Supernatural Sunday - A brief look at Djinn

Westerners know these ancient beings as "genies", from the tales Scheherazade.spun to save her life in "The thousand and one nights. "        


According to ancient lore, the race of Djinn was created from fire in its purest form, and were roaming the earth thousands of years before the first humans.  One tradition holds that djinn live in an alternate reality to the human world, although they can interact with ours at will.


The Qu'ran  has a chapter regarding djinn and their dangers to humanity; the prophet Muhammad was reputed to convert a number of the race to Islam by reciting part of the Qu'ran to them. There are legends of the biblical King Solomon binding djinn and using them as slaves for building as well as transportation, and the Queen of Sheba - reputedly Solomon's lover - was considered part-djinn in some tales.


Although  Disney is responsible for a number of kids eagerly rubbing brass lamps in the hope of finding a pet genie of their own, a look at traditional lore would suggest this is a very bad idea. Djinn are very powerful, long-lived (although not immortal), and frequently bad-tempered. They have no compunction about harming humans; and some seem to take a positive delight in doing so. (Personally, if somebody bound me to a physical object, and then treated me as their personal slave, I'd be pretty grumpy about it myself. It's a bit hard not to sympathize with a being feeling homicidal after that kind of treatment).


Djinn are multi-talented - they can take on any form they choose, be any size they wish, and appear to be able to manipulate space and time.


There appear to different races of Djinn, with varying degrees of power and ability. In ascending order of power : Jann, Sheytan, Afrit and Marid. 
Legend has it that the races were forced to choose between supporting or warring against humans. Some races choose to side with humanity, some against it, although just like human culture there are renegades in both groups. 


Those who believe in djinn treat them very cautiously. Traditional healers in the eastern world have been known call on djinn for aid, but do so only in extreme circumstances; even the djinn that support humans are quick to take offence and deal harm.


Interestingly, encounters with djinn have been reported world-wide by both westerners and non-westerners. In this instance, it appears that trying to geographically limit or pin-point this being is pointless, although they are said to prefer remote and inhospitable areas of the world.


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J H Sked is the author of WolfSong & Basement Blues.

You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords.


















                     

Supernatural Sunday - A (very irreverent) look at Angels

If you were raised in the Christian, Judaic or Islamic faith, you'll have been exposed to the idea of angels as the messengers of God, referred to frequently throughout the religious texts of all three faiths.

They aren't alone; a number of religions and religious movements subscribe to the belief in higher beings who deliver wisdom, protection and care to us mortals; spiritualism in the western world is a good example.

For the purpose of this post, I'm going to look at the romanticization of angels in the western world; anything else will result in a three mile long blog and possible lightning strikes..

The fluffication (yes, I made it up) of angels is particularly interesting to me as most of it's adherents either consider themselves staunch Christians, or float around New Age shops looking dreamy and constipated at the same time. And they absolutely loath each other; the christians consider the new agers to be dangerous dabblers in ye dark arts, and the new agers tend to pity the christians as uptight fuddyduddies with sadly closed minds.

Yet their attitude towards angels is remarkable similar: wonderful, wise, sexless, generous bringers of light and goodwill and safety.

A quick look at the christian old testament throws cold water on this one, since where angels are referred to they tend to be visiting a whole lot of wrath on someone's unholy ass. (Egypt, anyone? Sodom & Gomorrah?)
Angels in the biblical context are not cute and fluffy.

The world of  t.v.  hasn't really helped here - shows such as Touched by an Angel and Highway to Heaven have added to the pop culture myth. To give the show makers their due, my guess is Smote by Messenger doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

On the new age side, we have angel readings (???), angel tarot cards, angel invocations and blessings. I've heard of seances where people try to get an angel to join the party.

Step away from the cute Victorian image of flying babies for a minute. Take a cold, hard look at the different writings and theories before people started believing their personal guardian angel was picking up their socks for them.

You are talking about beings of power. Whether you follow the religious aspect or not, something with the ability and capability of destroying a city, probably without much strain or effort.

Why would you want to try to bind that into a small room with you? Why would you want its attention on you? And if you got it, just how happy do you think it will be with you?

It's probably the psychic equivalent of taking a long bubble bath with a small armed nuclear bomb - you could do it, but why would you want to?

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J H Sked is the author of WolfSong & Basement Blues.
You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords

Supernatural Sunday - A brief look at Voodoo

Let's start off by saying that if you've learnt about Voodoo from the movies, pretty much everything you know is wrong.For the purposes of this post I'm sticking to the New Orleans spelling - traditionalists from Benin, considered the cradle of Vodou, are likely to use that spelling.

Hollywood, once again, has a lot to answer for. So do a lot of fiction writers, but movies such as The Serpent and the Rainbow and Angel Heart  didn't help. Neither have the multitude of t.v. series that feature voodoo as a story line, fun though they were - everything from the Twilight Zone to Relic Hunter have added to the misconceptions.

This is NOT a voodoo doll...

Sticking pins in dolls, so vital to the Hollywood conception of voodoo, is actually alien to everything the religion stands for. There are dolls used in voodoo; placed on altars with a petition to the loa, or as a focusing object. Sticking pins in human shaped images known as poppets is a form of sympathetic magic from a totally different system of European magic, and a traditional voodoo worshiper wouldn't be be very impressed with these at all. (It should be noted that "voodoo cursing dolls" can be found anywhere from the net to physical shops in New Orleans and other places. This is part of an ancient and honored tradition found in cultures world-wide, known as "Fleece the Tourist.)

This IS a voodoo doll.  A Marry Me voodoo doll, found on www.voodooshop.com

Like any long-established religion, Voodoo has a dark side. Bokors will perform black magic - i.e. negative magic, that will harm as well as heal - known as "working with both hands." However, mainstream voodoo practitioners have a  strict moral code that eliminates pesky little things like human sacrifice, another Hollywood/schlock horror staple.

The idea of human sacrifice as a voodoo rite stems from fear and misinformation.

Voodoo has strong ties to Catholicism, with the belief in one supreme being and a pantheon of loa, or spirit forces that are addressed and gifted by worshipers. However, rites and gifts can change regionally, as well as being dependent on the needs of the petitioner. Voodoo practised in the mainland USA is very different to Voodoo practiced in Haiti or Africa, for example. It's also worth noting that the title of Houngan or Mambo (equivalent in many ways to a priest or priestess) is often passed down through the family line.

The tradition of animal sacrifice is often viewed with repulsion by outsiders, and a particularly sore point for animal rights activists. It's been held up as a symbol of satanism  at work in voodoo by a number of westerners. Animal sacrifice, however has been an integral part of the majority of western religions and can quite easily be traced through the Christian-Judaic bible. As the animal killed in these rituals is usually cooked and eaten by the people attending this ceremony, it's probably a lot less wasteful than what my ancestors used to practice several centuries ago. (Judging by the horror stories that escape traditional abattoirs, it's also probably a lot more humane.)

The concept of the soul is a vital aspect to voodoo, as is inviting the loa, considered a form of benign possession. This can be more closely compared to mediumship than the christian theory of demonic possession, although the actions of the loa can be extremely energetic while riding the host, depending on the loa that turns up.
The vever, often stunningly intricate patterns drawn with handfuls of powder or flour, both represents the loa to be invoked as well as serving as a focal point and occasional altar.

Vever for Ghede, the family of spirits that  embody death and fertility.

Despite the dark connotations, thanks mainly to western media and misrepresentations, voodoo as a religion is  very focused on light and enlightening the soul. A high number of rituals and requests focus on healing, and helping, both the practioner and their loved ones. With this in mind, it's a sad reflection on society that most voodoo worshipers in the west hide their religious beliefs through fear of victimization by their neighbors and employers. Even Haiti only recognized this ancient religion officially in 2003, leading to fairly predictable howls of moral outrage from a variety of christian groups across the world.

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J H Sked is the author of WolfSong & Basement Blues.
You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords

Supernatural Sunday - Poltergeist

Let's start off by saying the experts agree to disagree on what a poltergeist actually is. The word itself comes from German (Poltern & Geist) and means noisy spirit. The problem for most investigators is that they're not actually sure it is a spirit; a fairly high percentage of poltergeist activity turns out to faked. But when it isn't faked, both skeptics and believers are left scratching their heads.

Poltergeists are noisy, disruptive and destructive and potentially deadly, with a nasty habit of throwing knives and other dangerous objects at people.

The earliest recorded poltergeist activity comes from around 858 A.D., when a farmer near the town of Bingen along the Rhine river was pelted by stones. Stone throwing seems to be a favourite poltergeist activity, along with setting fires; the unfortunate man lost most of his newly harvested crops when a number of spontaneous fires started.


Other activity reported in cases includes objects moving, appearing or disappearing out of thin air (aporting), water boiling away from any heat, and people having their clothes ripped. Then we get to the really  serious stuff; victims getting scratching, slapping, pulling and punched, often in front of 3rd party witnesses. It seems poltergeists really like an audience.
Victims have also been recorded as vomiting pins and needles in a couple of cases, which can't be much fun at all.

Some poltergeists seem to show a benevolent streak though: the Bell Witch poltergeist, known as "Kate",  is credited with rescuing a  young boy who got his head stuck in a cave. Of course Kate also beat the living daylights out of members of the Bell family, interfered with Betsy Bell's engagement to John Gardner to the extent the marriage was called off, and threatened to kill John Bell, the family patriarch. Legend has it that when John finally lapsed into a coma and died after enduring some serious physical torment by the poltergeist, Kate claimed responsibility for the death by poisoning him.

The old Bell homestead. Today, only a pile of stone remains to mark the spot where it is thought to have stood.

An interesting fact is that poltergeist phenomena usually occur around children and adolescents, leading to the theory that it might be a latent psychokinetic talent that becomes active around puberty. Considering the kids involved are usually the main focus of the poltergeist's spite, if this is true it's probably a talent they don't want.

The 1967 Rosenheim Poltergeist was linked specifically to 19 year old employee, Annemarie Schneider, and cost the poor girl her job. Once it was established the activity only happened when she was in the building, the company dismissed her. It was one of the first cases of poltergeist activity recorded on tape. Poor Annemarie was followed by the poltergeist to a number of jobs afterwards, until the activity tapered off and eventually disappeared.

Moving onto Hollywood; the original 1982 movie scared the pants off of a pretty large audience. Being Hollywood, an explanation of houses built over a graveyard was introduced so that a logical explanation could be used in the script. A fun movie, but not the way poltergeists usually work.


An American Haunting, released in 2005, was a pretty good movie based on the Bell Witch case. The insinuation in the movie that the poltergeist was caused by John Bell abusing Betsy is pure speculation however, and since no evidence was ever found to point to this, can be considered another Hollywood convenience.

Attempts by skeptics to explain poltergeist phenomenon have included earthquakes, ball lightning, static electricity, ultrasound, infrasound and even carbon monoxide poisoning (for those pesky hallucinations shared by witnesses).

Some experts believe poltergeists are disturbed spirits, low elementals, or  psychokinetic abilities.

At the end of the day however, the only thing that seems clear is that nobody really knows what a poltergeist is - but nobody ever wants one hanging around.

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J H Sked is the author of WolfSong & Basement Blues. You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords.

Supernatural Sunday - Ghouls

It's time for Supernatural Sunday again. This weeks topic - Ghouls.

Ghouls are used to describe humans with an interest in death and the macabre (so most of us horror/paranormal writers fit right in there).

Mythic lore about Ghouls stems from Arabic culture - the root word is "ghala", meaning to seize. Arabic ghouls are desert-dwelling demonic creatures, believed to have the ability to shape-shift, usually into hyaenas.
Their goal is to lure unwary travellers into the desert and feed on them, and they take on the shape of their last victim when the feeding is done.
Other charming habits include feeding on corpses, robbing graves, drinking blood and stealing coins, as well actively preying on children.



While sharing a number of traits with zombies and vampires, ghouls consider the dead to be the ultimate snack food, and will chose a dead body over the living.



Boris Karloff starred in the 1933 horror The Ghoul, and the ghoul as pop culture monster turns up in everything from books, to band names, to some really funky artwork on Magic the Gathering cards.

As a main character in fiction, the ghoul has never really taken off, unlike other monsters; it's hard to for an audience to empathize  with  this particular beastie. Romance? Nope. Show a ghoul a girl and he'll eat her. Sex Appeal? Barring a few rather unusual members of the human population, rotting corpses don't ring any bells. Angst? Not going to happen here. Ditto for intelligence and sense of humour. (Although, if anyone comes up with a sparkling, lovelorn ghoul let me know. I'd have to check that out).

As side characters, or something for the protagonist to face off against, they fare a bit better.
The Anita Blake books use ghouls through the series as red herrings, referring to their pack-like behaviour and habit of enjoying the local cemetery. Cowardly and vicious, with no ability to talk (if it's lurching forward saying "Brains," you have a zombie, not a ghoul) they are dangerous to the wounded, ill, and children. A solitary ghoul is likely to run from confrontation. A pack on the other hand, is dangerous to anyone they come across.


Repelled by any form of light source, especially a sunlight, ghouls can be destroyed by using fire or decapitation.
They are however, immune to poison, don't need to breath and feel no pain, so although highly flammable, getting up close and personal with a ghoul could be tricky.

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Thanks to LSH (on twitter as @magicdarcy) for this weeks topic. Tweet me with ideas for next week, or post in the comments below.

You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords.

Supernatural Sunday: A brief look at... Vampires

Every Sunday I'll post about something related to the paranormal world. It's a topic I love, and everything paranormal has fascinated me since I was knee-high to a leprechaun.


This week's post - Vampires.


Vampires have existed in one form or another in every culture on the planet for centuries. The traditional western image of the vampire shot into popularity with John Polidori's The Vampyre. Then along came Bram Stokers creation of Dracula, and when cinema came along Hollywood picked up the ball and ran with it.





Nowadays, the image of a vampire with cape and lisping accent is considered an overdone cliché. In fact, it's pretty recent. Even the word vampire only became popular around the 18th century, so historically it's in its infancy.


Stoker actually has quite a lot to answer for. Instead of drawing on the traditions of vampirism, such as the bloated rotting corpses (not quite so pretty) that inspired the myth in areas such as Eastern Europe and the Balkans, he envisaged an elegant count, with abilities cobbled together from werewolf myths and demonology. He gave him the name of a man many in his home country consider a national hero, and started a fan following that still exists to this day. (Most Transylvanian's are not impressed by the  legions of tourists that pitch up looking for Dracula's grave, considering the whole legend disrespectful and dreadfully inaccurate). 


Thanks to Stoker, we have vampires with sex drives (Anita Blake), vampires that sparkle (Twilight), angst-ridden, whiny vampires (pick a recent mainstream series) and comedy vampires (Fright Night, Once Bitten). 


Around the world in 80 000 vampires
If you define a vampire as something that lives on the life force of others, and don't get stuck purely on the whole blood-drinking thing, there are so many other cultures out there, and they all have vampire myths.

The Adze is a vampiric spirit from the Ewe trip found in parts of Ghana and Togo. It looks like a fire fly, and feeds on coconut water, palm oil and the blood of children. (Guess which one it prefers?)




The Ekkimu was described by ancient Sumerian's as "evil wind gusts" had no physical form at all, and was feared throughout Mesopotamia. This purely psychic vampire later developed a physical form in the Inuit culture and was described as being rotting corpses who retained their mind and personality from when they were living people.





The Kyūketsuki comes from Japan, and can be persuaded to live on honey instead of blood, while the Baital from India is a short (about one &  a half meter tall) half-man half-bat creature. 






These are just a view of the vampires that are found around the world, and the similarities and differences never fail to fascinate me, even though they don't fit the sanitised, sexy version currently popular.

The astounding thing is that every single culture has a version of this myth. That's a lot of people, considering the age of these stories and the fact that cross-contamination between cultures can't account for all of them, it does make you wonder - what happened to start it all?

How did a tribe in Africa come up with a myth that bears a startling similarity to a legend in Japan?

And do we insist that these tales are myth and legend because we are rationalists, or because part of us is very afraid they might be grounded in truth?

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You can find WolfSong on Amazon, Sony  e-bookstore, Nook and Smashwords. Basement Blues is on Amazon and Smashwords.