The Mythology and Folklore Database
J58A - Three wizards by the river.




9 Myths, Legends and Folktales
9 Unique Narratives for Motif J58A
8 Cultures & Traditions where J58A is told
0 Mythemes Indexed
3 Sub-Motifs of Motif J58A


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 Motif Summary  -   Motifs with Simlar Dispersals  -    Map of Myth Distribution   -   List of Traditions  -   Myths



Source Data from Berezkin's Analytics Catalogue, if using this data please acknowledge and link to it here:
Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.



Summary of Motif

To cross the river, each of the three men uses his own magical method.

Berezkin category: Avenger heroes: The amerinday cycle

This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part group 11, Tricks and competitions won thanks to deception, absurd and obscene behavior


J58 has 3 other sub-motifs


J58.  Characters shoot arrows (darts) that stick into each other and form a chain. They usually climb up the chain to the upper world.
J58a.  To cross the river, each of the three men uses his own magical method.
J58b.  With the help of a chain of arrows, the sky or the sun is pulled down or pushed up, or a hole is made in the sky.
J58c.  A chain of arrows forms a bridge across a water barrier.

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Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns

MotifSimilarityMotif Summary
B2G100.00%The chameleon walked on the ground when it had not yet hardened.
B98B100.00%The Bat comes into conflict with other creatures in connection with someone's death or funeral.
B98C100.00%The heavenly deity could have healed the bat's mother or child, but did not do so, and they died.
C30B100.00%In response to the claims of an animal or spirit, a person offers to remove their traces from the field or to walk without leaving any traces. The spirit is unable to do so.
D13HH100.00%A person visiting another world should not laugh or show surprise when seeing strange things. Those who break this rule will perish or suffer harm.
E1B1100.00%A man who has married an unusual girl is warned that she must not perform certain tasks or eat certain foods. Other members of his household ensure that the young woman breaks the prohibition, and as a result she dies or disappears.
E31B100.00%Several women participate in reviving a dead man and argue about who did more to revive him.
F73A100.00%The vulva is an unhealed wound on the body of the first women, or the first humans did not copulate because they thought that the vulva was a wound.
H1BB100.00%One character refuses to resurrect another's beloved dog, and this conflict is linked to the loss of the ability to resurrect people.
H31100.00%God summons several characters, including man and the heavenly bodies, and makes man mortal and the heavenly bodies immortal.

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Map of Motif Dispersal

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This motif has been recorded in 8 traditions: Nuba, Hausa, Yoruba; incl Ife), Nupe, Bini (Edo), Engenni, Chamba, Dakka, Kukuruku, Mandingo (Manden, incl San, Samo), Kagoro, Bambara (Bamana), Malinke, Kassonke, Diula, Northern Gur (Oti-Volta): Mamprussi, Dagomba, Dagari (Dagara; incl Lodaga), Bassari, Mosi, Nankanse, Konkomba, Moba; Ditammari, Nyende, Bulsa (pl Builsa, Bulo), Fula (Fulbe, Fulani, Pular), Gola, Aztec; Aztec and Teotihuacan iconography


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