Inguma, The God of Dreams
The ancient Basque legend has told of a malevolent, wispy fog that may seep through any crack you have on your home. It’ll carry itself along your floors until it finds a sleeping victim. Once it has found you sleeping and vulnerable, it’ll build itself over you, slowly revealing a part of it’s true form. A hand appears out of the fog and pushes on the your throat, just enough to induce panic and nightmares. The mind will transform the physical pain into fuel for a nightmare. A nightmare which will become worse because the fog’s specially lies in dream world.
People can escape by catching the fog in a generous mood or by having precautionary measures in place. More than likely, you will wake up in the morning scared and confused, but the worst is finished. Though the fact is, there is always something worse that can occur. The fog has been reported to be more violent and merciless on occasion. You could be forced to suffer more than the rest. Truly unlucky souls feel the pain like the others, suffering through the same nightmare like the rest, but the few unlucky souls awake to face their tormenter. They are bound down by sleep paralysis and completely helpless. The culprit dissipates their disguising fog and shows himself. There stands Inguma, the god of dreams, but most know him as the bringer of nightmares. As the unfortunate souls stare at Inguma, he sets more weight on their throat, and soon succumb to the pain.
As I mentioned there are precautionary measures you can take. Across the Basque Country, people have different invocations and incantations to recite before bed. Such as;
“Inguma, I do not fear you. I take god and Mother Mary as protectors. In the sky, the stars; On Earth, the blades of grass; On the coast, the grains of sand; Until you have counted them all do not come to me.”
“St. Andrew, last night I dreamed for you and for me. God and lady St. Mary, receive me for your goodness. Amen.”
“Inguma, you beggar, I do not fear you. I have Jesus as my father, the virgin Mother as my mother, and all the saints and angels of heaven as my guardians.”
The story origins from the western end of the Pyrenees, on the coast of Biscay, in a country that straddles parts of Spain and France; The Basque Country. It is quite an interesting place to learn about.
First photo: https://unsplash.com/@bradfickeisen
Second photo: https://unsplash.com/@kaspercph