Venezuelan Folklore is full of different myths and legends, some scarier than others. One of my personal favorites is the legend of María Lionza, considered the queen of Venezuelan Folklore. María Lionza, also known as Yara, was the daughter of the Chief of an indigenous tribe, in the state of Yaracuy.
In this tribe, it was believed that a baby girl with light colored eyes will bring destruction and chaos to the village, therefore it was decided that they would be killed as soon as they are born. The Chief, after seeing that his daughter had light green eyes, couldn’t bring himself to kill her, so he put her into hiding inside of what we now know as Sorte Mountain.
One day, many believe that it was on Yara’s first menstruation, the indigenous princess went into the lake to purify herself, when she was bit by a snake and died instantly. The snake, on the other hand, exploded and it is believed that this caused the many torrential rains that occur in the region.
It is believed that María Lionza is also represented in nature by the blue butterflies, typical and famous from the region.
Nowadays, there is a cult dedicated to praise Maria Lionza, where people from all around the country of Venezuela visit her, usually praying and participating in rituals in her honor, hoping that they will become lucky in certain areas of their lives in exchange.
Some of the most popular dates of visitation are during Catholic Holy Week and on October 12th, the Venezuelan National Day of Indigenous Resistance.