In an effort to help the therian community better understand itself, and to help the public understand the therian community, Kinmunity is introducing a 2016 community survey. The purpose of this survey is to learn more about the community, identify trends and correlations in the community, and to help the community understand itself better. This survey will probably be longer than most others you have encountered; this is because we aim for high quality results. Once the survey closes to responses, the data will be posted publicly with any personally identifiable information removed (although none is really collected in the first place!)
Click here to take the survey! !DO NOT SHARE THIS LINK! - This survey link contains a unique acquisition code that says you've come from LiveJournal, if someone accesses it from outside LiveJournal their responses will be automatically discarded. If you wish to share a link with friends, share this one: https://kinmunity.com/surveys/index.php/431586?lang=en
Not sure if many people still frequent this but, I wanted to share something. I saw a movie a bit ago that peeked my interest and I can honestly say it hit me right at home. For any therians, furries, shifters, etc etc the movie "wolf children" is absolutely phenomenal. Its the story of a woman who falls in love with a man who is also a wolf and after having two children he is killed and she must raise them alone and without knowledge of what to do. I can't really express how much this movie really spoke to how it feels to be more in tune with ones animal side and knowing how you fit in the universe because of that. I can't suggest this movie enough and am going to re post this to my personal journal and the communities I frequent
It has been years which I had thought I "grown" out of the thought that I had a Wolf within myself, since I always felt I had a connection with such in one way or another. I even used to dream about both wolves and werewolves and often I was one among them as well.
Nowadays I am lucky if I even have such dreams, let alone feel that I could be connected to anything.
If there is anyone in this community that can help me encounter myself once again or to have a connection with my inner being, the Wolf, I would be glad to hear your thoughts on how I could start searching within me again.
452 - United States of America (~47/50 States), 36 - United Kingdom, 25 - Canada, 18 - Germany, 17 - Russia, 13 - South Africa, 12 - Italy, 10 - Denmark, 9 - Australia, 8 - India, 6 - New Zealand, 5 - Austria, 5 - Netherlands, 4 - France, 4 - Norway, 3 - Brazil, 3 - Greece, 3 - Mexico, 2 - Iraq, 1 - Iran, 1 - Egypt, 49 - Other Countries*; 34.1% Non-U.S. (234) | 65.9% U.S. (452)
*Therians/Otherkin: We’ve been asked if Therians and Otherkin may participate in this Directory and the answer is *YES* - we knew this might come up given cross-over between the communities so we provided for that option from the beginning. While the primary audience of this Directory are Vampires and/or Donors, we will also place Therians and Otherkin in contact with one another per their geographic area and/or with Vampires, Donors, etc. as desired. We will followup with self-identifying Therians and Otherkin individually after the public launch of the Directory in May. Thank you for your interest and participation.
I'm continuing to work on my history book, the Otherkin Timeline. There are some people who I need to interview, but I can't find any functioning contact information for them. Can you help? Do you know their current contact information? Do you know of any friends of these people who could help me contact them?
Yaiolani, author of the Werewolf and Shapeshifter Codex, active on alt.horror.werewolves during the Nineties. Does anyone have a functioning e-mail address for Yaiolani?
KatmanDu, editor of the alt.horror.werewolves FAQ, active on alt.horror.werewolves during the Nineties. Their .edu and Negia e-mail addresses are both non-functional. Does anyone know how to contact them?
LanceFoxx, active on alt.horror.werewolves during the Nineties. I can't find an e-mail for them, so I settled for sending them a PM. That was over a year ago, and I haven't heard back from them yet. Does anyone have a functioning e-mail address for them?
Not sure if this is an appropriate community to post this in...
I have a question... or.. well a problem, and I'm seeking advice.
See, I've been going through a lot lately, (much of it involving health) and unfortunately it's begun to affect my faith. I hadn't thought about it a whole lot for a while, but these days... I feel like I want to reach out to it, but at the same time I'm not... sure there's something to reach out to?
My belief has generally been that there's something out there so grand and beyond the scope of anything we know that our minds can't really grasp it. Much the same way that an ant can't grasp that it's walking on the toe of a big ol' human, or something. It's just that big. But because that doesn't sit well with people, different cultures and groups gave this being different names, and applied different faces, aspects, and even personalities onto it.
It's kind of like looking at a gemstone. It has many different sides or faces, but it's all the same stone.
The problem with this is, it leaves my at a very odd place. Because it means that I don't know if prayers or rituals or anything really have any kind of effect. And in turn, if things like magic have any effect (magik? magick?).
I want to believe it can. I want to believe one can manipulate their aura, meditate, or possibly even astral project. Send out positive or healing energies through prayer or 'spells' or such. Ground themselves, etc.
But then, my scientific side says there's no proof of any such thing and any perceived effects are purely caused by the human mind being more that capable and willing to trick itself and makes us feel/see what we want.
But... if it makes me feel steadier, safer, more at peace to do these things, is it bad? Am I just lying to myself? Blinding myself? That's no good...
And what if it is real? Even to a small degree? Does that help me? hurt me? am I depriving myself of something by turning away from it? Blinding myself with extreme logic?
I don't know @_@
((cross-posted pretty much all over the place. Sorry if you see it a lot))
Wulf Howl is doing a survey regarding therianthropy, in general, and its connection with psychological conditions, abuse/bullying, and a lot more.
We would appreciate it if members of the therianthropy would complete this survey and share it around; it will help us to understand the psychological factors of therianthropy, as well as how prevalent bullying and discrimination are in/against the community.
I would contend that this is one of the most important academic papers ever written concerning the sociological and identity aspects of the Otherkin community. Perspectives from Dan O'Dea, Gerbasi, Hesson, Kirby, Lupa, Mamatas, Nytemuse, Orion Sandstorrm, Sade Wolfkitten, Suscitatio (AVA), Sylvere ap Leanan, Th'Elf, and more are all part of this article. It's well worth your time to read and I encourage everyone to either purchase a copy or request it from their local college or university library.
We Are Spirits of Another Sort: Ontological Rebellion and Religious Dimensions of the Otherkin Community By Joseph P. Laycock, PhD Nova Religio - The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions February 2012, Vol. 15, No. 3, Pages 65-90
Otherkin are individuals who identify as "not entirely human." Scholarship has framed this identity claim as religious because it is frequently supported by a framework of metaphysical beliefs. This article draws on survey data and interviews with Otherkin in order to provide a more thorough treatment of the phenomenon and to assess and qualify the movement's religious dimensions. It is argued that, in addition to having a substantively religious quality, the Otherkin community serves existential and social functions commonly associated with religion. In the final analysis, the Otherkin community is regarded as an alternative nomos--a socially constructed worldview--that sustains alternate ontologies.
SEE ALSO: NOVA RELIGIO ARTICLE (2010) CONCERNING REAL VAMPIRIES:
Real Vampires as an Identity Group: Analyzing Causes and Effects of an Introspective Survey by the Vampire Community By Joseph Laycock Nova Religio - The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions August 2010, Vol. 14, No. 1, Pages 4–23
"Real vampires" believe that they must either consume blood or feed on "subtle" energy in order to maintain their physical, mental, and spiritual health. Recent scholarship has analyzed vampirism as a religious movement or as a cluster of "vampire religions." This article argues that vampirism should be viewed foremost as an identity around which social and religious institutions have formed. This model accounts for the mosaic of religious and cultural orientations held by vampires and acknowledges the vampire community's claims that vampirism is not a choice. It also facilitates a functionalist reading of vampire discourse as validating a new category of person.
I have recently posted a bulletin on Wulf Howl about some of the emails, posts, and other requests going around for therians to be interviewed for a television series or similar. I firmly believe that this is an attempt to exploit the community for the purpose of producing a high shock-value television show. Below, I have quoted the post on Wulf Howl containing evidence that supports my theory. Be safe, and don't give out info to these people! You may view the original thread on Wulf Howl here, it will be updated as we uncover more evidence.
From Wulf Howl:
Wulf Howl has recently had a user join under the name PRIMAL_researcher, who has private messaged a few users requesting they be interviewed for a television series on Animal Planet regarding their experience as a member of the therianthrope and otherkin communities. Our administration team was able to verify that this user was a representative of GRBTV, and was operating under the domain names of (http://myprimalbehavior.com/) and (http://primalprod.com/).
In case you weren't already aware, GRBTV is responsible for producing television shows of high shock value. This includes shows such as "Intervention", "Animal Hoarders", "American Occult" and more. We believe that many individuals whom have been casted for shows produced by GRBTV have been exploited - being told they were being cast in order to make their differences "accepted" or "understood", only to find out that they were made to look like freaks on national television - severely damaging reputation, and possibly careers of these individuals.
Upon searching the IP address they registered with, which for your reference, is 216.251.131.242, we found out via searching StopForumSpam that they had registered on another forum using an email at the domain (http://petfamily.org/), which seems to be an attempt to entice people into being cast for "Animal Hoarders", just in the same way they were doing to our community!
Due to this, we believe that GRBTV is only interested in shock-value, and that allowing them to seek interviews on Wulf Howl can only harm members of the community. For this reason, we have issued a ban on the user, and requested that members of their studio do not access Wulf Howl, or use any material here for their productions.
If you wish to be cast by them, it is up to each individual member, but we are not going to allow them to use Wulf Howl as a platform to exploit people and we recommend that you deny any requests from them to be interviewed or otherwise.
Please feel free to reference this thread on other therianthropy communities, or even copy & paste it.
In the article that I wrote yesterday, “Proposing the term ‘TOV,’” I recommend the acronym “TOV” as an umbrella term to refer to the therianthrope, otherkin, and vampire communities together. This term offers more clarity than using the word “otherkin” to refer to all three. The term “TOV” is also a more accurate representation of our diversity than the term “non-human.” In the article, I explain why. Please contribute your opinions and constructive criticism to the article's discussion thread.
Besides the wolf, I used to have an affinity with the red dragon. Once I had a dream where I was on top of a rocky cliff. At one point, I looked at my shadow and noticed that it wasn't human, but that of a dragon extending his neck as he unfolded his wings. That was the only time I had a dream as my dragon self sadly. How about yourself? Ever dreamt as your therian self?
Current Music: Enya- Book of days Current Mood: curious
I'm not trying to open a can of worms, i am just curious. What are your thoughts on those who call themselves weres, or wolfens? Do Therians do something like Goldenwolf and her companions where they go to hiking to mountains, wear wolf masks, and eat raw meat? Do you act like your therian self? Again, sorry if this offend you. I have problems typing what i have in mind.
Current Music: Duran Duran- Another World Current Mood: anxious
My name is Westly, and I'm a 30 year old Therian from the San Francisco Bay area.
I've recently sort of re-set my life (September's my birthday!) due to being unemployed, and getting to spend more time being myself... But, that's neither here nor there.
I'm a bat winged wolf hyena! I've been this way ever since I was a very small pup, with the wings and the dark fur, and...Just loving life.
I do have one huge problem though! I'm way overweight! I've been focused on this problem for so long that I began to forget about my spiritual self, trying to focus so much on the physical, the spiritual sort of...went quiet.
Until just a few days ago. September 1st, I was cruising LJ secret, and someone was talking about how they were going to go on a raw vegan crash diet, and someone suggested trying something else, going Primal.
Of course, I was 100% intrigued, so I looked it up on Mark's Daily Apple and reading all of this information, I was just...wow.
So, I began living Primal, and three days into it, it's like Wolf is BACK! Gnashing at the bit and wanting to be let loose! I feel AMAZING since I started living that way, and now I want to let Wolf back out to play!
I was curious, are there any Therians in the SF bay who'd want to get together for a game of Bear or Deer? It's kind of a capture-the-flag tag game, I could explain full rules if anyone's interested! Maybe once a week or so? Play is extremely important in the Primal lifestyle, and...a game like that just sounds like SO MUCH FUN that I really want to play it!
Anyway, Hi! I hope to be around a lot more!
Any other Primal eaters out there? Any SFBay Therians? Anyone? Hee!
Hello everyone. It's been a couple of years at least since I've posted here, and over a year since I've been on LJ. Time for a brief re-introduction. I'm a 25 year old domestic kitty, living the crazy flight attendant life. I pretty much live all over the states because of this, but I'm originally Texan and soon to move back down. Nice to be back! Mew.
Hello again. At a couple members' request i decided to introduce myself and to answer why. I am just a guy who used to draw anthro art long ago and for reasons i can't explain gave up on it. Besides anthro art i also like wolves, horses, werewolves, dragons, gryphons, elves, unicorns, and the like. You could say i am an otherkin fanatic. I also like ponies. Don't ask. I always thought werewolves were better than vampires. Despite all this i don't consider myself anything. Like i said before, every time i joined a were or therian site, i was forced to believe i was not one of them. So i gave up on the entire thing. Even the otherkin group in LJ refused to accept me. Anyway, as for why i joined, at first i was going to leave a colorful post about what i thought of therianthropy based on how i was treated and bail out, never to be heard of again. However i took a different approach and wanted to know WHY therians acted like that. I decided to stay to know more. And that's it!
Current Mood: accomplished Current Music: Arcade- Terra Cresta
I posted a while ago about why therians seemed awfully rude whenever i went. I am happy to know that the replies i got so far were both positive and informative, shedding a new perspective for me. I am also glad that so far no one went for my jugular to tell me off. I guess i should say that the times i tried to figure you out in the beginning was met with disastrous results. The last place i tried to commute was therianthropy.org, which is a place i'd rather forget. The level of rudeness was pretty high there, to the point that i even confronted a mod that kept typing the F word everytime she replied angrily to me. And don't get me started whenever i mentioned the word werewolf to them. Anyway, thanks again, i think i will hang around here for a good while.
What make you therians tick? Everytime i had tried talking with one of your kind in the past i found out that it is next to impossible to do so. Either you act boastful, look down at others, get extremely angry, have a case of superiority complex, tourette syndrome, or quick to tell anyone who joins your group that they aren't therians, despite anything. Oh yeah, i also noticed if you are referred to as a were-anything, you becomed enraged. Why is that? And why all of the sudden otherkin is part of it?
The Shifters, Kin and Therianthropists Community is an online forum for those believing themselves to harbour the soul or spiritual essence of an animal or mythic being, also known as ‘weres’ or ‘otherkin’. This is a place for those who are 'something more than just human', and distinctly feel this in the depths of their souls.
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