Mythology Stack Exchange
Mythology Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [myth-identification]

For questions about identifying a particular myth based on certain known facts or a basic description of its context, characters and events.

See Is asking for resources and myth identification allowed? for information about .

202 questions
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Are there any other gods that permanently had an eye removed, other than Odin?

Are there any other gods that permanently had an eye removed, other than Odin? I can't find any other gods that had one of their eyes other than Horus, which wasn't even permanent. Looked here already: Disabled Deities Eyepatch of Power EyeScream -…
Malady
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Where did this story about stars being part of a board game come from?

I have a memory that must be from before the year 2000, so I'm very unsure of the details, of reading what I think was a mythology book from a country with less famous mythology, maybe from the Middle East or South Asia. There was a story in the…
user6338
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What humanoid gods have had skin colors other than that of the people who worship them?

I know that the Egyptian (and therefore presumably Roman, since they incorporated those) gods had a rainbow of skin colors; and the Hindus have a really elaborate system of significant colors for gods and their avatars. And various black Madonnas…
DiegoF
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Story of a man who slept in a tree and awoke to a plagued city

When I was a child my grandmother told me a myth of old times. I've read the myth (in a somewhat alternated version) in a book in my teenage years. It goes like this: A shepherd goes out to tend to his sheep, but gets tiered when the sun burns down…
Angelo Fuchs
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Are there any homosexual gods?

I have recently came across Tu'er Shen, a Chinese deity who manages the love and sex between homosexual men. After reading about him, I am interested to find out if there are any homosexual gods(exclude the Greco-Roman gods), preferably those who…
user1385
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Are there any ancient myths about adventuring parties?

Role playing games are usually focused on a relatively small and disparate party of adventurers, that come together to achieve a common goal. More often than not each member's motivation for joining the party is unique; some join for honour, some…
yannis
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Is there a real myth behind Michael Moorcock story about these Kwll and Rhynn?

The story describes the two gods, brothers, with highly different abilities (one able to see anything, another to do anything). Most of the time they live friendly life, co-operating with each other, supplementing powers and none of the two being…
h22
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Is there a legend or an explanation for the symbol of a swan with a woman's head?

This was found in a grave of a knight in Romania and I am wondering what the symbol of the swan with a woman's head could symbolize. The grave has a templar cross at the feet of the knight, the star of David at the head and on the top the tree of…
samca
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What is the origin of the idea that Man is "half god and half beast"?

I'm looking specifically for the idea that it is the human condition to be a combination of beast and God, not just a reference to an individual who unlike most people had aspects of both, or a mythical creature with aspects of both. I'm sure I…
Paul Crowley
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Does anyone know of myths which are critical/skeptical of technology?

The closest I've found would be something like the Prometheus myth, or perhaps even the story of Eden, where man is punished by a deity for poking his nose where it doesn't belong. But this isn't exactly critical of technology, at most it's saying…
Eddie III
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Mythological figures "with" REAL(?) amputation-like or paralysis features

Are amputees misrepresented in mythology? What about people with dysfunctional body parts, such as paralysed parts or the like? Much, of the mythology, I have seen, has figures, with some regular body post replaced by something else. But, so as to…
Jack Maddington
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What cultures believe that the stars are other worlds/places?

What cultures, if any (besides Ancient Egypt), believe(d) that the stars are other worlds/lands/islands?
inzenity
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Battle between the Sun and the Moon forces?

I remember reading about a mythic battle between the forces of the moon and the sun. Not conflicts between Sun and Moon, but a war between armies of the sun and of the moon. One of them, the sun possibly, won. The myth might have been from India,…
Reed -SE is a Fish on Dry Land
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Is there a myth involving a female warrior and a cloak that renders people invisible?

I fail to remember the name of a myth I heard several years ago, in which a man marries a beautiful female warrior deceitfully. The woman isn't attracted to him and refuses to sleep with him. She challenges him to overpower her but he fails. He then…
Anton
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How did the belief of "marrying" a deity emerge?

According to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Canaanite_religion#Cosmology and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_prostitution#Sacred_marriage, a deity would marry a city or a goddess would be said to be married to a king. But I can't…
user5459
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