Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia

by Daniel Harms

  See Barrier of Naach-Tith; the Black; Bugg-Shash; Cthaat Aquadingen; Kant, Ernst; Legends of the Olden Runes; nightgaunts; Pnakotic Manuscripts; Sixth Sathlatta. (“Ulthar and Beyond”, Herber; “The Caller of the Black”, Lumley; “Cement Surroundings”, Lumley (O); “The Horror at Oakdeene”, Lumley.)

  YIDHRA

  Creature that came into being at the same time as life on this planet. Yidhra was a protoplasmic entity that could take on the appearances of any organism it devoured. Thus, over billions of years, Yidhra learned to adapt to the changing world and expand its power. Without other forms of life to feed upon, Yidhra could not have survived. The lama of Prithom-Yang is said to be the only being known to have seen its true form, which drove him insane.

  Today, Yidhra still exists, though it now has split itself into several different entities. At various times in history, these fragments have established religions with the purpose of adding to Yidhra’s might. These cults have sprung up in such widely separated places as Chad, Laos, Burma, Sumeria, Texas, and New Mexico. In each of these places, Yidhra has taken an attractive form in which it visits its followers. Though this form is not perfect, it is able to conceal its true nature from its congregation.

  Those who serve Yidhra are guaranteed good crops, no matter what disasters may befall them, and some may even gain eternal life. On the other hand, however, just as Yidhra becomes more like its worshipers with close contact, so they become more like it. As a consequence, many of the members of her cults’ inner circles, who are able to see Yidhra in its true form, gradually develop bestial traits. Fanged vulture-like beings which serve her have also been sighted.

  See Black Sutra; Chronicles of Thrang; Cthonic Revelations; Uralte Schrecken. (“Predator”, DeBill (O); “What Lurks Among the Dunes”, DeBill; “Where Yidhra Walks”, DeBill.)

  YIFNE

  Green sun about which the world of Tond revolves.

  See Tond. (“The Inhabitant of the Lake”, Campbell (O).)

  YIG

  Great Old One that takes the form of a great serpent-man, or sometimes a huge oriental dragon. It is said to be the offspring of the great dragon Mappo no Ryûjin, who dwells beneath Mu. Yig came to Earth eons ago from the world Zandanua, where its brother Rokon still dwells. When Yig arrived, it was responsible for the creation of reptiles, insects, and, according to some, humanity. Yig now lives in the Pit of Ngoth in the caverns of Yoth, or possibly in the underground land of K’n-yan.

  The worship of Yig is thought to have begun in K’n-yan. From there it spread throughout western North America, south into Mexico (where it possibly inspired the myths of Quetzalcoatl and Kukulcan), and to Mu and Valusia. It may also be linked with a few fringe Voudon cults. Some wizards serve Yig in exchange for material goods; it is propitiated through the sacrifice of living beings on both the full and dark of the moon. Yig’s followers are reputed to become part of its consciousness, provided they are worthy.

  A few Native American tribes of the Great Plains still worship Yig today. Among one of these lives the descendants of Yig, who take on human form until adulthood, when they take on a human-reptile hybrid form. Such individuals are noted as children for their prophetic abilities, their deformities, and their bloodlust.

  Unlike most of its fellow Great Old Ones, Yig is often benevolent toward humanity. In the autumn, however, it is necessary to propitiate it through drum-beating, offerings of corn, and various rituals, lest it visit its wrath upon those who harm the serpents, who are its spawn. Yig’s wrath takes the form of madness, mutated offspring, and visits by its “children”, snakes with a white crescent patch on their heads. Those who especially displease the god may themselves be transformed into snakes. Yig also sends its avatars out into the world, though these must hibernate at times.

  Yig and Nyarlathotep are reputed to be rivals in the Necronomicon. He may also have ties to Nug and Yeb, which create the conditions in which he can live.

  See Byatis; Han; K’n-yan; Mu; serpent-people; Set; Sss’haa; Ubbo-Sathla; Vatican Codex. (“The Snakefarm”, Ambuehl; “Where a God Shall Tread”, Aniolowski; “The Color from Beyond”, Cabos; “The Vengeance of Yig”, Carter; Secrets of Japan, Dziesinski; “Pursuit to Kadath”, Gallagher et. al.; “The Curse of Yig”, Lovecraft and Bishop (O); “The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop; “Out of the Aeons”, Lovecraft and Heald; “Scales of Justice”, Mackey; “Taste of Snake’s Honey”, Matsudono; Necronomicon, Tyson; “The Jest of Yig”, Webb.)

  YIKILTH

  See Rlim Shaikorth.

  YITH

  Planet from which the Great Race came to earth. Yith was the fourth of five planets circling the star Ogntlach, which might lie on the other side of the galaxy, between galaxies, or in another galaxy (though a few scholars have placed it around our own sun beyond Pluto’s orbit). The world possesses three moons. Despite Yith’s thin atmosphere, the geothermally heated seas support a wide variety of life. Since the flight of the Great Race, the most intelligent beings on the world are a species of winged, black-snouted creatures. It is believed that the Great Race has and will return and be driven away from Yith repeatedly over the aeons.

  Dreamers who have visited Yith have seen the world’s deserted cities and learned of mighty beings imprisoned in their tombs until “Sotho”, who dwells in a great pit, can release them. Yith is also home to Drog-N’lyth, who may have incited the Great Old Ones to rebellion.

  The mysterious winds of Yith are said to carry power of their own from this world to ours. Only a powerful magician can control them.*

  [Lovecraft originally coined “Yith” as a title suggestion to Rimel, who had originally titled his poem cycle “Dreams of Yid.”]

  See Eltdown Shards; Great Race of Yith. (“The Color from Beyond”, Cabos; “The Changeling”, DeBill; “History of the Great Race”, DeBill and Berglund; “Lord of Night”, Fantina; “The Shadow from Yith”, Gullette; “The Shadow out of Time”, Lovecraft; “The Totem Pole”, Pugmire; “Dreams of Yith”, Rimel (O).)

  YITH-SHESH

  Pool which lies in the Gilf Kebir Plateau in southwest Egypt. The region’s priests used it for divination long before the rise of the pharaohs. It is unknown whether it exists today.

  (Khai of Ancient Khem, Lumley; “The Mirror of Nitocris”, Lumley (O).)

  YITHIANS

  See Great Race of Yith.

  YLIDHEEM (“Cold Ones”)

  Title given to those who serve Rlim Shaikorth having been protected from the intense cold that his home radiates.

  See Rlim Shaikorth. (“The Fishers from Outside”, Carter (O).)

  Y’M-BHI

  Reanimated bodies of dead slaves that form an important part of K’n-yan’s work force.

  See K’n-yan. (“The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop (O).)

  YMAR

  World of ill rumor which lies near Xoth and Abbith, and which is populated by intelligences far older and wiser than humans.

  (“The Book of the Gates”, Carter; “Out of the Ages”, Carter (O); Visions from Yaddith, Carter.)

  ‘YMNAR

  Avatar of Ngyr-Khorath, according to the book Uralte Schrecken. He was first created billions of years ago, coming into existence only when Ngyr-Khorath requires it. He is described as a shapechanger able to imitate all manner of life forms.

  A mysterious race called the Rloedha worshiped ‘Ymnar before the appearance of life on Earth. Later, ‘Ymnar cloaked itself with an earthly form and was sent to our world by its master so that it might lead various species toward their ultimate destruction. It typically seduces members of the species interested in higher realities, giving them black magic and dangerous knowledge. This can be used for good purposes, but more often ends up destroying entire civilizations. Cults dedicated to ‘Ymnar are known to have existed for millennia; a group of natives in New Mexico was formed in the seventeenth century and has survived to the present day. Zombies and mandrelones, specially-bred baboon-headed hounds, are also among his servants.

  ‘Ymnar seems much
like Nyarlathotep, but the connection is disputable.

  See Uralte Schrecken. (“From the Sea”, DeBill (O); “He Who Comes at the Noontime”, DeBill; “Where Yidhra Walks”, DeBill.)

  YOG-SOTHOTH (also IOG-SOTOT)

  Outer God also known by the title Lurker at the Threshold. Yog-Sothoth’s usual form is a congeries of iridescent spheres, but the Outer God can take forms of solid, liquid, or gas. One of its avatars, the Lurker at the Threshold, appears as a black amorphous horror. Another, Ramasekva, takes the form of a many-limbed human much like a Hindu deity. Those touched by Yog-Sothoth are almost always destroyed.

  Yog-Sothoth is known as “the key to the gate, whereby the spheres meet”, and is said to exist everywhere in time and space. Paradoxically, the Lurker at the Threshold appears to be shut out from our own dimension, only coming to this world when summoned. It has been suggested that Yog-Sothoth has been imprisoned by the Elder Gods at a point where all space and time converge, creating such a gravitational effect that it may not leave. It may also be possible that Yog-Sothoth dwells in a parallel dimension and can either manifest itself in space or time, but not both. It could also be that the Other God is omnipresent but can fully manifest itself only with the aid of certain ceremonies. Once Yog-Sothoth has arrived, however, it may ignore any terrestrial boundaries, making it a dangerous being indeed.

  The mi-go revere Yog-Sothoth as the “Beyond One”, and certain minds made of vapor know it as a mysterious sign. Various cultures on our planet, such as the Aztecs and the people of Averoigne, have worshiped him, but this devotion does not seem to have been widespread even among these. On our own world, certain sorcerers worship Yog-Sothoth in exchange for limited command of both time and space. Using these abilities, the worshiper can do anything from warping space to hold a chosen victim to stepping outside of time itself to return to Earth after hundreds or thousands of years have passed. Yog-Sothoth eventually takes all of these misguided souls to itself, a fate from which not even physical destruction can save them.

  To summon Yog-Sothoth, a tall stone tower or circle of standing stones is often used. Upon speaking the words of the summoning, an intelligent being must be sacrificed to the god. The proximity of the chosen sacrifice is unimportant. The traditional time for such a summoning is on Lammas (August 1), but May Eve is another possibility, and others assert that the god may be called upon at any time. Interested summoners should also note that speaking Yog-Sothoth’s name with the correct pronunciation results in the speaker’s destruction.

  Legend has it that Yog-Sothoth was the spawn of the Nameless Mist, though others maintain that the Outer God has existed forever. Yog-Sothoth seems to share the rulership of the universe with Azathoth. According to von Junzt’s Unaussprechlichen Kulten, Yog-Sothoth is the “father” of Cthulhu, Hastur, and Vulthoom. In addition, it has spawned Nug and Yeb on Shub-Niggurath.

  Some say that ‘Umr at-Tawil is in actuality Yog-Sothoth disguised, and certain manifestations of UFOs have been attributed to appearances of Yog-Sothoth. Kenneth Grant has linked Yog-Sothoth to Choronzon, the guardian of the Abyss that the adept must cross to gain enlightenment.

  Three interesting theories about Yog-Sothoth deserve mention here. The first is that Yog-Sothoth is diametrically opposed to Nodens, the Lord of the Great Abyss, who it shall pursue until the end of time. Another holds that Yog-Sothoth lay beneath an Elder Sign at the Black Mountain, or Mount Sinai, until freed by Moses, and that Yahweh is in fact a manifestation of the Outer God. Yet another claims that Yog-Sothoth is made up of a trinity of beings who, when summoned, will allow the god to remain in this dimension forever. Neither of these theories has gained wide acceptance, however.

  See Bugg-Shash; Bugg-Shoggog; Cthulhu; dimensional shamblers; Great Old Ones; Iagsat; Klarkash-Ton; Liber Damnatus; Mülder, Gottfried; Necronomicon (appendices); Nodens; Nug and Yeb; Old Ones; Othuum; Outer Gods; Reflections; Shub-Niggurath; Sothoth; tomb-herd; ‘Umr at-Tawil; Vulthoom; Yad-Thaddag. (“Glimpses”, Attansio; “The Church on the High Street”, Campbell; “Zoth-Ommog”, Carter; “The Lurker at the Threshold”, Derleth and Lovecraft; Necronomicon: The Book of Dead Names, Hay ed.; Outside the Circles of Time, Grant; “The Case of Charles Dexter Ward”, Lovecraft (O); “The Dunwich Horror”, Lovecraft; Selected Letters IV, Lovecraft; Selected Letters V, Lovecraft; “The Electric Executioner”, Lovecraft and de Castro; “The Horror in the Museum”, Lovecraft and Heald; “Through the Gates of the Silver Key”, Lovecraft and Price; “The Statement of One John Gibson”, Lumley; The Transition of Titus Crow, Lumley; Prey, Masterton; “The Holiness of Azedarac”, Smith; The Winds of Zarr, Tierney.)

  YOMAGN’THO (or THAT WHICH RELENTLESSLY WAITS OUTSIDE or THE FEASTER FROM THE STARS)

  Being which manifests itself as a circle of flame with three petal-like objects inside. Yomagn’tho dwells in a place called “Pherkard”. It may be contacted during a failed summoning of Cthugha and must be dismissed using a banishing from the Necronomicon. Even then, Yomagn’tho will extract a horrible vengeance upon the caster if it ever returns.

  See Sorcerie de Demonologie. (“The Feaster from the Stars”, Berglund (O); “The Thing in the Library”, Berglund and Burnham.)

  YOTH

  Red-lit caverns found beneath the underground realm of K’n-Yan. In these caverns lie several deserted cities built by the serpent-people, who fled to Yoth following the destruction of Valusia. These reptilian creatures manufactured many types of beasts for their pleasure, as well as creating new bodies for themselves. The decline of the colony came when the serpent-people turned from their worship of Yig to embrace the new god Tsathoggua, images of which they had found in black N’kai. Yig brought down his curse upon them, and the few who remained loyal to the snake-god fled to the caverns beneath Mount Voormithadreth.

  The people of K’n-Yan visited Yoth occasionally and learned much of their science from the serpent people’s lore. Yoth may be the home of the Great Old Ones Nyogtha and Yig, along with an offspring of Azathoth who once warred with its father.

  See gyaa-yothn; N’kai; Nyogtha; Sss’haa, Tsathoggua; Zin. (“The Vengeance of Yig”, Carter; “The Descent into the Abyss”, Carter and Smith; “Red-Litten Yoth”, DeBill; “The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop (O).)

  YOTHIC MANUSCRIPTS

  Writings detailing the customs of the people of Yoth. They were found in the Vaults of Zin, beneath Yoth’s greatest city.

  See Zin. (“The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop (O).)

  Y’QAA

  Grey-litten cavern in which Ubbo-Sathla dwells. This place is said to be multidimensional, and the seeker may find gates to it in many places and times.

  See Ubbo-Sathla. (“Zoth-Ommog”, Carter (O).)

  YR-NHHNGR

  Set of formulae that may be used both to bring beings from beyond Kadath to this dimension and to send them back, though the complete version of all of these formulae is difficult to obtain. Yr and Nhhngr may also be other dimensions that lie on the far side of Kadath in the Cold Waste.

  See Kadath. (“The Thing under Memphis”, Carter; “The Lurker at the Threshold”, Derleth and Lovecraft; “The Dunwich Horror”, Lovecraft (O).)

  YSTE, SONG OF

  See Song of Yste.

  YTHOGTHA

  One of Great Cthulhu’s supposed “sons”, along with Ghatanothoa and Zoth-Ommog. Ythogtha appears as a bipedal creature with webbed hands and feet tipped with suckers and whose head is covered with tentacles radiating from a single eye. It is currently imprisoned beneath an Elder Sign within the Abyss of Yhe, located in the sunken land of Mu far to the south of R’lyeh. It is served by the yuggya.

  Ythogtha’s cult was powerful in Mu for many years, gradually losing influence as Ghatanothoa’s worship gained ascendancy. The last Muvian priest of Ythogtha, Zanthu, conceived of a daring plan to raise his god up from its chasm and regain his religion’s former power. Ythogtha’s ascent, however, set a series of catastrophic events in motion that destroyed the land of Mu.

  From t
ime to time, statues of Ythogtha have come into the possession of humans. Through these idols, Ythogtha can manifest himself through the dreams of the owner. Madness is the most common result of this contact.

  It is said that Ythogtha is the manifestation of a force that brings about confusion in the thought processes of those it contacts.

  See Cthulhu; Ghatanothoa; Idh-yaa; Rituals of Yhe; Yhe; Yuggya; Zanthu; Zanthu Tablets. (“Out of the Ages”, Carter (O); “Perchance to Dream”, Carter; “The Thing in the Pit”, Carter; The Transition of Titus Crow, Lumley; Other Nations, Marsh and Marsh.)

  YUGGOTH (also IUKKOTH)

  Trans-Neptunian planet usually said to be identical with Pluto, but which is sometimes described as a huge world beyond the nine known planets which rotates perpendicular to our solar system’s orbital plane.

  This world serves as a base for the mi-go. From those humans who have traveled to or viewed Yuggoth, we hear that it is a planet of cities filled with black, windowless towers beneath warm seas and great mines of tok’l and other strange minerals. Glaaki stopped for a time on this world on his way to Earth, and it is here that the mi-go constructed the Shining Trapezohedron. Yuggoth served as a home for Rhan-Tegoth before he came to earth, and Tsathoggua’s grandfather Cxaxukluth may still dwell beneath its surface. Some even claim that all of the life in this solar system originated on Yuggoth.