Murile
Chaga · mortal · mythic past · Recorded classification
Chaga folktale culture-hero (the Mrile/Murile cycle) collected by Gutmann and retold by Alice Werner. A mortal youth, not a god; classified mortal. The distinct fragmentary figure 'Mrule, the stranger from the sky' (one-legged, half grass) is not merged here. No death recorded (he returns home), so vitalStatus 'alive'.
Powers
- ascend to the sky-country on a stool
- bring fire-making to the Moon-chief
Sources
- Murile (Mrile) is the Kilimanjaro youth who ascends on a magic stool to the sky-country, reaches the kraal of the Moon-chief, gives him fire by friction and is richly rewarded, then returns to earth.: Werner, A. (1933). Myths and Legends of the Bantu. London: Harrap & Co., ch. V ('Mortals who have visited the sky'). (reference); Gutmann, B. (1909). Dichten und Denken der Dschagga-Neger. Leipzig (collection of the Mrile cycle). (reference)