Leviathan is a mythical sea monster that emerges from the water mainly during a storm. Mysteriousness and inaccessibility made this creature popular, and the name itself became a household name. In modern times, this definition has received a slightly different interpretation.
Leviathan is translated from Hebrew as "twisted" or "twisted". In the modern sense, it is a whale. This is a sea monster, the first mention of which was written in the Tanakh (Old Testament).
The origin of the Leviathan
In the Ugaritic mythological cycle, this creature, called Latanu, is positioned as a sea monster with several heads. It is the companion of the Buddhist god Yama.
People who lived in Ancient Egypt believed that their country was guarded by a powerful fortress from the north, impenetrable deserts from the south and west, and the eastern part was guarded by crocodiles. There is an assumption that, when describing these crocodiles, the Egyptians drew in their own imagination exactly the leviathan. In the future, in order to eliminate subordinate people, they attributed to this creature an unknown power and strength. Leviathan's appearance and physical capabilities gradually became overgrown with legends.
Leviathan was mentioned several times in the books of the Old Testament:
- Job;
- The Book of Psalms;
- in the Book of Isaiah.
The English poet, thinker and politician John Milton (1608-1674) portrays Leviathan as a sea monster that lives near the Norwegian cliffs. There is also a legend that this beast appears from the depths of the sea exclusively during a storm and can destroy ships.
Findings during excavations
In the Ica Desert, located in Peru, excavations were carried out, as a result of which scientists discovered the remains of the skeleton of an ancient sperm whale. It has been suggested that this creature lived in ocean waters about 12-13 million years ago. Scientists were amazed at the size of the remains. So, the surviving skull was about 3 meters long. Based on this, it was found that the size of the animal's body could reach 17.5 meters. Parameters of teeth 12x36 cm.
Presence in culture
The very word "Leviathan" in the modern world has become a household name. It is often used to refer to something or someone of gigantic proportions.
There are also other interesting facts:
- One of Boris Akunin's novels bears the same name.
- In the computer game Devil May Cry 3 there is a character - a huge demon called Leviathan. According to the plot, he swallowed the main character of the game, but the latter managed to break the heart of the beast and defeat him.
- In 2014, a film by director Andrei Zvyagintsev entitled "Leviathan" was released in Russia.
At the moment, it is not known for sure whether Leviathan actually existed or whether this creature is a figment of someone's imagination. It should be borne in mind that in different works and in photographs the creature is depicted in different ways.
