μῦθοι Mythoi
Motif

Bridge to otherworld.

Marvels. · Other world journeys. · Miscellaneous otherworlds. · Access to otherworld. · view the constellation · filed as F152

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“Then he rolled over and pretended to go to sleep again but looked out through his eyelashes. By and by he saw a very small but handsome girl coming along. Her skin clothes were very clean and neat, and her leggings were ornamented with porcupine quills. Just as she reached out to shake him he said, “I have seen you already.” Now the girl stood still and said, “I have come after you. My grandmother has sent me to bring you to her house.””

— Tales of the North American Indians, Tale 53 · served from our shelf  receiptuncorrected OCR — being verified against the scan

Attested across traditions
Scholars’ trail — 13references

The index’s own references — the collections where scholars sighted this story-shape, tradition by tradition. Titles on our shelf are live links; the rest is the frontier, not yet shelved.

  • IcelandicMacCulloch Eddic 130, 305
  • SiberianHolmberg Siberian 488ff.
  • MelanesiaCodrington 257
  • Eskimo (Labrador)Hawkes GSCan XIV 153
  • N. Am. IndianBrinton Myths of the New World (New York, 1868) 248, (Menomini): Skinner PaAM XIII 86.
  • general *Type 471
  • general Encyc. Rel. Ethics II 852ff.
  • general Patch PMLA XXXIII 630ff., Other World 374 s. v. "bridge"
  • general Ward II 399, 441
  • general Róheim Animism 39ff.
  • general Fb "bro" IV 62b
  • general Darmesteter Sacred Books of the East IV 212f.
  • general Alphabet No. 603. Irish myth: *Cross
Within the index

Filed under Access to otherworld.

3 finer motifs beneath it
Bridge to otherworld guarded by animalsMaterials of bridge to otherworldSlamming drawbridge to otherworld. Slams as hero leaves and (almost) injures him. He has failed to do the one compulsory thing. (Percival.)
Filed beside it
Way to otherworld hard to findEntrance to other world guarded by monsters (or animals)Challenge at entrance of otherworld. The adventurer challenges or is challengedRoad to otherworldOtherworld reached by diving into water (of well or lake)Path to sun on sun's rays (eyelashes). (Cf. F152.1.2.)Journey to otherworld by clinging magically to an objectDoor to otherworld. (Cf. F91.)Journey to otherworld in boatPit entrance to otherworld. (Cf. F92.)Other means to reach the otherworld
Travels with
Bridge to world of dead cut from under wicked person so that he falls into hell. (Cf. F152.)
Keeps company with — shares receipted episodes
Transformation flight. Fugitives transforms themselves in order to escape detection by the pursuerObstacle flight. Fugitives throw objects behind them which magically become obstacles in pursuer's pathReversed obstacle flight. Magic obstacles raised in front of fugitiveLadder to upper worldAscent to upper world on arrow chain. Hero shoots arrows which join one another in the air to form a chain
Carried in tale types

wander