Skin Walkers and Witches

The skin walkers are evil witches that many Navajo believe can assume the shape and body of animal.  Some call them "shape shifters" in English. After assuming the shape of an animal the witches can cast spells and harm humans.   These witches are known when in human form to have eyes that glow in the dark like an animal but lose that glow when in the shape of an animal.   The witches pray on the weak and the young who are judged to more easily affected by the witches power. The most common animal they assume is the coyote and great is the fear when one sees a coyote after dark.  Because of the power of these witches Navajo avoid the skins of dead animals unlike my other Native American groups.

This year a bus full of teenagers was traveling after an athletic event at night when a few students felt they saw a skin walker.  There was mass hysteria on the bus and the driver immediately headed for the hospital.

White House Ruin and Rainbow

Thankfully we have traditional healers "medicine men" on our staff who were able to quickly assess the situation and begin a healing ceremony.  It was not until after the ceremony that the teenagers calmed down so that we were able to send them home.  Any physician who discounts the power of traditional healers in the Navajo Nation will have great difficulty in helping those sick of both mind and body.