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The first lunar eclipse of the year is taking place today. It is also called Blood Moon, which will start at 3:20 pm on Tuesday afternoon and end at 6:47 pm. In Hindu religion, lunar eclipse is not just a geographical event but a religious event. The beliefs regarding lunar eclipse in many countries of the world are very interesting. Cultures around the world have blamed attacking demons, killer pets, and hungry jaguars for the Moon's disappearance during a lunar eclipse.

EC Krupp, director of the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California, says that in many ancient cultures a solar eclipse or a lunar eclipse was seen as a challenge to the normal order. There was a belief that things were happening that should not happen.

Jaguar attacked the moon and swallowed it!

In the belief related to lunar eclipse, it is also said that a jaguar attacked the moon and swallowed it. This belief was very popular among the Inca people, who were especially widespread in Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. The Inca Empire ruled here.

David Dearborn, a researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, says the Inca people have written a lot on astronomy. People here did not consider eclipse as auspicious. Inca rituals related to eclipses are mentioned in writings written by Spanish immigrants to the New World.

In the same rituals, it is mentioned that a jaguar had attacked the moon and eaten it. Due to the attack of this huge animal, the color of the moon often turned blood red during lunar eclipses.

The Inca people feared that after attacking the moon, the jaguar would come to Earth and eat humans. To stop this, they used to make noise by shaking spears towards the moon. They even tried to drive away the hunter by beating their dogs and forcing them to bark and scream.

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seven attacking monsters

According to Krupp, the ancient Mesopotamians also saw a lunar eclipse as an attack on the Moon. In his stories, the attackers were seven demons. In Mesopotamian culture, the king represented the country, so people saw the lunar eclipse as an attack on their king. The people of Mesopotamia had a good ability to predict lunar eclipses. Therefore, in anticipation of an eclipse, they would appoint an alternative king, who would be ready to face any attack.

Generally, the person who was declared king was someone who could be easily removed. Although the person was not actually in power, he was treated well during the eclipse period, while the real king disguised himself as a common citizen. Those kings usually disappeared after the eclipse ended and may have been killed by poisoning.

Wives used to come to save the moon

The story of the eclipse prevalent among the Hupa, a Native American tribe of Northern California, is a little different. According to Krupp, the Hupa tribe believed that the Moon had 20 wives and a large number of domestic animals. Most of these animals were mountain lions and snakes. When they did not get enough food from the moon, they would attack and injure him.

Krupp explains that the eclipse ended when the Moon's wives came to protect him, collect the blood and heal the Moon. For the Luiseño tribe of Southern California, the eclipse was a sign that the Moon was ill. It was the job of the tribe members to chant mantras or prayers to heal the moon.