Skinwalker Lore
Joanne Brothwell
The Skinwalker Lore of Stealing Breath is partially based on true Navajo legend. Every attempt has
been made to provide proper credit to the authors or owners of the material quoted in this
publication. I do not claim ownership of original works referred to in this publication. No
copyright infringement intended.
© Joanne Brothwell 2012
Contents
Introduction
What is a Skinwalker?
Supernatural Powers
Skin-Walking
Bad Medicine
Surviving
Hunt for the Skinwalker
Introduction
Welcome to the world of Stealing Breath.
Included in this document is a combination of historical information and fiction, based on the
world I created in my novel.
In the world-building phase of writing my book, I was determined to find something unique,
something fresh. I‟d grown tired of reading about vampires, and I wanted to something new.
I searched high and low for supernatural beings that were largely unheard of. When I stumbled
upon the Skinwalker, I knew I‟d found what I was looking for.
I hope you enjoy reading about the Skinwalker of Stealing Breath. And if you‟re scared, that‟s okay
too.
Joanne
What is a Skinwalker?
Skinwalker.
A word not to be uttered out loud, for to do so, one might attract the evil Skinwalker, bringing
terrible pain, illness and even death to oneself or one‟s family.
In the Navajo culture, Skinwalkers have been a creature to be feared for generations, for many
terrible tragedies have been attributed to the existence of these malevolent beings.
The Skinwalker is an evil shaman with supernatural powers, practitioners of „Bad Medicine‟ or
dark magic; men or women who have earned the highest level of priesthood.
Induction as a Skinwalker is simple and very specific; the evil witch must commit a cultural taboo,
usually the murder of a relative. Most Skinwalker „candidates‟ are already evil people, their
murderous, violent tendencies coming in handy in the process of becoming a Skinwalker. In fact,
most Skinwalker aspirants are greedy, angry, envious and spiteful. But once the taboo act has been
committed, the Skinwalker is evil to the core, nearing that of a full-fledged demonic being.
Supernatural Powers
The Navajo people have long known of the supernatural powers of the evil Skinwalker. Mind-
reading is used to understand the fears and weaknesses of the victims and use it against them. They
can also perfectly mimic animal and human noises as a way to bait their chosen prey. For example,
many accounts involve Skinwalkers imitating the sound of a child crying or the sound of a relative
or friend calling for help to lure victims from safety of their dwelling.
Skin-Walking
Skinwalkers who have managed to attain the highest level of priesthood have access to even more
advanced evil powers, including the ability to steal the skin of their chosen victim. Once a person
has locked eyes with the glowing yellow eyes of the Skinwalker, the creature can absorb into them
and take full possession of their body. The victim loses all control over their own behaviour, yet
remains completely aware and conscious of the possession and all of the terrible actions of the
Skinwalker within them. It is said that to survive an attempted body hijacking by a Skinwalker, the
victim must have a particularly strong will; making it more difficult for the Skinwalker to seize
control of their body.
Bad Medicine
Skinwalker participate in blasphemous rituals in secret, the activities quite similar to the European
equivalent of Black Mass. Some practices involve the use of human remains to create specific
curses to injure or murder the desired victim.
Using the knowledge of Navajo healers, the Skinwalker uses such practices to harm rather than
heal. Ritual, prayer, chants and herbal remedies are used to control supernatural forces in order to
create illness, bad luck and even death. Skinwalkers have been known to source the DNA of their
victims, such as hair, nails, saliva, blood or use the spit, hair, or personal objects to make person-
specific curses.
One of the most abhorrent ingredients commonly used by Skinwalkers is the use of a white
powder made of ground infant bones to curse their victims. This powder is often referred to as
“corpse powder”, or “immobilization powder”. It is used to immobilize their victim by bowing it
into their face, causing the victim‟s tongue to first swell up, turn black, eventually choking them. It
will often result in seizures, paralysis, and finally, death.
Occasionally, a Skinwalker will target an entire household or family, in which case he will pour the
corpse powder into the chimney, and when the powder reaches fire, will result in immediate illness
and death for all residents.
A portion of Skinwalkers practice Necromancy, raising spirits of the dead and sometimes
reanimating the decomposing corpse, to be used as against their enemies.
Surviving the Skinwalker
Speaking of the Skinwalker is strictly prohibited in Navajo culture. While it is difficult to know
specifically why this is the case, it can be assumed the reason is due to fear of somehow attracting
the Skinwalker, or drawing the attention of the Skinwalker, as avoidance of the evil intention of a
Skinwalker is really the only way to ensure safety.
Killing a Skinwalker is nearly impossible, and can only be completed successfully by an extremely
powerful Shaman. The Shaman is aware of the evil spells of the Skinwalker, and can use those very
spells against the Skinwalker. Only one other reported attempt to kill a Skinwalker successfully is
known, where bullets used to shoot the creature had been dipped in white ash, and the creature
had been shot through the head. Reportedly the Skinwalker will remain unharmed if the bullet
strikes anywhere else on the body, but if the bullet reaches the head, the Skinwalker will bleed
yellow.
Personal Accounts
The following stories are from an internet site called www.Rense.com:
One story told on the Navajo reservation in Arizona concerns a woman who delivered newspapers
in the early morning hours. She claims that, during her rounds, she heard a scratching on the
passenger door of her vehicle. Her baby was in the car seat next to her. The door flung open and
she saw the horrifying form of a creature she described as half-man, half-beast, with glowing red
eyes and a gnarly arm that was reaching for her child. She fought it off, managed to pull the door
closed, then pounded the gas pedal and sped off. To her horror, she says, the creature ran along
with the car and continued to try to open the door. It stayed with her until she screeched up to an
all-night convenience store. She ran inside, screaming and hysterical, but when the store employee
dashed outside, the being had vanished. Outsiders may view the story skeptically, and any number
of alternative explanations might be suggested, but it is taken seriously on the Navajo reservation.
Although Skinwalkers are generally believed to prey only on Native Americans, there are recent
reports from Anglos claiming they had encountered Skinwalkers while driving on or near tribal
lands. One New Mexico Highway Patrol officer told us that while patrolling a stretch of highway
south of Gallup, New Mexico, he had had two separate encounters with a ghastly creature that
seemingly attached itself to the door of his vehicle. During the first encounter, the veteran law
enforcement officer said the unearthly being appeared to be wearing a ghostly mask as it kept pace
with his patrol car. To his horror, he realized that the ghoulish specter wasn't attached to his door
after all. Instead, he said, it was running alongside his vehicle as he cruised down the highway at a
high rate of speed.
The officer said he had a nearly identical experience in the same area a few days later. He was
shaken to his core by these encounters, but didn't realize that he would soon get some
confirmation that what he had seen was real. While having coffee with a fellow highway patrolman
not long after the second incident, the cop cautiously described his twin experiences. To his
amazement, the second officer admitted having his own encounter with a white-masked ghoul, a
being that appeared out of nowhere and then somehow kept pace with his cruiser as he sped
across the desert. The first officer told us that he still patrols the same stretch of highway and that
he is petrified every time he enters the area.
http://www.rense.com/general77/skin.htm
Hunt for the Skinwalker
According to local residents in Utah, a property known as the Skinwalker Ranch is a well-known
location of various inexplicable and often terrible, paranormal activities. A first article about the
ranch was reported on in the Salt Lake City, Utah Deseret News, followed by an article in the Las
Vegas Mercury. The author of these articles was journalist George Knapp, who later went on to
author the book HUNT FOR THE SKINWALKER, with co-author, Colm Kelleher, which
chronicles the strange and mysterious events at the Skinwalker Ranch.
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin-walker
http://naturalplane.blogspot.ca/2010/12/Skinwalker-chronicles.html
http://prairiespecters.blogspot.ca/2009/02/Skinwalkers.html
http://www.rense.com/general77/skin.htm
http://demonhunterscompendium.blogspot.ca/2010/07/Skinwalker-navajo-shapeshifter_13.html
http://www.quileutes.com/native-americanlegends/witchery-way-navajo-Skinwalker.html
http://www.alltooflat.com/about/personal/sean/2008/02/
http://www.vampirerave.com/houses/house_page.php?house=dualities&page=3914
http://www.amazon.ca/Hunt-Skinwalker-Science-Confronts-Unexplained/dp/1416505210
http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=453569
http://www.skinwalkerranch.org/
