Ritva Kurittu Wrote:
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> Stephanie and Lobo,
>
> The root of shapeshifting lies in shamanism, which
> in itself is a phenomenon as old as this world
> (well, almost!) and is still alive and well today.
> Not least in the Native American tribes, but also
> in large part of Siberian countries, Mongolia and
> Nepal. The Inuit are still a highly shamanistic
> people, as are the Saami and the Ainu (what's left
> of them!). And this is not counting with the
> modern shamanism, invented by the New Age culture,
> which is more centered around
> selfhealing/knowledge, and cannot quite be
> paralleled with the original idea and use of
> shamanism.
>
> The shaman is the person who can access the
> "otherworld" and it's energies. One way of
> describing these energies is to parallel them to
> the animals we see around us, since they all have
> their own characteristics and abilities easily
> recognisable. Hence the numerous animal divinities
> of the ancient and native beliefsystems. They are
> symbols of the energies and essences reached and
> communicated with. This is in no way the same
> thing as working oneself into a trance
> mecahnically, as I firmly believe the Berserkers
> were doing, even if a trance is a sort of
> shapeshifting also, since it does alter the state
> of mind. But then, so would gettig roaring drunk
> be also! Or the use of drugs.

It appears alcohol and drugs weren't effective for this use.


[[url=http://www.answers.com/topic/berserker]Berserker[/url]](third paragraph under Theories to explain berserker behavior)

Quote

A UK television programme in 2004 tested the possible use of fly agaric alcohol by training a healthy volunteer in the use of Viking weapons, then evaluating his performance under the influence of fly agaric or alcohol compared to no influence. It was obvious that use of fly agaric or alcohol severely reduced his fighting ability, and the tentative conclusion drawn was that berserk state was achieved psychologically; otherwise bersekers would have been too easy to kill.

> The exterior symbol of the shaman having reached
> an altered state of mind and being in
> communication with the essence he/she represents
> is the wear of assimilating gear. Could be just a
> mask or a skin of the animal. Hence the word
> shapeshifting. What shifts shape is the mind (and
> somewhat the personality), not the body, that must
> therefore be "shifted" by wear of symbolic gear.

Yes. I would put it as more of a melding, thinking altered is more like a changed from what would be normal for either side of the mix, of the state of mind/being. This would have all the normal characteristics of the human and animal together in one package. The thought processes, actions, movements,etc. would be of both sides(the moving on all fours and also bipedal, animal sounds but also human language).

> This again is not to be confounded with the wear
> of gear for other purposes, such as hunting!
> Whereas the hunter is much more successful in
> nearing the prey covered in animal skins, it has
> nothing to do with shapeshifting as such. This
> said, a shaman can tell where the prey is, just
> like the medicineman can find the hidden bundle in
> Stephanies backyard, and they were probaly used to
> locate the prey for the hunters!

The skinwalkers, if I remember correctly were also the "top shelf"(#1) hunters in the tribes, and their ability to meld into the animal they were hunting would give them the ability to get really close, within the herd, to make a successful kill. In dire times, drought/winter/scarcity of animals, the power of the skinwalker would be depended upon heavily. From my past hunting trips I have learned some interesting things such as, if you have the 'intent' to kill, animals seem to sense this and also if you move thru the environment "outside the box" of what is natural the animals will know that too. Animals never walk like humans(very seldom a regular rhythm).

> Whereas most shamans "work" with one or a few
> animal energies, there are also the Herdsmen.
> Those are the ones allowed contact with all
> energy/essence i.e. "all animals". Stephanie's
> Dancing Sorcerer is one. They are clearly
> recognisable by the antlers they wear. It's
> interesting to note the rich presence of the
> antlers in early Celtic, Scythian and Viking
> cultures. Most obviously can be seen the reverence
> of the great stag, often pictured with numerous
> stars in it's antlers, symbolically describing the
> contact to the universe's powers as a whole. But
> the special meaning of the antlers is still
> present in today's shamanistic rituals, as can be
> seen in Stephanie's picture. The Saami use
> exclusively the antler to drum with or to make
> magic tools and amulets etc.
>
> Why do I rant? Just to show, that there is nothing
> new under the sun, the masks and the skins have
> been used from the earliest cultures we have
> evidence of (AE for example) and that the same
> beliefs and practices are still present in
> numerous cultures, as they always have been.

Rant? I don't see any rant. Just more information that I am thankful for getting to read!

> But the Navajo skinwalkers, whereas they are
> shapeshifters of a kind, have lost the original
> purpose of shapeshifting. Shapeshifting is usually
> performed for positive ends and only positive:
> healing, finding the prey, reaching knowledge of
> the otherworld. Therefore I can't quite imagine,
> that the skinwalkers are shapeshifters in the
> proper and original meaning of the word. They
> might still shapeshift, but I strongly doubt it is
> done by mechanical trance (like the Berserkers),
> that does not demand true communion with the
> spiritual world and it's essences.

With the Berserkers, they would go into a trance and take on the aspects of animals(usually the bear or wolf). This was to aid them in the upcoming battle which caused them to act supernaturally in regards to their feats of strength and lack of indication of injury. These caused the perception of these Berserkers becoming were-creatures. This was a melding of the wolf/bear minset with the warriors mindset and then topped of with the skins/coats of the animal in question instead of armour. I have a feeling that a wolfskin coat, with a chainmail undershirt sewn to the inside(or between two skins) would help promote the myth of the weapons bouncing off these Berserkers and the inability to harm these were-creatures in battle.
The choice of skins, and animals, to use could also be enhanced by the natural traits of the warrior in question. If the warrior was large( i.e. 6'4"/240lb/ broad shoulder and big stomach) then a bear totem would be carried off(successful) for him but if another was medium(less than 6'/180lb/slender but strong and muscular) a wolf totem would be a better choice. If a group of the wolf Berserkers were to group(special force style) then this would enhance the pack mentality and they would be seen as actual were-creatures.
The skinwalker's abilities to sniff out trouble(pun intended) for the tribe would be of great use in warfare just like the Berserker's abilities.
The difference is that the Berserker's style tends towards only the warfare whereas the skinwalker's abilities are more inclusive of other areas!
So yes your point of view on the Skinwalker and Berserker both being shapeshifters is what I see here also. The skinwalker, being the animal shaman, has a larger area of influence in comparision to the Berserker warriors.

Regards,
Lobo-hotei
lobo

Treat the earth well, It was not given to you by your parents, It was loaned to you by your children.
Native American Proverb