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“Radiating the sun’s light, red and gilded,” the sphinx pompously began the second riddle.
“It’s a phoenix,” Henry interrupted.
“Do you mind?” The sphinx hissed, drawing up to its full height to sit stiffly.
“I apologize. That was quite thoughtless of me. My excitement got the better of my manners. Please, continue with your riddle.” Henry was always the soul of courtesy.
The sphinx, tail lashing furiously, glowered down its nose at Henry in indignation. Henry calmly returned its gaze with an air of expectation. Meanwhile, Olivia had developed a sudden and intense fascination with every part of the temple that was not playing host to a silent standoff.
After several long moments of mutual staring, the sphinx broke the oppressive quiet with a rumbling growl. “As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted.”
Radiating the sun’s light, red and gilded,
I am three times seven score,
Plus four score more.
My Alpha and Omega coincided.
“May I answer now?” Henry politely inquired.
“Yes, I am finished now. You may answer.” The sphinx, still sullen, sniffed and looked away.
“The answer to your extremely difficult and well crafted riddle is a phoenix. I must say that, if it weren’t for my unique history, I would never have been able to solve something so complex and cunning.” Henry always laid it on too thick when he was trying to be disarming, Olivia thought with an internal eye roll.
The sphinx sniffed again, in no mood to be mollified. “What do you mean your ‘unique history’?”
“My parents took me to Egypt when I was a small child, only five or six years old. Olivia was there, too. Our families have always been quite close. While we were there, I got sick. It was one of those pestilential fevers that are so endemic to the hot places of the world. Everyone thought that I would die.” Henry stared into space for a moment, lost in his memories.
Olivia took up the thread of the story during Henry's pause. “I remember that our mothers would huddle together, crying. I didn’t understand what was happening. I just knew that I wasn’t allowed to play with Henry and I missed him. We were all staying on a large estate, with this old temple attached. I still have no idea to whom the temple was dedicated. I just remember that it always smelled of myrrh and frankincense, rich and potent.”
“I was alone when my fever broke, lying in my bed in a pool of sweat. The first traces of dawn were just beginning to lighten the sky. I wandered through the estate for a little while, feeling clearheaded, but also dreamlike. The air seemed to have an odd luminosity, almost a silvery and fog-like incandescence. There was also this weird, weighty sense of expectation. It was like the world itself was holding its breath and waiting. At the time, being so young, I didn't understand what I was feeling and seeing. I just knew that everything was a little strange and a little off. I saw the phoenix as it was leaving the temple. I watched it spread its wings and soar into the sky as the first of the sun’s rays bathed it in red and golden light. The phoenix absorbed the sun's fire and radiated out its own internal flame. It was the most beautiful thing that I’d ever seen.” Henry’s voice had taken on a tone of reverence as he recounted the event that had shaped the course of his life.
“Henry told everyone about the phoenix, but no one believed him. No one except me. Both of our parents thought Henry simply had a fever dream. I knew better. I might have been a child, but I knew when someone was telling the truth and I knew Henry.” Olivia smiled at her husband and took hold of his hand. “I’ve always believed in him."
Henry blushed under Olivia’s loving regard, the tips of his ears going charmingly pink. “So, that is what started me, started us, on the quest that brought us here. I knew that the phoenix I saw was real. What other creatures lost to time and myth might also exist? We’ve been searching our whole lives.”
“Hmmmm, I see,” the sphinx rumbled at the story’s conclusion. “That does explain much. Well, I might have inadvertently gifted you with one easy to solve riddle, but don't think it is a mistake that I will repeat. Are you ready for the end?”
Author's Note: Many of the stories about the phoenix claim that there is only ever one at a time. It periodically dies by fire and is reborn again of its own ashes. Sources differ on the supposed lifespan of the phoenix, with some claiming five hundred years and others claiming over fourteen hundred. I chose to go with five hundred, because it's a nice, round number that made it easier to create the necessary riddle.
Herodotus is often credited with introducing the phoenix to western mythology. In his Histories, he describes it as red and gold, similar in size and shape to an eagle. He claims that it is from Arabia. It supposedly returns to Egypt every five hundred years, which matches with one version of its legendary life span. Herodotus wrote that he was told a story about the phoenix's periodic trip to Egypt, a story that he is uncertain about. Supposedly, the phoenix makes the trip to Egypt in order to carry the ashes of its predecessor, wrapped in an egg of myrrh, to lay it upon the alter of the Sun God in Heliopolis.
The Arabian phoenix is generally viewed as a symbolic representation of the death, and rebirth of the sun. The Egyptians had their own phoenix, called the bennu, that resembled a heron instead of an eagle. It was often used as a symbol of immortality, an important aspect of Egyptian culture. Variations of the phoenix appear in many cultures, including Chinese and Japanese mythology.
Bibliography: "The Phoenix Bird of the Sun," Fictitious and Symbolic Creatures in Art by John Vinycomb. Web Source.
Images:
- Abstract Phoenix/Sphinx (publicdomainpictures)
- Temple of Debod (pixabay)
- Phoenix (pixabay)
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