Mythology - Blog Posts

Aeneas taken by the Sibyl to the Underworld (Detail), 17th century. By Jacob Isaacsz. van Swanenburg

fav hindu mythology stories: Krishna and Kaliya

“Kaliya, in Hindu traditions, was the name of a poisonous Naga (snake) living in the Yamuna River, in Vrindavan. The water of the Yamuna for four leagues all around him boiled and bubbled with poison. No bird or beast could go near, and only one solitary Kadamba tree grew on the river bank.

Once Krishna and herdboys were playing ball, and while playing Krishna climbed up the Kadamba tree and hung over the river bank, the ball fell into the river and Krishna jumped after it. Kāliya rose up with his hundred and ten hoods vomiting poison and wrapped himself around Krishna’s body. Krishna became so huge that Kāliya had to release him. So Krishna saved himself from every attack, and when he saw the Brij folk were so afraid he suddenly sprang into Kāliya’s head and assumed the weight of the whole universe, and danced on the naga’s heads, beating time with his feet. Then, Kāliya began to die. But then the naga’s wives came and prayed to Krishna with joined palms, worshipping Krishna and praying for their husband.

Kāliya, recognizing the greatness of Krishna, surrendered, promising he would not harass anybody. So Krishna pardoned him and then let him go free to leave the river and go to Ramanaka Dwipa, his home.” (x)

credits: i, ii, iii, iv, v, vi, vii, viii, ix

Krishna and Rukmini for the Compass Rose meme. Thanks.😄

North

first encounter | (turnabout is) fair play | fool’s gold | forbidden fruit | the female of the species is more deadly than the male

They watch her, eyes glittering with greed, and anger tightens Rukmini’s throat once more: to this crowd of shameless men, she is no more than a prize, a possession that their friend has already claimed.

She forces herself to smile.

Let them look; they will never have more than this illusion of her, docile and demure. They are fools, each and every one of them, and treasure knows better than to stay in their hands.

South

(cold) comfort | confession | cloak and dagger |  crocodile tears | charmed life

Perhaps it is a tad dramatic to send a secret letter.

Rukmini cannot bring herself to regret it, though: always she has been wise Rukmini, prudent Rukmini, Rukmini to whom all answers are known. Some might suppose it was only that she craved some excitement in her life; so, at least, her brother supposes in her fury.

But in truth, she has as much of a taste for intrigue as her husband — and when one feels so, when one fights for her very life, who would not expect wise and prudent Rukmini to plot and scheme?

East

stars | songs and stories | (politics/misery makes for) strange bedfellows | silver lining | sea change

Someday, Rukmini knows, Dwaraka will return to the sea. She does not regret this: her kingdom, though beautiful, is but borrowed from the ocean, and outsiders may not enjoy his bounty for long.

No, what she dreads is that Dwaraka dares not abandon its duty while Krishna lives, but he cannot do so forever. Someday, Rukmini knows, Krishna must return to the heavens from which he came—and that day shall be her last on this earth.

West

just in time | joined at the hip | jam tomorrow | juvenile | journey’s end

Her heart stops a dozen times, once for every step that leads down the Devi temple. She feels alone, flanked though she is by waiting-women—at least until she hears the thunder of trotting horses.

A hand takes hers, and tugs her into the chariot; Rukmini laughs in delight.

“I trust,” says Krishna, “that I am not too late.”

“Not at all,” Rukmini replies, in every bit as excessively solemn a tone. “You are just in time.”

They beam at each other.

So I've been re-reading the Olympians graphic novel series (100% recommend by the way) and I kind of wanted to redesign/make "character sheets" for different greek gods I like (which isn't a lot by the way, so i won't be doing many unless you'd all like me to because I love you all <3)

The first one I did was hades. I'm super proud of that one. Then Apollo (that pose was freehanded by the way!!!!!!). Hermes is a work in progress and I half-traced the top pose. I just couldn't get the muscles to look right so I traced some of George O'Connor (the artist and writer behind the olympians series)'s art of Hermes.

The next one on my docket is Dionysos, and maybe also Pan (Hermes' son)

I might do Persephone, Artemis, and Athena but who knows honestly

but anyways do you want to see me do your favorite Greek gods? (I could probably also do other godly beings like the 7 deadly sins or smth (obv redesigned from my designs because I'm not lazy) if you want)

Love you guys, byeee!!

Children of the sun

A Hansry art piece inspired by Aristophanes myth/speech from Platos ''Symposium'' on the origin of love and desire.

In short people used to roam the earth attached to each other, back to back, never being able to look at each other. Two men were called children of the sun, two women children of the earth and a man and a woman were called children of the moon. But they got too powerful and Zeus struck them down and separated them. They scattered and would spend their life trying to find their other half, trying to push themselves back together again.

look up also the amazing song ''Origin of Love'' that does a short retelling from the musical ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch''

"Icarus" -

Prints

Speedpaint and process breakdown for this piece is on Patreon, plus many other art tutorials, exclusive Patreon artwork, and more! 🌺 April is almost over, so that means there are only a few more days (!!!) left to grab this month's pin. Don't miss out on these limited quantity pins.

monster high au

Whenever Apollo and Hermes black out drunk, they always wake up watching Emperors New Groove together.

Seriously this is like their 472829381th time watching it

SAVING THIS FOR LATER BECAUSE I ABSOLUTELY NEED IT FOR MY END OF YEAR/FINAL EXAM ART PROJET

WIKIPEDIA MONSTER COMPILATION PAGES FOR PEOPLE

japanese creatures

greek creatures

creatures organised by type

creatures listed by letter

humanoid creatures

filipino creatures

chinese creatures

cryptids

‘fearsome critters’

angels

beings referred to as fairies

creatures that pretend to be human

a page on therianthropic creatures

shapeshifters

hybrid creatures

extraterrestrial creatures

deities

a page of mythology page links

a section of folklore page links

flying creatures

theological demons

fictional species lists

mythology related lists

legendary creature related lists

So… kaos got cancelled despite having massive stars in it and netflix hyping it up for ages

I propose fans of kaos and DBDA join forces against Netflix

Renew Kaos: https://chng.it/9gbRqHBBsm

Save Dead Boy Detectives: https://chng.it/85NwXdPyRD

ooh mythology yay! 😀

Myths, Creatures, and Folklore

Want to create a religion for your fictional world? Here are some references and resources!

General:

General Folklore

Various Folktales

Heroes

Weather Folklore

Trees in Mythology

Animals in Mythology

Birds in Mythology

Flowers in Mythology

Fruit in Mythology

Plants in Mythology

Folktales from Around the World

Africa:

Egyptian Mythology

African Mythology

More African Mythology

Egyptian Gods and Goddesses

The Gods of Africa

Even More African Mythology

West African Mythology

All About African Mythology

African Mythical Creatures

Gods and Goddesses

The Americas:

Aztec Mythology

Haitian Mythology

Inca Mythology

Maya Mythology

Native American Mythology

More Inca Mythology

More Native American Mythology

South American Mythical Creatures

North American Mythical Creatures

Aztec Gods and Goddesses

Asia:

Chinese Mythology

Hindu Mythology

Japanese Mythology

Korean Mythology

More Japanese Mythology

Chinese and Japanese Mythical Creatures

Indian Mythical Creatures

Chinese Gods and Goddesses

Hindu Gods and Goddesses

Korean Gods and Goddesses

Europe:

Basque Mythology

Celtic Mythology

Etruscan Mythology

Greek Mythology

Latvian Mythology

Norse Mythology

Roman Mythology

Arthurian Legends

Bestiary

Celtic Gods and Goddesses

Gods and Goddesses of the Celtic Lands

Finnish Mythology

Celtic Mythical Creatures

Gods and Goddesses

Middle East:

Islamic Mythology

Judaic Mythology

Mesopotamian Mythology

Persian Mythology

Middle Eastern Mythical Creatures

Oceania:

Aboriginal Mythology

Polynesian Mythology

More Polynesian Mythology

Mythology of the Polynesian Islands

Melanesian Mythology

Massive Polynesian Mythology Post

Maori Mythical Creatures

Hawaiian Gods and Goddesses

Hawaiian Goddesses

Gods and Goddesses

Creating a Fantasy Religion:

Creating Part 1

Creating Part 2

Creating Part 3

Creating Part 4

Fantasy Religion Design Guide

Using Religion in Fantasy

Religion in Fantasy

Creating Fantasy Worlds

Beliefs in Fantasy

Some superstitions:

Read More

Sean bienvenidos japonítasarqueológicos a una nueva entrega, en esta ocasión vengo a aclarar dudas sobre la diosa Amaterasu dicho esto comencemos. - Amaterasu aparece en los libros kojiki y Nihonshoki que son los más antiguos de Japón, dicha diosa simboliza el sol, la luz, la compasión y la verdad. Además Representa la casa real con la flor de crisantemo, también ha recibido otros nombres como: "Hirume" y "Mukatsuhime. Sus padres eran izanagi(dios creador de Japón) e izanami(diosa del infierno), izanagi al quedar contaminado de la tierra de Yomi fue a purificarse y al quitarse la ropa fueron naciendo los demás dioses y ella nació de su ojo izquierdo. Amaterasu gobernaba el Takamanohara y su hermano Susanoo era el dios del mar. - Amaterasu, estaba asustada por su hermano menor y decidió esconderse en una cueva profunda en Takamagahara llamada "Ama no Iwato" y bloqueó la entrada. Este es el famoso “Amaniwato no Kamigakure”, que el pueblo japonés sigue recreado como una de sus muchas tradiciones populares. - Como ya hablamos en otras publicaciones el sintohismo, es una religión autóctona de Japón que durante la era Meiji sería utilizada para clasificar lo japonés y de lo que no era japonés, los japoneses nunca dejaron el sintohismo de lado. La simbología de la bandera japonesa se remonta desde tiempos muy remotos. - La diosa Amaterasu tiene unos 5000 templos dedicados a ella y se llaman Shinmei Jinja. El templo se localiza dentro del santuario Ise Jingu, también conocido como (oise-san) y el templo se llama Kotai jingu. En la ciudad de Iwato en la prefectura Miyazaki se encuentra el santuario Amanoiwato donde se dice que Amaterasu fue establecida como deidad principal. Amaterasu lo podemos traducir como: Diosa del sol o como diosa solar. - 新作へようこそ、今回は天照大神の疑問を解き明かすということで、始めましょう。 - 日本最古の古事記や日本書紀に登場する天照大神は、太陽、光、慈悲、真実を象徴しています。また、菊の花で王家を表し、「ヒルメ」や「ムカツヒメ」などの別名も持っています。彼の両親はイザナギ（日本の創造神）とイザナミ（地獄の女神）でした。ヨミから大地を離れ、身を清めに行き、服を脱ぐと他の神々が生まれ、左目から生まれました。 アマテラスは高天原を治め、弟のスサノオは海の神でした。 - 弟を恐れたアマテラスは、高天原の深い洞窟「天の岩戸」に身を隠し、入口をふさいだ。これが有名な「天岩戸の神隠れ」で、日本人は多くの人気のある伝統の1つとして再現し続けています. - 他の出版物ですでに説明したように、神道は日本固有の宗教であり、明治時代に日本人とそうでないものを分類するために使用されましたが、日本人は決して神道を放棄しませんでした.日本の国旗のシンボルは、非常に遠い時代にまでさかのぼります。 - 天照大神を祀るお寺は約5,000あり、神明神社と呼ばれています。このお寺は伊勢神宮内にあり、通称「お伊勢さん」とも呼ばれ、皇体神宮と呼ばれています。宮崎県岩戸市には天照大神を主祭神とする天岩戸神社がある。アマテラスは、太陽の女神または太陽の女神として翻訳できます。 - Welcome to a new installment, this time I come to clarify doubts about the goddess Amaterasu, having said that, let's begin. - Amaterasu appears in the Kojiki and Nihonshoki books, which are the oldest in Japan, this goddess symbolizes the sun, light, compassion and truth. It also represents the royal house with the chrysanthemum flower, it has also received other names such as: "Hirume" and "Mukatsuhime. His parents were izanagi (creator god of Japan) and izanami (goddess of hell), izanagi when contaminated by the earth from Yomi she went to purify herself and when she took off her clothes the other gods were born and she was born from her left eye. Amaterasu ruled the Takamanohara and her brother Susanoo was the god of the sea. - Amaterasu, scared of her younger brother, hid in a deep cave in Takamagahara called "Ama no Iwato" and blocked the entrance. This is the famous "Amaniwato no Kamigakure", which the Japanese people continue to recreate as one of their many popular traditions. - As we have already discussed in other publications, Shintoism is an indigenous religion of Japan that during the Meiji era would be used to classify what is Japanese and what was not Japanese, the Japanese never abandoned Shintoism aside. The symbology of the Japanese flag dates back to very remote times. - The goddess Amaterasu has about 5,000 temples dedicated to her and they are called Shinmei Jinja. The temple is located inside the Ise Jingu shrine, also known as (oise-san) and the temple is called Kotai jingu. In the city of Iwato in Miyazaki Prefecture is the Amanoiwato Shrine where Amaterasu is said to have been established as the chief deity. Amaterasu we can translate it as: Goddess of the sun or as solar goddess.

Sean bienvenidos, japonistasarqueológicos a una nueva entrega en esta ocasión hablaremos de Tomoe Gozen una vez dicho esto pónganse cómodos que empezamos. - Tomoe Gozen en hiragana (ともえごぜん) pertenece a Onna-bugeisha (女武芸者) mujeres luchadoras en japonés se conoce más como Ba Yuqian, al hablar de samurais se nos viene imágenes de hombres, las mujeres también tuvieron un gran papel y Tomoe Gozen fue una mujer que participó en el conflicto Genpei 1180-1192, su existencia está un tanto discutida. - Kiso Yoshinaka es muy hábil en las artes marciales y es bueno en el uso de arcos y flechas, os pondré una foto de la Estatua de Kiso Yoshinaka y Bagomae en la prefectura de Nagano. Fue una gran estratega, ya que cuenta la leyenda que en la Batalla del paso de Kuligara uso toros de fuego. - El Cantar de Heike: Son los poemas clásicos más importantes de la historia y la literatura japonesa, en el cual hablan de un sinfín de personajes y leyendas de la época. Fue escrito a principios del siglo XIII. - Espero que os haya gustado, os deseo una feliz semana y nos vemos en próximas publicaciones. 考古学ジャポニストの皆さん、新しい連載へようこそ。今回は巴御前についてお話します。そうは言っても、気を楽にしてから始めましょう。 - ひらがなで「ともえごぜん」は女武芸者に属し、日本語では巴玉銭として知られる女性戦士です。武士といえば男性のイメージが思い浮かびますが、女性も大きな役割を果たしました。 1180年から1192年にかけて源平合戦に参加した女性ですが、その存在については若干の議論があります。 - 木曽義仲は武芸に優れ、弓矢の扱いにも長けており、長野県にある木曽義仲像と馬籠前の写真を載せておきます。 クリガラ峠の戦いでは火の雄牛を使用したという伝説があるため、彼女は優れた戦略家でした。 - 平家の歌: 平家の歌は、日本の歴史と文学において最も重要な古典詩であり、その中で当時の無数の登場人物や伝説について語られています。 13世紀初頭に書かれました。 - 気に入っていただけたなら幸いです。楽しい一週間をお過ごしください。また今後の出版物でお会いしましょう。 Welcome, Archaeological Japonists to a new installment, this time we will talk about Tomoe Gozen, having said that, make yourself comfortable and let's start. - Tomoe Gozen in hiragana (ともえごぜん) belongs to Onna-bugeisha (女武芸者) female fighters in Japanese is better known as Ba Yuqian, when talking about samurai images of men come to mind, women also had a great role and Tomoe Gozen was a woman who participated in the Genpei conflict 1180-1192, her existence is somewhat disputed. - Kiso Yoshinaka is very skilled in martial arts and is good at using bows and arrows, I will put you a photo of Kiso Yoshinaka Statue and Bagomae in Nagano Prefecture. She was a great strategist, since she tells the legend that in the Battle of Kuligara Pass she used bulls of fire. - The Song of Heike: They are the most important classical poems in Japanese history and literature, in which they speak of an endless number of characters and legends of the time. It was written at the beginning of the 13th century. - I hope you liked it, I wish you a happy week and see you in future publications.

Sean bienvenidos a una nueva entrega de mitología nipona, en esta ocasión os presento a los Kodama en hiragana (こだま) ¿Qué son? Son unos seres, que pertenecen al sintoísmo, lo que correspondería a criaturas protectoras de los buques¿Os resultan adorables?. - Os recomiendo la película de La princesa Mononoke, espero que os haya gustado y nos vemos en próximas publicaciones. - 日本神話、今回はひらがなの「こだま」です。神道に属する存在で、船を守る生き物に相当するんだ。 かわいいと思うかい？ - 映画「もののけ姫」はオススメです！気に入っていただけたでしょうか？また次の記事でお会いしましょう。 - Welcome to a new installment of Japanese mythology, this time I introduce you to the Kodama in hiragana (こだま) What are they? They are beings that belong to Shintoism, which would correspond to creatures that protect ships. Do you find them adorable? - I recommend you the Princess Mononoke movie, I hope you liked it and I'll see you in future posts.

Sean bienvenidos, japonistasarqueologos, a una nueva entrega en esta ocasión os presento por encima a un nuevo Yōkai una vez dicho esto pónganse cómodos que empezamos. - En todo el mundo hay nutrias, pero por desgracia, están desapareciendo por qué el hombre las cazaba para pieles etc. Actualmente, quedan muy pocas y es ilegal tenerlas como mascota solo si tienes permiso. - Pero en este caso nos trasladamos a Japón y comentaré por encima a las nutrias de río, son consideras un demonio o espíritu llamados Yōkai y reciben el nombre de Kawauso y en hiragana (かわうそ), hay muchos animes que abarcan este tema. ¿Conocían este Yōkai? - Espero que os guste y nos vemos en próximas publicaciones, que pasen una buena semana. - 日本びいきの皆さん、考古学者の皆さん、ようこそ新連載へ。今回は新しい妖怪を紹介しよう。 - カワウソは世界中に生息しているが、人間が毛皮などのために狩りをしたため、残念ながら姿を消しつつある。現在ではほとんど残っておらず、ペットとして飼うには許可を得なければ違法となっている。 - カワウソは妖怪と呼ばれ、ひらがなで「かわうそ」と呼ばれ、この話題を扱ったアニメがたくさんあります。 この妖怪を知っていますか？ - それでは、また次の記事でお会いしましょう。 - Welcome, Japanophiles and archaeologists, to a new installment, this time I will introduce you to a new Yōkai, having said that, make yourselves comfortable and let's get started. - There are otters all over the world, but unfortunately, they are disappearing because humans used to hunt them for fur etc. Nowadays, there are very few of them left and it is illegal to keep them as pets only if you have a permit. - But in this case we move to Japan and I will comment on the river otters, they are considered a demon or spirit called Yōkai and are called Kawauso and in hiragana (かわうそ), there are many anime that cover this topic. Did you know this Yōkai? - Hope you like it and see you in next posts, have a nice week.

Inktober 2023 #10. Fortune

Extras Below!:

Wuthering Heights

(This is a brief inspiration I had after reading Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte and after listening to Kate Bush' song.)

Oh! It's him! He's here!

Oh! It's him! He's here!

Oh! It's him! He's here!

Oh! It's him! He's here........

and so, the voices whispered near my ear...

It was a windy day, clouds were blocking the Sun's light, protecting our eyes from its lethal rays. The Rain was soon to come and English people were strangely "happy" for it to come. Grey engulfed their senses, the vain shades of color appearing frequently and the cold burning the tip of their nose, forcing their instincts to shoot out at fluttering around to find anything to use as a cover. After all this daily mundane suffering, they still loved these landscapes and the punishment that came with them.

I was hiding in the little corner of his office, shaking wildly. Trembles came out of everywhere.

He had the temper of one of Zeus' child, Ares. My former lover, Ares (yes, exactly him), was also overflowed with fury and rage, not really understanding where it came from. A God who loved battle, blood, competiton and anger. He fought until the end of it all, just like his father, that's why Zeus never preferred him as a child.

With me, he was a strange monster. You must wonder why would I think in such a way about a former lover... Well, he was not a human, nor an alien, he was a God. I'm saying this because at the beginning I didn't know what he was. When he started courting me, I hadn't noticed the immense love he had for me, which was unacceptable to me; how could a man love a woman thusly? He hadn't known me, nor had he ever seen me previously, even by mistake. I'm sure of it. Hence, my intuition told me that he was not a good sign, coming to me and confessing such a profound love. "And who do you think you are, behaving to such a degree without any further motivation?"

The strangest part was that he didn't even manage to show me his family, that enormous family of his, that he was so eager to introduce me to. But, I saw his mother in my dreams. Hera. That woman. That Goddess- The mother in law I couldn't be able to have.

She was caressing my hair and cheeks while fondly looking at me as if she created me with her own hands. Perhaps, she did. We could never know.

Hera was speaking to me, in a language I understood at that moment but once I woke up, I couldn't seem to remember a thing.

What happened next made me freeze to death, literally. She moved her hand, with the intention to caress my belly. I had no idea what she was trying to do at that time. While doing so, she raised her head, looking at me and smiling once again, in such a fondly way that even in real life I felt the tears starting to shed from my eyes. That explains the wet eyes and pillow I had once I woke up.

I woke up. Ares was by my side, sleeping soundly. I was shaking. Trembles were fluttering their way up my body. Ares, still deep in his sleep, he raised his arm up, gripped my hip and moved me to the inside of his hairy chest. He wrapped his arms tightly around me, he scooted his head in my neck and sighed with a warm breath making me shudder under him.

I'm a cold little woman who needs heat coming out of her "husbands" body, words and eyes.

It was all a sign, to tell me that something was going on.

On 2 June, a Sunday, he left and never came back. Where to go, I don't know. But my soul and energy reeked of him still, my inner witch, that was hidden in the profounds of the universe, searched for him like a desperate bitch.

He left on my birthday.

And I loved him wholly, even if he was a monster.

He's here! We want his heat! Let him burn us!

He's here! We want his heat! Let him burn us!

He's here! We want his heat! Let him burn us!

He's here! We want his heat! Let him burn us!

and so, the voices started once again...

Mars was his name. The man that came in my house and bribed me under his own fate.

Now I tremble wholly and my body needs my "husbands" heat. Where will I find it?

He comes to me. Every step he takes, I feel even colder than before. My body freezing, but my soul doesn't seem to shut up.

He is now so close to me that he could hear my heart beating.

"Xena, my love..." he whispers so softly that even I am bewildered at how I managed to hear it.

That name. "No. Don't say that name." he can't. How did he? He should be dead now. No human or other specie can ever utter that name.

"Xena... it's me. Look at me, please." he softly utters my name again.

He isn't dead. Why? How?

Ares! Lover! Come here! We're so cold!

Ares! Lover! Come here! We're so cold!

Ares! Lover! Come here! We're so cold!

Ares! Lover! Come here! We're so cold!

I shake my head wildly. Why are they not shutting up? Why can you not understand that he left us? my voice echoes in my head silencing them. For now, because they started once again.

I look up. There he is. My Ares.

"Xena, it's me, Ares." he calls.

The voices were silent. His voice was exactly Ares' voice. But how-

"You aren't! Mars how? What are you- what are you trying to do?" my voice trembles from the cold I felt. He looked like my Ares and he was as tall as him. The unique height that only my husband had.

It can't be true.

"Xena... think about it. Why would someone be named Mars?" he questioned me, inviting me to think.

Mars. In Latin for the God of war, Ares. The one and only deity that had made such an imponent famous story throughout the archaic Rome.

While trembling from the cold, I raise my hands and caress my freezing cheeks; he managed to call me by my name without dying. He has the same features and physic as him. The name is exactly the same as his but in a different language.

So, it's truly him.

I remove my hands away from my face and I raise my head up, looking towards him. Tears come out of my eyes, flooding my entire sight.

"Ares?" I say in a meek voice, which I doubt he would hear if he'd have a normal hearing.

He just nods his head, "Xena. It's me, Ares. I've come home." he says whispering.

"Ares! It's you! You're here!" I call for him while tremendously shaking like a leaf.

He comes extremely close to me, grips me at the wrists and gets me up from my seated position, engulfing me in his arms.

His heat consumes me, making me feel whole again. My body and senses burn, finally having my lover back.

Fire eruptes from my sides, unleashing the beast I had been hiding for decades. My true self was with him now.

He's here! He's finally here!!!!!!!

He's here! He's finally here!!!!!!!

He's here! He's finally here!!!!!!!

He's here! He's finally here!!!!!!!

and so, the voices resided in the profounds of Goddess' Xena.

This was the extraordinary love story of Ares and Xena.

K.M.

Cubitum eamus?

I was surrounded by green landscapes. The leaves' and trees' color matched with my flowy skirt. My mustardish skirt danced with the breeze, a graceful waltz under the blinding light of my usual guest. This guest has always been there with me. Specifically every Sunday. And peculiarly its light gets stronger and brighter everytime that I appear in its presence. It's really strange. Perhaps, Zeus is content when seeing me, and his only way to contact me is by increasing the brightness of his Sun. Nonetheless, I'm thankful of it.

I could feel the warm breeze timidly touching my bare arms and uncovered shoulders. It was such a hair-raising feeling that it bizarrely made me slowly close my eyes while enjoying that docile embrace.

The crunch of grass under boots made my eyes slam open. That crunch of boots on dew-kissed ground resonates - a rythmic dance between man and nature. Each step, a whispered promise of connection, as if the meadow itself aknowledged his presence.

I turned around. There stopped a gigantic man. He was so majestic that I nearly stopped breathing. There was no oxygen enough for me. The nature was taking it from me.

Despite this, I continued looking at him. I didn't dare to say a thing. No voice could get out of my mouth.

I was so mesmerized by him that I didn't notice he was getting closer and closer to me. I was laying on top of the meadow. Undoubtedly, I was looking like a sloppy little girl and unashamedly I was staying there unmoving.

Surprisingly, he stretched his arm to me. Oh God. What did I think that he was going to do? That, I better not share with you.

"Aventurine. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you..."

I shockingly raised my head. How did he know my name? That I didn't know, nevertheless, I didn't really care. My name softly coming out his fleshy lips ignited a burning heat inside my heart and tiny body. I obviously zoned out and I didn't bother listening to what he was saying.

I, too, want to sit on a throne built from my enemies’ bodies, forever frozen in time.  

(medusa in her throne by reza sedhi.)  

OLYMPUS: a collection of playlists inspired by greek gods and goddesses

Continua a leggere

it's always so fascinating and heartbreaking when a character in a story is simultaneously idolized and abused. a chosen prophet destined for martyrdom. a child prodigy forced to grow up too fast. a powerful warrior raised as nothing but a weapon. there's just something so uniquely messed up about singing someone's praises whilst destroying them.

Egyptian Gods

I drew this for an art trade with my sister! We both love mythology, especially dragons, so I drew a mermaid meeting a sea dragon. She drew me a giant octopus eating a ship 😁

I had a lot of fun with this, especially the colors! 🧡

!Kyle is NOT a slave in the first drawing (he is a scientist living in the present)!

These drawings are all based on a fanfiction that is not written by me

I want to thank @shortstackedkyman for writing the best fanfiction I’ve read in ages! I definitely recommend reading it. Egyptian Prince Eric has been the only thing on my mind since I finished it. I am not exaggerating when I tell you this dragged me back to my fascination with Egyptology

I'm thinking about starting to draw a comic based on the myth "Cupid and Psyche". The basic idea is already there, it remains only to draw other characters. I don't know how long this idea will live in me, and if not, then at least there will be fan characters)))) All designs are still pilot ones, because the story itself is under development.

I like how you drew HippoSpy Egyptian clothes 💙💙💕💗 >w< great work my friend!

Egyptian Style HippoSpy

Back during the 2023 Art Fight BSW421 design a Egyptian Style attire for HippoSpy as a part of their attack and I've been meaning to draw it since then! and well here it is in my style ^_^

HARPIES. Omg harpies are totally mine. I am OBSESSED with bird people! I used to draw them all the time. 🪶

I feel like everyone has one specific mythical creature that makes up at least 5% of their identity

Ares: Love is weakness and an evolutionary mistake.  Apollo: You are literally making a Valentine’s day card for Aphrodite.  Ares, pointing his hot glue gun towards Apollo: You’re on thin fucking ice.

Oh dear lord... thank you so much for posting this, I'm not the only one who thinks this way. It drives me nuts that pop culture will set a show/movie/book (well, maybe book(s), not entirely sure on that one,) in Ancient Greece, or maybe will just use the Greek names of the Gods, but Heracles will be called Hercules.

I also appreciate that you pointed out how the Greeks also used syncretism

Listen, this is a very specific topic to be iffy about, but for your knowledge, the Roman gods are not the Greek gods.

The Romans were big on syncretism (the combination of different forms of belief or intellectual thought) and the adoption of foreign gods. The Greek deities were known since very early periods via the Etruscan culture, which was heavily influenced by Greece since the middle of the 8th century BC because of trade routes as well as the Greek cultural potential and would come to be completely engulfed around the third century BC with the Roman-Etruscan wars, but just like you’d see the Romans claiming the Germanic tribes worshipped their own gods under different names (the Germania by Roman historian Tacitus, written around 98 AD), the same happened here, and the fusion wasn’t 100% accurate.

While in the case of Zeus and Jupiter, for example, it worked well, Venus is far more motherly and political than Aphrodite (as Mars is the Father of Rome via the myth of Romulus and Remus, Venus is Venus Genetrix, Venus the Mother, and the only time you’ll see Aphrodite being motherly is in… the Aeneid, a distinctively Roman piece), Mars is an agricultural god as well as the god of war and has way more political connotations than Ares (he was a member of the archaic Capitoline Triad), Mercury is far more linked with commerce than the more pastoral Hermes, and the list goes on. Apollo was imported directly and very early (a temple for him, the Temple of Apollo Sosianus, was erected in the city of Rome as early as 431 BC), thus keeping the name but undergoing a very distinct Romanization of his attributes and worship. Janus, Quirinus and Terminus were very important Roman gods which had no Greek equivalent.

Isis, for example, was worshipped as herself, equated with a number of deities in both the Greek and the Roman worlds and some of her methods of worship and symbolism were associated with the Virgin Mary. It’s a far more complicated scenario, babes, especially when you consider Alexander’s conquests and the expansion of Hellenistic culture as well as its contact with many other cultures.

Syncretism is way more complicated than “the Romans just stole the Greek gods and gave them different names, the uncreative fucks”. The traditional date for Rome’s foundation is 753 BC and the Western Roman Empire would last until 436 AD. That’s over a thousand years of conquest, trade and growing and shrinking territories, and none of these factors are likely to leave a religion unaltered.

Besides, the practice of religious syncretism is way older and more common than you’d expect. The Akkadians did it to Summerian deities a few thousand years before this especially after the conquest of Sargon of Akkad in 2340 BC (“Mesopotamia: the Sumerians”. Washington State University). The Greeks were doing much the same with the Roman pantheon itself (Dionysus of Halicarnassus and Plutarch use Greek names for Roman cult), with the Egyptian pantheon and with the Scythian pantheon (Herodotus in both cases, though the associations would outlive him, such as the case of Zeus/Amon).

So, no the Roman gods aren’t the plagiarized versions of the Greek gods, and I could defend this in front of a jury.