Ways of Becoming a Werewolf

Evening to all and every one of you who happen to be reading this!

A lot of work is still needed from me before all the contents of Werewolf Theory are successfully relocated to here, but the blog seems to be growing nicely for the time being. Today I’d like to share with you one of the more interesting posts I wrote back in September 2005, in which I attempted to gather all the known ways of becoming a werewolf that can be found in legends, lore and all other aspects of our culture. The list below is not necessarily complete, so if you have any other ideas that are not there, feel free to let me know by adding a comment!

Disclaimer: When I originally wrote this post for informational reasons only and as part of my research into the subject of werewolves, I did not expect it to need a disclaimer, but now I realise that it does, just in case. The following is by no means a guide or a list of instructions and should be taken as a collection of curious beliefs that people have or have had over the centuries. In other words, do not under any circumstances try any of the following at home!

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There exist at least 27 ways, according to lore, of how one can become a werewolf. I have taken the liberty of dividing them into the following categories:

I. Werewolfism caused by supernatural means

The werewolf transforms only when a spell is in effect and remains in the form of a wolf without pause for a time specified by the spell or until it is lifted.

1. Werewolf that does not have control over changing

a)     curse, hex, enchantment, spell, etc.

A magical curse is put on the victim (or victims, for it can as well be a whole family or clan), which forces them to temporarily or permanently stay in the form of a wolf. This can be done by witches, sorcerers, gods and saints. This method was popular especially in the Slavic regions, Greece and Rome. Often, such magic forced the werewolf to remain in the form of a wolf for several years during which if they wanted to return to their human form, they were not allowed to consume any kind of meat (e.g. in Rome, this period amounted to 7 years).

b)     atonement for sins

An idea that was born in Christian Europe. It tells of souls of sinners roaming the earth after death in the form of animals, such as wolves, which because of this were regarded as evil to the core, being both a nuisance and a threat to the living.

c)      neglecting a child’s ceremony of baptism

This was supposed to cause a child to possess two souls –  a Christian and a pagan one, the latter considered to be the cause of the child’s periodic transformations into a wolf.

d)     divine punishment

As punishment for committed sins, the mortal is transformed into a wolf by a deity or a saint. Two examples of this are the legend about king Lycaon, who was turned into a wolf by Zeus, and St. Patrick of Ireland, who turned the king of Wales into a wolf.

e)      being born of one or more werewolf parents

If at least one of the parents is a carrier of the virus, it’s almost certain that their offspring will be a werewolf. Also, it was believed that a male child born on Christmas Eve would become a werewolf when he grew up. It was believed that the only way to cure such a child was the ritual of “shoeing”, which had to take place during the following three nights of Christmas. Such children did not become werewolves until they became 20 years of age. Originally, this belief applied only to boys, as girls would supposedly become witches – but nowadays, it applies to both genders.

f)      possessing inborn abilities to shapeshift into wolves

The transformation occurs in opportune circumstances, e.g. in times of danger or agitation. It can stem from inborn magical abilities or from a person possessing some traits of a wolf’s nature in their human nature. In some cases, it can be controlled, in others not.

2. Werewolf that shapeshifts according to will and has control over their wolf form.

Applies mainly to sorcerers possessing magical abilities (innate or, like in Christian culture, granted by the devil or his minions). Slavic folk tales tell that such abilities were also alleged to sheep herders.

a)     signing a pact with the devil

This was said to  particularly concern atheists and black magic adepts. Such people were said to offer their souls to the devil in exchange for the ability to become wolves.

b)     according to a Russian legend, in order to become a werewolf, one needed to jump over a fallen tree in a forest, stab a copper knife into it, and recite a specific verse.

c)      drinking water that gathered in the pawprints left by a wolf in moist earth or drinking from a wolf’s watering-place was said to turn one into a werewolf

d)     eating the brain of an animal killed by wolves

e)      eating the meat or the brain of a wolf itself

f)      rubbing in magical lotions (usually under a full moon)

Such lotions were supposedly obtainable from witches or demons or prepared personally and often included the root of deadly nightshade (Antropa belladonna), the blood of bats, henbane (Hyoscyamus niger), silverweed (Potentilla anserina), sometimes also opium, the fat of an infanticide and soot, all of this mixed together while reciting appropriate spells.

g)     a wolf belt

Anyone who had access to this magical belt could transform into a wolf at will whenever they put it on. Such a werewolf could remain in his animal form for as long as they wanted to and was able to return to human form at any moment. The wolf belt was usually obtained from devil himself or demons that served him.

h) drinking a pint of specially brewed beer combined with the recitation of a magical formula (like it was common among the Livs)

h)     participating in magical gatherings or rituals

In Germanic culture, these were secret gatherings of young males, during which young warriors were supposed to temporarily obtain wolf-like traits, such as ferocity, strength or endurance, often thanks to specific practices, e.g. drinking human blood or intoxicating potions.

i)       eating specific herbs

Some sources speak of a particular type of plant whose picking and consuming was thought to induce a change into a werewolf. This plant was said to grow in the Balkans. Although there was a lack of agreement regarding its look – according to some it was a big red daisy, others claimed it was a ghost-white sunflower with a delicate scent – everyone agreed that it was very attractive to the eye.

k) a pregnant woman eating deadly nightshade (Antropa belladonna) marked by the urine of an alpha wolf was supposed to induce werewolfism in her unborn child (of course, if she herself managed to live through the experience, because deadly nightshade is known to be extremely poisonous...)

j)       drinking of magical potions

It was believed that potions containing northern wolfsbane (Aconitum lycoctonum vulparia) were given by witches to those they wanted to change into wolves.

k)     innate abilities to shapeshift into wolves, as described in I. 1. f) that were controllable

l)       wolf skin

A method similar to the wolf belt, putting on a wolf skin was supposed to enable a person to transform into a wolf. In some legends, the skin could be taken off whenever the person willed it, while in others, once it was put on, one would remain a wolf for the rest of their life or until they were released spontaneously (usually through proving their humanity and not allowing the animal nature to take over) or via external interference.

II. Werewolfism induced by contact with a wolf or a werewolf – natural lycanthropy.

1. Direct contact with a lycanthrope’s bodily fluids (blood, gland secretions, etc.) in his wolf form.

The so-called “Lyc-V” virus similar to the known HIV virus makes the means of infection pretty similar to each other, including: bites, scratches, wounds inflicted by objects covered with werewolf blood, etc. Originally this one-hundred-per-cent certain way of contracting lycanthropy boiled down to a bite, nowadays however the spectrum of infection means was expanded by other possibilities, so all kinds of contact with infected blood (of course, leading to its inclusion into the victim’s bloodstream). Some people may wonder why scratches/wounds caused by claws qualify – usually, just like in case of biting, a werewolf’s saliva containing the virus comes in contact with a victim’s wound, just like the gland secretions used in the wild to mark territory, which should also contain the strain, make contact during claw-induced injuries. It is worth mentioning that in some lore a werewolf is able to infect others by biting also in human form, however the issue of gland secretions like in case of claws should theoretically not apply here.

a) transfusion or injection of infected blood (or even just wolf blood, as thought up in 1925’s werewolf movie Wolfblood)

b) transplantation of organs/tissue/body parts of a wolf/werewolf (e.g. in one of the movies the main character becomes a werewolf after an eye transplant)

III. Werewolfism caused by other means

1. Being born on Christmas Day or Christmas Eve

Some folk tales tell that male children born on the 24th or 25th of December will sometimes grow up to become werewolves. Believing this, parents of such children often performed a ritual called “shoeing”, which was supposed to rid their progeny of the curse.

2. Being conceived at a specific time

Some sources claim that those conceived during a full moon have a good chance of being born as werewolves.

3. Certain actions being performed during a full moon by one’s parent(s)

a) knitting or sewing under a full moon

b) sleeping in the open during a full moon on Wednesdays or Fridays in the summertime

These activities were supposed to cause a person’s progeny to be born as werewolves, especially if that person was pregnant at the time.

4. A specific sequence of birth.

a)     being the seventh son of one woman, especially if those born before were all daughters, or being the seventh son of one set of parents (in Galicia, Brasil and Portugal such children were banished or given up for adoption).

b)     being the seventh or ninth child of one set of parents

In Romania, such a person was said to become a werewolf only after death (usually seven years after), would leave their grave and – similar to the nosferatu – drink human blood.

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