Obscure Mythology Chapter 21: Udar

An Arabian ghul.

This week’s installment is quite intriguing and may be a little unsettling, it does contain sexual content. So I am going to put a few disclaimers just to be safe and to let you the reader know that something extremely crazy is going to be written about and discussed. All of this is for research and entertainment purposes and is not intended to harm or cast any dispersions on anyone’s beliefs. The thoughts below are my own and the entry came from the The Dictionary of Mythology, an A-Z of themes, legends and myths.

Warning: this post may contain graphic or explicit content, proceed at your own caution.

Now with all that out of the way, I am going to introduce you all to the Arabian ghuls (A ghul is a monster or evil spirit in Arabic mythology) the Udar, and their very interesting and very disturbing modus operendi. Without further ado, here are the Udar.

Udar, Arabian, a type of ghul (ghoul).

This being lives in the desert and rapes male travelers. As a result, the victim may develop worms in his anus, a condition which is invariably fatal.

Yeah, when I first read this entry, I had to go back and reread it a few times. Of the thousands of entries I’ve read up until this point, none made me do a double take like this one. After I read it a few times, I started to get an idea of why it was probably even a myth to begin with. The Arab world’s religions are notoriously anti-homosexual and as I have stated before extremely sexist as well. I included this unique entry to show you how some myths or legends were created to scare people or steer them away from unwanted behavior. I have a very strong feeling this myth was perpetuated throughout the Middle east in an attempt to scare men aware from homosexual activity. These Udar, were probably made up to scare men straight, literally, or to at least keep them away from attempting homosexual activity due to the threat of anus worms. By putting these horrible ghuls and their grotesque acts into their religious and person beliefs the founders of this myth instilled fear not only into homosexual acts but of the horrible consequences that can come from them, i.e., the anal worms from the stories. I have to admit that I don’t know anything about this myth or most any Arabian myth but as I have seen with every other religion or belief system, their myths have a deeper meaning. There may have been some crazy madman who lived in the desert once and raped a few travelers and it is very possible that local religious leaders at the time used that crazy madman’s actions to dictate their laws and to make up scary stories to keep people from doing things they don’t want done. It happens in all religions and it is still happening today. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being homosexual, it occurs naturally, it became a pariah when a few homophobes with power decided it was immoral and sacrilegious. For all I know there could have been a kindly old gay man who lived in the desert but offended one of the ruling elite of the day, this kindly old hermit became a man raping ghul in retaliation. 

The point is, that as long as a few people have all the power than it will be their will that is imposed on the masses, when in reality it should be the masses who control their own destinies but through fear and diversion the ruling elite have set the course of humanity. Well I suppose I have offended and rambled enough for today. I hope my post today can bring about a conversation among you and your friends, it is truly amazing what you can find when you start looking. I am just five entries away from finally finishing the alphabet of obscurity and moving on to more of the strange and mysterious, thank you for reading and I can’t wait to share my next installment with you all very soon. Until then have a great week and as always, PEACE!!!!!!!!!