Mythology!

Tçaridyi

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Tradition: Romani Mythology, Czech Mythology
Alternative Names: The Hot One, The Burning One
Category: Insect

The Myth

Tçaridyi is a small, hairy worm or caterpillar that causes fever and inflammation in women. Her body is covered in long hairs that detach as she moves through the human body. These hairs are believed to irritate the tissues, producing heat, pain, and illness. She travels through the arteries and veins, infesting women and bringing particular suffering through puerperal fever.

Tçaridyi is one of the disease-causing children of Ana, a Keshali fairy in Romani folklore, and the King of the Loçolico. She was conceived unnaturally to become the wife of Tçulo, one of Ana’s other offspring. Tçulo had become increasingly troublesome, even persecuting his own sister Lilyi, and Melalo suggested that the King produce a wife for him to distract him. The precise circumstances of Tçaridyi’s conception are unknown, although the account suggests that worms may have been involved.

Tçaridyi and Tçulo became the parents of beings responsible for women’s diseases. While both spouses torment humanity, they are said to rarely cause death. Tçaridyi’s particular danger lies in the way her detached hairs bring fever and inflammation as she moves through a woman’s bloodstream.

Tçaridyi represents disease as a tiny creature that enters the body and causes harm through its movements. Her worm-like form and irritating hairs offer a supernatural explanation for fever and inflammation, while her association with puerperal fever places her among the disease demons feared for the dangers they posed to women.

Sources

“Tcaridyi.” A Book of Creatures, October 14, 2016. https://abookofcreatures.com/2016/10/14/tcaridyi/


Bitoso

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Tradition: Romani Mythology, Czech Mythology
Alternative Names: The Faster, The Fasting One
Category: Insect

The Myth

Bitoso is a small, multi-headed worm in Romani folklore, described in some accounts as having four heads. He lives within the body and causes a range of relatively mild ailments, including headaches, stomachaches, and loss of appetite. His gnawing is believed to produce earaches and toothaches, making him a supernatural explanation for the painful sensations associated with illness. Among the disease-causing beings in his family, Bitoso is considered the least harmful.

Bitoso is one of the children of Ana, a Keshali fairy who was coerced into bearing the offspring of the King of the Loçolico. His birth followed advice from Melalo, who recommended that the King eat garlic upon which he had urinated. After the King visited Ana, she gave birth to Bitoso, who later became the husband of Schilalyi.

Bitoso and Schilalyi have children responsible for further ailments, including colic, cramps, tinnitus, and toothache. Through this family, physical suffering is represented as the work of supernatural creatures living within or affecting the human body. Although Bitoso himself is comparatively harmless, his offspring contribute to the range of pains and discomforts attributed to their lineage.

The belief that worms cause toothache has a much older history beyond Romani folklore. An ancient Babylonian tale describes how a worm came into existence through a chain of creation beginning with the heavens and continuing through the Earth, rivers, canals, and marshes. The worm then approached the gods Shamash and Ea, demanding food. Rejecting figs and pomegranates, it instead chose to live between the teeth and jawbone, where it would destroy blood vessels, seize the roots, and weaken the teeth.

Bitoso belongs to a tradition in which worms are imagined as hidden agents of bodily pain. His multiple heads and gnawing behaviour make him an unsettling but relatively mild member of Ana’s disease-causing offspring, embodying the idea that even ordinary aches and pains can have a living supernatural cause.

Sources

“Bitoso.” A Book of Creatures, November 18, 2016. https://abookofcreatures.com/2016/11/18/bitoso/


Tetsugi

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Iron Ants
Category: Insect

The Myth

Tetsugi are iron ants that inhabit particular regions of the Buddhist hells, where they torment condemned souls. These supernatural insects are described as deadly creatures capable of attacking the entire body, devouring flesh, drinking blood, severing tendons, breaking bones, and consuming the marrow and internal organs of their victims.

In the Shūchūshūchū Hell, one of the sixteen subsidiary regions of the Hell of Crushing, iron ants attack sinners while flames engulf their bodies. According to the Sūtra on the Right Mindfulness, people who committed sexual acts with sheep or donkeys during their lives and failed to respect the Buddha fall into this hell after death. There, the combination of burning fire and the relentless attacks of the iron ants subjects them to prolonged and terrible suffering. The condemned cry out in agony as the insects tear into their bodies.

Iron ants also inhabit Issaikonmetsu Hell, another subsidiary region of the Hell of Crushing. This realm punishes those who committed sexual acts with women through the anus. The condemned endure additional tortures imposed by the hell’s wardens, including being forced to drink molten copper liquid from a heated iron bowl and having white wax poured into their ears. Amid these punishments, iron ants and other black insects of iron, surrounded by flames, attack their bodies and devour their eyes.

Tetsugi represent the merciless creatures of Buddhist hell, where supernatural insects serve as instruments of punishment for the sins committed during earthly life. Their iron bodies and destructive feeding make them especially terrifying, as they inflict suffering by consuming not only flesh and blood but also the deeper structures of the body. In these hells, their attacks ensure that the condemned endure further torment alongside fire and the punishments administered by the wardens.

Sources

“Tetsugi.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1074589331.html


Nitouchu

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Nitouchū
Category: Insect

The Myth

Nitouchu is a strange insect described as resembling a cricket or caterpillar, with an unusual feature that sets it apart from ordinary insects: it has a head at both ends of its body. Its appearance is recorded in the Himeguni Sankai Roku, an illustrated book describing unusual insects found in different regions of Japan.

Despite its strange form, Nitouchu is specifically distinguished from a centipede. The surviving description provides no further details about its behaviour, habitat, size, or whether it was believed to possess any supernatural abilities.

The Himeguni Sankai Roku, completed around 1762 by Professor Minamiya, records twenty-five types of unusual insects accompanied by illustrations. Nitouchu is one of these curious creatures, although even the original author did not know exactly what kind of insect it was. Its identity and origins therefore remain uncertain.

Sources

“Nitouchu.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1021229162.html


Akuchu

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Kuchu
Category: Insect

The Myth

Akuchu is a small, harmful insect believed to live inside the human body and cause illness. It is described as a red creature with six legs, a pointed proboscis, and a tail fin. Unlike ordinary insects, it inhabits the body rather than the outside world, making it a hidden source of sickness.

According to the Harimonsho, a book on acupuncture, Akuchu attaches itself to a person and feeds on their food. It is said to reside in the spleen, where it consumes nourishment and brings harm to its host. Its presence reflects a traditional belief that disease could be caused by tiny creatures living within the body.

The account states that taking Mukou, a type of herbal medicine, causes all the Akuchu to disappear. This remedy offers a way to eliminate the harmful insects and restore the body. Although the description is brief, Akuchu represents a supernatural explanation for illness in which an unseen creature lives within a person and feeds at their expense.

Sources

“Akuchuu.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1010654395.html


Jiuchong

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Tradition: Chinese Mythology
Alternative Names: Wine Worm, Alcohol Worm
Category: Insect

The Myth

The Jiuchong is a small, red, worm-like creature that lives inside a human body and creates an insatiable desire for alcohol. It is described as a fleshy creature approximately three inches long, with a mouth and eyes, wriggling like a fish in water. Its presence allows its host to consume enormous quantities of wine without becoming drunk, while leaving them with a constant need to drink.

The creature appears in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio (Liaozhai Zhiyi), in the story of Liu, a wealthy man from Changshan who was exceptionally fond of drinking. Whenever he drank alone, he could finish an entire wine jar. He was so devoted to alcohol that he planted half of his three hundred mu of farmland with millet used for brewing. Although he drank heavily, his wealth meant that this habit did not initially cause him financial difficulties.

A foreign Buddhist monk eventually recognized that Liu’s unusual drinking ability was caused by a wine worm living inside him. The monk offered to remove it without medicine. Liu was made to lie face down in the midday sun, with his hands and feet tied, while a vessel of fine wine was placed just beyond his reach. As thirst and the smell of wine became unbearable, Liu suddenly felt an intense itching in his throat and vomited the creature into the wine. The red worm wriggled in the vessel, and Liu was finally freed from its influence.

The monk refused payment in gold but asked to keep the wine worm. He explained that it was the essence of wine and possessed a remarkable ability: when placed in a jar of water and stirred around, it could transform the water into excellent wine. Liu tested this claim and found it to be true. Yet after the worm was removed, he developed an intense aversion to alcohol. His body gradually grew thinner, his wealth dwindled, and eventually his household became too poor to provide sufficient food.

The story ends with a reflection on Liu’s strange reversal of fortune. When he drank an enormous amount of wine, his wealth remained intact; after he stopped drinking, poverty overtook him. The tale leaves open whether the wine worm had truly been a disease or whether it had been the source of Liu’s former prosperity. The Jiuchong is therefore both a parasitic creature that controls a person’s appetite and a supernatural source of wine, whose removal changes its host’s life in unexpected ways.

Sources

“酒虫.” 维基百科，自由的百科全书. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%85%92%E8%99%AB


Gooseberry Wife

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Tradition: English Mythology
Alternative Names: Gooseberry-Wife
Category: Insect

The Myth

The Gooseberry Wife is a monstrous, hairy caterpillar believed to guard gooseberry bushes on the Isle of Wight. She is described as an enormous caterpillar covered in thick hair, making her an intimidating presence among the branches and leaves of the garden. Despite her unusual appearance, she belongs to the familiar world of plants and insects, where she serves as a frightening figure in local nursery folklore.

The Gooseberry Wife was used to frighten children away from gooseberry bushes. Adults warned that anyone who went into the garden would be caught by the creature, using the threat of the hairy caterpillar to discourage children from approaching the bushes. The warning was expressed in the rhyme: “If ye goes out in the garden, the gooseberry-wife ‘ll be sure to ketch ye.”

The Gooseberry Wife was considered one of the most obvious nursery bogies of the countryside. Her existence was apparently not expected to convince adults, but the image of an enormous, hairy caterpillar guarding the gooseberry bushes provided a memorable threat for children. Like other nursery bogies, she turned an ordinary part of the countryside into a place of imagined danger, using a creature associated with the garden to keep children away from places where they were not wanted.

Sources

“Kryzhovnichnaja Zhenushka.” New Bestiary (Bestiary.us). https://www.bestiary.us/kryzhovnichnaja-zhenushka/en


Mamarro

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Tradition: Basque Mythology, Spanish Mythology
Alternative Names: Galtzagorri, Mamorro, Mamurru, Mamarrao, Mamor, Mamur, Maimur, Prakagorriak, Ximelgorriak
Category: Insect

The Myth

Mamarroak are tiny supernatural beings that can resemble insects or miniature humans. They are often depicted wearing distinctive red trousers, which is why they are also known as Galtzagorri, or “red trousers.” Although their precise appearance can vary, these little spirits are known for their extraordinary ability to perform tasks at incredible speed, accomplishing even seemingly impossible work when given instructions.

In Basque folklore, Mamarroak are generally benevolent spirits that help people with their daily chores and protect the households in which they live. However, they must always have something to do. When their owners fail to give them work, they can become troublesome or dangerous. People who possessed these spirits were sometimes said to have supernatural abilities, and stories credit Mamarroak with helping their masters perform remarkable feats.

Mamarroak were traditionally kept in small containers, sometimes made from needle cases, which could hold as many as four spirits. When someone opened a container, the creatures would emerge and fly around the owner’s head, repeatedly demanding, “What shall we do?” or “Work! Work!” Once given an order, they would immediately set about completing it. Their eagerness to work could be useful, but their owners had to choose their instructions carefully.

According to one tale from Kortezubi, a man who owned Mamarroak gave them several tasks, each of which they completed successfully. When they returned and asked what they should do next, he ordered them to carry water in a sieve. Unable to accomplish this impossible task, the spirits abandoned him. The story illustrates that even these extraordinarily capable beings had limits, and that an owner could escape their persistent demands by giving them work they could not perform.

Other legends describe people using Mamarroak to accomplish feats beyond ordinary human ability. A priest from Aizpuru supposedly travelled to Madrid and attended a bullfight with the help of the spirits. In Zarautz, a shepherd secretly placed their container on the yoke of his oxen during a competition, allowing his animals to pull a heavy stone farther than their rivals. The priest Juanis of Bargota was also credited with numerous extraordinary deeds, including building his house and performing acts of apparent magic with the spirits’ assistance.

Keeping Mamarroak could also become a burden. Some owners were said to retain their spirits throughout their lives, only to find themselves unable to die peacefully until they had disposed of them by destroying, selling, or giving them away. In one story from Bedia, a priest discovered a small bag of Mamarroak beside a dying woman. He threw the bag into the fire, where the spirits disappeared with loud neighing sounds. Only then was the woman able to die.

Mamarroak are therefore powerful but demanding household helpers. Their tiny size contrasts with the remarkable strength and speed they provide, while their constant need for employment makes them both useful companions and potentially troublesome possessions. In Basque tradition, they represent supernatural assistance that can bring extraordinary success, provided their owner knows how to control their tireless desire to work.

Sources

“Mamarro.” Viquipèdia, l’enciclopèdia lliure. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamarro


Great-hand

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Tradition: Scottish Mythology
Alternative Names: Great Hand
Category: House dweller

The Myth

Great-hand is a terrifying creature said to haunt the underground passages beneath Edinburgh’s Old Town. It dwells in a tunnel running beneath the Royal Mile, between Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyrood. The passage was once used by soldiers to launch surprise attacks, but after it fell into disuse, Great-hand took up residence there. Its presence made the tunnel so feared that it was eventually abandoned entirely. According to the legend, nobody who entered ever came out alive.

The creature’s appearance is almost entirely unknown. The only part of Great-hand ever seen is an enormous, grisly hand with fingernails resembling the claws of an eagle. Whether the hand belongs to a larger body remains a mystery, as nobody has reportedly seen anything beyond this monstrous limb.

Eventually, a piper decided to challenge the terror surrounding the tunnel. He announced that he would walk through it while playing his pipes, allowing those waiting outside to follow his progress by listening to the music. He took his dog with him and entered through a cave near the Castle. As he descended underground, the sound of his pipes could be heard travelling beneath the city.

When the music reached the Heart of Midlothian, it suddenly stopped. The waiting crowd became alarmed and returned to the cave entrance. The piper was nowhere to be seen, but his dog came running out in absolute terror, having lost all its hair. Whatever had happened underground had frightened the animal so severely that it emerged completely hairless. After this incident, the tunnel was blocked up at both ends, sealing off the place where Great-hand was believed to dwell.

Great-hand belongs to a wider tradition of Scottish stories about haunted caves and dangerous underground places. Similar tales feature bold pipers who attempt to cross forbidden passages, only for their music to stop and their animals to return in a state of terror. These stories warn against venturing into places where the living world seems to give way to unknown horrors. Great-hand’s unseen body and monstrous hand make it especially unsettling: the audience is left to imagine the creature lurking in the darkness, beyond the reach of ordinary sight.

Sources

“Great Hand.” A Book of Creatures, April 5, 2019. https://abookofcreatures.com/2019/04/05/great-hand/

Furuya no Mori

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Furuyanmori, Furuyanoboru, Ameyanmori, Muru, Morudo, Furuzomoruzo
Category: House dweller

The Myth

Furuya no Mori is a mysterious and terrifying entity in a widely known Japanese folktale. Its name literally refers to a leak in an old house, where rainwater drips through a damaged roof. Although it is not necessarily a real monster within the story, its name becomes so frightening that even dangerous animals and thieves believe it must be a terrifying supernatural being.

The tale begins on a rainy night, when an old man and woman are resting in their house. A ferocious animal, often described as a tiger or wolf, enters the area intending to steal or attack their livestock. A thief also sneaks into the house, hoping to take advantage of the darkness. Inside, the old couple complain about the Furuya no Mori, speaking as though it is far more frightening than tigers and wolves and lamenting that it has come again that night.

The animal overhears their conversation and becomes terrified. Believing that a creature more powerful and dangerous than itself must be nearby, it trembles in fear. At the same moment, the startled thief falls from the ceiling onto the animal’s back. The animal assumes that the thief is the dreaded Furuya no Mori and bolts away at full speed, carrying the terrified thief with it.

Eventually, the thief manages to escape from the animal but falls into a deep hole from which he cannot climb. A monkey comes to investigate and lowers its long tail into the hole. The thief grabs the tail, hoping to pull himself out, but he clings so tightly that the monkey’s tail breaks. According to this version of the story, this explains why monkeys have short tails.

The details vary between regional versions. The animal that fears Furuya no Mori may be a tiger, wolf, wild boar, badger, or baboon. Some versions feature a supernatural creature such as Yamajiji, while others use imaginary animal names resembling combinations such as “tiger-wolf” or “lion-wolf.” When the story features a tiger, an animal not native to Japan, some versions explain its presence by placing the story in China or Korea, or claim that tigers once fled Japan because they were frightened of Furuya no Mori.

The entity’s name also changes according to local dialects. Many alternatives refer to a leaking roof in an old house, while some stories leave its nature vague, describing it simply as something terrifying. In other versions, the tiger or thief explicitly mistakes the supposed entity for a monster. One unusual variant from Taki District in Hyōgo Prefecture replaces the mysterious leak with a persimmon: a crying child is threatened with being eaten by a tiger, but when the child stops crying after receiving a persimmon, the tiger becomes frightened of the fruit, believing it to be more terrifying than itself.

Furuya no Mori is an example of a folktale in which fear arises from misunderstanding rather than from an actual monster. The old couple are referring to an ordinary household problem, but the intruders interpret their words as evidence of a terrible creature. The resulting confusion turns a harmless leak into a source of supernatural terror. The tale has been widely transmitted throughout Japan, with a written version recorded in the 1768 collection Kidan Isshō under the title Yarou Kai. Similar stories involving frightened animals, mistaken identities, and thieves caught in the confusion are also found in China, Korea, Mongolia, India, and elsewhere.

Sources

“Furuya no Mori.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1074589384.html