A. Sutherland – AncientPages.com – Tricksters – rebellious, naughty, and often entertaining characters – are commonly known in many cultures and appear in various forms in ancient folktales and myths.
They are jokers who, with their quick wits, can easily deceive and exploit their fellows for their pleasure. They usually appear as semi-divine creatures that may permanently change an animal’s appearance or river course and do other unbelievable tricks.
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Unfortunately, by fooling others, tricksters are eventually fooled, humiliated, and even lost their lives.
The most notable trickster in Irish myths is Bricriu, a bard named “Poison Tongue.”
He was a typical mischief-maker in the Ulster tales. Sometimes, his sneaky nature was helpful to Ulster; more often, unfortunately, it was not.
However, Bricriu’s malevolence rarely caused severe damage and was usually humorous, and he really enjoyed creating conflict and trouble.
One day, Bricriu tried to foment civil strife in Ulster by making three great warriors, including Cuchulain, quarrel over who should receive the champion’s portion – the great serving of food at a royal banquet, together with the privilege of sitting on the king’s right hand.
To achieve this, Bricriu invited the court to a sumptuous feast at his grand dwelling, threatening various calamities if they refused. The king and his men ignored Bricriu’s threats, however, until he finally swore that if they did not come, he would make the breasts of their women beat together until they were black and blue.
It did the trick, and the court, including the three heroes, decided to come to Bricriu’s house. Once there, he provoked the quarrel, which turned into a terrible struggle and chaos that ruined his house.
Bricriu ended up in a rubbish tip and emerged so dirty that nobody recognized him.
The trickster met his end when he stepped in to judge between the Brown Bull of Ulster and the White Bull of Connacht. The two bulls trampled Bricriu to death.
According to an Arapaho legend, a curious figure called Nihansan fell victim to his own false perception.
This trickster dived into the water to gather fruit that was nothing but reflections.
One day, Nihansan was walking by a stream when he suddenly spotted some red plums under the water. He wanted to eat them, so he dived undressed into the water, trying to collect the fruit.
He failed, so he emerged from the stream and decided to try again. He took some stones and tied them to his wrists and ankles to weigh himself down under water. Again, the trickster Nihansan failed to catch the plums. Eventually, when he could not hold his breath any longer, he released the stones and floated up to the surface.
Suddenly, he looked up and noticed plums on a tree above him.
“You fool!” Nihansan said to himself. He approached the three, ate some of the plums, and picked some more for his journey.
Written by – A. Sutherland – AncientPages.com Senior Staff Writer
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