Incubus (demon)
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In Western medieval legend, an incubus (plural incubi) is a demon in male form supposed to lie upon sleepers, especially women, in order to have sexual intercourse with them. They are also believed to do this in order to spawn other incubi. The incubus drains energy from the woman it performs sexual intercourse upon in order to sustain itself, and some sources indicate that it may be identified by its unnaturally cold penis.[1] Religious tradition holds that repeated intercourse with such a spirit by either males or females (the female version of the incubus is called a succubus) may result in the deterioration of health, or even death.[2]
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[edit] Etymology
The word is derived from the Latin preposition in, which in this case means on top of, and cubo, which is Latin for "I lie". The word incubo translates into "I lie on top".[3]
[edit] Origins of incubi legends
A number of mundane explanations have been offered for the origin of the Inkson legends. They involve the Medieval preoccupation with sin, especially sexual sins of women. Victims may have been experiencing waking dreams or sleep paralysis. Also, nocturnal arousal, orgasm or nocturnal emission could be explained by the idea of creatures causing an otherwise guilt-producing and self-conscious behavior.[4]
Purported victims of incubi could have been the victims of sexual assault by a real person. Rapists may have attributed the rapes of sleeping women to demons in order to escape punishment. A friend or relative may have assaulted the victim in her sleep. The victims and, in some cases the local clergy,[5] may have found it easier to explain the attack as supernatural rather than confront the idea that the attack came from someone in a position of trust.
[edit] Incubi in legend and myth
[edit] Ancient and religious descriptions
Incubi and succubi were said by some not to be different genders but the same demons able to change their sex.[6] A succubus would be able to sleep with a man and collect his sperm, and then transform into an incubus and use that seed on women. Their offspring were thought to be supernatural in many cases, even if the actual genetic material originally came from humans.[4] The Stephen King series The Dark Tower explores this idea.
Though many tales claim that the incubus is bisexual,[7] others indicate that it is strictly heterosexual and finds attacking a male victing either unpleasant or detrimental.[8] There are also numerous stories involving the attempted exorcism of incubi or succubi who have taken refuge in, respectively, the bodies of men or women.
Incubi were sometimes said to be able to conceive children. The half-human offspring of such a union is a Cambion. The most famous legend of such a case includes that of Merlin, the famous wizard from Arthurian legend.[5]
According to the Malleus Maleficarum, exorcism is one of the five ways to overcome the attacks of Incubi, the others being Sacramental Confession, the Sign of the Cross (or recital of the Angelic Salutation), moving the afflicted to another location, and by excommunication of the attacking entity, "which is perhaps the same as exorcism." [9] On the other hand, the Franciscan friar Ludovico Sinistari stated that incubi "do not obey exorcists, have no dread of exorcisms, show no reverence for holy things, at the approach of which they are not in the least overawed."[5]
[edit] Regional variations
There are a number of variations on the incubus theme around the world. In Zanzibar, Popo Bawa primarily attacks men and generally behind closed doors.[10] El Trauco, according to the traditional mythology of the Chiloé Province of Chile, is a hideous deformed dwarf who lulls nubile young women and seduces them. El Trauco is said to be responsible for unwanted pregnancies, especially in unmarried women.[11] In Hungary, a Liderc can be a Satanic lover that flies at night and appears as a fiery light (an ignis fatuus or will o' the wisp) or, in its more benign form as a featherless chicken.[12]
In Brazil and the rain forests of the Amazon Basin, the Boto is a combination of siren and incubus, a very charming and beautiful man who seduces young women and takes them into the river.[13] It is said to be responsible for disappearances and unwanted pregnancies,[14] and it can never be seen by daylight, because it metamorphoses into kind of river dolphin during those hours. According to legend the boto always wears a hat to disguise the breathing hole at the top of its head.[15]
[edit] Incubi in popular culture and media
Incubi have been part of modern popular culture in other ways. They were among creatures of the White Witch present at the killing of Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In Incubus, a film starring William Shatner, the main character is tempted by a lusting succubus in order to corrupt his pure soul. An incubus is later summoned to destroy him. In the Anne Bishop novel Sebastian, the hero is an incubus. In the MMORPG, Ragnarok Online, an incubus is a powerful monster which can be found on several floors of the Geffenia dungeon.
In the 1999 PlayStation survival horror game Silent Hill, the final boss is referred to by the developers as "The Incubus." It resembles Baphomet.
Mancubus is a demon race in the first-person shooter game, Doom, as well in its sequels. It is a grotesque cross between an incubus and a succubus, resulting in an obese, cybernetic humanoid demon, handling two fireball launchers. Other than the name, it doesn't share any similarities with the fictional demon.
In the 2006 book, Trail of an Incubus, by Iliya Englin, the incubus is portrayed as a different humanoid species, outwardly human but with far greater longevity and physical strength. Their intelligence is about the same or greater than human, albeit with certain blind spots. They hate humanity for displacing them from the top of the food chain, and their character traits give rise to traditional demonic myths - an enemy moving amongst us, intelligent, resourceful and hostile – and in constant search for human virgins.
The Alice Merridew novel, Aka Shinema, chronicles a tale of an incubus king.
Incubi also appear as enemies in the Sega CD RPG Shining Force.
Incubi are the bodyguards of an Archon or Dracon for the Dark Eldar army in Warhammer 40,000.
In addition, Incubus is the name of several bands, the most well-known being the alternative rock band Incubus.
Incubi (and succubi) are monsters on the MMORPG Ragnarok Online. They are shown wearing skimpy outfits and blowing kisses.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Russsel, Jeffrey Burton (1972), Witchcraft in The Middle Ages, pp. 239, 235 Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London, ISBN 0-8014-0697-8
- ^ Stephens, Walter (2002), Demon Lovers, p. 23, The University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-266-77261-6
- ^ incubo at An On-line Latin word-list, Copyright ©1997 The University of British Columbia Mathematics Department, hosted at www.sunsite.ubc.ca
- ^ a b Lewis, James R., Oliver, Evelyn Dorothy, Sisung Kelle S. (Editor) (1996), Angels A to Z, Entry: Incubi and Succubi, pp. 218, 219, Visible Ink Press, ISBN 0-7876-0652-9
- ^ a b c Masello, Robert, Fallen Angels and Spirits of The Dark, pp. 66, © 2004, The Berkley Publishing Group, 200 Madison Ave. New York, NY 10016, ISBN 0-399-51889-4
- ^ Carus, Paul (1900), The History of The Devil and The Idea of Evil From The Earliest Times to The Present Day, "The Devil's Prime," at sacred-texts.com
- ^ Russsel, Jeffrey Burton (1972), Witchcraft in The Middle Ages, p. 145, Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London, ISBN 0-8014-0697-8
- ^ Stephens, Walter (2002), Demon Lovers, pp. 54, 55, 332, 333, The University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-266-77261-6
- ^ Kramer, Heinrich and Sprenger, James (1486), Summers, Montague (translator - 1928), The Malleus Maleficarum, Part2, Chapter 1, "The Remedies prescribed by the Holy Church against Incubus and Succubus Devils," at sacred-texts.com
- ^ Maclean, William (Reuters, May 16, 2005), "Belief in sex-mad demon tests nerves," on the World Wide Religious News (WWRN) website
- ^ Lindemans, Micha F. (2004), Trauco at the Encyclopedia Mythica
- ^ Mack, Dinah, Mack, Carol K. (1999), A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits, p. 209, Henry Holt and Company, LLC, ISBN 0-8050-6270-X
- ^ "Whales and Dolphins" at ancientspiral.com
- ^ Boto at library.thinkquest.org
- ^ "The Dolphin Legend" at sumauma.net
[edit] See also
