WEREWOLF: An Untold Reality

" In the dim days of yore, the people of the kingdom of Ossory  had the power of changing themselves into wolves whenever they pleased.While he was in his wolf-shape he ravaged sheep-folds and devoured cattle, and was in every respect as fierce and bloodthirsty as any natural-born wolf..."

Faoladh/conroicht


Both these are Irish words for “werewolf”. As you will see, the Irish werewolf is a complex creature, just as often helpful, or at least benign, as dangerous. Most of the sources say that Irish werewolves were considered guardian spirits who protected children, wounded men, and the lost.

The Irish werewolf is different from the other modern stories, we hear now. It wasn't a monster at all. This shapeshifter is the guardian and protector of children, wounded men and lost people. According to some ancient sources, the Irish werewolves were even recruited by kings in the time of war. 

Quite clearly, there was a cultural conflict between the worshipers of prehistoric wolf deities and organizers of later established religions. The people of these areas worshiped the wolf sprite, an ancient deity worshiped for thousands of years by their generation. Being the vessels of their Gods were the greatest aim of any men in the tribe. But, later Christians saw this as demon possession and labeled their worship rituals as Devil worship. During these ages, Christian labeled all nature worshipers as Pagan or Devil worshipers and tried to converted them with fake stories and money. The christian missionary also invented fake stories of priest curse and priest meeting wolf couple to bring confusions in people's mind.  

The positive aspect of the Faoladh is currently popular in some corners of Millennial pop culture (evident in the convincingly faux-archaic Scots-styled poem, above from 2010).  There is similar interest in the legendary, non-aggressive Wulver of the Shetland Islands, except the Wulver was considered to be an immortal animist spirit and not a metamorph.

The most famous of the mythical Irish werewolves are the people of Ossory (modern day Kilkenny) whose legends live on ,even today. Among other lingering tales, the Ossory folk were documented by none other than Giraldus Cambrensis. According to Giraldus, the Ossory werewolves worked in pairs, male and female. A chosen couple lived as wolves for seven years before returning to human form to be replaced by a matched set of two others. During their time as wolves, they fed from the herds but this was taken as their due for watching over wandering children, healing the wounded, and guiding lost strangers to safety.