In ancient Egyptian mythology and in myths derived from it, the phoenix or phœnix is a mythical sacred firebird.
Said to live for 500 or 1461 years (depending on the source), the phoenix is a bird with beautiful gold and red plumage. At the end of its life-cycle the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The new phoenix embalms the ashes of the old phoenix in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis ("the city of the sun" in Greek). The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity.
Although descriptions (and life-span) vary, the phoenix (Bennu bird) became popular in early Christian art, literature and Christian symbolism, as a symbol of Christ, and further, represented the resurrection, immortality, and the life-after-death of Jesus Christ.
Originally, the phoenix was identified by the Egyptians as a stork or heron-like bird called a benu, known from the Book of the Dead and other Egyptian texts as one of the sacred symbols of worship at Heliopolis, closely associated with the rising sun and the Egyptian sun-god Ra.
2006-09-15 04:37:02
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answer #1
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answered by Anonymous
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Phoenix (also known as Garuda in sanskrit) is the mystical firebird which is considered as chariot of Hindu God Vishnu. Its reference can be found in Hindu epic Ramayana.
In ancient Egyptian mythology and in myths derived from it, the phoenix or phÅnix is a mythical sacred firebird.
Said to live for 500 or 1461 years (depending on the source), the phoenix is a bird with beautiful gold and red plumage. At the end of its life-cycle the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The new phoenix embalms the ashes of the old phoenix in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis ("the city of the sun" in Greek). The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity.
Although descriptions (and life-span) vary, the phoenix (Bennu bird) became popular in early Christian art, literature and Christian symbolism, as a symbol of Christ, and further, represented the resurrection, immortality, and the life-after-death of Jesus Christ.
2006-09-15 04:37:25
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answer #2
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answered by Jim D 2
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In ancient Egyptian mythology and in myths derived from it, the phoenix or phÅnix is a mythical sacred firebird.
Said to live for 500 or 1461 years (depending on the source), the phoenix is a bird with beautiful gold and red plumage. At the end of its life-cycle the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The new phoenix embalms the ashes of the old phoenix in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis ("the city of the sun" in Greek). The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity.
Although descriptions (and life-span) vary, the phoenix (Bennu bird) became popular in early Christian art, literature and Christian symbolism, as a symbol of Christ, and further, represented the resurrection, immortality, and the life-after-death of Jesus Christ.
Originally, the phoenix was identified by the Egyptians as a stork or heron-like bird called a benu, known from the Book of the Dead and other Egyptian texts as one of the sacred symbols of worship at Heliopolis, closely associated with the rising sun and the Egyptian sun-god Ra.
2006-09-15 04:36:09
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answer #3
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answered by jeanne g 4
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The Phoenix is said to live for 500 or 1461 years (depending on the source), the phoenix is a bird with beautiful gold and red plumage. At the end of its life-cycle the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity.
2006-09-15 04:37:57
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answer #4
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answered by Kay M 2
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From Latin phoenix, from Greek Φοινιξ (phoinix), the mythical bird first described here:
There is also another sacred bird called the phÅnix which I did not myself see except in painting, for in truth he comes to them very rarely, at intervals, as the people of Heliopolis say, of five hundred years; and these say that he comes regularly when his father dies; and if he be like the painting, he is of this size and nature, that is to say, some of his feathers are of gold colour and others red, and in outline and size he is as nearly as possible like an eagle. This bird they say (but I cannot believe the story) contrives as follows:--setting forth from Arabia he conveys his father, they say, to the temple of the Sun (Helios) plastered up in myrrh, and buries him in the temple of the Sun; and he conveys him thus:--he forms first an egg of myrrh as large as he is able to carry, and then he makes trial of carrying it, and when he has made trial sufficiently, then he hollows out the egg and places his father within it and plasters over with other myrrh that part of the egg where he hollowed it out to put his father in, and when his father is laid in it, it proves (they say) to be of the same weight as it was; and after he has plastered it up, he conveys the whole to Egypt to the temple of the Sun. Thus they say that this bird does. — Herodotus, The Histories, Book II:73 (G.C. Macaulay translation).
(mythology): A mythological bird, said to be the only one of its kind, which lives for 500 years and then dies by burning to ashes on a pyre of its own making, ignited by the sun. It then arises anew from the ashes.
2006-09-15 04:43:20
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answer #5
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answered by bootandpooh 2
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A city was named after her.
2006-09-15 04:40:09
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answer #6
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answered by Mister Farlay 2
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I know Phoenix is bird that immortal cos it dies but then rise from ashes i hear story about it one time!!
2006-09-15 04:36:50
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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According to legend,it lives to be about 500 years, then it sets itself ablaze in it's own nest only to rise from it's own ashes. It's favorite food is pomegranates,and also is said to have amazing healing powers.
2006-09-15 04:46:05
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answer #8
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answered by Anonymous
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Scorpio has the power of the Phoenix - the power to be reborn and never die.
2006-09-17 22:51:39
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answer #9
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answered by happy inside 6
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what i know: phoenix died somehow and then it somehow rose from the its own ashes (probably to eventually die again and rise again) kind of like groundhog day.
2006-09-15 04:38:34
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answer #10
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answered by Fenris 3
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