Strange and obscure folklore and sayings relating animals

To the Bongando it has always been deeply taboo to consume the flesh of the bonobo which is forbidden with their culture.

This is because of the cultural belief that the bonobo was the brother and ally of their ancestor the first man.

It is generally believed that if a Bongando man should kill a bonobo then he will cause grief to the relatives of the bonobo who will seek to bury their dead and cast a curse upon the murderer of their loved one.

This curse is commonly believed to unfailingly cause the killer of the bonobo to die a painful death.

Although such beliefs were once deeply held by members of the Bongando community the folklore surrounding the bonobo and its sacred status is beginning to erode with greater contact with the modern world.

Photo credits to @robreintjes and @Moebelle.


Source: "TABOO OF EATING BONOBO AMONG THE BONGANDO PEOPLE IN THE WAMBA REGION, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO", Lingomo Bongoli et al, 2009 (Journal: African Study Monographs).

 

Across most of Indonesia the reticulated python is an animal that is commonly hunted for both its skin and meat or else is killed by people out of an exaggerated fear of its potential to attack.

However, this is not the case on the Island of Tinjil off the coast of Java where a strong taboo exists against harming the python.

The Tinjil islanders believe that killing or even harming the reticulated python may lead to a persons soul becoming permanently possessed.

There have always been half forgotten stories on the island about the dangers of harming reptiles but something that supposedly happened in recent years brought these legends back to cultural relevance on the island.

A fisherman caught a python with the intention of selling it to be butchered in a local market but claimed that the soul of this snake possessed him and refused to leave until he released the animal back in the wild.

Today the Islanders refuse to harm or kill either reticulated pythons or water monitor lizards for fear of being permanently possessed by the spirits of these animals and driven schizophrenic.

This has proved to be beneficial for the conservation of these species and neither are now hunted on Tinjil while on nearby islands the reticulated python has been overhunted to extinction.

Researchers who have studied this example of a site specific taboo towards reptiles recorded some of the islanders beliefs and fears:

"According to the elders the island is angker (haunted). If there is a snake, don’t try to take it because it belongs to the orang sini (guardian spirit of the island). Other people said that snakes and monitor lizards belong to the orang sini. All of the elders know this, so I’m not brave enough to kill or to take one indiscriminately. People here fear being cursed."

"I’m scared to take a snake or a monitor lizard. I often get requests from Muarabinuangeun ...for skin, to make shoes, to make wallets, and the meat can also be eaten. It’s not allowed, but if you put it into a bag, you could do it. Nobody would know. We’re just scared because of what happened to the fisherman."



Photo credit to @gentle lemur, @Hix, @Animal, @Javan Rhino and @Adam Khor.

Source: "The role of traditional beliefs in conservation of herpetofauna in Banten, Indonesia", Linda T. Uyeda et al, 2014 (Journal: Oryx).

 

To the Hmong ethnic group of South-East Asia the Asiatic elephant is an animal that is greatly respected for its strength, dignity, wisdom and religious significance.

The Hmong traditionally believed that it was bad luck to say anything negative about the elephant and doing so could have terrible consequences for prosperity.

This was because it was generally believed by the Hmong that slander could offend the dignity and pride of these animals and the elephants would seek revenge by coming to destroy villages and peoples property.

The Hmong also traditionally believed that it was the elephant that took on the solemn duty of leading the spirits of dead to the underworld which was an additional reason for why this animal was greatly respected within their culture.


Photo credits to @Therabu.

Source: "Folk stories of the Hmong: Peoples of Laos, Thailand and Vietnam", Norma J. Livo et al, 1991.

 

To the Iban indigenous peoples of Sarawak, Borneo, the clouded leopard is known as "Engkule" and a strange belief surrounds this animal.

The clouded leopard is one of a select few animals believed to possess tremendous power as an incubus spirit.

The clouded leopard engkule incubus is conceived to be a a male demon that seeks to seduce and have sexual intercourse with a sleeping women while they are dreaming :


"All incubus spirits possess a number of common attributes and as a group are among the most dreaded of all Iban supernaturals. With the minor exception of trophy heads, all are essentially forest or river spirits that appear in the physical world in one of a number of animal manifestations, the type of animal determined by the type of spirit it contains. But in dreams, which the Iban interpret as the direct experience of the dreamer's soul, the spirit assumes a human guise, possibly as the woman's husband, a paramour, or handsome young man whose sexual advances she finds it impossible to resist."

The dangers of this type of phantasmagorical big cat are greatly feared by the Iban who believe that the spirit can permanently possess a woman's soul:

"It is thus an intruder whose disguised entry into the human world subverts and, in the end, destroys the positive, procreative power of human sexuality. Once the spirit has seduced its victim, and the woman has become the inamorata of a particular animal-associated spirit, she is described as being nunang, "affianced", or "possessed" by it."


Photo credit to @Moebelle.

Source: "The malevolent kolir: Iban concepts of sexual peril and the dangers of childbirth", Clifford Santher, 1978 (Journal: Journal of the humanities and social sciences of South-East Asia).

 

To the Naga tribes of North-Eastern India the Asiatic golden cat when seen in the forest was not always assumed to be a feline.

This animal was also believed to be one of the feline hosts which could harbour the soul of a malevolent shapeshifter.
However, the animal was not apparently respected by the Naga tribal peoples and it was therefore believed that only the weaker and more contemptible shapeshifters would actually assume the guise of the golden cat.

To the Naga it was self evident that the more powerful shamans would demonstrate a more refined taste in selecting the larger and more ferocious leopard or tiger to shapeshift into:

"Cowardly and worthless men ,if they acquire the habit, make use of the body of a red cat (angshu akinu, probably = Felis aurata, the golden cat).The habit is very far from desired. No one wants to be possessed by the habit, and it is, on the contrary, feared as a source of danger and a great weariness to the flesh."


Photo credit to @Himimomi.


Source: "Leopard-men in the Naga Hills.", J.H. Hutton, 1920.

 

To the indigenous Yi peoples of Southern China the water deer is amongst the most spiritually significant animals because it is believed to be the most benevolent of all creatures that walk the earth.

The Yi believe that the musk of the water deer is medicinal and is so powerful that it can be effectively used by people to ward off evil spirits if kept within a vial in a household.

Moreover, the tusk like teeth of these cervids are used as knife-like weapons in rituals in which a shaman in a trance-like state (in which he is believed to be communing with the unseen spirit world) will stab and slash at demons and evil spirits to "defeat" these entities.



Photo credits to @Himimomi.

Source: "Slinking between realms: Musk deer as prey in Yi oral literature", Mark Bender, 2016 (Journal: Asian Highland Perspectives).

 

In many parts of India the sighting of an eagle owl is considered to be an auspicious sign.

This is because the owl plays an important role within Hindu symbology as it is believed to be the mount of the diety of purity and wealth, the goddess Lakshmi.

The "Vahana" or mount / vehicle upon which a god or goddess rides in the Hindu religion is an important consideration because it signifies a representation of an extraordinary power of a diety.

In the case of Lakshmi her mount is the owl because this bird is symbolic of the attainment and struggle towards knowledge.

The owl also serves as a metaphor for not being blinded by any worldly fame and wealth attained over the course of a lifetime because the owl as a nocturnal bird is believed to be blinded by daylight.


Photo credits to @vogelcommando.

Source: "Vishnu's Mount: Birds In Indian mythology And Folklore", Praveen Chopra, 2017.

 

In many parts of India the ring-necked parakeet is considered a sacred and highly symbolic bird.
This is because the parrot / parakeet plays an important role within Hindu symbology as it is believed to be the mount of the god of love and human desire Kamadeva.

The "Vahana" or mount / vehicle upon which a god or goddess rides in the Hindu religion is an important consideration because it signifies a representation of an extraordinary power of a diety.

In the case of Kamadeva his mount is the parrot because this pair bonded monogamous bird is symbolic of lovers and love.


Photo credits to @KevinB.

Source: "Vishnu's Mount: Birds In Indian mythology And Folklore", Praveen Chopra, 2017.

 

To the Yoruba peoples of West Africa the Gabon viper is called "Paramole" which translates as "Hidden in the ground".

This is due to the camouflaged skin of the viper which allow it to blend in frighteningly well with the leaf litter of the forest floor.

The Yoruba believe that the viper gives birth to live young which then begin to cannibalize the mother who sacrifices her life to feed her offspring.

Due to this belief in the fatal maternal love / martyrdom of the Gabon viper the snake features heavily in the folk tales, riddles and poems of the Yoruba.



Photo credit to @jayjds2.

Source: "Orature and Yoruba riddles", A. Akinyeme et al, 2016.

 

The peoples of the region of Tamatave like most areas of Madagascar have a strong "fady" or taboo against the aye-aye which is believed to be an evil animal and is consequently killed where it is encountered.

However, unlike in other areas of the country in some villages the flesh of a freshly killed aye-aye may be roasted and eaten but only after a strange and disturbing rite has been performed.

All of the children of a village are brought into the presence of the dead aye-aye and told to cry but any children who do not cry at this moment are beaten with a stick until they weep.

This is because it is believed in these villages that if any of the children who are present do not shed tears then the flesh of the aye-aye will remain unpurified and will therefore poison and kill those who eat it.


Photo credit to @gentle lemur.

Source: "Folklore and Beliefs about the Aye aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis)", Elwyn L. Symonds, 2001 (Journal: Lemur News).

 

The Brao indigenous peoples of Cambodia believe that the Indian muntjac deer is a creature beloved of the spirits of the forest.

As such to hunt or eat this animal is strongly discouraged for fear of angering the spirits who it is believed would seek revenge by poisoning the meat.


Photo credits to @Goura.

Source: "ANIMISM AND TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE DISAPPEAR IN VIRACHEY NATIONAL PARK, CAMBODIA", Gregory Mccan et al, 2016 (Journal: Asian Sacred Sites).

 

To the Japanese there are two endemic bird species that above all others are considered to be symbolic of the divine within the indigenous Shinto religion.

The green pheasant and the copper pheasant (Known as "Yamadori" in Japan) are believed to be symbols of the sun goddess Ameratsu because of the vibrant colours of their plumage which scintillate and glitter in the rays of the sun.

The green pheasant (known as the "Kiji" in Japan) in particular was traditionally considered to be the messenger of Ameratsu and therefore a bird imbued with religious significance within Shinto.

The pheasant in part due to its association Ameratsu is also a symbol of motherhood and maternal feeling in Japan and there is a common proverb "pheasant and chicks in a grass fire" that is used to refer to the bond between mother and child.

However, the male pheasant as a strutting bird that fights its rivals also represents machismo and male prowess.

Due to the Imperial family claiming ascendancy from the goddess Ameratsu and the association of the bird with this diety the pheasant has also been a symbol of Imperial political power and even at times millitarism.

Today the green pheasant remains Japan's National bird and is still a potent cultural symbol to the Japanese people.



Photo credits to @devilfish and @vogelcommando.

Source: "Of Weavers and Birds: Structure and Symbol in Japanese Myth and Folktale", Alan L. Miller, 1987 (Journal: History of Religions).

 

The blue duck, a species endemic to New Zealand, is a bird that has a great cultural significance for the indigenous Māori peoples.

It is therefore considered to be "Taonga" to many Māori which is an expression that means "treasure" or "cultural artifact".

The Māori call this bird by the name "Ko Whio Whio" (or just "Whio") which is what the alarm call of the male blue duck is believed by this community to sound like.

It was a bird rarely eaten by the Māori who did not appreciate the taste of its meat though the eggs of this duck were harvested for food and the plumage used as bandages and for clothing.

The blue duck is traditionally considered to be a sacred animal by the Māori and a child of the god of the forests and birds, a diety known as Tāne-mahuta.


Photo credits to @Cassidy Casuar.

Sources: - "MAORI BIRD NAMES", H.W. Williams, 1906 (Journal: Journal of the Polynesian Society).
-"Māori Values : Concepts and perspectives", Garth Hamsworth, 2002.

 

The Hawaiian duck is known to the indigenous Hawaiians by the name "Koloa Maoli" and it is a bird with quite a suprising and bizarre presence in the folklore of the islands.

The duck was believed to have been the guides of a legendary and ferocious Hawaiian warrior chieftan named "Imaikalini" who was also said to have been blind.

In the folk stories of the blind warrior chief he was led to his enemies by the ducks which would quack their location.

This would prompt Imaikalini to unleash a volley of five spears from both hands which would impale the enemy and killing them.


Photo credit to @d1am0ndback.

Source: "Stories of Old Hawaii", Roy Alameida, 1997.

 

On the island of Rodrigues in Mauritius a curious and thankfully now fading folk belief exists about the endemic Rodrigues fruit bat.

The grease of the bats fur is believed to cure baldness when spread upon the head of a balding man or woman and is supposed to help to grow a head of long and shiny hair.


Photo credits to @Therabu.

Source: "Battitude: An assessment of human attitude and behaviour towards the critically endangered Pteropus rodricensis", Paul Barnes, 2013.

 

The golden frog has long been a symbol of good luck in Panama from the indigenous Pre-columbian cultures who fashioned its image in golden artifacts and petroglyphs to the present day Panamanians who buy lottery tickets with the image of the little frog on.


Photo credit to @Maguari

Source: "The Sixth extinction-An Unnatural History", Elizabeth Kolbert, 2014.

 

To the aboriginal peoples of the Yorta Yorta clan of South-Eastern Australia the long necked turtle is a deeply significant animal and integral to the cultural identity of this community.

This is because the turtle (known as "Djirrungana Wanurra Watjerrupna") is a totemic animal and it is therefore forbidden by clan members to eat the flesh of this sacred reptile (though other freshwater turtle species may be sustainably harvested).

This reverance and spiritual significance of the long necked turtle by this clan has made the Yorta-Yorta enthusiastic participants in the conservation of the species and its natural habitat.


Photo credits to @LaughingDove.

Source: "Cultural conservation of freshwater turtles in Barmah–Millewa Forest, 2010–11.", K. Howard, 2011.

 

The duck billed platypus is a perplexing looking animal and just as it confounded the European settlers it also evidently once had the same effect with the indigenous Australian aborigines.

This confusion is reflected in the oral traditions of the dreamtime stories which have been told from generation to generation for thousands of years about the platypus which is commonly known in many aboriginal languages as “Boondaburra".

According to these stories the mother of the first platypus was a lonely female duck named "Daroo" who one night was seduced by a male water rat named "Bilargun".

The offspring of this unlikely union was the first platypus which had the bill, webbed feet and egg laying ability of the mother and the body and fur of the father.


Photo credit to @WhistlingKite24.

Source: "Parable of the Platupus Dreaming", Nelen Yubu, 1997.

 

The short beaked echidna is an animal that is the subject of many dreamtime stories but one of the most interesting is a gothic tale that is told by many clans about how the echidna gained its bristling coat of spines.

It is said that the echidna (known as "Tjirilya", "Jula-wil" or "Libgwil") was once a very elderly man who was a social outcast amongst his tribe.

As echidna could not hunt because of his advanced age and body he developed a disturbing way to feed himself by luring young men to his hut to do menial tasks.

Once the men turned their back to him he killed them by bludgeoning them to death with a club and afterwards cannibalized their corpses.

Eventually the people discovered the terrifying reality of the echidna's crimes they decided to get revenge for their loved ones.

The men ambushed echidna outside of his hut and hurled spear after spear into his body until he was a bristling mass of spears and then broke his arms and legs with clubs.

Echidna crawled away and hid within a hollow log miraculously surviving but was never able to pull the spears out of his body nor heal his broken limbs and so was only able to walk on all fours and drag himself over the ground.

The tales conclude that if an echidna should be seen by people today its shyness and attempt to hide under logs is a residual instinct that remains from the ancestral old man echidna's shame over his cannibalistic crimes and social ostracism.



Photo credits to @WhistlingKite24.

Source: The Myth of Old Man Echidna - Australian Geographic

 

To the Native American Algonquian peoples the North American porcupine (known in their language as "kàg") was an animal that was both hunted for its meat and its quills which were used as sewing needles by the women of the tribe.

However, the porcupine also an animal that features as a character in many folk tales and myths and often in a cautionary "do not play with fire" role.

One popular Algonquian tale that features the porcupine tells of two little girl ancestors who were travelling through a forest to reach a far away village.

The girls found a porcupine and one of them out of malice decided to torment the little animal by plucking out its spines and throwing them away before continuing on the journey.

The humiliated porcupine in revenge summoned up its powers of magic and conjured up a terrible snowstorm and the little girls who were caught deep within the forest froze to death.


Photo credits to @Javan Rhino.

Source: "The Environment of Myth", Claude Levi Strauss, 1972.