The Poem:
Jabberwocky: "Beware the Jabberwock, my
son!
He took his vorpal sword
in hand:
And, as in uffish thought
he stood,
"And, has thou slain the
Jabberwock?
'Twas brillig, and the slithy
toves
--Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)
J
Jabberwocky
- A dragon like creature in a short poem by the author of 'Through the
Looking Glass', Lewis Caroll. The Jabberwocky also appeared in 'Through
the Looking Glass' as well as in a live action version of Alice in Wonderland.
Jormunand
- In
Norse Mythology Jormunand was the serpent that dwelled in the sea,and had
the whole world in it's coils. It was to rise against the gods at Ragnarok
('The twilight of the gods) in an attempt to distroy all of midgard. Thor
would battle Jormunand and the two would destroy each other.
`Twas brillig, and the slithy
toves
Did gyre and
gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome
raths outgrabe.
The jaws that bite,
the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird,
and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"
Long time the manxome
foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum
tree,
And stood awhile
in thought.
The Jabberwock, with
eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the
tulgey wood,
And burbled as it
came!One, two! One, two! And
through and through
The vorpal blade
went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with
its head
He went galumphing
back.
Come to my arms,
my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh!
Callay!'
He chortled in his
joy.
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were
the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe."
It
was also called the Midgard Serpent. [See Midgard Serpent]
K
Kalseru- The northwestern Australian rainbow serpent of fertility and rain.
Kiyo- A beautiful waitress from Japanese legend with whom a priest fell in love with. She too fell in love with him. But soon he overcome his passions and refused to meet with her anymore. Kiyo, seeking revenge, went to the temple of Kompera to learn the art of magic. Soon she had studied enough to turn herself into a dragon and then flew to the priest's monastery. Seeing her coming, he hid under the temple bell and iwth a great fire blast the dragon melted the bell, killing the priest.
The Kraken - In Norwegian sea folklore, the Kraken is an enormous sea monster which would sometimes attack ships and feed upon the sailors. It is part octopus and part crab, although others refer to it as a giant squid.
This
monster was slain by the hero Perseus after he rescued Andromedia from
the Kraken.
[See
also: Andromedia; Sea Serpent.]
Ladon - In Greek Mythology Ladon is the hundred-headed dragon who guards the garden of the Hesperides and in it the tree with the golden apples.
The Laidly Worm -
Leviathan- In the bible, this serpent like creature is mentioned many times. It is said to be a chaotic creature of some sort living in the sea.
"This great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts. There go the ships: there is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein."Later it was said to be some sort of whale or dolphin, but then it was associated with evil because of it's apparent serpentine appearance, and as we all know, the serpent was a symbol of evil.
-- Ps. civ, 25-26
A fascinating description of this creature is found in Job 41, it seems to be describing a great dragon:
Can you pull in the leviathan with a fishhook or tie down his tongue with a rope?Leviathan also appears in Canaanite mythology and literature as a monster called Lotan, described as 'the fleeing serpent, the coiling serpent, the powerful with the seven heads'.
Can you put a cord through his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook?
Any hope of subduing him is false; the mere sight of him is overpowering.
Who can strip off his outer coat? Who would approach him with a bridle?
His back has rows of shields tightly sealed together;
each is so close to the next that no air can pass between.
When he rises up, the mighty are terrified; they retreat before his thrashing.
Iron he treats like straw and bronze like rotten wood.
His undersides are jagged potsherds, leaving a trail in the mud like a threshing sledge.
He makes the depths churn like a boiling caldron and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment.
Behind him he leaves a glistening wake; one would think the deep had white hair.His snorting throws out flashes of light; his eyes are like the rays of dawn.
Firebrands stream from his mouth; sparks of fire shoot out.
Smoke pours from his nostrils as from a boiling pot over a fire of reeds.
His breath set coals ablaze, and flames dart from his mouth.
Leviathan is also the God of evil in the Ugaritic religion. [See also Sea Dragon; Sea Serpent]
Lindworm -
Lung - one of the Ssu Lang (four spiritual creatures of Chinese myth) a dragon in chinese mythology is known as a 'Long' of which there are 5 types known.
Lung - Wang - The Chinese Dragon Kings, mythical figures from Taoism. They are ruled by Yuan-shi tian-zong to whom they submit their reports once a year. They have jurisdiction over funerals and rain. If mistakes or omissions occur during funeral ceremonies, which might result in misfortune for the descendants, the dragon kings are implored for help. Also during droughts they are invoked to produce rain. There are various categories of long-wang. There are the celestial dragon kings, the dragon kings of the four oceans (who live in magnificent palaces at the bottom of the sea), and the dragon kings of the five cardinal points.
Lotan
- A monstrous primeval serpent In Syro-Palestinian myth. Also known
in Hebrew as Leviathan [See Leviathan; Sea Serpent]
M
Midgard Serpent -
