Descriptionary

orc according to Pliny, "an enormous mass of flesh armed with teeth," based on the killer whale.

Orthos two-headed guard dog, brother to Cer­berus.

padfoot a devil dog who haunted the area of Leeds, England.

Pan the Greek god of the woods and fields; a human­like creature having the belly and legs of a goat.

Peist the Irish dragon whom St. Patrick imprisoned.

phoenix in Egyptian mythology, a brilliantly col­ored bird who lives more than 500 years, then con­sumes itself in fire and rises anew from the ashes.

puk a small, household dragon who brings treasure to its master.

roc in Arabian legend, the giant, eaglelike bird who carried off young elephants and ate them.

rumptifusel a large, vicious beast who slept wrapped around a tree and was often mistaken for a fur coat by passing lumberjacks.

safat a dragon-headed creature that flew so high in the sky it vanished from sight.

salamander a cold-bodied lizard thought by the Greeks to live in fires.

satyr fish a winged, heraldic beast with the head of a satyr and the body of a fish.

satyrs manlike creatures with legs, hindquarters, and horns of a goat; they were the attendants of Bac­chus and Pan.

serra a flying sea monster with a lion's head and a fish's tail.

side Irish fairy who lived in barrows.

stringes Greek vampire who sucked the blood of sleeping victims and brought nightmares.

thunderbirds from Native American folklore, giant birds whose flapping wings were thought to be the cause of thunder.

tritons dolphin-tailed beasts with humanlike faces, the conch-blowing attendants of Neptune.

troll in Scandinavian folklore, a large, evil fairy or elf who could charm men and who was scared away by church bells. Trolls who roamed at night were turned to stone if caught in daylight. Stand­ing stones are thought to be the petrified bodies of trolls.

were-jaguar South American version of a werewolf.

werewolf a wolf disguised as a human.

wodewoses mute, club-wielding ogres with shaggy green hair who kidnapped women and ate children in medieval times.

wyvern heraldic flying serpent with a barbed tail and legs like an eagle's.

modern religions

Buddhism

ahimsa the doctrine of nonviolence and the unwill­ingness to harm any living creature, including animals for food.

Amida Buddha the Buddha of "immeasurable light."

bhakti the love and devotion a follower feels for someone more spiritually advanced.

bodhi the Buddhist term for enlightenment, the spiritual awakening all Buddhists strive for.

bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism, a being or person devoted to attaining enlightenment for all liv­ing things.

bodhi-tree the fig tree under which Siddhartha Gau­tama attained enlightenment while meditating.

Dalai Lama the spiritual leader of Tibetan Bud­dhism. Every new Dalai Lama is believed to be a rein­carnation of the former Dalai Lama.

dharma the path to enlightenment, specifically liv­ing a life of generosity, love, and wisdom.

dukkha the Buddhist belief that everything eventu­ally leads to suffering.

enlightenment spiritual awakening; the state of being a Buddha; supreme bliss, perfect wisdom and compassion, and profound insight into the meaning of life. Also known as nirvana or the transcendental.

five precepts a set of rules for moral behavior; in general, don't lie, steal, kill, drink or use drugs, or misconduct oneself sexually.

Four Noble Truths life lessons taught by Bud­dha: (1) everything leads to suffering; (2) suffering is caused by desire or greed; (3) eliminating desire and greed eliminates suffering; (4) the pathways of enlightenment are open to anyone who lives morally and meditates.

Gautama, Siddhartha the founder of Buddhism, known as the Buddha.

lama a Vajrayana Buddhist from Tibet who is spiri­tually learned and developed.

lotus position a seated position in which the legs are folded tightly together, used in meditation.

mantra "instrument of thought"; a word or phrase representing spiritual meaning, recited repeatedly dur­ing meditation.

nirvana enlightenment.

prayer wheel a Tibetan Buddhist apparatus consist­ing of a wheel on which papers inscribed with man­tras are attached; the wheel is rotated to release the efficacy of the mantras.

rosary a circle of beads sometimes used when recit­ing mantras.

satori the sudden achievement of enlightenment.

stupa a Buddhist shrine in the shape of a mound or dome, usually containing a sacred object or marking a sacred place.

Wesak a festival celebrating the enlightenment of Buddha or his birth and death, held in May on the day of the full moon.

zazan meditation in the lotus position.

Zen the Chinese and Japanese school of Buddhism focusing on the attainment of enlightenment through meditation.

Christianity