Naga, Lamia and others

Some recent reading got me interested in these myths once again, so I decided to do some research. This document is intended as a summary of what I found, for my own benefit as well as others who are interested in where these creatures originated from. I have tried to keep it short, so I advice anyone interested to search for more themselves.


Lamia.

When it comes to Lamia there are actually two creatures that are relevant. The singular Lamia, a character from Greek myth, and the later pluralization Lamiai/Lamiae that seems to be an extension of that character.


Starting with the character.

Lamia, translated as large shark, was probably initially though of as such. She was either the daughter of Poseidon or the daughter of Belus(King of Egypt) and thus granddaughter of Poseidon (depending on source). She was told to be a beautiful queen of Lybia, who was loved by Zeus and bore him children. When Hera found out about it she abducted the children of their union. Driven insane by grief, Lamia started taking revenge by abducting children and eat them. Her face become fearfully distorted and ugly.

How it became ugly varies: from her terrible habits, from grief or from a curse from Hera. Zeus also gave her the power to remove her eyes and putting them in again.

Some accounts give her a snakes tail instead of legs, but far from all.

Another story of Lamia, is the poem written by John Keats in 1819. In this story Lamia was trapped in the form of a snake with a womans mouth and eyes. She was found by the god Hermes and in exchange for showing him the nymph he has sought, he give her the shape of a woman, and sends her to the one she loves, Lycius. Lamia and Lucius spends some time in bliss, but on their wedding day Apollonius, a philosopher and Lucius teacher, exposes Lamia's nature with his cold eyes. She disappears and Lucius dies of sorrow.

Lamiai, a pluralization of Lamia, are underworld daimones who, in the guise of a beautiful woman, lured young men to their beds to devoure their flesh and blood. They had a serpents tail instead of legs in their true form. They represented much of the same things that succubi and vampires did later. They have also been described as ghost (phasma) with the same habits.

Lamiai survive even to present day in Greek folk tradition as a being with magical powers, living in a remote place and eating human flesh. They are often told to be in possession of something important to a hero's quest, who then have to avoid her, trick her or gain her favor to get it. John Cuthbert Lawson remarks that "....the chief characteristics of the Lamiae, apart from their thirst for blood, are their uncleanliness, their gluttony, and their stupidity".


Naga

Naga has it's origins in India and China. It is a concept that is hard to exactly define. It would seem that Naga can be anything snake related.. or can even mean elephant (perhaps because of it's trunk) or dragon. Naga is also a people (collection of tribes) living in india, in Nagaland. There are also those called Nagavanshi who claims to be decendents of the Naga, but that is out of scope of this text. The female form is Nagi or Nagini.

The Naga have a big role in both Hindu and Buddhist religion. They often act as protectors and are often portrayed covering deities with their heads. Naga is portrayed in a multitude of ways, from a normal or giant snake, to a half snake half man/woman, to a human sometimes with a dragon or snake extending over its head.

The Naga are the children of Kadru(mother of snakes) and the sage Kasyapa. After a bet between Kadru and Vinata (Mother of birds) Vinata was enslaved. To free her, her son Garuda were required to steal amrita, the elixir of imortality, from the gods and give to the Naga. He did so, but prevented them from drinking it. However the elixir fell in the grass and as the nagas slithered through it their skin gained the ability of renewal. Their attempts to lick it up resulted in them cutting their tongues on the grass, and thus they have forked tongues.

The Naga are considered nature spirits and protectors of springs, wells and rivers. They bring rain and fertility, but also floods and drought. They are also considered guardians of treasure.


Gorgons

Gorgon have their root in Greek mythology. At first there was only mention of one. A monster with sharp fangs, so strong that anyone who would look upon her would turn to stone. Her likeness was used on temples and on shields to ward off evil. The look of the gorgon varies a lot. Sometimes she has wings of gold, sometimes with tusks of a boar, but mostly with the fangs and skin of a serpent. She also wore a belt of serpents.

Later works speak of three Gorgons: Stheno (the mighty), Euryale (the far-springer), and Medusa (the queen). Of these only medusa was mortal. It is said that medusa was cursed with serpents for hair by Athene, after Medusa and Poseidon had coupled in one of Athenas temples, due to Poseidon being aroused by the golden color of Medusas hair. The serpents had the power to turn anyone who looked at them to stone.

Originally only Medusa had snakes for hair, but later on this was spread to the rest and all three sisters was said to look that way.

Medusa was later killed by Perseus and from the wound came her two sons by Poseidon: Pegasus and Chrysaor.


Echidna

Yet another being from Greek mythology. Echidna (she viper) had the head and torso of a nymph and the lower body of a giant snake. She did not age nor die (But was finally killed in her sleep by Argus, the hundred eyed  giant). Together with her mate Typhoeus, she mothered all the monsters in Greek myth. Together they attacked Olympus but were beaten back. Zeus Sealed Typhoeus away, but let Echidna and her children live to serve as a challenge to future heroes. Echidna is sometimes pictured with wings or with two serpent tails.


Creating characters.

So.. creating a new character based of these myths. Here is my view of a difference between Naga and Lamia, which seems to be the most widely used names. I would recommend Lamia if you want something not at all human in mind, a subtle monster from the dark in human guise that prays on humans for nourishment. Would work great with Vampire like stories. For everything else Naga is probably a good catchphrase, they are historically pictured as more human-like in behavior and are more of a race, rather than just being random monsters.

If you want to be really strict I guess a naga would have to be shedding skin and have cloven tongues. Although they are mostly based on cobras this isn't always so, giving you the freedom to call just about anything snake based a Naga. They are also said to sometimes have magical powers enabling them to turn human in shape.

If you make something with snakes for hair I would recommend calling it a Gorgon. True, there were only 3, but it doesn't hurt to imagine more of them coming into being. The Snake for hair part , although not always a part of how a gorgon looked, is still connected to Gorgons in peoples minds, making it an okay label for it.