Cherokee Body Souls and Witch Attacks–> Hun Wood Soul Attacks by Witches who have None

http://www.bigorrin.org/archive84.htm

“The second soul, that of physiological life, is located in the liver, and is of primary importance in doctoring and in conjuring. This soul is a substance, is not anthropomorphic in any, has no individuality, and is quantitative, there is more or less of it. Its secretions are yellow bile, black bile, gastric juice, etc. Destruction of the liver substance produces lassitude, the “yellows” (jaundice or hepatitis, or cirrhosis) or the “black” (deep depression or gall bladder attacks or acute pancreatitis). Exhaustion of the liver substance (absence of the soul) produces physiological death. This soul may be attacked by the conjuror, producing false “yellows” or “black” as “simulation diseases,” reproducing the symptoms of witch-attack, or it may be actually consumed by witches to produce the standard form of liver-gall-pancreas diseases. The witch lengthens its life by extra supplies of liver-soul.

When the animating soul of conscious life leaves the body at the moment of death, stopping all life processes, the other souls begin to die. That of the liver is gradually diffused back into nature as a life-force and it takes a week for all of it to disappear from the body, if death has been normal. If death has not been caused by liver-soul loss, all of this soul is still present at death, and is available to the witch in the dying or the newly dead as an intact resource for extended life. With each day after death the resource is dwindling and is less tempting to the witch, so that the greatest danger is in the first night after death, less danger the first night after burial, and much less the second night after burial. Loss of the liver soul to the witches seems to do no damage to the first soul of the deceased or to the living community, so there is no practical reason why it should not be permitted. However, it is viewed as desecrative of the corpse, and also, attempts by witches give the opportunity to the conjuror to try and kill the witch, thus eliminating an enemy of the community who is dangerous in other contexts.

The conjuror expects witch attacks at night just before death, during the first night after death, and soon after burial, and so keeps his lonely vigil just before death and just after death and after burial. The defenses against or obstacles to successful witch attacks are the strength or health of the victim, if alive, the strength and magical power of the fire on the household hearth, and the magical power, vigilance, and knowledge of the conjuror. Powerful witches will make their attempt to steal the liver-soul the first night after death and the first night after burial; only very feeble, incapable, and desperate witches would be tempted by the small residues left six days after death. The great crisis and the great magical conflicts would come the night after death, with the conjuror keeping his solitary vigil before the fireplace in the room with the corpse. More about this “wake” later.

The third soul, that of the circulation, is located in the heart, and blood is its secretion. This soul is non-individual and quantitative; it takes a month to die, its substance gradually diffusing back into nature as a life force. It is of no use or interest to witches or conjurors after death. The living may be attacked by magic through the blood soul, in methods called “blood sucking,” producing various anemic diseases and their parallel “simulator diseases.”