The Legend of the StagFred Hámori
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The Hungarian Legend of the Wondrous Stag is one of the oldest legends of the nation. It is so old that it is found in various forms among those nations who were the distant relatives or neighbors of the Hungarians before their settlement in Hungary. The meaning and the wording of the legends may have changed slightly but they all have much in common. Today the remaining legend is relatively short, whereas in the past it was probably much more extensive. However the Hungarian legend despite it's brevity includes in it many important points some of which can be found in most of the related legends found in other cultures. It is these points which show that once, in the remote antiquity, these people were neighbors.
The symbol of the cosmos and the mother of the sun was symbolized as a stag. The great horned doe often was shown carrying the sun in her horns, in some cases the sun itself was symbolized as a stag, the son of the doe of the legend. The following Christmas song told by the Hungarian Regos (Bards) illustrates the stag as the carrier of the sun.
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