Faerie Lore and Legends

I missed this one at the theaters. By the time I saw the previews, it had already left the big screen … at least in my area. I saw it available on Amazon Prime, but I have no idea when it would be discounted or have free streaming. I got impatient. Being a big fan of folklore, myths, and legends … I couldn’t wait. I went ahead and bought it, as it was only a few dollars more as a purchase than a 48-hour rental. Plus, I knew I’d need to watch it again with my son at a much later date. It was worth the investment. In my fascination with the story, the acting was good, cleverly crafted, and had great special effects. I give it 5 stars out of 5.

A deep and familiar sense of wonder arrives with Death of a Unicorn, a film that unites the hard edges of horror with the timeless shimmer of mythology and cryptids. Those weary of paint-by-numbers unicorn tales will find here an intoxicating reimagining, where folklore breathes with terror and beauty in equal measure. The story draws on the long tradition of unicorn symbolism; purity, danger, and the space between myth and reality; giving folklorists plenty to admire and horror fans much to savor.

This five-star experience is more than a suspenseful journey; it stands as a fresh lens on unicorn lore, blending unsettling creature design with folklore’s deep shadows. Students of mythology, collectors of cryptid legends, and lifelong movie buffs will recognize the artistry on display; an inventive, memorable tribute to stories that haunt the human imagination. As the boundaries blur between ancient fable and modern cinema, Death of a Unicorn claims its place among the most original myth-inspired films in recent memory.

Plot Overview and Mythological Foundations

Death of a Unicorn weaves an atmospheric story that bridges folklore, horror, and the subtle mysteries of natural history. The direction and writing treat mythology, cryptids, and unicorns with both reverence and invention, offering viewers a world that feels at once ancient and shockingly new. Instead of simply referencing unicorns as fantasy tropes, the film considers their deeper symbolic currents, purity tainted by violence, rarity on the edge of extinction, and the dangerous beauty at the heart of every myth. Layer by layer, this story wraps itself around the audience with a darkly enchanting grip, asking us to peer into the mythic shadows hidden in familiar woods.

Mythology and Cryptids in the Film’s World-Building

The film’s heart beats through its meticulous use of mythology and cryptids. Here, unicorns move beyond token creatures; they become both protagonists and portents, shaped by centuries of folklore and embellished by the film’s own rulebook. This isn’t the milky-white icon on childhood posters; this unicorn is unpredictable, wild, and laced with ambiguity, its roots borrowed from both medieval bestiaries and whispered folk tales.

World-building in Death of a Unicorn is rich, drawing from an international tapestry of legends. You will find echoes of Slavic Leshy myths, Celtic forest hauntings, and echoes of the Elasmotherium, often cited as the “Siberian Unicorn”, a creature entangling paleontological fact with cryptozoological hope. This subtle dance between documentary realism and gothic invention sets the scene apart from typical genre fare.

• Hybrid Beasts and Hidden Truths: The film smartly folds known cryptids into its ecosystem. These influences allow for world-building that is dense yet accessible, rewarding attentive viewers and folklore enthusiasts alike.
• Symbolism in Character and Setting: Each appearance by a mythical being connects to the larger themes of purity, self-sacrifice, and the price of wonder. Symbolic moments; antlers gleaming like silver under moonlight, hoofprints found near untamed rivers, reinforce how mythology, cryptids, and unicorns shape not just the film’s action, but also its spirit.

If the resonance of cryptid stories and ancient symbols catches your curiosity, consider browsing the Cryptids Lore Collection. There, you’ll find a deeper look at the creatures and stories that continue to haunt modern imagination, offering a context that transforms Death of a Unicorn from a simple film to a living folktale.

For those drawn to the interplay of myth and the monstrous, the film offers both a love letter and a bold revision. It rewards everyone who still believes that old stories have teeth; and that danger and beauty often walk hand in hand.

Cinematic Elements: Horror, Performance, and Atmosphere

Death of a Unicorn flourishes in the liminal space where horror breathes alongside legend. The film’s tone balances menace and awe, using visual and performance techniques that root mythology, cryptids, and unicorns firmly in the audience’s senses. Here, horror is not only found in fleeting shadows but in the profound unease of upturned folklore, where every whinny or forest shiver hints at powers older than language.

Creature Design: Bringing the Unicorn to Life

The heart of Death of a Unicorn lies in its striking reimagining of the unicorn, shifting the creature from a gentle fairy tale symbol to something altogether more primal. Instead of the classic white steed, this unicorn is closer to a cryptid; a wild and dangerous animal, closer in spirit to those legendary beasts chronicled in bestiaries and whispered about in folklore.

The design harnesses the uncanny. This unicorn is scarred by survival; its coat is marked, its horn not smooth and elegant, but jagged as if shaped by forest battles. Every movement, each snort and flick of the ear, awakens old fears, suggesting a creature as ancient as it is unpredictable. This isn’t just a monster, but a living myth: part relic, part warning.

• Anatomical accuracy: The filmmakers draw from paleontological theories, imagining the unicorn with a heavy bone structure reminiscent of Ice Age megafauna.
• Behavioral realism: The film gives the unicorn plausible animal instincts, blurring the line between fantasy and cryptozoology.
• Atmospheric lighting: Shadows and moonlight are wielded to conceal and then reveal the unicorn, amplifying both beauty and terror.

To appreciate the historical roots that inspired these choices, explore Unicorn Mythology for a journey through traditional and modern interpretations. Those hungry for even further lore can see how the unicorn straddles myth and cryptid classification in the broader context of animal legends.

Actors and Storytelling: Review Standout Performances, Script Strength, and Emotional Impact

Death of a Unicorn is elevated by its cast, who bring depth and sincerity that cut through the genre’s potential for camp. Each lead actor embodies a complex relationship with the unicorn; fear, awe, and raw survival instinct mingle together in their eyes and voices.

• Lead Performances: The central family dynamic anchors the film. The parent figure radiates both protectiveness and existential dread, while the child delivers hope and terror in unpredictable waves. These performances never tip into melodrama; instead, they maintain a studied restraint, letting silences and glances fill the screen.
• Supporting Cast: Side characters populate the looming woods with urgency and unique voices, never feeling disposable or one-note.
• Script Excellence: Dialogue is spare, but loaded with subtext. Every word counts; each exchange builds the film’s broader themes: the enormity of myth, the confusion of facing the unknown, and the line between folklore devotion and horror.

The emotional moments bite hard because they refuse easy comfort. The film leans into ambiguity: Is the unicorn a blessing, a warning, or something the human mind cannot parse? The script excels in sustaining this uncertainty, rewarding both mythology buffs and horror aficionados.

The atmosphere; woven from mist, flickering light, and trembling voices, carries the movie through quiet dread and sudden, kinetic fear. This is horror that respects the intelligence and emotional sensitivity of its audience, refusing to offer easy answers.

For an exploration of how cryptids exist in both legend and lived experience, visit the compendium on the List of cryptids. Curious minds will also find rich context in tales where monsters and myths spill into our world at Cryptid and Creature Movie Reviews.

Whether you come for the folklore, the cryptids, or the unicorn itself, it’s clear that Death of a Unicorn offers a five-star review for its commitment to mythic terror, nuanced performances, and an atmosphere thick with both reverence and fear.

Thematic Depth: Myth, Nature, and Morality

Death of a Unicorn commands attention not only for its chilling visuals and rich atmosphere but also for its deep engagement with old myths and urgent modern concerns. In this section, we explore how the film threads together environmental themes, moral questions, and symbolic echoes from centuries of folklore. For those fascinated by the texture of mythology, cryptids, and unicorns, these themes pulse just below the surface, framing every twist and revelation with greater meaning.

Moral Questions and Environmental Commentary

At the film’s core sits a quiet but persistent conversation about the relationship between humans and the natural world. By centering the unicorn as both a cryptid and a force of nature, Death of a Unicorn prompts the audience to confront tough questions:

• What happens when a mythical creature is endangered not by magic but by human folly?
• Can reverence for the rare ever balance our hunger for control?

The unicorn’s fragility and haunting presence tap into legends that long treated these animals as guardians of pure landscapes. Here, the unicorn’s suffering and resilience become metaphors for ecological destruction and the irreversible loss of wildness. The story frames the creature not as a passive victim, but as a symbol of nature’s limits, issuing a silent warning.

This theme resonates powerfully in our era of biodiversity collapse. The unicorn’s elusive beauty stands in for countless species teetering on the edge, calling the viewer to rethink the old narratives of conquest and ownership. Is it any surprise that unicorns, alongside other legendary creatures like the Loch Ness Monster and kelpies, have become cultural shorthand for environmental anxiety, as explored in discussions on the commodification of monstrous creatures?

Death of a Unicorn demands that the viewer witness not just a monster, but a living question about the cost of domination and the ethics of wonder.

Symbolism from Mythology and Folklore

Unicorns have always served as rich symbols; icons of purity, tests of character, and sentinels at the edge of the known world. Death of a Unicorn honors and upends these expectations, drawing on a deep well of references that folklorists and casual viewers alike will recognize.

Throughout the film, moments echo the oldest tales. When the unicorn is glimpsed by moonlight or rears in silent agony, these visuals recall those medieval bestiaries where unicorns could only be tamed by the pure of heart. Horns are more than weapons; they are tools of healing, agents of change, and guards of boundaries between worlds.

• The unicorn’s horn, for instance, nods to legends where it could purify poisoned water; a role that links it directly to anxieties about environmental loss. Learn more about these traditions in the examination of the mythology of the unicorn.
• The haunted forests and shadowed rivers evoke the boundary lands of folklore; places where humans encounter not only monsters but also their own moral limits.

The film smartly connects its unicorn not just with grace, but with danger; a duality at the heart of ancient tales. This mirrors the treatment of other legendary beings, such as the Giant Leech Monster, whose stories also live at the intersection of fear, awe, and a need to explain what lies in the dark.

For those interested in the broader cultural tapestry, stories of unicorns have shaped everything from spiritual allegory to ecological consciousness. They remain animals of contradiction; wild yet gentle, hunted yet untouchable. Death of a Unicorn breathes new life into these contradictions, offering moments when the creature’s symbolic weight feels almost unbearable.

By rooting its horror in the oldest myths and echoing the ongoing debates about how we live with the wild, Death of a Unicorn delivers a thoughtful, memorable, and deeply layered cinematic experience.

Why “Death of a Unicorn” Resonates with Folklorists and Horror Fans

Death of a Unicorn does something rare; it forges a direct link between ancient myth and skin-prickling fear, elegantly speaking to both folklorists and horror lovers. This movie does not merely nod to unicorns as decorations or metaphors. Instead, it digs into the deep roots of mythology, cryptids, and unicorns, demanding that viewers see these creatures not as playthings but as the living heart of legend. Folklore experts will detect the layers of traditional meaning, while horror fans will feel the pulse of dread that runs beneath every hoofbeat.

By stripping away the glitter and charm so common in pop culture, the film finds the darkness at the core of myth. It captures the uncanny; a feeling as old as the first stories told around a fire. This is why those who study and savor folklore, as well as those who crave sharp horror, find themselves drawn together in appreciation.

Unicorns in Contemporary Pop Culture: Briefly Compare the Film’s Unicorns with Modern Unicorn Representations, Noting Its Darker, More Haunting Approach

Unicorns today are bright, playful, and almost sanitized, appearing on everything from children’s pajamas to viral internet memes. The modern unicorn is all smiles and sparkles, usually designed to bring comfort or whimsy rather than fear. As noted in resources like the Origin of the Modern Unicorn, our contemporary image descends from centuries of softening and sweetening; centuries that have washed away the animal’s wilder traits.

But Death of a Unicorn stands in firm contrast to this trend. The film’s unicorn is wild and forbidding, its beauty hiding danger in every glance. While pop culture leans into pastels and innocence, the movie pulls from the oldest tapestries and stories, where a unicorn was a solitary, unpredictable force, often just as terrifying as it was alluring. Here, we see a return to the animal’s roots as both a symbol of purity and a harbinger of doom.

• In Pop Culture: Unicorns often appear as companions to the innocent or as magical solutions to earthly problems. Their horns have lost their bite, serving as little more than fancy hats on friendly beasts.
• In Death of a Unicorn: The unicorn reclaims its place as something uncanny and liminal, unsettling precisely because it is neither wholly good nor evil. Its horn drips with the suggestion of violence, its movements hint at intelligence both alien and ancient.

This stark difference creates a tension that folklorists recognize immediately: the struggle between myth and modernity. Horror fans, too, understand why this matters. The film’s unicorn is a cryptid, not a mascot; an animal that lives in the dangerous borderlands between fact and fantasy, as discussed in lists of Cryptid Horror Movies. By pulling the unicorn back into the shadows, Death of a Unicorn gives the audience a much-needed reminder. There are legends that we soften at our peril, and some symbols refuse easy domestication.

For a closer look at how unicorns are usually portrayed in today’s media, check out 13 Great Unicorns in Pop Culture. You’ll see unmistakably sweet versions there; bright, approachable, and harmless. The film stands as an antidote to this, restoring a sense of scale and power.

If you want to see more on how films use mythology and cryptids to unsettle and entertain, visit the Cryptid/Folklore horror movies thread. Death of a Unicorn has earned its five-star review for daring to challenge worn-out traditions, making its unicorn both a relic and a genuine threat.

In this bold reimagining, mythology, cryptids, and unicorns return to their roots, haunting, beautiful, and impossible to deny. Whether you study symbols for a living or simply crave horror with a folkloric bite, Death of a Unicorn offers a rare and compelling vision.

Reviewed

***** of 5 stars; Oisin Rhymour – Techno Tink Media: design.technotink.com. Death of a Unicorn earns its five-star review by turning the familiar symbol of the unicorn into something rare, at once beautiful and threatening, anchored in both mythology and the shadows of modern horror. Stunning visuals, dramatic special effects, the essence of Tim Burton – what an amazing creation. This film stands out for its deep respect for folklore, its sharp awareness of cryptid traditions, and the gravity it gives to old symbols often lightened by modern media. Its careful use of mythology, cryptids, and unicorns invites folklorists and horror buffs alike to see something fresh: a creature that demands attention, fear, and understanding.

For anyone who values the unpredictable edge of myth or the dark fascination of unexplained beasts, this movie is a gift. Let it guide you into richer tales on folklore, monsters, and the strange places where myth still breathes. Explore more haunting creatures and the legacy of monster stories in cryptid and creature movie reviews. Thank you for joining this journey through shadow and story; share your thoughts, and keep the discussion alive for those who love a world shaped by myth and the unknown.

Gmok’am’c

Coming soon!

Totems

Article and research by Thomas Baurley,
Technogypsie Research, August 7, 2017

One of the phenomenal ominous presences in the Pacific Northwest, as well as superNATURAL British Columbia, is the plethora of artistic totems created by the past and present Pacific Northwest tribes. It is truly a part of my heart’s connection with Cascadia.

Totems, in the Pacific Northwest, are usually depicted by the stacking of tribal masks or heads carved into a tall towering pole. “Totems” are spirit beings, symbols, or sacred objects that represent families, clans, lineages, or tribes. Totem as a definition was first classified from the art forms and beliefs made by the Ojibwe tribe in the Pacific Northwest. They see the concept as believing in tutelary Deities or spirits. This concept however is worldwide, and defining term “totem” is utilized by Anthropologists to explain this concept as it is used in other cultures such as Australia, Europe, Asia, Africa, the Arctic, and the Middle East. Most cultures outside of the Americas call their guardian spirits and symbols by other words rather than “totems”. Neo-Paganism and the New Age have adopted the term “totem” to identify a particular personal or tutelary spirit guide.

Pacific Northwest – North America

The Pacific Northwest, nicknamed “Cascadia,” is home to most of the “Totem culture” found in North America. Many of these are represented in Totem Poles. The belief in totems follows alongside “animism“, the belief that everything has a spirit or soul. Many totems are animals or creatures that represent a tribe, family, or clan.

Totems: Pacific Northwest Tribal Art

Totem Poles
Totem poles feature tribal masks, heads, animals (especially bears, frogs, birds), and supernatural creatures or beings from myths. These often function as representatives, chiefs, or crests of a family or royal lineage. Each is embedded with its own stories, myths, tales, and traditions. On a totem pole, they are read from the bottom to the top.

The North American Northwest and Columbia Plateau Tribes have a distinct style, culture, and belief system. The Artwork of the Native American Pacific Northwest Cultures is phenomenal, embedded with myths, legends, and spirituality that empower their people.

Garden of the Gods

1805 N 30th Street (at Gateway Rd)
* Manitou / Colorado Springs, Colorado * 719.634.6666 * http://www.gardenofgods.com/ * http://www.technogypsie.com/reviews/?p=545 * Originally first published May 9, 2009, by Thomas Baurley

Garden of the Gods is a unique natural geological park that is located in Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs … and is a Registered National Natural Landmark. It’s open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the summer and 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the winter. The park boasts over a million visitors a year or more.

History and Mythology

Where the Great Plains grasslands meet the low-lying pinon-juniper woodlands of the American Southwest at the base of the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains a geological upheaval occurred along the Trans-Rocky Mountain Fault system creating these spectacular features over a million years ago. Horizontal ancient beds of sandstone, limestone, and conglomerates were pushed and tilted vertically when the tectonic plates pushed together. Glaciations, wind, and water erosion shaped the features over hundreds of thousands of years.

This geologic feature was seen as sacred grounds by the original inhabitants of the area, potentially visited and used for spirituality possibly over 3,000 years ago to the present. As early as 1330 B.C.E. evidence of human occupation has been found from petroglyphs, fire rings, pottery, and stone tools have been left behind. The Ute Indians claim that their people always had lived where Garden of the Gods Park now stands and their people were created there and around Manitou.

The Kiowa, Apache, Shoshone, Pawnee, Cheyenne, and Arapaho also claim their peoples visited or lived here. It was known as a pivotal crossroads and meeting place for many indigenous peoples and nomadic tribes gathered together for peace. Rivaling tribes were said to even have laid down their weapons before entering the shadows of the sandstone features.

Two sets of petroglyphs were found here – the first hidden in a crevice on the east side of South Gateway Rock depicting a circular shield-like figure divided into four parts with a rain cloud terrace image, a Thunderbird image, zigzag lines, and an image of wheat or corn and a faint flower-like image with a dozen dots forming a semi-circle over its top which some experts said was done recently in the last 100 years copying Indian designs from a book. The other petroglyph is pecking in the rock discovered in the 1980s and estimated to date to 1500 C.E. most likely a Ute Indian design potentially depicting a deer, a third of a buffalo head, and maybe a stone tool seemingly telling a story.

Alleged Native American legends of the site have been told, their authenticity is unknown. Marion E. Gridley wrote in “Indian Legends of American Scenes” telling a tale about a great flood that covered all the mountains nearby Pikes Peak. As the waters receded, the Great Spirit petrified the carcasses of all animals killed by the flood into sandstone rolling them down into this valley as evidence of the Great Flood.

The second was written by Ford C. Frick saying “… in the nestling ales and on the grassy plains which lie at the foot of the Great White Mountain that points the way to heaven lived the Chosen People. Here they dwelt in happiness together. And above them on the summit of the Mighty Peak where stand the Western Gates of Heaven, dwelt the Manitou. And that the Chosen might know of his love the Manitou did stamp upon the Peak the image of his face that all might see and worship him … but one day as the storm clouds played about the Peak, the image of the Manitou was hid .. and down from the North swept a barbaric tribe of giants, taller than the spruce which grew upon the mountainside and so great that in their stamping strides they shook the earth.

And with the invading host came gruesome beasts – unknown and awful in their mightiness – monstrous beasts that would devour the earth and tread it down … and as the invading hosts came on the Chosen Ones fell to the earth at the first gentle slope of the mountain and prayed to Manitou to aid it. Then came to pass a wondrous miracle, the clouds broke away and sunshine smote the Peak and from the very summit, looking down, appeared the face of Manitou himself. And stern he looked upon the advancing host, and as he looked the giants and beasts turned to stone within their very steps … “

If this site was in Australia or Europe, it would be named castles and fortresses associated with Gods, Deities, Spirits, or Faeries.

Westerners first discovered the features in 1859 by two surveyors who were here to build Old Colorado City. M.S. Beach, one of the surveyors thought it would be a great location for a beer garden. The other surveyor replied to him stating “A Beer Garden? Why this is a fit place for the Gods to assemble. We will call it Garden of the Gods”. General William Jackson Palmer who was known for his contributions to building Colorado Springs convinced his colleague Charles Elliot Perkins to buy the 240 acres embracing the features. In 1909 his children donated the land to the city of Colorado Springs.

The original family that donated the land to the public required that it would always remain free, and that is what it remains today. Garden of the Gods stands as a great park for hiking, walking, bicycling, rock climbing, picnicking, special events, and weddings … The park has it all … protected as 1,387 scenic acres … and presents itself as a unique tourist/information center, with a theater and gift shop near the entrance. Within are 15 miles of trails ranging in various levels of difficulty from beginner to advance for hiking and exercise.

A historical video greets you at the welcome center and tells the tale that began in the 1870s when the railroads carved westward when General William Jackson Palmer founded the city of Colorado Springs and upon discovering this natural beauty, urged his friend Charles Elliott Perkins, the head of Burlington Railroad, to make his home where the park now stands. He lived there until he finished his railway from Chicago to Colorado Springs. His railroad project wasn’t a success and never made its destination in the springs.

His homestead eventually became his summer home in 1879. He purchased 480 acres and never actualized building on it, leaving the land in its natural state and for the public. When he died in 1907, he made arrangements for the land to be a public park, and this was enacted by his children in 1909 forever as the Garden of the Gods “where it shall remain free to the public, where no intoxicating liquors shall be manufactured, sold, or dispensed, where no building or structure shall be erected except those necessary to properly care for, protect, and maintain the area as a public park.” That is exactly what they’ve done …. and it’s a beautiful place to be.
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Photos and Tales to come – coming soon…

Story of the Bridge of the Gods: Geologically this is one of the shortest crossing areas between Oregon and Washington over the Columbia River. It is believed that a thousand years ago there was a massive landslide from the north shore of the Columbia River that slid into the river and blocked the Gorge. It created a natural dam and inland sea that extended between Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.

As river pressures began carving out natural bridges and tunnels under this landslide to outlet into the Pacific, eventually the blockage dam was washed away. Some say it originally carved a large natural stone bridge that the Native Americans believed was created by the Gods. Legend has it this land bridge eventually collapsed back into the Columbia River, destroying the inland sea, and creating the Cascade rapids.

Native American legends tell a tale that the Great Spirit Manito created this bridge so his peoples of the Columbia River could cross the river from bank to bank, and it was so-called the “Giant Crossover”. This Great Spirit assigned the Wise woman Guardian Loo-Wit to watch over it and protect the river, bridge, and peoples of the area. Out of fear and respect for the Great Spirit, the tribes would appeal for protection while crossing the river. It was eventually called the “Bridge of the Gods” translated and nicknamed as such by the white westerners who came through the area.

Manito had sent his sons to earth – the three great mountains: Multnomah the Warrior (Mt. Rainier), Klickitat the totem maker (Mt. Adams), and Wyeast, the singer (Mt. Hood) who all presided over the river and the bridge peacefully for many years until the beautiful Squaw Mountain moved into the valley between Klickitat and Wyeast. She fell in love with Wyeast while still flirting with Klickitat, causing rivalry and jealousy between the two causing the mountains to fight over her. Their arguing, growling, trembling, and feuds caused lava, ash, and earthquakes to form in their path – and each other hurling white hot rocks at each other. This destroyed the forests, environment, and beauty of the valley – and broke the bridge causing it to fall into the river never to be seen again.

Manito was so upset by this, he formed huge rapids in the Columbia River to separate the feuding brothers. Klickitat won Squaw Mountain’s heart and Wyeast admitted defeat, much to the dismay of Squaw who loved him so, and although at the side of Klickitatt with a heavy broken heart, became depressed and fell into a deep permanent sleep and sits today as “Sleeping Beauty” lying just west of Mt. Adams.

Klickitat under such shock from Squaw’s depression, once with a high straight head like Wyeast, fell with grief that he dropped his head in shame and never raised it again. Loo-Wit got caught up in the cross-fire during this battle and fell with the bridge. the Great Spirit rewarded her with a wish, and she asked to be made young and beautiful again – but being old, she did not require companionship so chose a lonely location. She became the most beautiful of all mountains and made her home far west as the beautiful and powerful Mount Saint Helens.

Pluto’s Cave
* Shasta, California * Article by Leaf McGowan, Technogypsie Productions © 2014: Written March 31, 2014.

During our fabled quest for Telos, we decided to head off in search of Pluto’s Cave. In the heart of the high desert just 12 1/2 miles north of Weed, California. “Pluto’s Cave” is not really a cavern, but a lava tube dating to over 190,000 B.P. (before present) from early eruptions of Mount Shasta. It is located on the northern outskirts of Mount Shasta in the high desert. Segments of the tube are collapsed, while other portions are buried. There are about three segments one can access reliably. Unfortunately the entrances and walls within many sections of the early part of this lava tube has been vandalized with graffiti from locals partying at the location. Some of the graffiti is historic dating to the early 20th century. The cave floor is very dusty and too much activity will cause a cloud burst of fine powder that will take a bit to settle. The tube has a strong stench of bat guano. The early part of the tube has some flat level walking areas, but the deeper you go the more shambling and climbing you’ll need. Bring water, good hiking boots, long pants (I wore shorts and had received a bit of scrapes), and make sure you have a good head torch and several reliable back up lights. It is recorded that visitors can safely hike into the cave approximately 1200 feet. The tube varies from 20-50 feet in height at points. There is evidence that the cave was used by Pre-Columbian peoples. The tube was discovered by Westerners in 1863 by Nelson Cash, a local rancher looking for stray cattle that he believed wandered into these fields. He named the cave “Pluto’s Cave” after the Greek God of the Underworld. Pluto’s Cave is often described as a “classic lava tube” as it was a tunnel formed by molten lava passing through tubes in older, hardened lava. It was discovered because sections of the roof collapsed exposing the inner chamber. This desert contains numerous lava tubes and caves in the region. It is believed that there are over 778 caves and tunnels in nearby Lava Beds National Park, and over 150 documented caves in the Marble Mountain Wilderness that Mount Shasta is part of. Many of these have not been explored.

Local mythology: Pluto’s cave is not without its share of mythos. Some believe it is an entrance to the ancient Lemurian city of Telos – whether they be races of aliens, faeries, or other people. No scientific evidence supports these claims and is therefore classified as local legends, lore, and superstitions. In the 2008 edition of Fate Magazine, an article tells the story of “The Shaver Mystery” – depicting bizarre accounts of his abduction by subterranean beings known as “Deros” made into a low-budget movie called “Beyond Lemuria” by a California based Church of Hermetic Scientists that was filmed in Pluto’s Cave. The film’s plot encompasses a sinister Draconian Society that has secretly funded the development of a Intragravatron device and plans to open the vortex at an inter-dimensional convergence point deep in the lava caves on the northern slopes of Mt. Shasta. This was based on a original story of a 17 year old boy named Frederick Spenser Oliver who in the early 20th century published a telling of his channeled story of Phylos in his book “A Dweller on Two Planets” which eventually became an occult classic tale. Some believe it was this book that has triggered many of the myths of the area about Phylos, Telos, and the Lemurians. In 2011 there was a recording of a local boy disappearing. This tale is full of childhood imagination, aliens, and abduction theories. [see details here: http://www.messagetoeagle.com/oddunexdismtshasta_p2.php#.Uzw5ACjDU2c ] That same year, a tourist from Los Angeles claimed to have heard a beautiful woman’s voice coming from the direction of Mount Shasta as he was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. He followed the voice, became lost, and found his way to Pluto’s cave where he claims to have been abducted, stripped of his clothing, greeting by a beautiful tall woman with unnatural blue eyes, and given a gift as well as secret information. After being lost for several weeks, he was found and he claimed to be “Lord Kalki” – the incarnation of a messianic Hindu god. Legends of a spectral lady appear to haunt the caverns, appearing as a spiritual guide, alien, a Lemurian, or Faerie queen. Online articles also claim there is a Native American legend of a red-headed female who used to live in caverns beneath Mount Shasta, some believe was at Pluto Cave. Some claim this lava tube as well as other tubes, caves, and tunnels in the region interconnect southern Oregon, Mount Shasta, and the upper coasts of California. Some writers online claim that Native American tribes admit to these locations and entrances, but that they are a closely guarded secret never shared with the outside world. Others believe the St. Germain foundation secretly guard the entrance of a lava tube above Mossbrae Falls in Dunsmuir, south of Mount Shasta. It is believed that this Mossbrae Falls tube is the secret entrance to Telos, not Pluto’s Cave. While meditating in the darkness at the end of the tunnel, in the pitch black silence there was a split second I thought I heard a moan, though that could have been my comrade’s stomach. There was another un-determined noise we both heard during our meditation. Other than that, light scratchings of the bats above on the lava rocks was all that permeated the silence.

How to get there: Drive approximately 12.5 miles north on Highway 97 from Weed to A12 (the Grenada turnoff), turn left, go past the “Juniper Valley OHV area” signs approximately 3.25 miles to a small sign post saying “Pluto’s Cave”, turn on that dirt road follow to parking lot at hiking trail head. Hike 1/4 mile down the trailhead, following the red lava rocks outlining the trail to a small white arrow sign pointing down into Pluto’s Cave.

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Goibnui, the Smith of the Tuatha Dé Danann

Other names:
Govannon (Welsh), Gofannon (Welsh), and Gobannos (Gaulish), Goibniu, Goibhnet, Goibhniu.

Counterparts:
There is suggestions that Goibnui, the Smith of the Tuatha Dé Danann, was replaced by Saint Ghobnatan. The site of Tobar Ghobnatan had archaeological evidence of a hut and artifacts such as iron slag, a crucible, and metalworking tools leading experts to believe that the site was used for iron works before its Christian occupation. This may have been the metalworking site of Goibnui. This also led to St. Gobnait to being a Patron Saint of Iron Workers. Both names have similar roots. Monastic site where St. Gobnait’s house, well, church, and grave resides has suggestive evidence that it had formerly been a Pagan Shrine with fairy wells. Gofannon (Welsh) and Gobannos (Gaulish). He lived on in Irish myth as Goban Saor, the craftsman who built the two round towers.

Deity / King / Lord of:
Irish/Celtic God of Smiths, Faerie lord of Metal craft. Son of Goddess Danu. Brew master of Immortality elixirs.

Qualities:
iron working, smelting, metal working, brew master, beer.

Description:
Goibniu is the Irish God of Smiths and was a son to the Goddess Danu. He was the official Smith to the Tuatha de Danann. He is found in company often with Luichtne the carpenter, Creidne the wright, and Diane Cecht the leech. His parents are unknown, but believed to be the hypothetical son of Danu, brother to Dagda and Dian Cecht. Others claim his family to be Tuirbe Trágmar (father), Net (grandfather), Balor Elatha (half-brothers), and Dagda (Nephew). He continued on in Irish folklore as Goban Saor, the legendary craftsman who built the round towers.

History:
He was believed to be killed alongside Dian Cecht by a painful plague that struck Ireland.

Folklore/Mythology:
He was believed to be able to smith swords that would always strike true. He was in possession of the Mead of Eternal Life. He, Credne, and Luchtainel were believed to be the creators of the magical weapons used by the Tuatha de Danann in battle. He and his brothers Creidhne and Luchtaine were known as the Trí Dée Dána, the three Gods of art, who forged the weapons which the Tuatha Dé used to battle the Fomorians. He was believed to be a creator of beer that would make its drinker immortal. He was a master brewer for the Tuatha de Danann. His feast would protect the Tuatha de Danann from sickness and old age.

Archaeology/History:
Referred in the Book of Invasions as “Goibniu who was not impotent in smelting, Luichtne, the free wright Creidne, Dian Cecht, for going roads of great healing, Mac ind Oc, Lug son of Ethliu.” Another text referring to him was the St. Gall codex referencing him in a charm during the “Second Battle of Magh Turedh” calling upon him in a spell to remove a thorn “very sharp is Goibniu’s science, let Goibniu’s goad go out before Goibniu’s goad!” During the Second Battle, Ruadan (son of Bres and Brighid) was sent to kill him. As the Fomorians felt he’d make a good spy, he was asked for parts of a spear from Goibniu assembled by a woman called Fron. Ruadan threw the spear at Gobniu wounding him. The spear was pulled out and he was keened by Brigid inventing the practice of keening and giving it to humankind. Keening is the high-pitched wailing for the dead often referenced to the Banshee (beansidhe). He went to the Well of Slaine, watched over by his family and healed by its magic waters, returned to battle, making more weapons for the Tuatha de Danann, and won Ireland from the Fomorians. His weapons always made their mark and wounds inflicted by them were always fatal. His ale made the Tuatha de Danann invulnerable. the Lebor Gabála Érenn describes him as as ‘not impotent in smelting’.

Monuments and Artifacts:
The site Moytura in County Sligo is supposed to be associated with him as is the Moytura site in County Roscommon.

Bibliography/Recommended Readings:

• R.A.S. Macalister 1941 “Lebor Gabála Érenn: Book of the Taking of Ireland” Part 1-5. Dublin: Irish Texts Society.
• Gray, Elizabeth A. 1982 “Cath Maige Tuired: The Second Battle of Mag Tuired”. Dublin: Irish Texts Society. URL: http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T300010/index.html
• MacCulloch, J.A. 1911 “Religion of the Ancient Celts.” Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark.

Could St. Gobnata be a modernized version of Goibniu?
Statue at Tobar Ghobnatan

Gargoyle (Rated R: 2004. 84 minutes – Action / Fantasy / Horror. Russian produced.)

Director: Jim Wynorski. Starring: Michael Paré as Ty “Griff” Griffin; Sandra Hess as Jennifer Wells; Fintan McKeown as Father Nikolai Soren; Kate Orsini as Dr. Christina Durant; Tim Abell as Lex; William Langlois as Inspector Zev Aslan; Petri Roega as Father Adrian Bodesti; Rene Rivera as Gogol; and more.

Storyline tackles an age-old tale about a Christian priest killing off one of the world’s last gargoyles whose body falls down a hole into the earth that they seal with “the blood of Christ”. Jump to modern day where a CIA agent is sent to Bucharest with his partner to investigate numerous kidnappings and while trying to bust the thiefs, an earthquake releases a gargoyle from inner earth out to wreak havoc around the city. This gargoyle, ready to breed and multiply is also out for vengeance, and tracking down the only crossbow known to kill him. Effects are plain and definitely poorly done CGI. Plot has value, flow had errors, and after trying to watch this over 2 late nights, I fell asleep midway twice. Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5.

Shannon Pot and the search for the Salmon of Knowledge

I was becoming intrigued by the Celtic tales of magical fish living in holy wells. My experience at the Pigeon Hole near Cong, on the border between County Galway and County Mayo in Ireland had only served to increase my fascination. There I had meditated and when I opened my eyes had actually seen the magic trout swimming in the water before me (see The Pigeon Hole and the Magic Trout )

My investigations led me deeper and deeper in Celtic mythology until inevitably I came across the most famous of all Celtic fish legends, the tale of the Salmon of Knowledge, said to live in a pool overhung by nine hazel trees who’s nuts carried the source of all wisdom and poetry.

The stories start in mythological times when the fairy folk ruled Ireland, the Tuatha De Danann:

“And they had a well below the sea where the nine hazels of wisdom were growing; that is, the hazels of inspiration and of the knowledge of poetry. And their leaves and their blossoms would break out in the same hour, and would fall on the well in a shower that raised a purple wave. And then the five salmon that were waiting there would eat the nuts, and their colour would come out in the red spots of their skin, and any person that would eat one of those salmon would know all wisdom and all poetry. And there were seven streams of wisdom that sprang from that well and turned back to it again; and the people of many arts have all drank from that well.”

Australian National Museum, Canberra, ACT, Australia

The Dreaming and “Dreamtime”

As I take a career and life journey’s “Walkabout” around Australia and Europe during the Summer of 2011, during my visit to the Australian National Museum I really for the very first time embrace the concept of the Australian Aborigine “Dreaming” and “Dreamtime” that I was first introduced to during my Anthropology of Religion class I took during my college years at Florida State University. Nevermore did the concept “sink” and “settle” in me more than at this time of my life that I could truly say in a “Stranger in a Strange Land’s” true essence of “grokking” the concept fully and spiritually. “The Dreaming” tells of the journey and actions of the Ancestral Beings when they were creating the natural world. An animistic narrative telling of a “timeless time” of formative creation and perpetual creating. This took place during a mythological era called “Dreamtime”. This is a sacred era when the ancestral Totemic Spirit Beings formed “The Creation”. The philosophy is infinite and demonstrates how the past and present is linked together to prophesize the future. The concept of “Dreaming” is often used to refer to a person’s or group’s set of beliefs and spirituality. The Australian Aborigine might refer to “Shark Dreaming”, “Kangaroo Dreaming”, or “Eucalypus Dreaming” and this would refer to particular natural items or life forms in their resident area or country, laying down patterns of life from which to follow. This creates their mythos, their creation stories, and their folklore as to why certain things have come to be. They believe that every person exists eternally in the Dreaming and represents both the spirit that existed before physical life began and is the spirit that exists after death as a “Spirit Being” or “Spirit Child”. The Spirit Being can only exist physically by being born from a mother, entering the fetus during the fifth month of pregnancy. Upon birth, that child is to become a special custodian of the land and country to which s/he was born, required to learn the stories, lore, and songlines of that particular place. Our natural world, especially that which is within one’s cultural heritage, race, and species, is what provides the link between the people and “The Dreaming”. The Act of Dreaming and the stories that are within them carry the truth from the past, blended together with the code for the Law, to operate and facilitate the present. Every story within “The Dreaming” weaved as creation through the “Milky Way” is a complete long complex tale, many of which discuss consequences and our future being. During the Dreamtime, the Australian Aborigines believed that the creators were both men and women who took on spiritual forms. These “cultural heroes and heroines” sometimes defined as spirits, other times as “God/desses”, would travel across a formless land, create sacred sites and significant places of interest during their travels weaving story and songlines that would guide the spirit beings they birthed in Creation. They joined together with various spirits to create the land, the waterways, the geographical features of the land, the skies, the seas, the plants, the animals, the stones, and all the other wo/men that exist. Every event that takes place would leave a record in the land. To the Dharawal, “Biami” the Great Spirit, went up into the skies to watch over their people and to make sure they obeyed his rules. Spirits habitating in waterholes, caves, and other spirit places to watch over or affect those people that lived near them. This was one of the reasons that another tribe would not conquer tribal lands for doing so would place them in a land full of strange and potentially hostile spirits. The Australian Aborigines believed in both good and evil spirits they called “Goonges”. Children would be warned not to go to certain areas for the “goonge will get them”. Same for the oceans, for they too contained spirits underneath the waters and explained deaths at sea, getting caught in a rip current, or attacks by various sea creatures. The Creators, or the Ancestral Spirits, were shape-changers who were half-human, both male and female, who used the powers, great wisdom, and intentions to create all of being. They lived and retired in the sky clouds. The Aborigine believed that every living creature were created by the Creators as “spirit-children” and/or “spirit animals” during the Dreamtime and were assigned to live in particular spirit places. They believed that their own birth was the result of a spirit child entering into the mother’s body and was brought into being during conception by the specific actions or designs of the creators to make spirit children in the Dreamtime. They also believed that after death their spirit would return to the spirit-place to await rebirth. It was in Dreamtime that the Creators and ancestral spirits created the world which we all live. The Australian aborigines embrace all of life and the phenemena that affects if as part of the vast and complex system of relationships that go back to the original acnestral Totemic Spirits of the Dreaming. The Dreaming establishes a culture’s and regional country’s laws, taboos, structures, and history in order to ensure the continuity of life and land in that area. Breaking these cause destruction to the areas that one’s spirit is meant to guard or caretake.

Australian National Museum, Canberra, ACT, Australia

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