All the secrets of nails: from illness to happiness

Nails are claimed to be of the same composition as hair, nails grow from a single root, and lengthen every day. But over time, after the age of thirty, nails no longer grow at the same rate as growth slows down. The famous French herbalist Maurice Messegue wrote about nails, explaining everything that can be revealed about human health by their appearance.

The author emphasizes that blue nails can signal heart problems, yellow nails indicate liver problems, pale nails or white spots indicate that their owner is anemic, while brittle nails, if they have not become so from excessive use of nail polish and acetone, on the onset of rheumatism. Nail loss is especially worrying because it alerts you to several serious conditions such as depression, diabetes, syphilis, blood stasis or nervous disease.

People who bite their nails, according to the author, have psychological problems, usually mild neurosis and fear, and in order to solve this problem, it is necessary to discover the source of this condition. A diet based on green fruits and vegetables has a beneficial effect on annexed people and can help get rid of this unpleasant habit.

In the folklore tradition of BiH, there is a belief that when white spots appear on someone's nails - "they will be happy again" or they will be happy about something again, although those white spots or stains, from a medical point of view, are actually a signal that the body lacks calcium.


Nails in folk tradition


There are dozens of superstitions about nails in the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the most famous is that they must never be cut at the time when the sun sets, because then the one who does it risks becoming the target of evil spirits or even worse, someone else, who would accidentally set foot on those nails.  In northwestern Bosnia, it was believed that an individual, who had a habit of cutting his nails at dusk or at night, would become a "lampir" after death, as our ancestors once called a vampire. In Velika Kladuša it is still claimed that it is not good for the house and its well-being if a guest who has never spent the night in it cuts his nails. In order not to violate the taboo, the guest must ask the host if he can cut his nails, so if the host allows it, then this approval has a prophylactic effect. Similarly, also in Velika Kladuša, there is a belief that the one who always cuts his nails with scissors gains the power of the evil eye and can harm small children with his own eyes.

In both beliefs, the notion of cutting in half or cutting off is emphasized, suggesting a symbolic cessation of happiness or health. And this is perhaps best explained by the following custom. Namely, when one woman interrupts another in a conversation, she usually then says: "Don't blame me for interrupting you in my speech, may I interrupt all the evil in your life just like that!"

Furthermore, it is believed that one who does not look after his cut nails and throws them anywhere, when he dies, will have to look for and collect them in the afterlife, literally to the last. This belief seems to be a supplement to the taboo on traditional nail care, due to their fatalistic impact on human health and destiny.

Nail care starts from birth and accompanies a person until his death, and even after it. Namely, the first cut nails of children in Velika Kladuša are taken to the mosque on Fridays and secretly left under the carpet, so that the child, when he grows up, will be wise and successful in school. In Zvornik, children's nails would be wrapped in paper and pushed somewhere into the wall or left in a clean place, saying:

Eli eli fentu ćabeli ćuntu,
suldžija đoldu,
toprak šae crne nokte daje,
nosi elif kuda znaš,
kad poželiš da mi daš!

The above magic formula, which is composed of Turkish and Bosnian words, mentions "suvaldžije", angels who come to the grave for the soul of the deceased, and they are given these nails through the formula, so that the deceased would not have to look for and collect them there, in the underworld.

In Rogatica, it was customary to pick up the cut nails and take them to the forest and leave them in the hollow of a tree, saying:

Take them, angels,
wherever you know,
when i need them
give them to me!

And in this formula we have a clear allusion to the task of angels to secure man, by symbolic gift of nails, before going to another world with one small addition, which explains in more detail the connection between forest and nails. Namely, the Bosniak people believe that every man has his own source of water and his own tree in the forest, which represents his totems or, better said, natural counterparts, which is a remnant of the shamanistic beliefs of our people.

In addition to the above, nails are props very often sought after in the occult, whether it is to practice love or black magic. For this reason, they were traditionally kept and carefully collected after cutting, so that the witch would not reach them. The ancestor of monotheism, Zarathustra, also warned against this, ordering that man treat carefully cut nails and hair, and this dogma was taken over by Paracelsus himself. Namely, he believed that hair and nails have a life force in them for a short time, after removal from a person, and that they are therefore ideal props for occult manipulations. Probably under this influence, in the Middle Ages it was believed that after a man died, his hair and nails grew for some time, which was actually the result of the withdrawal of the flesh and not the growth of the above.


Long nails in mythology
Among the Bosniak people, as we can see from what has been said so far, nails have always been treated with caution and mothers have never allowed their daughters to nurture long nails. Even today, a pious old woman brazenly snaps at the mention of long nails: "such a girl or woman is no better than an ordinary bitch or a cat!". The reason for such an attitude is certainly not exclusively of a religious nature but also of a practical nature. Namely, long nails are, above all, an ideal place for the accumulation of various impurities and bacteria, and this is by no means desirable when cooking and preparing meals with dough. In the past, all Bosniak women, especially girls, had neatly trimmed nails on which they would apply a canoe (kna) before Eid, "Mevlud" or a wedding, the color of which would gradually wash off on its own.

In Bosnian mythological legends, long nails are the weapon of certain dark beings who attack people. There are many legends and stories about strange nocturnal creatures called "Prepasti".

One of them, which I heard and recorded about ten years ago, happened to my cousin’s grandfather while he was riding a horse in the evening. Namely, after the horse drank water on the river, as many evenings before, he headed home. Somewhere halfway to his home, he suddenly heard a child crying. Guided by the sound, he stopped he dismounted and approached the edge of the meadow, in the tall grass, he saw a small child of only a few months old, lying wrapped in an old dirty blanket, crying unstoppably. Thinking that some woman had probably left him there and left, he took pity on him and without thinking took him in his arms and headed home. Holding the child with one hand, he steered the horse with the other, wondering whose abandoned baby it might be. Looking at that child at one point, he noticed to his horror how the child's face was distorted into some kind of freak, and bigger and bigger nails were growing from his fingers, which were trying to scratch him. Frightened by the sight, he threw the child and chased the horse, and behind him a hysterical sound similar to the announcement of a hyena was heard. When he later told his neighbors about the event, he learned that he was in fact the target of "Prepast", which tried to attack and kill him.

Except in "Prepasti", long nails are in our mythology, also, a witch's tool with which, according to the legend, she pierces a child's skin and takes out his heart.

Finally, it would be interesting to recall a few more Bosnian beliefs about nails. The first of them says the following: when you see your enemies arguing, you rub your fingernails, and they will fight.

Another belief suggests that one who wants his nails to grow faster should cut them on market day (when a fair is held in that place) and if he wants his nails to grow slowly then he should cut them on Fridays. Also, for those who cut their nails on Fridays, it will bring abundance in property, on Thursdays it will bring them children, that is, offspring, and on Wednesdays happiness and success.

The last belief is prophylactic and warns us that it is desirable to look first at your nails and only then at a small child, so that you wouldn't accidentally hurt him with your gaze and cause him illness.

The origin of the name – vampire

The closest to historical truth, and thus the answer to the question of where the myth of vampires comes from, is the Middle East and the Arab demon Ghul, whose abode is a cemetery. The belief about this terrible creature that drinks people's blood was taken over by the Turks and in the expansion of their empire they brought this legend, together with many other shamanistic beliefs, to the Balkans The English name vampire comes from one of these sources; from the name "upir" or "ypir" which originates from the north of Turkey, or "vapir" which was the Bulgarian name for the same being or from the Bosnian name "lampijer", "lapir" or "lampir". According to Bosnian belief, a vampire comes out of the grave like a small butterfly, which was once called a "lepir" or a "lapir". Also, a link to a vampire (lampir) is found in the old Bosnian word "lapiti" - to snatch, reach, catch, it is very similar to the name "lapir", and describes the way this dark creature hunts people by suddenly grabbing its prey.

In Serbia, the vampire was called "ukolak", while in Romania there are two mythological creatures "moroi" and "strigoi" which have some similarities with the vampire. Drac or dracul is the Romanian name for the devil, so that Count Dracula is actually Count Demon and not a vampire. Likewise, "drac" does not mean dragon, as some translate it, because it is called "zburator" or "zmeul" in Romanian. Therefore, after this brief review, a realistic conclusion is reached that the name vampire comes from Turkey, Bulgaria or Bosnia.

In Bosnian mythology, a vampire was not exclusively a living dead man who drank people's blood. Analyzing certain legends about a vampire, he was actually often a man in love, who died prematurely, and at night he would come out of the grave, through a hole in the ground, in the shape of a butterfly, and then turn into a man who had no bones in his body, to make love to his wife. In a metaphorical sense, a vampire is the embodiment of a longing for life, an unhappy soul that has no peace of its own because it has been deprived of the ability to live and exist in the material world.

Allegedly, from the relationship between a husband-vampire and a woman, children could be born who would have a small tail on their buttocks. But to prevent nocturnal arrivals, as well as unwanted pregnancies, a hawthorn stick was placed above the front door of the house, creating an insurmountable barrier for the vampire, and he would stop his visits.

Bosnian folk belief claims that a man of bad temper and character becomes an evil vampire after death, who attacks people and drinks their blood. On the contrary, from a man of good nature, or who has been in love all his life, he becomes a good vampire, one who does not attack humans, but for a time cannot come to terms with his death, and therefore disturbs those close to him.

World of angels

The equivalent for evil and negative beings, according to religious tradition, are certainly angels or „meleci“. The theological idea of ​​good spiritual creatures indisputably existed long before Zarathustra, the originator of monotheism, but what we know today as angels is the final product of the mind of that great prophet. Amshaspandan or Amesha Spentas in the religion of Zarathustra represent the great angels, what is known in Christianity as archangels. There are seven of them, which is the sacred number of Zoroastrianism or Mazdaism, and they belong to the divine accompaniment of the Supreme God. Amesha Spentas, also called the Immortal Benefactors, are God’s helpers, in fact the connection of Ahura Mazda with the material world. Among them are 4 male and 3 female angels. Of these seven, Arashtat or Asha Vahishta stands out, which in translation means truth and justice, and is in charge of maintaining the physical and moral order on Earth and is the embodiment of the best truth and justice. The most prominent is the male Amesha Spentas and the main rival to the demon world. The second month in the Persian calendar is dedicated to him. His eternal opponents are the demons of lies, among whom the most dominant is the evil demon Indra.

When the Jews created Judaism, they incorporated into their faith many segments of the ancient Egyptian and Persian religions, including Amesha Spentas, whose monotheism deprived them of sexuality and real names, but retained the wings and human form and virtues that adorned them.

According to Zarathustra's preaching, every man has his guardian angel known as Faravashis or Arda Fravash, who follows and helps him. Zarathustra himself announced that he had received an express command from God to call on Faravashis for help whenever he needed it. That is why he told the people to follow his example.


Angels and children

Islam describes angels as human-like beings with two, four and sometimes more wings. It is claimed that each individual has with him four angels, who tirelessly record his good and bad deeds. They are called Kiramen kitabin or "hafeza meleci". From this group two angels record during the day, and the other two record during the night all man's movements and actions as well as words. Also, there are angels who dwell in paradise and their leader is called Ridvan, and there are also those who visit hell itself, whose fire cannot harm them. They are called Zebeniye as a group and there are 19 of them in total, their leader is named Malik.

Contrary to the above-mentioned Arab belief, Bosniaks, under the influence of former Arian Christianity, believe that each man has only two angels: one sits on his right shoulder and the other on his left shoulder. The one on the right shoulder writes his good deeds while the one on the left writes his evil deeds. Also, according to popular belief, angels protect man and defend him from all evil, especially injustice. The folk song tells how the father threw the innocent accused daughter down the tower three times to see if she was guilty or not:

He took Tidža by her white hand,
So he throws her down the tall tower,
Hatidža was guarded by angels,
She broke neither her legs nor her arms.

Bosnian:

Uze Tidžu za bijelu ruku,
Pa je baca niz visoku kulu,
Hatidžu su meleći čuvali,
Ne slomila ni noge, ni ruke.

In Islamic tradition, angels are believed to leave that house where there are dogs or cats. Although it is generally believed that the cause is impurity, the real reason is probably hidden in the pre-Islamic or primarily Egyptian worship of the goddess Bast, depicted with a cat's head, and Anubis, the dog-headed god. With this ban, Islam wanted to suppress pagan characteristics among the Arab peoples in every segment.

The Bosniak people claim that angels accompany people throughout their lives, literally from birth to death. Folklore says that no child wants to come out of the mother's womb, until the angels give him a "senet", or a written guarantee, that he will never die. However, as soon as the child leaves the mother, they snatch the "senet" from his hands and that is why he cries inconsolably at birth.
According to the saying, every little child is like an angel. However, he loses this lovely quality as soon as he speaks, because in addition to beautiful words, he is also able to say ugly ones. Also, while they are very small, and in their privileged position, small babies are supposed to be able to see angels so they know how to smile at them. The connection with the angels is not lost until the onset of puberty, during which time they faithfully protect and guard them, especially in the event of a fall or other accident.


Angel of death

While in the Christian tradition the most famous angels are Gabriel and Michael, in Islam the most mentioned are Jibril, which is the Arabic name for Gabriel, and the angel of death Azrail. It is also interesting to say that in the foundations of the Islamic belief, by which an individual confirms that he is a Muslim, immediately after believing in one God, comes another belief that says: I believe in the angels of God.

Traditionally, the Bosniak people are prone to fatalism, as evidenced by the following legend about how one night an angel Azrail came to a man to take his soul. The poor man was terrified of dying and death, so he cried and begged Azrail on his knees to let him escape and continue to live. The angel allowed him to do so and he rushed outside, rode his horse and hurried across the meadow towards the forest and further in the direction of the hill. The frightened man rode for almost an hour, constantly turning back, afraid that Azrail would follow him. At some point of joy and inattention, as he escaped death, at the bend of the old road his horse crashed down a sharp slope. As he was losing consciousness and dying, the angel Azrail appeared before him and said to him, "Behold, man, here God has ordained you to die, in this very place. Now you see that death cannot be escaped, it awaits you in a place that you are destined ".

Probably in some connection with this tradition, at least because of the horse, is the popular belief that the angel Azrail appears in a dream as a white horse and with his appearance hints at the death of a loved one.

Following the example of Zarathustra's seven archangels, who are in constant confrontation with demons, this eternal struggle between good and evil is also reflected in Bosnian traditions. Through it, our people in a poetic way evoked and approached their understanding of the natural phenomena with which they have been surrounded since the beginning.

Namely, folklore claims that there are two angels, the first of which is blind and the second deaf. Allah sends them every time to drive away clouds and storms where He wants to punish people for some sin. But if one who is not deaf hears the sound of the call to prayer (Azan), he will immediately direct the clouds to the opposite side of that place, and thus save him from the weather. It is also said that in this plan the devil (shaitan) wants to stop him, so a fight breaks out between the two of them. When an angel swings his sword at the devil, then, according to legend, lightning strikes the sky.

At the end of the first part of the text about angels, it would be worth mentioning another Bosnian belief that says the following: whoever sleeps on his back all night is guarded by an angel, and whoever sleeps on his stomach is surrounded by devils.

Guardian Angel

According to Romanian belief, angels have a human body with wings, and they can rarely be seen. But, regardless of that, the angel is a faithful companion of a man, who persistently follows him, except in one case, namely, when he enters the tavern, the angel will not enter after him, but stands on the threshold and waits for him. Likewise, it is argued that no one should be threatened with a knife in anger, as the angel is three steps away from the man.

Just like the Bosniak peoples, Romanians have the highest beliefs about the connection between angels and children. As soon as a child is born God immediately sends a guardian angel to see him. But an angel will not come home if he finds salt on the window, or closed windows, or people standing next to them and listening curiously.

His true mission begins immediately after the child's baptism, when he becomes a Christian, in order to enjoy all the benefits of God's protection. Then the angel approaches the child and usually does not separate from him until death. All the time the angel is on his right side or sitting on his right shoulder, while the devil is positioned on his left side or on his left shoulder. That is why Romanians believe that left-handed people, those who do everything with their left hand, are devils.

Also, it is believed that those children who die immediately after baptism, and sometimes even those who have not reached the age of seven, do not have any sins, so after death they turn into angels. They remain with God by serving Him or praying for the souls of their parents. When their parents die, and by some chance end up in hell, then these angels descend to the underworld and, waving their wings, create the wind, to cool the fire of hell and ease their parents torment.


Masters of karma

Based on everything said in the first part, and this introduction to the lecture on angels, it is quite easy to conclude that every human being is born without sin, he is pure and innocent, just like the angels themselves. But through growing up and living, his ignorance and irrational deeds make him susceptible to evil and put his soul to the test.

Nevertheless, each individual has his guardian angel, who is spiritually responsible for his own destiny, that is, he bears full responsibility for the life of his protégé. In this way it is clearly stated that no guardian angel is superior to another angel, nor does he have the right to rule over him, that is, to interfere. The responsibility is individual. It is from this rule that independence in carrying out the mission of the guardian angel derives. Since the guardian angel is our protector and guide, he will never harm us, since, according to secret teachings, he was ordained by the Masters of Karma, spiritual teachers who deal with incarnations, and they themselves are subordinate to God, or even according to some interpretations, represent him.

Namely, man lives on Earth in order to develop spiritually. He is born and dies in order to be reborn. Each new reincarnation is a test he undergoes in order to eventually complete that spiritual path. Likewise, every teaching requires a teacher and this is where we come to the need for a guardian angel, who communicates with us, when he thinks it is necessary, through what we know as the voice of intuition and sometimes through dreams. The need for a guardian is quite logical if we take into account the fact that man has in himself an immortal part, which is called the soul or Higher Self, and which survives through transformation, and that mortal, perishable part or Lower Self. The role of the guardian angel is also to maintain harmony between these two opposites with his guidance and vigilance.


Light for the guardian angel

As the ancestor of monotheism Zarathustra taught, every man has his guardian angel, whom he should turn to for help whenever he needs it. Certainly, Zarathustra did not say that for no reason, because that invisible sweet being can really help us many times; to defend us from evil people, to distract us from bad judgments and intentions, to give us peace and love, to ease the pain, to provide us with the answers... However, you must know that we too can help our guardian angel, empower him, and give him spiritual light. To have a closer relationship with him, we should always pray for our angel, because he is our guardian, counselor and a friend. You do not need any special words or prayers for that, but to pray as your soul desires. It is often enough to say, "Guardian Angel, help me both day and night!"

However, in order to strengthen him, and thus provide ourselves with strong spiritual protection, especially in the bad phases of life, we need to do this simple ritual. For this ritual we need an unused glass, a new white candle and mineral or filtered water. Light a candle somewhere safe and preferably high, such as on a cupboard. Secure it by shedding three drops of another lighted candle and placing this one for the Guardian Angel on them, so that it can be glued to the surface on which it stands. Place a glass of water next to the candle on the right.

Say Our Father three times, and then this:

"My God, I offer you this prayer and the light of this candle, as a spiritual power and as a spiritual light for my Guardian Angel. Accept now, my God, this offer and allow my Guardian Angel to be empowered and enlightened, so that he can more easily protect, defend and guide me through life here on Earth!"

The next day, make the sign of the cross with your right hand in front of the glass on the ground and then pour it into the river or sink. If you pour into the sink, you must first let the tap water flow and then pour out the glass. The effect of this ritual lasts for seven days and can be repeated if you think that you need it, or if you still need strong protection.

In addition to your protector, you can light a candle for the guardian angel of another person with whom you are not on good terms. Namely, when someone is angry with you or you are angry with your partner, or someone directs hatred, anger, resentment, or any kind of negative energy, turn to an invisible protector for help. To calm the eruption of evil thoughts and passions, light a white candle for that person's guardian angel and say this:

"To the guardian angel of NN (say name and surname) calm the hatred, anger and resentment of your protégé so that he does not harm me and does not torment me with his bitter emotions, typical of human weakness. I do not know the cause of his resentment and anger towards me. Maybe jealousy is the main reason for that? But whatever the reason may be, which is unknown to me, it is clear that he / she is trying to release his / her emotional tension against me; you, who are his guardian angel, help him to overcome this acute crisis, this negative crisis; nervous tension, mental weakness, antipathy, or unreasonable anger. Calm him down, show him that I am the person who wishes him well, who loves him, and want us to be good friends because I need him. To the Guardian Angel and my friend N.N., accept this candle that I graciously offer you as proof of my security and devotion. May he, when confronted with me, do so with kindness, respect, love, and empathy, so that in a friendly way we may jointly accomplish our goals, without hurting each other. Let it be so. "

This concludes the prayer, and do not extinguish the candle, but let it burn to the end on its own. After that, throw the rest down the river. Before each described ritual, you must take a shower beforehand, so that your body is clean.

And finally, this should be said: believe in angels because angels are around us.

Porijeklo naziva vampir

Najbliže povijesnoj istini, i samim time odgovoru na pitanje odakle potiče mit o vampirima, jeste Bliski istok i arapski demon Ghul, čije je obitavalište groblje. Vjerovanje o ovome strašnom biću koje ljudima pije krv preuzeli su Turci i u širenju svoje imperije donijeli tu legendu, zajedno sa mnoštvom drugih šamanističkih vjerovanja, na Balkan. Naime, anglizirani naziv vampir dolazi iz nekog od ovih izvora; od imena upir ili ypir koji potječe sa sjevera Turske, ili vapir koji je bio bugarski naziv za isto biće ili pak od bosanskog naziva lampijer, lapir ili lampir. Prema bosanskom vjerovanju vampir izlazi iz groba kao mali leptir, koji se nekada nazivao lepir ili lapir. Također, poveznicu sa lampirom nalazimo u staroj bosanskoj riječi lapiti - ugrabiti, dohvatiti, uhvatiti, vrlo je slična nazivu lapir, te opisuje način na koji ovo mračno biće lovi ljude, tako što iznenada ugrabi svoju žrtvu.

U Srbiji vampir se nazivao ukolak, dok u Rumuniji postoje dva mitološka bića moroi i strigoi koji imaju poneke sličnosti sa vampirom. Drac ili dracul je rumunjski naziv za đavola, tako da je Grof Dracula zapravo Grof Demon a ne vampir. Isto tako, Drac ne označava zmaja, kako to neki prevode, jer se on na rumunjskom jeziku naziva zburator ili zmeul. Stoga se, nakon ovog kratkog pregleda, stiče realan zaključak da naziv vampir potiče iz Turske, Bugarske ili Bosne.

Vampir u bosanskoj mitologiji nije isključivo bio živi mrtvac koji pije krv ljudima. Analizirajući pojedine legende o njemu vampir je zapravo često bio zaljubljeni muž, koji je prerano umro, i noću bi izlazio iz groba, kroz neku rupu u zemlji, u obliku leptira, a onda se pretvarao u čovjeka, koji nije imao u tijelu niti jednu kost, kako bi vodio ljubav sa svojom suprugom. U metaforičkom značenju vampir je oličenje žudnje za životom, nesretne duše koja nema svoj mir jer joj je oduzeta mogućnost da živi i postoji u materijalnom svijetu.

Navodno, iz odnosa muža-vampira i žene mogla su se roditi i djeca koja bi na stražnjici imala mali rep. No, da bi se spriječili noćni dolasci, kao i neželjena trudnoća, iznad ulaznih vrata kuće postavljao se štap od gloga, čime se vampiru stvarala nepremostiva barijera, i on bi prestao sa svojim posjetima.

U bosanskom narodnom vjerovanju tvrdi se da od čovjeka loše naravi i karaktera nakon smrti postaje zli vampir, koji napada ljude i pije im krv. Naprotiv, od čovjeka dobre naravi, ili koji je za života bio zaljubljen, postane dobri vampir, onaj koji ne napada ljude, nego se jedno vrijeme ne može pomiriti sa svojom smrću, i zbog toga uznemirava one koji su mu bliski.

Holly bull of Bosnian forefathers

Tur is not a Slavic but a Latin word – Taurus, and a lot of similarity is seen in certain Illyrian names such as Teut or Trit, forms such as Tritan or Tritatron, and even Tana or Medauros. It is interesting to note that in the Bosnian language Tur is used for the part of pants, long johns or even pantaloons which connects tights, actually the hem between the legs, which connects them into a whole. Similarly the word Tur can be seen as an abbreviation from the terms poturiti or podturiti i.e. underlay something in order to keep a load or mass from falling. Tur (taxonomically and Latin: Bos primigenius) is an extinct genus of a wild bovine, which lived in Europe, Asia and North Africa, it is a forefather of today’s cattle. The last European exemplar lived until 1627. Tur was from the old days an important animal for the survival of mankind; that’s why the drawings and descriptions of it are present even inscriptions “Comments on the Gaelic wars (Commentarii de bello, Gallico) from Julius Cesar. His character became the status symbol of numerous European states and cities: Alba-lulia, Kaunas, Romania, Moldavia, Turka, province Mecklenburg and Swiss canton Uri, which was named after him. Tur was larger than cattle today which is familiar to us. It was 160-180 cm tall (males) and 150 (females), 2.8 meters long without the tail, the tail was 0,8 meters long. Tur’s had pronounced sexual differences, besides the basic biological differences in the built of sexual organs, they differentiated themselves by colour and size, females were shorter and smaller (smaller backbone) than males. Males were black-brown, and females red-brown, both had light, almost white, horns with black tops. Tur was abundant in almost entire Europe. Their habitat were usually steppe, taiga, wet swampy forests and river valleys. These bovines lived in herds, except a few older bulls which lived alone, until the mating season when they would join the herd. In the herd which had a few dozen units, there was a dominant male, and during the mating period there were fights over the females. mating took place during the end of summer, and calf’s were born during the end of spring. Tur usually fed off of grass, but also fruit, leaves and softer branches. Unlike most cattle today which are in essence day animals, Tur was active at dusk and night. According to the research of the paleontological museum of the University in Oslo, the first exemplars appeared on the area of today’s India before two million years BC, from where they migrated to the Middle East and other parts of Asia. They reached Europe around the year 250 00.

Illyrian cult of Tur

In the religion of our Illyrian forefathers Tur was one of the main segments of the ancient cult of fertility whose influence was retained until today among the Bosnian people. Aleksandar Stipčević, Alojz Benac authors of the book “Cult symbols among the Illyrians: structure and contributions of systematization” (1981) mention the following:

In farming cultures of the earlier iron age, in which the role of a woman, especially in terms of land cultivation is of the utmost importance for the life of the community, the cult of the bull as a principle of fertility represents a dominant component of the entire belief of people at the time. Bull, i.e. bovine, becomes an animal tied to the fertility of earth as the plough farming developed and the role of a woman in ploughing and farming in general lead to incorporation of the symbol of the bull as the principle of fertility in the basic of the religious cosmos of the matriarchal society. iconographicaly reduced to the horns, the bovine quickly became the symbol of the moon because of the similarity of the horns with the new moon. And the moon, as we mentioned earlier, is closely tied to the fertility of nature itself. Hence, the role of the woman in farming work, help of the bovine in the work, similarity of the bovine horns with the new moon, correspondence of the moon phases with the length of menstrual cycles of women, all of this gave an extremely important role to the bovine in the symbolic system of farming cultures from the earlier iron age onward.
With the weakening of matriarchy and its substitution by patriarchy in the metal age didn’t lead to the disappearance of the bull as the principle of fertility. In Greek and Roman religion the bull plays a large role as a sacrificial animal tied to the cult of fertility.

Tur in the folk calendar

Studying the description of living habits of Tur, especially the one about fertility, I immediately noticed a connection with the folk (agronomical) calendar of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is divided in only two seasons – summer and winter – and in which there is a very interesting segment, which was unclear to me from the very beginning, as a student of BiH ethnology. Namely, it is no coincidence that the Bosnian folk calendar begins when summer ends i.e. in the middle of autumn, when mating season of Tur began, and ends in spring, time when new members of the species are born. That we are talking about such a phenomenon is well demonstrated by the belief in three occurrences called Stablići, Kablići and Štapići, each lasts three days, which sums up to nine days, a lunar number and represents a stap, long wooden bowl in which one “pounded” milk and made butterfat, štap or mećajica i.e. an item which was used to “pound” and kabao – wooden vessel for storage of milk. All three names are closely tied to cattle and signified a very important thing, namely, when a cow brings a calf to this world she becomes lactic, in her udders milk is building up which is used to feed the calf but also members of the family which own the cow. That’s why it is clear that this belief stems from the distant past and is directly tied to the Illyrian cult of fertility and Tur.

Further, Stipčević mentions another interesting part which is directly tied to Tur: “In Donja Dolina, near Sanski Most, during excavations in villages a skull of the bull forefather has been found (Bos primigenius) which was, as Ć. Truhelka believes fastened to façade of the house and had a function of bucrania.”

As an inevitable symbol and bearer of fertility, among our forefathers Illyrians, the bull had a central role in celebration of the harvest, when at the beginning of August the bull was slaughtered in the name of the goddess Grand Mother. In that ceremonial segment of sacrificial offering, Celtic-Persian influence is dominant, through celebration of the pagan circle of the year with the ancient myth about the solar god of fertility Mithra, which the Romans inherited from the Persians. Goths which were at one time mixed with the Illyrians and enriched not only genetically but also culturally-religiously the habit of ancient Bosnians, they saw in Tur much more than an ordinary animal, because of his priceless importance in land tillage, and also the cult of fertility, he was identified with the land, as its guardian and ruler.

Identification with the fertile land, which brings food and maintains the community, its physical strength and endurance and striking look of the horns, elevated Tur in the pantheon to the level of divine being in Bosnian mythology. He becomes a gigantic bull which is holding the entire earth on his back. In that way he rules over the destiny of humans, but also everything else. With that he receives the label of Tur land keeper. But, everything is not only left on the mythological representation and iconography which is evident in certain ethnological records which record the ancient practice of dedicating prayers to this heavenly being, which hasn’t been interrupted with the advent of Christianity and Islam to the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In the book “Syncretic elements in Islam in BiH” M. Hadžijahić states an interesting part in which he describes the religious practice: “From a poor elderly lady, Puhalovka Alijaginica which lived in Čebedžije in Sarajevo, I managed to record this: On Wednesday afternoon prayer is performed and one bows down to: Ognju and Ognjevu Piru, Tur, Hadži Dedi, Hadži Kasapi, Sitoj Nefisi, Vejsil Karanij, his mother and father…” Under the name Oganj and Ognjev Pir is hidden the god of sun (Oganj name for fire) and his son, from mythological notion that the sun is “born” and “dies”, but for this text the name Tur is the most interesting, as we see, he did not disappear from the religious consciousness of the Bosnian people until the middle of the twentieth century, and after that he was mentioned solely as a mythological being which is holding the earth. In the book the author mentions another perfect example about the preservation of the Illyrian religion in Bosnia. Namely, in the village Turovo underneath Jahorina each year a celebration of Vida was held i.e. Ilyrian god Vidasus, which was converted into a saint with the advent of Christianity in Bosnia, and from then on he is worshipped as holly Vid. Tur and Vidasus, with this toponym and somewhat shortened name, actually best represent how well entrenched the Illyrian religion is amongst the Bosnian people.



Illyrian crest has the sign of a half-moon as a symbol of the horn of Tur.          

Tur - sveti bik naših predaka

Tur nikako nije slavenska već latinska riječ - taurus,  i velike sličnosti se sa njom mogu pronaći u pojedinim ilirskim imenima poput Teuta ili Trita, oblicima Tritan ili Tritatron, pa čak i Tana ili Medauros. Interesantno je navesti kako se u bosanskom jeziku tur naziva onaj dio hlača, dugih gaća ili čak dimija koji spaja nogavice, zapravo njihov porub između nogu, koji ih spaja u jednu cjelinu. Isto tako riječ tur se može posmatrati i kao skraćenica od pojmova poturiti ili podturiti tojest podmetnuti nešto kako bi se zadržao neki teret ili masa da ne padne ili da se ne obruši. Pretpovijesni crtež Tura iz pećine Lascaux Tur (taksinomski i latinski: Bos primigenius) izumrla je vrsta iz roda divljeg goveda, koje je živjelo u Europi, Aziji i Sjevernoj Africi, predak je današnjeg domaćeg goveda. Posljednji europski primjerak živio je do 1627.godine. Tur je od prapovijesti bio značajna životinja za opstanak ljudi; tako da njegove crteže i opise nailazimo od prapovijesnih špilja do spisa „Komentari o Galskom ratu (Commentarii de bello, Gallico) Julija Cezara. Njegov lik postao je simbol mnogih europskih država i gradova: Alba-lulia, Kaunasa, Rumunjske, Moldove, Turka, pokrajine Mecklenburg i švicarskog kantona Uri, koji je dobio naziv po njemu. Tur je bio nešto većih dimenzija nego današnje domaće govedo koje poznajemo. Bio je visok 160-180 cm (mužjaci), i oko 150 cm ženke, dug oko 2,8 m bez repa, koji je imao 0,8 m. Turevi su imali istaknute spolne razlike, osim osnovnih bioloških razlika u građi spolnih organa, razlikovali su se po boji i po veličini, ženske su bile kraće i niže (nešto nižeg hrbata) od mužjaka. Mužjaci su bili crnosmeđi, a ženske crvenosmeđe, i jedni i drugi imali su svjetle, skoro bijele, rogove sa crnim vrhovima. Turevi su bili rasprostranjeni u skoro cijeloj Europi. Njihova staništa bile su uglavnom stepe, tajge, vlažne močvarne šume i rječne doline. Ova goveda su živjela u krdima, osim ponekog starijeg bika, koji su živjeli sami, da bi se u vrijeme parenja pridružili krdima. U krdu, koje je brojalo nekoliko desetina jedinka, postojao je dominantni mužjak, pa je za vrijeme parenja dolazilo do borbi oko ženke. parenje se odvijalo krajem ljeta, a telad su na svijet dolazila krajem proljeća. Tur se najviše hranio travom, ali i voćem, lišćem i mekšim grančicama. Za razliku od većine današnjih vrsta goveda koji su u pravili dnevne životinje, Tur je bio aktivan u sumrak i noću. Prema istraživanju Paleontološkog muzeja sveučilišta u Oslu, prvi primjerci primjerci pojavili su se na prostoru današnje Indije prije oko dva miliona godina p.n.e., odakle su migrirala na Srednji istok i druge dijelove Azije. Do Europe su stigli oko 250 000 godine. (Wikipedija) Ilirski kult Tura U religiji naših ilirskih predaka Tur je bio jedan od glavnih segmenata drevnog kulta plodnosti čiji se uticaj očuvao sve do današnjih dana među bosanskim narodom. Aleksandar Stipčevič, Alojz Benac autori knjige „Kultni simboli kod Ilira: građa i prilozi sistematizacije“ (1981) navode sljedeće: „U zemljoradničkim kulturama mlađeg željeznog doba, u kojima je uloga žene, posebno u obradi zemlje, od najvećeg značaja za život zajednice, kult bika kao princip plodnosti predstavlja dominantnu komponentu cjelokupnog vjerovanja tadašnjeg čovjeka. Bik, odnosno govedo, postaje sa razvitkom plužne zemljoradnje životinja najuže povezana sa plodnošću zemlje, a uloga žene u oranju i u zemljoradnji općenito dovela je do ugrađivanja simbola bika kao principa plodnosti u osnove religioznog kozmosa matrijarhalnog društva. Ikonografski svedeno na same rogove, govedo je brzo postalo simbolom Mjeseca zbog sličnosti tih rogova sa mladim Mjesecom. A Mjesec, kao što smo već ranije spomenuli, najuže je povezan sa plodnošću cijele prirode. Dakle, uloga žene u poljoprivrednim radovima, pomoć goveda u tim radovima, sličnost goveđih rogova sa mladim Mjesecom, podudarnost Mjesečevih mijena sa trajanjem menstrualnog ciklusa u žene  sve je to dalo govedu izvanredno važnu ulogu u simboličnom sustavu zemljoradničkih kultura od mlađeg željeznog doba dalje. Slabljenjem matrijarhata i njegovo zamjenjivanje patrijarhatom u metalnom dobu nije dovelo do išćeznuća bika kao principa plodnosti. U grčkoj i rimskoj religiji bik igra veliku ulogu kao žrtvena životinja u vezi s kultom plodnosti.“ Tur u narodnom kalendaru Proučavajući opis životnih aktivnosti Tura, posebno onaj o plodnosti, odmah sam uočio povezanost sa narodnim (agronomskim) kalendarom Bosne i Hercegovine, koji se dijeli na samo dva godišnja doba – ljeto i zimu- i u kojem postoji jedan izuzetno zanimljiv segment, koji mi je kao proučavaocu etnologije BiH, bio nejasan od samog početka. Naime, nije nimalo slučajno da bosanski narodni kalendar počinje krajem ljeta odnosno sredinom jeseni, kada je započinjalo parenje Tura, i završava u proljeće, u vrijeme rađanja novih pripadnika ove vrste. A da je upravo riječ o tome sasvim uvjerljivo demonstrira vjerovanje u tri pojave pod nazivima Stablići, Kablići i Štapići, od koji svaki traje po tri dana, što čini zajedno broj devet, inače lunarni broj, i sami po sebi predstavljaju stap, duguljasta drvena posuda u kojoj se „udaralo“ mlijeko i pravilo maslo, štap ili mećajica odnosno predmet sa kojim se mlijeko „udaralo“ te kabao – drvena posuda za čuvanje mlijeka. Sva tri naziva usko su povezana sa govedima i označavala su jednu jako bitnu stvar, naime, kada krava donese na svijet mladunče ona postaje ponovo mliječna, u njenom vimenu buja mlijeko kojim se hrani tele ali i pripadnici familije kojoj ona pripada. Zbog toga sasvim je jasno da ovo vjerovanje potječe iz daleke prošlosti i direktno je vezano uz ilirski kult plodnosti i Tura. U nastavku Stipčević navodi još jedan zanimljiv dio koji je direktno vezan za Tura: „U Donjoj Dolini, kod Sanskog Mosta, otkrivena je, prilikom iskopavanja tomošnjih naselja, lubanja prabika (Bos primigenius), koja je – kako misli Ć.Truhelka, bila pričvršćena na pročelje kuće i imala je funkciju bukranija.“ Kao neosporni simbol i nosioc plodnosti bik je kod naših predaka Ilira imao i centralnu ulogu u proslavljanju svečanosti žetve, kada se početkom mjeseca augusta klao u čast boginje Velike Majke. U tom ceremonijalnom segmentu prinošenja ritualne žrtve dominantan je keltsko-perzijski uticaj kroz slavljenje paganističkog kruga godine povezanog s drevnim mitom o solarnom bogu plodnosti Mitri, kojeg su Rimljani preuzeli od Perzijanaca. Goti, koji su se u jednom dijelu povijesti pomiješali sa Ilirima i tako obogatili ne samo genetski već i kulturno-religijski habit antičkih Bošnjaka, u Turu su vidjeli mnogo više nego običnu životinju, on je zbog svoje neprocjenjive važnosti u obradi zemlje, a samim time i kultu plodnosti, poistovjećen sa njom, kao njen vladar i čuvar. Ilustracija Tura u knjizi Sigismunda von Herbersteina iz 1556. s latinskim tekstom Urus sum, polonis Tur, germanis Aurox: ignari Bisontis nomen dederant. Identifikacijom sa plodnim tlom, koje donosi hranu i održava zajednicu, kao i zbog svoje fizičke snage i izdržljivosti te upadljivog izgleda rogova, Tur je u bosanskoj mitologiji podignut na panteon božanskog stvorenja. On postaje divovski bik koji drži cijelu zemaljsku kuglu na svojim leđima. I na taj način vlada nad ljudskom sudbinom, ali i svega drugog živog svijeta. Time on dobija i epitet Tur zemljodržac. No, da sve nije ostalo samo na mitološkoj predstavi i ikonografiji pokazuju i pojedini etnološki zapisi koji bilježe drevnu praksu upućivanja molitvi ovom božanskom stvorenju, koja se nije prekinula niti nakon dolaska kršćanstva i islama na područje Bosne i Hercegovine. U knjizi „Sinkretistički elementi u islamu BiH“ M.Hadžijahić navodi jedan zanimljiv dio u kojem se opisuje ta religijska praksa: „Tada sam od jedne siromašne starice, Puhalovke Alijaginice, koja je stanovala u Čebedžijama u Sarajevu, doslovce zabilježio ovo: „Srijedom se klanja podne (muslimanska molitva u podne) i pokloni se: Ognju i Ognjevu Piru, Turu, Hadži Dedi, Hadži Kasapi, Sitoj Nefisi, Vejsil Karaniju, njegovu ocu i materi..“ Vjerovatno se pod nazivima Oganj i Ognjev Pir krije bog Sunce (oganj je naziv za vatru) i njegov sin, iz mitološke predodžbe kako se Sunce „rađa“ i „umire“, no za ovaj tekst je najzanimljiviji pojam Tur, koji kako vidimo, nije nestao iz religijske svijesti bosanskog naroda sve do polovine dvadesetog vijeka, a nakon toga se o njemu pričalo isključivo kao o mitološkom stvorenju koje na sebi drži Zemlju. U knjizi autor navodi još jedan savršen primjer o očuvanoj ilirskoj religiji u Bosni. Naime, U selu Turovo ispod Jahorine održavala se i proslavljala svake godine proslava Vida odnosno ilirskog boga Vidasusa, koji je dolaskom kršćanstva u Bosnu preobraćen u  sveca, i od tada se štuje kao sveti Vid. Tur i Vidasus, ovim toponimom i donekle skraćenim nazivom, zapravo na najbolji mogući način prezentiraju koliko je ilirska religija čvrsto ukomponirana u bosanskom narodu. Ilirski grb ima znak polumjeseca kao simbola rogova Tura

Cult of fertility among the Bosnian People

Cult of the snake

In order to write credibly and in detail about the cult of fertility of the Bosnian people, it is necessary to start from the beginning which goes back to the ancient times and speaks about our famous forefathers the Illyrians, and one of their most important deities - snake. Namely, Illyrian cult of the snake as a primary symbol of fertility in folk religion of the Bosnian people, is not only noticeable in the belief about the home snake - protector of the family, i.e. totem of the head of the family, usually a male, i.e. father, but also her sacred meaning.  The snake cult, on which the genesis of the grandfather of our forefathers is based on, has an even wider meaning and significance. In archetypal beliefs the snake is probably the personification of life force and without a doubt a personification of the spirit of the nature which encourages fertility and creates life. Remnants of the once extremely widespread cult of the snake among the Bosnian people are demonstrated in numerous beliefs. Some of them have been preserved and documented and are a type of reminder of our ancient past.

To represent all the beliefs of our people about the snake itself more credibly, and to bring them in connection with the Illyrian cult of fertility, it is necessary to cite what has been written down by Augustin Krstić in his work "Urežnjaci from folk healing of Bosnia and Herzegovina":

Snake skin as a cure

Though not many, in Bosnia, I stumbled across some female (rarely male) hands which had "punctuated" snake tattoos. When asked: why are the snakes punctuated? - I didn't receive equal or similar answers. Usually I have been told, that it should be like that (They often say: "It's a custom since the old days"). These three answers are perhaps the meaning of those snakes: "Brings good luck - Defends from spells - Won't be bitten by a snake". People spoke timidly about the tattooed snakes and snake skin, only in some villages I heard accusation about some women because "they carry snake skins".

Snake skin as medicine is usually taken in powdered form by folk, mixed with almost anything, while I barely came across a few cases of it being worn around the waist as a means of some help.

Snake skins are gathered in paramljeće (spring), when snakes change their skin! They are found in thorns, fences, etc. since snakes then move through something tight, in order to get rid of the old skin.

"Crush the skin" and drink in milk - and a nursing lady will get her milk. It is a cure for those women, which nurse children but which don't have milk of their own.

Crush the skin and rub your hands and feet with it, cure for those with sweaty palms and feet!

Women which can't get pregnant need to drink marigold herb, teucrium herb and a bit of the crushed skin, and she will get pregnant! She will achieve the same effect if she carries the skin around her waist.

A woman carrying snake skin around her waist will marry the person that she wants! With a lot of discretion I received some data on carrying "snake waist", such women are called in the village snake woman or girl woman.

To kill a snake which bit you and crush her head, place it over the wound will draw out the poison!

Through the mentioned data it is evident that the ancient beliefs about the snake have been preserved, a symbol of fertility, the snake also had the role of deity which enabled a girl to get married, start a family i.e. give birth and feed her children. The act of tattooing the snake among women has the same purpose since it is familiar through the history of religion that various people usually tattooed symbols of gods, their protectors, with the goal of achieving a more intimate relationship with them with the purpose of getting benefits which is evident by the statements of the snake defending from spells and snake bites. We should certainly take into consideration that the text originated in the first half of the twentieth century, which by itself creates a large continuity and testifies about traditional conservation of Illyrian traditions and beliefs among our people.

Snake - keeper of worlds

It is impossible to assume that the cult of fertility could exist without the snake which proves that numerous examples where it is represented as a kind of life carrier, since it takes care of the preservation of the human race which can be confirmed through a few examples from the Bosnian tradition (1). According to the legend which can be heard today from the older population in the northwest part of Bosnia during the time of the flood the mouse drilled a hole at the bottom of Noah's ark, bringing everyone in danger from water penetrating inside the ship. The snake was the only one that noticed it and quickly threw itself onto the mouse, swallowed him and curled above the hole in order to stop the penetration of the water in the ship.

Primeval connection of the snake, divine totem of the Illyrians, and the Bosnian people themselves was never interrupted, despite bloody and painful parts of our history. Even with the advent of the Bogomils, whose religion was dominant in the middle ages in Bosnia, there was a special reverence towards the snake and unlike other directions of the Bogomil faith, the character of Satan was not seen in the snake. Sin which got Adam and Eve ejected from heaven was not caused by the snake, but a sexual act of the first people, according to monotheistic belief.



According to a Bogomil legend, when god drove out people from heaven, he gave them various diseases, from which we still suffer. But God, in his vast mercy created an herb for each disease, so that humans can cure themselves when sick. Numerous legends speak of this, about a mysterious doctor called Lokuman or Lacmanin, about whom we don't know much, not even his nationality, nor religion, nor where he comes from. There is a possibility that we're talking about a man, doctor or mystic, from western Europe primarily because in the past the Bosnian people called all those people wearing a tight suit a Lacmanin, and later that same name was used to denote Germans. As legends say, on one occasion Lokuman accompanied by a villager headed to the mountains. When they came to the area with the thickest forest, he took out a wand and whistled with it, and immediately a multitude of snakes appeared around him. He picked out one of them, caught her, whistled and all other snakes dispersed. Lokuman slew the snake, he punctured the snakes body with a stick and cooked it over a fire. Since he cooked her, Lokuman ate the snake and said to his follower to bury the grill in the ground. But, since this all was strange and interesting to him, before burying the stick he licked it to see how the snake tastes. When they headed towards the mountain, the Lokuman's follower could understand all the plants around him, without realising how it happened. One plant said: "My name is so and so, and I'm a cure for such and such disease, another said a similar thing, etc." When one of the plants: "My name is comfrey (Symphytum officinale) and I'm a cure for hernia!", the follower laughed and the Lokuman asked him: "why are you laughing?" - "No reason!", - "Did you eat some of the snake?" - "No!" - "Open your mouth so I can check". The follower opened his mouth and the Lokuman spat in them immediately, and immediately the plants stopped speaking.

(1) There is a thesis that the Greeks, neighbours of the Illyrians, took a good deal of the religious beliefs tied to the snake and add them to Asclepius, god of medicine, which is depicted as a man with cane around which a snake is wrapped.
Because of such information, the Illyrian snake cult doesn't end with this example, there is other documented information which point to the conclusion that among the Bosnian people, the snake always had divine, supernatural abilities to influence people's lives.

Illyrian legends

Mythological involvement of the snake in the cult of fertility is evident through ancient Illyrian legends, with whose analysis we can discern in greater detail the connection of the snake with other elements of this cult, especially wheat. In the book "Ancient pledged monuments on the locality of BiH" (1977), author Enver Imamović mentions an interesting piece of information about the connection of wheat and a female deity: "For example, in Herodotus we find data about a female deity among Paionians which are identified with the Greek Artemisia. Illyrian women sacrifice wheat straw to her". Artemisia is known as the goddess of hunting, nature and animals, all things that Illyrians ascribed to the goddess Tana. With this data we are closer to the conclusion that Tana is behind the Great Mother, often times depicted on reliefs and monuments alongside god Vidasus. Wheat plays a pronounced role in the cult of fertility and the act of offering of wheat to the goddess has the goal of securing her grace and successful harvest. Dominant symbol of the one that gives life, first deity in human history, for the Illyrians wheat represented the biggest sanctity but also ancient sin.

During the time of the Roman's i.e. Roman occupation there was a father with seven sons and one daughter in Illirika. At one opportunity the sons out of boredom and wanton took the bread out of the house, placed it on a larger stone and used it for target practice with spears. The father was unaware of their actions, but hearing their laughter he decided to see what was going on. At the same time, while the father was exiting the house, the spear of one of the sons hit the bread, and to everyone's surprise, blood started to flow out of it. Seeing this the father yelled at his boys, asking what they have done, because now they caused the wrath of gods, which will punish them surely. Punishment is ruthless since god's sentence sons to banishment and they have to leave the home, parting on all four sides of the globe, and the only ones left are the father and his daughter. Soon the father died out of great sorrow for his sons. The girl wept and mourned since she was the only one left in the house. The god's decided to turn her into a huge snake which will guard treasure in a deep cave and each year, during spring, she would go out onto the daylight, to have a chance to meet a hero, whose courage will be so great that he will kiss her between the eyes. If he performs this feat he will receive the treasure and the girl as his wife.

Besides being interesting, the legend reveals some historical facts such as sons leaving the home for such a long time that their father didn't live to see them return. Namely, after a long Illyrian uprising against the Romans, the occupying forces decided to send Illyrian men to the boarders of the Roman empire where they would serve the army for twenty or thirty years, after which they will be allowed to return home, if they survive. Sorrow and loneliness of the girl and her transformation into a snake, symbol of fertility, similarly speak of girls which couldn't get married and achieve motherhood because of the lack of men. But, more than that, the appearance of the snake in spring hints to awakening of fertility in nature, regeneration of the eternal cycle of new birth, and throughout the entire content of the myth, we have a few crucial elements which mutually agree and complement each other: young men, whose sexual power is represented by a spear - phallus, and bread the symbol of the Grand Mother, i.e. virgin, which is being penetrated by a spear, act of defloration. We shouldn't leave out the meaning of number 9 (seven sons, father and daughter) which is the number of the Grand Mother, with which this legend represents one of the oldest Illyrian legends which remained in the collective conscience of our people. Also, bread placed on the stone and punctured with a spear could represent a type of sacrifice to Illyrian gods before the men leave for war.

In another Illyrian legend there is talk of a time of wellbeing, when the people lived in times of plentiful food; the people developed hubris and became ungrateful. In their arrogance they made shoes out of bread which angered the gods and they punished them with a period of hunger and poverty.

In this legend also we notice historical sequences about a period of peace i.e. wellbeing and a period of war (hunger), which are always connected with god's of fertility, which is understandable if we take into consideration the fact that survivability of people depended on their fertility from the beginning of times. That's why in traditional Bosnian belief we come across numerous taboos tied to bread;

it's a large sin to trample bread crumbs;

bread shouldn't be turned upside down on the table;

you shouldn't walk down the street and eat bread.

Hearth as the centre of a household and a place where bread was baked is holly and it is forbidden to thread on it, i.e. undertake blasphemy.

Not even rain was allowed to fall on the hearth that's why the dormers was closed every night, otherwise an owl could fly inside the house, personification of death in ancient beliefs of our people. Namely, if an owl enters the house through a dormer, the entire family will die.

One even swears on bread, namely, if it so happens that a person is talking while eating and holding bread in his hand he would utter: "It was like that, I swear by this nimet (bread)!"

Infertility, polygamy and abuse

According to traditional understanding a woman has two main tasks; to do house chores well as well as chores in the field and give birth to children. If she is not up to the challenge which are expected of her, especially in the segment of fertility, she is sure to be exposed to public judgment and other repercussions. Without a doubt societies attitude towards infertile women is absolutely inhumane and every sterile woman was treated like a second class citizen - persona non grata. During a periods of crisis in our history such women were regarded as unworthy of life since resources are wasted on her which are more needed for the existence of "fertile" members of the society. Luckily such a stance did not last long since the collective conscious awoke slowly transformed under the influence of improved living conditions.

As Antun Hangi wrote in his anthological work about the life and customs if Bosnian people, a woman not giving birth to children is not dear to her husband, though she was once dear to him. He considers her to be a tree without fruit, rose without petals, therefore she needs to be cut down. Groomsman says to the bride:

Gaze upon those yellow oranges,
If the tree didn't bear fruit each year,
My brother would've cut it down.
Gaze upon the yellow lemon,
If the tree didn't bear fruit each year,
My brother would've cut it down.
Gaze upon the flush roses,
If the rose didn't bloom each year,
My brother would've cut it down.

Ali-bey has a wonderful wife, which he loves dearly. A year has almost passed, and she bares no children. This angers and saddens him. One day he goes to the village to visit his estate and commands his brother, wife's groomsman, to cut her down:

By god my brother Muhammad!
I'm going on my Timar,
when the young bride arrives,
bring her into the haz yard,
then cut her down,
when I don't have the heart,
let her not be my bride then!

In order to avoid the murder of a fertile woman the husband would decide to marry another wife, in order to ensure an heir, which is why polygamy was widespread in the past and was exempt from public judgement, especially if the first wife was infertile. Researching documented data on the subject, but also leaning on the statements of informants which were of an older age, average age 70-90 years, it is evident that military and political conditions influenced the behaviour of people and their social consciousness besides the pure desire for offspring. After WWII famine and scarcity came and once again changed the outlook on life of the entire community. But, what is fascinating is the resilience of people and their desire to survive. In such imposed circumstances polygamy had its practical purpose, besides the deficit of sexually mature men, since it fit perfectly in the sustainability of the family. Namely, since there was no industry at that time the entire existence was reliant on agriculture, another woman took care of the children, elderly or diseased members of the family as well as cooking and the first woman had a task to do all chores outside of the home. Such labour and obligation division had a practical purpose, however such relations were often inharmonious and full of conflict from the inside.

Ilirike

History of polygamy is a long one in Bosnia and it was recorded among our forefathers the Illyrians which is written in the work by Salmedin Mesihović "Ilirike":

For men from getskih and tračkih peoples, Strabon mentions that they had more than a few wives. (Strab Geo. VIII. 3,4-5, Steph) The presence of polygamy was confirmed in the ruling house of king Agron, which alongside his wife Teuta, which was his first and most influential wife, also had another wife called Triteuta, mother of Pines. It is possible that Agron took Triteuta for his wife, since he did not have any male offspring with Teuta. It is interesting to note that Teuta, and not the biological mother Triteuta or Skerdilaida, was the one who was the custodian of the successor to the Illyrian throne after Agron's death. With this we not only see that polygamy was not rare among the Illyrian people, but in fact that it was pronounced, probably more among the clan-based aristocrats, leaders of the brotherhood and royal family.

Though in the magazine Behar, 2001 issue, it is mentioned that "having multiple wives" was accepted in the strict part of the Bosnian krajina (border), from Cazin - Pecigrad - Velika Kladusa, however this does not reflect the real situation in the field since such phenomenon was documented in areas such as Jajce but also other parts of BiH, not only among the Bosniaks but also Bosnian orthodox and to a lesser extent Catholic.

In the ethnological work GZM called "traditions of private and family life", subheading "traditions tied to birth", the following is mentioned: "We're mentioning one example in an Orthodox family in the village Lubovo (Jajce). D.S. lived with a woman 30 years of age. He didn't have children with her. A few years ago he arranged with his wife to bring and marry another woman, a widow, from the same village. The village didn't object to this proposal. But, due to disagreements between these two women, the husband divorced the first woman and married the second."

But, it would be wrong to conclude that man married other women because their wives were infertile, polygamy evidently had connections with improper social norms i.e. a certain man was shown as being rich, capable of supporting two wives, but what is most important - it glorified his libido and ego. However, such marriages often failed and ended in extremely disturbed family relations and brought one wife in unfavourable position and often her children. One of such examples was mentioned in the Yearbook of the faculty of law in Sarajevo (1955) where a statement of a banished wife from Velika Kladuša is cited: "I lived with his second wife for 6 years, and two years ago she threw me out of the house and now I'm living with his aunt. I lived with him for 15 years. We have 3 children. I don't want to part from him nor my children, since with him I earned all my assets.(2)"

Though polygamy is an old marital tradition spread throughout many parts of the world it is interesting that in the past it often originated during difficult living conditions, or as a consequence of war, when a man had to take care of a few women and children that came about from such relationships. Deficit of male population in a certain area or region was a key issue in the area of northwest Bosnia, where the border between Islam and Christianity lasted the longest. With the death of a large number of adult males there was unquestionably a decline of population and polygamy should be analysed using this data as a social phenomenon which is not close to the wider European tradition. Due to tragic historical events, after the fall of Ottoman empire, especially WWI and WWII the need for polygamy was continued and its advent was recorded up until the middle of the twentieth century.

Balkan and primitivism

 

We can also read in the yearbook various court confessions of women who were targets of physical and mental abuse by their husbands, which is best presented by an extremely difficult position of women in Cazin krajina (border) in the 19th and 20th century.

"He beats her in certain moments when he should be extremely kind and gentle towards her. One man beat his wife while she was lying sick in bed (29/49), and another person, seven days after birth (119/48). This is what is stated in one appeal: "He tortured me in various ways, locked me all day inside the house without food, and when he arrived, he would beat me with a rubber until I would faint." (8/48) There were cases where husbands would rip out their wife's hair when angry (Velika Kladuša, 110/49). One cannot believe the ways in which husbands torture their wives. There was one person that beat his wife, tied her hands, and when in bed he would stand on her hands and he would slap her in the face. After that he would throw her out of the house barefoot into the snow (Velika Kladuša, 95/51).(3)

Of course, we should stress that the phenomenon of torturing women is not only characteristic for BiH but for the entire Balkans where the social trend of marginalizing women was pronounced for ages, this was deeply intertwined with physical and mental torture, which often ended in murders. It is unthinkable that today, in the 21st century, we have the same issues of the previous generations which is the result of primitivism which is, unfortunately characteristic for the Balkan. Though we're talking about a relatively small geographical area or Europe it abounds in pretty much unhealthy family and relations as well as nationalism, which is mostly thanks to Serbia and the Serbian people which suffers from a deep historical frustration and complex (4). Desire for hegemony and endangering surrounding peoples actually always produced negative effects to the consciousness of neighbouring peoples which couldn't develop internal social and family relations, unlike many European people, since they were under a constant threat from hegemony in all its forms (5). EU has a great task in trying to civilise that barbaric people and force it to face their catastrophic historical mistakes, and crimes, which would definitely have a positive effect on other people in the region, that would help in creating democracy and advancement of the society as a whole.

NOTE

(2) Patriarchal, and conservative society such as Bosnia, imposed the fact that the father should be the leader of the household, and that his wife is behind him, i.e. the mother, they lead the family in an authoritative way which was void of any possibility of choice. As the mother/mother in law was a victim of such a system, she acted the same way towards her daughter in law on purpose or not, and with this she consciously or unconsciously encourages and justifies mistreatment from her son. Mothers of daughters in law threatened their daughters that they have to be hard working and obedient and that if "your husband starts to hate you, so will God!" They threatened that they won't be able to return to their house, since "you chose your own husband and now deal with the consequences!" or they would say a fairly familiar phrase at that time: "My daughter, suffer, I also suffered!".
Of course, there were different parents which didn't allow their daughters to be tortured by their husbands in the husbands home; there were families which were harmonious and such things were rare. Because of the disastrous position of women in this part of our country in central part of Bosnia, especially Sarajevo, Tuzla, Zenica, Banja Luka, people used to say "we wouldn't give our cat, let alone our daughter to get married in Cazinska krajina (Cazin boarder).

(3) Source of this aggressive behaviour should be sought in historical misfortunes and issues which were constantly present in this area, Dr. Husein Dzanic wrote about this in his work "Medicine and healing practices of Muslims in Mala Kladuša":
To go through all the things that the Bosnian's of Cazin have gone through and stay unschated is not a small matter. All things which were ours meant that it was owned by others for both kingdoms. Disease and hunger were an everyday occurrence for inhabitants of Cazin. The people remember, and Bašagić wrote down in 1900 :"On June 23rd 1790 general Walisch with numerous troops, good machines and cannons besieged Cetin from all sides, which was defended by a 120 year old captain Ali Bey Beširević with a thousand fellows. All inhabitants of Cetinje, beside the old captain and 124 of his fellows (which escaped to Mala Kladuša) found a hero's death in the battle for their hearth. Cetin burned for four days, until all things wooden burnt down." Daily attacks on villages around Kladuša, plundering and banditry left soot, dead and wounded to be a burden for the living. Continuous healing of the wounded helped people forge a wealth of experience.
Johan Weickard Valvasor in 1689 writes: "During the peace even our people go to Turkey (i.e. Cazin krajina/boarder) taking and plundering everything they can." Since he's writing about his own people, he's not saying that they're stealing, raping and killing "everything" they find, and behind such campaigns there are countless martyrs buried alongside the road and a lot of work for hospitals which helped the wounded.
After 1790, when Mala Kladuša was inhabited by victims from Drežnik, Cetingrad, Sadikovac, Tatarvaroš and other villages Kardun and Lika, one could hear groans from brushwood huts from the wounded and mutilated women and children, elderly and young people alike. There a refuge from the slaughter was found by once numerous families Keikić, Mujić, Galijašević, Murtić, Ćehić, Džanić, Kajtazović, Hasić.
They left their houses on Kardun and Lika, their brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers who simply disappeared unless suffocated in caves by straw. Lapašić, though a servant of Austrain authorities, said about the crimes against Muslims: "But as the Christened Turks were tortured by Christian inhabitants in Lika, they killed most of them, they also tormented the poor Vrangradce (people from Vrnograč), not just the Christian and Orthodox people from borderlands but also military officers." They forced them to crush the tombstones of their deceased and to build roads with them so that all trace of "Turks" will be lost.
Inhabitants of Mala Kladuša brought the weak, wounded and the sick, as well as the experience in healing. Healing knowledge was transferred from one generation to the next from the grandfathers mouth to the grandchild and that's how today we still know how to bandage a festering wound, how to fix a broken hand or leg, how to make a cure for fever.

(4) During the war in BiH from 1992-1995 a mass torture was performed over the civil society, women, children, elderly but also male civilians. Around 80% of rapes took place in concentration camps. The main goal of systematic mass rape in Bosnia was a war strategy to accelerate deportation of non-Serb national groups from certain areas, as a strategy accepted by Bosnian Serbs and Serbian politicians. Rape of Bosnian women should be looked at through different goggles: since the attack on Bosnian women was one form of aggression. The most severe form of torture was sexual abuse. There is clear evidence that rape and other forms of sexual violence were not results of armed conflicts or a form of revenge of the brave armed forces, but a well-planned and systematic policy in the context of operation>ethnic cleansing>. Rape was one form of aggression. In December 1992 the Mission for finding proof from the EU, found out that 20 000 women were raped by the army of the Bosnian Serbs. In their third report the UN commission for human rights 10.02.1993 special correspondent on the situation of human rights on the territory of ex-Yugoslavia concluded with the help of medical and psychiatric experts: >That rape was used as a slow instrument of ethnical cleansing, most of the raped women were Bosnian Muslim women from BiH which were raped by Serbian forces> i.e. that rape must be considered as systematic and ordered action and important element of Serbian war strategy. Through medical centre for rape and sexual abuse under the name >Medica> in Zenica from 1993-1997 over 35 000 women passed. These numbers were mentioned to show the number and methodicalness of rape of Bosnian women and girls. All studies show that rape was not an aggressive manifestation of sexuality, but a sexual manifestation of aggression. In case of BiH it was the roughest form of aggression, which was only a substitute for genocide. In large wars in Europe it was known that victors would abuse the situation and would trample their victims, but there was never a systematically organized sexual terror. First time in history, rape of women, which was planned and organised during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was pronounced a war crime and a crime against humanity. ( http://www.accts.org.ba/sekcija%20z.html)

(5) It is interesting that this area, especially BiH, is historically prone to occupation and hegemony, starting from the Roman Empire, which occupied our Illyrian forefathers, all the way to the advent of the Slavs, Ottomans, Austro-Hungary and in the end Yugoslavia.

Historical adversities of Illyrian-Bosnian people

In this short reference on the history of polygamy among the Bosnian people we can conclude that numerous historical and environmental opportunities had influence on its appearance and that it often appeared at times of certain crises, more as a practical option for preserving the family, then a status symbol of economic power of a certain male. It is interesting to note that contrary to popular belief, Islam as the religion determinant of Bosniaks had the least amount of influence on polygamy which is not the case among the Arabic people. Actually, after the occupiers (ottomans) left, Islam never fully developed in Bosnia in the traditional and cultural conscience of its people unlike for example among the Arabs, Turks or Iranians, primarily because as a European nation we were completely different from the people through which this religion reached us. A similar thing happened with Christianity which the Bosnian people rejected in its enforced form, and instead embraced a Bogomil religion. Constant resistance towards everything which came from the outside is obviously a product of historical resistance of Illyrians towards the Roman empire, which largely destroyed the Illyrian people in its entirety, and left a constant need for resistance in the collective consciousness of this people.

The issue of traditional family violence is also less connected to polygamy, and it stems from the patriarchal upbringing according to which a man "can fit everything under his hat" - adultery, abuse of his wife and children, without any public scrutiny; the cult of man as a warrior, protector, head of family was largely based on this belief. On the other hand, women were systematically raised to be subservient to men, they had a role of pleasing their husbands sexual needs, taking care of the house, feeding and giving birth to children. Women had to accept this forced role and over time they too became convinced that this role suits them. But, this doesn't mean that they were pleased with this degrading position which is evident by numerous folk statements such as "damned is the one who is born as a woman!", "a woman is even hated by god!", etc. Patriarchy had, without a doubt pronounced hatred towards women in its principles and history has proven this on numerous occasions. Let's remember the medieval inquisition which burned them because they were "witches". Besides, how else would one interpret numerous folk statements such as this one: "it's better to give birth to a dead son, than a live daughter?!"

In Cazin krajina (borderland) the negative attitude towards women was pronounced to the point that even old women said "that even the smallest male child was older than an old lady" i.e. one must show him greater respect then towards an old lady. Another disastrous mistake of patriarchy was purposefully (constantly) accentuated to the daughters from early childhood that they are "foreign", that they will find a husband and leave the home. Actually, the biggest concern of the parents is for their daughter to get married and leave the house, i.e. to get rid of them. The fact is that the highest percentage of marital violence is caused by the parents of the wife which passively observe what is happening, and they even force their daughter to bear with the violence, out of fear that she will return to their home and embarrass the family?!
All of this had a huge impact on the self-consciousness of Bosnian women which has a great challenge in front of her even today, a fight to prove her equality to men.

Plum and gift for the Grand Mother

It is necessary to emphasize that cohabitation relationships in the past often resulted in a real fight between two women, which tried to harm one another in all possible ways and achieve the goal that one of them is physically removed from the house. Inoća i.e. the other wife of the husband could harm her rival via magic without discrediting herself, all the while hiding her animosity and antagonism.

It is known from the narratives of people that revolted women often sought help from local witches so that they can destroy love and fertility in their rivals. One of the more famous rituals which were undertaken by a witch entailed using the underpants of the victim, seven grains of wheat and three beads of beans. After wrapping the beads into the underpants the witch would bring them over a fire and light them a bit and utter a certain formula.

If pregnancy of the rival happens before inoća has undertaken some of the magical options, she wouldn't give up but on the advice of an elderly lady she would go to the graveyard and she would pick one weed each from the top of grave, then from the middle (hands) and in the end from the bottom i.e. above the legs of the deceased. She would bring those three herbs home, she would grind them and place them into the food of her rival discretely, in order to cause a miscarriage. She would also take a handful of dirt from the grave, mix it in some water and discretely rub the edges of clothes of the woman whose destruction she tried to invoke.

Whether she is acting individually or with the help of a local witch, the spells which were prepared at the time were extremely negative, filled with hate and desire for destruction. Even when, despite the undertaken actions, pregnancy was not stopped, inoća didn't give up her plan, she waited for the time when her rival will be in the most vulnerable state and position - during birth and after it. She would try at all costs to get some blood that exited her rival, she used that blood as the main ingredient for preparation of spells of hatred and discord. Similarly, she would often, while feigning care, make her maslenicu (maslenjak) and she would bake it on dried plum branches. According to legends of old Bosnian ladies if the woman that gave birth would eat that maslenica, she would lose weight in a very short period and her face would be pale, since "a woman is easily hit by magic during četeresnica (name for the first 40 days after giving birth".

As the plum is the first fruit that blooms in the spring it is no wonder that it is dedicated to Baba (the one that has "obabila" i.e. gave birth) i.e. Grand Mother, in folk religion of BiH. A large part of ritual practice of young girls and women is shaped by ritual procedure towards the plum, towards which one dedicates various prayer type formulas. From an elderly informant (Zejna Ćerimagić, 79 years of age) I found out that women in the past used to make and leave maslenica at the foot of the plum tree as alms for healthy birth. I am of the opinion that in that ritual, besides the mentioned, is hidden a thanks for the achieved fertility but also the desire for protecting the mother and her child. Ritual was usually needed since spells with baking maslenica on plum branches reveals a dualistic nature of the Grand Mother, her alter ego, which gives gifts but also takes away fertility and birth.

Studying the role of maslenica in the cult of fertility I noticed its pronounced role and some very interesting beliefs about it. In Tešanj it is claimed that maslenica "is the oldest pie in the world" and this claim opens the door for further analysis. Preparation of juhki or jufki (phyllo dough) and the process of spreading the dough was brought by the Ottomans to Bosnia, and generally the Balkans. According to some historical data the method of spreading dough with a roller pin was first seen in Turkey sometime around the 16th century. That's why it is perfectly clear that until the occupators have arrived in BiH, maslenica never existed. However, there remains the question why our elders i.e. women saw in maslenica the perfect offer for the Grand Mother? The answer is probably hidden in the way it is prepared. Traditionally maslenica was made out of, as her name suggests, butterfat, and it could replace bread. We shouldn't forget that the cow (milk, cheese, butter) was dedicated to the Grand Mother. On the table the dough was well oiled with melted butter, once the dough has soaked the oil, it is stretched by hand across the table. It then usually crosses over the edge of the table. Then follows the rearrangement from each side of the table, which is four times, and then another rearrangement follows, this time less, so that it is smaller, when visually we get a shape of an opening i.e. vagina. Laying the pie in the casserole, which is in the shape of a circle or stomach of the pregnant woman, speaks volume of the symbolism.


Maslenjak, maslenica or masnica

In descriptions of other rituals with maslenica we notice its direct connection with fertility and care for children. Namely, during the preparation of meals for a wedding, maslenica is always made and is offered alongside other meals to the newlyweds. After the first marital night and defloration of the bride, the remnants of maslenica would often be snatched away by the inhabitants of the household and guests because of the belief that all those that eat at least one bite of it will not have stomach aches during that year. To a woman that has given birth one usually brings maslenica on that or the next day, and if she gives birth to a daughter, she would ritually turn the maslenica upside down in the casserole before eating it so that she can give birth to a son next time. We shouldn't forget to mention the traditional statement of Bosnian women which are known for the ease of giving birth that they would now "give birth to a child for a maslenica with a grilled chicken!" If the child is having difficulty in making its first steps then the mother would mix dough for maslenica, spread it over the table and take the child by his hands and would lead him slowly across the dough, so that the child can leave footprints on the dough. After that the dough is rearranged and baked and the maslenica is eaten by all the household inhabitants, etc.

Because of the described magical and supernatural clashes caused by spite, envy and often the instinct for survival and existence, a great fear has been developed, especially among the female population, and the need for various taboos which would ensure healthy birth but also peace in the home. Repercussions is best demonstrated in the belief that the most life dangerous sihir (spells) are the ones created during Babine i.e. first 40 days after birth. They are difficult to cure and both the woman and the child can fall seriously ill. Also, still today in rural areas it is claimed that the woman can go mad from the shira (postpartum depression). Battle between the two rivals which live with the same husband, was so widespread that not even new-borns were spared and it used to happen, according to stories of old Bosnian people, since the inoća used to perform dark magic over the stake which was used to tie livestock in the field during grazing, which she would then use to place underneath the child's crib after she has completed certain magical rituals. Children would often die quickly after such spells.

Attacks on sexual strength, as we can conclude, are the basic parts of magical folklore of the Bosnian people. But, men were not spared of magical procedures because of the general belief that the one that rules over someone's sexual power actually rules over them. In the past there existed a somewhat unusual custom of intentional postponing defloration when shirbaza (old lady that practices magic), would heat a sowing needle on the fire and bend it into a circle and give it to the bride. She would place such a needle under her tongue which apparently stopped her husband from achieving an erection. Apparently, such a woman would discretely commend herself that she was still a virgin, with which a certain domination was achieved over the thing which is colloquially called "male strength".

Main reason for child mortality in the early age was considered to be black magic and misfortune. That's why various prophylactic measures were undertaken, out of which the most frequent one was wearing an amulet constructed by an Imam, known for his gift in healing and helping. Tilsumi, shorter or longer citations from the Qur'an, were valued, mixed with mysterious names and symbols, which the Imam, with the desire to cure sterility, would usually make seven, which were according to his instructions burnt, placed in water or under the pillow, etc.

Besides the mentioned, sacrificial rituals were also performed, which are remnants of archaic pagan beliefs that a blood offering can only neutralise the power of evil and postpone death. When someone's children are dying, "they're not kept", to the next child that is born a kurban (offering in the form of a young ram) is slaughtered for him on the first day of Eid, on the place where the wife has given birth. The skin of the ram was usually given to the mosque or was given to a neighbour and the meat was placed in a caldron and was boiled until the bones separated from the meat by itself. Then all the bones, large and small would be gathered and placed in a casserole and so buried in the ground while the meat was shared. Namely, it was allowed to the inhabitants of the household to eat just a piece or two of the meat and the remainder of it had to be distributed. With this one would ensure the life of the new-born child.

Magic, religion and infertility

Describing folk beliefs dedicated to the issue of fertility and magical encouragement of fertility, Rabija Hasanbegović (Folk belief for ensuring fertility in marriage) observes well that Bosnian folk usually ascribe infertility to women, while it is rare to even consider sterility in men. This is of course a product of patriarchy but also an archaic understanding of women as a symbol of fertility. Humanity is taken away from barren women and they are mockingly called jalovica (fruitless), barren, neroduša (childless). Under such social pressure women tried to achieve motherhood obsessively without choosing a method.

Anthropological research, such as this, clearly show us how a longer time period of our history there was no professional medical knowledge and with that no tolerance towards persons, primarily women, which had this issue. Social scrutiny doesn't stop with humiliation of women but the entire family, namely, people believed that infertility in women was god's punishment or a cause of some curse. That's why a woman that couldn't get pregnant should give alms during nine months in the hope that this good deed will be rewarded with motherhood.

In the past there were numerous ways with which women tried to stimulate fertility. In order to get pregnant she would fumigate herself over balsam herb (Tanacetum balsamita) when her period ends, before she has intercourse. Some of them practiced a method of mutual bathing with their husbands in water in which they previously placed nine splinters from the woodpile "so that children fall off of her like splinters.", then red and white turnip and "herb which grows in water and whose leaves are blinking." In certain customs social solidarity is noted with barren women to which fruits were gifted from a fruit grafted in spring, by people who own the fruit tree. According to folk belief, after the consumption of the fruit the woman would, during the same year, stay pregnant, therefore it was a good deed to give fruit to such women who desperately wanted to become mothers. In order become pregnant women would drink coffee with violet seeds, etc.

In the desire to achieve motherhood the women used both religious (their domination) and magical practice. The best example of how women from all three Bosnian constitutional people around Jajce spurred fertility was recorded in the ethnological work called Customs related to birth published by GZM from Sarajevo:

"Barren woman is looking for a cure for her flaw. Recently, she would usually turn to a priest for inscriptions and use divination. In Dobretići one would use this: when a woman lays with her husband, she covers her husband and then herself. She does this for nine Tuesday's. Whenever the husband wakes at night, he should uncover his wife up until the knees. In Lendići: one should take water which "praz" (castrated) a horse pukes from his mouth when it raises its head when he drinks water, place ground hooves of a donkey inside it, and the woman should then drink that water. In Grbavica; barren women wowed to celebrate saint Sisoja (July 19th) or; not to sleep with her husband on the eve of Sunday or holidays; she should bathe on St. George's day before the sun with water "omeljom" (small drops of water which sprinkle from the watermill rudders), fast on young Sundays."

In Nevesinje and its surrounding a barren woman would drink catnip (Nepeta cataria) on an empty stomach, or to gird the herbs. A woman which cannot get pregnant "zapne"easily should fumigate herself over baked coffee beans, in such a way that no one notices it. Desperate women visit places of worship and the woman is advised to unlock a door of a church or a mosque early in the morning. Frequent visits of the Tekke in Blagaj were recorded, as well as rituals of threading through prayer beads, which are located on a tomb. Women guided by an insatiable desire for motherhood go to graves and scrape dust off of tombs and later they drink it mixed in water.

Homeopathic procedures have a lot of influence in ritual beliefs of our people with the goal of achieving fertility and all that which has any connection with fertility is taken as a magical drug. It is good for a barren woman to lay down for a while on a maternity bed, because she can stay pregnant more easily, it is recommended for her to eat a stew which contains boiled eggs of a fertile male animal, such as an ox or rooster, or to place some dried uterus of a rabbit in her stew.

A woman which has recently given birth is ascribed powers of fertility and the apple which she has bitten is given to barren women to eat. As we have seen in a folk song a barren woman is often compared to a fruit tree which bears no fruit and she is looking for a fruitful tree, she bends down its branch and passes underneath it three times uttering: "as you are not barren so I will also not be barren", etc.