Grimm Curiosities

by Sharon Lynn Fisher

While some doorways are more magical or purposeful than others, any sort of door may take you to any world, so long as you believe it will. Which is far more difficult than it might sound.

Krampus was a kind of opposing figure to Sankt Nikolaus—St. Nicholas, the patron saint of children. Yet the two often appeared together. A goblin-like creature with long, curved horns, Krampus was said to punish naughty children while St. Nicholas gave treats to the good ones.

Krampus had originated from the snowcapped Austrian Alps. He was the shadow of St. Nicholas; together they represented the light and dark in our natures. Not all of God’s children were worthy of God’s gifts all the time, the book reasoned, and Krampus was there to remind them to keep to the light.