The Metaphysics of Morrowind: an essay series that looks at the deceptively deep lore that surrounds one of the best-loved open world games ever made, and incorporates not only the plot elements of the game world, and the supplementary books scattered for the player to find, but also the meta-narrative of the gameplay itself, including the player character and the construction kit. Parts
1,
2,
3,
4.
posted by codacorolla
on Nov 16, 2011 -
92 comments
Haw Par Villa, also known as
Tiger Balm Gardens, was quite possibly the
weirdest theme park on the planet. The first park was built in Hong Kong in the 30s, soon followed by another in Singapore. Built by brothers Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par, who made their fortunes selling
Tiger Balm, the park was really a sculpture garden devoted to all aspects of
Chinese mythology. Weirdest and most surreal of all was the section of the park which depicted the the
10 levels of
Buddhist hell, featuring demons
dismembering sinners, and is best described as "if Heironymus Bosch built a putt putt course."
posted by puny human
on Jun 20, 2011 -
30 comments
so the moral of the story is
always wear a condom
because otherwise
you are going to have to resort to an impromptu skull c-section
with a shovel
Myths Retold. [more inside]
posted by KathrynT
on Mar 2, 2011 -
50 comments
Forming (NSFW - cartoon nudity) is a webcomic by
Jesse Moynihan (NSFW) that tells the history of the evolution of man via the machinations of various alien entities whose familiar names (and unfamiliar stories) have been recorded in various religions throughout time.
[more inside]
posted by lyam
on Dec 16, 2010 -
24 comments
Biblemap.org is an interactive map system for the bible, which is great for visualising where certain biblical events are said to have occured. It's also great for people who don't subscribe to any kind of organised religion but do like looking at maps (like me!).
posted by Effigy2000
on Jun 14, 2009 -
24 comments
Explore the
History of the Ancient Greek World from the Neolithic to the Classical Period. Covering important topics, such as
Art and Architecture,
Mythology,
Wars,
Culture and Society, Poetry,
Olympics,
History Periods, Philosophy,
Playwrights, Kings and Rulers of Ancient Greece.
posted by netbros
on Feb 21, 2009 -
3 comments
"
Women and children, first," is a familiar cultural refrain, with its popular roots in the gallant sacrifice made by the male contingent aboard the doomed
Titanic. Their sacrifice has inspired
poetry,
sculpture,
male social clubs, and, of course,
cinema. Yet, this sacrifice of near-mythic scale
was in some respects a myth, with
survival statistics skewing well in favor of men of higher social and economic class than children (and, to a lesser extent, women) of lower status.
posted by Blazecock Pileon
on Aug 25, 2008 -
70 comments
Over 2000 classic tales and fables including
Aesop's Fables,
Bulfinch's Mythology,
Indian "Why" Stories, tales by
Oscar Wilde,
Beatrix Potter,
Rudyard Kipling,
Louisa May Alcott,
L. Frank Baum and
Harriet Beecher Stowe and stories about
Abraham Lincoln,
Robin Hood and
Baron Munchausen. And more! The
folk and fairytale collection is particularly rich, with hundreds of stories from all over the world.
posted by Kattullus
on Apr 1, 2008 -
15 comments
Sing to us, O Muse, of our
Timeless Myths. A site dedicated to Classical, Norse & Celtic mythology and Arthurian legends.
posted by Kattullus
on Jul 22, 2007 -
11 comments
The Dreaming (arguably better known as 'The Dreamtime') is more than just the story of how the world was created as told by Aboriginal Australians. It is also the basis for their way of life and death, their source of power in life and it tells of the life and influence of their ancestors on their culture. It was so important to Aboriginal Australians in the time before the white invasion of Australia that it was the one commonly held belief amongst a culture that consisted of over 500 different tribes (
discussion of Dreamtime beliefs here). Thought to be the oldest continuously maintained cultural history on Earth, it is often presented as a series of inter-related stories explaining Aboriginal Australian origins and culture, such as how the Australian landscape was created or how the
Mimi spirits taught them how to paint these stories on the walls of caves more than 40,000 years ago.
And what better way to learn of several of the many different Dreamtime stories than to
listen and watch them being told by Aboriginal Australians elders themselves? And if that isn't enough Dreamtime mythology for you,
here's some links to various sites which allow you to view Aboriginal rock art to see how these stories were translated into a form of artistic expression which is now five times older than the Egyptian Pyramids themselves.
posted by Effigy2000
on Dec 23, 2006 -
14 comments
I want to love
the Table of Gods, a list of "4862 gods, godesses,
deities, avatars, incarnations, angels, demons and various spirits, and 520 aliases, mispronounciations and
generally confusing name variations." There isn't much more than a list of names with short descriptions, but you
can search by
keyword (say,
chthonic), by
origin (e.g.,
Canaan), and by
name. The information and presentation are not in the same league as
Encyclopedia Mythica, or even
Godchecker, but it does list
Hanuman.
The listings invite you to add keywords and comments, but unfortunately the feature is broken. You can add either, but they are appended unmoderated to the record for "A", which is consequently
a mess. If I've been a good boy this year, this feature will work and be gleaning meaningful user contributions on Christmas morning, and I will get to love the Table of Gods.
posted by owhydididoit
on Dec 20, 2006 -
15 comments
In the study of mythology,
folklore and religion,
a trickster is a god,
goddess,
spirit,
human hero or anthropomorphic animal who plays pranks or otherwise disobeys normal rules and norms of behaviour.
Tricksters come in
all forms, from
all cultures. Notable examples include
Br'er Rabbit,
Odysseus,
Eshu,
Raven, and
Loki; most or all of whom you are likely familiar with.
posted by Eideteker
on Apr 29, 2006 -
31 comments
Jesus walked on the water ice. So sayeth... um... well, this guy at Florida State.
Doron Nof has released a
paper positing that when Jesus walked on the water in Galilee, he was actually walking on a patch of floating ice. What's interesting about science like this to me is that it both validates and invalidates scripture, since if Jesus was walking on ice... no miracle (although, it's a miracle he didn't slip and fall, har har har). But if Jesus was walking on ice, then at least he historically existed, which
is still an open question at least
in some quarters. In case you think you recognize Mr. Nof's name, you may be remembering his work explaining that the
parting of the Red Sea was totally possible (flash video link).
posted by illovich
on Apr 5, 2006 -
106 comments
Rainbows, pots of gold, and leprechauns are images that come to mind on St. Paddy’s Day. They are
beautiful to behold, but how much do you really know about
rainbows? Did you know that there are
double,
triple, and
supernumerary rainbows, that
no two people ever see the same rainbow, and that rainbows consist of
more than just the ROYGBIV colors? Rainbows permeate
mythology,
prophecy,
spirituality,
symbolism,
mentality, and
sexuality. Rainbows are a
job for one,
a link to the past for some, and a
hope for the future for others.
posted by debralee
on Mar 17, 2005 -
24 comments
I have been thinking about
masks lately.
Masks are
ancient and
universal, our ancestors put on masks to become an other, to become a god, even unto
this day.
Greek tragedy and
comedy began in the worship of
Dionysos, the
god of wine, intoxication, and creative ecstasy, in
rituals where worshipers often wore or worshipped masks. Indeed, the word for mask in Greek drama was persona, now commonly used to describe
constructed online identities. And so
we understand ourselves as wearing masks, whole series of masks--behind which we find only emptiness, for we can never see ourselves truly.
posted by y2karl
on Feb 24, 2005 -
30 comments
Like most people who love mythical creatures (cryptozoology), I also collect stamps (philately). At last, someone has combined these twin fetishes in one
easily displayed fashion. My favorites include the
Loch Ness Monster and his ancient cousin the
Kraken, especially
these two which feature a guest appearance by Mickey Mouse.
posted by jonson
on Dec 29, 2004 -
23 comments
Narts! The Nart Sagas are arguably the most essential ingredient of Circassian Culture, to which they are what Greek mythology is to Western Civilization. Though much less known than their Greek counterparts, the Nart epic tales are no less developed. The heroism, sagacity, guile and ferocity of the Nart demi-gods are more than matches
to those of the Greek Pantheon. If this
selection of stories captures your interest, you might want John Colarusso's
Nart Sagas from the Caucasus; you can read the
introduction online ("A ship sailing across the Black Sea in the year 1780 eventually would have come upon a lush shore at the eastern end of the dark gray waters..."). Although they seem to have been brought by the
Ossetes (and J. Cassian is posting an Ossetian tale,
The Death of Soslan, on his
blog), they're
everywhere in the Northern Caucasus. And
some people say they were the source of the King Arthur stories.
posted by languagehat
on Dec 4, 2004 -
13 comments
