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Supernatural urban legends: Native American curses lore explained

By Alexandria Ingham

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Photo Credit: Supernatural/The CW Image Acquired from CW TV PR.

Who would have thought Supernatural could have done an episode about killer bugs? Well, it attempted it, but just what lore did it use?

“Bugs” is by far the worst episode of Supernatural Season 1. In fact, I’d say it was the worst ever episode of Supernatural ever. There have been some questionable ones, but none have been has ridiculous as this one.

That doesn’t mean we can skip it, right? There is lore involved in bugs. The lore isn’t actually linked to killer bees, flies, and whatever else is thrown into the mix. It’s all to do with Native American curses. Here’s all you need to know about the lore.

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Native American curses in Supernatural

During “Bugs,” Dean and Sam learn about bones that are 170 years old. A professor at the local university suggests that they talk to the local Native Americans. They find the Euchee Tribe’s Joe White Tree, who shares the story about a tribe that once lived at Oasis Planes. When the tribe was slaughtered, the chief cursed the lands as he died.

The slaughtering of the tribe took place over six nights, with the curse being placed on the sixth night. These bug attacks had started five days earlier, with the night the Winchesters were talking to Joe White Tree being the sixth. That meant the biggest and most dangerous attack was going to come.

In the episode, the curse was triggered when a development started on the land. It continued for the six days after being triggered to coincide with the length of the slaughter.

Real lore about Native American curses

There have been plenty of stories of Native American tribes cursing other tribes, the land, or being cursed by the Gods. Many of these stories date back to the colonial times, when the Native Americans were attacked by British, French, and other immigrants.

Photo Credit: Supernatural/The CW Image Acquired from CW TV PR.

Curses weren’t just set by Native Americans. European settlers also placed curses on lands and people. With the spiritual beliefs at the time, many believed that curses were entirely real. Even the Bible has references of curses, such as those on the land of Egypt.

How the curses were broken would depend on the specific curse. When upon a specific family, the curse would be broken when all generations had died. When on land, it could be broken through time or by making amends with whoever set the curse. Other curses would continue forever and are even considered active to this day.

Areas or families with curses placed on them have seen devastation and destruction. Brunswick Springs is now an Abenaki sacred site, but has seen the development of numerous hotels. Some were destroyed, with the destruction believed to be linked to a curse put on the area against anyone who tried to profit from the healing springs.

“Bugs” is not the only episode of Supernatural to use Native American lore or curses. Supernatural is also not the only show to use curses to create a story. However, we all have to admit that it is one of the (if not the) worst episodes of the show, ever!

Next: Supernatural urban legends: Hook Man lore explained

Did you know about Native American curse lore? Did we miss something that you find fascinating? Share in the comments below.

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