One of the most interesting and popular legends that are still being told today is about one eyed giants and monsters. They were thought to be much taller than ordinary people, and they had one eye in the center of their foreheads. These creatures often have a reputation as guardians or evil bosses in ancient myths and legends. One eyed demons can be found in many different cultures around the world. They are often seen as enemies of humans, and are often used in horror films and stories as villains. Some believe that they were once human beings who were cursed by god or the devil, and that they now seek to spread fear and havoc among people.
The one-eyed giant has dominated popular imagination for thousands of years and this is the reason you are here for knowing the most fascinating and powerful One eyed giants from lore and mythos.
1 Kabandha
Kabandha (One Eyed Giant) was a headless demon or Rakshasa, that is mentioned in the Ramayana. Kabandha had a grotesque shape; His mouth was on his belly and he had a big, round eye on his forehead which was settled on his chest. According to the Ramayana, Kabandha was a giant and also had two enormous arms.
He was generally a Gandharva who was cursed by Sthulashiras. Before he was cursed, his name was Vishvavasu, and was greatly handsome. As a monster, he used to take frightening forms in order to scare and upset humans and saints.
It is said that, When Sri Ram and Lakshman were looking for Mata Sita after she had been kidnapped by Ravan, they were surprised by Kabandha and after they were caught by Kabandha. Kabandha grabbed hold of both Sri Ram and Lakshman in his huge arms. With the strength of his mighty arms, there was no way for them to get free, so they eventually cut off his two hands and freed themselves.
During one of the escapades, Sage Sthulashiras cursed Kabandha and told him that he would return to his handsome form when Sri Ram would cut off his arms and cremate him after his death. Not long afterwards, Kabandha died and Sri Ram and Lakshman cremated him. The curse was fulfilled and Vishvavasu returned to his original form.
2 Balor
Balor, also called as Balor of the Evil Eye, was a tyrant warrior that perpetuated destruction whenever he opened his giant eye. When his large eye is opened it unleashes great power, which unfortunately leads to destruction for all who encounter it. He is said to be of the Fomorians, an ancient race of semi-divine beings from Irish mythology. He has historically been interpreted as the personification of drought, blight, and violent sun.
The legend of Balor is said to be that he was the son of Buarainech, husband of Cethlenn, and grandson of Neit. He’s described as a giant with one eye who oppresses Ireland from his fortress on Tory Island.
In a prophecy about his own downfall, Balor learned that he would be killed by his grandson. Convinced of the prophecy’s truth, he sought to avoid this future. As other opponent figures have done in various mythologies, On the Tory Island, Balor locked up his daughter in order to keep her from becoming pregnant.
Ethniu was already pregnant and thereafter she gave birth a son who eventually became one of the best warriors for the Tuatha Dé Danann and lastly king. A spear created by Goibniu tore Balor’s eye off his skull, causing its black magics to be turned back against his own army and giving Tuatha Dé Danann a victory in the war. After Lugh had beaten and slaughtered an injured Balor, thereby ending the chief of their enemy’s reign of terror.
3 Bungisngis
Of all the creatures of Philippine folklore, one of the most famous is Bungisngis. Bungisngis: a one-eyed giant who is part of Filipino folklore. This one-eyed giant supposedly lives near Meluz in Orion, Bataan and is said to be always laughing. The origin of the word Bungingis has been debated, but the most widely accepted meaning is derived from the Tagalog word ngisi which means “to giggle.”
This creature is also shaped like a human. It has large teeth that are always visible, and it will cover its face with its upper mouth when its lips have been thrown back, It means When its upper lip falls back from the bottom of the jaw, it completely covers the lower face. The giant has two long tusks on either side of its face. Its large eye is located in the middle of its forehead. The Bungisngi was a massive, tall creature that stood more than 10-20 feet high.
This creature is unusual because it has only one eye. On the other hand, it has great hearing, and displays uncommon strength. In the Filipino folklore “The Three Friends – The Monkey, The Dog and The Carabao,” the giant is able to pick and throw the carabao with such force so hard that it ends up knee-deep in the land. In this story, Monkey’s tricks led Bungisngis to his death.
4 Fachan
This creature was really unique because It had a tuft of black hair or feathers on its head, and a very large mouth, but what’s most unusual is that it only had one body organ of each type; for example, only one arm, one leg and eye and covered with fur. The Fachan displays a frightening and dreadful appearance.
This monster (Fachan) wielded a spiked club, and used it to scare away (and sometimes kill) anything that came near it. It despises all other life forms. It only comes out in the whole year, but its lair can be identified quite easily due to there being no trees or animals around – just jejune ground. One arm, one leg. Though it may be lacking in balance, it makes up for its strength that has been optimized to its strong limbs.
Fachan was rumored to be an incredibly powerful demon despite his clumsy appearance and could cause destruction to entire farms in a single day. Commonly regarded as one of the ugliest demons, he would often trigger heart attacks or even madness in humans who got a good look at his terrifying form.
5 Papinijuwari
In the Tiwi mythology, The Papinijuwari was a one-eyed demon with a club, who stayed in a cottage at the end of the sky. This giant travels around the heavens using fire to stomp and kill anything in its path. The torches it uses can be seen as shooting stars by humans since it warns them of its coming arrival.
The papinijuwari was mythical and evil creatures who descended upon the earth and consumed the dead. In some parts of the world, papinijuwari devour human flesh to show their contempt for the living. They feed off of the dead similar to ghouls.
While this creature has the opportunity to target a victim, it will hunt them down and consume as much blood from their body as fast as possible. But that’s not all: It will then enter their body and consume even more blood from the inside out, eventually killing them.
6 Mapinguari
The Mapinguari or Mapinguary was once a shaman who discovered the secret key to immortality thousands of years ago in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest region. It is believed that after angering the gods, he was severely punished for his discovery. He was transformed into a beast of his choice: a wandering, old, hairy beast with filthy long nails for the rest of his life.
There are a lot of myths surrounding the giant, and these myths can range on how it looks different. Some say it has one eye, long claws, a second mouth on its belly, caiman skin and backwards feet while others only mention one eye and claws. The appearance of the mapinguari was vague at first. What exactly it looked like was left unsaid, but it was described as a primate and dark, with thick limbs that were bipedal and flexible but still very skittish. The mapinguari folklore holds that this giant was ape- or man-like creatures, which isn’t the same as what’s traditionally depicted.
Mapinguari was a strange-looking animal that was first described by researcher Paulo Aníbal G. Mesquita as a flat-nosed quadrupedal animal with skin similar to caiman, long brown fur, and even robust claws. The mapinguari is believed to be a heavy, powerfully-built animal that can be up to two meters tall when standing bipedally.
It’s thought to break the roots of trees with its steps, according to a 2001 paper. It is covered in long and coarse fur that ranges in color from reddish to brownish to blackish. It also has a muzzle similar to that of a horse or a burro, though shorter. Mapinguari has four canine teeth and is sparsely populated.
7 Popobawa
According to locals in Tanzania, the Popo Bawa is an evil spirit which first appeared on the island of Pemba and haunts nearby coastal waters. In 1995, it was an outbreak of mass hysteria that spread from the Pemba Archipelago to Unguja and the rest of the mainland.
The Popobawa, one-eyed giant is a shape-shifting creature that takes different forms. Though originally referred to as being “as bat-like as its namesake implies,” the Popobawa does not just take on the form of a bat. It can change into human or animal form and metamorphose from one form into the another. The Popobawa is a big and scary monster that visits homes during the night. It can also be seen during the day.
Sometimes, the Popobawa is connected with a strong smell. However, not all attacks are preceded by odors. Although the creature usually targets men, women and children, it may target members of a family before it moves on to other home in the locality. The typical nightly attack of this type consists of simple physical assault or poltergeist-like events. However, the most dangerous one is sexual assault and the sodomizing of adult men and women.
It’s often hard for victims of abuse to come forward and talk about what’s happening to them. There are even some cases where they are told that if they don’t, Popobawa will return and do worse things to them again. Most people return to their homes once the panic is over and try to guard against an attack by staying awake during the night and around an open fire.
The most common cases of panic attacks happen in Zanzibar, the island of Pemba, and other places mainly in Zanzibar and in Unguja. And they can also happen in Dar es Salaam and some other towns on the coast of Tanzania.
8 Cyclops
One of the ancient Greek deities, the Cyclopes were said to be children of Earth and Sky. They are also thought to be one of the generations before the Olympian gods. The Cyclopes were known to live in a faraway land of nameless location, where there were no rules and laws. Some people believed that they did not venture outside the caves of their homeland. There the giant creatures grazed animals such as sheeps or goats and lived in caves without any specific laws or regulations.
Hesiod makes and mentions names of these three cyclopes: Brontes (Thunder), Steropes (Lightning), and Arges (Bright). The trio would go on to father more of their kind, although they were later slaughtered by Apollo in vengeance for Zeus’s death of his son Asclepius, a demigod and master of medicine.
The ancient Greeks believed the three cyclopes’ ghosts were said to haunt an active volcano in Sicily, known as Mount Etna. Indeed, their one-eyed appearance may have been linked with volcanoes because of the craters they had on their faces and also because of one eye associated with burning in ancient literature.
These creatures were identical to the gods, but they had only one giant eye set in their foreheads. They were known as “Circle-Eyed” because of a single circle shaped giant eye on the middle of their heads. Their works included power, potency and clever contrivances.
9 Arimaspi
Arimaspi is a legendary monster (One-eyed giant) that has the body look like a mountain goat, else stands straight, has sharp claws, and a giant single eye that shines brightly in the sun. He was furnished with many golden accessories, making it even more greedy-looking and described as a selfish personality.
A long time ago, the Arimaspi attacked Griffonstone to obtain the Idol of Boreas. Griffonstone has been inhabited for a long time. King Guto and his army tried to stop them, but they were unable to do this. The Arimaspi made off with the idol, and escaped out the casement.
After being cornered by the griffons, he tried to escape by climbing over a Abysmal Abyss bridge. Before he was able to make it, the bridge was struck by lightning, sending him falling off and triggering the collapse of the bridge after he died and took the idol with him.
Another story, the episode shows a flashback and reveals the story of Arimaspi’s fate. Later, when Pinkie Pie and Gilda try to protect Rainbow Dash from dropping into the Abysmal Abyss, they reach the area where Arimaspi’s skull can be seen next to the idol, proving the proof that he did die.
10 Graeae
Ancient mythology is sometimes overlooked in today’s society, and not many people are aware of the legends and characters that existed millennia ago. In Greek mythology, the Graeae, also called the Stygian Witches or the Gray Sisters, were three witch-like appearance sisters. These elder goddesses were the children of the elemental gods Phorcys and Ceto, who are also called the gods of old age.
The Graeaes were blind and toothless, with gray hair and empty eye sockets from the born that allowed them to blend in with the forest. According to Ovid, They were the female siblings of the gorgons. They were given jurisdiction over a swamp because they didn’t have more godliness. One way they shared this knowledge was passing it along through the eye. It gave them a greater sense of community and wisdom.
In Greek mythology, the Gorgons were placed under a curse by Athena. The Graeae were entrusted to keep quiet and make sure they weren’t disturbed. Medusa was one of the Gorgons, and it was Perseus’s goal to kill her that day. Perseus went away to the burrow of the Graeae for more information on where Medusa was. He threatened to throw their eye in the mire if they didn’t tell him, and the Graeae told him where Medusa was hiding.
The Greek edition of the Graeae is quite different from the original mythology. In this edition, they are Mentioned as pretty, apart from the data that they have only one eye. They don’t have malice in their character like the original did, and willingly tell Perseus where to find Medusa.