Yenaldlooshi: The Shape-Shifter Beliefs of the Navajos

Unlike western Europe, Navajo culture never passed through the ascendancy of scientific rationalism and the Age of Reason, when medieval ideas about witchcraft were relegated to the position of idle superstition and folk belief. White American settlers, with their European ideas based on Christianity and Western science, simply did not believe in witches. Such skepticism astounded the Navajos, who even today preserve their ideas about witches and therioanthropy. Some Navajos say that because white Americans do not believe in witchery, they are not susceptible to witchcraft. For Navajos, witchery and weranimals have always been part of the tribal belief system, but discussion of these matters is generally avoided. Why have these notions persisted, despite the ever-increasing influence of the mainstream white society? This article, made available by The World & I Online, explores these topics and more.