john_constantine wrote:niti jedno niti drugo ne znači kvalitetu
Ali da, slažem se s tvojim mišljenjem. Ja sam ciljao na supernatural gdje su se spominjali shapeshifteri, ali da, po indijanskoj mitologiji, mogu biti i spiritualna bića. Druga bića koja mijenjaju kožu se nazivaju skinwalkersi...
Kožo-hodači također spadaju u shapeshiftere, ali tu možda i griješim. Nisam siguran i buni me malo to hehe.
Pronašao neke članke.
Shapeshifters as Skinwalkers is primarily a Navajo belief, (some Hopi and Yaqui). It is said that the first skinwalkers came about from the time of the "Long Walk", when tribes were forcibly removed from their lands for European expansion. There were some who used this as a means of escaping the soldiers, and getting revenge.
The Navajo name for skinwalker is Yee Naaldlooshii. Its literal meaning is "With it, he goes on all fours here and there". They are able to transform by a perverted ceremony and song called "Witchery Way", using powers to travel in animal form. Animals used can be coyote, wolf, fox, owl and crow. But some say, even bear or cougar, the pelts of these animals are strictly taboo for keeping or using.
It is said that if you should ever lock eyes with a skinwalker, it can absorb itself into your body. This is one of the reasons most Navajos will not look directly at a person's eyes. Though Europeans found this shifty and sly, thinking all indians guilty of evil thoughts, it was and still is a long tradition of keeping oneself safe from witches.
When a skinwalker targets you, it comes at night. Sometimes banging on walls, knocking on windows, or climbing on the roof. They also might shoot you with a bone bead or shard from a blow gun, or drop burned bone ashes down the chimney. If it enters your body, you will wither away and die. They are said to be fast, agile, and impossible to catch.
Shapeshifting is the ability of a fictional or mythic being to change its shape into another form or being. The process may be initiated through an act of will; a magic word or spell; a potion; or a magic object. Shapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is found in epic poems; science fiction, fantasy, or children's literature; Shakepearean works; ballet; film and television; graphic novels; and video games.
Shape shifting touches the very soul of the Indian. Brothers in nature, it is quite natural for him to feel as one with the spirit animal sounds in his chanting, just as he feels Earth Mother's heartbeat in his drumming.
In the dance, he wears feathers or the skin of his animal guardian, while his movements take on the grace and form of the eagle, wolf, bear, etc., whichever one he himself has become. The dance is shape shifting in its most eloquent form.
In some tribes, shamans use shape shifting in a more serious manner. Wearing feathers, or the hide of his guardian spirit, the shaman would perform the animal's actions to imbue its healing powers in both himself and the patient. Belief in the healer and his shape shifting often could mean the difference between life or death. So convincing were the shaman's performances, that sometimes an enemy would go out into the woods and kill the shaman's totem animal in the belief that he might be killing the shaman himself while he was in animal form.
A form of shape shifting had a role in hunting. To hone this skill, in days gone by, the boy Indian would choose an animal to study. It was usually the wolf, noted for its cunning and survival skills. For as many as two years, the boy would devote time each day to be alone, near the wolf, observing its ways. In time, he learned to imitate its ways, and understood its thinking so well he could become the wolf himself.
So close was this relationship between animal and man that early settlers came to believe that Indians actually were part wolf and killed them as they would the animal itself.
Shape shifting to his wolf counterpart was an asset to the Indian in warfare. His ability to silently track an enemy was often superior to an enemy's gun. In actual battle, calling on one's spirit animal, and becoming that animal, gave a warrior uncanny OHITIKA (courage) in the face of unbelievable odds.
