GiganticBirdsII
Gigantic sky-birds, besides the Phoenix, were known in many cultures, especially in the Middle and Far East. The Persians had the Simurgh, the Arabs the Ruhk, and the Chinese the Fei Lien. The divine White Eagle of Zeus watched over the Two Gates of the World. These creatures were so huge they could blot out the Sun and darken the sky. Like the Phoenix, these giant birds held symbolic importance.
Arabian Ruhk and the Anka
The Ruhk (sometimes spelled Roc), described in the Arabian Nights stories, was said to be a gigantic bird. When it flew, it blotted out the Sun; it fed elephants to its young. Its egg was as large as 148 hen’s eggs and looked like the dome of a mosque. Each feather was as large as a palm frond. Its wings created wind storms and lightning. Some parts of Arabic tradition say the Ruhk never landed on Earth, except on Mount Qaf, which the Arabs considered to be the axis mundi; other Arabian myths mention it landing in various isolated places. The Rook in chess was originally theRuhk.
Ruhks were said to live on certain islands in the Indian Ocean. Since the islands could not meet all the feeding needs of the Ruhk, the creatures often flew to India, Arabia, and Africa, where they carried off all kinds of animals, even elephants.
In “The Story of Sinbad the Voyager” from The Arabian Nights, Sinbad relates more than one adventure with the bird called the Ruhk. In his first adventur with this creature, he was marooned on an island where he discovered a huge Ruhk egg. In order to escape, he waited until the Ruhk landed, then tied himself to one of its legs, which was as thick as a tree trunk. He described the monstrous wings as blotting out the sunlight. Unaware of its passenger, at day-break the Ruhk flew to a steep-walled valley where she hunted for serpents to eat. Sinbad was later rescued from the valley by merchants hunting for diamonds.
On a later voyage, Sinbad was traveling with other men who stopped at an island. There they found a young Ruhk, which they killed and ate. The parents of this bird flew back from the main land and found the sailors feasting on their fledgling. The sailors put to sea immediately but the Ruhks took up tremendous boulders in their talons and dropped them on the ship, sinking it and killing many on board. Sinbad managed to float away on the wreckage.
The Arabs tell of another similar gigantic bird, known as an Anka. Allah supposedly created the Anka to kill and eat the wild animals of Palestine so the Israelites could move into the country. However, Allah forgot to remove the creature and the Anka made large parts of that country barren and uninhabitable.
Psychological Attributes: Positive—A person who uses his or her skills, power, and/or size to protect him or her self and family. Negative—A person who uses these abilities to bully others.
Magickal Attributes: Protection.
Hraesvelg
Scandinavian and Norse mythology mention a giant bird called Hraesvelg (or Hraesveglur). This creature symbolized storms and was said to create the wind by sitting at the end of the world (inthe North),35 overlooking Hel’s realm, and beating its huge wings. The name Hraesvelg in Old Norse means “corpse-eater,” but the Norse legends never mention it eating the dead. Rather, as a giant36 it seems to represent the Land of the Dead, which to the Scandinavians was always somewhere in theNorth.
Psychological Attributes: Facing death and loss and being able to come to terms with the sadder aspects oflife.
Magickal Attributes: Creating and/or controlling storms; a guide to the Underworld.
Imdugud
A gigantic part-bird, part-man, part-animal creature of great importance in Mesopotamian mythology was Imdugudor Zu. According to the legends, Zu stole the Tablets of Destiny from the gods themselves. Imdugud wasknown to the Akkadians as Anzu. It was bird-like with the body of a human, the head of a lion, and a beak like a saw.When it flapped its great wings, it created whirlwinds and sandstorms. When still, its wings covered the entire sky like thick clouds. It sname means either “heavy rain” or “sling-stone.”
A large copper panel from the temple of Ninhursag at Tell-el Obeid, near Ur, portrays a divine lion-headed eagle known as Imdugud. With this being are two stags. This panel was originally over the doorway of the temple, and is dated from about the third millennium B.C.E.
In a Sumerian myth, Imdugud or Anzu stole the Tablets of Destiny from the god Enki; the Akkadian myth says he stole the Tablets from Enlil. Both myths say that Imdugud was killed by Ninurta and the Tablets returned to the god. However, in the epic of Gilgamesh, the hero Gilgamesh saw Imdugud and one of its fledglings nesting in a sacred halub tree which Inanna had planted in Uruk.
Pictures of Zu have been found on ancient cylinder seals. One such seal shows the god Ea sitting on his throne, surrounded by water with swimming fish in it. Ea is holding Zu, who faces the Sun god Shamash as he rises from behind amountain.
A second seal of the third millennium B.C.E. again shows the god Ea on his throne in the midst of water.Zu,theman-bird,stands before the throne, while an attendant threatens him with aspear.
Psychological Attributes: A person who tries to take shortcuts in learning spiritual and psychic disciplines.
Magickal Attributes: Controlling rainstorms, whirlwinds, and sand-storms.
Raven
Another giant bird of Native American legend was Raven. This creature was thought of as both a creator/transformer and a trickster. Raven gave humans the gift of fire; he constantly creates and transforms the world and humans. Although Raven provides and cares for humans, he is always a trickster: he likes nothing better than to make life miserable and too eventful. A shape-shifter, Raven can appear in any form he chooses, including a fox, jay, or even the Moon.
Psychological Attributes: Willfully breaking loose from the natural order and universal laws. A person who thinks he or she is above thelaw.
Magickal Attributes: A trickster deity, much like Coyote. Very dangerous.
Thunder Bird
A huge sacred bird, primarily equated with thunder and lightning, was found in North America. Often the Thunder Bird is spoken of as more than one magickal creature, thus pointing to a species rather than an individual. It is said to live above the clouds, its gigantic flapping wings causing the thunder and its flashing eyes creating the lightning.
The Thunder Bird can never be surprised by evil (which is its perpetual enemy) because of its acute and highlymagnified senses. Its attack is always signaled by the thunder of its great wings.
Psychological Attributes: One who works against any evil he or she finds.
Magickal Attributes: Knowledgeable magicians do not invoke the Thunder Bird; it comes of its own will or not at all. Enemy of all evil.
The White Eagle of Zeus
This magnificent and beautiful giant bird was the special messenger of the Greek god Zeus, and also the god’s symbol among the Greek peoples. The White Eagle looked exactly like any other eagle, except for its gigantic size and glowing white feathers.
However, this magickal bird was very special. It could move easily from one plane of existence to another, even while carrying a human passenger. It was capable of communicating with both deities and humans, not by its harsh voice, but by telepathy. Whenever it appears, magicians know that an extremely important message has come from the Higher Powers.
Psychological Attributes: A person who is a sincere follower of the God/dess and who passes along spiritual messages in a form understandable to others.
Magickal Attributes: When the White Eagle appears, an important message is coming from the gods. Moving from one plane of existence to another; telepathy; communication with the deities and spiritual guides.
Other Giant Birds
The Hindus had a gigantic bird which they believed was the Sun; this great bird was considered to be either an eagle or a swan.
An eagle with human arms was a symbol of Sun worship in ancient Syria. As with the Egyptian Ba, this gigantic bird conducted souls to an afterlife.
The Japanese sky-bird, called the Pheng, was similar to the Arabian Ruhk. It could eclipse the Sun and swallow a camel.