Myths and Legends of the World

The story begins at Christmastime at King Arthur’s court in Camelot. The Knights of the Round Table join Arthur in the holiday celebrations, and Queen Guinevere presides in their midst. The lords and ladies of Camelot have been feasting for fifteen days, and now it is New Year’s Day. Everyone participates in New Year’s games, exchanging gifts and kisses. When the evening’s feast is about to be served, Arthur introduces a new game: he refuses to eat his dinner until he has heard a marvelous story. Be careful for you wish for. While the lords and ladies feast, with Arthur’s nephew Gawain and Guinevere sitting together in the place of privilege at the high table, Arthur continues to wait for his marvel. As if in answer to Arthur’s request, an unknown knight suddenly enters the hall on horseback. The gigantic knight has a beautiful face and figure. Every piece of his elaborate armor is green, with flourishes of gold embossing. His huge horse is green, and his green hair and beard are...

Happy Birthday to the Gods of the Sun and Light Sol Sol Invictus "the Unconquered Sun" is the name of a Roman sun (sol) god popular from at least the 3rd century. Before Sol Invictus came to prominence, the Romans already had a sun god, Sol Indiges, who had been worshiped since the period of the Roman Republic. (The meaning of "Indiges" is debated. Sol Indiges could mean the indigenous sun.) The Emperor Nero had built a colossal statue associated with a sun god Sol. Sol Invictus may have been an import from the East. The Roman emperor Elagabalus worshiped a Syrian sun god, but it is Emperor Aurelian who is particularly associated with the Invictus because he, having attributed to the god his victory over the Palmyrenes, set up a temple to Sol Invictus in the Campus Martius, established a priesthood for the god, and created games in his honor (ludi solis), in 274. Aurelian tried to establish Sol Invictus as supreme god of the Romans, particularly among the ...

Krampus is the devilish child punishing companion of St. Nicholas. On December 6th, Nicholas brings joy and presents to good children throughout Austria, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. The kindly old Saint leaves the task of punishing bad children to a hell-bound counterpart The Horned Devil, also known as Krampus known by many names across the continent — Knecht Ruprecht, Certa, Perchten, Black Peter, Schmutzli, Pelznickel, Klaubauf, and Krampus. The evening before, “Krampusnacht”, the children are visited by the Krampus, St. Nicholas’s “bad cop” partner, a devil who rises from hell to torment bad children. Krampus is usually portrayed as a classic red devil figure with fur, cloven hooves, horns and a long snake like tongue. He often carries instruments of punishment, sticks and chains to whip naughty children and a large backpack like wicker basket that is used to imprison children and transport them to hell. Although normally devilish, Krampus has taken ...

Asclepius: God of Medicine During the height of the AIDS epidemic, we lost millions of people on a global level. Today, Dec. 1, 2015, marks World Aids Day — a time for us to reflect on those that we have lost, those who are thriving and the advances our society has made when it comes to the prevention and treatment of HIV.  World AIDS Day, a day started in 1988 to raise awareness about HIV and AIDS and work to end the epidemic. HIV, or Human Immunodeficiency Virus, is a virus that attacks the body's immune system. HIV can progress into AIDS, the final state of the infection when the body is unable to fight disease or infection. Here are some facts about where things stand today: An estimated 34 million people have HIV/AIDS worldwide. In the USA, an estimated 1.2 million people live with HIV and one out of every seven are not aware they have the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sub-Saharan Africa has the most...