BLACK DOG

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This series explores the place dogs occupy in our mythology and religion. In stories of the Old World, before monotheist religions taught us that dogs are unworthy and inferior, dogs were often described as fierce guardians of the Afterlife, and/or guides to the human souls. They could refuse passage to the deceased – especially to those who weren’t good to dogs in life. They would carry the souls across dangerous obstacles and through arduous journeys. Using the Christian symbols I grew up with, I challenge the idea that dogs – and animals – are created inferior to Mankind.

In the Middle Ages, animals were often associated with popular Christian saints, but the Church disapproved of the veneration of animals. During the 13th century, as the business of canonizing saints came under the control of popes, the Church cracked down on animal cults. Near my hometown, peasants venerated Saint Guinefort, a greyhound dog who was a healer of children. An inquisitor destroyed the site and burned the remains of the dog. Still, it remained a place of pilgrimage for mothers with sick children for centuries to come.

In Mesoamerican mythologies, dogs were viewed as psychopomps (see for example the Aztec god Xolotl) and had great power. In some stories, souls could only get the help of dogs as they crossed over, if they had been kind to dogs during their lifetime. Black dogs in particular were often favored, because they didn’t mind getting dirty during the gruesome journey in the underworld.

If a person has been good to dogs during his life, a black dog ferries his soul across the hot river. When an evil spirit (pujuk) comes to take the soul of a man, the dog suggests to him that he should count hairs on its tail before dawn. If the dog.s master has been good to him, the dog jerks its tail and the pujuk loses count (Tzotzil legend / Maya).

Black dogs have always fascinated humans. They are often associated with bad omens or hellish apparitions. Black Dog is an expression used to describe an apathetic, crippling form depression. It was first recorded over 2,000 years ago in a poem by Roman poet Horace, and later popularized by Winston Churchill:

No company’s more hateful than your own,
you dodge, and give yourself the slip; you sneak
in bed or in your cups, from care to sneak
in vain: the black dog follows you and hangs
close to your flying skirts, with hungry fangs.

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