ROLANG
"192-Thibetan ROLANG—Sorcerer (or NGAGSPA) reanimates a corpse by holding it in a dark room—lying on it mouth to mouth and repeating a magic formula with all else banished from his mind. Corpse slowly comes to life and stands up. Tries to escape—leaps, bounds, and struggles—but sorcerer holds it. Continues with magic formula. Corpse sticks out tongue and sorcerer bites it off. Corpse then collapses. Tongue become a valuable magic talisman. If corpse escapes—hideous results and death to sorcerer."
H.P. Lovecraft, Commonplace Book
"Another mysterious rite is called rolang (the corpse who stands up)."
"The celebrant is shut up alone with a corpse in a dark room. To animate the body, he lies on it, mouth to mouth and while holding it in his arms, he must continually repeat mentally the same magic formula excluding all other thoughts.
After a certain time the corpse begins to move. It stands up and tries to escape; the sorcerer firmly clinging to it, prevents it from freeing itself. Now the body struggles more fiercely.It leaps and bounds to more extraordinary heights, dragging with it the man who must hold on, keeping his lips upon the mouth of the monster, and continue mentally repeating the magic words.
At last the tongue of the corpse protrudes from its mouth. The critical moment has arrived. The sorcerer seizes the tongue with his teeth and bites it off. The corpse at once collapses.
Failure in controlling the body after having awaked it, means certain death for the sorcerer."
Alexandra David Neel, Magic and Mystery In Tibet
H.P. Lovecraft, Commonplace Book
"Another mysterious rite is called rolang (the corpse who stands up)."
"The celebrant is shut up alone with a corpse in a dark room. To animate the body, he lies on it, mouth to mouth and while holding it in his arms, he must continually repeat mentally the same magic formula excluding all other thoughts.
After a certain time the corpse begins to move. It stands up and tries to escape; the sorcerer firmly clinging to it, prevents it from freeing itself. Now the body struggles more fiercely.It leaps and bounds to more extraordinary heights, dragging with it the man who must hold on, keeping his lips upon the mouth of the monster, and continue mentally repeating the magic words.
At last the tongue of the corpse protrudes from its mouth. The critical moment has arrived. The sorcerer seizes the tongue with his teeth and bites it off. The corpse at once collapses.
Failure in controlling the body after having awaked it, means certain death for the sorcerer."
Alexandra David Neel, Magic and Mystery In Tibet
Wow, the description of that ritual is really gross. If raising the dead was this involved in D&D games, there would be a lot less zombies running around.
ReplyDeleteNot necessarily. To animate dead you don't need to be a certain level, you don't even have to use a spell slot, you just have to be a really determined and daring sicko. I imagine a sorcerer who would use this spell as a big creepy guy in a luchador mask carying around a bag of tongues.
DeleteBTW, love your blog, come here all the time! Oh, and it's great to see a fellow Philadelphia-area native on the blogosphere (I live in South Jersey right near the Walt Whitman).
ReplyDeleteThanks man! I'm glad you like it. That book "Magic and Mystery in Tibet" is pretty awesome! it was written by a 55 year old woman who wandered around Tibet and China learning magic secrets!
DeleteReading about this ritual makes me think of necrophiliac rape.
ReplyDeleteWow. Dr. Manhattan is lookin' rough these days!
ReplyDelete