The Fear of Shifters: the way the world reacts to Mental Shifters and Physical Shifters Shifters often have a hard time, even in cultures where they are considered essentially harmless there is an irrational fear shown towards them by many people. This irrational fear has many sources, but it is mostly just a fear of that which is very very different. Well, it's fairly understandable, considering how easily humans fear people of another race or culture. What about people of a *different* species? In folklore, there is a story of a woman who had a pretty nice life and a nice husband, but one day her husband disappeared. She tried to find out what might have happened to him, but with no luck. After 2 years or so she assumed he was probably dead, because she was sure he loved her too much to just leave her. She felt really bad. As a last-ditch effort to find him, she went to a local witch and asked her if she could see with her second sight what had happened. The witch replied that her husband was alive and well, that he was living in the forest as a wolf, for he was a werewolf. The witch said that the woman's husband had left because he was afraid the woman would reject him if she found out and was antagonizing over it, worried of losing her, but wanting to tell her. The witch said she also saw that the husband would return soon, and that if the woman wanted to keep him, she must accept him with love and without fear. The husband did come home not too long after this, in the form of a wolf, and changed back to a human in front of his wife. His wife was so glad to have him back that she made no fuss over the fact that he was a Werewolf and she lived pretty much happily ever after with him. Of course the witch's second sight may have merely been knowledge of what had happened through knowing a network of local werewolves and witches who could well have been in communication with the husband. If only there were more stories like this. The opposite type of story is far too common in folklore, and modern shifters have to deal with even weightier situations oftentimes, because they also have to deal with the fear of people who are insane or who hold very odd beliefs. Who can Be a WereWolf? Just about anyone could be a WereWolf. Despite stereotypes in the media, WereWolves are both male and female (the actual real-life ratio of females to males is hard to judge, but there is certainly NOT a whole lot more males), can be of any race, including African-American (Negro), can be just about any age from very young to as old as people get (although I've never heard of any younger than about 7) and can live in any country. Yes, even in countries where Wolves have never lived. WereWolves can be like the well-muscled stereotype of American popular culture, but many are instead thin and sinewy, lean-framed like the Wolf. Many are overweight. Many are stronger than they look, and they may or may not have stronger senses than normal humans. In fact I know of 2 legally blind Shifters. Totem Animals What are Totem animals? Everyone has at least one totem animal, even if they don't realize it. A your totem animal is an animal whose species personality is similar to your personality. Interactions with your totem animal will happen sometime in your life, and these interactions will have some spiritual consequences for you, probably spiritual growth. What kinds of animals are Totem Animals? They can be any kind, even "fanciful" kinds such as dragons, but the most common totem animals are intelligent predators or omnivores. How Shifters see themselves Shifters see themselves in many different ways, but few of these ways match what the modern world thinks of Shifters. "I kept a journal and in my writings I used metaphors and anologies to try to describe my feelings. These attempts always framed things from a canine point of view, yet it wasn't 'til my late 20's that I began to wonder about that"-anonymous quote "I could care less if I am a "freak". I don't care what other people think about me. I am me. I am different from the masses of society in unique and profound ways, anyway. Being physically different would trouble me not."-anonamous quote "It's strange. If I were handed the ability to PS {physically Shift, slang}, I would look at it and say "Hey cool" and go on with my life, occasionally PSing just for the hell of it (assuming it were one of the versions where I could control the when's and wherefor's). But it's not something I have a great deal of yearning for. I'd much rather learn to do some other fantastical things."-anonymous quote "I am a Man-Wolf. Very much the enduring, shaggy, wolf in human form. When you yourself can stalk, or enjoy crisp moonlit evenings, or you just have this urge to disappear into the woods and survive alone, then you will understand why I am a WereWolf"-anonymous quote "If you want someone that claims to be the hollywood portrayal of a Muscle-bound, bi-pedal, Big Bad Wolf that is a real bad-ass, look elsewhere. Those people are usually nothing more than snot-nosed kids or braggarts"-anonymous quote "Why would it be a spirit at all? I find it disturbing that you would consider someones 'were-side' as a separate entity when it should be an aspect of themselves. I don't know if people would enjoy being possessed the way you consider a WereWolf."--anonymous quote "How does this affect my life? In many ways, not much at all. I am still human, I am still a Christian, I am still a part of the society that surrounds me. But my instinctive actions and reactions remain canine, as does my spirit."--anonymous quote "I been itching to change my skin since I don't know when. Can't do it in dreams- Lord knows I've tried. I've wanted to, so badly; I can manage when I meditate with drums, in the trance. Whether or not that counts for anything I don't know, because it's never very deep and scarcely rings true, except on some tiny faraway level. Something deep down wants to, but I don't know if it can."--anonymous quote "I do not think I am a dog, I do not wish I was a dog (except on mornings when I'd rather sleep in), I do not want to be treated like a dog, or have sex with a dog. I don't even like dogs better than people (although there are some dogs I like better than some people...). Part of me is a dog, or closer to Dog than to Man, but it is only part of me, albeit a big part. I am the sum of all my parts and I would not deny either side, human or canine."--anonamous quote "And who cares about proof anyway? You can only keep up a facade for so long. Eventually, if they're immature enough to say that they're PSers when they're not, they'll get sick of their stupid game and leave."--anonymous quote "Many Shifters are artistically biased. A lot of us are visual artists, some are musicians, many are fiction writers. Some of us are even magickians and Wiccans. 'The Howling'{a werewolf movie} was kinda right about the brain hemisphere bit."--anonymous quote "Some of them get very neurotic about not being to ShapeShift- it's a dream that many of them hold very very dear to their hearts..others treat their kinship as something to show off. Some are intensely secretive of it outside the circle of their own kind on the Net, and some aren't so much like that."--anonymous quote "So nice to find a whole BUNCH of fellow lupines (and other weres!) So nice to hear others who also cannot sleep when the Moon is full (ah, the moonlight sings in the blood, like fine old wine. I dance and bounce and howl my joy at her, and she smiles back down at me, My Lady Mother so bright and silvery and ahh, what can I say, she's getting bigger every night, and soon, again, it will be that bestest time of all!)"--anonymous quote "I have met over 50 weres in person and only disliked 4"--anonymous quote "....shaking, howling, yearning. Get away from the city, run naked through the woods."-- anonymous quote "I just joined the cyberworld, I couldn't beleive the amount of weres. I have been part wolf my whole life, I don't play any "roleplaying" games."-- anonymous quote "And your depiction of totemic/integrated shifters does not take everything into account. I have _three_ distinctive sides, NOT two. Wolf, werewolf, and human. The werewolf side is usually dominantly present, but doesn't show signs that most people OR most weres can interpret, unless I _want_ to make it known." -- anonymous quote The WereWolf as it is seen by Popular American Culture Well, boys and girls, the bad news is that Popular American culture sees WereWolves as the incarnation of evil. The poor sweet little puppies!!! WereWolves get used and abused constantly by the media as an absract symbol of evil. Why do they do this? Because people fear what is different, people don't really understand animals in general, particularly the Wolf, and people think they can do whatever they want because they think WereWolves are not real. Animal Shapes: The Werecat and other non-Werewolf shifters Werewolves are not the only shapeshifters out there, next to the werewolf, the werecat is most often seen in folklore, and many other werebeings are more common than you would think. Since I have already devoted so many pages to werewolves, it is only fair that I devote at least one page to non-Werewolf shifters. And non-Werewolf shifters can be fairly interesting, as well as shedding some light on the phenomena of shifterism in general in a way that isn't totally seen through wolf-coloured glasses. Werecat is a general term that means any were-{member of the cat family}, such as Weretigers, WereLeopards, Werelions, and many others, as well as Were-house-cats. The WereLeopard WereLeopard legends are fairly common in Europe, Asia, and Africa. It should be remembered that "Panther" simply means a black leopard, and that leopard were often called by the name "Ounce" and many other names. Click here {text only} or here for Clouded Leopard info. Click here to see a Snow Leopard. The WereTiger The Weretiger is very common in legends from India. However, the tiger still has a large range, through much of Asia, and in Siberia, and had a larger range in the past, and through much of this range Weretiger legends exist. Sadly, the tiger faces a high probability of extinction within 20 years, especially as the crumbling Russian Government has so much to worry about that it cannot devote resources to stopping tiger poachers and because India's population is increasing so much. The tiger is a powerfully-built very large Cat. It is a good swimmer and is at home in the jungles of India and the snows of Siberia. The WereCougar I could not find any Were-Cougar legends. The WereLynx The Caracal, a Lynx of Africa, and a possible ancestor or relative of the domestic Cat The WereCheetah I could not find any WereCheetah legends. Cheetahs are sleek, low-slung animals who can run faster than any other animal. The Cheetah is the most dog-family-like cat, having non-retractable claws and a more dog-like nature than other members of the cat family. The WereLion Lions used to live nearly everwhere in Europe, Africa, and much of Asia. Yes, Lions used to be common in England. The lion has been exterminated from most of it's former range and now mostly lives in Africa. Throughout much of this range, Werelion Folklore is found. Lions live in packs (but called "prides"), and the females hunt together. The WereJaguar The WereJaguar is a common creature in South American folklore. There, it is said that being a WereJaguar is the ultimate possible acheivement in life. Click here for Jaguar info. The Werecat as in house-cat We hear quite a lot of this creature in folklore, especially after towns became somewhat large and civilized. Most Werecats masqueraded as tame or semi-tame house-cats, using their cat guise to remain much less molested than Werewolves. Werecats were most common in Europe during the same era as the era when Wererabbits were very common, and likely for many of the same reasons. The Werefox The Werefox is much more common in Japanese and Chinese legends than it is in the legends of any other place. There is a real shortage of Werefox material in the myths of europe. Most european werefox legends portray the werefox as an almost fairy-like being, usually female, who lived primarily as a fox in the wild. There are many european myths of fox-maidens who ran away from their husbands as soon as they recovered their skins. In China and Japan, however, there is a huge number of werefox legends, where werefoxes are often living as human beings, and were often seen transforming or roaming around in a half-transformed state. The WereJackal The WereJackal is mostly heard of in Africa. The WereCoyote WereCoyote legends are uncommon and almost non-existant before the Wolf became endangered over much of it's range. The WereDog The Weredog is very rarely seen in legend. It is usually only found as a powerful sorceror who deliberately chose that form in order to masquerade as a tame dog and thus get into places in town that a Werewolf might never get into. The WereHyena The Hyena used to be a major class of predator for thousands of years, though the ice ages. Nowadays only two or three species exist, all in Africa. Hyenas were common shapes for African Witches to assume. See Lyka's Hyena Pages. The WereSeal Also called Silkies, Selkies, and many other names, Wereseals are fairly common in Folklore of places near the Sea. They are nearly always encountered in large groups of mixed males and females. The Werehorse The Werehorse is often found in myth, it is probably the most common herbivore werecreature occuring in folklore (wererabbits are the most common herbivore werecreature in folklore if horses aren't). Most of the werehorses found in myth are female, male werehorses occur but are much less common. Werehorses are described as very wild creatures, not the meek and easily confused or frightened domestic horses, but rather instead like wild horses in temperament. The Wererabbit or Werehare Hmmmm, I wonder what the appeal of being a wererabbit is ...... ;). The wererabbit was said to be an often-chosen form (it was nearly always said to be chosen, not to just happen like many werewolves do) by sorcerors and witches and such who could do the nessessary magic to choose for their were-side just about any form they wanted to. The Wereboar, or Werepig in general (since boar is only the male and females do exist) The Werepig was a common shape in european folklore. Nowadays it is a very common shape in South American Folklore. The Wereraven and Werecrow The raven and crow are closely-related and the most intelligent birds in existance. The WereEagle, WereHawk, and WereFalcon These similar species of hunting birds of prey were common werebird shapes in myth. Like the other common Werebird shapes, Owls and Ravens, they are among the most intelligent of birds and are predators and omnivores. The WereOwl WereOwls were often associated with witches, as shapes that witches assumed to travel long distances undetected in the night. Owls can see, and fly, well by night and day, but Eagles, Hawks, and Falcons cannot do much at night. WereBats I only know of two Werebats, they are very rare according to legend too. And Werebats are not vampires, a human who can change into a bat is very different than the blook-sucking walking egos that call themselves vampires. The few vampires who can shapeshift, both in legend and in fact, seldom turn into bats. Wendigo Yes, Wendigo are shifters too, like other shifters in all ways except that they have extra strange powers that other werecreatures in legend don't have, and that their non-human form is not a natural animal but some monster that is a mix of animal species or something even stranger, and they can often assume more than one kind of monstrous form, and that they have very odd hungers and desires. Other than all that, most of the same shifter phenomena applies to them. Clinical Lycanthropy: psychology's view of "werewolf delusions" Psychology in general has spent a lot of time examining the werewolf mythos from a completely biased viewpoint. Myths about WereWolves Actually, there are so many myths about WereWolves that I won't be able to list them all here, I know others who have collected them and filled web pages full of the stuff. But why bother? I'm not THAT interested in WereWolves. Besides, most of the myths are a bunch of rot. However, I am willing to outline a few of the most important ones here, and put down what I've heard about how correct or wrong they are.