Jorogumo

While we're on the topic of spider ladies from mythology I'd like to introduce you to a little tale from Japanese folklore about a Jorogumo. A Jorogumo is a spider that acquires magical powers upon becoming 400 years old. Transforming into a seductive woman demon, it then lures men to their death. One day in Japan, a logger was working as usual and decides to take a lunch break. He hears a waterfall nearby and decides watching the waterfall would be a pleasant lunch. After he settled himself, something attached to his foot. It looked like... spider silk? Like it was nothing, the man merely sticks it onto a log nearby. A moment later, the log goes zipping across the stream bank and disappears beneath the waterfall. After what he just saw, the logger decides it's best to take his lunch and retreat back into the forest. This was the doing of the Jorogumo (whore spider). It transforms into a beautiful woman and plays the biwa (Japanese lute) to lure men into her traps where it binds their feet and eats them. Another variation of this story doesn't end so happily though. The logger becomes enchanted by a mysterious lady that lives near the waterfall. As he falls in love, he started to notice how weak he felt and little energy he had. A Buddhist monk who suspected what was going on asked to meet the woman of which the logger was captivated by. They went to the waterfall and the monk began reciting the Sutra scriptures. The woman became distressed and tried to wrap the two men in spider threads but the monk's chanting caused the spider webs to disappear and the woman was forced to revert to her true form. The man was so bestowed after he saw a hideous spider with spiny legs and blood red eyes, he went to a demon lord and asked permission to be with her. When the demon refused, the logger threw himself into the river and drowned. Wow, these stories get darker every month don't they? Well that's all for today, time to wait another century for the next blog post (LOL)! Farewell for now mystery dweller!

Whoops.

I've decided to go on with this blog because the other isn't ready. Sorry for all the confusion that might have come about these past few days. I might re-upload the other blog sometime in the future but is inactive at this time. I will get right back to posting again!

ps. Don't be a hater >:)

Arachne

How can you talk about mythology without mentioning the Greeks, right? So I tried to pick a story you might not know, the story of Arachne. A long time ago in a kingdom called Lydia lived a weaver named Arachne. She had a reputation for making some of the most beautiful textiles and was considered the best in the world. The pictures she wove were so live like visitors traveled miles to see her work, even nymphs stopped their play to look at her art. Arachne was very proud but also very arrogant. Her works were so remarkable that people often said she must have been trained by Athena (a goddess who was also known for her ability to spin beautiful pictures). Arachne was outraged by this. Why should she, with all her talent, be placed inferior to this goddess? She would tell the visitors that the goddess herself could not produce work more stunning. When Arachne's claim reached Athena she was very angry but she gave Arachne a chance to redeem herself. Athena disguised herself as an old peasant woman and visited Arachne warning her not to offend the gods by comparing herself to that of an immortal. But Arachne told the woman to save her words, she welcomed a contest with Athena and would suffer whatever consequence if she lost. Athena then revealed her true form and the people who come to watch Arachne's weaving were very afraid. But Arachne stood tall and stuck to her claim. They decided they would compete by each making a tapestry and set up their looms right next to each other. They wove from dawn to dusk and compared each others the next day. Athena had woven an exquisite cloth depicting the gods and goddesses together on Mount Olympus doing good deeds, those around the tapestry marveled at its beauty. Arachne, however, had woven a cloth that made fun of the gods and goddesses and showed them getting drunk and behaving badly. Even though the piece was insulting, the characters in the scene were almost lifelike. Athena grew even angrier at this, she admitted that Arachne's work was flawless but it was a disrespectful subject. Athena destroyed the tapestry, then touched Arachne's forehead to make sure she felt guilt for what she made. Arachne's guilt was so overwhelming it was far too deep for a mortal to bear and she ran to a nearby tree and hung herself. Athena had not expected Arachne take her own life and took pity on her. So Athena sprinkled her with the juices of the aconite plant and loosened the rope saying the words "Spin if you wish to spin." At this Arachne came back to life but not in human form. Arachne's nose and ears disappeared, and new legs sprouted from her body. For the rest of her life Arachne was to hang from a thread and be a great weaver and her descendants still weave their magic webs today. Too bad they look so damn creepy! This took me a while to write so be sure to leave some feedback! Did you like the story? What pantheon do you want to hear from next? Tell me in the comment section. Farewell for now mystery dweller!

The Binding of Fenrir

Let's dive right into my first tale which is in the Nordic pantheon. This is about Tyr, the god of war, law and order. And Fenrir the wolf offspring of Loki (the Norse pseudo-god of trickery). Once upon a time Loki had three hideous (and strong) children. First was a serpent named Jormungand, second was the death-goddess Hel, and third was the wolf Fenrir. These three were kept hidden in a deep cave by their father, but as they kept growing, Odin (father of all Nordic gods) feared there combined power. So he threw Hel into the underworld, and Jormungand into the deepest northern sea. Though Fenrir inspired to much fear, so Odin took him back to Asgard hoping to tame him. The gods were so scared of him only Tyr mustered enough courage to dare approach Fenrir to feed him. Fenrir grew larger with each passing day and the gods became fearful for their lives. Knowing how much devastation he would cause if they let him roam free, the gods tried to bind him with huge chains. Fenrir broke the chains each time. Finally they sent a messenger to the realm of dwarves to craft a chain that he could not break free from. The dwarves, being the most skilled craftsmen in the cosmos, made a chain so slender it resembled a strand of silken flax. When Fenrir saw the chain he suspected trickery and refused to let the gods bind him with it unless one of them placed their hands in-between his jaws. None of them agreed but courageous Tyr finally stepped up. The gods bind him and soon Fenrir discovered he was unable to to break free. As the gods cheer Fenrir chomped off Tyr's hand. So from that day on Tyr wields his sword with his left hand and carries a shield on his stub. But what happened to Fenrir you ask? Well he came back to kill and eat Odin. But that's a story for another day! Hopefully this is a lesson learned, never stuff your hand in wolves mouths or any mouths for that matter. Please tell me what pantheon you'd like to hear from next. Other than that, farewell for now mystery dweller!

              

What is this blog about?

Hello, this is my new blog MythLogical and its about mythology. Whether the pantheon may be Greek, Roman, Norse, Egyptian, Japanese, and even some commonly unheard of like Slavic, Inca, Indonesian, and Tibetan. I will post various folktales and legends from these in a goal to add some ancient mysticism to your day. Farewell for now mystery dweller!