Motif family
Immortality Without Renewal
Deathlessness, extended life, or escape from death becomes incomplete, burdensome, or defective because youth, vitality, release, or transformation is absent.
14 traditions
25 occurrences
24 mapped motifs
6 sub-families
- arthurian
- celtic irish
- comparative
- estonian
- germanic
- greek
- greek roman
- hindu
- japanese
- navajo
- norse
- persian
- roman
- slavic
Conserved neighbors: lament and mourning · sacred treasures · sacred knowledge · death and transformation
Sub-families · the next landing down
Time and Old Age as Inescapable Adversaries
3 motifs
- consuming power of time and old age 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
- contest against old age as an unbeatable opponent 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- norse
- long life without youth becomes a burden 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
Divine Life Extension and Its Conditions
3 motifs
- dissatisfied petitioner seeking longer life 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- germanic
- divinely extended prophetic lifespan 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
- divinely granted eternal youth and sleep 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- greek roman
Fading Youth, Failed Restoration, and Aging Through Loss
3 motifs
- Fading youth and rejected return 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- persian
- Former hero longs for restored youth before a crisis 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
- loss of sustaining divine object causes aging or decline 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- norse
Immortality Without Preserved Youth
2 motifs
- Immortality without eternal youth 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- greek roman
- Immortality without preserved youth 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- greek
Comparative Longevity and Unequal Aging
2 motifs
- graded longevity of animals and divine beings 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- greek
- Unaging child beside maturing mortal companion 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- estonian
Deathless Figures Persisting Across Ages
2 motifs
- Deathless named figure 2 occurrences · 1 traditions
- slavic
- sages living or reappearing across ages 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- hindu
Not yet placed in a sub-family
9 motifs
- Ancient men appearing young 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- arthurian
- Ancient sages living and reappearing across ages 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- hindu
- Death before decrepitude preserves the afterlife condition 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- comparative
- Divine gift of extended life 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
- eternal youth joined to magical sleep 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- greek roman
- ever-living and gods framing 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- celtic irish
- Incomplete wish for longevity without youth 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- roman
- Skin wager and failed renewal 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- navajo
- Wish for extended life prompted by a long-lived animal 1 occurrences · 1 traditions
- japanese
Each motif link opens its evidence page: every tagged passage with its quote, and a path into the book where the passage lives.