Panamanian Myths and Legends

1. La Tepesa: The story says this woman was one day doing laundry in the river with her baby. One day an Adonis came in a horse and flirted with her, she was all first love or something like that so he asked her to go for a ride with him, she went and then in the night he asked her “Where’s your baby?” and he vanished so the fantasy became a nightmare.

2. El Cadejo: When you walk in the forest you have to be careful from this animal. The Cadejo could be one of two dogs appear out of nothing a white one or a black one and the white one is there to take care of you so if it appears you don’t have to worry it just follows you to protect you, but if the black one appears then you have to say quick the Our Father pray back words and if you don’t then the black dog will just grow and grow until it becomes (satan) and nothing will save you.

3. El penitente de la otra vida (the penitent of other life): A spirit who walks every Good Friday and he walks the Stations of the Cross at the end of the procession. At the end of the stations the congregation walks to the church and the penitent can access the church but first he has to walk through the cemetery. He walks every year to pay for his sins, so God allows him to do that on every Good Friday.

4. El Chivato: It is the devil itself; it’s a being that has a man’s body but goats legs. His head has big horns of a male goat. (Spanish chivato, goat: chivo, from there the name). It can appear anywhere just like any animal or person, it gives off a smell of sulfur and where ever it walks no plant will grow again. It never attacks from the front, when it attacks it bites you in the neck and fills you with saliva. If you are walking and you hear this being, nothing will save your life.

5. La Tulivieja: A beautiful girl was in love with a man of her own little town, it was a forbidden love and they had a baby. She drowned the baby in the river. God punished her and made her a horrendous being with her face like a strainer full with holes with long hairs coming out from them. Instead of hands she has claws and her thin legs and feet are inverted. She’s damned for eternity to look for her son so she screams in the rivers looking for a kid she will never find. It’s said that on the full moon nights she will be beautiful again and will bath in the river but just a little noise is required so she becomes a monster again.

6. Duendes: When Satan rebelled against God Saint Michael expelled him out of heaven and with him all the evil angels came down. But some punished angels didn’t want to leave with Satan. That’s why they’re in the forest and they live hidden in caves. When they find a kid they take them to Satan so he thinks the kid is a “duende” and loses the counting of the evil angels.
This is the reason why the main victims are non baptized kids and also kids who look like them, blond, clear eyes, ages between 9 and 12. The “duende” attracts kids with candies and toys. They hide them in the forest and after a while people would find them dead.
A duende may also do deals with adults. They exchange favors for people’s souls.

7. La Silampa: On winter (rainy for us) nights, the cold fog comes from the mountains is when the Silampa appears. It’s like a white sheet that flies over the field; it could be confused with fog. It catches any incautious who walks late in the night and wraps it up and sucks him/her and leave just the bones.

8. La Pavita: A long time ago there was a girl who was very young and she was a smoking addict. Her parents were very worried so one day her dad threatened her and told her if she smokes again he would beat her. “Pavita” (they named her that way, Pavita= cigarettes butts) Paula her real name, stopped for a while and then she started to pick in the day every single “pavita” and she would hide them under a rock close to the burner and she would smoke them in the nights. One day her father found out and was so upset he beat her up until he killed her. So every time anyone lifts a rock close to the burner you will hear a persistent noise. Paula would think someone wants to take her “pavitas” and kills the imprudent.

9. El Viejo de Monte (the old man of the forest): Very inside in the country sides two orphans used to be loved by the whole town. One day they fell in love with the same woman and the day the found out they took their machetes and fought until one died. The one who survived felt so guilty that he run to the mountains and hid himself in the caves. God punished him to live in eternity for his crime. In the night you can hear his singing, sometimes you can smell his pipe, some other times you can hear a shot and barking dog and the peasants will cross themselves because they know the “viejo de monte” it’s close.

10. Las brujas (witches): Women who sold their souls to the devil in exchange for powers. They are normal in the day but in the night they like to suck the belly buttons to the newborns non baptized babies. Some of them just like to play with them and the babies are the only who can see them. A weird thing they do is to comb people’s horse’s tail in shape of braids. If you are walking in the night on the countryside and you hear a whistling there’s a witch around. There are tricks to catch them.
To catch a witch you will have to nail in a dagger in shape of cross between her hair and the ground. She won’t be able to move until the next morning and then you will see who the witch is. Another way is when you hear her whistling you will have to say out loud you invite her for a cup of coffee to your house. The next morning the first woman who gets in your house to ask for coffee that will be the witch.

Compilation made by (c) Little Lady Cook