Tash
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Tash is a fictional character found in the Chronicles of Narnia. He appears in The Horse and His Boy, and in The Last Battle. He is the main deity of the land of Calormen, south of Narnia and is represented as a 4-armed creature with the head of a bird of prey. It is suggested in the book that he is opposed to Aslan; by implication, he is Satan to Aslan's Christ-like representation. This is illustrated by the reactions of the main characters to his presence: they talk of smelling a foul smell and of the air growing cold when he passes near to them. There is a common link between Tash and the various "pagan" deities which were worshipped in the ancient Middle East, such as Baal, Molech, Nisroch etc.
It should be noted that those Calormenes who honoured Tash as 'good', upon their death, are counted as having honoured Aslan, and likewise those who do evil in Aslan's name are counted as having honoured Tash. This illustrates Lewis' belief that the idea being worshiped, and the honesty with which it is worshiped is more important than the name by which it is referred to. This is made clear in The Last Battle, where an honest Calormene soldier enters 'Aslan's World.'
Tash is the Turkish word for "stone".
| The Chronicles of Narnia C. S. Lewis | ||
| Peter | Susan | Edmund | Lucy | Eustace | Jill | Digory Kirke | Caspian Aslan | Reepicheep | Tash | Tisroc | Mr. Tumnus | White Witch | Puddleglum | ||
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