Tradition / Region: Romanian Mythology
Alternate Names: Prikulich; The Dog Prikulich
Category: Dog
The Myth
In the village of Giesshübel there once lived a reckless young man known for chasing after the maids and living without restraint. One day, when he returned home, something uncanny happened. As he entered, he suddenly flipped over, and in that instant he was no longer a man but a white dog marked with grey spots.
From then on, the creature lived a double existence. By day the dog stayed quietly in the stable, keeping out of sight. But each night, when midnight came, it slipped out into the street. There it ran through the village and fought fiercely with the other dogs, as if driven by some restless and savage urge.
One night, when the dog returned home, his mother was waiting. Suspecting what he truly was, she struck him in the side with an awl. At the touch of the iron, the dog tumbled over once, twice, and a third time.
With the last turn, the animal vanished, and the young man lay there again in human form, freed from his strange condition.
Gallery
Sources
sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Der Prikulitsch in Giesshübel. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/rumaenien/siebenbuergen/giesshuebel.html
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
- Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
- Jungian Deep Dive
Esoteric Deep Dive
- Hermetic Deep Dive
Political / Social Readings
- Marxist Deep Dive