The Adventure Week: Taken Over event is finally here in Pokémon GO and it brings Shadow Cresselia to Giovanni‘s helm, giving trainers a chance to bag this PvP powerhouse.
But, apart from its GBL chops, Cresselia also boasts rich lore and an exceptional design to boot. Sure, it represents the moon but within this lunar background, it goes deep… very deep.
So without further ado, let’s delve into the intricacies of this Legendary Pokémon and appreciate just how fascinating it is to the eyes of the beholder!
Let’s start with a look into Cresselia:

Cresselia is THE Lunar Pokémon and that is clearly visible from the outset. Not only is its entire body shaped like a crescent moon, its face and head appendages are no different. Even the rings around it is moon-like.
Moon’s significance in astrology, culture, and history – Cresselia
The moon cannot be emphasized enough. Its phases have long held importance across various cultures and beliefs, primarily from the moon’s phases. Through this, be it the lore of a werewolf, or mystical nights where witches roam amok, the moon is associated with magic, light in the darkness, and feminine charm.
In fact, in alchemy, the moon is the literal avatar of feminine powers. Even in modern astrology, the moon signifies emotional expression, behavior, and response to others’ emotions… all classical feminine traits.
Cresselia is among the handful of Legendaries that have a gender and is a female. It’s also found on Full Moon Island, located in the southern part of the Sinnoh region.
Hands? Anime!
Its hands also resemble the atypical show of care/concern by a girl in anime. What say? Cresselia doesn’t have hands? Well, here they are:

And, this is what I mean:

Rings
Right off the bat, these may remind you of Saturn’s rings or the Aurora Borealis, and they’re both correct. But but but… there’s more!
Hagoromo, Japanese Buddhism
Hagoromo, also called a raiment, which is a long shawl usually worn by Eastern goddesses and their various representations.

One prime depiction is Tennin (Tennyo or Tenshi), which happen to be angels of Japanese Buddhism. They are shown as beautiful and caring women, dressed gracefully with a hagoromo. That’s not all, as many depictions also include the moon.


All this translates to Cresselia being akin to a moon goddess. But, it gets more direct, especially in China.
Chang’e, Chinese goddess of the moon
It gets more interesting when you see the colors she is often depicted in:

So, sure, Cresselia is a Buddhist angel or a Chinese goddess, but Pokémon never bases its Legendaries on just a thing or two. Rather, it’s a cocktail.
Cygnus, the swan constellation


And guess what? It’s often seen along with the Aurora Borealis!
Now, Cygnus, the Swan of the Sky, has more to it. This constellation is actually in the vertex of what’s known as the summer triangle.

This triangle is essentially the roadmap to the Milky Way during the summer months. And who made the Milky Way in Estonian lore?
Lindu, Estonian mythology
Lindu is the daughter of Heaven and the goddess of birds. When abandoned by her lover, the Northern Lights, her tears paved the Milky Way.

In fact, the Pokedex even stated that “Cresselia resembles the heavenly maiden who created the Milky Way.” This “heavenly maiden” is Lindu.
Anyway, back to the summer triangle.
Aside from Cygnus, the other vertices of the triangle are Aquila and Vega.
Aquila is a blue eagle known to have tortured Prometheus, and very likely resonates with Darkrai, the other part of the Lunar duo with Cresselia.
But Vega…
Vega, Eastern mythology
This legend tells about a forbidden romance between a mortal cowherd and the goddess Zhinu who, in essence, is the star Vega.
Their meeting happened on a bridge of magpies on the seventh moon of their lunar calendar:

Notice Zhinu’s scarf… a hagoromo!
All this toes up really well even with Greek mythology in a similar tale!
Endymion and Selene, Greek mythology
Endymion was a mortal shepherd in a forbidden affair with Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon.

But, why oh why is this romance across mythologies relevant?
That’s because, the lover of moon’s representation depicts Altair, a star of Aquila in the summer triangle… something that’s associated with nightmares. Altair’s waxing and waning phases are even used in Western astrology to predict terrible omens, based on the dark side of the star. That’s not all, as this very star is the alleged footprint of the Hindu god Vishnu, whose specific mantras can protect you from nightmares.
Nightmares… terrible omens… dark side… Darkrai. The other side of the lunar coin, if you will.

Goddess Hecate and the ultimate female power
Cresselia’s ability is Lunar Dance, where it faints to heal and restore full HP to an ally. This resurrection idea is magical and why pagan beliefs accredited witches and healing doctors as women.
It was and is still believed in some places, that a woman’s menstrual cycle is related to the moon’s cycle. A woman whose menstrual cycle matched closely with the moon’s cycle, the more powerful her abilities would have been. In fact, clerical medicine women were held in high regard during the ancient times and would hold rituals during the full moon.
Now, the governing goddess behind these pagan beliefs is the triple goddess:


These ‘three moons’ are the phases of a moon or the life stages of a woman: maiden, mother, and crone. The moon trinity.
The goddess adorning this concept is Hecate, a powerful Greek deity known for magic, witchcraft, and warding off evil, just like Cresselia wards off Darkrai.

And guess who has a moon-like face surrounded by two crescent moons?

Cresselia is a literal, absolute goddess across multiple cultures and lore.
Well, there you have it… undoubtedly one of the most magical Legendaries ever. Go catch it in its Shadow avatar.
And oh, if you’re interested in reading lore, design, and even scientific pieces of more popular Pokémon, you must check these out:
t, if you’re curious about how intricate and awe-inspiring Pokémon designs can be, have a look at these:
Mega Salamence | Dialga & Palkia Origin | Garchomp | Baxcalibur | Hydreigon | Zygarde| Druddigon | Naganadel | Drampa | Enamorus
Catch you soon with another article like this!