Peacock's & Evil Spirits

Facts About Peacocks:

* In the Middle East, the Kurduish Jezidi ("devil worshippers") viewed Melek Taus or "King Peacock" as a messenger of God.
* Muslims thought the peacock symbolized the cosmos (the sun and the moon)
* Peacocks were thought to be excellent guards. In Islamic folklore, the peacock stood guard at the gates of Paradise, but the peafowl carried Satan into the Garden of Eden, after consuming him.
* Christians thought, in early times, that the peacock's blood could dispel evil spirits.
* In Egyptian, Greek, and Roman mythology, the peacock feathers were considered much like the evil eye. They were all seeing.
The Egyptian myth about Argus is an example.
Argus was a traitor to Osiris. In Osiris's absence, Argus locked Isis (wife of Osiris) in his castle and then proclaimed himself "King." When Osiris returned he learned of the ambitions of Argus, and the kidnapping of his beloved wife. Argus had spies everywhere, in the Kingdom of Osiris. A cure was placed upon Argus that from that day forward he would be a peacock and all his spies would be the peafowl's eyes. These eyes were placed in the bird's tail.

My piece is about the different myths I have read about peacocks and their relationship to evil spirits in different cultures and religions. It was fascinating to me as I researched evil spirits that the peacock appeared as a symbol of good and evil. In every one of the three main religions, the peacock has a long history in holy books, mythology, and legends.

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