Unicorn: Fact And Fantasy

The usual image of the unicorn coalesces in our minds as a white horse with a horn. In Europe the image of a small goat-like horse with cloven hooves, a beard, a lion’s tail, and one horn dominates the fairy tales of this particular beast. However, throughout the many years and different cultures the unicorn changed greatly.

Long ago, several years before the Greeks thought of building their cities, the unicorn already made an appearance in China. Called the ki-lin (pronounced chee-lin) the Chinese unicorn appeared as a creature with the body of a deer, the head of a wolf, the hooves of a horse, and a horn several feet long. Always a mythical creature to the Chinese, it wore a coat of the five sacred Chinese colors, red, yellow, blue, white, and black. Its coming foretold great things, such as the birth of famous people. As the chosen animal of Buddha, the Chinese teacher, it symbolized great peace and serenity. Never would it step upon a blade of grass or eat meat. Its horn possessed a fleshy tip so the unicorn

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