The Monstrefact: Holiday edition

In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses a surprise holiday monster...

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of
My Heart Radio. Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and
this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from
Stuff to Blow Your Mind, focusing in on mythical creatures,
ideas and monsters in time. Make no mistake, the winter

(00:24):
holidays are a time of monsters. The Yule Lads sneak
in from the shadows, Gorilla hungers for the flesh of
naughty children in the darkness, and sinister crampus stalks down
from the snow covered peaks with chains and switches and
child basket in toe. Even Santa Claus is an immortal

(00:44):
being who rules over elves and bioluminescent reindeer. But the
creatures I want to highlight today are the Calcanzari from
the legends and folklore of Greece. They are described as giant,
shaggy satyr like creatures, not entirely unlike the crampus of
Alpine traditions, but the Calkanzari are subterranean creatures. They thrive

(01:07):
in the dark, They hate the light, and above all else,
they hate the world tree, which supports the heavens with
its lofty branches and even connects the underworld through its
vast system of roots. The Calakanzari, in their tunnels gnaw
or saw the roots of the world tree in an
attempt to fell it and bring down the universe as well.

(01:29):
But as winter sets in during the time between Christmas
and Epiphany, the nights grow long and dark enough that
the Cala Kanzari conventure above ground, and so they neglect
their great work of undoing and instead damage crops, kill livestock,
and dance, dance, dance. If they catch you alone on

(01:51):
the road at night, they might make you dance and
dance and dance till you die of exhaustion. Though likewise,
as Oaklaori's Carol Rose points out in Giants, Monsters and Dragons,
you might also defeat the Calakanzari at their own game
by keeping them dancing until the sun finally comes up.

(02:12):
But alas it is a season of darkness, the Calakanzari
run wild. Even human infants born during this time must
be tested to make sure they are not actually creatures
of the dark. But after the day of Epiphany, the
days grow longer again and the Calakanzari can no longer
rule the night above ground. Grumbling, they return once more

(02:33):
to the destruction of the World Tree's roots system and
find that during the holiday festivities, the roots have regenerated
completely and that they must now begin their work all
over again. Tune in for additional installments of the Monster

(02:55):
fact or the Artifact each week as always as you can.
Email us at contact at stuff to Blow your Mind
dot com. Stuff to Blow Your Mind is a production
of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio,

(03:17):
visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
you listen to your favorite shows.