- The Indrik is a legendary Russian mammal considered the “father of all animals.”
- It is depicted as a two-horned hybrid with a horse’s head, a fish’s body, and a tail.
- The Indrik is associated with water sources and is a foe of serpents.
The Indrik, often spelled “Indrik-beast,” is a legendary Russian mammal and the “father of all animals” from the “Dove Book” (a medieval Russian verse). It is represented in “Physiologus” and “Abecedarium” as a two-horned hybrid with a horse’s head and tail and a fish’s body. This etymology also gave origin to the word “indricothere,” which is used to describe a kind of extinct mammal (Latin: Indricotherium, 1915).
Where Does Indrik Come From?
The Indrik’s legendary appearance probably derives from the mammoth, a massive beast that lives below the earth and, in certain cultures of Siberia and the Far East, at the depths of lakes and rivers. The mammoth, like the Indrik, is a pivotal figure in the folklore of the Siberian people.
The discovery of mammoth remains is commonly cited as the inspiration for the Indrik of mythology.
Shares a Name with the Biggest Land Mammal
In other sources it is described as a giant bull with the legs of a deer, the body of a horse, and a massive horn protruding from its nose is how the Indrik is described. Indricotherium, the largest terrestrial animal known to have lived, gets its name from the legendary Russian beast.
From Indrik to the Unicorn
The name of this mythical beast is rendered in a wide variety of ways throughout translations of the “Book of the Dove,” including Indrok, Indra, Kondryk, Beloyandrik, Vyndrik, Unicorn, and Edinorog (Russian for “unicorn”). The two most common forms are the Indrik and the Unicorn. The phonetic resemblance between Inrog and Indrik, as well as the same symbolic importance between the two creatures, account for the name change from Indrik to Unicorn. These two groups have already fused into the “Physiologus.”
One theory is that Indrik derives from a mispronunciation of the word for unicorn (also written as Inorog and Inrok).
V.N. Toporov proposed that the name “Indrik” was derived from the Siberian term for this kind of mammoth, nen. jeaη (jarη) hora, which translates to “earth bull.” This might easily have given rise to forms like jen-r-, *jindr-, and *jindor-, which are all quite similar to the Russian names for Indrik. Mammoth in Khanty-Kazym is muv-khor, which is related to the words my-khor (Khanty) and my-kar (Mansi), both of which mean “earth male deer.”
Another theory is that the name “Indrik” is a corruption of the Ancient Greek word for otter (ἐνύδριος) or the name for a kind of marine creature seen in Slavic lists and mentioned in the Physiologus as “hydros”.
Medieval Book Culture and Indrik
Books written in the Middle Ages, such as “Azbookovniki” and “Dove Book,” infused Indrik with qualities of other magical animals. As the mythological monarch of the seas, he was shown as an enemy of serpents and crocodiles, as well as the “onudra” (otters) and their nemona, the fish-like creature known as “endrop.”
As recounted in the “Dove Book,” Indrik-beast has the following traits:
He lives beyond the cosmic ocean. With his horn, he travels through the underworld, akin to the bright sun through the sky; he traverses all the white-stone mountains, clears all brooks and streams, crosses rivers, and chilly wellsprings. When he turns his horn, like clouds across the sky, all Mother Earth beneath him sways… all terrestrial animals bow to him; he grants victory to none.
While Indrik’s appearance and title in the many “Dove Book” translations vary, he is always referred to as the “father of all animals.” It is unknown if Indrik dwells on Mount Favor, travels to the underworld, or both. The animals all kowtow to him whenever he turns around. Or he avoids hurting anybody by staying on the Holy Mountain and sustaining himself with water from the Blue Sea. Like the sun in the sky, he carries his horn as he travels through the underworld.
Indrik in Russian Mythology
In Russian mythology, the character Indrik is described as “walking through the underworld, similar to the sun in the sky.” Being connected to water sources like wells and springs, he exhibits characteristics of the water element. He is also a foe of serpents.
A Ural Cossack epic known as “Indrik-beast” was reportedly recorded by a hunter named Ivan Chakrygin, who portrayed Indrik as an ordinary yet dangerous beast. “Look at him, the terrible hound, Indrik-beast!” Ivan said in reference to the Indrik-beast epic. “Try to attack him; you’ll lose your teeth. Beating such a beast, my friend, is no easy task.”
The Cossacks have an epic called “The Galytsky Gang Didn’t Rise” that draws inspiration from this poem. Indrik-beast is identified as a lion in one of the epics.
