Becoming Human-Animal: Revisiting Therianthropy in Indian Mythology

Thakurdas Jana¹ & Ritendra Sharma^2
1Research Scholar, Department of English, Indus University, Ahmedabad. *Corresponding author.
² Professor, Department of English, Indus University, Ahmedabad.

^{Rupkatha Journal, Vol. 18, Issue 3, 2026. https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v18n3.01g
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Abstract

Human-animal hybridity is a part of myths, rituals, and art in many different cultures. This article looks again at therianthropy in traditions by connecting ancient cave paintings, rituals, Hindu stories, and ideas about shifting states of mind and shared symbols. It uses David Lewis-Williams’ ideas about how ancient pictures were made along with ways of thinking about masks and rituals that change people. The study looks at some traditional stories before focusing on the figures of Narasimha and Ganesha. Instead of seeing these human-animal figures as just leftovers from old shamanic experiences, the article says that therianthropy is a way that communities talk about the lines between human and animal body and spirit and normal and different states of mind. The study suggests a gap between what we know about where certain stories originated and what we think those stories mean for how people feel and how culture works. By bringing old findings, stories, and ways of acting, the article adds to discussions about how people see themselves and others in Indian studies. The research asks a powerful question: How might altered states of consciousness provide one interpretive framework for understanding the persistence and experiential force of human-animal imagery?.

Keywords: Therianthropes, David Lewis-Williams, neuropsychology, Indian mythology.