Wind

Small Sylph from Pope's The Rape of the Lock

The Sylphid (French Sylphide, English Sylphid, Latin sylphida) is the decisive canonical adaptation of the small Sylph or young Sylph introduced as 'sylphid' in line 50 of Canto 1 of the satirical poem The Rape of the Lock (1714 5-canto expanded edition) of Alexander Pope (Alexander Pope, 1688-1744) published in England on 4 May 1712. The etymology combines the Latin sylphus (Sylph, air spirit) of Paracelsus of 1566 with the Greek-Latin diminutive-feminine suffix -ida — the decisive canonical vocabulary — and the iconography depicts an elegant, light spirit with small butterfly- or dragonfly-like wings in white attire. The decisive canon is the ballet La Sylphide premiered at the Salle Le Peletier opera house in Paris on 12 March 1832 — composed by Jean-Madeleine Schneitzhoeffer, choreographed by Filippo Taglioni, with Marie Taglioni in the lead role — establishing the decisive origin of 19th-century Romantic ballet as the first pointe-shoe performance in ballet history. The 1822 novella Trilby, ou le Lutin d'Argail of the French writer Charles Nodier (Charles Nodier, 1780-1844) is the decisive source of the 1832 ballet libretto, and the Danish version premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen on 28 July 1836, choreographed by August Bournonville (1805-1879) and composed by Herman Severin Lovenskiold, is the decisive Danish ballet canon preserved to 2024.

Air Spirit from Shakespeare's The Tempest

Ariel (English Ariel, Hebrew Ariel ('lion of God' or 'messenger of God'), Latin Ariel) is the air spirit in the last solo play The Tempest of 1611 by the English playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616), the faithful servant of the sorcerer Prospero who, in invisible form, freely commands tempests, illusions, and music — the decisive canonical iconographic figure of the English-literary air spirit. The etymology derives from the Hebrew Ariel ('lion of God' or 'messenger of God') — the alternative name of Jerusalem in Isaiah 29:1-2 of the Old Testament — and in the European Kabbalistic mysticism of the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries, Ariel was canonised as the angel of the air element (Air) among the seventy-two angels of the Shem HaMephorash, decisively recorded in Book 3 of the De Occulta Philosophia Libri Tres of the German mystic Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa (1486-1535) of 1533. The decisive canon is Shakespeare's play The Tempest, premiered on 1 November 1611 at Whitehall Palace in London, England (published in the First Folio Volume 1 of 1623) — the plot in which Ariel, who had been imprisoned in a pine tree by the witch Sycorax for twelve years, is rescued by Prospero and bound to serve him for twelve years in exchange for the promise of freedom (Acts 1.2 to 4) — is the decisive canon of the English-literary air spirit. The sylph Ariel in the satirical poem The Rape of the Lock of 1714 by Alexander Pope (1688-1744) extended the eighteenth-century English-literary air-spirit canon, and the Air Elemental and Sylph canon of the 1977 D&D Monster Manual by Gary Gygax of TSR in the USA is the decisive canonical iconography of the modern fantasy RPG air spirit.

Spiritual Beings of Arab/Islamic Mythology

The Jinn (Arabic Jinn, English Jinn or Djinn) is the canonical iconographic figure of the spiritual being of Arab-Islamic mythology, dwelling between humans and angels (mala'ika). The etymology derives from the Arabic root J-N-N (meaning 'hidden, invisible'), and is canonical vocabulary with etymological kinship to the Latin genius (guardian spirit). The decisive textual canon is the canon of Surat al-Jinn (Chapter 72 'The Jinn') of the Quran (Qur'an) revealed to the prophet Muhammad (Muhammad, c. 570-632) by the angel Gabriel c. 610-632 CE — in which the Jinn hear Muhammad's revelation and convert to Islam — the decisive canon, and the canon of Chapter 51 verse 56 of the same Quran — 'I have not created jinn and humans except to worship me' — is the decisive canon of the purpose of the Jinn's existence. The decisive Western canon is the canon of Aladdin's Lamp and the Fisherman and the Jinn of the Alf Layla wa-Layla (One Thousand and One Nights) compiled in the Mamluk dynasty of Arab Syria and Egypt in the 14th-15th centuries, and the French translation Les Mille et une Nuits (12 volumes total) by the French Orientalist Antoine Galland (1646-1715) of 1704-1717 decisively settled the Western Jinn canon, and the Genie (voiced by Robin Williams) of the Disney animated film Aladdin, released on 25 November 1992 in the USA, is the decisive culminating work of the global Jinn canon of the 20th century.

Air Spirit of Paracelsus

The Sylph (Latin Sylphus, English Sylph, French Sylphe) is the decisive canonical spirit of air (Aer) among the four element spirits in the posthumous 1566 Latin treatise A Book of Nymphs, Sylphs, Pygmies, and Salamanders (Liber de Nymphis, Sylphis, Pygmaeis et Salamandris) by the Swiss physician-alchemist Paracelsus (Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, 1493-1541). The etymology is the Latin Sylphus — coined by Paracelsus as a compound of the Greek silphe (silphe, 'butterfly, moth') and the Latin sylvestris ('of the forest') — and the iconography depicts a free-spirited, translucent humanoid with dragonfly- or butterfly-like wings. The decisive literary canon is the satirical poem The Rape of the Lock by the British poet Alexander Pope (Alexander Pope, 1688-1744) published in London on 4 May 1712 (5-canto expanded edition of 1714) — female souls become sylphs after death and protect virgins — and the decisive ballet canon is the ballet La Sylphide premiered at the Salle Le Peletier opera house in Paris on 12 March 1832 (composed by Schneitzhoeffer, choreographed by Filippo Taglioni, starring Marie Taglioni) — the first pointe-shoe performance in ballet history, establishing the decisive 19th-century Romantic ballet canon.

Hermes · God of Travel, Trade, Thieves, and Messengers

Hermes (Ancient Greek Hermes, Latin Mercurius) is the decisive canonical god of messengers, travel, commerce, thieves, gambling, oratory, and borders among the 12 Olympian gods of Greek mythology, and the decisive canonical iconographic figure who, as the son of Zeus (Zeus) and Maia (Maia, eldest of the Pleiades), was born in a cave on Mount Cyllene (Kyllene) — on the day of his birth — invented the lyre (lyra) from a tortoise shell — and stole the sacred 50 cattle of Apollo (Apollo). The etymology Greek Hermes is derived from herma (herma, 'pile of stones, boundary stone') — the decisive canonical vocabulary, and the aliases Argeiphontes (Argeiphontes, 'slayer of Argos'), Diaktoros (Diaktoros, 'guide'), Psychopompos (Psychopompos, 'soul guide'), and Soter (Soter, 'saviour') are the decisive canonical vocabulary. The decisive textual canon is the Homeric Hymns (Homeric Hymns) No. 4 — Hymn to Hermes — 580 lines of c. 7th-6th century BCE — the decisive canon of Hermes's birth, lyre invention, and Apollo's cattle theft — and Theogony (Theogony) lines 938-939 of Hesiod of c. 8th-7th century BCE — the decisive canon of Hermes's birth as the son of Zeus and Maia.

Paimon · Ninth of Solomon's 72 Spirits — King of Arts and Knowledge

Paimon (Latin Paimon, English Paimon) is the powerful king of the 9th rank among the 72 demons in Book 1 of the 17th-century grimoire — the decisive canon — The Lesser Key of Solomon (Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis) — Ars Goetia (Ars Goetia) — commanding 200 legions (legions) of demons — the decisive canonical iconographic figure. Aliases — Paimaim, King Paimon, King of Camels, King of Arts and Sciences — are the decisive canonical vocabulary. The decisive textual canon is the decisive origin canon of Paimon in Pseudomonarchia Daemonum (Pseudomonarchia Daemonum) of Johann Weyer (Johann Weyer) of 1563 and the decisive canon of the 9th rank king of the 72 demons in Book 1 Ars Goetia (Ars Goetia) of The Lesser Key of Solomon (Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis) of the 17th century. The decisive grimoire canon of Paimon in The Magus (The Magus) of Francis Barrett (Francis Barrett) of 1801 of England, and the decisive art canon of the Paimon iconography depicting a crowned man on a camel in the Dictionnaire Infernal (Dictionnaire Infernal) of Collin de Plancy (Collin de Plancy) of 1863, and the decisive 21st-century film canon of 'Hail Paimon' in the film Hereditary (Hereditary) (directed by Ari Aster (Ari Aster), A24) released in the USA on 8 June 2018.

Hwanung· Korean Sky God Father of Dangun

Hwanung (Hanja Hwanung) is the heavenly god of Korean mythology — the decisive canon, the son of Hwanin (Hwanin), the heavenly god, and the father of Dangun Wanggeom (Dangun Wanggeom) — the decisive canonical iconographic figure who descended to the human world and founded the divine city of Sinsi (Sinsi). The etymology is the decisive canonical vocabulary of Hwan ('brightness') + Ung ('male, hero'), and the aliases Cheonwang ('Heavenly King'), Hwanung Cheonwang (Hwanung Cheonwang), Sinung ('divine hero'), and Ungsang (Ungsang) are the decisive canonical vocabulary. The decisive textual canon is the Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) Volume 1 'Gi-i (Strange Events)' chapter 'Old Joseon Wanggeom Joseon' of c. 1281 — the 7th year of King Chungnyeol of Goryeo — by the monk Iryeon (1206-1289) — the decisive canon in which the illegitimate son of Hwanin, Hwanung, asked to rule the human world, and his father Hwanin looked down upon Mount Samwi-Taebaek (Samwi-Taebaek) and determined it as a place where one could 'broadly benefit humans (Hongik Ingan)', and gave Hwanung three Cheonbuin (Heavenly Seal) and 3,000 followers to descend. The Jewang Ungi (Songs of Emperors and Kings) Volume 2 of Yi Seunghyu (Yi Seunghyu, 1224-1300) of 1287 — the 13th year of King Chungnyeol of Goryeo — is the decisive canon.

Griffin · Legendary Lion-Eagle — Mythical creature with eagle foreparts and lion hindquarters

The Griffin (or Gryphon, Greek gryps, Latin gryphus) is a composite sacred beast combining an eagle's head, wings, and forelimbs with a lion's body, hindquarters, and tail, embodying 'the king of the sky joined to the king of the earth'. The earliest depictions appear around 3000 BCE in ancient Mesopotamia (Elamite Susa) and Egypt's Naqada III palettes; the Minoan throne room at Knossos (c. 1500 BCE) shows griffins as royal guardians. Greek tradition placed them in the far north of Scythia, guarding mountains of gold against the one-eyed Arimaspoi. In medieval Europe the griffin became the most popular heraldic charge, symbolising divine kingship, justice, and (in Christian allegory) the two natures of Christ. Dante's Purgatorio shows a griffin drawing the chariot of the Church; modern fantasy from C. S. Lewis to J. K. Rowling keeps the motif alive.

Pegasus · Winged Horse — A Legendary Creature from Greek Mythology

Pegasus (Greek Pegasos) is the winged horse of Greek myth, born from the blood of Medusa when Perseus severed her head and the blood mingled with the foam of the sea. His brother, born in the same moment, is the golden-sworded giant Chrysaor. Hesiod's Theogony 280-286 derives the name from Greek pege ('spring' or 'fountain'), where the foam from which Pegasus rose was conceived as a marine spring. The hero Bellerophon, given a golden bridle by Athena, tamed Pegasus at the spring of Peirene in Corinth and together they slew the Chimera, his most celebrated exploit. The spring of Hippocrene ('horse-spring') on Mount Helicon, sacred to the Muses, is said to have sprung where Pegasus struck the ground with his hoof, making him also the emblem of poetic inspiration. When Bellerophon, grown proud, tried to ride Pegasus up to Olympus, Zeus sent a gadfly that stung the horse and threw the hero, but Pegasus reached Olympus safely and became the bearer of Zeus's thunderbolts. He is fixed in the heavens as the constellation Pegasus.

Birdfolk · The Bird People — A Mountain-Peak Race That Flies the Skies

Birdfolk are an avian humanoid race with feathers, wings and beaks. The mythic substrate runs through four ancient traditions: the falcon-headed god Horus of ancient Egypt (attested from the Narmer Palette of the thirty-first century BCE, Cairo Museum), the giant bird Garuḍa of Vedic India (Rigveda Mandala 10, c. 1500-1200 BCE, the mount of Vishnu), the Japanese Tengu of the Heian period (recorded in the 'Nihon Shoki' of 720 CE) and the Greek Harpies of Hesiod's 'Theogony' (c. 720 BCE) and Apollonius of Rhodes's 'Argonautica' (third century BCE). The D&D standardisation begins with the Aarakocra race introduced by Gary Gygax in 'Dragon Magazine' issue 109 (August 1986) for his World of Greyhawk campaign, codified across 'Forgotten Realms Adventures' (1989), 'Monstrous Compendium Volume 2' (1990), the third-edition 'Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting' (2000), the fifth-edition 'Elemental Evil Player's Companion' (2015) and 'Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse' (2022). Birdfolk stand 150 to 180 centimetres tall, weigh 35 to 50 kilograms with light, slender build, and have wings spanning six to seven metres (eagle, hawk, owl or parrot varieties), taloned legs in place of feet, a beak and the keen sight of an eagle. Fifth-edition racial traits are +2 Dexterity, +1 Wisdom, flying speed 50 feet (about 15 metres) and a talon natural weapon (1d4). Their tribal societies nest on high mountain peaks above four thousand metres in the Andes or Himalayas or in cloud-borne airborne cities, and the iconography extends to the Sky Tribes of Skypiea in Eiichiro Oda's 'One Piece' (from 1997), the Arakkoa of Blizzard's 'World of Warcraft' (from 2004), the Aven of 'Magic: The Gathering' (from 1993) and the Ikran Riders of James Cameron's 'Avatar' (2009).

Tengu · The Japanese Mountain Yokai — Master of Martial Arts and Punisher of Pride

The Tengu (Japanese tengu, 'celestial dog') is a yokai of Japan's deep mountains, depicted with the head of a crow or a red face with a long nose, with wings on its back. A master of swordsmanship, martial arts, and supernatural power, the tengu tests ascetics in the mountains or transmits secret techniques to the worthy. The etymology comes from the Han-period Chinese Tian-gou ('celestial dog') of the Shanhaijing, but the figure was decisively reshaped in Japan from the eighth century onward. The Nihon Shoki of 720 records the first Japanese reference, but the canonical iconography crystallised in the twelfth-century Konjaku Monogatari-shu as the avatar of a corrupt monk. Kamakura-era tales such as the Heike Monogatari fixed the tengu as a martial-arts master, with Sojobo of Mount Kurama said to have taught swordsmanship to Minamoto no Yoshitsune. The crow-headed Karasu-tengu represents the earlier iconography, while the red-faced, long-nosed Daitengu in yamabushi (mountain ascetic) garb crystallised in the Muromachi period. The tengu punishes the proud and teaches the humble.

The Feathered Serpent

Quetzalcōātl (Nahuatl 'feathered serpent') is the Mesoamerican god worshipped continuously from the late first century BCE at Teotihuacan to the fall of the Aztec empire in 1521. The name compounds 'quetzalli' (the iridescent tail-feather of the resplendent quetzal of the Central American cloud forest) and 'cōātl' (serpent), and the deity is rendered as a great serpent sheathed in those green-gold feathers. He governs Venus as the morning star, and in his wind-god aspect Ehēcatl summons rain. Among the Toltecs he was identified with the priest-king Topiltzin-Quetzalcōātl who ruled Tollan (modern Tula) around 935-947 CE; in Aztec myth he was tricked by the dark god Tezcatlipoca, fled Tollan eastward across the sea, and promised to return in a 'One Reed' year. Hernán Cortés's landing on the Gulf coast in 1519 — a One Reed year — led the emperor Moctezuma II (1466-1520) to read the Spaniard as the returning god, an episode preserved in Bernardino de Sahagún's 'Florentine Codex' (1545-1590) and Diego Durán's 'Historia' (1581). The earliest surviving image is the carved facade of the Temple of the Feathered Serpent at Teotihuacan, dated to about 200 CE.