Legend of the Phoenix

In the United States a major city has been named after the magical, mythical bird that was a part of legends of long ago. This city has kept alive the phoenix’s legend and a whole lot of popular books and movies have been made about this resurrecting bird. Even the phenomenally successful "Harry Potter" series includes the bird into characters and plots.

Just like any story that originated as an oral tradition, the context varied from teller to teller. Each story teller would put his or her own spin on the story, changing tiny aspects that influenced the next story teller. The origination of the myth is widely debated and the story cannot be nailed down to one specific place or time. The oral tradition has not only changed the story, but also the origination of the story as time has progressed.

Nonetheless, the main facts of the legend of the Phoenix remain intact, even though the myth has been adulterated. According to the legend, the Phoenix is a supernatural creature that has an incredibly long life span, stretching to at least a thousand years. It cannot fall sick or get injured at any point in its lifetime. However, some believe that it does get affected by disease or drought, which leads it to prematurely enter the next phase of its life.

The phoenix continues to live for a hundred years, or could succumb to an injury or disease. At this juncture in its lifespan, it gathers twigs, braches and woods not to create a nest, but an ancient funeral pyre. This pyre was used in ancient cultures to dispose of the dead, and some cultures continue the practice even today. In some cultures, personal artifacts are also burned with the dead body and some require that the spouses burn themselves at the pyre of their mate.

After building the pyre, the phoenix ignites and begins to burn. There is a variation in this part of the story as some believe the bird does not have to create a pyre, but burns itself without any fuel. There are many opinions about what happens after the bird is burned.

According to the traditional story, the phoenix burns to ashes, and then rises again from the ashes to live another thousand years. This aspect of the story that demonstrates the triumph over adversity has become the symbol of eternity or the ability to rise from the dead. No wonder many groups and organizations use the phoenix as their mascot.

Another version of the story is that before the fire consumes the bird, it lays an egg, which hatches a new phoenix. This phoenix will live to be a thousand years old before having an offspring in the same method, thus continuing the life cycle of the bird. There is no way of ascertaining which version of the story is true, but all of them express the same theme: the triumph over adversity.

There are a great many versions of how this story began. Some believe a fire colored bird was captured and the story was created about his origins. Others think the phoenix was actually a raven who was “dancing” in the embers of a dying fire, a behavior known as “anting.”

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