Lycanthropy, were-wolves, and "lobo da xente" (full post)

Galicia Alive

Today we post for the first time in Galicia Alive information about mysticism and mythology. The popular belief of the existence of mystical and mythological beings is still, luckily, deeply rooted in Galician lands. Certainly, this topic we started with this section on mythology and mystery is something that personally draws my attention after reading Pel de Lobo by Xosé Miranda. This book tells the story of an expert hunter and a strange wolf that must be hunted (I recommend you to read it). The topic we are addressing today is lycanthropy. In the popular language, people affected by this curse or sickness are know as werewolves and, in the case of Galicia, lobishomes or lobo da xente. If you prefer to read it by parts:


  1. LICANTROPY, WERE-WOLVES AND “LOBO DA XENTE”



  2. WHAT IS LYCANTHROPY?



  3. TRANSFORMATION IN WERE-WOLF



  4. MYTHOLOGICAL ORIGIN OF LYCANTHROPY



  5. NATURAL CAUSES OF LYCANTHROPY



  6. MAP OF CASES OF LYCANTHROPY



  7. LYCANTHROPY SOLUTIONS



  8. FULL POST: LYCANTHROPY, WERE-WOLVES AND “LOBO DA XENTE”


We hope you enjoy this new section that we will try and serve to learn a little more about our world in the world.

WHAT IS LYCANTHROPY?

Lycanthropy is the transformation of a man or a woman in a wolf. The causes behind this transformation are diverse: curse, enchantment, divine punishment and action of the devil. Lycanthropy involves a desire to satiate the appetite with human flesh. The curse is usually a family curse. Traditionally it is used as a criticism of habits that were not considered correct, such as not respecting Lent (eating meat on Fridays) or prioritizing courtship over work. The enchantment can be in many different forms and performed by different types of beings. These beings can be magicians, witches, meigas, shamans, druids etcetera. The reasons for these enchantment changes are very diverse; from giving more power to warriors in combat, to exploring distant places through the transmutation of bodies, through mere punishment or revenge. From the first example, we can conclude that there are two charms: the bad charm and the good charm. The divine punishment is caused by an offense to the gods. The transformation by action of the devil is the transformation of having made a deal with him, the sea appearing as a faun or having made a coven.

Lobishome

TRANSFORMATION

The transformation into wolf, lobishome, werewolf or whatever you want to call yourself changes depending on the mythological sources from which you drink. Within the same mythology, such as traditional Galician mythology, transformation occurs in different ways. In some cases, with the arrival of the nights, people suffering from this disease have suffered an irrepressible need to go to the mountains. They lie down and begin to roll in a muddy or dew that has fallen on the grass. In trying to stand up, they cannot. They walk on all fours. In some cases of Galician mythology, the person affected by lycanthropy takes off his clothes before rolling on the ground. Another form of transformation in Galician mythology, and which it shares with Norse mythology among others, is through the use of wolf skins. It is in this last mythology where this power is not limited to wolves, but also extends to other animals such as the bear, whose transformation consists of putting these skins on top. This transformation is usually in the form of a hyena in African mythology. If it is in the shape of a dog, it is called Kuanthropy, and if it is in the shape of a cow, it is called Boanthropy. As we have briefly commented on Norse mythology, the shamanic religions of the Americas also included the belief that the human body could become another animal, either by mutation of the body itself or with the use fur, or transfer your soul to another being. This, in turn, reminds us in a way of some of the situations of Indian mythology. In other European mythologies, such as Anglo-Saxon mythology or French mythology, the transformation into a wolf occurs after diving into some source or lake. Returning to the aforementioned Norse mythology, he comments the eyes of the affected lycans his original look of person.

Debuxo da cara dun lobo
Drawing of wolf face

Frequency and time of transformation

The frequencies of transformations also differ in the function of the sources. In some cases, the transformation every full moon. In other cases, the transformation occurs during the waning moon, lasting between one to two hours. But there are many more casuistry. In Polish mythology, the wrath of the lobishome arises twice a year: in the middle of summer and at Christmas. Second relates the French Jean Grenier, the frequency of transformation is daily. Every Monday, Friday and Sunday those affected undergo the transformation. However, the other days, they only suffer it for an hour after sunset. There are even stories where lycanthropes can enter this state whenever they want and leave it the same way. Linking with the last case of the frequency of the transformations, whose frequency is what the curse holder wishes, we now comment on the duration of the transformation, which was also according to the lycanthrope’s wish. The duration of the transformation from one hour to twelve days, but there are stories which say years. This type of transformation depends on mythology and even within mythology itself it can vary from story to story. We have the case of recently commented, related by the French Jean Grenier, the duration was different depending on the day of the week: it ranges between the hour and the whole night. There are cases in which the transformation lasts all night and others, on the contrary, that the transformation is during the day. The latter, from stories that come from Norse mythology, can only regain their original form at night. It is commented in our references that there is information from the Middle Ages in which the transformation into a beast lasted until the wolf’s skin disappeared and the human form reappeared on the twelfth day. Also in the Middle Ages it was said that a multitude of people transformed into wolves in different parts of Europe during the night of the Nativity festivity, and attacked livestock and anyone they encountered.

Description

For the werewolf description there is no uniform description either. It is commented that there are cases of lycanthropy, those that are closest to cannibalism itself, that people retain their human form. These in some cases are related, if it can be said so, with the vampire. It is also associated with fantasy or hallucination of the lycanthrope. In other cases the description is that of the wolf himself. In other words, the person’s body remains empty and their spirit enters the animal’s or transforms into a wolf, sometimes using a wolf’s skin for it. In other cases, the size is much larger than that of the wolf and the physiognomy retains more similarities to the human one.

Capabilities

The abilities or powers given to lobishomes are similar in many mythologies, but they vary enough to be considered different, even within it. For mythology Norse, they have the capabilities of the animal and the person. In Galician mythology, werewolves have the ability to command wolves. They are capable of leading large herds to achieve their interests and are even capable of controlling them by returning to their human form. Lycans, werewolves and lobishomes can be wounded and even die while they are like wolves. It is told in French mythology and in Norse mythology that the lobishome recovers its normal state after being injured or at the end of life. Upon discovering his identity, a great misfortune falls on the family. Not all mythologies share this transformation to the original form by being injured. What can be intuited from some of the stories is that these creatures have a great capacity to withstand blows and even shots.

Attack

The attacks of the lobishomes are also diverse, following the trend of everything that refers to the world of lycanthropy. Attacks can be both day and night, depending on the type of transformation. The victims of the attacks are animals from sheep and cattle, dogs and even people. There is talk of solitary attacks by werewolves, but also of joint attacks by lobishomes and large packs of wolves led by lobo da xente (the lycanthrope). By some unstoppable force, the lobishomes launch themselves at their victims, tear them apart with their nails and teeth and end up devouring them.

After transformation

After undergoing the transformations, many of those affected suffer indisposition for days. These suffer great exhaustions and almost without moving their hands or feet. It is commented in some cases that the human physiognomy of lycanthropes is affected, with very broad hands and short fingers. In addition, they tend to have some hair on the eggs of the hands.

MYTHOLOGICAL ORIGIN

The origin of the belief in lycanthropy and the transmutation of bodies is very wide. Many may be the reasons for this existence: psychological illnesses, other physical illnesses and hallucinations caused by different types. We will deal with all of them later and not in this part. In this part, we will try to know the reasons or causes of popular ideas. The need of primitive man to seek explanations for phenomena that he perceived with his senses, but of which he did not know its origin and the reasons, may have been one of the reasons for the creation of the lycanthrope myth. Segundo tells us in “The Book of Werewolves“, the sounds of storms with whistling winds ( howl ) strongly reminded primitive people of something known as howling ( howl ) of the wolf. For that reason, the monster of storms could be a wolf. One of the possible origins could be the clothing of the Nordic fishermen who went from town to town with animal skins on them. In popular belief it was established that these acquired qualities of the animal and were transformed into them. In Greek mythology, the transformation of people or gods into animals is very common. The transformations of the different Gods of Olympus into human currents or animals are not unknown to us. One of the in-person transformations of Zeus, collected at The Metamorphoses de Publio Ovid Nasón, is the one that leaves us one of the first records, if not the first, of a man transformed into a wolf and the which gives rise to the word lycanthropy. King Lycaon, who reigned in Arcadia, offended the King of the Gods of Olympus with his lack of faith and his atrocities. As divine punishment, Lycaon is transformed into a werewolf while trying to flee Zeus’s wrath through the fields. In our days, the Buddhist religion believe the reincarnation of people in different animals. The soul is the one that changes container. Some similarity can be found with Norse mythology. in which the person could “borrow” a foreign body for different purposes. Regarding Galician mythology, one of the first stories that I have been able to collect is Antonio de Torquemada, a 16th century writer and secretary to the Count of Benavente, who wrote:

[…] in the Kingdom of Galicia a man was found who was walking through the mountains hidden and from there he went out onto the roads covered in a wolf hide, and if he found some small unarmed waiters, matábales and fartábase to eat of them […].

NATURAL CAUSES OF LICANTROPY

There are several reasons why lycanthropy is sustained in different mythologies. In the Middle Ages lycanthropy was recognized as a disease. On the other hand, in the physical part, the mythology about lycanthropy could be sustained by the disease known as hypertrichosis. hypertrichosis is a disease in which hair grows in areas of the body where it usually does not. It is mainly an aesthetic problem although there are different symptoms. Congenital hypertrichosis is known as werewolf syndrome and in this case the hair is thick, especially on the face. lycanthropy as a mental illness reside both in the subconscious and in the conscious of the person. Man’s very nature as carnivores carries the intrinsic driven by an urge to kill. The thirst for blood of some people causes them to commit crimes that for the vast majority of the population would be atrocities. These people enjoy watching other people suffer, even though they may have high lineage sensitivity, manners, and refinements. Bloodlust and cannibalism are linked with lycanthropy, which is accompanied by hallucinations. Lycanthropy understood as monomania, the famous case of Manuel Blanco Romasanta, can explain this part of mythology. A monomaniac believes to be in different scopes another person or to be, that is to say: feelings, thoughts, habits and needs. In some cases, they can be induced due to the consumption of some hallucinogen: opium, aconite, or even wheat with ergot.

MAP OF CASES OF LYCANTHROPY

Throughout the world there are many myths about the existence of werewolves. From the references that we have used for this article we have drawn a map with all the places where these stories are told. Other places that have existed in the past or other cultural groups and that cannot be represented: Arcadia, Scythia, Prussia, Livonia, Mazurs, Samoyeds, Normandy, Kingdom of Galicia–Volinia, Gaul (Gallia) or Holstein.

SOLUTIONS

To solve the problem in mythology, different methods must be applied depending on the spell or enchantment. Not all solutions to the problem leave the lobishome alive. According to some stories from Galician mythology, one of the solutions is to lobishome while in wolf form, for example, with a knife. Within this way of getting rid of lycanthropy, the option of apologizing to the person who caused the curse is also included. On the contrary, we have the death of the werewolf while he is in human form. For cases where the transformation is caused by a wolf fur that is put on top, to get rid of the curse is that someone else burns the wolf’s fur.

A curious case is that of a boy who was chased by three werewolves in Jägerup (Denmark), although it is not a definitive solution, but it does serve flee the attack of a werewolf. The boy entered the rye field, where the werewolves had no more power over him. Another way to get away is to throw them an article of clothing that will end up breaking into tatters.

The only way to end the curse and free lycanthrope from his curse is to stab him 3 times in the forehead with a knife. Other people say that just three drops of blood drawn with a needle is enough. It is also said that when a person discovers that this person has that curse and reproaches him for everything he has done, this person is released. According to the Nordic stories, the wrath of berserkr (werewolf) disappears upon being baptized, thereby reducing the number of them with the advancement of Christianity. Related to this, in the Schleswig-Holstein region, it is said that saying the name with which he was baptized, recovering its original form. It is commented in Greece that the lycanthrope turns into a vampire after his death. Reappearing the relationship between lycanthropy and vampirism.

Change of residence

As a safeguard for the werewolf himself, it seems to be a custom in those affected by this curse to change their place of residence. This is due to the growing mistrust that it generates in the villagers after the death or disappearance of people in the vicinity.

YOUR COLLABORATION

If there is any extra, documented information that you can pass on to us, it will be welcome. Also, if you have information that does not match what we have here, please let us know. We try to have accurate information and that is why we always leave our references. We have some places that we have not been able to locate on the map and that the references that we have used appear, can you help us find them? Sloyakians, Tscheita, Chastel Charnon, Omeissen, Unterelsas, La Pouppe (Athume), Caude, Espagny and Marram river.

Open cases:

  • What are the “Aryan nations “?
  • What is the “Ossyrian race” that appears in the book The Book of Were-Wolves ?
  • Who are the “White Russians“?
  • Where is the “Marram River“?
  • when and who to introduce the concept of silver bullets ?

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REFERENCES

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