Description
Book SynopsisPresents more than 600 magical prescriptions for healing and protection from both pagan and Christian sources
• Examines the practice of diagnosing illness through magic and explores ancient beliefs about curses and other evil spells and about devils, demons, and ghosts
• Includes spells from the heavily guarded gypsy tradition of magic and healing, drawn from newly discovered materials
Since the beginning of history, people have sought remedies for the many ills that have beset them, from illnesses afflicting the body to threats posed by evil and hostile individuals. In many folk healing and pagan traditions, it was believed that one must gain the assistance of the guardian spirit of a healing plant or substance through prayers or offerings before its chemical properties would be effective.
Drawing on his extensive knowledge of ancient texts, Claude Lecouteux presents more than 600 magical prescriptions from both pagan and Christian sources from the last 2,000 years, covering everything from abscesses and shingles to curses and healing animals. He explores ancient beliefs about curses and about devils, demons, and ghosts and provides an in-depth look at protection magic, including protection of health, animals, and cultivated land, protection against curses, witchcraft, bad weather, and beasts, protection of a home, and protection while traveling. He includes spells from the heavily guarded gypsy tradition of magic and healing, drawn from newly discovered materials collected by two Romanian ethnologists who lived and traveled with gypsies in Transylvania in the mid-19th century. The author also reproduces rare texts on magic healing from the 14th and 15th centuries.
Revealing the vitality of these practices in the remoter areas of Eastern Europe, Lecouteux shows how the influence of this pagan worldview is still detectable in the work of modern folk healers in France and Scandinavia.
Trade Review“
Traditional Magic Spells for Protection and Healing presents fascinating source material of magical texts, until now, only known by specialists.” * Bengt af Klintberg, Swedish folklorist and author *
“Claude Lecouteux’s work on the topic of ancient magic spells stands out as a refreshing reminder and example of what real scholarship should be and can be. The book is eminently researched and readable: it features a substantial introduction, chapters organized by topic, several appendices, an index, and a full bibliography. It is a must-read not only for the specialists of ancient magic and medicine but also for the general public.” * Jacques E. Merceron, professor emeritus of French at Indiana University, Bloomington *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction The Manner of the Cure
1 Diagnoses
2 The Illnesses of Humans and Their Cure
3 Evil Spells
4 Devils and Demons
5 Fantastic Beings and Spirits
6 Healing of Animals
7 Protections
Appendix 1 Medical Magic in Italy during the Fourteenth-Fifteenth Centuries
Appendix II The Activities of Sorcerers
Appendix III The Use of Encrypted Spells
Appendix IV
Superstitious Healing Methods According to Fernel
Appendix V Knotting the Breeches Laces
Appendix VI
Several Popular Saints Invoked in France and Belgium for Illnesses and Protection
Appendix VII The Protective Talismans of Balinas (Apollonius de Tyane)
Notes
Bibliography
Index
