Prologue

From the Ancient Greek Φοῖνιξ (phoínix), the phoenix is a beautiful scarlet and golden mythological bird that is mentioned in several ancient mythologies, often associated with Rebirth. It is said that near the end of the phoenix’s life-cycle, both the bird and its nest burst into flames, burning fiercely until only the ashes remain. Rising from its own ashes, a new young phoenix will arise, ready to live again.
The Ancient Egyptians associated the legend of the phoenix with their longings for immortality. For the Egyptians, the Bennu bird served as correspondence to the mythological phoenix; it is said that this bird was the soul of Ra, the God of Sun. The word Bennu is probably related to the word wabāna, meaning ‘to shine’ or ‘to rise brilliantly’, which explains why this bird was the sacred bird of the Heliopolis or Sun-City. The myth tells us that the Bennu created itself from a fire that burned on a holy tree in one of the sacred precincts of the temple of Ra; others say that it burst from the very heart of Osiris, the God of the Afterlife. Contrary to the traditional idea of a phoenix we now have, the Bennu was often portrayed as a grey heron with a two-feathered crest and a long beak, often crowned with a white crown with two ostrich feathers plumes on the sides, known as the Atef crown of Osiris.
Probably the most well-known version of the phoenix would be the Arabian phoenix; said to be as large as and similar to an eagle, with brilliant scarlet and golden feathers and a melancholic, yet soothing cry. Legend says that the phoenix would appear at dawn every morning, when the golden sun was just starting to rise and the sky was still scarlet, and sing a chant so beautiful that even the Gods would stop to listen.
It is believed that a phoenix could live for a long period of time, estimated between 500 and 1000 years. As the phoenix approached the end of its life, it would build itself a nest of myrrh twigs that would later ignite and be consumed by wild, powerful flames. Both the nest and the bird would be reduced to ashes, from which the new phoenix will arise; other sources say that the new phoenix arises from the midst of the flames.
In China, the Feng Huang (鳳凰) were mythological birds, similar to the phoenix, that reigned above all other birds. The Feng Huang is the second most-respected legendary creature in the Chinese culture, following the almighty and powerful Dragon. At the beginning, the term Feng referred to the masculine birds and the term Huang to the feminine birds, but this distinction is no longer made and the Feng Huang has been given purely female connotations; the Dragon, which has male connotations, was used to represent the Emperor, while the Feng Huang was used to represent the Empress. The Feng Huang was the symbol for power and prosperity, as well has high-virtue and grace. The phoenix was used to represent the power the Empress received from the heavens and only she could wear the phoenix symbol. The Feng Huang also symbolizes the union of the yin and yang.
According to the Erya (爾雅 - the oldest Chinese Encyclopedia), the Feng Huang was thought to be made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of the tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish. It is said that each part of the Feng Huang symbolizes a word; the head represents virtue, the wings represent duty, the back represents propriety, the abdomen represents belief and the chest represents mercy. It is also said that the Feng Huang’s body represents the six celestial bodies; the head is the sky, the eyes are the sun, the back is the moon, the wings are the wind, the feet are the earth and the tail is the planets.
During the Han Dynasty, two phoenixes were shown facing each other; one being male (Feng) and the other being female (Huang). The two terms merged together during the Yuan Dynasty and came to symbolize the Empress. If a phoenix was used to decorate a house, it symbolized that loyalty and honestly lied in the hearts of the people that lived inside it.
The phoenix is not absent in Hindu and Buddhist mythology either; the Garuda (गरुड) is a large mythological bird-like creature and it’s considered to be an Indian version of the phoenix.

Why is a bird that does not even exist so important for so many different cultures? Why is the phoenix still used in popular culture these days? Is there some knowledge or secret hidden inside the legend of this mythological bird?
And more importantly, what does the phoenix means to me? How does it help me in the quest for my dreams?