Sorcerer

Zirega

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Tradition / Region: Chad Mythology
Alternative names: Zirega the Sorceress
Category: Sorceress

The Myth

In the Bulala legend of Prince Tchouroma and the flying horse Bidi-Camoun, Zirega is an aged sorceress who lives on the margins of King Dongo’s kingdom. Though feared for her supernatural knowledge, she ultimately becomes one of the prince’s greatest protectors.

After Princess Aicha chooses the disguised gardener Tchouroma as her husband, King Dongo erupts in fury and banishes both lovers from the palace. Homeless and rejected, they seek refuge with Zirega. Unlike the proud king and his court, the old sorceress welcomes them into her home.

Zirega possesses mysterious powers tied to dreams, animals, healing, and the hidden forces of the wilderness. When King Dongo later falls gravely ill and none of the kingdom’s healers can cure him, the desperate court finally turns to her for help.

The sorceress declares that the king can only be saved by drinking fresh milk from a doe that has just given birth.

On her advice, Tchouroma journeys into the bush. Exhausted beneath a tamarind tree, he falls into a strange half-sleep and hears Zirega’s distant voice guiding him:

“Get up and take a look. I have gathered all the does in the savannah.”

When he awakens, the wilderness has transformed. Countless animals stand peacefully around him as though summoned by invisible magic. A doe voluntarily fills his gourd with healing milk.

Throughout the tale, Zirega acts less like a dark witch and more like a guardian figure connected to ancient spiritual knowledge. She recognizes Tchouroma’s true worth long before the king does, shelters the exiled couple, guides the prince through supernatural trials, and finally reveals to the kingdom that the mysterious warrior who saved them is none other than Tchouroma himself.

At the end of the story, after Tchouroma’s identity is revealed and he marries Princess Aicha, the royal couple honors Zirega for the rest of her life in gratitude for her wisdom and protection.

Zirega represents the archetype of the hidden wise woman found throughout African folklore: an elderly figure living outside ordinary society, feared by many but deeply connected to spiritual truth, nature, prophecy, and miraculous knowledge.

Sources

Seid, J. B. (2007). Told by starlight in Chad (K. H. Hoenig, Trans.). Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press.

Līkcepure

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Tradition / Region: Latvian Mythology
Alternate Names: Nagcepure
Category: Sorcerer

The Myth

Līkcepure is described as the chief of witches, a powerful supernatural figure distinguished by a crooked hat with a brim made from human cut nails, and referred to as lame.

In the story, during the witches’ gathering inside the devil’s pit, Līkcepure appears after the others have performed their rituals. He emerges hissing and is identified as the leader among the witches. He asks whether everything is prepared, and upon confirmation, strikes a block with an axe. The room fills with fire, and the block transforms into a golden chariot, while the axe becomes a dragon harnessed to it.

He rides with the old witch and takes part in the gathering where the dragon breathes sparks and smoke. When a man named Kangars is brought before him, Līkcepure declares that his time has come and orders that he be thrown into the dragon’s throat. After Kangars begs for more time, Līkcepure offers to spare him if he agrees to certain conditions. Kangars accepts, and Līkcepure grants him additional years.

After this, Līkcepure announces that the matter is finished, departs with the witch, and disappears as fire fills the chamber again.

Sources

AILAB contributors. (n.d.). Pumpurs – Lāčplēsis (2. daļa). In AILAB, from https://web.archive.org/web/20060131100630/http://www.ailab.lv/Teksti/Senie/Pumpurs/2.dala.html

Pumpurs, A. (1888). Lāčplēsis (Bearslayer), II Song: The Bear-World’s First Heroic Deed. In Latvian national epic poetry.

Gastó

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Tradition / Region: Andorran Mythology
Alternate Names: Gastó of Fontaneda
Category: Sorcerer

The Myth

Gastó is remembered as a powerful village sorcerer and healer, known for diagnosing and curing mysterious illnesses that ordinary medicine could not explain. His knowledge combined herbal remedies, ritual practices, and insight into hidden supernatural causes.

In the story of Cal Cametes, a young pregnant woman begins to waste away without any visible illness. Despite medical help, her condition worsens daily. Desperate, her husband travels across the land to seek Gastó’s aid.

The sorcerer first prescribes herbs to be taken as a drink, then additional remedies paired with prayers, and finally protective measures involving sacred symbols placed at the threshold of the home. When none of these work, Gastó realizes the illness is not natural.

He identifies the cause as the evil eye, cast by the woman’s own mother-in-law out of jealousy. To prove it, he instructs the husband to place an egg beneath his mother’s bed overnight. By morning, the egg has turned black and rotten, confirming the presence of malevolent influence.

Following Gastó’s guidance, the husband purifies the house with holy water and prayers, breaking the curse. The young woman recovers quickly and gives birth to a healthy child.

Gastó’s role in the tale is not that of a dark magician, but of a discerning practitioner who exposes hidden harm and restores balance, standing between human life and unseen destructive forces.

Sources

Valls, À., & Carol, R. (2023). Llegendes d’Andorra. In Encamp-Montellà: Anem Editors p. 56.

Qulyabani

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Tradition / Region: Azerbaijani mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Sorcerer

The Myth

Qulyabani wanders the steppes and cemeteries, waiting for travelers who walk too late into the night. He looks like a man covered in dark hair, but his feet are turned backward, marking him as something unnatural. He speaks with a human voice and often challenges those he meets, delighting in fear and confusion.

Though dangerous, Qulyabani can be bound. If someone is clever enough to stick a needle into the collar of his clothing, he becomes their servant. Yet his obedience is twisted. Every command is fulfilled in reverse or in the most harmful way possible.

Thus, Qulyabani is both threat and temptation—a being whose power can be used, but never trusted, and whose tricks often punish those who believe they can control him.

Source

JAMnews contributors. (2017, August 20). The magical creatures of Azerbaijani mythology. In JAMnews, from https://jam-news.net/azerbaijani-demons/

Külmking

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Tradition / Region: Estonian mythology
Category: Sorcerer

The Myth

Külmking is a spirit of the unholy dead, a being that did not find peace after death and now wanders on the margins of the human and forest worlds. It is said to prey upon children, particularly those who disturb or disrespect the spirits of the forest.

In this belief, Külmking acts as a grim enforcer of unseen boundaries. Children who mock, provoke, or ignore the presence of forest spirits risk drawing its attention, and once noticed, the punishment is fatal. The spirit is not described in detail, emphasizing its role rather than its form: it is the consequence of taboo-breaking rather than a creature meant to be clearly seen.

Külmking reflects a warning embedded in Estonian folklore—that the forest is not a place of careless behavior, and that disrespect toward its hidden powers can awaken forces born of death, impurity, and moral transgression.

Tuuslar

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Tradition / Region: Estonian Mythology, Finnish Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Sorcerer

The Myth

A Finnish Tuuslar once fled across the sea to the island of Lavassaare, pursued by enemies who sought to destroy him. As he fled, he used his magic to defend himself. He transformed fish in the surrounding waters into terrifying sea monsters, hoping to frighten his pursuers away. Even so, they continued after him and reached the small island.

When the enemies landed, the Tuuslar took a handful of feathers from his beak and blew them into the air. At once, warriors fell from the sky like hail, filling the island and driving the attackers into panic. Terrified, they fled, leaving the Tuuslar alone on Lavassaare.

The Tuuslar remained on the island for many years. From there, he played tricks on the people living along the Viru coast, using his witchcraft to deceive and trouble them. At last, he departed, flying away on the back of a great northern eagle, and was never seen again.

After his departure, the island of Lavassaare stood empty for a long time. People feared to land there, believing the Tuuslar’s magic still lingered. Eventually, peaceful Finns arrived and settled the island. These settlers were said to have lost their witchcraft spells, and their descendants are believed to live on the island to this day.

According to the legend, children are sometimes seen playing and throwing feathers into the air, saying, “Let’s try—can we get shepherds?” remembering the Tuuslar’s magic.

Another tale tells that a Finnish Tuuslar once threw a stone at the sleeping Kalevipoeg, but missed. The stone was said to remain near the Suigu farm in Viru-Jaagupi, marking the place where the spell failed.