The most powerful mythical creatures. List of monsters, demons, giants and magical creatures of ancient Greek mythology

Almost every one of us has heard about certain magical and mythical creatures that inhabit our world. However, there are many more such creatures, the existence of which we know little or do not remember. In mythology and folklore, many magical entities are mentioned, some are described in more detail, others less.

Homunculus, according to the ideas of medieval alchemists, a creature similar to little man, which can be obtained artificially (in vitro). To create such a little man, the use of a mandrake was required. The root had to be plucked at dawn, then it had to be washed and "saturated" with milk and honey. Some prescriptions said that blood should be used instead of milk. After that, this root will fully develop into a miniature person who will be able to guard and protect its owner.

Brownie- Slavic peoples have a home spirit, a mythological master and patron of the house, ensuring the normal life of the family, fertility, health of people and animals. They try to feed the brownie, leave a separate saucer with treats and water (or milk) on the kitchen floor for him. The brownie, if he loves the owner or hostess, not only does not harm them, but also protects the household well-being. Otherwise (which happens more often), he starts to dirty things, breaks and hides things, encroaches on the light bulbs in the bathroom, creates an incomprehensible noise. It can "strangle" the owner at night by sitting on the owner's chest and paralyzing him. Brownie can change shape and pursue his master when moving.

Babai in Slavic folklore, a night spirit, a creature mentioned by parents to intimidate naughty children. Babai does not have a specific description, but most often he was represented as a lame old man with a bag over his shoulders, into which he takes naughty children. Usually parents remembered Babai when their child did not want to fall asleep.

Nephilim (watchers - "sons of God") described in the book of Enoch. They are fallen angels. The Niphilim were physical beings, they taught people the forbidden arts and, taking human wives as wives, gave birth to a new generation of people. In the Torah and several non-canonical Jewish and early Christian writings, nephilim - nephilim means "who cause others to fall." The Nephilim were of gigantic stature, their strength was enormous, as was their appetite. They began to eat up all human resources, and when they ran out, they could attack people. The Nephilim began to fight and oppress people, which was a huge destruction on earth.

Abaasy- in the folklore of the Yakut peoples, a huge stone monster with iron teeth. Lives in a forest thicket away from people's eyes or underground. It is born from a black stone, similar to a child. The older he gets, the more the stone looks like a child. At first, the stone child eats everything that people eat, but when he grows up, he begins to eat the people themselves. Sometimes referred to as anthropomorphic one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged monsters as tall as a tree. Abaasy feed on the souls of people and animals, tempt people, send misfortunes and illnesses, and can deprive them of their minds. Often the relatives of the sick or deceased sacrificed an animal to Abaasy, as if exchanging his soul for the soul of the person they threaten.

Abraxas- Abrasax is the name of a cosmological being in the ideas of the Gnostics. In the early era of Christianity, in the 1st-2nd centuries, many heretical sects arose, trying to combine the new religion with paganism and Judaism. According to the teachings of one of them, everything that exists is born in a certain higher Kingdom of light, from which 365 categories of spirits come. At the head of the spirits is Abraxas. His name and image are often found on gems and amulets: a creature with a human body and a cock's head, instead of legs - two snakes. Abraxas holds a sword and shield in his hands.

Baavan shi- in Scottish folklore, evil, bloodthirsty fairies. If a raven flew up to a person and suddenly turned into a golden-haired beauty in a long green dress, it means that a baavan shi is in front of him. Long Dresses they are worn for a reason, hiding under them deer hooves, which the baavan shi have instead of feet. These fairies lure men into their dwellings and drink their blood.

Baku- "Dream Eater" in Japanese mythology good spirit eating bad dreams. You can summon him by writing his name on a piece of paper and placing it under your pillow. At one time, images of Baku hung in Japanese homes, and his name was written on pillows. They believed that if Baku was forced to eat a bad dream, then he had the power to turn the dream into a good one.
There are stories where Baku does not look very kind. Eating all the dreams and dreams, he deprived the sleeping of beneficial effects, and even completely deprived them of sleep.

kikimora- a character of Slavic-Ugric mythology, as well as one of the types of brownie, causing harm, damage and minor troubles to the household and people. Kikimors, as a rule, settle indoors if a child has died in the house. Kikimors may appear in the form of an escaping person abandoned on the way child. Swamp or forest kikimora was accused of kidnapping children, instead of whom she left an enchanted log. Her presence in the house could be easily identified by wet footprints. A caught kikimora could be turned into a human.

Basilisk- a monster with a rooster's head, toad's eyes, wings bat and the body of a dragon that exists in the mythologies of many peoples. From his gaze, all living things turn to stone. According to legend, if the Basilisk sees his reflection in the mirror, he will die. Caves are the habitat of the Basilisk, they are also its source of food, since the Basilisk only eats stones. He can leave his shelter only at night, because he cannot stand the cock crow. And he is also afraid of unicorns because they are too "clean" animals.

Baggain- in the folklore of the inhabitants of the Isle of Man, the insidious werewolf. He hates people and harasses in every possible way. Baggain is able to grow to gigantic sizes and take on any appearance. He can pretend to be human, but if you look closely, you can see pointed ears and horse hooves, which will still give out baggain.

Alkonost (alkonst)- in Russian art and legends, a bird of paradise with a maiden's head. Often mentioned and depicted along with Sirin, another bird of paradise. The image of Alkonost goes back to the Greek myth about the girl Alcyone, who was turned by the gods into a kingfisher. The earliest depiction of Alkonost is found in a book miniature of the 12th century. Alconst is a safe and rare creature living closer to the sea. folk tale, in the morning at Apple Spas arrives in Apple orchard bird Sirin, which is sad and crying. And in the afternoon, the Alkonost bird flies to the apple orchard, which rejoices and laughs. The bird brushes off the live dew from its wings and the fruits are transformed, an amazing power appears in them - all the fruits on the apple trees from that moment on become healing

Water- the owner of the waters in Slavic mythology. Water graze at the bottom of rivers and lakes their cows - catfish, carp, bream and other fish. Commands mermaids, undines, drowned men, aquatic inhabitants. More often he is kind, but sometimes he drags some gaping person to the bottom to entertain him. It lives more often in whirlpools, likes to settle under a water mill.

Abnahuayu- in Abkhazian mythology ("forest man"). Giant ferocious creature, characterized by extraordinary physical strength and fury. The whole body of Abnahuayu is covered with long hair, similar to bristles, he has huge claws; eyes and nose are human. Dwells in dense forests(there was a belief that one Abnauayu lives in every forest gorge). Meeting with Abnauayu is dangerous, the adult Abnauayu has an ax-shaped steel protrusion on his chest: pressing the victim to his chest, he cuts it in half. Abnahuayu knows in advance the name of the hunter or shepherd he will meet.

Cerberus (Spirit of the Underworld)- in Greek mythology a huge dog of the Underworld, guarding the entrance to the afterlife. In order for the souls of the dead to enter the underworld, they must bring gifts to Cerberus - honey and barley biscuits. The task of Cerberus is to prevent dead living people from entering the kingdom who want to rescue their loved ones from there. One of the few living people who managed to penetrate into the underworld and emerge from it unharmed was Orpheus, who played beautiful music on the lyre. One of the feats of Hercules, which he was ordered to perform by the gods, was to bring Cerberus to the city of Tiryns.

Griffin- winged monsters with a lion's body and the head of an eagle, guardians of gold in different mythologies. Griffins, vultures, in Greek mythology, monstrous birds with an eagle's beak and the body of a lion; they. - “dogs of Zeus” - guard gold in the country of the Hyperboreans, guarding it from the one-eyed Arimaspians (Aeschyl. Prom. 803 following). Among the fabulous inhabitants of the north - the Issedons, Arimaspians, Hyperboreans, Herodotus also mentions Griffins (Herodot. IV 13).
There are also griffins in Slavic mythology. In particular, it is known that they guard the treasures of the Riphean mountains.

gaki. in Japanese mythology - eternally hungry demons. Those who, during their life on Earth, ate or threw away completely edible food. Gaki's hunger is insatiable, but they cannot die from it. They eat anything, even their children, but they cannot get enough. Sometimes they get into the Human World, and then they become cannibals.

Vuivre, Vuivre. France. King, or queen of snakes; in the forehead - a sparkling stone, a bright red ruby; the form of a fiery serpent; keeper of underground treasures; can be seen flying across the sky on summer nights; dwellings - abandoned castles, fortresses, donjons, etc.; his images are in the sculptural compositions of Romanesque monuments; when he bathes, he leaves the stone on the shore, and whoever manages to take possession of the ruby ​​will become fabulously rich - he will receive part of the underground treasures guarded by the snake.

headdress- A Bulgarian vampire who eats dung and carrion because he is too much of a coward to attack people. It has a bad character, which is not surprising with such a diet.

Ayami, in the Tungus-Manchu mythology (among the Nanais) the spirits-ancestors of shamans. Each shaman has his own Ayami, he instructed, indicated what kind of costume a shaman (shaman) should have, how to treat. Ayami appeared to the shaman in a dream in the form of a woman (to a shaman - in the form of a man), as well as a wolf, a tiger and other animals, moved into shamans during prayers. Ayami could also have spirits - the owners of various animals, it was they who sent Ayami to steal the souls of people and cause them illness.

Duboviki- in Celtic mythology, evil magical creatures living in the crowns and trunks of oaks.
To every person passing by their dwelling, they offer delicious food and gifts.
In no case should you take food from them, and even more so taste it, since food cooked by oak trees is very poisonous. At night, oaks often go in search of prey.
You should know that it is especially dangerous to pass by a recently felled oak tree: the oak trees that lived in it are angry and can do a lot of trouble.

Damn (in the old spelling "devil")- an evil, playful and lustful spirit in Slavic mythology. In the book tradition, according to the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, the word devil is a synonym for the concept of demon. The devil is social and most often goes hunting with groups of devils. trait attract drinking people. When the devil finds such a person, he tries to do everything so that the person drinks even more, bringing him to a state of complete madness. The very process of their materialization, popularly known as "getting drunk as hell", is colorfully and in detail described in one of Vladimir Nabokov's stories. “By prolonged, stubborn, lonely drunkenness,” the famous prose writer reported, “I brought myself to the most vulgar visions, namely: I began to see devils.” If a person stops drinking, the devil begins to wither without receiving the expected replenishment.

Vampal, in the mythology of the Ingush and Chechens, a huge shaggy monster with supernatural powers: sometimes Vampala has several heads. Wampals are both male and female. In fairy tales, Vampal is a positive character, distinguished by nobility and helping the heroes in their battles.

hyanas in Italian folklore women's perfume. Tall and beautiful, they lived in the forests, were engaged in needlework. They could also predict the future and knew where the treasures were hidden. Despite their beauty, hyanas, among which the majority were women, had difficulty finding a mate. There were extremely few male hyanas; dwarfs were no good for husbands, and giants were real brutes. Therefore, the hyanas could only do work and sing sad songs.

Yrka in Slavic mythology- evil night spirit with eyes on dark face, glowing like a cat, is especially dangerous on the night of Ivan Kupala and only in the field, because the goblin do not let him into the forest. They become suicidal. Attacks lonely travelers, drinks their blood. Ukrut, his assistant, brings him a sack of scoundrels, from whom Yrka drank life. He is very afraid of the fire, he does not approach the fire. To save yourself from it, you can not look back, even if they call out in a familiar voice, do not answer anything, say “keep me away” three times or read the prayer “Our Father”.

Div- The demonic character of East Slavic mythology. Mentioned in medieval teachings against the pagans. There are echoes of the latter meaning in the episodes of The Tale of Igor's Campaign, where the expression "spreading divas to the ground" is perceived as a harbinger of misfortune. Div turned people away from dangerous deeds, appearing in the form of unseen. Seeing him and being surprised, people forgot about the unrighteous deed that they wanted to commit. The Poles called him esiznik (“There is a sign”, there is and disappeared), that is, a god-vision.

Ayustal, in Abkhazian mythology, hell; harms people and animals. According to beliefs, if Ayustal moves into a person, he falls ill, and sometimes dies in agony. When a person suffers greatly before death, they say that Ayustal took possession of him, but often a person defeats Ayustal by cunning.

Sulde "life force", in the mythology of the Mongolian peoples, one of the souls of a person, with which his vital and spiritual strength is associated. Sulde ruler is the spirit - the guardian of the people; its material embodiment is the banner of the ruler, which in itself becomes an object of worship, guarded by the subjects of the ruler. During the wars, human sacrifices were made to the Sulde-banners to raise the morale of the army. The Suldi banners of Genghis Khan and some other khans were especially revered. The character of the shamanic pantheon of the Mongols Sulde-Tengri, the patron of people, apparently, is genetically connected with Sulde of Genghis Khan.

shikome in Japanese mythology, a warlike race of creatures vaguely similar to European goblins. Bloodthirsty sadists, slightly taller than people and much stronger than them, with well-developed muscles. Sharp teeth and burning eyes. They do nothing but war. They often set up ambushes in the mountains.

Buka - scarecrow. A small, vicious creature that lives in a child's closet or under a bed. Only children see it, and children suffer from it, since Buka loves to attack them at night - grab them by the legs and drag them under the bed or into the closet (his lair). He is afraid of the light, from which the faith of adults can die. He is afraid that adults will believe in him.

Beregini in Slavic mythology, spirits in the guise of women with tails, living along the banks of rivers. Mentioned in ancient Russian historical and literary monuments. They protect people from evil spirits, predict the future, and also save small children left unattended and fallen into the water.

Anzud- in Sumero-Akkadian mythology, a divine bird, an eagle with a lion's head. Anzud is a mediator between gods and people, at the same time embodying good and evil principles. When the god Enlil took off his insignia while washing, Anzud stole the tablets of fate and flew with them to the mountains. Anzud wanted to become more powerful than all the gods, but by his act he violated the course of things and divine laws. In pursuit of the bird, the god of war, Ninurta, set off. He shot Anzud with his bow, but Enlil's tablets healed the wound. Ninurta managed to hit the bird only on the second attempt, or even on the third attempt (in different versions of the myth in different ways).

Bug- spirits in English mythology. According to legends, the bug is a "children's" monster, even in our time, English women scare their children with it.
Usually these creatures have the appearance of shaggy monsters with matted, tufted hair. Many English children believe that bugs can enter rooms by using open chimneys. However, despite their rather intimidating appearance, these creatures are completely non-aggressive and practically harmless, since they have neither sharp teeth nor long claws. They can scare in only one way - by making a terrible ugly face, spreading their paws and raising the hair on the scruff of the neck.

Alraunes- in the folklore of European peoples, tiny creatures that live in the roots of the mandrake, the outlines of which resemble human figures. Alraunes are friendly to people, but they are not averse to making fun, sometimes quite cruelly. These are werewolves capable of transforming into cats, worms, and even small children. Later, the Alrauns changed their way of life: they liked the warmth and comfort in people's homes so much that they began to move there. Before moving to a new place, alrauns, as a rule, test people: they scatter all sorts of garbage on the floor, throw clods of earth or pieces of cow dung into milk. If people don't sweep the trash and drink milk, Alraun understands that it is quite possible to settle here. It's almost impossible to drive him away. Even if the house is burned down and people move somewhere, alraun follows them. Alraun had to be treated with great care due to its magical properties. You had to wrap or dress him in white robes with a gold belt, bathe him every Friday, and keep him in a box, otherwise Alraun would start yelling for attention. Alraunes were used in magical rituals. It was assumed that they bring great luck, in the likeness of a talisman - a quatrefoil. But possession of them carried the risk of being prosecuted for witchcraft, and in 1630 three women were executed in Hamburg on this charge. Due to the high demand for Alraunes, they were often cut from bryony roots, as genuine mandrakes were hard to come by. They were exported from Germany to various countries, including England, during the reign of Henry VIII.

Authorities- in Christian mythological representations, angelic creatures. The authorities can be both good forces and minions of evil. Among the nine angelic ranks powers complete the second triad, which, in addition to them, also includes dominions and powers. As Pseudo-Dionysius says, “the name of the holy Authorities signifies equal to the Divine Dominations and Forces, slender and capable of receiving Divine illuminations, the Chin and the device of a worldly spiritual dominion, which does not use autocratically for evil the granted domineering powers, but freely and decently to the Divine as itself ascending who brings others holy to Him and, as much as possible, becomes like the Source and Giver of all power and portrays Him ... in a completely true use of his sovereign power.

gargoyle- the fruit of medieval mythology. The word "gargoyle" comes from the Old French gargouille - throat, and with its sound imitates the gurgling sound that occurs when gargling. The gargoyles seated on the facades of Catholic cathedrals were ambivalent. On the one hand, they were like ancient sphinxes as guard statues, capable of coming to life and protecting a temple or a mansion in a moment of danger, on the other hand, when they were placed on temples, it showed that all evil spirits were fleeing from this holy place, since it could not bear the temple purity.

Grima- according to medieval European beliefs, they lived throughout Europe. Most often they can be seen in old cemeteries located near churches. Therefore, scary creatures are also called church makeup.
These monsters can take on a variety of forms, but most often they turn into huge dogs with jet-black fur and glow-in-the-dark eyes. You can see the monsters only in rainy or cloudy weather, they usually appear in the cemetery in the late afternoon, and also during the day during the funeral. They often howl under the windows of sick people, foreshadowing their imminent death. Often, some kind of makeup, not afraid of heights, climbs the church bell tower at night and starts ringing all the bells, which is considered by the people to be a very bad omen.

Ahti- a water demon among the peoples of the north. Neither evil nor good. Although he likes to joke and with jokes he can go too far so that a person will die. Of course, if you piss him off, he can kill you.

Atsys“Without a name”, in the mythology of the West Siberian Tatars, an evil demon that unexpectedly appears in front of travelers at night in the form of a shock, cart, tree, fiery clod and strangles them. Attsys was also called various evil spirits (Myatskai, Oryak, Ubyr, etc.), whose names were afraid to pronounce out loud, being afraid to attract a demon.

Shoggoths- creatures mentioned in the famous mystical book "Al Azif", better known as the "Necronomicon", written by the crazy poet Abdul Alhazred. Approximately one third of the book is devoted to the control of shoggoths, which are presented as shapeless "eels" from bubbles of protoplasm. The ancient gods created them as servants, but the shoggoths, possessing intelligence, quickly got out of submission and have since acted of their own free will and for their strange incomprehensible goals. It is said that these beings often appear in narcotic visions, but there they are not subject to human control.

Yuvha, in the mythology of the Turkmens and Uzbeks of Khorezm, Bashkirs and Kazan Tatars (Yukha) is a demonic character associated with the water element. Yuvha - beautiful girl, into which it turns after living for many (for the Tatars - 100 or 1000) years, According to the myths of the Turkmens and Uzbeks of Khorezm, Yuvha marries a man, having previously set a number of conditions for him, for example, do not watch how she combs her hair, do not stroke her back, perform ablution after intercourse. Violating the conditions, the husband discovers snake scales on her back, sees how, combing her hair, she removes her head. If Yuvha is not killed, she will eat her husband.

Ghouls - (Russian; Ukrainian upir, Belarusian ynip, other Russian Upir), in Slavic mythology, a dead man attacking people and animals. At night, the Ghoul rises from the grave and, in the guise of a bloodshot dead man or a zoomorphic creature, kills people and animals, sucks out blood, after which the victim either dies or can become a Ghoul herself. According to popular beliefs, people who died an "unnatural death" became ghouls - forcibly killed, drunken drunkards, suicides and also sorcerers. It was believed that the earth does not accept such dead people and therefore they are forced to wander around the world and harm the living. Such dead people were buried outside the cemetery and away from housing.

Chusrym in Mongolian mythology - the King of fish. He freely swallows ships, and when he sticks out of the water, he looks like a huge mountain.

Sharkan, in Hungarian mythology, a dragon with a serpentine body and wings. It is possible to distinguish between two layers of ideas about Shambling. One of them, associated with the European tradition, is presented mainly in fairy tales, where Sharkan is a ferocious monster with big amount(three, seven, nine, twelve) heads, the hero's opponent in battle, often an inhabitant of a magical castle. On the other hand, there are beliefs about the one-headed Shuffling as one of the assistants of the sorcerer (shaman) taltosh.

Shilikun, Shilikhan- in Slavic mythology - hooligans fine perfume, which appear on Christmas Eve and before Epiphany run through the streets with burning coals in pans. Drunk people can be pushed into the hole. At night they will make noise and roam, and turning into black cats, they will crawl under their feet.
They are as tall as a sparrow, their legs are like those of a horse - with hooves, fire breathes from their mouths. At Baptism they go to the underworld.

Faun (Pan)- spirit or deity of forests and groves, god of shepherds and fishermen in Greek mythology. This is a cheerful god and companion of Dionysus, always surrounded by forest nymphs, dancing with them and playing the flute for them. It is believed that Pan had a prophetic gift and endowed Apollo with this gift. The faun was considered a crafty spirit that stole children.

Kumo- in Japanese mythology - spiders that can turn into people. Very rare creatures. In their normal form, they look like huge spiders, the size of a man, with burning red eyes and sharp stingers on their paws. In human form, beautiful women with a cold beauty, trapping men and devouring them.

Phoenix- an immortal bird personifying the cyclical nature of the world. Phoenix is ​​the patron of anniversaries, or great time cycles. Herodotus recounts the original version of the legend with marked skepticism:
“There is another sacred bird there, its name is Phoenix. I myself have never seen her, except as painted, because in Egypt she rarely appears, once in 500 years, as the inhabitants of Heliopolis say. According to them, she arrives when her father (that is, she herself) dies. If the images correctly show her size and size and appearance, her plumage is partly golden, partly red. Its appearance and dimensions resemble an eagle. This bird does not breed, but is reborn after death from its own ashes.

Werewolf- Werewolf - a monster that exists in many mythological systems. It means a person who can turn into animals or vice versa. An animal that can turn into people. This skill is often possessed by demons, deities and spirits. The classic werewolf is the wolf. It is with him that all the associations born by the word werewolf are associated. This change can occur either at the will of the werewolf, or involuntarily, caused, for example, by certain lunar cycles.

Viryava- the mistress and spirit of the grove among the peoples of the north. Appeared as a beautiful girl. Birds and animals obeyed her. She helped lost travelers.

wendigo- spirit-eater in the myths of the Ojibwe and some other Algonquian tribes. Served as a warning against any excesses of human behavior. The Inuit tribe calls this creature by various names, including Windigo, Vitigo, Vitiko. Wendigo enjoy hunting and love to attack hunters. A lone traveler who finds himself in the forest begins to hear strange sounds. He looks around for the source, but sees nothing but a flicker of something moving too fast for the human eye to see. When the traveler starts to run away in fear, the Wendigo attacks. He is powerful and strong like no other. Can imitate people's voices. In addition, the Wendigo never stops hunting after eating.

Shikigami. in Japanese mythology Spirits summoned by a magician, an expert on Onmyo-do. They usually look like small oni, but can take the form of birds and beasts. Many shikigami can possess and control the bodies of animals, and the shikigami of the most powerful magicians can possess humans. Controlling shikigami is very difficult and dangerous, as they can break out of the magician's control and attack him. An expert on Onmyo-do can direct the power of other people's shikigami against their master.

hydra monster, described by the ancient Greek poet Hesiod (VIII-VII centuries BC) in his legend of Hercules ("Theogony"): a many-headed snake (Lernean Hydra), in which two new ones grew instead of each severed head. And it was impossible to kill her. Hydra's lair was near Lake Lerna near Argolis. Under water was the entrance to the underground kingdom of Hades, which was guarded by a hydra. Hydra hid in a rocky cave on the shore near the spring of Amimona, from where it came out only to attack the surrounding settlements.

Fighting- in English folklore, water fairies that lure mortal women, appearing to them in the form of wooden dishes floating on the water. As soon as any woman grabs onto such a dish, the fight immediately takes on its true, ugly appearance and drags the unfortunate woman to the bottom so that she can look after his children there.

Sinister- pagan evil spirits of the ancient Slavs, the personification of Nedol, Navi servants. They are also called kriks or hmyrs - swamp spirits, which are so dangerous that they can stick to a person, even move into him, especially in old age, if a person did not love anyone in life and he had no children. Sinister can turn into a poor old man. In the Christmas game, the villain personifies poverty, poverty, winter darkness.

incubi- in medieval European mythology, male demons harassing female love. The word incubus comes from the Latin "incubare", which means "to lie down" in translation. According to old books, incubus are fallen angels, demons who are addicted to sleeping women. Incubuses showed such enviable energy in intimate matters that entire nations were born. For example, the Huns, who, according to medieval beliefs, were the descendants of "outcast women" Goths and evil spirits.

Goblin- the owner of the forest, the forest spirit, in the mythology of the Eastern Slavs. This is the main owner of the forest, he makes sure that no one in his household does any harm. TO good people treats well, helps to get out of the forest, to not too good - bad: confuses, makes you walk in circles. He sings in a voice without words, beats his hands, whistles, hoots, laughs, cries. Leshy can appear in various plant, animal, human and mixed forms, can be invisible. Most often appears as a lonely creature. Leaves the forest for the winter, sinking underground.

baba yaga- a character of Slavic mythology and folklore, the mistress of the forest, the mistress of animals and birds, the guardian of the borders of the kingdom of Death. In a number of fairy tales it is likened to a witch, a sorceress. Most often - a negative character, but sometimes acts as an assistant to the hero. Baba Yaga has several stable attributes: she knows how to conjure, fly in a mortar, lives on the edge of the forest, in a hut on chicken legs surrounded by a fence of human bones with skulls. She lures good fellows and small children to her, ostensibly in order to eat them.

Shishiga, an unclean spirit, in Slavic mythology. If he lives in the forest, then he attacks randomly wandering people, so that later he can gnaw their bones. At night, they like to make noise and gossip. According to another belief, shishimora or shishigs are mischievous restless house spirits that mock a person who does things without praying. We can say that these are very instructive spirits, correct, accustoming to the pious routine of life.

The human imagination, especially in nightmares, can generate images of terrible monsters. They come from the darkness and inspire inexplicable fear. Over the entire multi-thousand-year history of existence, mankind believed in a fairly large number of such monsters, whose names they tried not to even pronounce, since they personified universal evil.

Often Yovi is compared with the more famous Bigfoot, but he is credited with Australian origin. According to legend, Yovi lived exclusively in the Blue Mountains, a mountainous region located to the west of Sydney. The image of this monster appeared in the folklore of the natives to scare away European immigrants and settlers, although there is evidence that the myth has a longer history. There have been people who have spoken of meeting this creature, which is considered an "evil spirit", although there is no official confirmation of Yovi attacking people. It is said that when meeting a human, Yovi stops and stares intently, and then disappears into the dense forest.

During the era of colonial wars, many myths appeared or gained new life in different parts of the world. For example, in the regions of South America, they began to talk about the existence of giant anacondas. These snakes reach a length of up to 5 m, and their body, in comparison with ordinary anacondas, is much more massive. Fortunately, no one has yet encountered such a snake, either alive or dead.

If you delve into the mythology of the Slavs, you can believe in the existence of such a creature as a brownie. This is a small bearded man who can live in a pet or even move into a person. They say that in every house there lives a brownie, who is responsible for the atmosphere in it: if there is order and harmony in the house, then the brownie is kind, if they often swear in the house, then the brownie is evil. An evil brownie is capable of causing constant accidents that make life unbearable.

With the head of a crocodile and the face of a dog, with a ponytail and fins, with large fangs, the Bunyip is a fairly large monster that is said to live in swamps and other parts of Australia. His name comes from the word "devil", but many other qualities are attributed to him. Most often, this monster was talked about in the 19th century, and today it is believed that the creature still exists and lives on parity with the locals. Most of all, the natives believe in this.

The creature Bigfoot is known to everyone. This is a large creature that lives in different parts USA. He is very tall, his body is covered with black or brown hair. They say that when meeting with him, a person becomes numb in the truest sense of the word, being under the influence of hypnosis. There were people who testified to cases when Bigfoot took people with him into the forest and kept them in his lair. long time. True or not, the image of Bigfoot instills fear in many.

Jikininki is a special creature born from Japanese folklore. In the past, it was a man who, after death, transformed into a terrible monster. Many believe that this is a ghost that feeds on human flesh, so people who believe in this deliberately avoid visiting cemeteries. In Japan, it is believed that if a person is very greedy during life, after death he turns into jikininki as a punishment and experiences the eternal hunger of carrion. Outwardly, the jikininki is similar to a person, but with a disproportionate body, with large luminous eyes.

This creature has Tibetan roots. Researchers believe that the Yeti crossed into Nepal in the footsteps of Sherpa migrants, emigrants from Tibet. They say that he wanders around the neighborhood, sometimes throwing huge stones and whistling terribly. Yeti walks on two legs, his body is covered with light hair, and in his mouth are dog fangs. Both ordinary people and researchers claim to have met this creature in reality. Rumor has it that it penetrates into our world from the other world.

Chupacabra is a fairly small creature, but capable of causing a lot of problems. This monster was first talked about in Puerto Rico, and later in other parts of South and North America. "Chupakabra" in translation means "sucking the blood of goats." This name was given to the creature as a result of a large number of unexplained deaths of livestock. local population. Animals died from blood loss, through bites on the neck. The Chupacabra has also been seen in Chile. Basically, all evidence of the existence of the monster is oral, there is neither a body nor a photograph of it. Nobody managed to catch the monster alive either, but it is very popular all over the world.

Between 1764 and 1767, France lived in great fear because of the werewolf, either the wolf or the dog. They say that during the period of its existence, the monster made 210 attacks on people, of which he killed 113. Nobody wanted to meet him. The monster was even officially hunted by King Louis XV. Many professional hunters tracked down the beast for the purpose of killing, but their attempts were in vain. As a result, a local hunter killed him with a charmed bullet. Human remains were found in the belly of the beast.

In the mythology of the American Indians, there was a bloodthirsty creature Wendigo, a product of curses. The fact is that in the myths of the Algonquian tribes it was stated that if during life a person was a cannibal and ate human meat, then after death he turns into a Wendigo. They also said that he can move into any person, taking possession of his soul. A wendigo is three times taller than a human, its skin is decomposing and its bones are protruding. This creature is constantly hungry and craves human flesh.

The Sumerians, representatives of an ancient but fairly developed civilization, created their own epic, in which they talked about gods, goddesses and their Everyday life. One of the most popular epics was the Epic of Gilgamesh and stories about the creature Gugalanna. This creature, in search of the king, killed a large number of people, destroyed cities. Gugalanna is a bull-like monster that the gods used as a weapon of revenge on people.

Like vampires, this creature has a constant thirst for blood. It also devours human hearts and has the ability to disconnect upper part his body and enter people's houses, especially the houses where pregnant women live, to drink their blood and steal the child with his long tongue. But this creature is mortal and can be killed by sprinkling salt.

Black Annis, as the embodiment of evil, is known to everyone in Britain, especially in rural areas. She is main character local folklore of the 19th century. Annis of blue color skin and a creepy smile. Children had to avoid meeting her, as she fed on children and sheep, which she took from houses and yards by deceit or force. From the skin of children and sheep, Annis made belts, which she then wore by the dozens.

The scariest of the scariest, the Dybbuk is the protagonist of Jewish mythology. This evil spirit is considered the most cruel. He is able to destroy the life of anyone and destroy the soul, while the person will not be aware of what is happening to him and gradually die.

"The Tale of Koshchei the Immortal" belongs to the mythology and folklore of the Slavs and tells about a creature that cannot be killed, but which spoils the life of everyone. But he has weakness- his soul, which is at the end of the needle, which is hidden in the egg, which is inside the duck, which sits inside the hare. The hare sits in a strong chest on top of the tallest oak growing on the fabulous island. In a word, it is difficult to call a trip to this island pleasant.

Unicorns and mermaids - fact or fiction? We present a list of mythical creatures, evidence of the existence of which people continue to look for over the centuries.

water creatures

Loch Ness monster

The monster, according to legend, lives in Loch Ness, the Scots affectionately call Nessie. The first mention of this creature is found in the chronicle of the Aion monastery, dated to the 5th century BC.

The next mention of the "water beast" is found in 1880 - because of a sailboat that drowned in Loch Ness. The circumstances of the crash were very unusual: according to the descriptions of eyewitnesses, as soon as the ship reached the middle of the reservoir, it was suddenly broken in half by something resembling tentacles or a tail.

Rumors about the existence of the monster began to spread widely after 1933, when the Evening Couriers newspaper published detailed story"eyewitness" who noticed an unknown creature in the lake.

In September 2016, amateur photographer Ian Bremner managed to take a picture of a 2-meter snake-like creature slicing through the expanse of Loch Ness. The photo is quite convincing, but the press accused Bremner of a hoax, and someone decided that the photo depicts three frolicking seals.

Mermaids

It is widely believed that mermaids are girls living at the bottom of a river or sea, and instead of legs they have a fish tail. However, in the myths of different peoples, mermaids are the guardians of forests, fields and reservoirs, and they walk on two legs. In Western cultures, mermaids are called Nymphs, Naiads or Undines.

In Slavic folklore, the souls of drowned women turned into mermaids. Some ancient Slavic peoples also believed that a mermaid is the spirit of a deceased child, whom death overtook on the Rusal (preceding the holiday of the Trinity) week. It was believed that during these 7 days, mermaids walk the Earth, emerging from the water after the Ascension of the Lord.

Mermaids are classified as evil spirits that can harm a person, for example, drown him. It was customary to portray these creatures naked and without a headdress, less often in a torn sundress.

Sirens

According to legend, sirens are winged maidens with enchanting voices. They received their wings from the gods when they instructed them to find the fertility goddess Persephone kidnapped by Hades.

According to another version, they became winged because they could not fulfill the order of the gods. As punishment, the Thunderer Zeus left them a beautiful girlish body, but turned his hands into wings, because of which they could no longer remain in the world of people.

The meeting of people with sirens is described in Homer's poem "The Odyssey". The mythical maidens enchanted the sailors with their singing, and their ships crashed on the reefs. Captain Odysseus ordered his crew to plug their ears beeswax to counter the sweet-voiced half-woman, half-bird, and his ship escaped destruction.

kraken

Kraken is a Scandinavian monster that sinks ships. A half-dragon with huge octopus tentacles inspired fear in Icelandic navigators of the 18th century. In the 1710s, the Danish naturalist Erik Pontoppidan first described the kraken in his diaries. According to legend, an animal the size of a floating island darkened the sea surface and dragged ships to the bottom with huge tentacles.

200 years later, in 1897, researchers discovered the giant squid Architeutis in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, reaching 16.5 meters in length. It has been suggested that this creature was mistaken for the kraken two centuries earlier.

It is not so easy to see the kraken in the vastness of the ocean: when its body protrudes above the water, it is easy to mistake it for a small island, of which there are thousands in the ocean.

flying creatures

Phoenix

The Phoenix is ​​an immortal bird with fiery wings that can burn itself and be reborn. When the phoenix senses the approach of death, it burns, and in its place a chick appears in the nest. Phoenix life cycle: about 500 years.

Mentions of the phoenix are found in myths Ancient Greece in the mythology of the ancient Egyptian Heliopolis, in which the phoenix is ​​described as the patron of large time cycles.

This fabulous bird with bright red plumage personifies renewal and immortality in modern culture. So, the phoenix rising from the flame, accompanied by the inscription "The only Phoenix of the whole world" is depicted on the medals of the English Queen Elizabeth II.

Pegasus

A snow-white horse with eagle wings is named Pegasus. This fabulous creature is the fruit of the love of Medusa Gorgon and Poseidon. According to legend, Pegasus came out of the neck of Medusa when Poseidon cut off her head. There is another legend that says that Pegasus appeared from the drops of Gorgon's blood.

In honor of this fictional winged horse, the constellation Pegasus is named, which is located southwest near Andromeda and consists of 166 stars.

Zmey Gorynych

Serpent Gorynych is an evil character in Slavic fairy tales and epics. His characteristic- three fire-breathing heads. The body, covered with shiny scales, ends with an arrow-shaped tail, and on its paws it has sharp claws. He guards the gate separating the world of the dead and the world of the living. This place is located on the Kalinov Bridge, which is above the Smorodina River, or the fiery river.

The first mention of the Serpent dates back to the 11th century. On the harp, made by the settlers of the Novgorod lands, you can find images of a three-headed lizard, which was originally considered the king of the underwater world.

In some legends, Gorynych lives in the mountains (therefore, it is believed that his name comes from the word "mountain"). In others, he sleeps on a stone in the sea and combines the ability to control two elements at once - fire and water.

Wyvern

A wyvern is a mythical dragon-like creature with one pair of legs and wings. It is not capable of spewing fire, but its fangs are saturated with deadly poison. In other myths, the poison was contained at the end of the sting, with which the lizard pierced its victim. Some legends say that it was wyvern venom that caused the first plague.

It is known that the first legends about wyverns appeared in the Stone Age: this creature personified ferocity. Subsequently, his image was used by the leaders of the troops to instill fear in the enemy.

A creature similar to a wyvern can be found on Orthodox icons depicting the struggle of St. Michael (or George) with a dragon.

ground creatures

Unicorns

Unicorns are stately noble creatures, symbolizing chastity. According to legend, they live in forest thickets and only innocent maidens are able to catch them.

The earliest evidence for the existence of unicorns dates back to the 5th century BC. The ancient Greek historian Ctesias was the first to describe "Indian wild donkeys with one horn on their foreheads, blue eyes and a red head," and whoever drinks wine or water from the horn of this donkey will be cured of all diseases and never get sick again.

No one, except Ctesias, saw this animal, but his story was received wide use thanks to Aristotle, who included a description of the unicorn in his History of Animals.

Bigfoot/Yeti

Bigfoot, or Yeti, is a huge humanoid creature that has similar features to a monkey and lives in deserted highlands.

The first mention of Bigfoot was recorded from the words of Chinese peasants: in 1820 they met a tall, shaggy monster with large paws. In the 1880s, expeditions began to be equipped in European countries to search for traces of Bigfoot. The Valkyries Carry the Dead to Valhalla

On rare occasions, the maidens are allowed to decide the outcome of a battle, but more often than not, they carry out the will of their father, Odin, who decides who will be victorious in a bloody battle.

Valkyries are most often depicted in armor and helmets with horns, and shining light emanates from their swords. The story goes that the god Odin endowed his daughters with the capacity for compassion so that they would accompany the dead in battle to the “hall of the slain.”

Sphinx

The name of the mythical creature sphinx comes from the ancient Greek word "sphingo", which means "strangle". The earliest images of this creature were created 10 thousand years BC in the territory of modern Turkey. However, the image of the sphinx with the body of a lion and the head of a woman is known to us from the myths of ancient Greece.

Legend has it that a sphinx woman guarded the entrance to the city of Thebes. Everyone who met her on their way had to guess the riddle: “Who walks on four legs in the morning, on two in the afternoon, and on three in the evening?” Unguessed people died from clawed paws, and only Oedipus could name the correct answer: man.

The essence of the clue is that when a person is born, he crawls on all fours, in adulthood he walks on two legs, and in old age he is forced to rely on a cane. Then the monster dropped from the top of the mountain into the abyss, and the entrance to Thebes became free.

The editors of the site offer to learn about the most unusual non-fictional creatures.
Subscribe to our channel in Yandex.Zen

Now it is difficult to imagine that people believed in the existence of such animals as the platypus, gorilla, giant squid and many others relatively recently. Travelers talking about them, showing sketches and photographs, were accused of lies and hoaxes. New species of animals are also discovered in our time, mostly small or leading a secretive lifestyle. We consider the creatures in the pictures below to be this moment time fiction, but who knows how our descendants will treat them?

1) strashno.com Mutant fish caught in Japan after the Fukushima accident:

2) In Brazil, locals on the banks of the river photographed something strange. As they say, it was a mermaid:

3) And this is what sea creatures look like after death. This creature was photographed after it was discovered by fishermen on the ocean. It was subsequently confiscated by the FBI:

Another similar creature in full growth:

4) This human-faced fish was caught off the coast of Japan:

5) Photo taken from an airplane over Loch Ness. In the circle you can see the outlines of a body that would fit a dinosaur:

6) Another mutant fish, this time from Australia, which doesn't even have fins.

7) Another miracle from the Green Continent is a poisonous pink jellyfish of an unknown species strashno.com:

8) This gnome-like creature was photographed at night under streetlights in South America:

9) We are lost in conjectures, looking at a strange flyer in the cloudy sky of Nuremberg:

10) This is a figure depicting a Japanese water kappa in one of the local museums. The limbs in the box are the kappa's arm and leg, officially on display. Some Japanese still keep such artifacts at home, because the kappa, in their opinion, is still alive, but now it is not so easy to find him. Kappa is also depicted in many Japanese watercolors, ancient and not so:

11) Orbs - living entities or just a play of light? Here we see the orbs in the cemetery:

12) The most famous photograph snowman. As its authors later admitted, this is a common hoax made by them for entertainment and for the sake of earning money from selling strashno.com photos to newspapers. Below it is a much less famous one, on which a bear is visible, but who is visible at the top right?

13) What is Chupacabra - the result of genetic experiments or a guest from a parallel world? In each case of the discovery of the corpse of a Chupacabra, it is seized by the FBI, claiming that the body belongs to a sick coyote. Pictured is a baby chupacabra. Please note: there are five fingers on the paws. Below is the head of a chupacabra that was killed in South America by locals:

14) If such a creature, as the author of the photo suggested, really existed, its existence would have been recorded:

15) Could this roe deer stalker caught on camera at night be the mysterious Jersey Devil?

16) Mothman, the progenitor of Batman comics:

17) It looks a lot like a harpy, doesn't it?

18) A mummified fairy handed over to official authorities. Below is a cheerful flock of live strashno.com fairies:

19) Strange ridiculous creature filmed in Florida:

20) A creature similar to him, filmed many years ago in London, but with a head resembling a human:

21) Probably, many have seen the video with Slenderman on our website. The photos below with this character are also very curious:

22) There is quite a lot of evidence that one of the alien races, the so-called "gray", not only actively participates in the life of earthlings, but also in politics:

23) The monster in the photo is waving to the camera. To assure us that there are mermen?

24) Perhaps giant shark monsters are not a Jaws fantasy. Zoologists who studied this photo taken off the coast South Africa, confirm: this is not a whale, but a shark:

25) Japanese cameras captured an animal resembling the Megalodon shark, believed to be extinct millions of years ago:

scary.com

26) Finding the mummified remains of an animal unknown to science in South Africa:

27) Who is this creature caught in the frame by a night camera - a vampire or an alien?

28) During archaeological excavations, the remains of a huge human skeleton were found. Perhaps the Titans are not a Greek myth at all.

29) Is the mysterious creature stalking the fence finished in Photoshop?

30) The corpse of a toothy creature, similar to extinct marine life, was found on the beach and baffled experts:

31) We continue the theme of dead animals found on the beach, unknown to science, such as this strange snake, which seemed to have risen from the depths of the sea:

32) Another creepy and apparently dangerous toothy fish:

33) Scientists invited to identify this find suggested that it was a sturgeon mutant. But somehow we don't really believe them:

34) And this four-meter monster, thrown out Indian Ocean, strashno.com appears to be a mutant megajellyfish:

35) Who is this wonderful creature - a hybrid of a pig with someone?

36) The creature, which is impossible to look at without disgust, probably escaped directly from the island of Dr. Moreau:

37) Who is this mysterious clam?

Creepy creatures, right?

How Koschei hid death
Kashchei is tired. If he wasn't immortal, he would have died long ago. The whole body of the old man was hardened from proteins and yolks. Some of them have already dried up, some are rotten. Kashchei died. In his hands, the old man stupidly held another egg, inside of which he hammered a needle. Stuffing it up the duck's ass was no easy task. Taking the bird by the neck, he tried to stick the egg into its hollow. The shell cracked and flooded the old man once again. Kashchei swore dirtyly and carefully took a needle out of the wreckage. The deadly tool had to be sanded into the next egg. The duck dutifully waited. The old man took the egg with his lips, parted the duck's legs and carefully began to shove the ellipsoid into her asshole. The egg burst. The old man jumped up, threw the bird into the sea, and cursing began to jump along the shore.

Calm down, Kashchei, calmly, - he finally calmed himself and continued the procedure. The immortal did it again and again, but the eggs burst. Finally, lathered with a safeguard, one of them crawled into the bird's womb. The old man leaned back contentedly on the trunk of a pine tree. But what is it?! The damned feathered one is dead!
- Ioptvayu, stsuko!!! One hundred and thirty years down the drain! - Kashchei fell on the sand with a howl and began to gnaw and beat it with his hands. Three days later he came to his senses and thought deeply. A thought came into the immortal head. The old man got up and went into the cave. For a whole month, the sound of a hammer, the grinding of iron and the sound of welding could be heard from there. Finally, Kashchei proudly stepped out into the light, holding a funnel in his hands. The ducks saw the device and precipitated.

Work boiled over. It was possible to insert a funnel into a feathered point right away. But vile creatures died and died. Finally done!!! Fucked up, but alive, the duck lay on the ground with bulging eyes. Her ass was tightly sealed with sealing wax - Kashchei did not like to take risks. The whole courtyard was strewn with the bones of eight hundred and fifty-two thousand waterfowl. The old man sat down on a stump and looked longingly into the forest. I had to put a duck in a hare's ass.

Kashchei sat on the sand, looked into the eyes of the hare and thought. Oblique o @ ueval. He had never been looked into both eyes at once. "Maybe there's a simpler way to hide the needle?" the old man thought, but nothing came to mind. "There are no fortresses that the Bolsheviks would not take!" - decided the Immortal and energetically jumped up. A minute later, he was already busily scurrying around near the rodent crucified on the ground, measuring it with a tape measure. The hare is a powerful beast, an ornament of the breed, theoretically could accommodate a duck. The only thing left was to figure out a way.

The duck itself was sitting in a cage nearby. Just looking at the hare hollow made her feel claustrophobic. Kashchei did not touch the bird, realizing its value. For the experiment, he chose another.
"We care about you and your health!" - Kashchei kept saying, smearing cream on the hare's ass. Then he took the bird and began little by little, with rotational movements, to introduce it to the hare with his beak in the ass. The head went in, as it was there, but then things stalled. The neck of the duck was bent in different directions, and then curled up nafig. Having exterminated one and a half birds, Kashchei realized that this would not work. A revolutionary solution was needed. And the Immortal found it!

To begin with, he drilled a carrot along the axis and passed a nylon cord through the hole. Having firmly fixed it on the other side of the vegetable, Kashchei put the root crop into the hare's mouth and waited. The rodent has earned jaws.

The sun was already going down when the end of the cord appeared from the shaggy ass. Tying a duck to it by its beak was a matter of minutes. The hare generally did not like ducks, especially in his own ass. The beast twitched its ears and shook slightly. Kashchei sat down opposite the hare, spat in his palms and, resting his feet on his shoulders, began to pull the cord. The eyes of the oblique converged at the bridge of the nose and climbed onto his forehead. Looking at him, I recalled the words of the romance "Today it hurts me so much!"

And suddenly! Feel sorry for the Immortal Hare! "How long?!" he yelled, looking around. The remains of various living creatures covered the surface with a three-meter layer. Birds did not fly, animals hid in holes. Desolation reigned everywhere. Then Kashchei spat poisonous saliva. He caught a kangaroo, wrote “Hare” on his ass with a felt-tip pen, put a duck in her bag and put it in a chest. "Steroids, yopt!" The old man smiled and went to bed.
Here is the END of the fairy tale ....