Púca
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Phooka (Old Irish), (also Pooka, Puka, Phouka, Púka, Pwca in Welsh, Bucca in Cornish, pouque in Dgèrnésiais, also Glashtyn, Gruagach) is a creature of Celtic folklore, notably in Ireland and Wales. It is one of the myriad of fairy (faery) folk, and, like many faery folk, is both respected and feared by those who believe in it.
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[edit] Morphology and physiology
According to legend, the phooka is an adroit shape changer, capable of assuming a variety of terrifying forms. It may appear as a horse, rabbit, goat, goblin, or dog. No matter what form the phooka takes, its fur is almost always dark. (its name is a cognate of the early Irish 'poc', 'a male goat', and it may lend its name to Puck, the goat-footed satyr made famous in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream), but it most commonly takes the form of a sleek black horse with a flowing mane and glowing yellow eyes. [1]
If a human is enticed onto a phooka's back it has been known to give them a wild ride. But unlike a kelpie, which will take its rider and dive into the nearest river or lake to drown and devour him, the phooka will do the unfortunate rider no real harm. The Púca has the power of human speech, and has been known to give advice and lead people away from danger. Though the phooka enjoys confusing and often terrifying humans, it is considered to be benevolent.
[edit] Agricultural traditions
Certain agricultural traditions surround the Púca. It is a creature associated with Samhain, the third Pagan (Celtic, Wiccan) Harvest Festival, when the last of the crops is brought in. Anything remaining in the fields is considered "puka," or fairy-blasted, and hence inedible. In some locales, reapers leave a small share of the crop, the "púca's share," to placate the hungry creature. Nonetheless, November Day (November 1) is the Púca's day, and the one day of the year when it can be expected to behave civilly.
[edit] Regional variations
In some regions, the Púca is spoken of with considerably more respect than fear; if treated with due deference, it may actually be beneficial to those who encounter it. The Púca is a creature of the mountains and hills, and in those regions there are stories of it appearing on November Day and providing prophecies and warnings to those who consult it.
[edit] Popular culture
In the shadowmoor block of the cardgame Magic the Gathering 2 cards are based on the abillity to change identity and named after the Púca.
In the classic Mary Chase play Harvey, the title character Harvey is a pooka, in the form of a very tall humanoid white rabbit. This play has been adapted for film several times, the most famous version starring Jimmy Stewart. There is a humorous scene in which Mr. Wilson, the asylum orderly, reads the definition of pooka in the encyclopedia: "Pooka. From old Celtic mythology. A fairy spirit in animal form. Always very large. The pooka appears here and there, now and then, to this one and that one at his own caprice. A benign but mischievous creature. Very fond of rum-pots, crackpots, and how are you, Mr. Wilson?" This provides the notion that Harvey is real.
In Emma Bull's 1987 book, War for the Oaks, the Phouka is a mischievous but ultimately trustworthy shapechanger who takes the form of a large black dog.
Jenny Gluckstein, of Peter S. Beagle's Tamsin, meets a Pooka when she moves from New York City to a haunted farm in Dorset, England.
In The Spiderwick Chronicles, the phooka is a shapeshifter that resembles a black rabbit/monkey-like creature; he is smarter than his speech can demonstrate.
R.A. MacAvoy's 1987 fantasy novel The Grey Horse involves a horse puca in nineteenth-century Ireland.
In Chynna Clugston's Blue Monday comic, heroine Blue encounters her Pooka, Seamus - a giant, gaseous, kilt-bearing otter who often causes more mischief than anything else.
In the 1959 Disney film Darby O'Gill and the Little People, Darby's horse turns into a pookah. The first time the horse transforms, it frightens Darby into falling down a well, where he first encounters King Brian and the land of the leprechauns. The second time, the horse causes Darby's daughter Katie to fall and be injured, which leads to Darby's final deal with King Brian and the ultimate "happily ever after" resolution.
In the 1985 book Crewel Lye: A Caustic Yarn, the 8th Xanth novel by Piers Anthony, a Pooka befriends the main character. He is a smart, helpful ghost horse with rattling chains and ends up being named "Pook."
In one episode of American Dragon, Phooka influences Haley's dark side with a song.
In the final song of Final Fantasy's album, He Poos Clouds, (The Pooka Sings) the Pooka is depicted as a sort of anti-muse, declaiming the composer (Owen Pallett) for writing about things which he doesn't believe and which "don't exist". At the conclusion of the song, the Pooka flies away, and Owen Pallett puts down his violin; "I leave it down, never again!".
The Magic the Gathering trading card game, features two cards based on pucas: Cemetery Puca and Puca's Mischief.
For specific characters named one of the various spellings of pooka (thus alluding to the creature), see Pooka (disambiguation).
[edit] References
- ^ W. B. Yeats, Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry, in A Treasury of Irish Myth, Legend, and Folklore, p 94, ISBN 0-517-489904-X
- Katharine Briggs, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures, "Pwca", p 337. ISBN 0-394-73467-X
- Holly Black's Ironside 2007
