while her pestle and mortar are emblems of creation and destruction. In the earliest legends, she is the keeper of herds, horses and of farming, and is a primal divinity of life and death. In her hands are the reins of nature and its seasons. She controls the flow of milk from the cow, the fall of rain, the growth of crops and she can devour the sun or moon.

Baba Yaga confers upon Koshei, the dragon in human shape, his immortality. She also controls the fire-breathing dragon Chudo-Yudo, who guards the Water of Life and Death. Baba Yaga’s house sits between the world of everyday and the Otherworld, where it acts as a guardian to the land of the dead. The food that Baba Yaga brews in her cauldron is often made up of body parts, which makes a soup of new life to those who understand her true function, but which appears evil and repellent to those who fear her.

Despite her reputation for enticing and devouring human victims, Baba Yaga nevertheless recognizes good housekeeping and simple-hearted perseverance, as is seen from the story of Fair Vassilisa, a maiden who is sent by her stepmother to fetch light from Baba Yaga’s house, meaning for her to die there. Vassilisa serves Baba Yaga so faithfully that the hag gives her a lighted skull to take home; this horrid sight so terrifies the stepmother and her nasty daughter, that Vassilisa is left in possession of her parent’s house.

An elderly couple had a daughter but could not find a godmother for her. Baba Yaga, in the shape of an old woman, offered to be godmother and took the girl to live with her. When the girl offended her by breaking one of her rules, Baba Yaga exiled her to a dark forest alone. There a prince found the girl wandering. He married her and they had three sons who bore the moon and stars upon their foreheads. Baba Yaga demanded these three children in expiation of the girl’s crime, taking them and their mother away with her. The prince followed on and found them standing at the centre of a clearing, near a great fire, surrounded by animals. Baba Yaga allowed the prince to take his sons away but withheld her goddaughter to serve her.

BABI

This aggressive baboon god of the Egyptians lives on human entrails. In the Afterlife, when the deceased’s heart is being weighed in the heart ceremony in the Hall of Two Truths, and when it is decided that wherever the deceased will be able to enter paradise, it is necessary to invoke spells to ward off the attentions of Babi. However, in this life, Babi will help defend against snakes and control turbulent waters. In the cosmic scheme of things, Babi has the ability to control darkness and he can open up the sky for the pharaoh because Babi’s phallus is the bolt locking the doors of heaven. (See baboon.)