Which Pokémon used to be human?

Hey friends! As a long-time Pokémon fanatic making content around key franchise insights, I couldn’t resist diving into one of the creepiest urban legends around some of our favorite monsters – that they originally were humans who somehow transformed!

After digging deep into the lore and fan theories, I can confirm several Pokémon indeed used to be human, while myths reference the concept too. Let‘s analyze the facts around these once-people Pokémon and the stories around their tragic transformations!

Kadabra, Gengar, Yamask and Phantump: The Human-Shaped Pokémon

After extensive research across various Pokédex entries, lore sources, and spiraling Reddit threads, four Pokémon stand out as clear examples of creatures that used to be human boys, girls, women or men before mysteriously transforming into their current states. These include:

Kadabra – Multiple Pokédex entries specifically state this Psychic-type was once a young boy with strong psychic abilities who one day woke up transformed into the Pokémon. Trauma from this overnight change could explain some quirks of Kadabras today like compulsively staring into spoons.

Gengar – Less details exist but various sources suggest Gengars were also once human beings, though the circumstances around how and why they changed remain unclear. Their mischievous behavior might be ways of dealing with residual memories or emotions.

Yamask – Carries around masks that are explicitly said to be their frozen human faces from centuries ago when they were people, not Pokémon. They cry while glancing at their old visages.

Phantump – Formed when a child spirit possesses a stump after getting lost and perishing in the woods. Their cries sound uncannily like a human kid which is…really sad.

So while not all Ghost, Psychic or other creepy Pokémon necessarily used to be human, these four examples have definitive proof of originating as people in past eras.

What do you think caused the mysterious transformations for each? Below we‘ll analyze the leading theories…

Trauma and Death: Why Humans Turn Into Pokémon Spirits

A few reasonable explanations exist for why some unlucky humans apparently turned into these Pokémon species:

• Trauma from a jarring bodily transformation. Kadabra and Gengar‘s unexpected overnight change from human to Pokémon may have shattered their sense of identity.
• Tragic death transforming life essence. Yamasks and Phantumps stem directly from deceased people unable to move on.
• Punishment for wrong deeds committed while alive. Some myths reference spiritual justice.
• Accidents imbuing supernatural power. Perhaps the deceased humans had latent psychic or magical gifts activated in unique circumstances.

So trauma, death, punishment, or special circumstances could all be behind this phenomenon based on various bits of lore! Personally as someone fascinated by ghosts, I wonder if powerful residual spirits or energy remains left behind after someone passes away violently or prematurely.

That spiritual essence then funnels directly into a new physical form like a Yamask or Phantump without their conscious decision…really makes you think!

Whatever the reasons though, no doubt waking up as a totally different creature or being unable to move on after death would be incredibly jarring emotionally! Might explain why Yamasks cry when seeing their old face and Phantumps sound like weeping children.

Now let‘s analyze some wider legends of humans becoming Pokémon over history…

Myths and Legends: How Humans Reincarnate as Pokémon

Beyond those four clear examples, Pokémon mythology makes numerous references to ancient humans being reborn or resurrected as Pokémon in past eras:

• According to Sinnoh legends, deceitful humans were punished by being reincarnated as Pokémon after death.
• Some lore states spiritomb contain 108 spirits of humans who committed misdeeds.
• There’s an old folktale about a maiden who transformed into a Gardevoir after death to continue protecting her gardener lover.
• Ancient myths talk of people thanking beloved ghosts of family members who reappeared in the form of Pokémon.

So while not all Pokémon originate as humans, the lore is clear that human-to-Pokémon transformations have been recorded since ancient times as reincarnation or resurrection.

The below table summarizes the most common examples cited:

As you can see, Kadabra, Yamask, and Phantump have the clearest origins as human souls or ghosts later transformed into Pokémon. Spiritomb perhaps contains some human spirits among its fusion of 108 souls overall based on lore.

But the legends referencing humans reincarnating as Pokémon or getting resurrected in ghostly animal forms date back centuries! So this concept has existed since the early days up to present.

As a Pokémon mythos buff, I must admit something about people transferring their souls or life essence into magical creatures just captures my imagination in chilling ways!

But why do YOU think this trend exists specifically around Ghost, Psychic and other supernatural-themed Pokémon inheriting human souls or energy to form their new bodies and minds? Well from a spiritual symbolic viewpoint…

The Symbolism Behind Using Human Souls to Create Pokémon

If you study rituals around spirit possession, reincarnation, and channeling energy between this world and the next across different cultures, the concept of deceased people funneling their remaining life force or souls into non-human vessels is actually relatively common!

Theoretically if you believe in souls or spirits separate from physical bodies, they have to go SOMEWHERE if unable to properly transition after death. And what better host than a fellow undying creature with supernatural power that vaguely resembles humans in form like Pokémon?

There‘s something satisfying yet creepy about imagining your deceased grandmother, for example, getting resurrected as a caring Blissey to watch over you or an artistic Smeargle. Much better than disappearing fully if unable to move on completely!

To me this concept explains why Ghost, Psychic, Fairy and other eccentric-themed Pokémon seem the most likely to either reincarnate past humans or absorb their spirits. Only supernatural beasts drawing directly from other realms really align to harness that raw soul energy in this theological view nobody asked for!

But clearly ancient civilizations already made this connection between human souls needing new homes and magical creatures able to provide their pattern of consciousness safe haven. Hence all the uncanny lore and fan theories tying certain Pokémon eternally to specific people that died centuries ago yet literally live on through these monsters!

At least that‘s my take on the symbology here! I‘d be interested which human souls throughout history YOU picture funneling into which Pokémon vessels?

Leave your creepiest theories in the comments and we‘ll try decoding deeper meanings that explain why Pokémon channeling ghosts just feels strangely right!

Now let‘s examine modern pop culture examples that perpetuate this urban legend…

Popular Culture Reflecting the Lore

Beyond the official games and stories seeding this concept directly into Pokémon lore, creative works by fans vividly showcase Pokémon fusing with or outright evolving from deceased people too!

Some popular examples include:

• The Pokémon Origins animated special: Shows the ghost of a deceased Marowak literally transforming into a vengeful Cubone right before viewers‘ eyes seeking justice against Team Rocket.
• Multiple creepypastas: Viral horror stories detail children tragically dying then directly becoming Ghost Pokémon like Haunter or Phantump in dramatic retellings echoing the lore.
• Fan art comics: Drawings depict the human figures inside Spiritombs or Yamask masks graphically merging with the Pokémon into one entity.
• Youtube fan animations: Show live visuals of deceased/dying game characters reincarnating as their favorite monsters like trainer Black fusing his spirit with Reshiram.

Fandom works like these vividly reflect people‘s morbid fascination imagining that human-to-Pokémon soul transferal could work! They spend serious time realizing the lore through graphic fiction and art.

Clearly the idea of people literally becoming mythical beasts after death by funneling their consciousness into new bodies strongly resonates with us at a symbolic level!

Why else would fans devote such creative energy to literally visually showing deceased children or adults transforming through psychic or ghost energy into the Pokémon inheriting their spirits?

The concept clearly captivates our imaginations even if utterly fantastical! Let me know which fan take on the human-to-Pokémon soul transference you find most vividly compelling!

The Psychological Allure Behind This Phenomenon

Stepping back as an armchair psychologist, I suppose the allure around imagining people you know dying then returning in magical creature form lies somewhere between gratifying and disturbing!

On the positive end, symbolically there’s something nice about envisioning beloved friends or grandparents getting resurrected as mystical beasts able to stay by your side, minus most previous limitations.

But negatively, the utter tragedy around say children dying prematurely yet unable to fully move on so they wander Earth as weeping Phantumps carries grievous emotional weight if you ponder their suffering!

Ultra-empathetic fans likely shaped much of this lore and fan culture around formerly-human Pokémon experiencing trauma or difficulties adjusting to their transformed monster existence. The sadness yet sweetness around say the maiden‘s undying love saving her as a protective Gardevoir after death shows our conflicting feelings here.

We WANT fantasies that deceased loved ones never truly leave our sides. But simultaneously if unable to wholly move on, that clinging attachment likely prevents peace for their restless converted souls or energy forms wandering in ghostly shells!

Those complex tensions are what‘s so psychologically fascinating about this concept vs say just inventing random magical creatures. Knowing Pokémon were once equally complex people adds layers of tragedy, moral symbolism, and intimacy driving storytelling potential through the roof!

I‘d argue it‘s WHY Pokémon fuses so well as a franchise with Urban fantasy compared to lighter children’s series lacking this darkness bubbling beneath the surface around death and destinies interrupted…

But what do YOU think? Does humanizing certain Pokémon through mystical body horror around death and transformation make them more relatable and emotionally compelling? Or mostly just disturbing and sad? Personally, I fall into the first camp based on the discussion today!

The Takeaway: Our Souls Seek Immortality Through All Means!

Reincarnation into magical beasts able to cheat death or harness our life essence after we perish probably persists as such a tantalizing fantasy because symbolically that‘s what all human souls CRAVE – immortality and purpose!

Pokémon represent the perfect way to achieve that on an emotional level. By literally fusing your consciousness with a powerful undying creature able to continue guarding loved ones or accomplishing great things in your memory, death gets “hacked” to a degree. Your goals and dreams don’t have to end entirely if you can ride within say your beloved pet Vulpix revived as a Ninetales fated to live 1,000 years!

At least that‘s why this somewhat macabre concept likely continues captivating people‘s hearts, minds and imaginations almost instinctually. And the Pokémon universe leans into these psychosocial hooks and tensions SO well from a storytelling lense!

But I’d love to hear if you agree based on our deep dive today into the history and peeling back certain monster’s tragic layers. Do you buy my thesis on why the notion of people transcending death by imprinting their souls into mystical creatures FEELS oddly right? Or have an alternate take?

Sound off with your wildest theories or examples in the comments section! I’m addicted to overanalyzing lore so can chat for hours about symbolic reincarnation. Till next time fellow Trainers and scholars!