Nor shall this peace sleep with her; but as when
The bird of wonder dies, the maiden Phoenix,
Her ashes new create another heir
As great in admiration as herself,
So shall he leave her blessedness to one
(When heaven shall call her from this could of
darkness)
Who from the sacred ashes of her honor
Shall starlike rise, as great in fame as she was
And so stand fixed…
—Shakespeare, Henry
VIII (5.5.39-47)
Cover of Green Egg #81 by OZ
The legend of the Phoenix has given rise to one of
the most powerful and empowering metaphors in all of human history—that of miraculous
resurrection, or rebirth, following total destruction. The phrase “rising from
the ashes” is applied to everything from the rebuilding of cities that have
been leveled by war or natural calamities to personal recovery from a devastating
tragedy or illness. Even sports teams that achieve victory after a season of
defeats are said to rise from the ashes. In
Medieval times, the Phoenix was adopted by Christians as a symbol of the resurrection
and immortality of the soul, and the eternal life-after-death of Jesus Christ.
Fig.
1. The Phoenix crest
of the University
of Chicago.
The Phoenix was a heraldic badge of Queen Elizabeth I
(1533-1603). It appears also on the city flags and seals of the American cities
of Atlanta, Georgia (torched in the Civil War), Lawrence, Kansas (burnt by
Confederate raiders), San Francisco (destroyed by earthquake and fire in 1906),
and Portland, Maine (destroyed four times by fire), to symbolize the cities’
rebirths from the ashes. It is also the seal of Phoenix, Arizona, the 5th largest city in the US that sits atop the ruins of the former Hohokam city.
Fig.
2. Flag of Phoenix, Arizona.
The Phoenix was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a
foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible—an appropriate symbol of fire
and divinity. In a Greek version of the myth, the Phoenix lived in Arabia next to a
well. At dawn, she bathed in the water of the well, and the Greek sun-god
Apollo stopped his chariot (the sun) in order to listen to her song.15
Fig. 3. The Phoenix
emblem attached to the eight trams built in Brisbane, Australia,
from material salvaged from trams destroyed in the Paddington tram depot fire.
In Alchemical symbolism, the Phoenix corresponds to the color red, regeneration of
universal life, and the successful completion of a process. According to the Stoics, the Universe itself is perpetually
born in fire, dies in fire, and is reborn in an eternal cycle. The Phoenix is but a microcosmic reflection of this
cosmology.
The name Phoenix (often spelled Fenix
in Medieval bestiaries) means “purple or crimson one,” from Greek, Phoeniceus, “reddish-purple.” In various
depictions, she looks like a flame-colored synthesis of an eagle, a peacock,
and a pheasant. Her legend was spread by the ancient Phoenician traders (taking
their name from the distinctive “royal purple” dye which they derived from the
purple murex snails: Murex brandaris and Murex trunculus), who
sailed throughout the world for centuries before their defeat by the Romans
during the Punic Wars, with the coup de
grace delivered by Julius Caesar in 50 bce.
Fig. 4. Murex trunculus—source of Tyrian Purple dye.
The earliest known mention of the
Phoenix is by the Greek poet Hesiod (8th century bce), who implies that the Phoenix is already very
well-known, and that it lives for a very long time.13 Ionian historian Hecataeus of Miletus (6th-5th
century bce) also described the fabled bird, but unfortunately,
only fragments survive of his Periegesis
(“A Journey Round the World”). The most detailed early account comes from the
Greek historian Herodotus (484–425 bce), who claimed to have received it from Egyptian
priests in Heliopolis. In the second book of his History, he notes that he did not see the bird himself, and is
skeptical of the story. He says: “Its
size and appearance, if it is like the pictures, are as follows: The plumage is
partly red, partly golden, while the general make and size are almost exactly
like that of the eagle.” 8
In his Natural
History, Pliny the Elder (23 bce -79 ce)
says the Phoenix “is as big as an eagle,
and has a gleam of gold around its neck and all the rest of it is purple, but
the tail which is blue picked out with rose-colored feathers and the throat
picked out with tufts, and a feathered crest adorning its head.” 8
Fig. 5. Classic Phoenix
According to the legend, the Phoenix
(of which there is only ever one) comes from Ethiopia, where every 500 years,
at the end of her life-cycle, she lays a single egg in a nest she builds of
cinnamon and frankincense atop the tallest Date Palm tree (Phoenix
dactylifera). Then she sits upon the egg and sings a song of indescribable
beauty at the dawn of the day. As the burning rays of the rising sun heat the volatile
nest, she fans it with her wings until it bursts into flame, consuming her in
self-immolation. Nine days later, when the egg, warmed by the still-glowing embers,
hatches, she is reborn amid the ashes. Manius
Manilius (Roman Consul 149 bce) dispensed with the egg altogether, avowing that the reincarnated
bird miraculously coalesces out of the ashes, appearing at first like a little caterpillar
or worm which then metamorphoses into an adult bird.13
When she attains her full plumage,
the resurrected Phoenix gathers up the ashen remains of her parent and former
incarnation, plasters them into a hollowed-out ball of myrrh, and wraps the
whole into an egg-shaped bundle tightly bound in aromatic leaves. She flies
with this packet to Egypt, followed at a respectful distance by a contingent of
other birds. There she deposits it on the altar of Ra, the sun god, in his
temple at Heliopolis (“City of the Sun”). This event was celebrated in Egypt with major festivities, and heralded as the beginning
of a new era.
Like the Phoenix, the Arabian Cynamolgus,
or “Cinnamon Bird,” was also said to bring cinnamon from afar to built its
fragrant nest at the top of a tall palm tree, where spice gatherers would then
shoot it down with leaden arrows. It was claimed that this was how cinnamon was
obtained!
Fig.
6. Phoenix
from the Aberdeen
Bestiary
Manilius
stated that the period of the 540-year astronomical Great Year coincided with
the life cycle of the Phoenix, with its last appearance having been in 215 auc (Anno urbis conditae, “Year of the
founding of the City;” i.e. Rome, traditionally set in 753 bce). By our present reckoning, then, that documented appearance
would have been in 538 bce.
Cornelius Tacitus (55-120 ce) says in The Annals that former Phoenixes were said to have flown into Heliopolis successively in the reigns of Pharaohs Sesostris,
Amasis, and Ptolemy III of the Macedonian dynasty, but he did not give specific
years. He notes, however, that the interval between the last two sightings was
less than the traditional 500 years, and suspects that the last was spurious: 8
Sesostris III (Khakhaure) ruled Egypt from 1878 to 1843
bce
Amasis reigned from
570-526 bce (right on the mark for that appearance of 538 bce, but 1,300 years after Sesostris, not 500)
Ptolemy III held the throne from 246 to 221 bce (only 300 years after Amasis)
While 500 years is the period given
by Herodotus, and 540 by Manilius, other accounts indicate cycles of 1,000, 1,461,
1,700, or even 12,994 years. Using 538 bce as a starting point, previous and subsequent
reappearances would be scheduled for the following years:
500 yrs 540 yrs 1,000
yrs 1,461 yrs 1,700 yrs
538 538 bce 538 bce 538 bce 538 bce
38 bce 2 ce 462
ce 923 ce 1162 ce
462 ce 542 1462 2384* 2862*
Pliny describes the capture of a Phoenix and its exhibition in the Roman Forum during the
reign of Emperor Claudius, which was from 41-54 ce,
but this doesn’t fit any cycle.
So
if you are wondering when the Phoenix is next due to reappear, you can take your pick of
the above years (marked with an asterisk). Personally, I concur with the
500-year cycle, and having been there, I’d opt for 1962 as the “Year of the Phoenix!” Or we can conclude from the historical record that
the schedule isn’t all that precise, and the Phoenix is due to return at any moment!
Fig.
7. Fêng Huang pair
The Phoenix in Other Lands
The Orient has
its own Phoenix, known in China as the Fêng Huang (“Red Bird”). Unlike the Phoenix, the Fêng Huang is immortal; it does not grow old and die to
be reborn again. Frequently depicted in
oriental art, the Fêng is male and
the Huang is female; together the
pair symbolizes everlasting love, high virtue, yin and yang, and the primordial force of the heavens. The male represents the solar cycle, while the
female represents the lunar cycle.
These
beautiful birds are said to stand some nine feet tall. They have the breast and sinuous neck of a swan, the
head and comb of a pheasant, the face of a swallow, the back of a tortoise, and
the 12-feathered tail of a peacock. This
description fits remarkably well the Ocellated Pheasant, also called Rheinart’s
Crested Argus (Rheinarta ocellata),
found in central Vietnam and the Malayan
peninsula. 5
Fig.
8. Ocellated Pheasant
The
form of the Fêng Huang represents the six celestial bodies, and its
shimmering striped plumage displays the five fundamental colors (yellow, green,
red, black, and white). Originating in the sun, it will not eat any living
thing, including plants. One of the Ssu
Ling, the four Spiritual Creatures of China—the others being the Lung Wang (Dragon), the Gui Xian (Tortoise), and the Ki-Lin (Unicorn)—it stands at the South,
and symbolizes the season of Summer and the element of fire. Representing the Empress, its rare and auspicious appearance
heralds good fortune, peace, and
prosperity; but calamity occurs upon its departure.4
Fêng Huang first appeared to the Chinese emperor Hung Ti
around 2600 bce. Like the Ki-lin, the Chinese unicorn, the Fêng Huang only appears in times of peace and
prosperity, usually when a new benevolent emperor ascends the throne. The Fêng Huang nests in wu t'ung trees in the K'unlun
mountains, far away from humans.
Fig. 9. Fêng Huang
Both
male and female birds can sing the sweetest melody in the five Chinese harmonic
notes, and it is said that their tune was the basis for the Chinese musical
scale. If one plays a musical instrument while sitting under such a wu t'ung
tree, the Fêng Huang will bless the
musician by adding its own sweet melody to the music.
In Japan, the same creature is known as Ho-Oo—the
Ho being the male and the Oo being the female. Said to be the
embodiment of the sun, it comes to Earth as a messenger of goodness, and to do
good deeds for people; and this appearance heralds the dawn of a new era. The
bird then ascends back to heaven to await the next cycle. Like the Feng-Huang,
the Ho-Oo has been adopted as a symbol of the royal family, particularly the
Empress. It is supposed to represent the sun, justice, fidelity and obedience.
Fig. 10. Ho-Oo
From Russia comes the legend of the Zshar-Ptitsa, or Firebird,
with shining feathers of gold and silver, and sparkling crystal eyes. Pearls
fall from its beak when it sings, and its song can heal the sick and cure
blindness. A single fiery tail feather could light an entire room. It grazed in
the garden of its owner, Tzar Dalmet, but at night it would sometimes sneak
into the nearby orchard of Tzar Vyslav Anronovich to steal his golden apples of
youth, beauty, and immortality. The fabled Firebird is the subject of the
famous 1910 ballet score by Igor Stravinsky.10
Fig. 11. Firebird caught
stealing magic apples, by Kholuy
The Kerkes
of Turkish tradition lives 1,000 years
and then consumes itself by fire, arising renewed to live another millennium.
This cycle will repeat 7x7 or 49 times until the Day of Judgment comes. The
mystical tree Ababel—the “Father
Tree” in the Quran—shoots out new
branches and vegetation at every resurrection of the Kerkes.
According to the Jewish Talmud, the Milcham
was the only animal not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of
Eden, and was rewarded with the gift of immortality from the Tree of Life. It
lives in a walled city for 1,000 years, at the end of which time it is consumed
by fire, leaving an egg to begin a new cycle.
Fig.
12. Milcham
Persian and Hindu mythology tells of the Huma, a bird of Paradise that dwells in
the heavens and never touches the Earth. The Huma joins both the male and
female natures together in one body, each having a wing and a leg. Like the Phoenix, it consumes itself in fire every few hundred years,
only to rise renewed from the ashes. A compassionate bird, it avoids killing
for food, preferring to feed on carrion. Great blessings and good fortune come
to any who see or touch it—especially if its shadow falls on them.
Fig. 13. Huma
Some of the fabulous birds
associated with the legend of the Phoenix are gigantic in size, like the Roc of Madagascar. One of these was the Angka, an enormous Arabian
bird, said to be large enough to carry off an elephant. It lived 1,700 years,
at the end of which time it burned itself to ashes and rose again. The Arabs
believed that they were originally created as perfect birds, but over time,
they devoured all the animals on Earth and started carrying off children. The
people appealed to God who prevented the Anka from multiplying; thus it eventually
became extinct.10
Fig. 14. Angka
The Simurgh (meaning “30 Birds”) is the magnificent King of the
Birds in Arabian legend, representing divine unity. Its beautiful feathers are
prized for their healing properties. Like the Angka, it is so huge that it can
carry off an elephant or a camel, but it is also known to take human children
into its nest to foster them. It dwells in the mountains of Alberz in northern Persia. Similarly to the Phoenix, this wise and peaceful bird lives for either 1,700 or
2,000 years. Some accounts claim it is immortal, nesting in the Tree of
Knowledge. It is said to be so old that it has seen the destruction of the
world three times over. A bird of the same name attended the Queen of Sheba. It
had metallic orange feathers, a silver head, a human face, four wings, a
vulture’s talons, and a peacock’s tail.10
Fig. 15. Simurgh
Nicolo de Conti
(ca.1395-1469), a Venetian merchant who traveled for either 25 or 36 years
through India, Asia, and Africa, brought back the legend of the Sevienda, which had a beak full of holes. Like the Phoenix, it was consumed by fire, and regenerated from the
ashes as a little worm or caterpillar. It was said to be so ancient that it had
witnessed the destruction of the universe three times!
Appearing in the Hindu epic, the Ramayana, Garuda is the mystical firebird who serves as the mount of the god
Vishnu. Garuda appears as the coat of arms of the Republic of Indonesia (Garuda Pancasila).15
Fig. 16. The Garuda emblem of
the King of Thailand
and the Thai Government
Was there ever a real Phoenix—or at least a living bird that gave rise to the
legend? As with many other mythological creatures, the legend of the Phoenix is not a simple matter of identifying a single source
or species. A number of mythic birds became absorbed into the legend as it
grew, and it also contributed to the legends of totally different birds in
other lands.
Perhaps the oldest source of the Phoenix legend is the Egyptian Benu, a heron-like bird with red legs and a crest of long feathers
sweeping back from the crown of its head. The word Benu in Egyptian
means both Purple Heron (Ardea purpurea)
and date palm tree. The Benu comes from the
Isle of Fire in the Underworld, and brings the Hike—the vital essence of all life. It was said to rise from its
burning tree with such melodious song that even the gods were enthralled. Known
from the Book of the Dead and other Egyptian texts as one of the sacred
symbols of worship at Heliopolis, the Benu was associated with the rising sun and the
sun-god Ra, reborn each morning in the fiery dawn. It was also identified with
Osiris, resurrecting itself from death.15
Fig. 17. Egyptian Benu
Another inspiration that has been suggested for the
Egyptian Phoenix is a spectacular African bird—the flame-pink greater flamingo
(Phoenicopterus, meaning “purple wing”). Considered by
the ancient Egyptians to be the living representations of the Sun-God Ra, these
spectacular birds nest in vast rookeries on burning alkaline mudflats that are
too hot for their eggs or chicks to survive. Males and females work together to
construct cylindrical nest mounds of mud, pebbles, straw, and feathers. The
female lays a single egg in a depression atop that marginally cooler pedestal,
which may be as much as a foot tall. The convection currents around these
mounds resemble the turbulence of a flame. 16
Fig. 18. Flamingo (Phoenicopterus)
And still another suggested
inspiration for the Phoenix and other mythical birds closely associated with the
sun, is the total solar eclipse, when the sun’s blazing corona often displays a
distinctly bird-like form that almost certainly inspired the winged sun disk
symbols of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. 15
Fig. 19. Total solar eclipse
(NASA)
Another
frequently-noted source of the legend of the Phoenix may be found in the strange avian
behavior named “anting” by Professor Erwin Stresemann of Berlin in 1935. Various perching birds will pick
up ants with their beaks and rub them under their wings and over their plumage,
evidently enjoying an intoxicating effect from the formic acid. In 1957,
Maurice Burton undertook a study of this behavior, and learned that aromatics
and fire smoke were equally effective intoxicants. But the most remarkable
behavior involved a tame rook named Niger, who “disported himself in a heap of
burning straw:”
With flames enveloping the
lower part of his body and smoke drifting all around him, he flapped his wings,
snatched at burning embers with his beak, and appeared to be trying to put them
under his wings… Every now and then he would pose amid the flames with his
wings outstretched and his head turned to one side, looking exactly like the
traditional picture of the Phoenix. 2
Fig. 20: Anting bird: Niger
rises Phoenix-like from the flames
But the most important component of the legend—and its
likeliest origin—may be found in the trade of Bird of Paradise skins
from New Guinea, dating from 1000 bce, when the island was first discovered by Phoenician
seafarers. The most flamboyantly-plumaged and abundant species, and therefore
the most commonly exported, was Count Raggi’s Bird of Paradise (Paradisea
raggiana), the male of which sports profuse sprays of brilliant scarlet
feathers under his wings. These are activated and agitated in his courtship
dance to look uncannily like he is dancing amid flames!11
Fig. 21. Count Raggi’s Bird of
Paradise
What makes this magnificent bird
particularly fascinating as a source of the Phoenix legend, however, is not just its spectacular
physical appearance, but also the manner in which it was brought to Western
attention in ancient Egypt and other civilizations along the Phoenician trading
routes. In order to preserve the delicate skins of Birds of Paradise for their
transport by sea all the way to Egypt, Phoenicia, and elsewhere, the
tribespeople of New Guinea carefully embalmed them in myrrh, molded into an
egg-shaped parcel, which they then sealed in a wrapping of charred banana
leaves—exactly as Herodotus described. No doubt the delivery of these precious
packages to the temples in places like Heliopolis and Tyre was also attended by considerable pomp and ceremony,
heralding the return of the sacred Phoenician bird!11
The Once
and Future Phoenix
For many years
Morning Glory and I have been studying the lore and imagery of the Phoenix—particularly as it appears in Russian and
Oriental depictions. We suspect that there is another element of this wondrous
bird that has not yet been considered—an actual living creature that bears the
appearance of those iconic images. Since the Phoenix, like the Unicorn, is not a continuous
presence on the Earth, but only appears intermittently, a reasonable assumption
is that it might have been produced artificially. The most likely prospect is a
sterile hybrid of two living birds whose separate features would combine into
the classic archetype.
Fig. 22. Firebird Phoenix
(tattoo)
Leaving aside the
various species of Birds of Paradise (see above), Morning Glory and I consider
the Galliformes fowl to be eminently
suitable prospects for such a hybrid. This
order of birds contains the turkeys, grouse, quails, chickens, peafowl, and
pheasants, of which about 256 species are found worldwide. The entire order exhibits enormous diversity, characterized
and distinguished by flamboyant plumage among the males, who are notoriously
polygamous. (See above reference to the
Fêng Huang as an Ocellated
Pheasant.) The ranges of most species overlap considerably throughout Asia, and many have been domesticated for
millennia. Although radically different courtship behaviors normally keep the
various species from hybridizing, spontaneous hybrids are not unknown in close
captivity, and intentional hybridization by breeders has produced many unique
varieties.15
Fig. 23. Golden Pheasant
Among these, the
male Golden Pheasant (Chrysolophus
pictus) has the right colors: iridescent flaming reds and golds. Peafowl,
on the other hand, have about the right body shape and size, including the long
neck, head crest, and tail feathers with distinctive “eyes.” While the
iridescent colors of peacocks are at the opposite end of the spectrum—blues,
greens and violets—a color mutation of the Indian Blue Peafowl (Pavo
cristatus) is pure white (and not an albino, as many assume). A hybrid derived from a cock Golden Pheasant and a white
Peahen might just result in a progeny looking exactly like the Russian Firebird!
Perhaps it is
time for the fabled Phoenix to return in the flesh…
Now I will believe
That there are unicorns;
that in Arabia
There is one tree, the
phoenix’ throne; one phoenix
At this hour reigning
there.
—Shakespeare, The Tempest (III.iii.27)
If you have experienced a devastating personal tragedy
or illness, the myth of the Phoenix can be a powerful vehicle
for your own resurrection from the ashes. After undergoing traumatic surgery
and chemotherapy for cancer, as well as a series of other major personal
calamities, I surrounded myself with images of the Phoenix in various mediums, did
meditations to identify myself with the legend, and conducted a ritual of rebirth
in which, wearing a Phoenix costume I’d created, I literally rose from beneath
a grey cloak made to look like a pile of ashes. I spread my fiery wings and
intoned:
“I
arise. I arise from the ashes, reborn yet again. I am the Phoenix, ever-dying, ever-resurrecting. I am the
hope in every heart, never dying, however wounded. I am the dream in every
head, never forgotten, however diminished its grandeur in coming true. I am the
light in every eye, still shining, however dimmed by remaining open through the
darkest times.”
Fig. 24. Oberon in his Phoenix
costume. Festival of Fools, Gueneville, CA. April 1, 2009.
Monster Movies: The Phoenix
In these early years of the 21st
century, the legend of the Phoenix
itself seems to be rising from the ashes. It has become a recurrent theme and
image in popular culture, showing up in books, comics, movies, paintings, and
other representations. The immensely popular Harry Potter books and movies feature prominently a Phoenix named Faux
(“false”) belonging to Albus Dumbledore, the beloved Headmaster of Hogwarts
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In the film Harry Potter & the Chamber
of Secrets (2002), the
process of immolation and resurrection is dramatically enacted. Subsequent
movies featuring Faux are: Harry Potter
& the Order of the Phoenix (2007); and Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince (2008).
Fig. 25. Cover of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
(2003), British edition.
In the 2005 movie, The Chronicles
of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, based on the book by C.S.
Lewis, a Phoenix bursts into flame and flies low over the grass in front of the
Snow Queen’s lines, creating a wall of fire to guard Peter’s retreat.
Fig. 26. Phoenix plastic
figurine by Safari Ltd.
1. Borges, Jorge Luis, The Book of Imaginary Beings, 1957; 1967 (Penguin Books, 1974)
2. Burton, Maurice, Phoenix Reborn, Hutchinson,
1959
3. Byfield, Barbara Ninde, The Glass Harmonica: A Lexicon of the Fantastical, MacMillan Co.,
1967
4. Christie, Anthony, Chinese
Mythology, Hamlyn Publishing Group Ltd., 1968
5. Costello, Peter, The
Magic Zoo, St Martin’s Press, 1979
6. Gould, Charles, Mythical
Monsters, 1884 (Kessinger Publishing’s Rare Mystical Reprints,
www.kessinger.net) (2006)
7. Hargreaves, Joyce, Hargreaves
New Illustrated Bestiary, Gothic Images Publications, 1990
8. Nigg, Joseph, The Book of Fabulous
Beasts: A Treasury of Writings from Ancient Times to the Present, Oxford University Press, 1999
9. ——, Wonder Beasts: Tales and Lore of the Phoenix, the Griffin, the Unicorn and the Dragon, Libraries Unlimited, 1995
10. Rose, Carol, Giants,
Monsters, and Dragons, W.W. Norton & Company, 2000
11. Shuker, Karl P.N., The Beasts That Hide from Man: Seeking the World’s Last Undiscovered
Animals, Paraview Press, 2003
12. Silverberg, Barbara, Phoenix
Feathers: A Collection of Mythical Monsters, E.P. Dutton & Co., 1973
13. South, Malcolm, Mythical
and Fabulous Beasts: A Source Book and Research Guide, Greenwood Press, 1987
14. White, T. H.,
The Book of Beasts, J.P. Putnam’s Sons, New York, 1954; Dover Publications, 1984
15. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ (2007)
16. SeaWorld
Infobook: Flamingos. http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/Flamingos/freproduction.html
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