The phoenix (Latin: phoenīx; Greek: φοῖνῐξ phoînix) is a divine and sacred form of the firebird in several Western myths such as Greek, Egyptian and other related myths. or affected.
It is said that the phoenix can live up to 500 or 1,400 years (depending on the source), it is a bird with beautiful yellow and red plumage. When it was about to die, the phoenix built it a nest out of cinnamon sticks and then set itself on fire; Both the nest and the bird burned so fiercely that only a handful of ashes remained, from which a new phoenix was born. The new phoenix lived as long as the old phoenix. However, in some legends this is not the case. The new phoenix marinated the old phoenix's ashes in an egg made of myrrh and brought it to the ancient Egyptian city of Heliopolis ("city of the sun" in Greek). The Phoenix is also said to respawn after being injured, so it is virtually immortal and cannot be defeated; The phoenix rising from the ashes is an impressive image in Western culture. It is also said that the tears of the phoenix can heal wounds.
Although its descriptions and lifespans vary, the phoenix became common in early Christian art and literature as well as in Christian symbolism, as a symbol of god. Jesus Christ, and in addition, it symbolizes the death, resurrection, and immortality of Jesus.
Originally, the phoenix was identified by the Egyptians as a stork or heron-like bird, called a bennu, known from the Book of the Dead and other ancient Egyptian texts as one of the divine symbols. worshiped at Heliopolis, associated with the rising of the Sun as well as with the Sun god in Egyptian mythology, Ra.
The Greeks may have adapted the Egyptian phoenix (bennu) (also taking its other Egyptian meaning, date tree) and identified it with their own phoenix φοινιξ φοινιξ (phoenix), meaning burgundy or dark red. They and later the Romans described this bird as more like a peacock or an eagle. According to Greek mythology, the phoenix lived in Arabia next to a well. At dawn, it bathed in the water of this well, and the sun god Apollo stopped his chariot (that is, the Sun) to hear its song.
Another source of inspiration believed to be the origin of the Egyptian phoenix is the flamingo of East Africa. This bird nests on salty sandy beaches, where it is too hot for its eggs or chicks to survive; it builds mounds a few dozen centimeters high and large enough to raise its eggs, and then lays eggs at the edge of this cooler area. The convection air currents around these small mounds are similar to the turbulence of a flame.
The total solar eclipse is also considered an inspiration to construct images of the mythical phoenix as well as of a variety of other mythical birds that are always associated with the Sun. In some total solar eclipses, the solar eclipse takes on a bird-like form, almost inspiring the winged sun symbols of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.
📚 Explore more of the Mystical Creatures series here: Dive into the Enchanted Realms of Mythology
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