Lycanthropy
(Gr.)
Physiologically, a disease or mania, during which a person imagines he is a wolf, and acts as such. Occultly, it means the same as “were‐wolf”, the psychological faculty of certain sorcerers to appear as wolves. Voltaire states that in the district of Jura, in two years between 1598 and 1600, over 600 lycanthropes were put to death by a too Christian judge. This does not mean that Shepherds accused of sorcery, and seen as wolves, had indeed the power of changing themselves physically into such; but simply that they had the hypnotizing power of making people (or those they regarded as enemies), believe they saw a wolf when there was none in fact. The exercise of such power is truly sorcery. “Demoniacal” possession is true at bottom, minus the devils of Christian theology. But this is no place for a long disquisition upon occult mysteries and magic powers (TG).
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Shortly: Physiologically, a disease or mania, during which a person imagines he is a wolf, and acts as such. ...