Part 2 - Beware the Dancing Lights: Tricksters of the West and the Americas - LilWeird Podcast

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Now that we wander through asious enchanted forests, following fox
lights and ghost flames, let's turn our gaze passward. Europe
has its own famed receiver in the dark, one that
might sound familiar, the will of the wrists across hero.
Countless travelers have told of the willow too wisps, also
known by names like the friar's lantern, jack or lantern,

(00:24):
or ignish fatues or foolish fire. This classic focal or
phenomenon is described as a faint, flickering light that hovers
over bugs, swamps and marshes, often resembling a distant lantern
or torch. The willow to wrisp is notoriously mischievous. It
dances just out of reach, and anyone who tries to

(00:46):
follow this phantom light finds themselves thrown off the safe road.
In the British Isles, traditions hope that these lights are
wielded by trickster spirits, sometimes feries, sometimes the courst of
a sinner, always with intent to mislead wondering travelers into
dangerous wetlands. Those supersuitoes invariably and applause at best or

(01:08):
at worst, suck into a bug, or falling off a
hidden ledge in the dark. The motive is so common
that in England, being pixie lead became a figure of speech.
The idea was that pixies, a small fairy fault, might
invisibly charm a traveler and cause them to lose their way.

Speaker 2 (01:26):
In fact, the word.

Speaker 1 (01:27):
Pixelated, meaning bewildered or confuse, comes from this very belief our.
Having one's suits is scattered by pixie trickery. European folklor
is riched with vividly cautionary anecdotes about the will of
the wisp. One famous Welsh tale tells of a peasant
walking home at das who sees a bright light up ahead.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
He assumes it's.

Speaker 1 (01:48):
A fellow traveler carrying a lantern and follows gratefully for miles,
but suddenly he finds himself on the edge of a
vast chasm with a roaring river below. At that moment,
the lantern rises high, revealing a dusky little goblin mocacos,
and blows out the light, leaving the poorman in pitch
darkness on the brink of the precipice. This shooting story,

(02:11):
imagine the horror as you realize you're being led to
a claar is a classic example of wilhem with causionary tail.
In some variants, the victim only just manages to scramble
back to safety, vowing never again to chase mysterious lights.
Yet interestingly, not all European tales portray to a willow
to is as purely evil. Few legends say to might

(02:34):
guide a kind of purchase traveler the treasure instead of doom,
or that treating the light with you respect or insulting
it in other cases determines whether it helps or harms you.
For instance, in parts of Ireland and Scandinavia, people sometimes
thought these lights mark very gold or the location of

(02:54):
fairies treasure horde. Only the boat or full hardly will
try to seek so urches, of course, because one never
knew if the light was a friend or a find.
Europe's folkal are also armed travelers protections against being led
as straight. One remedy from Channel Island says, if a
willow is locally called as phoebel or rolling fire is

(03:17):
playing tricks on you, you can stop it in its
tracks by turning your code inside out, a charming parallel
to the Filipino advice for take balance or acanthas the
logic seems to be in virtu yourself or do something
unexpected to break the spell of misdirection. Another antidot from
Scotland is to carry a lantern of your own or

(03:38):
walk with one foot in a wagun rod, so the
pixie light can confuse you as easily. These little folk
percussions highlight how seriously people took the threat of getting perilid.
In an age before GPS or even reliable maps, getting
lost in the moors at night was genuinely perilous, so
they told stories of malevolent lights to urge everyone to

(04:01):
stay on the path and mistrust alluring shortcuts. From the
will of the wist and its pixie conspirators, we get
a clear symbolic warning, don't let curiosity, greed or pride
draw you.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
Into unsafe places.

Speaker 1 (04:16):
The foolish fire of the ignis fatuus was often interpreted
as punishment for the foolish It's an ignis fatuus that
used us the modern metaphor of willowdo wist cool something
tempting but ultimately unattainable or deceptive, which leads one on
a wild goods chase. Indeed, to chase a willow wist

(04:37):
in literature is to pursue an illusion. In real life too,
a lost traveler chasing a false light is a poignant
image of human misjudgment led by desperation or desire. We've
met the flame of Santelmo, the horse trickster, the facts
at its lantern, and the wist in this swamp. But
our tour isn't over. Now we venture to the New world,

(05:00):
where other turkey being sly in the way in the
forest of Latin America lyrics a goblin with a pencheon
for music and mischief, and across the planes of Native
America roams is like coyuty with lessons to teach. In
the focus of Latin America as well as pain from
which the legends originated, people speak of the duende, an

(05:22):
elusive goblin or elf like creature whose name literally means
spirit or sprite. Dentists are usually small thing knee high,
often depicted wearing a big hat and having a mischievous green.
They can live in houses, caves, or deep in the woods,
and one thing is certain. Many a missing tool, traveler,
or an ex noise in the night is blamed on

(05:43):
those little trouble makers, e fact, entire families of Dunez's
popular Hispanic and Indigenous law, serving various roles from household
past the nature gardens. What's fascinating is that this figure
exists here. In the Philippines, too, are duns are also
describe as timy, unseen dwellers of ant hills, trees, or

(06:04):
household corners, often tied to good or bad fortune, depending
on how you treat them, Just like they're Latin America cousins,
their mischievous, sometimes playful, other times beneful, especially if you
fail to show them respect. But South American tales describe
Dundee luring travelers, tricks or even enchanting music Filipino vocalor

(06:25):
warrants that angry, and then they might leave you with
mysterious ailments or disorientation in the forest. These cross continental
similarities show how cultures oceans apart, imagine the same kind
of being small, illusive guardians who blur the line between
brakster and punisher. One famous variant in Central America is

(06:46):
El Duende, sometimes called Data Duende, known for his magical drumming.
Let's just say this twarflex spirit carries a small drum,
and the music key place is irresistibly enchanting. If you
hear an uncanny drumming deep in the jungle, beware el
duend might be luring you. His rhythms can make people
dance uncontrollably or wonder toward the saurus in a trance.

(07:10):
There are stories of hunters or farmers who vanish after
following the sound of cozy drums, a task never to
be seen again. Who the dunds speed and you could
find yourself lost in the woods until dawn or worse.
It's a cheating thought. Music usually represents joy, but here
it becomes a siren song, leading you away from safety.

(07:30):
In some tales, the Dunde drum can even summon storms
or befoddle your senses, leaving you hopelessly turn around in
what was one's familiar terrain. Not although the tricks are
so fanciful, some are more like mean spirited broncs, coumpers,
and hikers. In Latin America folklore offense stories of how

(07:51):
don distall their maps or extinguish their campfire, causing them
to stray. Of course, there's a Central American saying that
if you find yourself suddenly unable to find the trail
you were just on, or keep coming back to the
same spot in the forest. The hulpah is still twenty.
It's the dundor's fault. People even joke that when you

(08:11):
misplace your keys or drop a tool a house to on,
them must be playing with you. One colorful account describes
the stone dundas of Spain, who watched overheels this day
emotionless like little rock statues by day, but if a
hiker comes, they'll dart behind boulders, giggling and leading the
persoul in the wrong direction. Last year them up the

(08:34):
dunde heated can find the drill markers. Those little rascals
might have turned them around when you were looking. It's
a fun way to explain the very fun experience of
getting lost outdoors. Even the normally irrational miners during Latin
America's mining booms left offerings for mind dwelling dundas or
tommy knockers, hoping to keep on the good side of

(08:57):
any trickster spirit that might cause ks or get them
lost in the tunnels. Yet, in true trickster fashion, the
duenda isn't entirely malicious. Many folk correct traditions give you
to d adua nature, much like the fox, can be
a benevolent or wicked. In some stories, vendats are actually

(09:17):
protectors of the forests and animals, punishing those who harm nature.
There are tales of children lost in the jungle who
are gently guided back home by a duende, or at
least kept safe from predators by the creature until help arrive.
In certain Indigenous Maya legends, a similar being called an
alush is especially a nature spirit of and conflated with

(09:41):
dundas that cards cornfields and leads vandals astray so they
can damage the crops. And throughout Latin America, parents have
used the duende as a cautionary figure for kids. Don't
wonder off alone, or al duende might snatch you, or
be respectful in the forests, or the dundas will play
tricks on you. These little spirits display multiple roles, from

(10:05):
the comic trickster hotels travelers shoelaces together to the stern
enforcer who humbles argunt respassers. Their enduring presence in oral
traditions speaks to a common theme, respect to your known
worlds and keep your wits about you. For their things
out there beyond the human realm, whether if view doing
this is dangerous or darling.

Speaker 2 (10:25):
One thing's for sure.

Speaker 1 (10:27):
If you ever hear a mysterious drum in a Monday forest,
think twice before you follow that bait. Finally, we turn
to Native North America, where one of the grand master
trickster of world mythology, of its figures of legendary That
trickster might as well be his middle name.

Speaker 2 (10:44):
Meet Kayote, the.

Speaker 1 (10:45):
Vice and foolish wonder of indigenous tales. Few characters in
folklore are as complex and stored as the coyote. In
Native American traditions spanning dozens of tribes and regions, failties
appear in various forms, sometimes a literal coyote animal who
can talk, sometimes a man with coyote features, but almost

(11:06):
always as a trickster figure. To the indigenous peoples of
North America, Coyote is both a cultural hero and a
mischief maker, a being who struggles the line between helping humans,
often though inadverted lessons, and pranking or deceiving them to
teach them humidity. If there's a root to be broken
or table to be tested, Coyote will gleefully do it

(11:29):
first and often suffer comically for it, so that humans
see the consequences and learn. This makes coyotes story rich
in humor and moral lessons. Unlike the ghostlines or doing
this we have discussed, coyote doesn't rely on single gimmick
like a lantern or drum. Shape shifting is one of
his powers. Coyote can disguise himself as a handsome young man,

(11:51):
a lost friend, even a sacred spirit if it's a
historic one of a How's story tells of a coyote
disguising himself as a traveler, the trick a bit into
giving him food, only for his greed to undo him
when the disguise his lips. In many planes and setluss stories,
coyotes' voice can throw itself, mimicking sounds to confuse people,

(12:12):
for example, imitating someone calling for help. To lure a
curious person away from camp, coyote might lead a curious
traveler off their path, not with a will whisp, but
praying on their ego or galibility, telling them tall tales,
getting them to chase an impassable goal, or tempting them
to do something and wise. For instance, there are tales

(12:34):
of coyote promising a person's great powers or treasure if
they perform some ridiculous tasks, only for the person to
end up embarrassed and empty handed while coyote laughs.

Speaker 2 (12:45):
In this way, he leads.

Speaker 1 (12:46):
People astray spiritually or emotionally, rather than just physically. He
might trick someone into betraying a friend or breaking a rule,
just good to see the chaos and fold and then
often afther a crackling coyotes laugh. Many of coyotes victim
in these stories are those who act arrogantly or foolishly,
a proud warrior, a greedy hunter, a disobedient youth. Such

(13:08):
characters are prime targets for Kyot's antics, precisely because the
stories served to knock them down a peg and in
part a lesson fokers. Note that trickstertails about Coyote and
his analogs in other cultures often reinforce the community's moral
code by showing outrageous, exaggerated examples of what not to do.

Speaker 2 (13:28):
If someone in a.

Speaker 1 (13:29):
Story is selfish or boastful, Clote will ensure that trait
leads them into trouble, perhaps by literally leading them on
a wow chase. In one story, Clote intentionally misdirects his
more respected brother Wolf out of jealousy, causing Wolf to
become lost, which ultimately teaches both of them a lesson

(13:51):
about pride and respect. Clots pranks can be mean, but
they tend to contain a karnle of wisdom. Maybe the
person he tre needed to get a little loss in
order to find a better path afterwards. In a metaphorical sense,
this dual nature has led storytellers to compare coyote to
other global drixters, like the Norse god Loki.

Speaker 2 (14:11):
Or the West African and Nanci.

Speaker 1 (14:13):
In fact, the idea of the clever fox in Europe,
think of Asop's fables or the medieval Raynard of the
fox tails is often cited as a parallel a smaller
animal and reittingly bigger ones and recall Japan's kitsen, a
cunning shape changing animal drinks proud samurai or greedy merchants.
And in the Philippines we also have bilan dog. So

(14:34):
it's fascinating that culture's oceans apart, came up with such
similar archetypes. Coyote, Kidsen, Rainard Bland. They all reflect the
timeless notion that we can triumph over strand, but unchecked
pride or folly will always be punished. A Native American lore,
coyotes stricks sometimes literally lead to someone getting lost in

(14:56):
the wilderness. There are apache stories of kyote moving the
stars to con use one hunter's direction, for example. More often, though,
coyote symbolizes being morally or spiritually as straight. He's the
voice whispering in your ear to take the easy shortcut
or give in to temptation, and when you do, you
find yourself in a predicament. Yet coyote is not purely

(15:17):
an evil figure. Many tribes also credit him bringing knowledge
or fire or other gifts to humanity, albeit usually by
accident or as the outcome of a prank. This ties
into the symbolic interpretation encountering a coyote situation in life.
Being deceived or misled can ultimately teaches something important. It's

(15:37):
a rough lesson, but one you'll never forget. In this sense,
kayote is a teacher through trickery, making people literally or
figuratively loose theory so that they learn to appreciate the
right way. So if you ever find yourself hopelessly lost,
whether on a hike or just in the journey of life.
You might pause and wonder, is coyote having a little

(15:59):
fun with me? And if so, what can I learn
from this? Such is the enduring power of this trickster.
Having tracked through these legends from around the world, a
few powerful teams emerge.

Speaker 2 (16:09):
For one, these deceptive spirits.

Speaker 1 (16:12):
Are nearly always associated with the wilderness, the dense forests,
the desolate more the storm you see, the snow sweat mountain.
In other words, places where humans feel small, vulnerable, and
prone to disorientation. It's no coincidence that the fear of
getting lost is at the heart of many of these tales.
Before modern navigation, getting loss was alive and death matter,

(16:36):
and so we find spirits to blame or warn us.

Speaker 2 (16:39):
For that terror.

Speaker 1 (16:40):
The stories externalize a very small, real human anxiety. When
you're alone in the dark and new bear of the path,
it feels like something actively legious tree.

Speaker 2 (16:50):
It's easier to.

Speaker 1 (16:51):
Say a take balance, trickman, than to admit you simply
lostur wray. In this way, folklore becomes a mirror of
our psychology. Must flicker and the will with clue represent
the deceptive glimmer of hope we cling to when we're desperate.
Even if it's a false hope, they embody the dangers
of over confidence or curiosity. Just a mysterious light out

(17:14):
of greed or pride, and you may end up in
mortal danger. The pixie who leads travelers astray until they're
pixelated or bewildered is really cautioning against being too sure
of oneself in unfamiliar environment. Another common threat is how
moral lessons and taboos are wrapped into these meats. Often
the victims are not just random innocence. They might be

(17:36):
portrayed as prideful, disrespectful, or failing to heed advice. In
many cultures, there's un implied rule respectless spirits of the
land or the messity. The hunter who doesn't say a
prayer before entering the forest, the traveler who in souls
the idea of peris, the childhood ignores parents and wan
the result. These are the ones who get targeted by

(17:58):
the deceiving spirits. Trickster tales from the Dunde to Coyote
have long been used to enforce social norms or values
by literally scarying people onto the right path. If you
treat a will whois kindly, perhaps by not sharing at
it or by staying calme. Some tales say it might
actually guide you out of the woods instead of into

(18:20):
the bug, that implies a lesson keep your REITs and
kindness even when frightened. Conversely, those who arrogantly declare they
don't need to prepare for a journey or fail to
show humility in nature often become cautionary examples in these stories.
In indigenous teachings, for example, I am people are thought

(18:41):
that if you don't listen to elders about not traveling
alone at night, coyote or the wood spirits will surely turkey.
The volclore does include practical survival tips don't travel alone
at night, don't falor random lights, stick to the group,
irrespectful and memorable hunting narratives. It's truly fascinating how similar

(19:02):
motives surface across continents, but is relativivs if not a
European cousin to the Philippinos and Telmo or the Japanese
kidsenebbi all our mysterious lights in the dark that play
on the universal human tendency to follow lights when lost. Likewise,
the trickster animals, whether it's a fox, a coyote or
even a pixy taking horse form often share attributes of

(19:26):
ship shifting, leverness, and love of Franks. Anthropologists like to
point out that nearly every culture has a trickster archetype coyote,
kitsene a, nanci looki, et cetera, suggesting that these figures peaks.

Speaker 2 (19:40):
To something deep in the human psyche.

Speaker 1 (19:43):
Perhaps it's our recognition that we can outdo strength, or
a way to explain the random, chaotic elements of life.
Why do bad things happen unexpectedly? Oh, it's a trickster
at work. The cross cultural recurrence of foundering lights especially
is almost uncanned. From Britain, the Brazil to Bornio, you
find legends of coastive flames that lead travelers to become

(20:05):
hopelessly lost. Does that mean people everywhere saw the same
natural swamp gases and imagined spirits or does it hint
that psychologically we all fear the same darkness and invented
similar monsters in response.

Speaker 2 (20:21):
It's a bit of both.

Speaker 1 (20:22):
These stories to oceans apart reflect universal fears and experiences
getting laws, being deceived, strained from bodies, say, and they
wrap them in the attire of local culture. Be it
a Christian soul in purgatory holding the light, or a
nature spirit in the shape of a firebird, et cetera.
As one of Folklor's color put it, such tales reflect

(20:44):
the fears, values, and traditions of societies throughout time. On
a symbolic level, deceptive spirits often represent our internal misguidance.
The notion of being led ustry isn't just physical, it's
moral and emotional. To when you say someone who has
led astray by temptation, we're invoking the same imagery as

(21:05):
a will of whose attempting light leading one of the
righteous road. A Hitzenes adopting a man away from his
family could symbolize the danger of infidelity or illusion, and
when they making a dance until you collapse forms of losing,
controttal pleasure or mania coyote tricking you into a bad
deal highlights how ego or Greek can cloud judgment. In

(21:26):
this way, the folk tales use external spirits as metaphors
for the internal spirits we battle, pride, foolishness, temptation, aimless
wonder last, the fear of getting physically lost in the
woods becomes a stand in for the fear of losing
oneself metaphorically losing one's moral compast or clarity in life.

(21:47):
When you hear about that poor Welsh farmer nearly stepping
off a cliff because he follow the phantom life, you
can't help but think of a real life situations or
chasing an illusion get rich quick schemes. Falso can lead one.

Speaker 2 (22:01):
To the brink of ruin.

Speaker 1 (22:02):
Even in today's world of neon lights and GPS, these
deceptive spirits continued to flicker at the edges of our imagination.
They've proven to be highly adaptable characters, finding new life
in modern media, urban legends, and pop culture. For instance,
the Filipinos and Talma recently appeared in the heat Netflix
animated series Tress, where it was reimagined as the far Elemental,

(22:25):
ally still an orb of flame, but this time fighting
on the side of the protagonists. It's a full twenty
first century makeover, yet it introduces new audiences to an
age old myth. Similarly, Japan's kitsene have become almost ubiquitous
in anime and video games, from the Nine Tales Ubi
in Naruto, the Countless Ghostly story films, where a beautiful

(22:48):
stranger might just be a foxy spirit in disguise.

Speaker 2 (22:52):
If you watch the.

Speaker 1 (22:53):
Studio Ghiblis Princess Mononoke, you might recall the Vispikodamas spirits
that flicker in the forests, reminiscent of Will of the Weaves,
guiding or misguiding the protagonists, and who can forget pictures Brave,
where Will of the Wists literally led the heroin through
the forest. Our modern storytellers clearly still find these motives irresistible.

(23:16):
In horror and urban legend genres, the theam of don't
follow that light or don't trust the hindly old man
on the dark Highway is.

Speaker 2 (23:24):
Practically a troupe.

Speaker 1 (23:26):
Those something shows frequently mentioned spoke lights or ghost lights
like the Marpha lights in Texas or the mid Mean
Light in Australia, which are basically today's philow the Wists
still puzzling observers with floating orbs in the distance. People
swap stories and read it about the time I followed
a weird light while comping and ended up miles of trail,

(23:47):
basically reinventing the wheel of these folktails. In personal experience form,
somewhere a focus is smiling at the continuity cautionary tales
remain effective. Parents might not invoke Dunde anymore to keep
kids modering, but they'll use the fear of stranger danger
or don't go into the wood salon different dressing, same coribea,

(24:11):
and speaking of dundas. They occasionally pop up in Latin
American news or viral videos with locals claiming to have
caught a Duenda on camera, causing mis chief, uelling a
blend of modern hoax and traditional belief that keeps the
folklore alive. Even the trickster Coyote steps onto the contemporary
stage now and then. Neil Gaiman's novel America's Gods famously

(24:34):
includes a character based on coyote teaching hard lessons to
a modern man, and in twenty twenty one, a Marvel
TB series low Key appropriately figured a thinly veiled reference
to a Native American trickster, disrupting timelines. These beings are
like cultural shape shifters themselves. They change forms us with

(24:55):
our era, but their core, the role of deceiver and teacher,
stays the same. Why do these legends endure? Perhaps because
getting lost in all senses is timeless human predicament and
will always craft stories to personify our perils. The next
time you watch a horror movie where a ghost lures

(25:16):
someone into an abandoned house, or read a fantasy novel
where Wilis leads adventurers into a trap, recognize it for
what it is, the same age old folklore we've been exploring,
just wearing a new mess. These spirits remind us to
be cautious of easy allure, whether it is a strange
light in the swamp or a too good to be

(25:38):
true offer in your inbox. They remind us that sometimes
the straight path is the same one, and sometimes curiosity
truly can lead the cat or the traveler into danger.
Yet they also add that spies of mystery and wonder,
the idea that our world still has nuns, that not
everything can be seen or trusted at face value. As

(26:00):
you conclude o our journey, imagine again that you're the
light traveler in the dark, but this time arm with
the wisdom of these tails. You pause before stepping off
the trail. The light twinkles, inviting thee ahead, but you
recall the take balan, the kitchen, the will to wisp.
Instead of chasing the light, you pull out a compass.
Sometimes some modern tools to outshine folklore, or perhaps you

(26:23):
remember an old trick and philipper draged inside out for
good measure. In the distance, you almost think you hear
a frustrated sigh, a trickster spirit fold of it's fun
Tonight you've outsmarted the deceivers, at least this time. With
a steady heart, you find your way back to familiar ground,
and as you say, if they reach home, you might

(26:44):
just whisper a thank you to the old stories that
guided you, tales of Santemo, willow wisp and kiyote, those
eternal lanterns lighting the path of wisdom through the.

Speaker 2 (26:57):
Forest of fear. But you remember, the world.

Speaker 1 (27:00):
Outside our stories still has its own sent elmos and dundees,
bright lights that promise progress, smiling faces that pledge prosperity.
Yet too often what leaks behind the glow is only shadow,
lavish feace that turn to rock, gilded palaces revealed as
hollow caves. The trickery in these meats is not so

(27:22):
different from the trickery we face today, and so the
warning endoors don't be dazzled too quickly, don't follow blindly,
for not every light is meant to guide you. Some
are meant to burn you. And that's where we leave
our lanterns for tonight. From Centelmo's Wandering Planes, the Kitseness Baxfire,
from the Dundas to giggle in the dark, to the

(27:44):
will that is flickering over sumps, the world has always
whispered the same warning. Not every light is meant to
guide you. Some are meant to deceive. If you enjoy
this episode of Little Weird, I'd love for you to
share it with a fellow curious soul. Follow the bout
so you never miss a journey into this channge. And
if you're listening on Spotify or Apple podcasts, living a

(28:07):
view really helps the Little Show reach more wondering travelers
like you. You can also find Deal Weird on Instagram
for extra weiry bits, or support a podcast through my
coffee page. Thanks are always in the show notes, and
the next time, stay curious, stay cautious, and most of all,
keep your wonder close.

Speaker 2 (28:25):
Thanks for listening.

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Part 2 - Beware the Dancing Lights: Tricksters of the West and the Americas

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