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Cats, Spiders, Frogs... Those Witch's Familiars
 A Witch A familiar, was, and still is by many, thought to be an imp. It is supposed to be a subordinate demon in the form of an animal. Such creatures, according to legends spun by the Catholic church, drew nourishment by suckling from the devil's mark, a witch's breasts, or other less sensitive parts on a witch. Familiars were supposed to behave in ways not normally attributed to a natural pet . It was said they ran errands, brought messages, and aided in devil worship. Some of the creatures believed to have been used by witches as familiars were cats, dogs, toads, frogs, wolves, bats, ravens or crows, owls, spiders, snakes, and a host of others. According to church lore, positively anything could be a familiar. The black cat is one of the most commonly recognized types of familiars, although they could be any color. A black dog was also said to be a favorite for witches. Ravens are also known around the world as shape-shifting type familiars. They are considered to be spell-casters, messengers and even prophets of the gods. At one time toads were one of the most popular of all familiars to be had by a witch or wizard. Of course, the Church said the toad was the preferred animal shape of Satan and his demons. They were used to help prepare magic potions and it was made sure that the toad was present in nearly all of the spells and rituals, including the Sabbats. At one time it was believed that toads had a precious stone in their heads. This stone was highly prized as both a talisman for bringing happiness to the possessor and as a means for detecting poisons. If the stone grew hot to the touch then poison was near by. At one time it was believed that the breath of a toad would infect a person in the area the toad would breathe on. Another superstition was that those a toad would stare at fixedly would suffer spasms, heart palpitations, fainting spells, and convulsions. About the author: I'm an European history and tarot cards passionate; crazy about Halloween and always looking for the best and most creative Halloween ideas to help you make the most of your Halloween party. You're allowed to reprint this article for as long as you credit me using the following reference (just copy/paste): Article, copyright and courtesy of My Happy Halloween; your one-stop resource for <a href="http://myhappyhalloween.com/scarystories" target="_blank">scariest Halloween stories</a> ever. |
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