Hazrat Fatima in shamanism

 Hazrat Fatima, the daughter of the prophet Muhammad, besides her husband Ali Ibn Talib known among the Bosnian people as hazrat Alija, is a mystical figure and a cult character in shamanism, but also inseparable segment of folk medicine and tradition, where she is a spiritual mother and protector to all stravarke. We are lead to this conclusion by numerous examples from the practice, the most noticeable one is found in one of her names which is Fatima Ana or “Fatima Mother”, from the Turkish word anna or mother. Namely, every time a Turkish woman-shaman i.e. ocakli-kadin pours molten lead in a vessel with water she says: “This is not my hand, this is the hand of Fatima Ana!” alluding that she is only the medium or instrument through which the healing power of the prophets daughter will flow.

Similar ritual practice exists in the tradition of Bosnian stravarke. At the very beginning, before the exorcist formulas and prayers are uttered above the vessel with water, with a quiet voice the stravarka utters this formula: “My dear Hazrat Fatima, my dear mother, tell your father Muhammad...”. The meaning of this magical sentence is actually a desire for supernatural intermediation, with the goal of securing the necessary support from god in order to heal successfully: stravarka asks Hazrat Fatima, which she calls her mother, who in turn will ask Muhammad and he will ask Allah.




Lucky hand

Writing about the tradition of the Bosnian people, Antun Hangi in his chapter about folk medicine touched on the healing motif of the hand, he recorded: “Woman (stravarka), which is known for her knowledge of exorcism and rituals of lead melting, and especially if she is sevapli, of a lucky hand, is very respected since she can do a lot of things if god wills it, from annulling negative effects of evil eyes, cure the frightened, and also she can marry a girl or a boy.”

Researching shamanistic tradition of curing among the Bosnian folk, especially the ritual aspects of the cult “hand that cures” I noticed that they are familiar in numerous aspects. For example, in the exorcist formula which stravarke use to cure a diseased stomach, they say: “Come on, Hazrat Fatima, you bring your pen and with it...”. Without a doubt in this magical request, most reliably defined is the role of the prophet’s daughter who is called upon for help.

Instrument of healing is still the hand but this time it holds the most representative prop-symbol of the shamanistic cult of healing and that is a chicken’s feather, which can also be a bird’s. The motif of a feather was used by all cultures connected to worship of nature and its forces, from the Indians, Maya, Inca all up to the ancient Egyptians. Furthermore, feather like silver is dedicated to the moon, to the female deity and embodiment of the Grand Mother, whose substitute in monotheism became the virgin Mary, Hazret Fatima and sometimes Hawa or Eve.

In a formula for curing recorded in Velika Kladuša, at the very end, an interesting verse is mentioned which literally says: “as light as a feather as clear as silver...” which probably best represents the role and symbolism of the feather in the shamanistic cult of healing. It is quite evident that before the advent of monotheism; in the religion of our Illyrian forefathers, the cult of healing under the patronage of the Grand Mother was well developed, which is a logical sequence under the immediate influence of matriarchy. Women were and still are the best keepers of folk tradition, old language and customs, especially the ones dedicated to healing and magic, which is a result of an old practice of matriarchy in our region. Still today, through old traditions, shorter and longer forms of magical formulas, one can find and hear a lot of old words and phrases which are a priceless linguistic treasure.

Examples of the dominant role of the spiritual mother of healing do not end there. During the banishment of the red wind (Erizipel) stravark, while burning oakum on the body of the diseased, repeats:

Salamaikum, Hazrat Fatima!
What are you doing?
Burning, burning, to burn!
Nine, eight, seven, ....

In abbreviated form of the name i.e. Fata she is often mentioned in basma against snake bite such as:

Fata, Fata kissed gold,
in gold more gold!


At times a mother which washed the face of a spellbound child would utter:

I’m not washing dreams and worry
but evil eyes and insomnia,
with one hand I and with the other Hazrat Fatima,
mašalna inšalna!

Hidden meaning of this ritual is obviously located in the undefined statement which hand represents which mother and probably with that one wanted to confuse and scare evil with the arcane strength of the indescribable parental love and care, in front of which it must recoil.

Another interesting aspect from folk tradition in which the prophylactic role of the prophet’s daughter is emphasized, is evident in the example of borrowing a garden seed for sowing. Namely, when a housewife gives as a gift a seed from the garden she utters:

To you Hazrat Fatima gave a name and to me a seed!

She does this as a precautionary measure so that she may have yields (crop) in her garden.

Saint with three roses

Fatima is often the name of famous stravarke, it was recorded that the name was often given out of love to a daughter, who was an only child. Among the folk it is believed that women with this name often give birth to boys which is obviously alluding to Hasan and Husein, the sons of Hazrat Fatima. From the now deceased stravarka, Fatima D. I once heard that the most powerful amulets for curing are created by Imam’s named Hasan, which can be connected to the story above.

Hazrat Fatima herself in folk tradition of BiH is tied to fortune telling using bean beads, where it is claimed that she used to practice this mantic discipline. This is why before divination the Bosnian diviner gathers 41 bean beads in her hand and holding them in front of her mouth she utters in a low voice the first verse of the Qur’an, and in the end she offers the prayer to Hazrat Fatima’s soul. Allegedly, with this she blesses the bean beads and strengthens them, placing them under the direction of a higher force so that it can correctly show someone’s destiny, since as they claim: “beans are never wrong, only the one using them!”.

During the period when I visited local stravarke often with the desire to gather as much information about their work as possible, I met Alija K. now deceased, she told me about her unusual meeting with Hazrat Fatima. According to her she dreamt of her one night and she described her as “an extremely beautiful young woman, with large dark eyes and white face, which was adorned with a white scarf which had three roses tied to it”.

Allegedly, she was told in that dream that she should continue the practice of curing her mother, a wise woman which was literate during the beginning of the twentieth century in a conservative society such as Bosnia. What was especially interesting in her presentation was a love recipe for having your husband come back to you, in this formula the main protagonists are Hazrat Fatima and her husband Ali, and their connection with the holiest plant for the Bosnian people – sedefil (Ruta graveolens – rue).


Hand of Hazrat Fatima

Although the origin of the most famous amulet in Islam, the so called “Hand of Hazrat Fatima (Fatima’s hand)” , is older than Islam itself, also of Judaism and Christianity, and dates back to the ancient gods whose depictions showed them with a raised right hand, signifying divine authority and power, legends about the origin are an ideal depiction how through time of the human civilization, religion never lost its primary purpose of inspiring man and of giving his life a purpose.

According to an Arabic tradition, when Hazrat Fatima found out of her husband’s infidelity, she was so distraught and in tears that she burned her palm and fingers while mixing a hot mixture of sugar and almonds. She placed her injured hand on her chest, close to her heart and breathing deeply she said: “Dear Allah, give me strength to keep calm and peaceful, protect me and help me, I trust only you!”. As the legend continues these sincere words of an emotionally and physically hurt woman who was humiliated touched Allah that he immediately blessed her hand (berekat) and from then on the motif of her hand has become the most popular and famous amulet across the Middle and Central East and even further.

The hand of Hazrat Fatima is especially beloved among Arabian women which carry it around their necks believing that it will bring them good luck, love, fertility and keep their marriage. Men carry this amulet so that “their paths open up” i.e. so that they can achieve success and prosperity on journeys, in business, commerce, exams, ... Both sexes carry the hand of Hazrat Fatima because of its apotropaic meaning – it protects them from spellbound eyes, magic and evil spirits.

Fatima and Ali

 It is known that individual symbols are universal and irreplaceable in the history of human spirituality and one of them is the hand that represents true power of creation and spiritual strength. Certain anthropologists believe that the origin of this amulet dates back to the oldest known cultures and should be sought in the raised hand of the Phoenician god of fertility Baal or in the depictions of certain Egyptian deities, where such a position demonstrates supernatural and royal affiliation. Divine motive of a raised hand was present among Assyrian where there was a common prayer “nish kati” – “raising of the hand”, while for example in the Egyptian text “Book of doors” on the alabaster sarcophagus of Seti I in the museum of Sir John Soane it is written “Large hand” it signifies supreme authority over the sky and earth.

I probably won’t exaggerate if I state that the amulet known as Fatima’s hand is the most popular one in southern Africa where it is used as a universal symbol of protection against evil eyes, which is after all a part of the folklore according to which the motif of an opened palm has an absolute domination over such forms of evil. Almost all present magical ornament across Morocco, Algeria and Tunis is a symbol of a hand painted with henna on the entrance to a house or a wall of the house. When constructed for women then Fatima’s hand must be made out of silver, while in other opportunities it can be created on wood, metal, shells or added as an addition to the amulet created out of chapters of the Qur’an. In Algeria and Iran it is believed that Fatima’s hand has the power to protect from crocks and generally negative people. It is usually made out of the following seven metals, which in astrology are connected to the seven planets: gold, silver, copper, iron, zinc, lead and tin.

In Egypt amulets made out of turquoise in the form of an eye or hand have, according to belief, prophylactic characteristics to protect a human against evil eyes, and how deeply rooted this belief is in everyday life can perhaps be best witnessed by scenes across Cairo, or across Egypt where we can see these amulets on the entrance door to a house or rear-view mirrors inside cars. Fatima’s hand is often called Khamsa, which signifies number 5, otherwise a holly number in Shiite tradition, where the five fingers represent five members of the holly family: Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hasan and Husein. Namely, while the focus among the Sunnis is only on Muhammad, among the Shiite, Alawites and other Islamic directions, respect is given to all of the above. (1)



It is very interesting to note that individual lands of the Maghreb have in their national features (a flag or crest) magical symbols which signify power and protection such as the pentagram sign on the flag of Morocco. Crest of Algeria adopted in 1976 has in its middle, underneath the rising sun the hand of Hazrat Fatima (2). In both lands Fatima’s hand is connected to prophylactic statements such as: “Five in your eyes!”, “Five on you!”, “Five in the face of my enemies!”, etc.


Hazrat Fatima as a cult symbol

It is necessary to emphasize that the popularity of Fatima in the Islamic world is actually a phenomena if we remember how dominant the historical marginalization of women among the Arabs, Persians and Jews has been. (3) Probably the first and most important reason is hidden in the fact that prophet Muhammad had seven children out of which only Fatima lived longer than him, and in accordance he showed her the most affection. (4) About Muhammad’s love for Fatima, Hazrat Aisha says: “Prophet rose in front of Fatima, he would welcome her, kiss her and offered her his sear. When he would enter her room she would rise to meet him, she would take his hand, welcome him and kissed him and she would offer her seat to him. She entered his room when he was on his death bed, he still welcomed her and kissed her.” (Buhari & Muslim).

Although Fatima is a cult symbol and the manifestation of female spiritual energy in shamanism with her indispensably appears Ali Ibn Talib, her husband, through whom the tradition of transmission of Islam to people was preserved. He also represents a cult character and is given mystical powers. Bosnian tradition claims that Hazrat Ali was born on second august and that day in BiH is called Aliđun (Aligun : from the Turkish word gun which means day). Fatima and Ali are often the main protagonists in numerous magical formulas such as this: “Hazrat Fatima plants flowers, Hazrat Ali encloses the garden…” In another formula which is uttered when planting vegetables it is said: “Hazrat Ali plants the garden, what did he plant – may it all sprout! Veledalin amin”. In both examples this holly couple is directly tied to vegetation and nature itself which undoubtedly alludes to the cult of fertility which has undergone reforms with the advent of Christianity and Islam, obviously a substitute for the divine couple Vidasus and goddess Thana was obtained in Fatima and her husband Ali.

Names Hazrat Fatima and Ali as marital partners, are present in love magic, despite the evident condemnation of magic work in Islam, numerous people are liberal about spells which are meant to preserve a marriage and a family. In Bosnia for example they’re not considered negative, instead they’re seen as necessary so that, usually the wife, can avert her husband from his mistress and save the family (children) in the process. It appears that other Islamic states have similar views. A wife in Malaysia which wants to prevent her husband from cheating with other women, she would make love to him on a Thursday night and after coitus she would use her middle finger of her right hand to rub her vagina and collect some sperm and vaginal fluid, which she will place inside a drink which she will then offer to her husband or lover. As soon as she dips her forefinger in the drink she utters: “E, mani, jangan kau menyukai yang lain kecuali diriku sendiri seperti selama ini, saya sajalah yang dipujinya sama seperti Ali di hadapan Fatima, berkah kun fayakun.”

In Iran and Turkey there are numerous legends about Ali, successor to Muhammad, and the most famous one was where he was familiar with and proficient in occult knowledge. To his son’s Hasan and Husein, when they were children, he created an amulet which they carried around their neck with the goal of protecting them against evil eyes. Fatima and Ali are attributed with a prophetic gift, she allegedly could interpret bean beads and he knew how to interpret figures in coffee grounds. This is probably the reason why we find their names in fal-basma i.e. formulas which are uttered before divination.

Note

(1) It is a horrifying fact that in Saudi Arabia, where Wahhabism rules, or more accurately a twisted version of Islam, out of which the forces of ISIS and Al Qaida sprung up; in such a society carrying amulets was pronounced as blasphemous and superstitious, and such an act is usually punished by traditional public execution where the accused people get their heads cut off by sabres.

(2) In Sudan, Fatima’s hand is a ubiquitous graphical symbol which can be seen on official forms of the government and police.

(3) Primitivism and barbarism that is present in Saudi Arabia is a product of a grotesque monarchy, which besides an artificial creation of Israel, represents the source of all evil in the Middle east. An interesting data is that both bloodthirsty and inhumane dictatorships have been put into place by the colonial superpower the UK with the goal of twisting and degrading the entire Islam as a religion and to destabilise the Middle East for a long period of time. Do not forget that the root of terrorism, besides in Saudi Arabia and Israel, has been created by Mossad and Israeli nationalists with the goal of endangering the Arabian and Persian peoples which are a majority. Of course, with the selfless help from the US, which donates annually millions of dollars to Israel all the while the US now has 50 million people who are registered as living on the boarder of poverty. It is absurd that to the American government 4.5 million lives of the Jews in Israel can be more important than their own citizens which pay tax regularly. In the end a question can be posed as to how the American people can allow that the money, which should improve their living standards, can go to the militaristic government of Israel and towards the realisation of the plan of killing the Palestinian people. How bloodthirsty people the Jews really are, their primary purpose is a genocide doctrine which has been murdering the Palestinian people for centuries, can be best seen by the fact that whenever a fire breaks out in Israel, it turns out that they don’t have Canadair planes for extinguishing the flames, and they plead for help to other countries. Of course, despite this fact they gladly display the possession of the newest fighter planes and tanks which they use gladly to kill and massacre the Palestinian people, destroying their homes in the process. I believe that it is not necessary to further elaborate on what type of people they are and what they enjoy. They’re not for peace and they’ll never be. Jewish dogma is that only they have the privileged status of a victim and that the suffering of other people is not important in comparison to them, and in accordance to this no one should criticise them even if they killed half of the world’s population. However, we should all be aware that the Jews are far from victims, they’re executioners and killers. And they should be called as such.

(4) It is a historical fact that Islam gradually managed to ban the inhumane practice of the Arabs of killing female children, which spurred poverty and the inability of offering dowries, but because of the traditional antagonism towards women, Islam didn’t succeed in bringing equality between men and women. Today’s Muslims across Middle East don’t see anything wrong in dressing like the westerners and in using all the benefits of the western civilization, but regardless of that fact, according to their hypocritical stance, Muslim women should dress as if they were in the middle ages.

Secret of the transfer of knowledge about healing

 Healing tradition where a dominant position is healed by the hearth is present in shamanism of the peoples of Central Asia and Turkey in rituals of healing with fire, lead or wax melting, as well as utilisation of the ashes from the hearth. It is interesting how the mysterious healer Lokman, known in Bosnian folk tales, specifically the one where he has the power to communicate with plants through snake ashes, is mentioned as a third cult figure in Islamic-Shamanistic cult of healing. It is claimed that he spread the cult of healing using his hands, and perhaps the most interesting fact is that the 31st chapter of the Qur'an carries his name (Arabic Luqman), which could be a coincidence, or not.

In numerous Sufi circles that practice is visible and is presented as hereditary skill which stems from the Prophet himself. Namely, as it is believed in Sufism, at one point a mysterious voice from the fire spoke to Muhammad (s.a.v.s.) and gave him directions on how he can cure people using ash from the fire mixed with some water. The prophet listened to the voice and from that day on, he healed numerous diseased people but over the years he got tired and transferred that gift of healing to his daughter Hazrat Fatima holding her hand (often called Fatima al-Zahra or Bibi Fatima) (5).





Initiation into Fatima’s cult

Initiation into the cult of healing always occurs in such a way that a certain (chosen) person dreams of Hazrat Fatima, which then states her thoughts and gives her the necessary knowledge and power. As soon as that person awakes it “feels” and “knows” that it can help other people, knowingly becoming the catalyst of divine power. Here, as we may conclude, a larger accent is placed on the healing powers themselves and not on props or ritual movements since, for example, most of the Turkish odžaklija repeat the following formula in most of their rituals: “This is not my hand…”

According to which definition Fatima herself chooses her future healers is still unknown, but an example of one case hints that with true desire and will that gift can be consciously attracted. One female healer, odžaklija, which is known as “Fatima’s servant” told her story about the initiation, which is allowed to be published and shared:

“I had my first calling by Fatimah (a.s) about 14 years ago, but I was at the time not educated in anything to do with Islam nor Shamanism nor Sufism. Indeed, I was in my own way an atheist, believing only in rationality. That I was thinking so often about Fatimah I put down to some historical books I had read and which had fascinated me. Still, I had to think about Fatimah all the time for many months but then I forgot. Then my life took a turn into chaos and I had serious calamaties hitting me. A bad relationship, abuse, the loss of my home, financial ruin and bad health. It was then, in utter desperation, that I remembered Fatimah and I called out for her in a dream and she came, and after shouting at me for abandoning her she gave me her hand and I was set on the path I am on now. And I recovered everyhing I lost with her aid.”

Handing the knowledge (power) of healing to her successors is recorded in Bosnian tradition where an old stravarka holding her props gives them as a gift to one of the household inhabitants with the words: “Here you go, daughter in law, you continue, I can no longer do it!”. Namely, as I heard from several old ladies which practiced the ritual of lead melting, due to old age and disease or physical inability, stravarka would lose the will, but also the strength to perform the ritual and heal successfully, therefore she stops her work transferring her secret of healing to another, younger person. Sometimes the process of choosing and transmission of healing powers is successful and sometimes it is not, since if the stravarka doesn’t choose wisely who could serve as her substitute, the supernatural powers which facilitate healing usually subside and disappear.

According to my knowledge the surest sign that transfer was successful is evident if the person is successful in growing plants, especially flowers, but also vegetables in the garden. Anyway, all rituals of initiation into healing, among all peoples from Balkan, are closely tied to the ritual which involves a plant or trees. It is also logical since the healing ability is supported by spiritual elements in nature whether they’re called faeries, or some specific religious person such as Hazrat Fatima.

What is especially fascinating with such healing practice is the fact that the house in which a successful stravarka lives is well off and prosperous, since such a person attracts people and money. Besides prosperity, a person with knowledge of healing summons and spreads positive energy, therefore around its house grass, herbs and trees grow exuberantly and the flowers have a more intensive smell and colour, which is in and of itself a product of shamanistic practice of connecting man with nature.

However, although initiation into spiritual healing can come by means of Hazrat Fatima through a dream, it also arrives through transfer from generation to generation, by an older healer giving way to a younger one. But, in the end, it is necessary to mention another version of transfer, the initiation of Hazrat Fatima herself into spiritual medicine which can be heard from the tribes in east Turkmenistan. They confirm, in a subtle way, that the gift of healing is always of a supernatural nature and it doesn’t come easy for the one receiving it, a sacrifice is usually required:

“The daughter of the prophet sat in the shadow of a tree when a yellow bird descended from heaven and stopped on one branch of this tree. The branch became dry immediately. Not long afterwards the bird left the tree and the shadow of it’s wings covered the legs of Bibi Fatimah and she became sick for seven days. Since no one was able to cure her, the Prophet asked God for help. Then, 40 perfect men were send by Allah to cure her. Coming from the heavens, seven among these forty reached the earth, alighting near a mausoleum. They put up a banner in the house of Bibi Fatimah who made some circumambulations around it and then recovered her health.”(6)


Note

(5) I noticed that the name Bibi (Fatima) is mostly used in Pakistan, Bangladesh and among the Muslims of India. The name Bibi itself can be found in the beliefs of Bosnian gypsies and it is an abbreviation of Bibija – the greatest female deity. Bibi has a dualistic character and is the manifestation of plague. Gypsies consider her to be their protector, according to legends in the ancient past she saved them from the plague in Egypt. Bibi in the language of gypsies has a few meanings: plague, weasel, daughter in law. Bibi (aunt) is the mother of the god, she walks in rags, with a stick and is followed by a dog. At early dawn, while the gypsies are sleeping, she passes through their village and chases away the disease from them. /Some beliefs of nomad gypsies/ GZM, Sarajevo 1958.

(6) Tierry Zarcone, “Shamanism and Islam” .

Neutralising negative energy - melting of lead

Though I explained in the beginning of the text the side effects of working with love magic, we should note that Bosnian stravarke or stravaruše warn that a clear indicator of a magical attack is when someone dreams that he is being attacked by one or more horses, or another type of animal, which is according to them more than clear sign that the negative energy started to directly influence the psyche of the person.

Magical cleansing is usually performed over the clothes which you carried during a ritual. It is believed that the ritual with the lead not only cleanses the person and the surrounding with its prophylactic characteristics, but also blocks all negative agents which could harm the person in the future. Though the ritual of elimination of evil can be practiced during any time of the day, from dusk till dawn, though individual days in the week have their advantages: Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, around noon, when the sun is in the zenith "when it calms down". If the ritual is performed on Tuesday then it is recommended that it should be done the following two Tuesdays or it can be combined, two Tuesdays and one Friday or similarly.

In order to release the accumulated magical energy, especially if you frequently perform rituals, then it would be preferable to practice the ritual of cleansing at least once a month. At the same time you will neutralise symptoms from yourself such as stress which will be reflected in better sleep, mental calmness, etc.

For proper performance of the ritual you will need the following props:

a piece of lead,
vessel with spring water,
metal spoon,
red rag,
three matches.

Use one piece of lead, of such a size that it can fit inside a metal spoon. The lead needs to be clean, washed in water and dried. Holding the lead in the right hand utter a prayer from your religion, such as Our father or Ya-sin. With that you infuse metal with the positive energy which will be free and channelled properly during the process of melting and becoming hard again. At the end of the prayer, blow vigorously in the direction of the lead.
Once you have done this, circle the lead three times around your head with your right hand, clockwise, starting always in such a manner to touch the part of the forehead between the eyebrows which, in Bosnian witchcraft, is called "star" or "house of the star". This ancient Illyrian belief about the connection of stars in the sky and the humans on earth is deeply rooted in beliefs of Bosnian magic and that's why they represent one of its main principles. With that we are certainly a step closer to unravelling the secret of where the ritual of melting lead comes from which our Illyrian forefathers respected, attributing magical powers of healing and influencing human destinies to it.

The next important prop is water. Spring water has special powers of mother earth and that's why it is most often used in rituals. Spring water is best taken immediately after sunrise or in the evening, after sunset, since its healing properties are greatest then.
You should perform the ceremony facing the door of the room, in order to allude ritually that the negative energy is leaving your home. Spread the red rag on the table first and on it a piece of clothing you wore during a magical ritual, usually your sweater. On the part of the sweater where your heart is when you put it on, place the vessel with spring water. Place the lead into the metal spoon and start melting it on the fire.
Utter this magic formula above the vessel with water:

I salute you good ghosts,
I salute you water, general,
you have great power to take down trees, rocks and mountains
and wash from them (remove) spellbound eyes and magic -
help and remove all evil from me.
Everything that came from the Jinn and the devil
let it go to the high mountain tops,
there were the rooster doesn't sing,
where the cow sounds,
where the ox cannot be heard,
where the bread is not baked,
there all evil should remain!

While you are uttering this formula move the vessel with your right hand in a circle, clockwise. With this ritual gesture one imitates the sun's movement and alludes to its victorious power over evil and darkness.

Pour the molten lead into the vessel with the spring water but in such a manner as to circle it three times, clockwise, the spoon around the edge of the vessel and then pour the lead in the middle. When touching cold water the molten lead can produce a strong sound and every time it will form one or more shapes which reveal in which amount the negative energy influenced you.

By analysing the formed shapes of lead we can come to some very interesting information about how and in what way the negative (magical) energy has influenced the person but for a detailed insight into these lead forms requires a special chapter and this time I will focus on the most important symbol of neutralising and that is the so called heart (see picture).



Sometimes it can happen that during all three processes of pouring lead the symbol of the heart is present but more often it happens once or twice. If at the bottom of the vessel you don't find the symbol of the heart during all three pouring processes, then you are a victim of a stronger magical attack or activity. But no matter you should not worry yourself because after you consume the water in which the lead was poured , your body (aura) will be cleansed and the symbol of the heart will appear, at least once, in a new ritual. Bosnian stravarke recommend to pour some water into the shampoo in order to cleanse your body from the negative energy during every shower and your organism by drinking it.

After you have poured the lead into the water you will pick it up and return it into the spoon and melt it on the fire again. During that time you will lower the vessel with water down the sweater to the part of the stomach and repeat the magical formula above the water. You will repeat the same process the third time while moving the vessel to the edge of the sweater.

After the last pouring of the lead the ritual is ended using three matches. One by one the matches are lit above the vessel with the water, while the text of the formula is repeated, and the matches are carefully carried in circle around the edge of the vessel and then they are extinguished in the water.

I don't light the matches
I'm burning from myself
all spellbound eyes, hostile activity, magical attacks.
Whatever is directed at me, addressed, framed and manufactured
let it fall off of me and disappear!
With god's help and my formula veledalin amin!

As you can conclude from the text of the formula itself this activity serves to cleanse with the element of fire which has the power to scare but also burn accumulated evil energy. Pour the water from the vessel into an empty bottle and the rest of the lead and matches scoop and throw down a river. You will consume the water the following few days, it is recommended three, five, seven or nine days, in the morning after you wake up and in the evening before sleep.

Bosnia, Illyrians and tombstones – beginning of European civilization

Continuity of our people from the old days up to today was not in question, and it was part of the scientific discourse until the end of the XIX century. Therefore, up until that period everyone knew that south Slavs were actually Illyrians. However, after the Illyrian name, crest with a crescent moon and tri colour were banned by the emperors decree, by Germanic-Hungarian political decision the progeny of the ancient Illyrians were declared as Albanians, and south Slavs all of a sudden became “settlers from Carpathians”.

Ancient Illyrians

 

Since long we are aware that Bosnia and Herzegovina represents an ancient land with its tombstones, with its ancient people, which surprised Europe with its unexplored world once it was occupied by Austro-Hungary in 1878. For the first time, entire Europe was aware that on the territory of BiH there was a unique cult, anthropological and national space which possesses the most imposing and the oldest megalithic culture in whole of Europe. The occupying force did not like this, it actually presented them a large problem: size and hoariness of our culture made Western Europe inferior, and their civilizations mission absurd. This is why a systematic plan of twisting historical facts was put into place, which was an easy task taking into consideration the pretty bad military, economic, demographic but also educational condition of the people living in BiH at that time.


Map of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Stećci

The greatest historical lie which brought the greatest suffering in the Balkans is the one about the influx of Slavs to this area, this myth started with systematic destruction of the Illyrian people and their ancient culture. Slavs were therefore always unsophisticated and primitive people, and their name comes from the word “servant, slave”, these people in reality don’t have structures nor cultural achievements, and they were always to the “civilized” and colonial Europe a symbol of barbarism and primitivism, to which we can attest to today. Namely, when we would performs a poll across Italy, Germany, France or Britain on the topic of Slavs we could hear some pretty unpleasant comments and judgements, which is a result of traditional belief but also ranking of European peoples, civilized– western and primitive – eastern peoples.



Until the beginning of the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina the theory of the great immigration was not seriously considered until the ruin of the Illyrian movements happened, this is best described by the historian Bogoslav Šulek (1816-1895). According to him, first the immigrants were of the same birth as the Illyrians, and second they could not outnumber the Illyrian aboriginals which inhabited the entire Yugoslavian area, and even further than that. Dr. Tibor Živković (1966-2013) also confirmed that during the VI and VII century only a couple of thousand people migrated and not hundreds of thousands, this Serbian historian of the newer generation estimated that during that period the part of immigrated people among the aboriginals did not exceed 3%.


Croatian historian Dr. Neven Budak similarly concludes that the older historiography mistakenly believed that the ancient aboriginals were deported and exterminated in large numbers, with a minority staying in mountainous regions, coastal areas and islands. According to him, modern research in various areas proved that aboriginals survived in greater numbers than was previously presumed. Bosnian historian Đuro Besler also claims that 85% of the ancient inhabitants stayed. Vladimir Dvorniković in his Magnum opus “Characterology of Yugoslavs” recognises an “ancient Illyrian” in humans of the Dinaric karst.


Stećci – Illyrian tombstones

After inventing lies that Illyrians are actually Slavs another lie begins, it places the emergence of tombstones, the ancient monuments of the Illyrian culture, into the middle ages, since Western Europe cannot tolerate the fact that in BiH there is proof of the existence of the oldest culture on European soil. Implications of discovering tombstones in the XIX century is that the European roots and continuity of existence belongs to our culture, which is in fact very logical: whoever opened an ancient atlas knows that it is nowhere stated that the European culture was begotten in Berlin, London, Vienna or Paris. To prevent further political and geopolitical implications of this cognition, the truth had to be buried under the deposits of twisted narrative.



However, despite all frauds and historical rigging, gradually enlightenment in scientific circles began and extensive research of various archaeologists and experts confirm that the origin of tombstone dates back to the ancient time even prehistory. Thoughts about prehistoric origin of tombstones was shared by an Austrian geologist and researchers Heinrich Sterneck which as an Austro-Hungarian officer-geologist researched mineral wealth of Bosnia and Herzegovina and found various necropolis’ in the field. He thought that the tombstones most certainly belonged to the ancient times, since they were usually located on Illyrian piles or in their vicinity and that they’re old as the Illyrian burial mounds. The other researcher Alexandar Sapieha spoke about tombstones as very old monuments which resemble Egyptian and Parthian ones. German archaeologist George Wild had an interesting claim, namely the tombstones in Bosnia represent the old European cultural heritage, and that some symbols such as lilies (which are symbols on the Bosnian crest) stems from the ancient times, often as tombstones, that various types of crosses are pre-Christian and were known in the ancient culture, and Christianity adopted them at a later period, giving them Christian interpretation.



Yet, the best proof that tombstones were not built in the middle ages are the dimensions and weight of a large number of tombstones. There is no technological context which would place the practice of breaking off of 32 ton megaliths and their transportation of across great distances. Anyway, why would someone do such a thing, and not use such technology in building other structures. Kemal Čolak from Sarajevo calculated that for the construction of such a megalith which is located in Pavlovac near Sarajevo, one would need to break off a cuboid of 40 tons. A logical question can be posed, where would one find such a quarry, and what tools were used for such a purpose. It is especially interesting to mention that some locals claimed that the monument is located on the former training grounds of JNA, and that the army removed all other monuments from that location, but they didn’t have the necessary machinery to remove this one. What did the man from middle ages use to move it? With that, in the dark middle ages, times of wars, fratricide and crusades against Arian Christians, time of famine, poverty and survival, there was no time for erecting hundred thousand monuments, nor the time for laborious and long transportation and great embellishment of the monuments. Was it done in the middle ages, such a powerful and technically advanced civilization would easily fend off attackers and conquer entire Europe.

There are numerous arguments which testify that tombstones cannot be from the middle ages, though in the middle ages they were used, partially inscribed and ornamented. Here are some of them:

1. Official science until the end of the 19th century considered tombstones to be prehistoric monuments.

2. It was noted that the symbols on the monuments were tied to ancient civilizations, especially Egyptian and Parthian.

3. There are no known folk tales which speak of construction of monuments in the middle ages. However, there are numerous ones which place the process far in prehistory.

4. There are no inscriptions about the building of monuments amongst the ancient people from Dubrovnik, and it is known that the agents from Dubrovnik recorded anything which was of the smallest interest. Such inscriptions are not known in other archives of Dalmatia and Italy.

5. In heaps under the monuments we see a continuation of burials from the 20th century BCE up until the 20th century.

6. Tombs from the middle ages on necropolis’ are located near tombstones or underneath stone switches, i.e. smaller tombstones, which proves the continuity of burial from prehistory, but not their medieval origin.

7. From around 100 000 tombstones, and there were more, only 6000 of them are ornamented, and a smaller number contains various crosses which were pre-Christian and familiar in ancient times. Yet if we persist that they’re actually Christian symbols, we’re talking about a number which is smaller than 1%. The possibility of Christians avoiding cross symbols when ornamenting is simply absurd.

8. In the middle ages in Dalmatia, Bosnia and Serbia numerous wars were waged, mostly crusades against Arian Christians, during this time social-economic conditions were not ripe for erection of megalith necropolis.

9. Depiction of ancient pillars of a temple in numerous megalith monuments additionally confirms the pre-historical origin of tombstones.

10. Layers of humus on monuments which are today underground are between 30 and 80 cm, while on Roman monuments they are between 15 and 30 cm, which rather points to the Bronze age and not the Middle Ages.

11. That burial under tombstones and under a mound was a custom from the Bronze age is depicted through the verses from the Iliad and Odyssey in which burials of cremation remains are mentioned, bodies in a heap on which a tombstone was placed.

12. Tombstones are also mentioned in the Old Testament, which also points to the Bronze and Iron age.


Illyrian god Vidasus on stećak