Wraith

From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project

A wraith is commonly thought of as a "ghost", that is to say the shade of a departed mortal. However, some believe this Scottish word to derive from the Old Norse vorðr, meaning "guardian" in the sense of "guardian spirit" (and cognates with the Modern English words "ward" and "warden").

In 18th century Scotland the word wraith was applied to water spirits, and in European folk belief they are often seen as spirits of vengeance. Stories were told of witches and warlocks using a ritual called the 'parycopsis' or 'pa-rahn heku' to manipulate wraiths to do their will but it was always for a price and the one performing the ritual had to prove it was out of revenge. Even in such events, however the wraith usually turned on its temporary master and returned to the spirit realm. In a local legend of Cornwall, the Polbreen Mine is said to be haunted by a wraith named Dorcas.