Citizendia

This article is about the creatures of mythology. For alternative meanings, see Lycanthropy (disambiguation).

Lycanthropy is the ability or power of a human being to undergo transformation into a wolf, or wolf-like characteristics. Shapeshifting is a common theme in Mythology and Folklore, as well as in Science fiction and Fantasy. The term comes from Greek lykánthropos (λυκάνθρωπος): λύκος, lýkos ("wolf") + άνθρωπος, ánthrōpos ("human") (Rose, 230). The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage in the development of the Hellenic language family spanning the Archaic (c

The word lycanthropy is sometimes used generically for any transformation of a human into animal form, though the precise term for that is technically "therianthropy". Therianthropy (from n therianthrope and adj therianthropic, part man and part beast from the Greek theríon, θηρίον meaning "wild Sometimes, "zoanthropy" is used instead of "therianthropy" (Guiley, 192).

The word has also been linked to Lycaon, a king of Arcadia who, according to Ovid's Metamorphoses, was turned into a ravenous wolf in retribution for attempting to serve human flesh (his own son) to visiting Zeus in an attempt to disprove the god's divinity. Lycaon was the son of Pelasgus and Meliboea (or of Oread nymph Cyllene) father of Oenotrus and the mythical first king Arcadia or Arkadía ( Greek Αρκαδία is a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus. Publius Ovidius Naso ( March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD was a Roman poet known to the English -speaking world as Ovid who wrote on many topics including The Metamorphoses by the Roman poet Ovid is a narrative poem Zeus (zjuːs in Greek: nominative: Zeús /zdeús/ genitive: Diós; Modern Greek /'zefs/ in Greek mythology

There is also a mental illness called lycanthropy in which a patient believes he or she is, or has transformed into, an animal and behaves accordingly. Mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern that occurs in an individual and is thought to cause distress or disability that is not expected as This is sometimes referred to as clinical lycanthropy to distinguish it from its use in legends. Clinical lycanthropy is defined as a rare Psychiatric syndrome which involves a Delusion that the affected person can or has transformed into an Animal, A legend ( Latin, legenda, "things to be read" is a Narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to

Contents

Causes

In fiction, the most common cause of lycanthropy is to be bitten by another 'werewolf' or lycanthrope. In other cases, lycanthropy is not given any specific cause other than being generally attributed to magic, which may be voluntary (a supernatural power) or involuntary (a curse). Magic, sometimes known as sorcery, is a Conceptual system that asserts human ability to control the natural world (including events objects people and The term supernatural or supranatural ( Latin: super, supra "above" + natura "nature" pertains to entities events A curse (also called execration) is any manner of Adversity thought to be inflicted by any supernatural power (such as a spell, a Prayer, an Another suspected common cause is the mental state of the person. The mental state of a human has been shown to make them believe that they are, indeed, a lycanthrope. When a more detailed explanation is assigned, it is generally one of those listed below.

Mechanisms of transformation

Even if the denotation of lycanthropy is limited to the wolf-metamorphosis of living human beings, the beliefs classed together under this head are far from uniform, and the term is somewhat capriciously applied. This word has distinct meanings in other fields see Denotation (semiotics and Connotation and denotation. The transformation may be temporary or permanent; the were-animal may be the man himself metamorphosed; may be his double whose activity leaves the real man to all appearance unchanged; may be his soul, which goes forth seeking whom it may devour, leaving its body in a state of trance; or it may be no more than the messenger of the human being, a real animal or a familiar spirit, whose intimate connection with its owner is shown by the fact that any injury to it is believed, by a phenomenon known as repercussion, to cause a corresponding injury to the human being. A doppelgänger ( or fetch is the ghostly double of a living person a sinister form of Bilocation. The soul, according to many religious and philosophical beliefs is the self-awareness, or Consciousness, unique to a particular living An altered state of consciousness, (ASC also named altered state of mind is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking Beta wave state In Early modern English Superstition, a familiar spirit, Imp, or familiar (from Middle English familiar, related to family

Transmigration of souls

Lycanthropy is often confused with transmigration; but the essential feature of the were-animal is that it is the alternative form or the double of a living human being, while the soul-animal is the vehicle, temporary or permanent, of the spirit of a dead human being. Transmigration of the soul (sometimes given simply as Transmigration) is similar and foreign in some ways to the philosophy of Reincarnation. Nevertheless, instances in legend of humans reincarnated as wolves are often classed with lycanthropy, as well as these instances being labeled werewolves in local folklore.

There is no line of demarcation, and this makes it probable that lycanthropy is connected with nagualism and the belief in familiar spirits, rather than with metempsychosis, as E. B. Tylor argued, or with totemism, as suggested by J. In Mesoamerican folk religion a Nagual or Nahual (both pronounced) is a human being who has the power to magically turn him- or herself into an animal form most Reincarnation Metempsychosis is a philosophical term in the Greek language referring to the belief of Transmigration of the soul, especially its Reincarnation Sir Edward Burnett Tylor ( October 2 1832 &ndash January 2 1917) was an English Anthropologist. F. M'Lennan. Thus, these origins for lycanthropy mingle a belief in reincarnation, a belief in the sharing of souls between living humans and beasts and a belief in human ghosts appearing as non-human animals after death. A ghost is said to be the apparition of a Deceased person frequently similar in appearance to that person and usually encountered in places she or he frequented A characteristic of metempsychosis is a blurring of the boundaries between the intangible and the corporeal, so that souls are often conceived of as solid, visible forms that need to eat and can do physical harm (Hamel, 15).

Witchcraft

The phenomenon of repercussion, the power of animal metamorphosis, or of sending out a familiar, real or spiritual, as a messenger, and the supernormal powers conferred by association with such a familiar, are also attributed to the magician, male and female, all the world over; and witch superstitions are closely parallel to, if not identical with, lycanthropic beliefs, the occasional involuntary character of lycanthropy being almost the sole distinguishing feature. Magic, sometimes known as sorcery, is a Conceptual system that asserts human ability to control the natural world (including events objects people and Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers In another direction the phenomenon of repercussion is asserted to manifest itself in connection with the bush-soul of the West African and the nagual of Central America; but though there is no line of demarcation to be drawn on logical grounds, the assumed power of the magician and the intimate association of the bush-soul or the nagual with a human being are not termed lycanthropy. In Mesoamerican folk religion a Nagual or Nahual (both pronounced) is a human being who has the power to magically turn him- or herself into an animal form most Nevertheless it will be well to touch on both these beliefs here.

Animal ancestors

Stories of humans descending from animals are common explanations for tribal and clan origins. Sometimes the animals assumed human forms in order to ensure their descendants retained their human shapes, other times the origin story is of a human marrying a normal animal.

North American indigeneous traditions particularly mingle the idea of bear ancestors and ursine shapeshifters, with bears often being able to shed their skins to assume human form, marrying human women in this guise. Like other religions Native American belief systems include many sacred narratives WereBears were plush stuffed Toy Bears created by George Nicholas Creations in 1983. The offspring may be monsters with combined anatomy, they might be very beautiful children with uncanny strength, or they could be shapeshifters themselves (Pijoan, 79).

P'an Hu is represented in various Chinese legends as a supernatural dog, a dog-headed man, or a canine shapeshifter that married an emperor's daughter and founded at least one race. Chinese mythology is a collection of Cultural history, Folktales, and Religions that have been passed down in oral or written form The term supernatural or supranatural ( Latin: super, supra "above" + natura "nature" pertains to entities events When he is depicted as a shapeshifter, all of him can become human except for his head. The race(s) descended from P'an Hu were often characterized by Chinese writers as monsters who combined human and dog anatomy (White, 150).

In Altaic mythology of the Turkic and Mongolian peoples, the wolf is a revered animal. The mythologies and religions of the Turco-Mongol peoples ( Turkic and Mongolian peoples both groups speakers of Altaic languages) are related and have The Turkic peoples are Eurasian peoples residing in northern central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family The shamanic Turkic peoples even believed they were descendants of wolves in Turkic legends. The legend of Asena is an old Turkic myth that tells of how the Turkic people were created. Asena is the name of a female wolf in Turkic mythology. It is associated with a Göktürk ethnogenic myth "full of shamanic symbolism" In Northern China a small Turkic village was raided by Chinese soldiers, but one small baby was left behind. An old she-wolf with a sky-blue mane named Asena found the baby and nursed him, then the she-wolf gave birth to half wolf, half human cubs therefore the Turkic people were born. [1][2]

Animal spirits

In North and Central America, and to some extent in West Africa, Australia and other parts of the world, every male acquires at puberty a tutelary spirit (see Demonology); in some Native American tribes the youth kills the animal of which he dreams in his initiation fast; its claw, skin or feathers are put into a little bag and become his "medicine" and must be carefully retained, for a "medicine" once lost can never be replaced. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. A tutelary spirit or patron deity serves as the guardian of or an entity to watch over and protect a particular site person culture or nation Demonology (from Greek grc δαίμων daimōn, "demon" and grc -λογία -logia) is the systematic study of In West Africa this relation is said to be entered into by means of the blood bond, and it is so close that the death of the animal causes the man to die and vice versa. Elsewhere the possession of a tutelary spirit in animal form is the privilege of the magician. In Alaska the candidate for magical powers has to leave the abodes of men; the chief of the gods sends an otter to meet him, which he kills by saying "O" four times; he then cuts out its tongue and thereby secures the powers which he seeks. Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent Otters are semi- aquatic (or in one case aquatic) fish-eating Mammals The otter subfamily Lutrinae forms part of the family

The Malays believe that the office of pawang (priest) is only hereditary if the soul of the dead priest, in the form of a tiger, passes into the body of his son. For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and While the familiar is often regarded as the alternative form of the magician, the nagual or bush-soul is commonly regarded as wholly distinct from the human being. Transitional beliefs, however, are found, especially in Africa, in which the power of transformation is attributed to the whole of the population of certain areas. The people of Banana are said to change themselves by magical means, composed of human embryos and other ingredients, but in their leopard form they may do no harm to mankind under pain of retaining forever the beast shape. Banana is a small Seaport in the Bas-Congo province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the Atlantic coast An embryo (from Greek:, plural, lit "that which grows" from en- "in" + bryein "to swell be full" is a multicellular The leopard (lɛpɚd Panthera pardus) is an Old World Mammal of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four roaring In other cases the change is supposed to be made for the purposes of evil magic and human victims are not prohibited.

A further link is supplied by the Zulu belief that the magician's familiar is really a transformed human being; when he finds a dead body on which he can work his spells without fear of discovery, the wizard breathes a sort of life into it, which enables it to move and speak, it being thought that some dead wizard has taken possession of it. The Zulu ( IsiZulu: amaZulu) are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10-11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal He then burns a hole in the head and through the aperture extracts the tongue. Further spells have the effect of changing the revivified body into the form of some animal, hyena, owl or wild cat, the latter being most in favour. The Hyaenidae is a Mammalian family of order Carnivora. The Hyaenidae family native to both African and Asian continents consists of four The Owls are an order of birds of prey. Most are Solitary, and nocturnal, with some exceptions (e The Wildcat ( Felis silvestris) sometimes Wild Cat or Wild-cat, is a small felid native to Europe, the western part of Asia This creature then becomes the wizard's servant and obeys him in all things; its chief use is, however, to inflict sickness and death upon persons who are disliked by its master.

In Melanesia there is a belief in the tamaniu or atai which is an animal counterpart to a person. Melanesia (from Greek: μέλας black, νῆσος island) means "islands of the black-skinned people" It can be an eel, a shark, a lizard, or some other creature. This creature is corporeal, can understand human speech, and shares the same soul as its master, leading to legends which have many characteristics typical of shapeshifter tales, such as any death or injury affecting both forms at once (Hamel, 21). Shapeshifting is a common theme in Mythology and Folklore, as well as in Science fiction and Fantasy.

Regional varieties

Although the term lycanthropy properly speaking refers to metamorphosis into a wolf (see werewolf), lycanthropy is in popular practice used of transformation into any animal, even though the proper term is therianthropy. The grey wolf or gray wolf ( Canis lupus) also known as the timber wolf or simply wolf, is a Mammal of the order Carnivora See also Lycanthropy (disambiguation Werewolves, also known as lycanthropes, are mythological or folkloric humans with the ability to Therianthropy (from n therianthrope and adj therianthropic, part man and part beast from the Greek theríon, θηρίον meaning "wild In India and the Asian islands the tiger is the most common form; in North Europe, the bear (see berserker); in Japan, the fox, tanuki (raccoon dog), and sometimes a wolf; in Africa, the leopard, hyena, or lion; and in South America, the jaguar. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The tiger ( Panthera tigris) is a member of the Felidae family the largest and the most powerful of the four " Big cats quot in the Genus Berserkers (or Berserks) were Norse Warriors who wore coats of wolf or bear skin and who were commonly understood to have fought in an uncontrollable For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. A fox is an Animal belonging to any one of about 27 Species (of which only 12 actually belong to the Vulpes genus or 'true foxes' of small is the Japanese word for the Japanese raccoon dog ( Nyctereutes procyonides viverrinus) The leopard (lɛpɚd Panthera pardus) is an Old World Mammal of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four roaring The Hyaenidae is a Mammalian family of order Carnivora. The Hyaenidae family native to both African and Asian continents consists of four The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. The jaguar (Panthera onca,, or—especially in British English — is a New World Mammal of the Felidae family and one of Though there is a tendency for the most important carnivorous animal of the area to take the first place in stories and beliefs as to transformation, the less important beasts of prey and even harmless animals like the deer or rabbit also figure prominently among the were-animals. A deer is a Ruminant Mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. Rabbits are small Mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world Other cases are the were-shark of Polynesia and were-crocodile of Indonesia and Egypt. Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over A crocodile is any Species belonging to the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the Subfamily Crocodylinae)

Lycanthropy in North America

Many Native cultures feature skin-walkers or a similar concept, wherein a shaman or warrior may, according to cultural tradition, take on an animal form. In some Native American legends a skin-walker is a person with the supernatural ability to turn into any animal he or she desires Animal forms vary accordingly with cultures and local species (including bears and wolves), for example, a coyote is more likely to be found as a skinwalker's alternate form in the Great Plains region. The coyote (kaɪˈoʊti ˈkaɪoʊt ( Canis latrans) also known as the prairie wolf, is a Mammal of the order Carnivora The Great Plains are the broad expanse of Prairie and Steppe which lie east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada Skinwalkers tend to be totemic. A totem is any supposed entity that watches over or assists a group of people such as a family Clan or tribe ( Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary and Webster's

In modern folklore and fiction the Wendigo found in the stories of many Algonquian peoples is sometimes considered to be similar to lycanthropes, in that humans could transform into them. The Wendigo (also Windigo, Weendigo, Windago, Windiga, Witiko, Wihtikow, and numerous other variants is a mythical creature The Algonquian (also Algonkian, and pronounced both and) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic The original legends varied significantly, however, and the fit may not be very close.

The Cajuns of Louisiana also believed in a similar creature with the variant name of Rougarou. Cajuns ('keʒən les Cadiens are an Ethnic group mainly living in Louisiana, consisting of the descendants of Acadian exiles and peoples of other The State of Louisiana ( or, État de Louisiane, pronounced) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America The Rougarou (alternately spelled as Roux-Ga-Roux, Rugaroo, or Rugaru) is a legendary creature in Laurentian French communities linked to European notions

Over the last century, more modern accounts of a werewolf or man-wolf creature have surfaced among people living in heavily-wooded areas of the United States. These include the Beast of Bray Road, of Wisconsin, and the Michigan Dogman; considered by many cryptozoologists to be the same entity. The Beast of Bray Road (or the Bray Road Beast) is a cryptozoological creature first reported in the 1980s on a rural road outside of Elkhorn Wisconsin Wisconsin ( or wɪˈskɑnsɨn (French Ouisconsin) is one of the fifty United States of America, located in the north central part of the United States

Lycanthropy in South America

According to K. F. P. v. Martius the kanaima is a human being who employs poison to carry out his function of blood avenger; other authorities represent the kanaima as a jaguar, which is either an avenger of blood or the familiar of a cannibalistic sorcerer. The jaguar (Panthera onca,, or—especially in British English — is a New World Mammal of the Felidae family and one of Cannibalism (from Spanish es ''caníbal'' in connection with cannibalism among the Antillean Caribs, also called anthropophagy (from Greek ἄνθρωπος The Europeans of Brazil hold that the seventh child of the same sex in unbroken succession becomes a were-man or woman, and takes the form of a horse (or a mule), a goat, a guará-wolf and a pig. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. In its common modern meaning a mule is the offspring of a male Donkey and a female Horse, which is classified as a kind of F1 hybrid. The domestic goat ( Capra aegagrus hircus) is a subspecies of goat Domesticated from the Wild goat of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe The Maned Wolf ( Chrysocyon brachyurus) is the largest canid of South America, resembling a big fox with reddish fur Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times The Brazilian werewolf is mostly related to the Portuguese belief, which includes the werewolf being forced to perform a series of religious duties.

The dolphin-man (boto encantado) is common in native North-Brazilian folklore. Encantado is a word in Brazilian Portuguese that roughly translates as "enchanted one However, the myth more likely stems from one of the supposed powers of the boto (wherein it changes its shape into that of a human) rather than a man changing his form into that of an animal.

Lycanthropy in Europe

The wolf is the most common form of the were-animal, though in the north the bear disputes its pre-eminence. In ancient Greece the dog was also associated with the belief. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία The were-boar variant is known through Greece and Turkey. The boar or wild boar ( Sus scrofa) is an Omnivorous, gregarious Mammal of the biological family Suidae. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches Marcellus of Sida, who wrote under the Antonines, gives an account of a disease which befell people in February; but a pathological state seems to be meant.

Romanian folklore actually has multiple variations on the lycanthropy theme. A feature of Romanian culture is the special relationship between folklore and the learned culture determined by two factors The vârcolac is often - though not exclusively - seen as a werewolf though it can refer also to (usually wolf-like) demons, vampires, goblins or ghosts as well; the pricolici is more universally wolf-like, and much like the strigoi is said to be a formerly human member of the undead, having risen from the grave to wreak havoc on the living. A vârcolac in Romanian folklore may refer to several different figures Vampires are mythological or folkloric revenants who subsist by feeding on the blood of the living A goblin is an evil crabby or Mischievous Creature of Folklore, often described as a grotesquely disfigured or Gnome -like phantom A ghost is said to be the apparition of a Deceased person frequently similar in appearance to that person and usually encountered in places she or he frequented A Pricolici (same form in plural is a Werewolf in Romanian folklore. Strigoi is based on the ancient Greek term strix for screech owl which also came to mean demon or witch Undead is a collective name for fictional beings that are deceased yet behave as if alive Additionally, both the terms strigoi and moroi are traditionally closely associated with both pricolici and vârcolaci, and while modern fiction makes a clear distinction between the terms (with strigoi and moroi being in usage more a reference to the vampiric than the lycanthropic, and the latter in turn referring more to "living" as opposed to undead vampires), older folklore leaves them not always so easily differentiated, especially with regional variants. A moroi (sometimes moroii in modern fiction pl moroi) is a type of Vampire or Ghost in Romanian folklore.

See Vilkacis, Berserker, Vârcolac, Pricolici, Strigoi and Moroi. Berserkers (or Berserks) were Norse Warriors who wore coats of wolf or bear skin and who were commonly understood to have fought in an uncontrollable A vârcolac in Romanian folklore may refer to several different figures A Pricolici (same form in plural is a Werewolf in Romanian folklore. Strigoi is based on the ancient Greek term strix for screech owl which also came to mean demon or witch A moroi (sometimes moroii in modern fiction pl moroi) is a type of Vampire or Ghost in Romanian folklore.

Lycanthropy in Africa

In Abyssinia the power of transformation is attributed to the Boudas, and at the same time we have records of pathological lycanthropy (see below). NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page Blacksmiths are credited with magical powers in many parts of the world, and it is significant that the Boudas are workers in iron and clay; in the Life of N. blacksmith is a person who creates objects from Iron or Steel by Forging the Metal; i Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26 Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and Pearce (i. 287) a European observer tells a story of a supposed transformation which took place in his presence and almost before his eyes; but it does not appear how far hallucination rather than coincidence must be invoked to explain the experience. The animal forms taken in Africa include the gazelle, crocodile, hippopotamus, hyena, jackal, elephant, lion and leopard. A GAZelle (ГАЗе́ль is a series of mid-sized Trucks Vans and Buses made by Russian car manufacturer GAZ. A crocodile is any Species belonging to the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the Subfamily Crocodylinae) The hippopotamus ( Hippopotamus amphibius) from the Greek ἱπποπόταμος ( hippopotamos, ιππος hippos meaning "horse" The Hyaenidae is a Mammalian family of order Carnivora. The Hyaenidae family native to both African and Asian continents consists of four A jackal (from Turkish çakal, via Persian shaghal ultimately from Sanskrit sṛgālaḥ) is a member of any of three Elephants ( family: Elephantidae) are large land Mammals of the order Proboscidea. The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. The leopard (lɛpɚd Panthera pardus) is an Old World Mammal of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four roaring

See: Crocotta

Lycanthropy in the South Pacific

There are various tales of people becoming sharks in various South Pacific islands. The crocotta (or corocotta, crocuta, or yena) is a mythical Dog - Wolf of India or Ethiopia, said to be a deadly Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body For the most part, these were creatures are benevolent or at least not malign. There are several variant stories on how sharks came about. One story is that a were shark inherits their ability. Others point to children lost at sea or children adopted by a shark god. Many of the humans-turned-sharks are described as having skin patterns that no natural sharks have: similar to the cloth patterns of blankets that are wrapped around infants.

Lycanthropy in the East Indies

The Poso-Alfures of central Celebes believe that man has three souls, the inosa, the angga and the tanoana. Sulawesi (formerly known as Celebes, ˈsɛlɛbiz is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the The inosa is the vital principle; it can be detected in the veins and arteries; it is given to man by one of the great natural phenomena, more specifically the wind. The angga is the intellectual part of man; its seat is unknown; after death it goes to the under-world, and, unlike the inosa, which is believed to be dissolved into its original elements, takes possession of an immaterial body. The tanoana is the divine in man and after death returns to its lord, Poewempala boeroe. It goes forth during sleep, and all that it sees it whispers into the sleeper's ear and then he dreams. According to another account, the tanoana is the substance by which man lives, thinks and acts; the tanoana of man, plants and animals is of the same nature. A man's tanoana can be strengthened by those of others; when the tanoana is long away or destroyed the man dies. The tanoana seems to be the soul of which lycanthropic feats are asserted.

Among the Toradjas of central Celebes it is believed that a man's "inside" can take the form of a cat, wild pig, ape, deer or other animal, and afterwards resume human form; it is termed lamboyo. Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times A deer is a Ruminant Mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. The exact relation of the lamboyo to the tanoana does not seem to be settled; it will be seen below that the view seems to vary. According to some the power of transformation is a gift of the gods, but others hold that lycanthropy is contagious and may be acquired by eating food left by a lycanthrope or even by leaning one's head against the same pillar. The Todjoers hold that any one who touches blood becomes a shapeshifter. In accordance with this view is the belief that lycanthropy can be cured; the breast and stomach of the shapeshifter must be rubbed and pinched, just as when any other witch object has to be extracted. The patient drinks medicine, and the contagion leaves the body in the form of snakes and worms. There are certain marks by which a shapeshifter can be recognized. His eyes are unsteady and sometimes green with dark shadows underneath. He does not sleep soundly and fireflies come out of his mouth. His lips remain red in spite of betel chewing, and he has a long tongue. The Todjoers add that his hair stands on end.

Some of the forms of the lamboyo are distinguishable from ordinary animals by the fact that they run about among the houses; the were-buffalo has only one horn, and the were-pig transforms itself into an ants' nest, such as hangs from trees. Some say that the lycanthrope does not really take the form of an animal himself, but, like the sorcerer, only sends out a messenger. The lamboyo attacks by preference solitary individuals, for he does not like to be observed. The victim feels sleepy and loses consciousness; the lamboyo then assumes human form (his body being, however, still at home) and cuts up his victim, scattering the fragments all about. He then takes the liver and eats it, puts the body together again, licks it with his long tongue and joins it together. The liver is a vital organ in the human body and is present in Vertebrates and some other animals When the victim comes to himself again he has no idea that anything unusual has happened to him. He goes home, but soon begins to feel unwell. In a few days he dies, but before his death he is able sometimes to name the shapeshifter to whom he has fallen a victim.

From this account it might be inferred that the lamboyo was identical with the tanoana: the absence of the lamboyo seems to entail a condition of unconsciousness, and it can assume human form. In other cases, however, the lamboyo seems to be analogous to the familiar of the sorcerer. The Toradjas tell a story of how a man once came to a house and asked the woman to give him a rendezvous; it was night and she was asleep; the question was put three times before the answer was given "in the tobacco plantation". The husband was awake, and next day followed his wife, who was irresistibly drawn thither. The lycanthrope came to meet her in human form, although his body was engaged in building a new house, and caused the woman to faint by stamping three times on the ground. Thereupon the husband attacked the shapeshifter with a piece of wood, and the latter to escape transformed himself into a leaf; this the husband put into a piece of bamboo and fastened the ends so that he could not escape, he then went back to the village and put the bamboo in the fire. Bamboo is a group of Woody perennial Evergreen Plants in the True grass family Poaceae, subfamily The shapeshifter said "Don't", and as soon as it was burnt he fell dead.

In another case a woman died, and, as her death was believed to be due to the malevolence of a lycanthrope, her husband watched by her body. For, like Indian witches, the werewolf, for some reason, wishes to revive his victim and comes in human form to carry off the coffin. As soon as the woman was brought to life the husband attacked the werewolf, who transformed himself into a piece of wood and was burnt. The woman remained alive, but her murderer died the same night.

According to a third form of the belief, the body of the shapeshifter is itself transformed. One evening a man left the hut in which a party were preparing to pass the night; one of his companions heard a deer and fired into the darkness. Soon after the man came back and said he had been shot. Although no marks were to be seen he died a few days later.

References

  1. ^ Cultural Life – Literature Turkey Interactive CD-ROM. Retrieved on 2007-08-11. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 2492 BC - Traditional date of the defeat of Bel by Hayk, progenitor and founder of the Armenian nation
  2. ^ T. C. Kultur Bakanligi. Nevruz Celebrations in Turkey and Central Asia. Ministry of Culture, Republic of Turkey. Retrieved on 2007-08-11

Sources

See also

See also Lycanthropy (disambiguation Werewolves, also known as lycanthropes, are mythological or folkloric humans with the ability to Werecats (also written in a hyphenated form as were-cats) are creatures of Folklore, Fantasy fiction Horror fiction, and Occultism Shapeshifting is a common theme in Mythology and Folklore, as well as in Science fiction and Fantasy. Therianthropy (from n therianthrope and adj therianthropic, part man and part beast from the Greek theríon, θηρίον meaning "wild Human animal roleplay (also called petplay, ponyplay, ponyism or pup-play) is a form of Erotic sexual role-play where one Clinical lycanthropy is defined as a rare Psychiatric syndrome which involves a Delusion that the affected person can or has transformed into an Animal, Hypertrichosis, congenital generalized Hypertrichosis or werewolf syndrome is a medical term referring to a condition of excessive body Hair.

Dictionary

lycanthropy

-noun

  1. (mythology) The act of shape-shifting between the form of a man (human being) and a wolf, often done during a full moon, according to legend.
  2. A delusion in which one believes oneself to be a wolf or other wild animal.
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