The story behind 'Krampus,' Santa's demonic helper who exists to scare children into being good

Reuters/Dominic Ebenbichler

The INSIDER Summary:

• Countries like Austria and Germany celebrate "St. Nicholaus" on December 6th, and have a Krampuslauf, or Krampus Run, the night before.
• Krampus is  Saint Nich's helper, but he is unbelievably scary: so scary that he was actually banned a few times — alternatively by the Catholic Church and the Austrian government.

I have a vivid memory of my friend hanging off a door horizontally, her nails digging into the wooden frame as a giant, fur-covered beast with demonic red eyes and giant fangs pulled her into the cold December night.

A few feet away, a girl was sobbing while a horned monster whipped her with branches.

Kids everywhere were screaming and crying, desperately seeking safety.

We were eight years old, and the whole thing was arranged by our parents.

Krampusnacht, or Krampus Night, is an ancient Austrian tradition that is also celebrated in Germany, Hungary, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic. Basically, Santa, or Sankt Nikolaus (St. Nicholas), comes around with his devils (or Krampuses) in tow.

He is there to determine whether kids have been naughty or nice — but in this case, being naughty has severe consequences: a run-in with his demon assistants.

Let's take a look at this insane tradition.

This is Krampus. Santa's little helper is a terrifying demonic beast that helps him deal with naughty kids. He literally exists to scare children straight.

Most Krampuses have thick fur, sharp horns, cloven hooves, fangs, and a long, pointy tongue. They usually wear loud bells and chains, which they thrash around for effect, and carry a whip or birch branches to beat kids with.

They also often brandish a basket or sack of some sort, meant to transport kids to hell (or the nearest river).