A 360 illustration of the strangest, scariest eclipse myths throughout history

Our ancestors didn’t know why solar eclipses happened, so they came up with some creative explanations. You can see a few of these in this 360 degree illustration, which you can move around with your mouse or phone. The Pomo of northern California said a great, cranky bear took a bite out of the sun when it got in his way. Ancient Chinese imagined that a dragon swallowed the sun. A story from the Shan people of Southeast Asia blamed an evil frog or toad It was a jaguar, according to legends in Paraguay and Argentina. In Hindu mythology, a demon with no body gulped down the sun, but it fell out his throat. Korean and Bolivian tales described dogs who stole the sun but spit it out when it burned their mouths. The ancients didn’t just stare at the black circle where the sun should be, however. Many tried to bring it back. The Chinese banged drums and pots to scare off the dragon. The Chippewa of North America shot flaming arrows into the sky to try to rekindle the sun. Aztecs sacrificed human captives to prevent an eclipse that would destroy the world. In India, millions waded into the holy River Ganges, which you can see below, to lend power to the sun. Their efforts paid off: The sun has always returned.

Channel: Washington Post

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Keywords: 360, solar eclipse, mythology, ancient civilizations, history, 360 illustration, illustration, solar eclipse 2017, path of totality

Id: mwJFHhRrP_4

Length: 1min 38sec (98 seconds)

Published: Thu Aug 17 2017