Hybrids in Mythology

For as long as humans have been making up stories, we’ve been making up stories about creatures who are part-human, part-animal. A Greek demi god mates with a horse, and the result is a half man half horse. A grief-stricken Assyrian goddess flung herself into a lake and became half fish. A Poseidon admirer slights the sea god, who then makes his wife fall in love with a bull, conceiving a half man half bull. A woman in a French myth sleeps with a bear and their offspring is a Jean De l 'Ours. At the center of all these myths is the universal truth- beneath our intelligence and emotional capacity, we are ultimately animals. 

Hindu mythology is no different.The most prominent hybrid in Hindu iconography is elephant-headed Ganesha, god of wisdom, knowledge and new beginnings.Hanuman is a mighty warrior God part monkey part human. In India the festival Hanuman Jayanti is popular when colourful processions fill the streets. People dance, carry idols of Lord Hanuman and some people wear masks and tails to imitate the monkey God. Kali appeared when Parvati shed her dark skin which then became Kali, the Dark One whilst Parvati was left as Gauri (the Fair One). This story emphasises Kali’s blackness which is symbolic of eternal darkness and which has the potential to both destroy and create.

Both Naga and Garuda are non-hybrid mythical animals (snake and bird, respectively) in their early attestations, but become partly human hybrids in later iconography.

The hybrid Gods I grew up looking at are embedded in my subconscious mind and influence my drawings. 

Elephant God Ganesha

Snake Goddess Nagini

Garuda

Hanuman Monkey God

Kaali the black one