The Basan

Legends from every continent mention the "Will-o'-the-Wisp".  This mysterious phenomenon is witnessed only at night, usually in forests and swamps.  It manifests as a flickering ball of light, often seen at a distance through the trees.  Travelers may mistake these lights for lanterns, following them off the past and getting lost in the woods.  In fact, they are not human-made at all -- but what are they?

Nowadays, we know that the answer is swamp gas -- ignited by natural processes.  Bioluminescent fungus may also produce the "Wisp" phenomenon.  But these explanations weren't available until the advent of modern science.  The world's mythologies, understandably, thus came up with other answers.  Some legends claim these lights are demons, trying to lure wanderers to their doom.  Other say they are ghosts -- or fairies, or monsters, or something else entirely.  But my favorite theory comes from Japan.  The "Will-o'-the-Wisp" is produced by a yokai, it's claimed.  And this yokai is a fire-breathing chicken.

Yes, you read that right.  I did mention that there were a lot of strange yokai out there -- this is one of them.  It's called the Basan, and by day it sleeps in the canopy of the forest.  At night, it emerges from its sleep, and lights the darkened sky with its glowing, fiery breath.  The Basan is not dangerous -- thankfully, its fire produces no heat, and is incapable of burning.  This chicken's serve only to illuminate -- as a weapon, they're absolutely useless.

The Basan's flames are often mistaken for those of other yokai.  In fact, various creatures of Japanese legend can produce wisp-like fire.  One is the kitsune -- a trickster fox, which can produce glowing lights called Kitsune-Bi.  Other phantom lights come from Hitodama -- human souls, wandering the earth before entering the afterlife.  These are interesting legends, and certainly worthy of attention, but not quite so interesting as a supernatural chicken.

http://yokai.com/basan/
http://matthewmeyer.net/blog/2009/10/25/a-yokai-a-day-basan/
Image from http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/ShunsenBasan.jpg (public domain)

The Nopperabo

The Nopperabo is a common type of yokai.  These creatures are trickster spirits, seeking to scare but generally not to harm.  They are capable of perfectly impersonating any human -- transforming their face and voice to match their target.  Upon doing so, they will terrify their victim's loved ones, engaging them in conversation before revealing their true identities.  Generally, to frighten a victim, the imposter will wipe off its face -- revealing a blank, featureless one underneath.  This is the true appearance of a Nopperabo.

A typical Nopperabo story goes like this.  A man is taking a nighttime walk, and sees a young woman crying by the side of the road.  Her face is buried in her hands, and the man goes over to comfort her.  When he asks if she is alright, she lifts her head to look at him --revealing the blank countenance of a Nopperabo.  Terrified, the man flees down the road.  As he continues along, he encounters a food vendor , with whom he shares his story.  At first, the vendor seems sympathetic -- until he, too, reveals his blank face.

The man loses his wits entirely at this point, and flees all the way home.  Shaking with fear, he arrives at his house, and nearly collapses from exhaustion.  Concerned, his wife asks what had happened and frightened him so badly.  The man relates his tale, explaining his encounters with the faceless girl and the Nopperabo at the food stand.  His wife comforts him, telling him that yokai aren't real, and that he must have been hallucinating.  The man, relieved, begins to convince himself that his wife is right.  He looks up to thank her for her advice... and sees the smooth, white features of a Nopperabo.

Nopperabo are sometimes referred to as "Mujina" -- a word meaning "badger".  In Japanese folklore, badgers are one of many animals to which supernatural powers are attributed.  Badgers, it is said, are capable of changing their shapes -- and transforming into a faceless Nopperabo.  This is a source of much confusion; Nopperabos are imposters who may be impersonated themselves.

Read more about the Nopperabo:
http://web.archive.org/web/20071231182409/http://www.geocities.com/area51/hollow/6166/faceless.html
http://matthewmeyer.net/blog/2009/10/23/a-yokai-a-day-noppera-bo/
http://www.japanpowered.com/japan-culture/noppera-bo-the-faceless-ghost
Image from http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Ryoi_Nopperabo.jpg/220px-Ryoi_Nopperabo.jpg (public domain)

The Namazu

As of today, BeastPedia is adding a new category.  Meet the yokai, mysterious beasts of Japanese folklore!  These creatures are an incredibly diverse bunch.  Some yokai are ghosts, some are monsters, some are demons, and many are too strange to classify.  In no other mythology will you see an ox-headed spider or an animated teacup.  Believe me, I know.  Excited to read about some yokai?  You should be -- read on, and prepare to meet the Namazu.  It's one heck of a fish story.

Mythology is rife with giant fish, and it's hard to say which is most impressive.  The Greek Aspidochelone was the size of an island -- and was often mistaken for one.  The Bible presents a fish who swallowed a prophet, and Arabian legend gives us Bahamut.  This piscine Atlas was so large that the world rested on its back.  Still, in my opinion, none of these can rival the Namazu.  This catfish was so large, and so dangerous, that it had to be restrained by a god.

The Namazu spent most of its time buried underground.  There a vigilant deity held it in place, preventing it from ever breaking loose.  When the god's concentration slipped, the Namazu thrashed around -- causing the earthquakes that ravaged Japan.  This beast was natural disaster personified.

In 1855, the Namazu went from yokai to national symbol.  After a devastating earthquake leveled Edo, the catfish appeared in a number of woodblock prints.  These prints utilized the Namazu as a symbol of the quake, for reasons ranging from religious to satirical.  On one end of spectrum, people began to venerate the Namazu.  They saw it as a force of cleansing destruction, wiping out the corrupt old order and replacing it with something new.  Others used Namazu prints as a sort of "political cartoon."  They mocked earthquake profiteers (such as carpenters, who built new buildings) by depicting them as catfish worshippers.

The image of the Namazu is still commonplace in Japan.  This yokai lends its likeness to an earthquake-causing Pokemon, and is the logo of an earthquake warning system.  The Namazu has transcended its mythological roots, and is now an icon of popular culture.

Read more about the Namazu:
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/history-of-geology/2012/03/10/namazu-the-earthshaker/
http://pinktentacle.com/2011/04/namazu-e-earthquake-catfish-prints/
http://historyofgeology.fieldofscience.com/2011/01/namazu-earthshaker.html
Image (public domain) from https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_LaqF-3zoRrjFBVCLW3qdCWSQHThYbfUIIdEY57VDh8I1jyel6tCuBgSS6gPjS2ae4u8lKzONMXvYzywM8P_SF27UQMLIJgQO8TRGTZWRu5yfHzbEt6bR_q-cENTuQSMP_8CcR9ssoa3a/s1600/Namazu_Kashima.jpg

Icedrake

Like the firedrake, an icedrake is a mythological dragon that appears in Norse mythology. It is a smaller-than-average classical-style dragon, unusual for its ability to project not a stream of flame, but of ice. Depending on the depiction, they may or may not have wings. Though not very important in mythology, the icedrake shows up commonly in books, movies and video games. It has intruiged generations of mythology buffs, and thus its modern representations in media far overshadow its role in real Norse myths.

Grendel and his Mother

Grendel is an unusual monstrosity that appears in Norse mythology. He is depicted as a huge, hairy, violent humanoid that savages and eats men. In the epic poem Beowulf, the monster repeatedly attacks the title hero's allies, killing and consuming many, until he is challenged by Beowulf himself, who rips of its arm. Grendel dies of his wounds, but his mother, a "sea-hag," tries to avenge him by attacking the same hall frequented by her son. Beowulf hunts her down as well and kills her with a sword at the bottom of the lake where she lives. It is strongly hinted that both Grendel and his mother are aquatic or at least amphibious, as they both live in a cave at the bottom of a lake.

Firedrake

The Firedrake is a Northern European type of dragon common in Norse and sometimes British mythology. It is generally smaller and lighter than a normal classical dragon, and usually red in coloration. Firedrakes get their name from their primary method of defense-- spewing streams of flame powerful enough to melt rocks. These dragons are generally very agressive, and extremly posessive of their territory and their treasure. One firedrake, after a single cup was stolen from its hoard, attacked the surrounding area and eventually came into conflict with the Geatish king Beowulf. Beowulf killed the dragon at the cost of his own life.

Oceanus

Oceanus was one of the first generation of Titans, a group of primitive Greek deities that predated the Olympian gods. He fought against the gods like his brothers in the Titanomachy, and was on the losing side. He personified the giant ocean that was believed to surround the world, and he was the father of the Oceanids: nymphs who controlled all of the world's rivers, oceans, lakes and streams. Like the other first-generation Titans, he married one of his sisters: Tethys. Interestingly, Oceanus seems to have been one of the only Titans who was on good terms with the Olympian gods after the end of the war. He was not thrown into Tartarus with most of his siblings, and even appeared at the wedding of the minor sea god Thetis. Even Greek heroes like Odysseus prayed to Oceanus like a god-- an honor given to no other Titan except Hyperion.

Atlas

Atlas was one of the Titans, an early race of Greek mythological deities that controlled the universe before the rise of the olympians. Atlas was not one of the first generation of Titans, but he was one of their most powerful. Atlas was a brother to Prometheus, among other Titans, and the son of Iapetus. Atlas fought in the Titanomachy, the war that pitted Titans against Olympian Gods, and was on the losing side. Unlike his brothers, who were thrown into Tartarus, Atlas had a special punishment reserved for him after the war. He was forced to stand by the Garden of the Hesperides in northern Africa, supporting the weight of the sky upon his shoulders. Only once was he freed of this burden, and then only briefly--when Hercules temporarily held up the sky for him while Atlas fetched the golden apples of Hera to help the hero finish his eleventh labor. Atlas would not take the sky back willingly, but Hercules tricked him by asking for a break to fetch a shoulder pad. Atlas foolishly held up the sky once again, but instead of fetching a blanket to aid him in his task, Hercules left. Though he was one of the strongest Titans, Atlas' low intelligence cost him his only chance at freedom.

Fenghuang

The Fenghuang of Chinese mythology reigned over all other birds. The males of this immortal, magical species were called Feng and the females Huang. It lived atop the Kunlun mountains in China, and was a powerful bringer of good luck. It represented fire, the sun, and justice. The Fenghuang was notable for its long neck, which it shared with the Phoenix-like Bennu bird of Egypt. It may have been based on a crane or pheasant, or possibly an extinct species of ostrich. Chinese Dragons were partially described from the fossils of dinosaurs, and bones of the extinct Asian ostrich may have inspired stories of the Fenghuang in a similar manner.

Yamata no Orochi

Yamata no Orochi, or Orochi for short, was an eight-headed dragon in Japanese mythology. Every year one Japanese couple was forced to sacrifice one of their eight daughters to the creature, which consumed them. Their last daughter, however, was saved by the god Susanoo. He transformed the girl into a comb to hide her. He then set up a gated enclosure with eight windows and a vat of rice wine beneath each one. The dragon put one head through each window and began to drink the wine, soon falling into a drunken slumber. Susanoo then drew his sword and beheaded the creature. Within the creature's body he found a powerful magical sword, Kusanagi, which he used in later battles.

Echeneis

In Medieval bestiaries, the Echeneis was said to be a six-inch-long fish that dwelled in the Indian Ocean. It had a sucker atop its head which it could attach to a passing ship, thus rendering it immobile. The Echeneis could keep a boat rooted in the water even during a storm. The force of the Echeneis' power was greater than the strength of fifty oarsmen. To get a ship moving again the Echeneis had to be removed by force-- pried off by a sailor or scraped off against a rock, for example. The Echeneis was probably based off of a real animal, the remora. The remora clings to larger creatures like sharks for transport. In fact, the Echeneis was sometimes referred to as the remora, which provides even greater evidence for this hypothesis.

Roc

The Roc was a monstrous bird from Madagascar with feahters as large as palm frongs and a body huge enough to carry off a fully-grown elephant. It frequently raided mainland Africa and Arabia to hunt its favored prey. Marco Polo and Sinbad the Sailor are both said to have encountered one of these colossal birds. Sinbad and his crew broke one of the beast's colossal eggs, inadvertently discovering another trait of the Roc: its vengeful nature. The Roc attacked Sinbad's fleet to get back at them for destroying its unborn chick, both by throwing bounders and by physically attacking them. The Roc was a vicious and relentless predator. This creature was probably based off of the Arabian Sharokh, but myths of the Roc are strikingly similar to that of other mythical beasts like the Native American Thunderbird and the Brazilian Blue Crow. Perhaps all of these giant mythical birds are based on the same creature-- a real giant bird that is either now extinct or yet undiscovered.

Amphisbaena

In Greek mythology, the Amphisbaena was a dangerous dragon-like beast that lived in the Libyan desert. The first of its kind sprung from Medusa's blood as her head was carried over the area by Perseus. The creature resembled a two-headed serpent with a pair of legs. In some descriptions, the Amphisbaena also had a pair of wings. It fed off ants, human corpses and other prey of opportunity. The Amphisbaena chased down prey by putting one head in the mouth of the desert and rolling after them. It was very swift, but did not always need to hunt for its food. It could also set up ambushed by lurking under the desert sands or in an oasis-- the creature could swim and burrow. Like many other mythological serpents, the Amphisbaena also had toxic fangs and hypnotic eyes. The stare of this monster was even more dangerous under the full moon. Anyone who made eye contact with an Amphisbaena while the moon was full would die instantly. The creature's body also had many uses in folk medicine. For example, the wearer of its skin would be cured of a common cold or of arthritis. The Amphisbaena is similar in description to the Lindorm/Lindworm of Arabia.

Catoblepas

The Catoblepas was a legendary creature from Ethiopia described by the ancient Greeks. It was a mid-sized beast with a black, buffalo-like body and the head of either a gnu or a hog. In some descriptions it had scales that ran down its back, protecting it. The head of the Catoblepas was too heavy for it to support, and so it usually was bent downwards, resting on the creature's chest. This is fortunate for travelers in the area, as the gaze of the beast, like that of a basilisk, was lethal. The death-gaze of the Catoblepas withered the vegetation in the area around the creature, often leaving it with nothing to eat. The creature was known to chew on its own legs and hair when hungry. The Catoblepas myth is probably based on the gnu, a similar-looking animal from Africa's savannah. Visitors to the area may have been confused by the prescence of the gnu in the desolate savannah and invented a myth to explain it.

Griffon

The Griffon is a majestic beast that results from the mating of a lion and an eagle. It is, interestingly, quite larger than either of these creatures and in many other ways greater than the sum of its parts. Griffons have the incredibly sharp vision of an eagle combined with the strength and ferocity of a lion, however they also posess a number of unique powers that neither of their parent organisms posess. Griffon claws change color in the prescence of poison, which makes them excellent goblet material, and griffins have a level of intelligence almost equal to that of a human. Griffons are noble beasts, though fierce, and they will usually only attack someone if they stray into the beasts' territory. However, they loathe horses, and will attack them on sight. Though they sometimes eat equines, Griffons are also known to kill them out of pure spite. It is unknown why this natural hatred exists. Few Griffons are known to put aside this hatred of horses, but when they do, occasionally a Griffon/horse half-breed called a Hippogriff would occur. Because of their unusual combination of parents, Hippogriffs are some of the rarest of beasts. Griffons themselves are also very uncommon, and are usually only found in the Caucasus Mountains and the surrounding area.

Vegetable Lamb

The Vegetable Lamb was a bizarre cross of plant-like and animal-like traits. This creature resembled a small, rabbit-sized lamb with extremely soft fur, though its skin was light green and it was connected to a plant by a stem. This stem provided the lamb with nutrients, as did the lamb's mouth, though neither could sustain a lamb alone. Thus, the lambs would die when they consumed all of the nutrients in the area. Sometimes multiple lambs would spring from one stem, which would expend the plants in the area even faster. The wool of these lambs was once a much-treasured resource, as it was both incredibly rare and incredibly soft. The value of this wool was increased even more due to the rarity of the creatures and the small wool yield from each one. This wool farming and their biological weaknesses seems to have led to the disappearance of the vegetable lamb as a species, though they may still have survived in small groups.

Questing Beast

The Questing Beast was an unusual and probably one-of-a-kind creature that was eternally pursued by a number of knights and kings. Even King Arthur himself once encountered the beast as it stopped to drink at a lake he was resting by. The Questing Beast was a large animal with the head of a large serpent, the body of a leopard, the hooves of a deer and the tail of a lion or snake. It was larger than a horse, perhaps the size of a rhinoceros, and very fast. Many knights made the hunting of this beast their life's mission, including the famous King Pellinore. However, none of them ever succeeded. The beast appears to be immortal, as King Pellinore revealed to Arthur that his family had hunted this individual creature for many generations. The questing beast represents the ultimate unattainable goal; the subject of a quest that can never be finished.

Nemean Lion

The mythological Nemean Lion was one of Typhon's eight children, and like its siblings, it was a very powerful monster. While at first it seemed to be nothing more than a large, strong lion, this creature posessed two very potent weapons. The first was its impenetrable hide, which could repel any weapon; the second was its claws, which could slice through any material. These claws turned out to be even more powerful than the beast's amazing hide, for after Heracles killed the lion, he used its own claws to flay off its hide. Killing the Nemean Lion was the first of Heracles' twelve great labors. When his arrows bounced off of the lion's hide, Heracles was forced to kill it slowly by stunning it with his club and throttling it. The lion's skin later was used by Heracles to form a cloak that protected him from any weapon.

Chimaera

The Chimaera was another multiheaded monster from Greek mythology. Of all of Typhon's eight children, the Chimaera was arguably the most powerful. This creature was a horrendous mix of lion, snake, and goat, and all three of its heads could emit powerful blasts of fire. Chimaera also had a multitude of other weapons at its disposal, such as a poisonous spray it could emit from its snake head and slashing claws on its front legs. In some descriptions this creature also had a pair of eagle's wings, which made it an even more versatile adversary. For years the Chimaera prowled the Greek countryside, preying on livestock and those foolish enough to approach it. Eventually, the hero Bellerophon killed the monster by attacking it from the air on his winged steed Pegasus. He then stabbed the monster through its fire-gushing throat with a lead-pointed spear. The spear point melted and the poisonous molten metal flowed into the Chimaera's stomach and lungs, destroying it within minutes. Bellerophon met his own untimely death shortly afterwards, when he tried to fly Pegasus up to the palace of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus, the king of the gods, took offense to this and sent a horsefly to sting Bellerophon's mount. Pegasus bucked the unfortunate monster-killer off, and Bellerophon plunged towards his death on the ground miles below.

Cerberus and Orthus

Another pair of Typhon's children, Cerberus and Orthus were both multiheaded dogs. Orthus was the pet of the three-headed giant Geryon. Orthus was a huge, two-headed monster, with blue skin, the teeth of a shark, and spined clubs at the tips of his dual tails. Like most of Typhon's brood, Orthus and his master died at the tips of Heracles' arrows. Cerberus was much luckier than his brothers and sisters. He is the only one of Typhon's offsprings who, according to the myths, is still alive. This three-headed black hellhound gaurds the gates of the underworld, tearing apart any dead souls that try to leave. This beast is under the god Hades' protection, so though it was once captured by Heracles, no hero has dared to kill it. Cerberus would not be an easy foe to take down, though, even for someone with enough daring to fight it. This beast was immense, by some accounts larger than three elephants, and its claws and teeth were like steak knives. Hidden under its shaggy fur were live serpents, and another, much larger, snake made up the beast's tail.