Therianthropy
From Shifters.Org
From Greek Roots: Therios (Beast) + Anthropos (Man)
An integral connection with a(n) animal(s) that might manifest itself
mentally, spiritually, physically, or emotionally. Therianthropy is a
state of being, whereas someone believes an animal is an essential
constituent in his or her spirituality or life.
Therianthropy is the recognition and acceptance of the animal within. It makes us what we are, but more importantly who we are.
That is the definiton of therianthropy, but what is it
exactly? All I can do is tell of my experiences with the wolf
within.
I
am a therian in as such that I do have a deep connection with an
animal, in my case wolf. I even go as far as to say I am a
reincarnated wolf living, and sometimes feeling "trapped" inside a
human body. I do feel mental changes or "shifts" as they are called in
the therian community. My mentality does change to that of the wolf,
or so I beleive. While this is not exclusively indicative of therians
ingeneral, I personaly have expressed confusion and sometimes disgust
with "human" values and society. The evening news does not help my
perceptions on this matter. This is another word entirely, that is
"misanthropy".
Some therians try to hide or otherwise
contain their animal sides. I am not one of them, in fact I fully
embrace the animal within, for I AM the wolf. I cannot perfom any
ritual or spell, or do anything requiriing intense emotion withough
invoking a shift.
I should explain what a shift is before
going any further. In the community, shifting is taking on an animal
characteristics, either mentaly, spiritual, or very rarely if ever at
all, physical. The most common and the type I exerience most of the
time is the mental or M-shift. My mentality changest to that of the
wolf, I become more alert, my senses of hearing and smell seem sharper
and I am ready to pounce or hunt. I also experience what are known as
phantom shifts. This is similar to phantom limbs on amputees, where
even though a limb is not there, they feel it nonetheless. In a
therians case, they never had the tail, ears, muzzle, or whatever to
begin with, and yet they feel it is there. I have been known to couple
these experenses subconsiously. I have been known to "wag my tail" in
public places when happy or excited. My face becomes more contorted
when I am angry. My speach becomes more growly and other such
phenomina. When a shift is so intense as I can not hold back anymore,
I let out a mighty howl.
Strangely enough, I feel I am at
least half-shifted most of the time. I embrace myself so fully that
the wolf is an ever present thing. It is only during extream emotion
that I go full tilt. There are many triggers for me to shift. Anger,
rage, hatred, a feeling of being wronged, and very loud high pitched
noises and crowded places of course are all the negative triggers. (I
know, whay haven't I completely wigged out at Wal-Mart yet?) But
happiness, love, the act of love, enjoying a good rare steak and
caffeene and chocolate are all the positve triggers. The positive
triggers make me feel more like a puppy, than the "big bad wolf"
however.
Am I delusional? Perhaps.
Am I simply someone
who is unhappy with his life and wants to be something other than
human? No. I am not unhappy with my life. Certainly there is room
for improvement, but I am content. Do I hate humans? Nothing could be
further from the truth. What I hate is what humanity has become. They
have become lax and self concerned with their own existance, being
ruled by the higher ups who lash at them from their "dark alcoves".
They are the sleepeers. I feel that the majority of humans have lost
something we therians have never forgotten, that we are connected to
all, and all is connected to us. The fact that we feel connected to an
animal within gives us a unique perspective that some humans are too
blind to see either because they do not care, or are forced not to
see. Therefore those who are "awakened" should help the sleepeers to
open their eyes. I know, it sounds a bit preachy and idealistic, but
it is the truth.
So for those who asked, that is what therianthropy, means to me personaly.
Here are a few links for more info:
http://www.werelist.com/index.php
http://forums.therianthropy.org/
http://www.geocities.com/lady_shadowmyst/TWSP/what.html
http://goldenwolfen.com/artist/therianthropy/index.htm