PSYCHOPOMP

A psychopomp is in mythology, a supernatural being who conducts the soul in safety to the afterworld. Psychopompoi are universal in myth and lore. In Greek mythology, the god Hermes is a psychopomp; in Egyptian myth, the job is shared by the deities Thoth and Anubis. Animals can be psychopompoi as well as deities. (See Dolphin.)

In shamanistic traditions, shamans employ mystical horses as psychopompoi to carry them to the underworld, where they commune with spirits and recover the souls of the sick.

SEE ALSO:

• Shamanism
• Ghost Glossary

SOURCE:

The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits– Written by Rosemary Ellen Guiley – September 1, 2007

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