You know that moment in fairy tales and other fictional stories (and some non-fictional too) when everything seems doomed and, out of nowhere, something happens that changes all for better? Well, that's an eucatastrophe.
    This term was coined by my beloved J. R. R. Tolkien in his work "On Fairy-Stories" (1947), and can be defined as "sudden turn of events at the end of a story which ensure that the protagonist does not meet some terrible, impending, and very plausible doom".  He formed the word by affixing the Greek prefix eu, meaning "good", to catastrophe, the word traditionally used in classically-inspired literary criticism to refer to the "unraveling" or "conclusion" of a drama's plot.
     So, next time you stumble upon such an event, you know what to call it.

~Ally

     Did you know that this kind of circus routine is called "Icarian Games"? I didn't! Well, as you can imagine, the name comes from the Greek myth of Icarus and his flight across the sea... That was a little bit to close to the sun. His poor father Dedalus had to watch him fall from the sky and perish tragically after they escaped the minotaur's labyrinth.
     But in the circus, things are sunny and fun! The "Icarian Games" can be described as a discipline of the circus arts that was rarely seen in today's contemporary circus culture until a while ago, but it's now a big centre stage attraction. It is very traditional, and usually presented by members of the same family (which also alludes to the legend). The human juggling is done by using one person's (the porter) feet as a catapult and catcher and the other one (the flyer or voltigeur) as prop for tossing and juggling.

~Ally

     Let's step away from piracy a little bit and talk about mythology!
     Today I read about the Celtic god Sucellus. He is described as the god of forests, agriculture and alcoholic beverages from the Roman province of Lusitania (which included approximately all of modern Portugal, south of the Douro river, and part of modern Spain). Historians claim that it is another name for the Celtic god Dis Pater, from whom, according to Julius Caesar, the Gauls descended. He was represented clothed in wolf furs and, actually, was originally a wolf.
    So, if you recall a little bit about Roman history, you'll remeber that they also considered themselves wolf descendants (Romulus and Remus). That led the Averni (one of the most powerful Gallic tribes who lived in what is now the Auvergne region of France, during the last centuries BC) to declair themselves brothers of the Latins.

~Ally

     You just gotta love ancient mariners when you find something like this! I'm a big fan of sea monsters, but this was the first time I heard about an owl whale. Which - you might have figured out just by looking to the picture above - is a whale with an owl's head. Don't ask me why.
     This critter is also called Ziphius, from the Greek word "xiphias", which means sword. It allegedly swashbuckled its way over the seas, cutting vessels open with its sword-like dorsal fin, "doing mischief" (Loki-d, anyone? Teehee).
     And, before you go, please take note of the Ziphius' face expression: "Oh, crap." Seriously, Olaus, you're killing me.

~Ally

      The last time I read about the Midgard Serpent, the giant sea serpent from the Viking lore, it was in the legend of Thor's reception in Utgarda's castle. Back then, after being humiliated by the magician giant, Thor swore to take his vengeance on the serpent, since it was the only one who could be easily found - Utgarda disappeared, and the ocean and the Old Age can not be beaten. So, their second encounter went like this...

     "Travelling in the guise of a youth, Thor stayed the night with a giant called Hymir who lived by the sea. In the morning when Hymir was preparing to go fishing, Thor asked if he could go too. The giant agreed, but reluctantly as he said could see little advantage in having such a stripling in his boat. And when Thor asked what sort of bait he should bring, Hymir replied offhandedly that he should go and find his own bait. So Thor went over to the largest of the giant's bulls nearby, wrenched off its head and tossed it casually into the bottom of the boat. Then he took the oars and started rowing vigorously out to sea. Despite himself, Hymir was impressed, and somewhat afraid. When they reached the spot where he usually fished, Hymir told Thor to stop rowing. But Thor ignored him and carried on out towards the edge of the world. Then Hymir pleaded with him to stop because if they went much further they might meet the Midgard Serpent. Ignoring him again, Thor rowed on till he felt sure that they would find the serpent. Then he fixed the bull's head to a great hook on a strong line and dropped it over the side.
      By chance the Midgard Serpent happened to be passing and took the dainty morsel into its mouth. But when it felt the hook it jerked so hard that Thor was dragged to the gunwale. Summoning all his strength, he pulled back with such might that his feet burst through the bottom of the boat. Then followed a furious battle as slowly Thor hauled up the serpent till they were eye to glaring eye with each other, and it seemed as if a thunderstorm was raging between them.
    The giant was terrified by both the serpent and the water rushing into the boat, and as Thor raised his hammer to end the struggle, Hymir quickly reached across and cut the line. The serpent slithered gratefully back into the deep water. Thor desperately threw his hammer after it but was too late to prevent its escape. In fury Thor turned and dealt such a blow to Hymir that the giant fell overboard and was drowned.
    Thereafter the Midgard Serpent, terrified by her close shave, took care to hide in the depths where Thor might not find her and is now only rarely seen by humans. Although Thor swore to complete his revenge on the Midgard Serpent, he is not destined to do so until Ragnarok, the end of the world, when heaven, earth and the underworld will be destroyed."

~Ally

      A couple of days ago, my sister told me about the Kalinga creature (though I think that, at the time, she referred to it as "Kalima"). Since I'm always interested in mythical beings and foreign folklore, I decided to dig a little bit on that subject.
     According to Hindu legends, Kalinga is the king of serpents. Kalinga had seven heads and lived with his army of snakes in a tree growing by the river Yamuna. At night he would come out and cause devastation with his horde. But then Krishna climbed the tree and dived into the river with such intense heat radiating from his body that the tree burnt. The furious Kalinga encircled Krishna with his army, but Krishna was able to defeat Kalinga by dancing on his seven heads draining the snakes power. With their leader defeated, the snakes fled to the ocean and Krishna as a result promised that the giant bird creature, named Garuda, would not prey upon them in future.

~Ally

      I knew the Disney movie "Mulan" was based on an ancient Chinese legend, but only read about it today. In the poem "Ballad of Mulan" (below), Hua Mulan (not Fa Mulan) takes her aged father's place in the army. She fought for twelve years and gained high merit, but, after the war, she refused any reward and retired to her hometown instead. The historical setting of the legend is uncertain. The earliest accounts state that she lived during the Northern Wei dynasty (386–534).

"The sound of one sigh after another, As Mulan weaves at the doorway.
No sound of the loom and shuttle, Only that of the girl lamenting.
Ask her of whom she thinks, Ask her for whom she longs.
'There is no one I think of, There is no one I long for.
Last night I saw the army notice, The khan is calling a great draft.
A dozen volumes of battle rolls, Each one with my father's name.
My father has no grown-up son, And I have no elder brother.
I'm willing to buy a horse and saddle, To go to battle in my father's place.'

She buys a fine steed at the east market; A saddle and blanket at the west market
A bridle at the south market; And a long whip at the north market.
She takes leave of her parents at dawn, To camp beside the Yellow River at dusk.
No sound of her parents hailing their girl, Just the rumbling waters of the Yellow River.
She leaves the Yellow River at dawn, To reach the Black Mountains by dusk.
No sound of her parents hailing their girl, Just the cries of barbarian cavalry in the Yan hills.

Ten thousand miles she rode in war, Crossing passes and mountains as if on a wing.
On the northern air comes the sentry's gong, Cold light shines on her coat of steel.
The general dead after a hundred battles, The warriors return after ten years.
They return to see the Son of Heaven, Who sits in the Hall of Brilliance.
The rolls of merit spin a dozen times, Rewards in the hundreds and thousands.
The khan asks her what she desires, 'I've no need for the post of a gentleman official,
I ask to borrow a camel fleet of foot, To carry me back to my hometown.'

Her parents hearing their girl returns, Out to the suburbs to welcome her back.
Elder sister hearing her sister returns, Adjusts her rouge by the doorway.
Little brother hearing his sister returns, Sharpens his knife for pigs and lamb.
'I open my east chamber door, And sit on my west chamber bed.
I take off my battle cloak, And put on my old-time clothes.
I adjust my wispy hair at the window sill, And apply my bisque makeup by the mirror.
I step out to see my comrades-in-arms, They are all surprised and astounded:
'We travelled twelve years together, Yet didn't realize Mulan was a lady!''

The male rabbit is swifter of foot, The eyes of the female are somewhat smaller.
But when the two rabbits run side by side, How can you tell the female from the male?"

~Ally

    Despite being the eighth-largest constellation, Draco, the constellation of the Dragon, is not especially prominent (its stars are not very bright, but five of them have known planets). It never sets below the horizon and is always visible in the Northern Hemisphere (remember circumpolarity?). The name is derived from the Latin term "draconem", meaning "huge serpent," and the constellation literally snakes its way through the northern sky.
    The head of the dragon consists of four stars (Beta, Gamma, Nu, and Xi Draconis) in a trapezoid and located just north of the Hercules constellation. From there, the dragon's body winds its way through the sky, ending between the Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.
    The name Draco has been linked to several dragons in Greek mythology. One version is that Cadmus, the brother of Europa who was brought to Crete by Zeus in the form of a bull, slayed the dragon Draco in his quest to find his sister. In another account,  the goddess Athena took Draco by the tail and put it into the sky during the battle for Mount Olympus. Draco has also been identified in early Christianity as the serpent that tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden.

~Ally

      The Ursa Minor constellation, also called Little Dipper, is commonly visualized as a baby bear with an unusually long tail. As I said yesterday, Ursa Minor and Ursa Major were related by the Greeks to the myth of Callisto and Arcas (who was Callisto's daughter with Zeus). However, in a variant of the story, in which it is Boötes that represents Arcas, Ursa Minor represents a dog. This is the older tradition, which could explain both the length of the tail and the obsolete alternate name of Cynosura (the dog's tail) for Polaris, the North Star.
      Previously, Ursa Minor was considered just seven close stars, mythologically regarded as sisters. In early Greek mythology, the seven stars of the Little Dipper were the Hesperides, daughters of Atlas. Together with the nearby constellations of Boötes, Ursa Major, and Draco, it may have formed the origin of the myth of the apples of the Hesperides, which forms part of the Labours of Hercules. Ursa Minor with its modern associations was invented by Thales of Miletus in approximately 600 BCE, from what had previously represented the wings of Draco, the Dragon. He did so out of a desire to commemorate the location of the North Celestial Pole, then near Beta and Gamma Ursae Minoris.
    In Hungarian mythology, though, the constellation is called 'Little Goncol cart' (Göncöl szekér) after a legendary shaman (Ursa Major is 'Big Goncol cart'). The shaman's knowledge knew no limit. He invented the cart: his nation was wandering, so the cart was the biggest gift of the Gods to the country. Legends claim he knew everything about the world. Nobody saw his death; his body simply disappeared among the stars.

~Ally

      Believe it or not, it is said that someone fought against the Loch Ness Monster. That person was Saint Columba of Iona, an irish Christian missionary monk who lived in the sixth century. According to his own writings, or the writings of Adamnan, the ninth abbot of Iona (the records vary), Columba saved a Pictish from the monster's attack. The story tells that in the year 565 CE the saint was on his way to visit a local Pictish king, which required crossing the River/Loch Ness. By the shore he met some people burying a friend who, they said, had been attacked and killed by the monster in the waters. They had only just succeeded in rescuing his body from the beast. The rest of the account goes as follows...
      "...The blessed man, on hearing this, was so far from being dismayed that he directed one of his companions to swim over and row across the ferry that was moored at the farther bank. And Lugne Mocumin hearing the command obeyed without the least delay, taking off all his clothes except his tunic and leaping into the water. But the monster lying at the bottom of the stream, so far from being satiated, was only roused for more prey. When it felt the water disturbed above by the man swimming, it suddenly rushed out and, giving an awful roar, darted after him with its mouth wide open, as the man swam in the middle of the stream. Columba raised his holy hand while all the rest, brethren as well as strangers, were stupefied with terror. Invoking the name of God, he formed the saving sign of the cross in the air, and commanded the ferocious monster, saying, 'Thou shalt go no further, nor touch the man; return with all speed.'
     "Then at the voice of the saint, the monster was terrified, and fled more quickly than if it had been pulled back with ropes, though it had just got so near to Lugne, as he swam, that there was not more than the length of a spear-staff between the man and the beast. 'Then the brethren, seeing that the monster had gone back and that their comrade Lugne returned to them in the boat safe and sound, were struck with admiration, and gave glory to God in the blessed man. And even the barbarous heathens, who were present, were forced by the greatness of this miracle, which they themselves had seen, to magnify the God of the Christians."

~Ally