The Witches Garden

Cikorija (Ciciborium intybus): besides nacre this is the second favourite plant among Bosnian stravarke which is used as a necessary prop when it comes to healing skin rashes for which it is believed that had originated from a person stepping over a place where dirty water, blood, urine or something else which attracts the Jinn has been spilt. After crossing over the tabooed place the person will start to feel a slight tingle in the feet, depression and suffocation. These symptoms point to the fact that an attack from a spiritual being has taken place on the human and that’s why the ritual of melting lead needs to take place. After the ritual has been performed a stem of Cikorija is submerged in water and then the part of body that has the rash is sprinkled with it.

Oman (Inula helenium): this plant has a special place in Bosnian witchcraft because of its magical potential. Still today some Bosnian women try and dig up a root of Oman before the first sounding of the cuckoo bird in spring since at that time it has the strongest prophylactic powers, according to folk belief. After it is washed and cleaned from the rest of the dirt the root is cut with a knife into smaller pieces and then a needle is threaded through in order to hang them on a wall much easier.

With a few dry pieces placed on burning coal the house is covered in its smoke, especially the bathroom.

“In a house that has more female members the bathroom is a favourite gathering place of the devils and Jinn’s, because they love to watch them take baths and comb their hair. That’s why the bathroom should be covered in Oman’s smoke each month to chase them away and to avoid inconveniences that they can cause to humans”, Alija Ćerimović a stravarka from Velika Kladuša explained.

Leaves of Oman often replace paper when it comes to amulet manufacture which is intended to cure effect of black magic. The smaller leaves are used for children and the big ones for adults. After certain prayers are scribbled on it or symbols the paper is placed inside a pillow which the person will use until healed.

Fasligan (Ocimum basilicum): because of its pleasant and nice smell this plant has prophylactic powers in Bosnian witchcraft and is dedicated to the moon. The plant was brought to the Balkans by the Ottomans using its plants to wrap pieces of meat so it can retain its freshness for longer so it can be consumed. Fasligan has properties to chase away negative energy with its smell, such as spellbound eyes, and that’s why it was traditionally harvested in autumn and stored in bouquets which were hung on house walls. If someone suspected that their children, livestock or bees were affected by spellbound eyes the plant would be set on fire and its smoke would be used to cover the person or animal. It was also used for home purification and a dry twig of Fasligan was crushed and spread across a stove in order for its smell to gradually spread across the house.

The folk belief is that a stem of Fasligan which is a year old has the power to heal sugreb. One would add a spoon of honey into a vessel filled with water and stir well, and then a stem of Fasligan would be dipped in water. A person suffering sugreb stands on a doorstep of a bathroom and sprinkles a part of its body affected by sugreb with Faslinga.

Still to this day it is believed that Fasligan planted amongst vegetables keeps the yield from spellbound eyes and defends it against snakes. Fasligan in Islamic tradition is connected to Hasan and Hussein, two sons of Hazrat Fatima.

Neven (Calendula officinalis) is a plant that is often mentioned in folk songs where a girl uses love magic in order to conquer or punish a man because of unrequited love:

“It wasn’t me Meho I swear on your life!

I only circled out your footprint in the ground

and there planted Neven.

As Neven can’t grow without Earth

so you too will not be able to live without me”

In the past in Cazin it was forbidden to plant Neven in the house where there were adolescent females since it ruined their chance to get married. But, Neven didn’t get a reputation of an unwonted plant because of this isolated case but quite the opposite. Because of its yellow colour in Bosnian witchcraft Neven was dedicated to the sun and that’s why it carries the power of attraction for money and business luck and it was always planted in pots and kept on the window of a house or business office.

Verem (Calamintha officinalis) : this Bosnian name for this plant comes from a Turkish word for sorrow and is traditionally used for treating the disease behind which lies depression.
Verem was used to make tea which was drunk by people who felt sorrow or melancholy. Especially susceptible to depression in the past were women of various age to whom it was suggested to drink tea from Verem and to go to a creek or river every day and dragging a cloth across the surface of the water to utter: “O dear water if you only knew how I felt” she would confide to the water and listen to the calming sound which would psychologically calm and relax them.

Stravna trava (Glechoma hederacea): in the ritual of fear elimination or another type of shock which appeared after a traumatic experience this plant was used. Stravarke, traditional Bosnian healers, boiled it in a vessel with water sometimes adding pieces of bread. When the water started to boil stravarka would, holding an empty pan, pour the boiling water above the head of the diseased into this pan along with the plant and she would flip that vessel upside down to create a vacuum in order for the fluids to return into the vessel. After the water cooled the diseased person would use it to wash his face and to drink it and the rest was thrown outside usually on the road or a cross road.

For curing all forms of fear a stravna herb is used whose leaves are submerged into water and is left overnight and is taken the next day as an elixir. The leaves of this plant are also given to pregnant women as a prophylactic agent, to women after birth and children which carry the leaves on their chest, to protect them against the fear and panic.

Still today most Bosnian herb healers are familiar with the effects of Stravna herb which in combination with time yields amazing results in depression treatment, treating anxiety and stress. According to the recipe of Ajla Jusupović from Foča a pinch of Verem and Strava herb is used and poured over with hot water. The vessel is covered and left to stand there for half an hour until it cools. The tea should be drunk three times a day, sweetened with honey.

Okoločep (Mandragora officinalis): this plant whose root reminds us of a human body is in use since the ancient times. The plant contains poisonous ingredients to whom large magical powers were given. Bosnian witches used okoločep for various spells and the most famous one was when the root of the plant was submerged in water for some time, then a hole is punctured inside of it and a wife would look at her husband through it. This would eliminate any interest he had for other women.

Odoljen (Valeriana officinalis) according to a legend in Bosnia and Herzegovina there were no men in the country until odoljen sprung up from the ground. Allegedly, before this miraculous plant appeared all male children would die after 24 hours. Odoljen is also called a plant of the faeries since they mentioned it often in their songs advising people to use it for medicinal purposes: “If a mother knew what odoljen is, she would never burry her son”, etc. In Bosnian witchcraft the root of this plant is used to stimulate peace and harmony inside a household. When it is plucked out of the ground the root is cleaned and dried, then crushed into powder which is placed inside food and drinks in small quantities which is consumed by all members of the family. That’s why odoljen is often called among the folk pomiruša. If a husband and wife get into a fight and don’t communicate for a longer period, then the powder of the plant is mixed with the powder of miloduh (Hyssopus officinalis). Both powders are mixed with a spoon of honey and discretely offered to the husband and wife saying:” As the miloduh mixed with odoljen and merged so shall N. and N. will merge and reconcile.”

Lindik (Gentiana cruciata): this is an old plant of Bosnian witchcraft. It was used to cure insomnia and love problems, since the old days, by putting it inside a pillow.

Šipak (Rosa Canina): according to folk belief in the fruit of šipak one could find a small white worm. Whether the worm is alive or dead it can be used to foretell how many children a woman will have in her marriage. The woman threads it through a sleeve of her clothes and places it inside a glass of water that she offers to her husband without telling him what she did. When the husband drinks the water the woman looks to see what has happened to the worm: if it stayed on the bottom of the glass then she will have only one baby with her husband, but if he drinks it with the water they will have more children.

If a small child cries often during the night and is not sick, it is considered that it is a victim of spellbound eyes, that’s why as medicine a flower of rose hip plucked with one’s eyes closed is placed next to the child’s head.

The hand of Hazrat Fatima (Anastatica hierochuntica): is a plant which grows in the lands of the Middle East and which was often brought to Bosnia by the man and women on the pilgrimage to those lands. It was brought with the intent to help during childbirth. Namely, according to belief, if the labour prolonged, this plant would be submerged inside a vessel with water and the plant would swell after soaking up a part of the water. This was interpreted that the “hand” opened and that’s why the pregnant woman was sprinkled with the water hinting at the fact that she too will “open” after that i.e. give birth.