bats in african mythology

The Adjule is also called a Bush Dog. In the West, bats are often perceived as evil spirits, Vampires, and harbingers of death, while some cultures across the Asia-Pacific region associate bats with good fortune. Both African-Americans and those of European descent from around the United States frequently maintain that WebMYTH: Bats are blind. In the Punjab, northern India, magicians use bat bones to prepare their concoctions, and with the bat blood, they write amulets for malevolent and antisocial magic. This allowed the borders to be crossed and the dead and the spirits of the underworld return to visit earth. Halloween. The twins had to spend the night in the House of Bats, where they squeezed themselves into their own blowguns in order to defend themselves from the circling bats. Other strange beliefs in European folklore include: In Shakespeares Macbeth (written 800 years ago), the witches brew a potion with: Eye of newt and toe of frog,Wool of bat and tongue of dog.. In many human cultures, caves were seen as gateways to the underworld and bats often emerge from caves at twilight when day merges into night. These myths associate killer bats with fire as the bat burns its victims and is, in turn, thrown into the fire [60, 61, 62]. Working together, we have the power to end bat extinctions worldwide. Muslims and Seventh Day Adventists did not consume bat meat. In the past, people have believed that: If a bat got into your house it was a sign someone was about to die; A bat arriving on Halloween meant your house was haunted; A bat tangled in a persons hair will lead to eternal damnation; Among the Ndop people, bats, owls, and bush-cats are said to be witch shapes. Fruit-eating bats such as Jamaican fruit bat Artibeus jamaicensis loves feeding on guavas, which is also the favorite food of the Taino spirits of the dead. Creative commonsWikimedia. Bats, being seen as liminal creatures, were believed to be able to cross this barrier. An idea that reflected their ability to fly around so quickly in the dark without hitting anything. In a Creek Indian variation of this tale, the bat first asks to play with the birds but is rejected by them and accepted by the animals team. Hun Batz Facts and Figures Name: Hun Batz Pronunciation: Bats were also persecuted because they were believed to be carriers of disease. In Kenya, a bat attitude questionnaire was presented to 394 people living around the Arabuko-Sokoke forest. American Indian legends and the fables of Aesop were more than just stories recited around the campfire or bathhouse: they were teaching devices. In some countries such as the UK bats are seen as an indicator species and the stability of their population is monitored to look for changes in biodiversity. People would sometimes even burn down whole colonies of bats because they thought that this would stop the spread of disease. Monstrous beyond imagining, all-consuming, blacker than blackest night, the hideous Satan in the Night on Bald Mountain section of Walt Disneys animated film Fantasia (1940) spreads gigantic bat wings as it turns fiery eyes toward the lost souls about to be engulfed in wrath and flames [64]. The bat is a devil who flies only in the night because it would die if flying in the daytime [25]. 5 Princes Gate Court, In southwest Asia, bat folklore has been documented between Iran, India, and Myanmar [25, 26, 27]. African Cryptids: 9 Mysterious Monsters of Africa The general attitude is that the flying fox is part of the forest, and the vast majority support the protection of Pteropus samoensis and P. tonganus [45]. All rights reserved. In the old days, people used to think that bats were evil, and they would often try to kill them. Subcategories. Bat In this story, Jonayaiyin, a hero who battled the enemies of mankind, killed several eagles and gave their feathers to a bat who had helped him escape from the eagles nest. A noctule bat Nyctalus noctula, a long-eared bat Plecotus auritus, a Natters bat Myotis nattereri and a Daubentons bat Myotis daubentonii. Bats are mentioned three times in the Old Testament. Experience the wonder of bats. WebAfrican mythology has common threads that run through the various tribe's cultures and stories because rapid migration of people allowed for the spread of language as well as beliefs. It is estimated that the current population of most Australian species of Pteropidae is less than 20% of what it was 100 years ago. Photo credit: [7] Roy Kabanlit creative commonsWikimedia https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode. Bats are also considered as wild exotic meat, which is widely consumed in urban areas. In Pudukkottai, roosting P. medius is seen as the guardian of the sacred groves, and in Bihar, that bat brings wealth. Liminality aside, many of these myths have obvious roots in the real features of bats. Their prayers were partially granted and they were given grotesquely humanoid faces, hair and teeth but still had their wings and could fly. In Myths of the Cherokee (1900), James Mooney points out that a general theme in American Indian folklore is that, in the beginning, there were no essential differences between humans and animals. Over five hundred species of plants rely on bats for pollination including durian, banana, mango, guava, cocoa and agave. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode. Bat Myths and Folktales from Around the World Courtesy of creative commonsWikimedia. These birds went to temples and prayed to be turned into humans. The Rompo is a common South African mythical creatures believed to exist. WebBats typically live in deep underground caves, which symbolically is the belly of the Mother (Earth), and from these womb-like caves they emerge each evening at dusk - reborn. In northern Thailand, harming bats incurs a curse because bats are sacred for Buddhists [36]. In the sandstone caves of Northern Australia, the Northern Territory, and Queensland, there are numerous depictions of flying foxes, some dating back tens of thousands of years. When capturing its prey, it grabs the neck, sometimes killing the prey with a single powerful bite [51, 52]. #FolkloreThursday 27 Old Gloucester Street, London, United Kingdom, WC1N 3AX. First he filled a large pot with warm water which he told his friend was boiling. It remains to be seen, however, if this could halt or even reverse the decline of the North American bats [64]. Our collection of global perceptions aims to promote a better biocultural richness for humans and bats as our long-term nocturnal companions. Photo credit: Stan Delone creative commonWikimedia. It is also noted that bat tourism has a potential to conserve bat populations while providing social and economic benefits to local people in host communities. In Madagascar, the exploitation of bats for bush meat regularly takes place during periods of food shortage, especially fruit bats, which are heavily hunted. These Goddesses of beauty reflect peace for a lot of people. Hundreds of thousands of bats were needlessly exterminated during the last two decades of the 20th century. WebBat facts! Bats tend to get off on the wrong wing with us humans. The duality of bats is mentioned in one of Aesops Fables, which tells how a bat fell to the ground and was Betwixt and Between. Because they were four-footed, the mouse-like creatures first asked if they could play with the animals, which included a bear, a deer, and a terrapin. They have wings and fly like birds (actually, in many ways better than birds). GET INVOLVED! The account is linked to the first trees created by roog. Nevertheless, it is still a strongly sinister characteristic linking them closely to vampirism. In Macbeth (1605), there is the incantation of the three witches: Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog, while there is Calibans curse on Prospero in The Tempest (16101611): All the charms of Sycorax, toads, beetles and bats, light on you.. On Mochica pottery, a bat is depicted with the Sweetsop Annona squamosa, a common fruit also known as Sugar Apple or Pinha, the seeds of which are dispersed by bats [51, 52]. Bats, at least the ones that originate from North-western Europe, look a bit like mice with wings. A substantial proportion (53%) thought that bats have medicinal value, but 35% saw them only as harmful creatures. From Sierra Leone comes an account of the gruesome habits of the Hammer-headed Fruit Bat Hypsignathus monstrosus. Because not enough leather remained to fashion another bat, the birds then stretched the skin between the fore and hind limbs of the other creature, making the first flying squirrel. BATS IN FOLKLOREpart six, the conclusion to a series on bats in North American and European folklore. Zteve believes that people have far more in common with each other than is often shown on the surface and this can often be seen in the folktales from other parts of the world. Samoan people prize flying fox meat as a delicacy and as a gift to elders, but commercial hunting and export of the meat are culturally frowned. In Pakistan, one belief is that if a bat enters ones ear, it can never be removed and contact with bat urine is thought to cause eczema. In Europe, there are also myths about bats in the house. Bats appear in numerous myths throughout the world and are frequently connected with death, darkness, and the supernatural. This suggests that the Asia-Pacific region and its cultures contain far more positive associations with bats than most European or American societies and, as such, offer promising examples and opportunities to promote human-bat coexistence. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. Tjinimin wanted to have sex with the Green Parrot-Girls (who were the consorts of the Great Rainbow-Snake) and, of course, the Great Rainbow-Snake objected to this. Bats are found almost everywhere on Earth! Photo credit: Raniel Jose Castaneda creative commons Wikimedia credit as in Figure 7. WebFar Eastern Bat Symbolic Meanings. In this article, we will be taking a deep dive into the world of bats in mythology, folklore, and superstition. The origin of bats is prominent in the folklore of several North American Indian tribes. Theyre passive components, not active agents of change. Samoans said that flying foxes were cheeky and courageous, making it a popular tattoo motif [48]. The remaining cultures had combinations of positive, neutral, and negative values. Orchard owners in Myanmar believe that allowing bats to roost and feed in the garden ensures prosperity and well-being. Spirits are less grand, less powerful, and less like humans than the gods, who often have weaknesses and emotions. Africa. The genus Pteropus was first described by Brisson in 1762 from specimens collected on the Reunion Islands. The felling of roosting trees was mentioned as bat death reason by 29% and hunting by 18%. In Malaysia, a face-to-face survey was conducted in Penang Island to assess knowledge and awareness level toward bat conservation efforts. Bats - Disease-Prone but Beneficial, Reviewed: December 23rd, 2021 Published: January 18th, 2022, Total Chapter Downloads on intechopen.com. The bat must then hide during the day to avoid creditors. They also don't share behavior with rodents. In some places bats were seen more positively. My Amazon Author Page can found here for the UK and for the USA, here. Should the bat stay and eat the fruit in the house, bad luck will befall the owner [27]. Bats I am a bat ecologist with an interest in how people, culture and beliefs bonds or ties with bats. The positive side is that by 600 BC., and probably before, humans were learning important things from bats. 3. In China, the bat is a symbol of happiness and good luck and its image is found in art and crafts expressing this. An artist's depiction of the Adjule or Bush Dog. One bat, whose habits may have fostered these tales of decapitating bats, is the false vampire Vampyrum spectrum. Here are some of the other names that people have given bats. Today, we know that this is not the case, but the association of bats with longevity persists in some parts of the world. Finally, his wife realized what he was doing and set fire to the tree and killed her husband and the bats [54]. These gods and goddesses are some of the more well-known in Africa yet some of the lesser known by people of the the rest of the world. There are several instances where bats were killed in large numbers. Camazotz They live in unusual places. Prior to 1985, flying foxes were not protected in New South Walesin fact, they were regarded as vermin. Between the years 1950 and 2007, only 56 cases of bat-borne rabies transmission to humans occurred in the United States and Canada, which translates to 3.9 cases per billion person-years [65]. Photo credit: Uwe Schmidt. Tertullian, an early Christian author from Carthage (155220), claimed that the Devil and his angels had wings [10], and around 1314, Dante wrote that the Devils wings had no feathers, but was in form and texture like a bats [11]. In New Zealand, Mori people associate bats, pekapeka, with the mythical nocturnal bird hokioi that foretells death [49]. The rat now tries to retaliate by climbing tees and eating the flying foxes young, and this is why flying foxes carry their pups with them. They called themselves Zotzil uinic (batmen), claiming that their ancestors discovered a stone bat, which they took as their god, and their chief town was named Zinacantlan (=place of the bats) by Nahuatl merchants from Mexico [53]. In 1959, this superstition was still so believed that the Earl of Cranbrook took it upon himself to test the superstitions veracity. Bats are often misunderstood. (Above is from a variety of African mythology not just Sub-Saharan, but it's also the tiniest fraction of it) Bat Myths Aesops Fables: The Bat and the Weasel. In northern Guiana, Bat Mountain is the home of killer bats, and there is also a killer bat in folklore from Venezuela. This liminality gives bats a supernatural air that further heightens mystery and distrust as they cross the borders between birds and mammals, day and night. There are also numerous stories and legends associated with the bat. In South America, the vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) is persecuted because it transmits the rabies virus to the livestock it feeds off. In shamanism, the bat as well as being a symbol of death and rebirth is able An idea that reflected their ability to fly around so quickly in the dark without hitting anything. The weasel replied, No, I never let mice go! The bat said, Well, look closely at me. In that day people will throw away to the moles and bats their idols of silver and idols of gold, Other than the polar regions, extreme deserts, and a few isolated islands, bats live in every habitat on Earth. Microchiroptera Cheiromeles torquatus is eaten in Borneo and Tadarida sp. Bats are associated, in many cultures, with death and dying, which makes them a perfect representative of Samhain, the time when the veil is thin. They have fur and teeth and nurse their young like other mammals, but they dont walk on four legs. It was from these traditions that the vampire bats were named rather than them giving their name to the supernatural, blood-sucking creature. Despite positive associations toward bats, they are widely consumed as food and medicine throughout Asia, except in Brunei and Singapore. Many spirits are associated with geographical features, such as mountains, rivers, wells, trees, and springs.
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