MYTH-701 Lessons

The Mythology classroom is, in comparison to usual, stuffed to bursting today. Not only is Professor Wessex seated in the chair behind the desk, but a dark, lanky man is leaning on the windowsill propped up on his elbows, clearly lost in the sweeping views of the sunny Hogwarts countryside and the warm, hazy air wafting into the room. Last, but never least, is Professor Morgan, who is almost more of a shock to see than the stranger, though she greets all the students warmly, as though it’s only been a day, not a year, since they’ve last spoken. 

Introduction
Good afternoon, Seventh Years! You didn’t think I would miss a chance to see you all before your N.E.W.T.s, did you? Well, it may also have a bit to do with our very exciting guest and topic today, but I assure you, you are the main reason I am here! Today we will have a brief chance to see the study of mythology at work. Yes, while studying mythology for the sake of knowledge itself is very rewarding, there are also practical outlets for all the information you’ve acquired and concrete reasons as to why it is important to pass it on! We will be looking at a few instances where mythology has uncovered or verified historical theories, helped solidify linguistic markers, or provided context for strange uncovered artifacts. Of course, this is not a one-way street; these fields also help inform us about the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of myths we hear. It’s all one interconnected web! I will turn it over to Professor Wessex for now, but you’ll see we all have a story to tell about our encounters with mythology. 

Phoenician Potions
Depending on your enrollment in Ancient Runes, you may or may not be surprised about my topic to contribute today: the Phoenicians. In my time studying their ruins, runes, and ancient culture, I uncovered the heretofore unknown magical meanings of the Phoenician script. However, there was a reason it had not been investigated previously. As the script was known to be non-magical, there was little to imply that it ought to be investigated further, other than a single myth. This myth, while incomplete, surrounds the second Ugaritan king, tells of his rise and fall, and also hints at more.

“In the second year of chaos, following the death of Niqmaddu, there was Yaqarum, a kingly sort. While enemies from other lands beset Ugarit and took its people captive, Yaqarum rose up with the blessing of Enki. He beseeched the invader king and sought to free the people of Ugarit. The foreigner was proud and cunning; he knew Yaqarum was beloved by the people and could cause revolt, but also thought to use the young man to his advantage. He set before Yaqarum ten-and-two tasks. Upon completing them, he would be worthy to face the king in combat to decide who was to rule. 

Yaqarum’s first task was to heal the unworthy king’s daughter, who had been beset by a devil to rebuke her father’s unjust rule. All of the king’s wisest sages could not heal her, and she was expected to die. Knowing some of the exorcist’s art, he enquired to examine the girl, and speaking over her with his rod, he dispelled the Dark curse that had befallen her. She rose to her feet and kissed the hem of his robes, and the evil king was of mixed countenance.

The king was confident that Yaqarum would fall, eventually, which bolstered him. He did hope, however, that the beardless one would solve more of his problems first. In these times, the roads between Ugarit and Ebla were beset with a beast as cruel as the invaders’ blades. The great serpent-eel was known to block the roads with his massiveness and could not be defeated. All who fell under his gaze perished, and steel was of no use. 

However, Yaqarum was wise and lettered. He used with his might the knowledge of the secret things and made a mark on balls of lead, which made them explode. He threw these at the beast, called Baalamut, and the great serpent swallowed one down into its gullet, killing it instantly.”

[The story breaks off here, and the rest of the tasks are unknown.]

What we do know is the end of the story, which states that Yaqarum bests the conqueror king in single combat, and with the allies he has made and the help of his people, he drives the foreign forces out of Ugarit. 

There are numerous notes of magic here, but these appear in many myths. The important part is to be well-versed in these mythical symbols to parse fact from fiction. The first magical clue to the mythologically-inclined is the mention of Enki. While nearly all things are ascribed to a god during these times, this was none other than the god of magic, who eventually became Ea, who students of this course will recognize. Next, there is the mention of the exorcist and the woman plagued by devils. The fact that Yaqarum was able to wave a rod over the woman, speaking words in order to cure her implies magic use, which was already heavily associated with the exorcists of this time and region. Finally, there is the mention of Baalamut. While the name does little to call attention to itself, the description of the beast will sound familiar to students of mythology. This “eel” like creature is familiar to other likely magical creatures, and though difficult to pin down, might ring a few bells. 

All of these tell-tale signs, obvious to the mythologist, serve to highlight the fact most important to my work: the mention of the secret marks which made the leaded balls explode, ultimately rupturing the beast from inside. We know now that this referred to the magical abilities that lay within the symbols of Phoenician, but this was the place where the suspicion of their powers was born. From here, Professor Morgan and Uprofesa Dimka can handle the rest.

Links in the Chain
Next, I suppose it is my turn to show how mythology can have impactful significance on real life exploits. This time, our discussion is about history! We’ve gone over numerous examples of mythology explaining or reinforcing history, but I can certainly treat you to another, while not a magihistorian myself.

The tale we are examining today is about the necklace of Harmonia. In the time of the gods, the god of smithing, Hephaestus discovered that his wife Aphrodite had been unfaithful to him, consorting with Ares and bearing a daughter called Harmonia. To enact his revenge, he sought out the woman and presented her with a necklace, forged by his own hands. Upon it he had laid many enchantments. First, the necklace would bestow eternal youth and beauty upon the wearer. However, the cost was great, as it also secretly cursed.  

Through the necklace’s curse, both Harmonia and her husband were turned into snakes, just like the pair of snakes that intertwined to form the necklace’s clasp. Despite its reputation, the lure of beauty and youth was too much, and Harmonia’s daughter Semele both retained and wore the necklace herself. This time, the necklace was used to allow doubt to creep into her mind, causing her to bring about her own demise. She began to doubt Zeus’ love for her and forced him to show the full extent of his godly power, which mortals could not survive seeing.

The next famous account is that of Queen Jocasta, which led to her marriage to her own son and the end of both their lives. After (and before) this, there are dozens more accounts of the necklace and its owners, all who meet a grisly end, often due to madness in themselves or others nearby. It’s last known location was in the possession of a powerful woman who was the lover of a Greek general. According to the myth, while she remained sane, her son succumbed to the madness and burnt down her home with her in it, which served as a tomb for both her and, finally, for the necklace. 

When a golden, serpent-adorned necklace fitting the description of the story turned up in an excavation at Parnassus, eyebrows were raised. These metaphorical eyebrows were only raised further when spells of both longevity and beauty were discovered on it. Skeletal remains and other personal effects were found in the same location, identifying the deceased as a Grecian witch. The finds further identified that a young man, roughly of an age to be her son, had also lived at the residence. The woman’s body was dated back to the time of the myth -- towards the end of the Third Sacred War in the mid 300s B.C.E. -- and with this, a myth that had seemed quite far-fetched became history, or our best source of it, in any case. It has been speculated that the necklace only causes madness in Muggles due to their inability to handle its magical properties, which would explain some wearers’ immunity to the “curse.”  

Without this myth, we would not know this history of the piece, which now adorns a pedestal in the British Museum of Magic. Similar situations have unfolded just as this one, and have served to confirm, deny, or at least shed some light on historical events. Without our knowledge of these stories, much would be lost! But let’s not beat that flying horse too much; I’ll pass the rest of the lesson over to Uprofesra Dimka, who instructs his pupils in the study of Ancient Artifacts at Uagadou, but was kind enough to grace us with a brief visit!

One Final Point
Hello, children, and thank you for that introduction, both of you. I am here today to speak to you about the benefits of mythology on magiarchaeology. As Professor Morgan’s story illustrates, myths often overlap in some way with artifacts and magiarchaeological finds. One such example which confirmed one of my own theories occurred only a few decades ago. But first, let me tell you the story.

Shaka Zulu was a king and leader about whom many tales were written, though we only have time for one today. He took power in the early 1800s and united many peoples from different tribes in the area, training them and improving both their tactics and their warfare, as well as their weaponry. The stories say that Shaka Zulu was a powerful and cunning wizard, and therefore utilized magic in all facets of war that he could, most notably in the spear, the weapon that had served the Zulu people as far back as memory stretched. However, Shaka Zulu thought the spear could be improved. With his knowledge of war and magic, he adapted the weapon to better suit the highest-ranking warriors. He created the assegai, a long spear excellent for throwing. For the most highly-regarded warriors of these elite, it is said that he equipped them with enchanted assegai that could only fly true and would always hit its target. It was with these spears and Shaka Zulu’s guidance that allowed a force of Zulu tribesmen armed only with assegai nto triumph against British forces with advanced guns, thus halting (for a time) the British invasion in their area in 1879.

While it may seem strange to hear a story from as late as the 1800s be referred to as a myth, it must be pointed out that very little is known about this period of time among the Zulu, and indeed the earlier portions of Shaka Zulu’s life have as many variants and stories as there are leaves on a tree. Therefore, while the existence of spears (and assegai in particular) was never debated, the accuracy of the stories of these enchanted spears was in doubt. In 1976, a team in KwaZulu-Natal discovered a bundle of enchanted spears whose enchantments were unknown. Standard spells of the time and area, such as those to sharpen the points, those to make the wood of the spear unbreakable, and even enchantments to absorb the blood spilled with these weapons, were all tested for, but returned no results. Upon my recommendation, based on the stories of Shaka Zulu, a spear was hurled by a number of wizards (of decreasing levels of coordination) and each time, these persons hit their mark, despite large odds and distances. The rest of Shaka Zulu’s story remains difficult to prove, but it seems there was a basis for this part, at least. 

Riding off Into the Sunset
As you can see, myths, and what you have learned in mythology, can serve you well on a number of paths that you may follow after Hogwarts. Never discount a story you have heard or judge books by their cover, and there may be more for you to discover. 

Between you and your goals -- whatever they may be -- there are only the N.E.W.T.s standing in your way. The Mythology N.E.W.T., your first standardized exam in this class, will certainly take the full measure of you and what you have taken from this course. I hope you have been readying yourselves. If not, you have a few short days with which to panic or prepare. Before you do, though, for old time’s sake, Professor Wessex and I have one assignment for you each. We wish you the best of luck with them, with N.E.W.T.s, and with life beyond these hallowed walls. Go out and make your own stories. 

Original lesson written by Professor Venita Wessex
Image credits here, here, here, and here