The Headless Mule ( pt, Mula-Sem-Cabeça, ) is a

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...

ical character in Brazilian folklore.

Origins and occurrence

The myth is believed to have a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

origin, and to have been brought to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

in the early

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

era (16th century or later). The tale is most popular in the states of

Goiás Goiás () is a Brazilian state located in the Center-West region. Goiás borders the Federal District and the states of (from north clockwise) Tocantins, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso. The state capital is Goiânia. ...

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

and

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – lit. "Thick Bush") is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP. Neighboring ...

, but is well known throughout the country. Similar

myths Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...

(the

Muladona In Catalan mythology, a Muladona or Donamula (''mule-woman'' or ''woman-mule'' in Catalan) is a female mule with a human woman's head. Legend has it that a young woman was cursed by the townspeople for being irreverent and irreligious, and the cur ...

and the Almamula) occur in the surrounding

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

countries.

Appearance

The Mule's appearance varies greatly from region to region. Its color is most commonly given as brown, sometimes as black. It has silver (or iron) horseshoes that produce a hideous trotting, louder than any horse is capable of producing. Despite being headless, the Mule still neighs (usually very loud), and sometimes it moans like a crying woman. It also has a bridle tied to its non-existent mouth, and spews fire through its non-existent

nostril A nostril (or naris , plural ''nares'' ) is either of the two orifices of the nose. They enable the entry and exit of air and other gasses through the nasal cavities. In birds and mammals, they contain branched bones or cartilages called turbi ...

s (or, in some versions, from its severed neck).

The curse

According to most reports, the Mule is condemned to gallop over the territory of seven parishes each night (just as the Brazilian version of the

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...

). By some accounts, its trip begins and ends at the parish where the sin was committed. Transformation usually occurs at a

crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

. Depending on the source the headless mule may have a placeholder head and mane, made of the fire it spews, to which a red-hot iron bridle is tied. The curse of the Headless Mule cannot be transmitted (unlike the

vampiric A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

curse), because it is acquired as a result of a sin committed willfully by the accursed woman. The transformation can be reversed temporarily by spilling the mule's blood with the prick of a needle or by tying her to a cross. In the first case, transformation will be prevented while the benefactor is alive and lives in the same parish in which his feat was accomplished. In the second case the woman will remain in human form until the sun dawns, but will transform again the next time. A more stable removal of the curse can be achieved by removing the bridle, in which case the woman will not shape shift again while the benefactor is alive. Tying the bridle back to the woman's mouth will return the curse. Removal of the curse is a great relief for the woman because the curse includes many trials, so the grateful woman will usually repent her sins and marry the benefactor. In any case, when the mule changes back to human form the accursed woman will be completely naked, sweated, and smelling of sulfur. A person who encounters the mule should not cross its path, or the mule will follow the offender and trample him down. Instead, one should either be brave enough to remove the bridle or spill its blood, or else just lay face down on the ground, covering teeth and nails (as well as anything that shines) and the mule will hopefully fail to notice the stranger's presence and trot away (because it has poor vision).

The headless priest

There is also a similar folk tale where the curse fell on the sinning priest. In this story, the priest's headless ghost rides through the night on a normal horse, much like the

Headless Horseman The Headless Horseman is a mythical figure who has appeared in folklore around the world since the Middle Ages. The figure is traditionally depicted as a rider upon horseback who is missing his head. Description Depending on the legend, the Hor ...

Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and " The Legen ...

's story ''

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a gothic story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories titled ''The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.'' Written while Irving was living abroad in Birm ...

''. Indeed, this variant of the myth may well be just a modern import of that 19th century tale.

Anthropological explanation

The Headless Mule may be a personification of the latent paganism of some popular practices echoing in the collective conscience of a people indoctrinated with a simplistic view of

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. It showcases the wild instincts and repressed behaviours that are unacceptable in a Christian society. There may be some connection between the Brazilian Headless Mules and folklore about witches in Western Europe. Being personified as an animal implies a negative view of the character, which embodies the deepest forces that are part of the human consciousness, namely the libido, whose sexual aspect is traditionally associated with the horse, a symbol of sexual potency and brutal feats. The absence of a head may be a metaphor for the lack of reason, or evidence that the curse involved the perdition of the soul. In either case, without the head to give direction, the body is left under the power of violent passions, immediate impulses and selfish desires. The most frequent cause for the curse is a woman's unchristian love for a priest, a

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of Christ on Earth. This association shows the lengths the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

went to indoctrinate people (both priests and women) about the importance of

celibacy Celibacy (from Latin ''caelibatus'') is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both, usually for religious reasons. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, the ...

Popular culture

* The Mula-Sem-Cabeça appears in ''

AdventureQuest Worlds ''AdventureQuest Worlds'' (often shortened to ''AQ Worlds'' or simply ''AQW'') is a browser-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released by Artix Entertainment in 2008. Gameplay Players are asked to choose from one of f ...

''. This version of the Mula-Sem-Cabeça is depicted with having a fire for a head. It is among the creatures that attack Terra da Festa before the Carnaval Party. * In Ragnarok Online MMORPG, Headless Mule is a monster in Brasilis Field. It appears as a red fiery headless horse.

References

* CASCUDO, Luís da Câmara. ''Dicionário do Folclore Brasileiro''. 3rd Edition.

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Tecnoprint, 1972.
Rosane Volpato's website

External links

Picture of Headless Mule

{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310180959/http://sitio.globo.com/Sitio/0,25203,4316-p-211293,00.html , date=2007-03-10 in the Brazilian TV program '' Sítio do Picapau Amarelo''
The Headless Mule
at everything2.com Shapeshifting Legendary mammals Fictional mules Brazilian ghosts South American ghosts Supernatural legends Female legendary creatures Mythological monsters