Makara

## Life

Makara is an Unseelie classless fae who reached out to other classless fae during Albion's war with the Unseelie Court, while the Coalition of the Classless was forming, and possibly attended the meeting with Gwyn ap Nudd and Albion and their Inner Courts.

When Olphix stole the powers of the Classless during the ice plague, it's implied that Olphix took some or all of Makara's powers, though Makara's fate is unknown.

## Special Abilities

Augus Each Uisge noted that Makara is incredibly powerful, like the Nain Rouge, and that Gwyn is comparable to them in terms of power.

## Trivia

* Pronunciation: Mack-ah-ruh
* Fae can have cores, which help define their personalities in ways that are different from a heartsong (e.g., Augus had a core of stillness, which he lost during his Kingship by giving pieces of it to other fae, and which was separate from his heartsong of domination). 'Makara had the core of the Ganges river living inside of himself'.

## Folklore/Mythology

'Makara (Sanskrit: मकर) is a legendary sea-creature in Hindu mythology. In Hindu astrology, Makara is equivalent to the Zodiac sign Capricorn.

Makara appears as the vahana (vehicle) of the river goddess Ganga, Narmada and of the sea god Varuna. Makara are considered guardians of gateways and thresholds, protecting throne rooms as well as entryways to temples; it is the most commonly recurring creature in Hindu and Buddhist temple iconography, and also frequently appears as a Gargoyle or as a spout attached to a natural spring. Makara-shaped earrings called *Makarakundalas* are sometimes worn by the Hindu gods, for example Shiva, the Destroyer, or the Preserver-god Vishnu, the Sun god Surya, and the Mother Goddess Chandi. Makara is also the insignia of the love god Kamadeva, who has no dedicated temples and is also known as *Makaradhvaja*, "one whose flag depicts a makara".

. . . It is generally depicted as half terrestrial animal in the frontal part (stag, deer, or elephant) and half aquatic animal in the hind part (usually of a fish, a seal, or a snake, though sometimes a peacock or even a floral tail is depicted). Though Makara may take many different forms throughout Hindu culture, in the modern world, its form is always related to the marsh crocodile or water monitor.

. . . During Vedic times when Indra was the God of heaven, Varuna (the Vedic water god) became the God of the seas and rode on makara, which was called "the water monster vehicle".

Makara has been depicted typically as half mammal and half fish. In many temples, the depiction is in the form of half fish or seal with head of an elephant. It is also shown in an abstract, chimeric form with head and jaws of a crocodile, an elephant trunk with scales of fish and a peacock tail. Lakshmi sitting on a lotus is also a depiction in which she pulls the tongue of the elephant shaped makara . . . meant to project Lakshmi's image as the goddess of prosperity, wealth and well being. It represents a necessary state of chaos before the emergence of a new state of order.

Makara is also the emblem of Kamadeva, the god of love and desire. Kamadeva is also known as 'Makara-Ketu' which means "having the makara for an emblem". It is the tenth sign of the Zodiac, called rāśi in Sanskrit, which is equivalent to the zodiacal sign of Capricorn (goat symbol).'

Makara is depicted in many different ways through history and across different belief systems, and often adorns archways and entrances, sometimes as a guardian of gateways.

## Image Gallery

Makara by sirenssleep.jpgFanart of Makara by sirenssleep https://sirenssleep.tumblr.com/post/49668027854/a-little-digital-paint-of-not-poignants-ocFanart of Makara's forms by Zinfandelli https://zinfandelli.tumblr.com/post/57495310662/makara-iswf-3
## References

1. ↑ *The Court of Five Thrones*, Chapter 29: Classless. Accessed 28 March 2021.
2. ↑ *The Court of Five Thrones*, Chapter 56: Islands. Accessed 28 March 2021.
3. ↑ *The Ice Plague: Book 1 - The Forest of Fire*, Chapter 28: Like Batteries. Accessed 03 May 2021.
4. ↑ *Game Theory*, Chapter 10: Oath. Accessed 27 March 2021.
5. ↑ Pia pronouncing certain names and terms in audio format on the not\_poignant tumblr.
6. ↑ *The Court of Five Thrones*, Chapter 27: Healing. Accessed 07 June 2021.
7. ↑ *Game Theory*, Chapter 41: Faith. Accessed 20 March 2021.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Makara". Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makara. Accessed 24 June 2021.