The Wendigo

    The Wendigo is a mythological monster from the folklore of the Indigenous people in North America who speak Algonquian languages. Wendigo is said to be a fifteen-foot-tall creature covered in matted hair and has a disfigured face with equally as distorted teeth that are accompanied by a set of dully sunken eyes. Wendigo's eyes are rumored to glow when they look at you and their month is hiding their horribly long tongues behind a row of yellow razor-sharp fangs. Their skin is so thin that you can see their bones through it. You can also see their heart beating and that’s why it’s believed that their heart is made of pure ice because you can see their heart beating freezing blood through its veins. These frightening creatures roam around the cold snow-covered forest of North America to be able efficiently to stalk their victims under the shadows. They can’t stay in one spot for long because they are cursed to forever wander the land to satisfy their hunger for human flesh or they will starve to death.

    What’s so unnerving about this monster is that it was once a human, living a normal life. People believe that humans can turn into Wendigo by practicing cannibalism, selfishness, greed, or by being cursed by a shaman. This legend tries to warn people to stay on the righteous path and to avoid being corrupted by such dishonorable things like greed, selfishness, or gluttony. Becoming a Wendigo is punishment for those things, but it is most commonly referred to as a punishment for engaging in the dishonorable activity of cannibalism. Cannibalism wasn’t too uncommon in the past when Indians/settlers would get trapped in lethal ice storms and the snowy North forests. After being stranded for long periods of time, some people would die so the only way they could live was to resort to cannibalism. It's said that after someone did this an evil spirit would take over their bodies to kill them from the inside out and then revive them as a deformed creature with a unattainable hunger for human flesh. 


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