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Sunday Inspiration: Seeing Rightly
It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
The Hero’s Journey in About a Minute and a Half
If you’ve ever wondered why the protagonists of so many books and movies have similar stories, here’s why:
(H/T: mental_floss)
Folletti: Italian Wind Sprites
![Alan Murray-Rust [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://pursiful.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/c8b93-weeping_willow_and_storm_sky.jpg)
Alan Murray-Rust [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons
Folletti are of ancient origin. They have probably been in the Italian consciousness since Roman times, although there is a bit of controversy over their precise lineage. They seem, in fact, to merge two distinct “portfolios” of activity.
According to some, folletti are a late variation on the Roman di penates, the gods of the pantry thought to guard a household’s food, wine, oil, and other supplies. It is said that folletti may remain on their chosen farm for centuries, protecting it from the worst kind of dangers. They are easily offended, however, so be sure to leave them a bowl of porridge on the front stoop every night if you want to keep the peace.
The other leading theory for the origins of folletti di vento links them to the mythology of the Celts who lived in northern Italy in ancient times. Indeed, folletti are similar in some ways to the spriggans of Cornwall—albeit with a somewhat nicer disposition. Like spriggans, folletti have impressive power over wind and weather. As stated above, they can fly by traveling in whirlwinds. They have also been known to cause rain, snow-storms, and floods, destroying both crops and homes. At other times, they might engage in less harmful activities like curdling milk or tangling horses’ tails.
Folletti sometimes take the form of snakes, hedgehogs, or other creatures with strong connections to the earth. They might use foxes as messengers and spies.
Sunday Inspiration: Story
We are, as a species, addicted to story. Even when the body goes to sleep, the mind stays up all night, telling itself stories.
—Jonathan Gottschall
A Field Guide to Mythological Humanoids
In order to avoid having loads and loads of races in the Into the Wonder series, I’ve devised the following system to evaluate and categorize the entities found in various world mythologies. Mind you, this system won’t work in every fictional universe, so caveat lector!
Contrasted with a run-of-the-mill, plain vanilla human…
- Does this humanoid display vast magical powers?
It’s probably a fae (sídhe, elf, jinni, nunnehi, etc.)
Is it unusually good-looking?
Definitely a fae! - Is this humanoid secretive and crafty?
It’s probably a dwarf (dvergr, dactyl, etc.).
Does it live underground?
Definitely a dwarf! - Is this humanoid unusually short?
It’s probably one of the little people (brownie, kobold, yunwi tsunsdi, etc.).
Does it try to play tricks on you?
Could be a little person if the tricks aren’t too mean.
Does it try to clean your house or do your chores?
Definitely a little person! - Is this humanoid unusually tall?
It’s probably a giant (slant-eye, stonecoat, ispolini, etc.).
No other distinctive features like powerful magic or a taste for human flesh?
Definitely a giant! - Does this humanoid want to eat you?
It’s probably an ogre (Laestrygonian, zimwi, water cannibal, etc.).
But it’s no bigger than an ordinary human!
Doesn’t matter, it’s probably an ogre! - Does this humanoid want to scare you?
It’s probably a bogeyman (boggart, hey-hey man, nalusa falaya, etc.).
There’s no such thing as a bogeyman.
Tell that to him! - Is this humanoid just plain weird?
It’s probably a troll (jaettertroll, fomor, stallos, etc).
But I thought trolls were…
You thought wrong. Trolls are just plain weird.
Sunday Inspiration: Friendship
How much good inside a day?
Depends how good you live ’em.
How much love inside a friend?
Depends how much you give ’em.
—Shel Silverstein
Sword of Summer Book Trailer
A trailer has been released for Rick Riordan’s <em>The Sword of Summer</em>. It looks pretty nice, and I’m confident the narrator’s Boston accent (or approximation thereof) is significant.
The Orthodox Jew Who’s Staged to Revolutionize Evolutionary Theory
Fascinating article from Meghan Walsh at Ozy.com:
So what does God have to do with all this? In his quest for answers, [physicist Jeremy] England, of course, finds himself at the center of the classic struggle between science and spirituality. While Christianity and Darwinism are generally opposed, Judaism doesn’t take issue with the science of life. The Rabbinical Council of America even takes the stance that “evolutionary theory, properly understood, is not incompatible with belief in a Divine Creator.”
For his part, England believes science can give us explanations and predictions, but it can never tell us what we should do with that information. That’s where, he says, the religious teachings come in. Indeed, the man who’s one-upping Darwin has spent the past 10 years painstakingly combing through the Torah, interpreting it word by word much the way he ponders the meaning of life. His conclusion? Common translations are lacking. Take the term “creation.” England suggests we understand it not as the literal making of the Earth but rather as giving Earth a name. All throughout the Bible, he says, there are examples of terms that could be interpreted differently from what we’ve come to accept as standard.
So Apparently There’s Going to be a Krampus Movie
‘Cause nothing screams “holiday spirit” like a horror movie based on this legend about Saint Nick’s stern left-hand…being.
I blogged about Krampus a couple of Decembers ago. As I explain in that post, Krampus seems to be a variation on the Percht, a terrifying satyr-like creature from the Alpine region. Also, in the local German dialect, the plural of Krampus is Krampusi. But one of them is probably bad enough.
