Topic Archive

Myths about Eclipse

Explore myths connected by the recurring theme of Eclipse across cultures, characters, and sacred places.

3 myths currently featured for Eclipse.

Amaterasu Sealing Herself Inside the Heavenly Rock Cave, Plunging the World into Darkness

⛩️ Japanese MythologyAmano-Iwato Shrine, Miyazaki, JapanAmaterasu • Susanoo • Ame-no-Uzume

Driven to deep despair and grief by the destructive, reckless actions of her brother Susanoo, the sun goddess Amaterasu seals herself within the Heavenly Rock Cave, Amano-Iwato. Her withdrawal plunges both the heavens and the earth into complete, terrifying darkness and unleashes countless evil spirits. Through a clever, festive plan devised by the assembly of gods, Amaterasu is lured out of...

Apophis (Apep) Swallowing the Sun During a Solar Eclipse

🏺 Egyptian MythologyHeliopolis (Cairo), EgyptRa • Apophis • Set

Apophis, the ancient Egyptian serpent of chaos, eternally seeks to devour the sun and plunge the world into darkness. During a solar eclipse, the Egyptians believed that the great snake had managed to ambush the sun god Ra's barque during the daylight hours, causing a terrifying disruption of Ma'at. The myth describes the desperate battle between the gods and the demon to ensure the sun...

Fenrir the Wolf Swallowing the Sun During Ragnarök

🪓 Norse MythologySkógafoss, IcelandFenrir • Odin • Loki

The monstrous wolf Fenrir, child of Loki, is the primary harbinger of destruction in Norse mythology, destined to break his magical bonds at the end of the world. During the cataclysmic events of Ragnarök, his kin or his own immense shadow consumes the sun, plunging the realms into eternal darkness before he slays the All-Father, Odin. This story details his birth, the gods' betrayal through...