Guardian Of The Gates Of Hell
Dogs watch over the home, howl at the moon, and often hunt at night. For these reasons, many cultures have associated dogs with death. Both Cerberus, the three-headed black dog of Greek mythology, and Garm, the guardian of Niefheim in Germanic civilization, protected the gates of hell, maintaining the separation between the living and the dead.
Guide to the Spirits of the Dead
Dogs were seen as everyday companions in life as in death. They symbolized the force that guided spirits in their journey to the kingdom of the dead. The best known dog-guide is Anubis, an ancient Egyptian god with the head of a jackal. His role was to oversee the embalming of the dead before leading them to the place where spirits were judged. At the judgment, Anubis weighed the heart of the dead against the feather of truth.
Anubis'counterpart in ancient Mexican civilization is the god Xolotl, a lion-colored dog who accompanied the sun god in his journey to the underworld. Traditionally, a dog of the Xoloitzcuintli breed, with a yellow coat like the sun, was sacrificed at funerals. The dog of the deceased person might also be sacrificed, to ensure that his owner would be protected until arriving at the gates of death. In Guatemala, dog figurines were traditionally placed at the four corners of the tomb, a practice still observed today.
In Eastern cultures, the dead and dying were entrusted to dogs who might guide them to heaven, the seat of the divine.
Messenger between the Living and the Afterworld
Dogs have also been seen as a link between the world of the living and the afterworld. Two variations on this theme can be found:- Some Sudanese cultures and the Bantus of the former Zaire believed that dogs delivered messages to a sorcerer in a trance.- Other Sudanese tribes and the Iroquois of North America believed that dogs themselves carried messages to the dead after being sacrificed.
From these examples, it is easy to understand how the dog's association with death, combined with his nocturnal hunting habits, might have fueled rumors of sorcery and evil spells with regard to dogs.
Dual Symbol
Islam adopted this negative view of dogs, considering them impure creatures, like pigs. Dogs were seen as carcass eaters who frightened the angels and heralded death with their barking. People were to avoid dogs, and anyone who killed one became as impure as the dog himself. However, Muslims believed they could protect themselves from evil spells by eating the flesh of a puppy, and they appreciated a dog's loyalty to his owner. Paradoxically, Muslims revered the greyhound as a noble animal and a symbol of goodness and luck.
Dogs can also be found as dual symbols in the cultures of the Far East. In China, the dog was seen either as the destroyer - the huge, hairy beast T'ien K'uan - or the loyal companion who escorted immortals to heaven. The philosopher Lao Tzu portrays the dog as an ephemeral creature, describing the ancient Chinese custom of burning straw effigies of dogs to ward off evil spells. On the contrary, in Japanese culture the dog was a good animal who protected children and mothers. In Tibet, dogs were symbols of sexuality and fertility, providing the spark of life. This leads to another aspect in the symbolism of dogs, that of fire.
Dogs on Fire
Strangely, in most cases the dog did not symbolize fire itself but instead was seen as the creature who transmitted fire to humans. The dog was therefore is the equivalent of Prometheus in certain African and Native American tribes. On the South Sea Islands, the dog was the master of fire, growling and sleeping beside the flames. For the Aztecs he was fire itself, while for the Mayas he was simply the guardian of the sun at night.
Alternately, dogs could symbolize war and victory, as for the Celts. In Celtic culture, the dog was praised, and being compared to a dog was an honor.
Ambiguous Symbol
Over time, the dog became an important symbol. Yet the symbolism of dogs throughout history shows the apparent ambiguity with which different cultures regarded them. Protector and watchdog for some, evildoer and demon for others, the symbolism of dogs changed constantly before being completely forgotten by modern civilization.
Dogs do still appear in current expressions but, paradoxically, nearly always with negative connotations. Used as an attribute, "dog" yields "to have a dog's life", "to be dog-tired", and "to have a dog's chance". Used in the comparative sense, "dog" expresses scorn, degradation, and dissention, as in the phrases "to treat someone like a dog", "to work like a dog", "to be as ugly as a dog", "to be as sick as a dog", and "to fight like cats and dogs". Other negative expressions include "going to the dogs" and "it's a dog-eat-dog world". Expressions in which "dog" is used in a positive sense are rare: "Dog is man's best friend".
Who knows? Given the growing importance of dogs in our lives, perhaps future generations will create a more respectable cultural image of our four-legged friend.
Site et CRM réalisé par ActivSoft Zenengo
Log in
