One interesting take on this theme is that of being "ridden by a witch." While pop-culture often depicts witches riding broomsticks, the folklore source most often mentions them shapeshifting objects, including humans, to ride.
In one folktale, an American describes how a witch entered his home one night while he was in bed. As he got up to fend her off, she drew a bit and in the ensuing melee, managed to bridle him! As he was circling with the witch astride, he saw his legs becoming hindquarters and soon realized he had been transformed into a mule, which the witch rode to carry out her nefarious deeds (which, in this story, was meeting bank robbers). This activity continued for several nights.
The man approached a Witch-Master, who told him to mark the cave where the witch was taking him so he could kill the witch with a silver bullet and the two of them could take the loot. So the following night, when the witch had bridled and ridden him to the same cave they'd been visiting, he "jest drapped as many drappin's as [he] could, an' started in for t'chaw me a good big blaze on th' white-oak saplin', like [the Witch-Master] told me..."
He ends the story by saying he awoke in the morning to find he'd shat the bed and "dang near bit th' ol' woman's laig off!"
While a humorous take on the matter, the recorder of this tale notes that her aunt took her aside afterward and assured her the man telling it believed in witches and witchcraft "deep down in his heart," but would never admit it to any but his closest friends.

With this tale, you can see how this legend was built upon as it traveled across cultures.
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
No comments:
Post a Comment