The summoning of a nightgaunt requires the use of a stone bearing the Elder Sign at night, but nothing else is known of this procedure.
See ghouls; Nodens; Pnath; shantak; Yegg-Ha; Yibb-Tstll. (“The Winfield Inheritance”, Carter; Call of Cthulhu Roleplaying Game, Cook and Tynes, “The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath”, Lovecraft (O); Dreams and Fancies, Lovecraft; Hero of Dreams, Lumley; “The Horror at Oakdeene”, Lumley; “The Exorcism of Iagsat”, Pulver.)
NIGHT-GAUNT. First novel written by Edgar Henquist Gordon. Published by Charnel House of London, its morbid subject matter made it a commercial failure.
(“The Dark Demon”, Bloch (O); “The Winfield Heritance”, Carter.)
NIOTH KORGHAI. 1) Monster which will come to earth in the time of Zothique, riding a comet out of the sky. The great king Ossaru will find the monster and bring it back to his palace, occasionally sacrificing youths to satiate its hunger. In the end, however, both Ossaru and Nioth Korghai will perish and be buried forever in the same tomb.
[Lin Carter linked this monster to the Mythos, but gave no reason for favoring Nioth Korghai over any of Smith’s other Zothique creature. He also stated that Nioth Korghai will be the last being to live on this planet, a fact the story directly contradicts.]
(“The Tomb-Spawn”, Smith (O).)
2) Aquatic creatures from the planet Karthis near Rigel that feed off human lifeforce. These beings travel between star-systems in a ship of immense size, taking their nourishment from the beings whose planets they pass. They refer to themselves as being “of the Ubbo-Sathla”, and may be related to that god in some way. (Ye Booke of Monstres, Aniolowski; The Space Vampires, Wilson (O).)
NIR. Village that lies between the Enchanted Wood and Ulthar. It has only a single street and a stone bridge, that had a human sacrifice interred within when it was built thirteen centuries ago, across the river Skai.
See Hatheg; Lerion. (“The Cats of Ulthar”, Lovecraft (O); “The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath”, Lovecraft.)
NITHON. According to some sources, one of the moons of the great world Yuggoth. Heavy phosphorescent clouds that block out all sunlight cover Nithon, and strange fungi sprout on its continents.
(“Nithon”, Fantina; “Star-Winds”, Lovecraft (O); “The Discovery of the Ghooric Zone”, Lupoff.)
NITHY-VASH. Dreamlands town to the south of Celephaïs. Nithy-Vash lies on a green hillside, and most of its buildings are quaint thatched cottages. Of especial note there are the temple of Nath-Horthath and the shop of Getech the curio-dealer.
(“The Four Sealed Jars”, Myers (O); H. P. Lovecraft’s Dreamlands, Petersen et. al.)
NITOCRIS. Sixth Dynasty queen of Egypt. During her reign, she revived the worship of the Black Pharaoh, or Nyarlathotep, and legend says her cruelty knew no bounds. She is said to have invited many of her officials and priests to a lavish banquet-hall one night, and then flooded the area, inundating the revelers. She is also known to have owned the Shining Trapezohedron used by the evil pharaoh Nephren-Ka.
One of the blackest tales of the reign of this queen involves the so-called “Mirror of Nitocris”. The queen unearthed this artifact from the vaults of Kish, where legend told that Nephren-Ka had left it, and Nitocris used it in many ways. She often left a condemned prisoner in a room with the mirror for one night; in the morning, the victim had vanished completely.
At the end of her reign, Nitocris was buried alive within her tomb, the exact location of which has never been revealed.
[While she has undergone considerable changes in Cthulhu Mythos fiction, Nitocris is a legendary figure. Her brother was the pharaoh before her, and her infamous drowning of her courtiers was said to be vengeance for his death. Nitocris is said to have killed herself afterward by throwing herself into a chamber of “hot ashes”. No contemporary Egyptian accounts of these events have been discovered, so they likely have no basis in fact. Two other women named Nitocris—a Babylonian queen and a Twenty-Sixth Dynasty daughter of a pharaoh—should not be confused with this one.]
See Black Brotherhood; Kish; Nyarlathotep; People of the Monolith; Shining Trapezohedron. (“Imprisoned with the Pharaohs”, Lovecraft and Houdini (O); “The Mirror of Nitocris”, Lumley.)
N’KAI (possibly also N’KEN). Dark cavern that is the home of the Great Old One Tsathoggua. It is usually said to lie beneath the subterranean land of Yoth, though others place it beneath Mount Voormithadreth. Entrances to it are as far apart as the Carlsbad Cavern and the Black Forest of Germany, so it may be that it lies in another dimension entirely.
The people of Yoth took images of Tsathoggua from these caverns. A later exploration to N’kai from the caves of K’n-yan found only amorphous servitors of Tsathoggua which oozed down stone troughs and worshiped the toad-god’s many idols. The expedition’s survivors sealed off the passage. Since then, there have been several attempts to discover the location of this entrance, but none have been successful.
See formless spawn; K’n-yan; Tsathoggua; Yoth. (“The Grinning Ghoul”, Bloch; The Life of Eibon according to Cyron of Varaad, Carter; “The Alchemist’s Notebook”, Hurd and Baetz; Selected Letters III, Lovecraft; “The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop (O).)
NNG. See Nug.
NOCTUARY OF VIZOORANOS. See Book of Night.
NODENS (also LORD OF THE GREAT ABYSS). Being who is often placed among the Elder Gods, and indeed may be the most famous of them. He is usually represented as an old man standing with an oaken staff in one hand on a seashell chariot drawn by fantastic beasts. At times he is depicted as having a beard of tentacles as well.
Nodens bears special love for dreamers and visionaries. He has been known to take such individuals on trips with him across space and time. He is also the lord of the nightgaunts, though at times his power over them seems limited.
According to some, Nodens last came to Earth billions of years in the past and was worshiped by certain beings of which we know nothing. He left when the Great Old Ones arrived, and he and his worshipers made their way to the far future, when Nodens would once again walk the lands of Earth. This myth holds that Nodens and Yog-Sothoth are opposed to one another. This is hard to reconcile with the other known manifestations of Nodens, unless Nodens has avatars that visit our planet periodically.
In other stories, the gods of Earth have entrusted Nodens with guarding the prisons of the Great Old Ones. There will come a time, though, when Nodens himself will cease his vigilance and sleep. Then the Great Old Ones will be freed from their tombs.
The Atlanteans worshiped Nodens under the name Chozzar, God of Magic, and the Druids also paid him homage as the “serpent of waters”. His temple at Lydney, England may be found by the dying, upon whom Nodens may bestow healing—at a high price. A pillar found near the town of Caermaen names Nodens in connection with what might be a mating ritual, but it is unknown whether the god endorsed or protected against those involved. A small modern cult sees Nodens as a hunter, emulating him by periodically tracking and killing cultists of other faiths.
One researcher claimed Nodens was identical with Satan, though this seems unlikely.
[Little information on Nodens exists. He might be a form of Nud or Lud or Nuada, one of the former heads of the Celtic pantheon. This god lost his arm in battle, and a silver one was forged for him. Due to his disability, however, he stepped down as head of the Celtic gods. He might have had a holy site in Lydney, on the banks of the Severn River, though inscriptions to other gods have also been found there. (See Hutton’s The Pagan Religions in the Ancient British Isles for more information.) Lovecraft likely chose to use Nodens because he was mentioned in Arthur Machen’s “The Great God Pan.”]
See Elder Gods; Gods of Earth; Great Abyss; nightgaunts; Yog-Sothoth. (“Glimpses”, Attansio; “A Priestess of Nodens”, Attansio; “Hell on Earth”, Bloch; “Power of the Druid”, Bloch; Nightside of Eden, Grant; “The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath”, Lovecraft; “The Strange High House in the Mist”, Lovecraft; “The Great God Pan”, Machen;
“The House of the Worm”, Myers; “The Fall of Cthulhu”, Nelson.)
NOPHRU-KA. High priest of a powerful cult of Nyarlathotep in Egypt during the Fourteenth Dynasty who attempted to overthrow the old regime and become the new pharaoh. To accomplish these ends, he called down monsters from the stars to wreak havoc across the land. In the confusion, Nophru-Ka and his cultists would attack the pharaoh and set up their own government. Nyarlathotep himself smiled on their venture and promised to send a messenger to aid them.
The current pharaoh learned of the plot, and his assassins tracked down Nophru-Ka, killing him as he knelt to pray in his cult’s most sacred temple. As he died, Nophru-Ka pronounced a curse upon the head of the pharaoh and the ruling line of Egypt.
The high priest’s followers, demoralized by their leader’s death, were driven to the south until they arrived at the ruined city of G’harne.
Some claim that Nophru-Ka was a reincarnation of the Black Pharaoh Nephren-Ka, while others claim that his claim to such title was spurious and that the cults of the Black Pharaoh brought about his death.
[“Nophru-Ka” seems to have been a misreading of “Nephren-Ka” (which see), as Herber has named “Nephren-Ka” as the former head of the Brotherhood of the Beast in a later work.]
See Brotherhood of the Beast; G’harne; Nyarlathotep; Nyarlathotep (The Beast). (Fungi from Yuggoth, Herber (O); Cthulhu Live: Lost Souls, Salmon et. al.)
NORD, GASPARD DU. See du Nord, Gaspard.
NOTES ON NESSIE: THE SECRETS OF LOCH NESS REVEALED! Book by Robert Allan McGilchrist of Edinburgh. After his wife and children deserted him because of his curious ways, McGilchrist published a series of studies on such mythological topics as the Lambton Worm and the naiads supposed to live in the lochs near Inverness. Notes on Nessie caused a small sensation when it appeared in 1900, despite its limited print run. McGilchrist was found one day drowned in a pool on his property.
Little information on what is in the book has appeared, though it might link Cthulhu to the sea-serpents and dragons of world myth.
(Keeper’s Compendium, Herber; Beneath the Moors, Lumley (O); “The House of the Temple”, Lumley.)
NOTES ON THE CTHAAT AQUADINGEN. Volume by Joachim Feery. This book is very rare, as are most of Feery’s limited editions. As with his Notes on the Necronomicon, it contains several quotes from the Cthaat Aquadingen that have been recreated and expanded upon. One section provides a long quote on the summoning of Bugg-Shash.
See Feery, Joachim. (“The Fairground Horror”, Lumley (O); “The Kiss of Bugg-Shash”, Lumley.)
NOTES ON THE NECRONOMICON. Book written by Joachim Feery. His Notes on the Necronomicon is the best known of the many limited-edition books he privately published. Despite his claims of obtaining the occult knowledge he put in his books through dreams, no one questions his knowledge of the paranormal.
Two editions of Notes on the Necronomicon were published, the first containing all of Feery’s researches (see Original Notes on the Necronomicon), the second an abridged and edited printing. A French edition might also exist. This slim volume contains many quotes from the Necronomicon as well as Feery’s commentaries upon the texts. Many of the quotes within differ significantly from the original volume, as Feery inserted much material he asserted he had received in dreams into these extracts.
See Feery, Joachim; Necronomicon (appendices); Original Notes on the Necronomicon. (“Aunt Hester”, Lumley; “Cement Surroundings”, Lumley (O); “The House of the Temple”, Lumley; “Name and Number”, Lumley.)
NOTES ON WITCHCRAFT IN MONMOUTHSHIRE, GLOUCESTERSHIRE AND THE BERKELEY REGION. William Thomas (or A. V.) Sangster’s 1962 book dealing with the witch beliefs of the area. It especially notes the legends surrounding Byatis, along with other Great Old Ones whose cults are active in the area.
(Ramsey Campbell’s Goatswood, Aniolowski and Sumpter; “The Room in the Castle”, Campbell (O); “Unseen”, Love.)
NOTH-YIDIK. Being whose children are considered especially repulsive, even by the worshipers of the Great Old Ones. It has been said that these children, made by Noth-Yidik’s mating with K’thun, are the Hounds of Tindalos.
See K’thun. (“The Madness out of Time”, Carter; “The Horror in the Museum”, Lovecraft and Heald (O).)
NOTON AND KADIPHONEK, MOUNTS. Two mountains in the land of Lomar that flanked the pass leading to the city of Olathoë. The Inutos came through this pass and, catching the Lomarians unaware, destroyed them and their city.
See Lomar. (“Polaris”, Lovecraft (O).)
N’TSE-KAAMBL. Elder God “whose splendour hath shattered worlds”. She often appears as a beautiful woman in flowing robes bearing a spear and shield. N’tse-Kaambl is primarily worshiped in the Dreamlands, especially by the priests of Yuth. Some credit the invention of the Elder Sign to her. A rite in the Book of Eibon calls upon her protection, but it may only be cast on a tall hill or tower with eight people present.
(“The House of the Worm”, Myers (O); “Xiurhn”, Myers; “The Adoration of the Black Flame”, Pulver; The Complete Dreamlands, Williams and Petersen.)
NUG (or NNG). Creature who may the “Grandfather of Ghouls”, but who is probably the twin of Yeb instead.
See Black Litanies of Nug and Yeb; Nug and Yeb; Yeb. (“The Descent into the Abyss”, Carter and Smith; “The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop; “The Last Test”, Lovecraft and de Castro.)
NUG AND YEB. Two minor Mythos entities, the true origin and significance of which remain a mystery. They are said to be the children of Shub-Niggurath and Yog-Sothoth, and in turn have given birth to Cthulhu and Tsathoggua by way of asexual fission. (The link to Tsathoggua is unlikely, however, as the Parchments of Pnom deal at some length with the genealogy of this Great Old One, making no reference to either of these entities.) On the other hand, others allege that Nug and Yeb are the spawn of Shub-Niggurath and Hastur the Unspeakable; this seems more likely, considering that these beings are often mentioned together.
Nug and Yeb were worshiped together in Irem, Mu, and K’n-yan. In Irem, their shrine has been found bearing the yin-yang symbol, implying that the two beings may represent cosmic opposites of some sort. Other texts refer to Nug and Yeb as the creator and keeper, respectively, of a garden in which Yig thrives. Their rites were said to be especially abhorrent. These two beings have been entrusted with the task of clearing off the earth to make it ready for the Great Old Ones’ return, and use two devices called the “Furnace of Yeb” and the “Torch of Nug” to accomplish this purpose.
The esoteric doctrines of the monks of Leng teach that Nug and Yeb are the secret names of Lloigor and Zhar respectively, and are known as Klulu (Cthulhu) and Nyarlathotep when the stars are right.
See Black Litanies of Nug and Yeb; Furnace of Yeb; K’n-yan; Nug; Shub-Niggurath; Yig; Yog-Sothoth. (“Carcosa Story about Hali”, (fragment) Carter; “The Strange Doom of Enos Harker”, Carter and Price; Selected Letters III, Lovecraft; Selected Letters IV, Lovecraft; “The Mound”, Lovecraft and Bishop; “The Last Test”, Lovecraft and de Castro (O), “Out of the Aeons”, Lovecraft and Heald; “Black Fire”, Murray; “To Clear the Earth”, Murray; “The Jest of Yig”, Webb.)
NUG-SOTH. 1) Magician from fourteen thousand years in the future whose mind was at one time captured by the Great Race of Yith. (“The Shadow Out of Time”, Lovecraft (O).)
2) Species that at one time lived on the planet of Yaddith. They were humanoid in shape, encased in carapaces, and bore the snouts of tapirs. On their home world of Yaddith, the Nug-Soth built a highly advanced civilization, in which travel through space and other dimensions was an everyday occurrence. When the dholes came to Yaddith, however, the Nug-Soth were unable to save their world, and they scattered themselves throughout the cosmos. See Kath; Shub-Niggurath; Yaddith. (“Visions from Yaddith”, Carter; “Through the Gates of the Silver Key”, Lovecraft and Price (O).)
3) Alphabet given in the Necronomicon which is used for mystical inscriptions on ritual implements. Whether these
letters are connected with either of the two “Nug-Soth” mentioned above is uncertain. (“The Book of the Gates”, Carter; Necronomicon: The Book of Dead Names, Hay, ed. (O).)
NUMINOS. Borea’s closest moon, which Ithaqua has populated with many sorts of animals and plants. Numinos is mostly covered with ocean, and is home to many fierce bands of Norsemen whose culture is much like that of Vikings. Almost all the world’s inhabitants revere the Wendigo unswervingly, having seen the destruction he wrought upon them many years before. One small colony of rebels does live on the Isle of Mountains.
See Borea. (In the Moons of Borea, Lumley; Spawn of the Winds, Lumley (O).)
NYARLATHOTEP (also the Crawling Chaos or Mighty Messenger). The soul and messenger of the Outer Gods. It is said to dwell in a cavern at the center of the world, accompanied by two mindless flutists. It often carries messages and performs services for the Great Old Ones and Other Gods, being the only one of them who seems free and able to do so.
The Crawling Chaos acts as an intermediary between the Great Old Ones and their worshipers, as well as taking messages between the Great Old Ones themselves. In fact, Nyarlathotep may be a personification of the telepathic powers of the Great Old Ones. Nonetheless, Nyarlathotep seems to have a distinct personality which the Old Ones’ inhuman minds might find difficult to create, and it has been openly contemptuous of its supposed “masters” at times. His relations with particular Great Old Ones may vary. Cthugha displays open enmity toward it, and the cults of Nyarlathotep and Cthulhu vary in attitude from friendly cooperation to thinly-veiled dislike.
Nyarlathotep has been worshiped under several guises in all parts of the world. One of its most infamous cults was among the Stygians, who called it “Nyarlat” and brought its worship to Egypt. The Crawling Chaos was one of the greatest gods in the land of the Nile, where it was the ruler of the underworld, the master of the night, and the patron of sorcerers. After many years, however, the people of Egypt grew frightened of the dark god and struck out all references to it from their records and monuments, reassigning its attributes to other gods such as Set and Thoth. Though the enemies of the cult were able to suppress the memory of Nyarlathotep, a few remembered. Resurgences of its worship occurred throughout Egyptian history, the most famous of which were led by Nephren-Ka, the Hyksos, Nophru-Ka, and Nitocris. (It was during Nephren-Ka’s reign that the suffix “-hotep”, meaning “the gratified”, was added to the god’s name.)
Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia Page 31
