ELINA RICKURA

@elina · 27 Oct 2021

The Candileja

#mitosylegends
There are many narratives that are transmitted in many ways from generation to generation. They are also used as a way of understanding popular ideas and the daily life of a people. Some tell stories about the past, others explain natural or supernatural phenomena, others talk about individual events, love relationships and more.
However, each legend is unique to the specific region where it is told, so it is transmitted and transformed according to the inhabitants of each region.
This story that I will tell you belongs to Colombia. Place where I lived for two years and where I met people who were passionate about their culture and myths.
CANDILEJA
Legend has it that you can see a large burning ball composed of three torches, these take the form of red tentacles and chase suspicious men or men of ill will
Therefore, drunkards, infidels, abusers, those who abandon their family, and so on are afraid of this legend.
They say that he also persecutes overnight travelers and that he may appear to reprimand bad behaviors of children and grandchildren.
I remember being told that on a family trip where the night was present on the road, the driver could see how this fearsome fireball was passing before his eyes.
Ask where this legend came from and they tell me that the origin of the candileja is an old woman who was excessively permissive with her grandchildren. When she died, St. Peter rebuked her for having educated them in this way and, as punishment, gives her the form of three flares of candela, as well as entrusting her to return to order when necessary. One represented the body of the old woman, and the other two represented the body of her grandchildren.