Multnomah Falls

The Multnomah Falls is a waterfall situated not far from Portland in Oregon.  It is a local beauty spot which many people visit to see  torrents of cool, crystal clear, water cascade over the edge of a cliff to fall over 611 feet in a spectacular cascade.  A legend is associated with its creation that tells a story of love, devotion, faith and sacrifice.

Chief Multnomah

Many, many, years ago there was a Native American chief called Multnomah who had a beautiful daughter that he loved more than anything. Having lost his sons in wars he loved and cherished her even more and wanted to be sure when the time came she would have the best possible husband. To meet this goal he spent a lot of time looking over the young men of his own and neighboring villages for the best possible match.  At last he decided that the best husband for his daughter would be a young chief from the Clatsop people who were neighbors.  It proved to be very good match and the two quickly developed a deep rapport and fell in love with one another.

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King Lludd

King Lludd appears in the Mabinogion in the story of Lludd and Llevelys as King of Britain.  This is a tale that tells how with the help of Llevelys, his younger brother, he overcomes the Three Plagues of Britain that had caused his people great anxiety and fear.  It is thought that Geoffrey of Monmouth in the History of the Kings of Britain refers to him as Lud and it may be the case that the Mabinogion tale owes much to Geoffrey.

After the death of his father Beli the Great, as his eldest son, Lludd became King of the Island of Britain.   Lludd was a great and generous king and a mighty warrior and leader of men.  He was generous in giving food and hospitality to any who sought it from him and cared for the welfare of his lords and subjects.  During the reign of Lludd the island of Britain prospered greatly.  Lludd rebuilt the city of London that Brutus the Trojan, the legendary first King of Britain was said to have founded.  He surrounded it with strong walls with many towers to defend its citizens and called upon his subjects to built fine houses within those walls and London became the finest and richest city on the island of Britain.

King Llevelys

According to the Mabinogion, Lludd had three brothers and the youngest named Llevelys was his favourite. He was extremely fond of Llevelys who grew up to be a very wise and discreet man whom he could always trust.   It so happened that when the King of France passed away and having no male heirs to the throne he had left his kingdom to his daughter.  Llevelys sought her hand in marriage and after a successful courtship  married her and became the ruler of France.   He was to prove to be a good and just ruler who governed with great wisdom for many years and had a long and happy life.

The Three Plagues of Britain

The island of Britain ruled by Lludd continued to prosper as did France ruled by Llevelys.  There came a time in Britain when the situation changed for the worse and the people grew fearful and troubled.  Three plagues had descended upon the island of Britain that caused the people great distress and anxiety.   The first of these plagues was a people called the Coranians, the second was an unearthly Shriek heard throughout the land and the third was the theft of Royal provisions.

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In the Arthurian realm of legend and romance destiny and fate play essential parts in many of the legends and stories.  The practice of some writers from the Romances back to Geoffrey of Monmouth to link to earlier works and legends often gives a sense that the main characters and events are governed by some supernatural force that shapes destiny and fate. Events that happened many years and sometimes centuries earlier, become linked to important events in later legends and stories returning to the fore after lying dormant. One of these events involved two important players in the Arthurian world, both having played a part in shaping the destiny of Britain before Arthur was even born. These two were Vortigern who usurped the throne of Britain and a young Myrddin Emrys, also known as Myrddin Ambrosius or Merlin.  Vortigern gained infamy and a reputation for treachery and weakness and Merlin became the sorcerer, counselor and soothsayer of the kings of Britain in his time.

Fate and destiny combine in strange ways and an event from the distant past resurfaced to cause King Vortigern a problem he could not have foreseen and the only person who could solve this was the then young and unknown Merlin.  The two were brought together on Dinas Emrys where Merlin was inspired to make one of his most famous prophecies on the fate of Britain.  Sometimes  called the Prophecy of the Two Dragons or  The Prophecy of Merlin, it reveals the coming of Arthur and the future of Britain, making  him the leading soothsayer and sorcerer of his time.

Vortigern’s Fortress

According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, after the Treachery of the Long Knives, when the greater part of the nobility and leadership of the Britons had been brutally and treacherously murdered by Hengist and his Saxons, the wise men of King Vortigern, advised him to seek out a place where he might build a fortress as a place of safety to retreat to.

After searching what remained of his realm for a safe and suitable site he finally chose a rocky, wooded, hill about one mile from what is now called Beddgelert in Gwynedd, Wales, that rises to a height of about 250 feet above the valley of the River Glaslyn.  This hill was once called Dinas Ffaraon Dandde or fortress of Fiery Pharaoh, and later became known as Dinas Emrys which means fortress of Ambrosius.

Thinking he has found a good site Vortigern gave the command for the work on building the walls of the fortress to commence.   His builders worked hard building walls and towers in the daytime but no matter how far they progressed in a day, when they came back the next morning, they would find the previous day’s work in a heap on the ground.  Although the builders used all their skills and knowledge and worked as hard as they possibly could during the day, each morning they would return to find the previous day’s work once again in a pile on the ground. This went on for many days until Vortigern was obliged to seek help from his wise men. According to Nennius, a 9th century monk and writer, his wise men informed him that that he would have to seek out a young boy. “not conceived by a mortal man”. who would be sacrificed and his blood sprinkled in the mortar of the stonework in the hope of appeasing what ever dark power was hindering the construction of the fortress.

Myrddin Emrys

Vortigern sent his messengers out across the land seeking out such a boy.  After many days and much searching, one of the messengers returned with a boy named Myrddin Emrys or Merlin Ambrosius, who was the only boy they could find “not conceived by a mortal man”.

Geoffrey of Monmouth in his book Historia regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain, 1137) says that Merlin was believed to have been the the son of an incubus, or demon and his mother was mortal and was a nun.   With the incubus representing Satan and the nun representing Jesus Christ, or God, he had been born from two opposing powers.  

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This article was first published on #FolkloreThursday.com by zteve t evans, October 20, 2016 as Five Legendary Islands from Folklore.

Five Mythical Islands

Hy-Brasil, Buyan, Saint Brendan’s Isle, the Island of Antillia, and the Isle of Avalon are five fabled islands that were once believed to have existed by many people through the ages.  All had their own magical qualities and characteristics that were given to them by the human culture they appeared in.  Presented here is a brief introduction to these five fabled islands before concluding with a few ideas on their possible significance for the reader to think about.

Hy-Brasil and the Court of King Breasal

In Irish mythology and folklore, Hy-Brasil was the island where the legendary Breasal, the High King of the World held his court.  It was said to be situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Ireland and was a kind of island paradise where all good things were bountiful and people lived in peace and happiness.  All who dwelt there were bestowed with the gift of immortality.

Hy-Brasil was a difficult place to find because the island was said to be shrouded in mist. It could only be seen once every seven years when the mist lifted which was the time when Breasal held his court on the island.  It was during these brief times when the island was visible that the court was believed to be in session. Although the island could be seen at such times, it could not be reached and King Breasal was said to have the  power to make the island sink below the waves or rise above them at his command.

Hy-Brasil was a phantom island and actually appeared on nautical maps as far back as 1325,  when it was shown on the Dalorto Chart created by an Italian-Majorcan cartographer, Angelino Dulcert.   There are many other examples of phantom islands that appear on ancient maps but cannot be found and are later removed from new versions. Some are mythical such as Antillia and Saint Brendan’s Isle, while others may once have existed but disappeared beneath the waves in volcanic, or geological action, or perhaps covered by rising sea levels.  Some such as Crockerland were hoaxes or based on a kind of mirage known as Fata Morgana, while others were navigational errors.  Many explorers sought for Hy-Brasil and while a few claimed to have found it no evidence was ever brought back confirming the existence of King Breasal and his island and it was eventually removed from maps.

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Poutini

In the myths and legends of the Ngai Tahu people who live on Te Waipounamu also known as the South Island of New Zealand, Poutini was a water spirit they called a Taniwha.  Poutini was the protector of the people and was also the guardian of several types of mineral including nephrite jade, serpentine, and bowenite and often known collectively as greenstone today.  The Ngai Tahu people called the greenstone, Pounamu and it was a highly prized mineral in their culture used for carving jewelry and ornaments in particular. They believed that all things had a life force or essence they called mauri and Poutini was the guardian of the life force of this special mineral.

Waitaiki

Poutini was believed to have his home in the wild seas off the West Coast of the South Island, or “Te Tai o Poutini”.  There was once a time when he would roam far from home. One day while he was basking in the warm waters off Tuhua, which is now known as Mayor Island which lies off the Bay of Plenty of the North Island, he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life and he wanted her for himself.  Without further thought, he lunged forward and grabbed her and carried her off to the mainland. The woman’s name was Waitaiki and she was married to a mighty chief named Tama-ahua who was skilled in the magical arts and the ways of the world of the spirits.  As soon as he realized his wife had been kidnapped he threw a magical dart high into the air.  The dart pointed the way and Tama-ahua paddled his canoe across the sea following the dart.


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The Legend of Lady Emma and Sir Eglamore

The legend tells how there was once a bold and noble knight named Sir Eglamore who was betrothed to the beautiful Lady Emma.  Being a lady of considerable beauty she had many suitors but had chosen Sir Eglamore in preference to all of the others.   Sir Eglamore, although he loved Lady Emma deeply, was very much the knight errant and often traveled to far off lands to fighting all sorts of foreign foes and having many different adventures.

Although the couple was truly in love Sir Eglamore increasingly spent more and more time away from his lady.   Poor Lady Emma came to miss him greatly and her health and sleep became affected.  She began to walk in her sleep even being found wandering in dreams in the gardens at times.  In her sleep, she began to roam further afield visiting places that were special to her and her sweetheart, Sir Eglamore.

One night she rose in her sleep and roamed beyond the gardens and up to the place of one of their favorite haunts, the waterfall of Aira Force where she stood on the very edge of the ravine.  We can only guess that in her sleep she dreamed of the being in the arms of her absent lover.

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In the desert of southwest Utah in the United States of America is a remarkable place known as Bryce Canyon which many, many bizarre and colorful rock formations. The canyon is named after Ebenezer Bryce, a Mormon pioneer who settled in the area in 1874.  However, the Native American Paiute people of the region who were there long before the arrival of pioneers called it Angka-ku-wass-a-wits or red painted faces.
Bryce Canyon must surely be one of the most extraordinary natural places on earth.  It is a place where strange rock formations of yellow, orange and reddish brown that change hue as the light changes and fill the mind with many fantastical shapes and forms that appear grotesquely humanoid.

In geological terms, these columns are called hoodoos a term also used in witchcraft and the supernatural.  The Paiute people tell a very different story to the geologists but both explanations are really very extraordinary.   Presented first is a brief and simplified version of the geological explanation.  This is followed by a version of the traditional explanation given by the Paiute people who believed the columns were created when a mythical race called the Legend people were punished by their divine entity Coyote.

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Philippine Folklore

In Philippine folklore, the Manananggal is a mythical, evil, cannibalistic, vampiric , witch that as well as sucking the blood from victims also eats them.  Sometimes it is confused with the Wakwak which is a strange bird-like, vampiric creature.  However, although they are both vampires unlike the Manananggal, the Wakwak cannot separate its upper body from its lower body.  It is from this bizarre ability that the Manananggal gets its name.  The term Manananggal comes from the  Tagalog word, tanggal, meaning to separate.

Origin of the Manananggal

Philippine folklore gives varying accounts of the origin of Manananggals.  One tradition says there is a black chick living inside the creature.  This is passed on from the deathbed of those afflicted to another person who is usually a relative.  The chick is then believed to reside inside the body of the Manananggal eating the innards of its host while keeping them alive.   It is this that is believed to be the reason why the Manananggal craves the taste of human blood and flesh and transforms into its hideous shape.

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On the walls of Lincoln Cathedral in the city of Lincoln in England is a rather strange figure of an imp that is carved on the stonework of a pillar inside the cathedral.  Despite its strangeness, or perhaps because of it,  the imp has become a symbol of the city as well as a number of other local organizations.  There is a legend that tells that the grotesque was once a real imp that was turned to stone by an angel.

The legend is thought to date from the 13th or 14th century and tells how two imps were sent to Earth by Satan to cause as much mischief and mayhem as possible.   Arriving in the north of  England they set about their task with glee and malice causing mayhem and mischief everywhere they went.  Settling on the spire of St. Mary’s Church in Chesterfield they spitefully twisted it out of shape and even today the results of their mischief can still be seen. Today, the Crooked Spire is a well-known feature of Chesterfield, though there are other legends which give different accounts of how this came to be.

The imps were not satisfied with their handiwork and went on a spree of mayhem and mischief. 

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