Monday, February 11, 2008
Mermaids
For thousands of years, men have told tales of beautiful and dangerous creatures that inhabit the waters of the world। But what do we really know about them? Are Mermaids goddesses or spirits? In European folklore, Mermaids (and more rarely, Mermen) were natural beings that, like fairies, had magical and prophetic powers. Although very long-lived, they were mortal and had no souls. There’s more to the story than this, though. So many creation myths concern female sea dragons and/or serpents that I feel that there could be a connection in these beliefs and myths to the Mermaid legends. It was later, in the Old Testament, that serpents and dragons became associated with the Devil and Satan - dragons are potent symbols of good fortune in Eastern religions. The fish is a covert Christian symbol 'ichthys', the initials of Jesus Christ, the Fisher of Men, and the ritual food - the Christian canon draws connections between Mary Magdalene and the ocean. Throughout, we see a pattern of sexual tension and mystery. So who are the Mermaids?
A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense 'sea' (as in maritime, the Latin mare, "sea") + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. The male version of a mermaid is called a merman; gender-neutral plurals could be merpeople or merfolk. Various cultures throughout the world have similar figures.
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite।
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite।
Sirenomelia, also called "mermaid syndrome", is a rare congenital disorder in which a child is born with his or her legs fused together and the genitalia are reduced. This condition is about as rare as conjoined twins and is usually fatal within a day or two of birth because of kidney and bladder complications. Three survivors are known to be alive today, with one of them, a 19 year old girl, having undergone a successful operation to separate her legs
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and selkies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids.A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense 'sea' (as in maritime, the Latin mare, "sea") + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. The male version of a mermaid is called a merman; gender-neutral plurals could be merpeople or merfolk. Various cultures throughout the world have similar figures.
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite.
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and सिल्क
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and selkies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids.A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense 'sea' (as in maritime, the Latin mare, "sea") + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. The male version of a mermaid is called a merman; gender-neutral plurals could be merpeople or merfolk. Various cultures throughout the world have similar figures.
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite.
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and सिल्क
A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense 'sea' (as in maritime, the Latin mare, "sea") + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. The male version of a mermaid is called a merman; gender-neutral plurals could be merpeople or merfolk. Various cultures throughout the world have similar figures.
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite.
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and selkies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids.ies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids।
Much like sirens, mermaids in stories would sometimes sing to sailors and enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing them to walk off the deck or cause shipwrecks. Other stories would have them squeeze the life out of drowning men while trying to rescue them. They are also said to take them down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid it is said that they forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while others say they drown men out of spite.
The Sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both creatures. Other related types of mythical or legendary creature are water fairies (e.g. various water nymphs) and selkies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids.ies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.
Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to Manatee and Dugongs as mermaids।
Mermaids were noted in British folklore as both ominous, foretelling disaster, and provoking it.[1] Several variants of the ballad Sir Patrick Spens depict a mermaid speaking to the doomed ships; in some, she tells them they will never see land again, and in others, she claims they are near shore, which they are wise enough to know means the same thing. They can also be a sign of rough weather.[2]
Some mermaids were described as monstrous in size, up to 160 feet.
Mermaids could also swim up rivers to freshwater lakes. One day, in a lake near his house, the Laird of Lorntie saw, as he thought, a woman drowning, and went to aid her; a servant of his pulled him back, warning that it was a mermaid, and the mermaid screamed after that she would have killed him if it were not for his servant.[3]
On occasion, mermaids could be more beneficient, giving humans means of cure.[4]
Some tales raised the question of whether mermaids had immortal souls to answer it in the negative.[5] The figure of Liban appears as a sanctified mermaid, but she was originally a human being transformed into a mermaid; after three centuries, when Christianity had come to Ireland, she came to be baptized.[6]
Mermen were also noted, as wilder and uglier than mermaids, but they were described as having little interest in humans.[7]
Some mermaids were described as monstrous in size, up to 160 feet.
Mermaids could also swim up rivers to freshwater lakes. One day, in a lake near his house, the Laird of Lorntie saw, as he thought, a woman drowning, and went to aid her; a servant of his pulled him back, warning that it was a mermaid, and the mermaid screamed after that she would have killed him if it were not for his servant.[3]
On occasion, mermaids could be more beneficient, giving humans means of cure.[4]
Some tales raised the question of whether mermaids had immortal souls to answer it in the negative.[5] The figure of Liban appears as a sanctified mermaid, but she was originally a human being transformed into a mermaid; after three centuries, when Christianity had come to Ireland, she came to be baptized.[6]
Mermen were also noted, as wilder and uglier than mermaids, but they were described as having little interest in humans.[7]
Sirenomelia, also called "mermaid syndrome", is a rare congenital disorder in which a child is born with his or her legs fused together and the genitalia are reduced. This condition is about as rare as conjoined twins and is usually fatal within a day or two of birth because of kidney and bladder complications। Three survivors are known to be alive today, with one of them, a 19 year old girl, having undergone a successful operation to separate her
Theoretically a mermaid would reproduce as most aquatic animals do, by external fertilization, requiring a human male to deposit his seed underwater onto her eggs. (The confusion is further compounded by the fact that mermaids are usually depicted with a navel and breasts, which would suggest placental vivipary rather than ovipary.) However, this situation is sometimes rectified by portraying mermaids as having genitalia more similar to dolphins than fish,[1] or having the ability to change into human form, e.g. the fishtail splitting into two legs when it dries, and again turning into fishtail when the legs touch with water. A prominent example of this is the Touchstone Pictures film Splash where the Mermaid character Madison, portrayed by Daryl Hannah, transforms into human form and sustains a romantic and sexual relationship with Tom Hanks' character, while retaining many of her undersea habits and mannerisms।
Mary Magdalene Associated with Mermaids
Mary Magdalene is sometimes shown with a fish tail as Marina, often depicted with a jar of ointment (spikenard was usually used for anointing), a crown of thorns, long loose hair, and a mirror – as Mermaids are shown with a mirror combing their long hair, and singing like Sirens. Mary is the patron saint of hairdressers, perfumiers, gardeners and prostitutes.
An association between Mary Magdalene and the sea grew up, as it did with the Holy Grail which, according to the Nag Hammadi Codices, Magdalene took with her to France after the Crucifixion. The Chalice also represented the uterus to the cultists (as does the horseshoe), and the wine the menstrual blood. Tantric and alchemical texts refer to menstrual blood by a number of colourful names including Star Fire, Gold of the Gods, and Vehicle of Light. This provides another root for vampire legend. The Roman goddess Mens (Bright Moment/Mind) is also associated with menstruation and Tantric shakti.
According to the Gnostic gospels, the three Marys – Mary Magdalene, Mary-Salome (Helena), Mary Jacob, together with Martha and Lazarus, fled into exile in France after the crucifixion and resurrection - where the men were not present. Mary Magdalene was said to be bearing the child of Jesus, his daughter Tamar. They arrived at Les Saintes Maries de la Mer (Three Marys of the Sea, Très Matres) and here arose associations with Triple Goddesses like the Fates and the Morrigan. In fact, the idea of a Holy Trinity did not form part of Israelite theology, and only became a Christian concept as the gospel spread into the Pagan world, where a Holy Triad or family was a well established device.
An extension of the hermaphroditic goddess is the Virgin Mother: There were many Virgin Mothers of gods, some with parallels to the Virgin Mary – the Roman Kore was a virgin goddess who gave birth to Dionysus, whose name is sometimes written Ies or Jesus. At the end of the 6th century Pope Gregory I defamed the red cloaked priestesses of early Judaeo-Christianity, the hierodulai such as Mary Magdalene, as harlots, scarlet women, although nowhere in the Bible does it identify Magdalene as a sacred prostitute. She is often portrayed in a red cloak over a green dress of fertility. As a head sister Mary was entitled to wear black, like the priests of Isis, and there are many statues of Black Madonnas with black hands and faces in France, in churches like Notre Dame, on pagan sites dedicated to Isis and Athena. Mary the mother of Jesus, the token woman in the Roman and Orthodox Church, was therefore only permitted to be portrayed wearing blue cloak (heaven) and white dress (purity) – traditional ocean colours! Earlier she wore a red dress - her mother St Anne wore a red dress (love) and green cloak (rebirth), like Mary Magdalen. As Isis she was known as Stella Maris, Miriam - Star of the Sea (originally Stilla Maris, Myrrh of the Sea), and a church in Rome is called Santa Maria della Navicella, Our Lady of the Boat, again a uterine reference?
In addition to the connection of Magdalene to the sea, there appeared a general connection to water. La Dompna del Aquae (Mistress of the Waters) was a term for her who, legend has it, was buried at Aix en Provence (Acqs – water). Royal descendants in Grail lore, the Merovingian kings, became known as Fisher Kings - the successor to the French throne is the "dauphin", dolphin! The Red Dragon of Wales emblem evolved from serpents, dragons or Holy Crocodile, Draco, that represented the Pendragon Celtic kings. Gnostics and Celts venerated females in association with lakes, wells, fountains, and springs. In Arthurian legend, the Lady of the Lake was transposed into Britain; the gallant knights and troubadours of the Age of Chivalry idealised women with Courtly Love. The Lady of the Lake has further associations with Vivian/Nimue, originally the Welsh moon goddess. She in turn was linked with Rhiannon/Rigantona, wife of the King of Dyfed, who rode a white horse, her avatar.
Another Celtic horse goddess, Epona, was connected with the colossal white horses carved in chalk hills in southern England; the association of goddesses with horses and their moon-shaped hoof prints, the moon, tides and water was widespread. The male symbol of a unicorn submitting to a maiden featured widely in pre-Raphaelite paintings of the nineteenth century, which sensually portrayed other themes of romantic legend including Mermaids and water sprites. Springs were said to have arisen from the hoof-prints of Pegasus, the son of Medusa; and there are legends of Water Horse spirits such as the Scottish Kelpie, Nykur, and the Germanic Nix who could be a Mermaid or centaur!
In Ireland Mermaids are known as Merrow, and although obviously from "mer" or "mare" for "sea", the word "Mermaid" is sometimes presumed to come from the same root as Mary/Miriam from the Egyptian for "beloved." So are the word "marry", and the term "Merrie England." This archaic use also appears in Robin Hood’s "Merry Men," and some consider Maid Marion herself a link to Mary Magdalene. During the Qumran era, Miriam (Mary) and Martha were not simply names, but titles for those who participated in a formal ministry within spiritual orders such as the ascetic and healing community of the Therapeutate, Moses being the masculine equivalent.
The name Magdalene comes from the Hebrew "magdala" or "migdal" – a tower, one of her emblems, and the term maudlin meaning sorrowful, evolved from Magdalene sobbing at the foot of the cross. Along with the cult of Mary Magdalene is that of Mary the Gypsy, sacred harlot and love cultess. She is identified with Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love who was 'born from the foam' - the Indian goddess Lakshmi was born from the primordial sea of milk. The name of Gaia's daughter Rhea (Titan mother of the gods) means milk in Greek. Anglo-Saxons portrayed Mary Magdalene as the May Queen. May celebrations such as Morris Men dancing and the Maypole, a fertility symbol, naturally have pagan associations with Maia goddess of spring and fertility, just as Christmas is associated with the winter solstice.
An association between Mary Magdalene and the sea grew up, as it did with the Holy Grail which, according to the Nag Hammadi Codices, Magdalene took with her to France after the Crucifixion. The Chalice also represented the uterus to the cultists (as does the horseshoe), and the wine the menstrual blood. Tantric and alchemical texts refer to menstrual blood by a number of colourful names including Star Fire, Gold of the Gods, and Vehicle of Light. This provides another root for vampire legend. The Roman goddess Mens (Bright Moment/Mind) is also associated with menstruation and Tantric shakti.
According to the Gnostic gospels, the three Marys – Mary Magdalene, Mary-Salome (Helena), Mary Jacob, together with Martha and Lazarus, fled into exile in France after the crucifixion and resurrection - where the men were not present. Mary Magdalene was said to be bearing the child of Jesus, his daughter Tamar. They arrived at Les Saintes Maries de la Mer (Three Marys of the Sea, Très Matres) and here arose associations with Triple Goddesses like the Fates and the Morrigan. In fact, the idea of a Holy Trinity did not form part of Israelite theology, and only became a Christian concept as the gospel spread into the Pagan world, where a Holy Triad or family was a well established device.
An extension of the hermaphroditic goddess is the Virgin Mother: There were many Virgin Mothers of gods, some with parallels to the Virgin Mary – the Roman Kore was a virgin goddess who gave birth to Dionysus, whose name is sometimes written Ies or Jesus. At the end of the 6th century Pope Gregory I defamed the red cloaked priestesses of early Judaeo-Christianity, the hierodulai such as Mary Magdalene, as harlots, scarlet women, although nowhere in the Bible does it identify Magdalene as a sacred prostitute. She is often portrayed in a red cloak over a green dress of fertility. As a head sister Mary was entitled to wear black, like the priests of Isis, and there are many statues of Black Madonnas with black hands and faces in France, in churches like Notre Dame, on pagan sites dedicated to Isis and Athena. Mary the mother of Jesus, the token woman in the Roman and Orthodox Church, was therefore only permitted to be portrayed wearing blue cloak (heaven) and white dress (purity) – traditional ocean colours! Earlier she wore a red dress - her mother St Anne wore a red dress (love) and green cloak (rebirth), like Mary Magdalen. As Isis she was known as Stella Maris, Miriam - Star of the Sea (originally Stilla Maris, Myrrh of the Sea), and a church in Rome is called Santa Maria della Navicella, Our Lady of the Boat, again a uterine reference?
In addition to the connection of Magdalene to the sea, there appeared a general connection to water. La Dompna del Aquae (Mistress of the Waters) was a term for her who, legend has it, was buried at Aix en Provence (Acqs – water). Royal descendants in Grail lore, the Merovingian kings, became known as Fisher Kings - the successor to the French throne is the "dauphin", dolphin! The Red Dragon of Wales emblem evolved from serpents, dragons or Holy Crocodile, Draco, that represented the Pendragon Celtic kings. Gnostics and Celts venerated females in association with lakes, wells, fountains, and springs. In Arthurian legend, the Lady of the Lake was transposed into Britain; the gallant knights and troubadours of the Age of Chivalry idealised women with Courtly Love. The Lady of the Lake has further associations with Vivian/Nimue, originally the Welsh moon goddess. She in turn was linked with Rhiannon/Rigantona, wife of the King of Dyfed, who rode a white horse, her avatar.
Another Celtic horse goddess, Epona, was connected with the colossal white horses carved in chalk hills in southern England; the association of goddesses with horses and their moon-shaped hoof prints, the moon, tides and water was widespread. The male symbol of a unicorn submitting to a maiden featured widely in pre-Raphaelite paintings of the nineteenth century, which sensually portrayed other themes of romantic legend including Mermaids and water sprites. Springs were said to have arisen from the hoof-prints of Pegasus, the son of Medusa; and there are legends of Water Horse spirits such as the Scottish Kelpie, Nykur, and the Germanic Nix who could be a Mermaid or centaur!
In Ireland Mermaids are known as Merrow, and although obviously from "mer" or "mare" for "sea", the word "Mermaid" is sometimes presumed to come from the same root as Mary/Miriam from the Egyptian for "beloved." So are the word "marry", and the term "Merrie England." This archaic use also appears in Robin Hood’s "Merry Men," and some consider Maid Marion herself a link to Mary Magdalene. During the Qumran era, Miriam (Mary) and Martha were not simply names, but titles for those who participated in a formal ministry within spiritual orders such as the ascetic and healing community of the Therapeutate, Moses being the masculine equivalent.
The name Magdalene comes from the Hebrew "magdala" or "migdal" – a tower, one of her emblems, and the term maudlin meaning sorrowful, evolved from Magdalene sobbing at the foot of the cross. Along with the cult of Mary Magdalene is that of Mary the Gypsy, sacred harlot and love cultess. She is identified with Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love who was 'born from the foam' - the Indian goddess Lakshmi was born from the primordial sea of milk. The name of Gaia's daughter Rhea (Titan mother of the gods) means milk in Greek. Anglo-Saxons portrayed Mary Magdalene as the May Queen. May celebrations such as Morris Men dancing and the Maypole, a fertility symbol, naturally have pagan associations with Maia goddess of spring and fertility, just as Christmas is associated with the winter solstice.
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