Lightning Bird

The Lightning bird or Impundulu or Thekwane (or izulu, inyoni yezulu) is a mythological creature in the folklore of the tribes of South Africa including the Pondo, the Zulu and the Xhosa. The impundulu (which translates as "lightning bird") takes the form of a black and white bird, the size of a human, which is said to summon thunder and lightning with its wings and talons. It is a vampiric creature associated with witchcraft which was often the servant or familiar of a witch or witch doctor, attacking the witch's enemies. It is said to have an insatiable appetite for blood. It is said to sometimes take the form of a beautiful young man and seduce women.

Read more about Lightning Bird:  The Bird, Its Powers, Cultural Significance

Famous quotes containing the words lightning and/or bird:

    The lightning flashes through my skull; mine eyeballs ache and ache; my whole beaten brain seems as beheaded, and rolling on some stunning ground.
    Herman Melville (1819–1891)

    Boredom is the dream bird that hatches the egg of experience. A rustling in the leaves drives him away.
    Walter Benjamin (1892–1940)