Myths and Legends of the World

Satan Prosecutor of Heaven Tester of Faith of GOD Accuser of Mankind Lord of Hell  Satan is rather misunderstood in part because of the varying views of Satan, Lucifer and the Christian Devil. Satan is the Hebrew translation of the Egyptian God Set, making Satan a God. But there is academic disagreement about this connection between the Hebrew Satan and the Egyptian Set. Many people turn to the LeVey Satanists and take their cue from their definition of Satan as a God. At the same time, Satan is also confused with Lucifer, the Light Bringer. And then there's the Christian view that Satan is the adversary of God and the accuser of Mankind. Not often thought of an Archangel, it's important to remember that Satan was an Archangel long before he was associated as the Ruler of Hell and Evil, and nemesis of Mankind. Hebrew Satan Literally his name translates as "adversary" or "accuser" In the Book of Job, ha-satan ("the adversary")...

In this tale, told by Roman poet Ovid and remembered for his verses on love, a young girl named Echo falls in love with a vain youth named Narcissus. He was the son of a woman that the river god had encircled with the windings of his streams, thus trapping and seducing her. Worried for her son’s welfare, she consulted a prophet regarding his future. The prophet reports: Narcissus "will live to a ripe old age, as long as he never knows himself." Echo's passion for Narcissus was equaled only by her passion for talking as she always had to have the last word. One day she enabled the escape of the goddess Juno's adulterous husband (Jupiter) by engaging Juno in conversation. On finding out Echo's treachery Juno cursed Echo by removing her voice with the exception that she could only speak that which was spoken to her. Echo often waited in the woods to see Narcissus hoping for a chance to be noticed. One day as she lingered in the bushes he heard her footsteps a...

As I state in the last post pride come in many forms. The story of hubris is Daedalus and Icarus. King Minos and Daedalus had great understanding at first, but their relationships started deteriorating at some point; there are several versions explaining this sudden change, although the most common one is that Daedalus was the one who advised Princess Ariadne to give Theseus the thread that helped him come out from the infamous Labyrinth, after killing the Minotaur. The Labyrinth was a maze built by Daedalus; King Minos wanted a building suitable to imprison the mythical monster Minotaur, and according to the myth, he used to imprison his enemies in the labyrinth, making sure that they would be killed by the monster. For years Minos demanded a tribute of youths from Athens to feed the creature. Eventually, the hero Theseus came to Crete to attempt to slay the Minotaur. Ariadne, daughter of Minos and Pasiphae, fell in love with Theseus and asked Daedalus to help him. Dae...

In almost every list, pride (Latin, superbia), or hubris (Greek), is considered the original and most serious of the seven deadly sins, and the source of the others. It is identified as a desire to be more important or attractive than others, failing to acknowledge the good work of others, and excessive love of self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God). Pride comes in several varieties and not of it is bad. Example of this is pride in your home, life and/or career. This is good pride has the positive benefits of enhancing creativity, productivity, and unselfishness. The varieties of Pride that I am focusing on are: hubris and vanity. I am going to define them then blog stories about them in a few. Hubris is extreme pride or arrogance. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence or capabilities, especially when the person exhibiting it is in a position of power such as a king or general. In Gre...

Wrath (Latin, ira), also known as "rage", may be described as inordinate and uncontrolled feelings of hatred and anger. Wrath, in its purest form, presents with self-destructiveness, violence, and hate that may provoke feuds that can go on for centuries. Wrath may persist long after the person who did another a grievous wrong is dead. Feelings of anger can manifest in different ways, including impatience, revenge, and vigilantism. History has plenty examples of wrath. In many religions, anger is frequently attributed to God or gods. Here is few examples of the divine anger. Hera is Queen of Heaven and Goddess of Women, Marriage and Childbirth. She is renowned for her jealousy and temper. She persecuted Zeus' many offspring as well as his mistresses. Hera also persecuted Heracles throughout his life, afflicting him with madness. One of the most devastating events in Heracles' life was when she had driven him mad to the point where Heracles had murdere...

Sloth (Latin, Socordia) can entail different vices. While sloth is sometimes defined as physical laziness, spiritual laziness is emphasized. Failing to develop spiritually is key to becoming guilty of sloth. In Christian faith, sloth rejects grace and God. Sloth has also been defined as a failure to do things that one should do. By this definition, evil exists when good men fail to act. In the city of Al-Kal'as in Western region of China, there lived Mustapha, a tailor, with his wife and young son, Aladdin. When Aladdin reached his tenth year, Mustapha decided to teach him his trade. Aladdin was lazy, and whenever Mustapha left his shop Aladdin would sneak out and play with his friends. This behavior saddened the tailor, and he eventually sickened and died. Finding herself a widow, Aladdin's mother sold the shop and took to spinning cotton into yarn to provide for her and the boy. When Aladdin was in his fifteenth year, a magus from Maghrib came to the city. The...