Garuda VS Kishi (folklore)

Garuda (Sanskrit: गरुड Garuḍa; Pāli: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a legendary bird or bird-like creature in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faith. He is variously the vehicle mount (vahana) of the Hindu god Vishnu, a dharma-protector and Astasena in Buddhism, and the Yaksha of the Jain Tirthankara Shantinatha. The Brahminy kite is considered as the contemporary representation of Garuda. Garuda is described as the king of birds and a kite-like figure. He is shown either in zoomorphic form (giant bird with partially open wings) or an anthropomorphic form (man with wings and some bird features). Garuda is generally a protector with the power to swiftly go anywhere, ever watchful and an enemy of the serpent. He is also known as Tarkshya and Vynateya.Garuda is a part of state insignia in India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia. The Indonesian official coat of arms is centered on the Garuda. The national emblem of Indonesia is called Garuda Pancasila. The Indian Air Force also uses the Garuda in their coat of arms and named their special operations unit after it as Garud Commando Force. It is often associated with the greater adjutant (Leptoptilos dubius) stork.

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The kishi is a two-faced demon in Angola. According to legend, a kishi has an attractive human man's face on the front of its body and a hyena's face on the back. Kishi are said to use their human face as well as smooth talk and other charms to attract young women, who they then eat with the hyena face. The hyena face is said to have long sharp teeth and jaws so strong they cannot be pulled off anything it bites. The word kishi, nkishi, or mukisi means "spirit" in several Bantu languages spoken in Zaire, northern Zambia, and Angola.

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