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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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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In Philippine folklore, a tikbalang is a bizarre, shape-shifting, trickster spirit that haunts certain places in the wildlands of the country.   It is said to be a tall humanoid creature that dwells in the forests and mountains of the Philippines and often described as a reverse form of a centaur.  Where the centaur has the body of a horse and the torso and head of a man, the tikbalang has the head of a horse and the body of a human.  Although descriptions vary they are generally described as being tall and bony creatures with limbs that tend to be disproportionate to their body.  For example, because its legs are so long and skinny, when the creature squats down its knees are higher than its head.  It is usually said to have animal-like feet usually similar to horse hooves.   In some traditions, it is said to have evolved from an aborted human fetus that was held in limbo and sent back to Earth.  In some traditions, tikbalangs can change their shape into that of humans and can also become invisible.

Shapeshifting Tricks

One of the tricks of the tikbalang is to change its physical form into that of a relative, friend or someone closely associated to any traveler that it may come across in the wilds. It then appears to the victim in this familiar form pretending to know the way deceiving them into being led through the dark woods or along remote mountain paths to a place far from the help of others.  When the time comes the for the tikbalang to reveal itself the victim may experience the smell of tobacco before the face and the body of their guide blurs as it changes from the that of the victim’s, relative or friend, into its own true monstrous form.

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La Gomera

La Gomera is one of the seven Canary Islands which are an autonomous community of Spain situated to the west of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean  The original inhabitants before the arrival of the Spanish were the Guanche people who were believed to be related to the Berber people of North Africa.   Although much of their culture has been lost some still exists and can be found in legends and traditions of the islands.  Roughly situated in the middle of the island is the Garajonay National Park which is a mountainous region of lush wild evergreen laurel forest. There is a folktale said to be of Guanche origin that tells how the Garajonay National Park was named after two lovers named Gara and Jonay.

The Legend of Gara and Jonay

Gara was a princess of Agula that was known as a place of water on La Gomera and looked across the sea to Mount Teide on Tenerife.  Jonay was a prince and the son of the Mencey of Adeje a ruler of Tenerife known as the place of fire.  This was because of the great volcano Mount Teide that the Guanches called Echeyde or Hell, that was situated on the the island.  Presented here is a retelling of the legend of Gara and Jonay garnered from several other versions.

Los Chorros de Epina

On La Gomera, there was a tradition that there were even places where magic waters could be found.  These waters had special properties beneficial to health and good fortune and were said to be able to foretell the future.   One such place was called Los Chorros de Epina which is a natural spring that local legend says has healing powers and can also reveal the future to an extent.  The spring water is fed through seven wooden tubes which turn the flow into seven jets of water each of which has different attributes.

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The Fox and the Angel of Death

In Jewish folklore when God created the world he made sure that every animal that walked upon the earth had a counterpart under the sea.  To complete his plan he allotted Malak – ha-Mawet the Angel of Death with the task of making sure they were all placed beneath the waters.   When the Angel came for the fox the fox began to cry and wail.  The surprised Angel asked the fox why he was crying.  The fox told him that his best friend had been placed in the water only the other day.   Standing on the shore and looking in the sea the fox pointed to his own reflection in the water.  When the Angel of Death saw the reflection he believed that a fox had already been placed under the water and so set him free.
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Azorean folklore is the folklore of the people of the Azores group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean.    Although an  Autonomous Region of Portugal, the people of the Azores have evolved their own folklore, traditions and have many wonderful folktales and legends. Some of these explain how natural features of the landscape came to be.  There is a tradition in Azorean folklore that says the islands of the Azores were once the tops of the mountains of Atlantis before it was drowned below the sea.  The following folktale is a version of  “Princess Bluegreen and the Seven Cities,” collected by Elsie Spicer Eels which explains how two interlinked lakes known as the Lagoon of the Seven Cities on São Miguel Island originated and how the great catastrophe came about that doomed the legendary Atlantis.

The King and Queen of Atlantis

Once there was a great kingdom called Atlantis which was ruled by a king by the name of Brancopardo who was married to the beautiful, Queen Brancaroza.  Although they were the rulers of the great kingdom of Atlantis and lived in a gorgeous palace they were very sad.   You see the king and the queen both yearned with all their hearts for children and they had none and the palace was a cold, bleak, place without them.  King Brancopardo would lament, “Why is life so unkind?  Babies are born to poor peasants who can scarcely feed them and hear am I a King with great riches who remains childless.  It is not fair!”

And Queen Brancaroza would sigh, “If only I could have a baby of my own I would be so happy!  Poor women have many babies who they can barely afford to clothe, but here am I a rich queen in a beautiful palace, childless!”
She would weep day and night for what she did not have.  The king grew ever more unkind and his face became wizened and cruel whereas once it had been handsome, jolly and kind.  Once he had been a good and just king who was loved by his people but as time grew without a child his soul became more and more wrinkled.  The people became worried and prayed for him because they loved him and were his faithful subjects. They made offerings at all the shrines and holy places of Atlantis but the royal couple remained childless.  As the barren years unfolded Queen Brancaroza grew ever more melancholy and King Brancopardo became angrier, crueler and more and more unreasonable.  In his misery, he made the lives of his loyal subjects unbearable.
The Royal Palace had a glorious garden filled with many wondrous and beautiful flowers and trees where marvelous birds sang sweet songs of joy.  In that blessed place, the King and Queen often found peace despite the curse of barrenness that had fallen upon them.  One evening when the King and Queen were feeling especially downcast they went and  walked upon the terrace in the garden to watch the evening fall gently, watching quietly as the stars slowly blinked into life.

Starlight
One star began gently twinkling brighter and brighter than all the others and began  moving nearer and nearer.  They watched in awe as it appeared in front of them in dazzling glory.  Queen Brancaroza placed her hands over her eyes but King Brancopardo bowed his head to his chest and they heard a gentle voice say,

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The Eight Immortals

In Chinese mythology, the Eight Immortal were a legendary group of eight individual beings who had transcended the human state to become endowed with divine and supernatural attributes or powers.  Each immortal is endowed with a power that can give life or help their fight against evil.  Most of the Eight Immortals were born during either the Tang or Song dynasties and venerated by Taoists and became popular in Chinese culture.  This work is a brief introduction to the Eight Immortals who were; He Xiangu, Cao Guojiu, Li Tieguai, Lan Caihe, Lü Dongbin, Han Xiangzi, Zhang Guolao and Zhongli Quan and concludes with an observation about their popularity.

Li Tieguai

Li Tieguai had a reputation of being irritable and bad-tempered but was seen as being compassionate and caring towards the poor, sick and those in need.   He carried a gourd in which he carried special medicine which he dispensed to those in need.  Li Tieguai is often depicted in a rather unattractive way as being an old man with a wispy beard and unkempt hair.  He used an iron crutch to aid his walking and was often depicted as a type of clown or beggar who used his powers to benefit those in need.  He could be found wherever the sick needed curing or the oppressed needed freeing.   Li had been the apprentice of Lao-Tzu the founder of Taoism.

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The Lais of Marie de France

Bisclavret (The Werewolf), is a Breton lai, by a medieval female writer and poet known as Marie de France.  It is one of twelve narrative poems known as The lais of Marie de France. Many of the lais were derived from Breton folklore and legends with Celtic influences and elements of the supernatural all interwoven together. She claimed the lais were based on ballads she had heard from troubadours and minstrels.

In the poem translated Judith P. Shoaf, Marie explains that  Garwalf is the Norman  name for a werewolf and Bisclavret, the Breton name.  However, Bisclavret, although still a werewolf, is significantly different from the Garwolf, displaying more restrained and disciplined behavior than the wild savagery  usually associated with such beasts. (1)
Marie’s lais tell stories that move in and out of the supernatural and real world exploring complex emotions and morals that wreak havoc in the human condition.  The lai of Bisclavret tells of a shape-shifting baron whose perfect world is marred by what he deems to be a terrible and shameful affliction.  To hide his shame and in a sense to protect his own humanity from the perceptions of others, he keeps this a secret. This work presents a discussion of what it means to be human and then provides a version of the story concluding with a discussion on the humanity and “beastliness” shown by the main characters.

Human or Beast?

The shifting of human to beast amid the dark, tangled forest explores some of our primal fears, challenging our concept of humanity.  Is it just the clothing we wear and the adornments, the accessories, and jewelry and the paraphernalia that we think give us status and make us attractive and carry with us that make us human?  Or is it our behavior, our manners, the way we conduct ourselves and the way we treat and think of other people that make us human or worthy of love, respect, and acceptance?

Marie de France lived in medieval times in medieval society with medieval culture and philosophy. Her lais utilize legends and folklore  of her time skilfully woven into narrative poems that tell stories that explore and challenge our understanding of the human condition and reflect the ethos of her times.  But that world of Marie has passed and we now live in the modern world with all its trappings, culture, and philosophy.  What can we make of Bisclavret (The Werewolf) by Marie de France today?

The Story of Bisclavret

There was once a most honorable and cultured baron who lived in Brittany many, many, years ago.  He was a great favorite of the king and was great friends with all the other barons and lords of the land and they all held him in high esteem.  He had a most beautiful wife who he loved dearly and she also loved him dearly.  All, in all he would seem to be living a perfectly happy and fulfilling life but unbeknown to anyone else he had a most terrible secret.

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