Portal:Myths

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Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the veracity of a myth is not a defining criterion.

Myths are often endorsed by secular and religious authorities and are closely linked to religion or spirituality. Many societies group their myths, legends, and history together, considering myths and legends to be factual accounts of their remote past. In particular, creation myths take place in a primordial age when the world had not achieved its later form. Origin myths explain how a society's customs, institutions, and taboos were established and sanctified. National myths are narratives about a nation's past that symbolize the nation's values. There is a complex relationship between recital of myths and the enactment of rituals. (Full article...)

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Zeus holding a thunderbolt. Zeus de Smyrne, discovered in Smyrna in 1680.

Zeus (/zjuːs/, Ancient Greek: Ζεύς) is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. His name is cognate with the first syllable of his Roman equivalent Jupiter.

Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea, the youngest of his siblings to be born, though sometimes reckoned the eldest as the others required disgorging from Cronus's stomach. In most traditions, he is married to Hera, by whom he is usually said to have fathered Ares, Eileithyia, Hebe, and Hephaestus. At the oracle of Dodona, his consort was said to be Dione, by whom the Iliad states that he fathered Aphrodite. According to the Theogony, Zeus' first wife was Metis, by whom he had Athena. Zeus was also infamous for his erotic escapades. These resulted in many divine and heroic offspring, including Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Persephone, Dionysus, Perseus, Heracles, Helen of Troy, Minos, and the Muses. (Full article...)

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...that according to Hindu mythology, the deity Revanta (pictured) was born from the union of the sun-god Surya and his wife Saranya in the form of horse and mare?

... that in Chinese mythology, Wu Gang had to chop down a tree on the moon that always healed itself, forcing him to keep trying forever?

... that in Hopi mythology, the Kachina Nataska enforces good behavior among children?

... that Xiuhcoatl was a mythological Aztec fire-serpent, viewed as the spirit form of Xiuhtecuhtli, the fire god, and was the lightning-like weapon of the god Huitzilopochtli?

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The boobrie is a mythological shapeshifting entity inhabiting the lochs of the west coast of Scotland. It commonly adopts the appearance of a gigantic water bird resembling a cormorant or great northern diver, but it can also materialise in the form of various other mythological creatures such as a water bull.

A generally malevolent entity, the boobrie typically preys on livestock being transported on ships, but it is also fond of otters, of which it consumes a considerable number. In its manifestation as a water horse the creature is able to gallop across the top of lochs as if on solid ground. During the summer months it is seen infrequently as a large insect, sucking the blood of horses. (Full article...)

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Vampire Fenrir Ala (demon) Sharabha Ratatoskr Huginn and Muninn Keshi (demon) Nuckelavee Sea Mither Stoor worm Mermaid Dragon Siren (mythology) Hippocampus (mythology) Phoenix (mythology) Centaur Unicorn Serpent (symbolism) Anzû Cerberus

General images

The following are images from various myth-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Lord Vishnu took the form of Beauty Mohini and distributed the Amrita (Ambrosia, Elixir) to Devas. When Rahu (snake dragon) tried to steal the Amrita, his head was cut off (from List of mythological objects)
Image 2Prometheus (1868) by Gustave Moreau. In the mythos of Hesiodus and possibly Aeschylus (the Greek trilogy Prometheus Bound, Prometheus Unbound and Prometheus Pyrphoros), Prometheus is bound and tortured for giving fire to humanity. (from Myth)
Image 3Achilles wearing his armor (from List of mythological objects)
Image 4Thor kicks Litr onto Baldr's Hringhorni, illustration by Emil Doepler (ca. 1905) (from List of mythological objects)
Image 5The third gift — an enormous hammer (1902) by Elmer Boyd Smith and the ring Draupnir is visible among other creations by the Sons of Ivaldi (from List of mythological objects)
Image 6Goetia seal of solomon (from List of mythological objects)
Image 7Longinus with his famous Spear (from List of mythological objects)
Image 8King Svafrlame Secures the Sword Tyrfing (from List of mythological objects)
Image 9Jason returns with Golden fleece (from List of mythological objects)
Image 10Snake and world egg of the inhabitants of Tyre (from List of mythological objects)
Image 11Opening lines of one of the Mabinogi myths from the Red Book of Hergest (written pre-13c, incorporating pre-Roman myths of Celtic gods):
Gereint vab Erbin. Arthur a deuodes dala llys yg Caerllion ar Wysc...
(Geraint the son of Erbin. Arthur was accustomed to hold his Court at Caerlleon upon Usk...) (from Myth)
Image 12Hop-o'-My-Thumb stealing the Seven-league boots from the Ogre, by Gustave Doré (from List of mythological objects)
Image 13Jug from Lydian Treasure Usak (from List of mythological objects)
Image 14"Tizona", the sword attributed to El Cid, on exhibit in the Army Museum of Madrid (from List of mythological objects)
Image 15Tissot Moses and Joshua in the Tabernacle (from List of mythological objects)
Image 16Yama with his famous Yama Pasha (from List of mythological objects)
Image 17Golem and Loew (from List of mythological objects)
Image 18Perillos being forced into the brazen bull that he built for Phalaris (from List of mythological objects)
Image 19Vishnu holding his legendary sword Nandaka (from List of mythological objects)
Image 20The Giving of the Seven Bowls of Wrath / The First Six Plagues, Revelation 16:1–16. Matthias Gerung, c. 1531 (from List of mythological objects)
Image 21Shield of Achilles (illustration) (from List of mythological objects)
Image 22Ancient Sumerian cylinder seal impression showing the god Dumuzid being tortured in the Underworld by galla demons (from Comparative mythology)
Image 23Symbolic power: a dragon in the Imperial City, Huế, Vietnam (from Legendary creature)
Image 24An angel (Camael) expelling Adam and Eve with a flaming sword (from List of mythological objects)
Image 25Aura, a field of luminous radiation surrounding a person or object (from List of mythological objects)
Image 26Claíomh Solais on an Ireland stamp printed in 1922 (from List of mythological objects)
Image 27The Shrine of the Three Kings in Cologne Cathedral (from List of mythological objects)
Image 28The Fall of the Titans (1596–98) by Cornelis Cornelisz van Haarlem (from Comparative mythology)
Image 29Golden cosmic egg Hiranyagarbha by Manaku (from List of mythological objects)
Image 30Riding a Flying Carpet, an 1880 painting by Viktor Vasnetsov (from List of mythological objects)
Image 31Veronica holding her veil, Hans Memling, c. 1470 (from List of mythological objects)
Image 32Heracles would use arrows dipped in the Hydra's poisonous blood to kill other foes during his Labours, such as Stymphalian birds and the giant (from List of mythological objects)
Image 33Voodoo doll with pins in it, Museum of Witchcraft (from List of mythological objects)
Image 34Several mythical creatures from Bilderbuch für Kinder (lit. 'picture book for children') between 1790 and 1822, by Friedrich Justin Bertuch (from Legendary creature)
Image 35Sampo, a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, in the Finnish epic poetry Kalevala (The Forging of the Sampo, Joseph Alanen, 1911) (from List of mythological objects)
Image 36The Flying Dutchman (from List of mythological objects)
Image 371929 Belgian banknote, depicting Ceres, Neptune and caduceus (from Myth)
Image 38Hand of God (from List of mythological objects)
Image 39Adam's Bridge also called as Rama Setu (from List of mythological objects)
Image 40Edith Hamilton's Mythology has been a major channel for English speakers to learn classical Greek and Roman mythology (from Myth)
Image 41The Stone of Destiny (Lia Fáil) at the Hill of Tara, once used as a coronation stone for the High Kings of Ireland (from List of mythological objects)
Image 42seven angels with seven trumpets (from List of mythological objects)
Image 43"The Fall of Man" by Lucas Cranach the Elder and the Tree of Knowledge is on the right (from List of mythological objects)
Image 44Image showing the sacred tree to the right of the temple, from Olaus Magnus' Historia de Gentibus Septentrionalibus (1555). To the right of the tree is a depiction of a man being sacrificed in the spring (from List of mythological objects)
Image 45The Ash Yggdrasil by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine (from List of mythological objects)
Image 46Shiva with his Trishula (from List of mythological objects)
Image 47As is usual in bestiaries, the lynx in this late 13th-century English manuscript is shown urinating, the urine turning to the mythical stone Lyngurium (from List of mythological objects)
Image 48The Celestial Chariot, Pushpaka Vimana from Ramayana (from List of mythological objects)
Image 49The Deluge, frontispiece to Gustave Doré's illustrated edition of the Bible. Based on the story of Noah's Ark, this engraving shows humans and a tiger doomed by the flood futilely attempting to save their children and cubs. (from Comparative mythology)
Image 5014th century Goryeo painting of Ksitigarbha holding a cintamani (from List of mythological objects)
Image 51Erlang Shen (二郎神), or Erlang is a Chinese God with his spear (from List of mythological objects)
Image 52Fig trees often represent talismans with the udumbara (from List of mythological objects)
Image 53Joan of Arc with her famous sword (from List of mythological objects)
Image 54Lichas bringing the garment of Nessus to Hercules (from List of mythological objects)
Image 55Azoth, a universal medicine or universal solvent sought in alchemy. (Medieval legend) (from List of mythological objects)
Image 56Surya on His Celestial Chariot (from List of mythological objects)
Image 57 Odysseus Overcome by Demodocus' Song, by Francesco Hayez, 1813–1815 (from Myth)
Image 58Ballads of bravery (1877) part of Arthurian mythology (from Myth)
Image 59Pied piper (from List of mythological objects)
Image 60The Dispute of Minerva and Neptune (c. 1689 or 1706) by René-Antoine Houasse, depicting the founding myth of Athens (from National myth)
Image 61Myths and legends of Babylonia and Assyria (1916) (from Myth)
Image 62Giza pyramids (from List of mythological objects)
Image 63Killing of Ravana Painting by Brahmstra of Arrow of Brahma (from List of mythological objects)
Image 64Rectangular tablets passed down by the Hand of God in the 10th century Byzantine Leo Bible (from List of mythological objects)
Image 65Amenonuhoko (天沼矛 or 天之瓊矛 or 天瓊戈, "heavenly jeweled spear") is the name given to the spear in Shinto used to raise the primordial land-mass, Onogoro-shima, from the sea (from List of mythological objects)
Image 66Holy Robe in Trier (from List of mythological objects)
Image 67Greek God Kronos/Saturnus with sickle (from List of mythological objects)
Image 68Artist's impressions of the (unseen) Imperial Regalia of Japan (from List of mythological objects)
Image 69This panel by Bartolomeo di Giovanni relates the second half of the Metamorphoses. In the upper left, Jupiter emerges from clouds to order Mercury to rescue Io. (from Myth)
Image 70Ahimelech giving the sword of Goliath to David, by Aert de Gelder. (from List of mythological objects)
Image 71Väinämöinen, the wise demigod and one of the significant characters of Finnish mythological 19th-century epic poetry, The Kalevala (Väinämöinen's Play, Robert Wilhelm Ekman, 1866) (from Myth)
Image 72The famous sword of Excalibur painted by Howard Pyle (from List of mythological objects)
Image 73The Honest Woodcutter, also known as Mercury and the Woodman and his famous Golden Axe (from List of mythological objects)
Image 74Fortune Wheel (from List of mythological objects)
Image 75Dietrich von Bern and Hildebrand fight against dragons (from List of mythological objects)
Image 76Hanuman fetches the herb-bearing mountain, in a print from the Ravi Varma Press, 1910's (from List of mythological objects)
Image 77Thor wearing the magic belt Megingjörð (from List of mythological objects)
Image 78Vishnu with his Panchajanya (from List of mythological objects)
Image 79Houyi, the God of Archery (from List of mythological objects)
Image 80Ancient Roman relief from the Cathedral of Maria Saal showing the infant twins Romulus and Remus being suckled by a she-wolf (from Comparative mythology)
Image 81The Argo (c. 1500 – 1530), painting by Lorenzo Costa (from List of mythological objects)
Image 82Jacob blesses Joseph and gives him the coat of many colors (from List of mythological objects)
Image 83Fountain of Youth (from List of mythological objects)
Image 84The fall of Icarus (from List of mythological objects)
Image 85The Crown of Immortality, held by the allegorical figure Eterna (Eternity) (from List of mythological objects)
Image 86A 19th-century drawing of Sun Wukong featuring his staff (from List of mythological objects)
Image 87Early Hebrew Conception of the Universe (from List of mythological objects)