Fear in Bosnian folk

medicine
RAIF ESMEROVIC

Studying ethnological build from the transition of the

nineteenth into the twentieth century makes it easy to
conclude that people lacking medical and scientific cognition
divided diseases into two types physical and mental. The
most widespread cause of disease, which is the predominant
cause of death, was according to people in Bosnia the
destructive effect of evil (spellbound) eyes. Right after that
came fear. Because of this reason in case a disease
occurred people would perform the ritual of extinguishing
coal in water, against evil eyes, or lead melting ritual,
because of the doubt of fear. If neither method showed
successful another solution would be sought such as
medicinal herbs, balms, priests prayers and amulets, etc.
Often, usually at the end, one would consult a doctor, but
only if he is located close to the diseased persons home.
Necessity to seek help initially from the magical-religious
domain is the product of an archaic belief according to which
the disease was considered as gods will or punishment, or a
result of aggression by evil spirits who would cause terrible
pain and other ailments by possessing the human body.
Fear from evil spirits, gods punishment, evil eyes or mental
shock is not only a reflection of the lack of enlightenment of a
time but also of its brutality. How much rooted the fear is in
the collective consciousness of this people is perhaps best
envisaged by a short summary of the history of Bosnia and
the Bosnian people, who were since ancient, Illyrian times
constantly exposed to historical turmoil, war and occupation
by larger states; according to this it is easy to conclude why
it was accumulated in such an extent. In the end it created a
psychological impression that there is a fear from fear, which
is more intense than normal.

According to definition fear is described as intense and

unpleasant negative feeling which a man experiences once he
sees or expects danger, whether the danger is real or imaginary.
It's an inborn, genetically programmed reaction to threatening or
painful stimuli. Fear is a primary emotion, just like happiness,
sorrow, surprise, anger and disgust, which means that in
different cultures it is expressed the same or in a similar manner,
i.e. that the expression of fear is not learned. Fear is not nonfunctional, just like pain whose goal is to protect the body from
further harm, fear with its intense discomfort and exclusion of all
other things focuses the body on defence of the thing that
causes fear, it places the system in a preparatory state and
spurs careful monitoring of the thing which causes the danger.
(Wikipedia)

Namely, as modern psychology claims, humans are born

with only two fears fear of hunger and noise, while all other
phobias are usually acquired during childhood and we fight
with them our entire life. Fear from hunger and noise are
tightly connected with the survival instinct, and during the
process of growing up it is supplemented with new instinctual
fears whose primary function is keeping us alive. But,
besides this positive existential purpose, fear also has a
negative side, when it acts in complete opposition against
the human, directly endangering his life.

Circle of fear begins during childhood

It is believed among the folk that the victims of fear are more
children than adults, primarily because of their physical and
mental vulnerability. For centuries in a conservative society,
like the Bosnian one, the children are brought up with fear,
i.e. certain mental torture was performed on them in order to
literally program them to act according to the hypocritical
standards of the patriarchal society in which one traditionally
suffocated all desire to be different or individualistic.
Thats why I always say that it is a bit ironic that out of the
most beautiful period in a humans life, which childhood is,
we inherit the most trauma, complexes and frustrations,
especially from parents, which we than tackle all our lives.
Before, as now, the greatest issue in breaking apart this
vicious cycle is the shallowness and almost no desire for
change. The issue of all societies is the incomprehensible
desire for constant imposition with which the human being
has contact from day one; they impose religion on us,
behaviour patterns, dress code, communication, way of
thinking, etc. Of course there should be certain life and
everyday norms of behaviour and order, so that we can live
next to each other, but there must also be a freedom of
choice, since if we dont have this a human is no longer a
human, but a robot. Im of the opinion that in this imposition,
fear has its starting position.

Based on everything that has been written so far we come to

a rational conclusion that for a better understanding of the
term of fear itself and its influence on our life, but also of
each individual, we need to pay more attention to studying
this phenomenon in human beings, and the best starting
point for such research is found in folk medicine, which
unlike the official one, is much more flexible and more open
2

minded, and in a specific way it delves into the intimacy of

each individual.

positive one.
Drawing attention is practiced in other situations, for
When fear ties itself to death

example, with the goal of calming down a crying child, which

is usually caused by fear from someone or something, which
was transferred from one generation to the other from the

It was once believed that a person will fall ill if an animal

mother onto the daughter. Namely, our grandmothers would

jumps in front of him from a bush unexpectedly or if

use the tip of their finger to pass over the childs nose when

something else surprises him in a different manner.

he was crying in order to get his/her attention, additionally

Repercussions of such a shock have an equally detrimental

they would produce a high pitched tone which is reminiscent

effect for both the psyche and body. Through some

of sound that a mouse makes (ccccc...), they would do this

empirical, but also magical experiences, the Bosnian people

by placing their lips together and drawing air through the

have always believed that due to huge shock the human

opening of the lips, this would produce a sound similar to the

body literally shrinks, or better yet contorts, which is also

sound of the letter C, this would draw attention and stop the

mentioned in other cultures where such unnatural

most intensive urge for crying getting hysterical. This would

deformities were cured with the help of massages whose

cause the child to calm down gradually*.

main purpose was to relax the body and return it to its

original form.

According to people, fear has such a destructive influence on

humans that it can even cause death. Some stravarke in

But, the effect of shock have a much more complex effect on

Bosnia claim: that in certain situations fear can get tied to

the human body and mind, which is according to folk wisdom

the patients death i.e. a person actually dies because of

best manifested by the claim that due to sudden fear certain

it, and such people cant be helped. During the Austro-

organs in the body can move, such as the heart or the

Hungarian occupation of Bosnia, Dr. Leopold Gluck wrote

gizzard. Both organs are prone to movement during such a

about this (Addition to the folk healing of Bosnia and

sudden bodily convulsion, when a person literally loses its

Herzegovina), where he mentions at the beginning of his

breath, which then further aggravates the patients condition.

study about folklore understanding of fear among the

Based on such a belief in folk medicine certain magical

Bosnian people: It is true that sudden mental shocks, which

rituals of rehabilitation were created, such as lead melting

are usually marked by horror and fear, are the cause and the

and salivanje strune, which we will discuss later on.

nerves get more or less disrupted by so called shock

overemphasized fear from which the nerves react

Due to intensive stress i.e. great fear when a person

aggressively in main human organs, especially the heart,

experiences a rapid loss of fluid inside the mouth, saliva, and

when even death can occur.

since the old days to the frightened a glass of water was

offered to them so that they can come to their senses.
Feeling of fear is such a strong emotion which immediately
saps the bodys energy hypoglycaemia- which is why it is
necessary to react quickly in order to recover it. Based on
this knowledge the regular practice among Bosnian folk is
that to the frightened person a glass of sugar water was
offered. It is a known fact that cold water can have a
beneficial effect on the person in shock if the person is
sprinkled with it or washes its face with it; since the cold itself
leads to a short term and effective shock, but this time a
3

person, the method included measuring the length of the

frightened persons body. There are a few calls such as
*Although the crying of a child in the first months, but also the first years of
life, is not considered to be bad since it helps with the development of
lungs, longer crying periods in men was not allowed because of the fear of
hernia and hydrocele.

odsjecanje krajice, urezivanje krajice, mjerenje skrate

or more simply mjerenje od straha.
Procedure of checking if the diseased persons body is
contorted out of fear was performed in the following way in

Using measuring against fear

the past: the diseased person is lying on the ground or floor,

face down with spread arms and legs. Stravarka takes a
grain of barley and carefully breaks it into four equal parts.

Fear i.e. fright can be caused by numerous factors such as

a dogs bark, lightning strike, fire, water, bad news and other
factors. Often it is the culprit for numerous life difficulties and
failures since it makes a person insecure and prone to
withdrawal, underestimation of oneself. If for example a child
gets scared during the first months of its life can often be the
main reason why a child has difficulties making its first steps
or walking in general.
Fright can appear anywhere or at any time, but there are
specific situations when we are directly exposed to it, as in
case of some danger. If a person feels drowsy during the
day and suffers from insomnia at night, is irritable, prone to
depression and anxiety, then it is often believed that he is a
victim of a suffered shock. There are some alarming signs
that fear is excessively present in a human and those are
nightmares. Stravarke reveal that if a person dreams of a
horse or some other animal that attacks him, is a certain sign
of a great fear which continually takes over the body and
mind.
It is interesting to note that in Latin America fear is called
susto, which is literally translated as loss of spirit and
according to the local curanderosa (healers), susto is a
disease caused by one or more traumatic experience.
Symptoms include unrest, lethargy, depression, insomnia
and irritability. Each of them agree that it is a very bad state
for a humans spirit. Especially worrying fact is if the
frightened person awakes tired, has heavy legs and often
feels loss of fluids in the body, especially in the mouth.
Bosnian stravarke in the past used a method more often
than today which annulled the effect of fear in a diseased
4

These miniatures pieces are placed under the palms of the

diseased person and under the left and right leg. As it is
evident in this example she is following an ancient magical
rule to always begin and end with the right side, which is
considered to be positive and divine*, i.e. the first piece is
placed under the right palm, the second under the left leg,
the third under the left palm and the fourth under the right
leg.
When she finished the first part of the ritual the stravarka
goes into measuring the length of the diseased person by
measuring diagonally from the right hand using a wool
thread, top of the middle finger, until the left foot, i.e. top of
the thumb. During this the thread is tightened in order to get
a precise length. Then the beginning of the thread which was
on the top of the middle finger is placed in the left hand, also
on the top of the middle finger and the one which was on the
left foot is placed onto the right one thumb. The thread is
again tightened, as in the first case. If it turns out that there is
even a minimal difference between the first and second
measuring (measure) the stravarka brings a final conclusion
the diseased has fallen ill from great fear! But, if it is
established that both measures are of the same length it is
said that the diseased person suffers from another ailment.
In the third and final phase of the ritual, which is conditioned
by a correct diagnosis, if the diseased is overtaken by fear
and his body has contorted i.e. shrunk because of it,
stravarka cuts the wool thread with scissors or a knife into
nine equal parts and later she throws them at the closest
intersection. After the diseased carefully raises from the
ground, stravarka takes a broom and the same way she
placed barley pieces she mows them towards the four sides

of the world, repeating a short exorcist formula: Run fear, a

trembling in the legs and dark circles around the eyes.

cow will sting you!. After that she draws out four straws from

Similarly frequent night mares are accompanying symptoms

the broom and also she throws one by one into the four

of fear.

sides of the world, following the path of the sun (clockwise),

in order to influence the healing process with such a ritual

When the fear is accumulated in the bowels then the

gesture. While leaving the stravarka home he must strictly

diseased suffers from a chronic diarrhoea, due to which he

abide by the rules of not looking back, because of the belief

weakens. In addition to that, it is still considered today that

that the spirit of disease can interpret the gesture as a sign

grown people which get diarrhoea due to fatty food or

of weakness and return into the body of the diseased.

generally suffer from what is in general medicine classified

as an irritable bowls syndrome were in childhood subject to
physical or mental abuse due to which they suffered a great
fright.
In case that fear has caused epilepsy folk medicine suggests
that a diseased child in time of an epileptic attack mustnt be
fed nor touched, as long as the cramps are present, and
under his nose a rag dipped in vinegar must be placed, with
an intent that the sharp smell will ease the current difficulties
in which the child is in. When the cramps become less
intense, the mother wipes the saliva from the childs mouth,
and places a wrap i.e. a linen rag dipped in vinegar on the
forehead and bellybutton (1). Only when the cramps
completely stop, after some time, the mother is allowed to

*All magical forms of curing in Bosnian folk medicine are based on the
fight against the forces of left side evil spiritual beings, caused of
disease and bad luck and through ritual gestures and actions domination

nurse the child.

If the fear (disease) has caught the bowels, before sunrise, it

of the right side is intensified on which according to mythological belief

is recommended to pick a few branches of rue/sedefil (Ruta

angels and other clean and positive forces dwell.

graveolens), crush it, mix with some water, and filter it

through a gauze. Filtered liquid is spiced up with a half of tea
spoon of honey and sugar and in the end that mixture is left
somewhere outside on the sun and air for 24 hours.
This remedy is given to the child three days in a row at
dawn, i.e. one hour before sunset. To adults, this remedy is

Influence of fear onto the nerves and bowels

given for a longer period of time, usually around nine days,

Fear manifests itself in two ways inside the human body

Veronica officinalis is submerged.

through the bowels and nerves. As doctor Leopold Gluck has

noted the first form appears primarily in children in form of
uncontrollable jolting of the body while they're sleeping,
which is declared in a milder form, also appearance of
epilepsy, which is of course a more difficult form of disease.
Among the adults, fear is manifested as an acute insanity or
a strong headache, weakness in the limbs, especially
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or just water in which completely crushed leaves of a plant

Leaves of this plant were in the past given as a prophylactic

remedy, as an amulet, to pregnant women, but also children,
to carry it on their chest in order to be protected from the
influence of fear.
In Visoko, but also other neighbouring places, Veronica

officinalis or stravna trava would be placed in a metal bowl

moved often loses its breath and has feelings of something

with spring water, which would be kept, covered on the stove

piercing their chest. The only cure in that state, according to

until the water boils. As soon as this happens, while holding

stravarke, is the ritual of lead melting, whose efficiency in

a bowl or casserole above the diseased persons head the

this case is clearly not based on the idea that the frightened

stravarka would pour the boiled water from the vessel and

person, over which the ritual is performed, will suffer a new

she would upturn the vessel in the middle of the casserole,

shock from a loud sound which is produced by the molten

making sure that there is no physical contact with the

lead touching cold water. During that short term shock,

person. If the vacuum sucks the water underneath the vessel

during the three times the lead is molten and poured in a

absorbs water the diseased person will be freed from

vessel with water, the heart will slowly go back in its place.

the influence of fear. An identical procedure is repeated two

Material proof for this the stravarke find in the shape of the

more times. The diseased person uses the water to wash his

lead itself which must be shaped as an elongated tear, which

face, his arms and legs are wiped and the rest of the water,

is called heart.

with the plant, is poured in an intersection.

For curing symptoms of fear Bosnian stravarke often
recommend this herbal tea mixture: a fingertip of Mentha
pulegium and Veronica officinalis is submerged in two
decilitres of water and is left covered for half an hour. The
tea should be drunk three times a day with some honey.

Healing power of lead

Among the Bosnian people it is believed that lead that it
possesses prophylactic properties which is confirmed by a
custom of saying: lead into the devils ears! as soon as
someone hears some bad news, especially about a disease
of an accident. The most famous characteristics of lead,
because of which it is usually an irreplaceable prop when

After being subjected to a magical ritual with lead, three hot

curing fear, is that lead absorbs negative energy.

coals are also thrown inside the water whose sound needs to

In folk medicine in BiH an influence of homeopathy is evident

sound itself symbolises an extinguishing i.e. calming down.

as well as a psychological belief that a shock can be cured

by a new shock. Namely, when an individual, especially a
child, is mightily frightened due to an unexpected and highly
negative surprise, where it is literally overwhelmed by chill
and tingling across his stomach and chest, the scared
person loses its breath for a moment and then according to
stravarke the heart can be moved jump out a few

have a calming effect on the diseased person, since the

The water is used by the diseased person to wash his face
and drink some of the water, which concludes the healing
process.
There once existed a rule that measuring of fear must be
performed before the lead melting ritual, in order to
completely eliminate all influence of fear. Stravarke think that

millimetres or centimetres to the left or the right.

fear can enter a persons blood and bones and then it is

Besides classic symptoms of tension, tiredness, paleness in

and inventive when curing.

the face and sudden jitters in sleep, a person whose heart

6

difficult to get it out of a person, and one must be persistent

melting lead. Doctors are oblivious. Theyre looking all is

* It is important to mention, that these two places on the human body are
considered to be two cardinal spots, according to Bosnian occultism,
through which the human body is connected to the spiritual world.

good, all is nice and a person cannot function normally. Fear

resurrects in the body and all is negative. It strikes the legs
and arms and the head, everywhere. You melt three lead
pieces and it feels as if you took it with your hand and
threw it away, everything disappears. From the old days the
lead melting ritual was practiced, it is a part of our Bosnian

Examples of curing fear

tradition for ages.

Fight against fear is not simple and often requires a lot of

patience. This is best evidenced by stravarke whose work
experience is full of various cases. Stravarka Emina
Hadihasanovi told the following story to a journalist of a
Sarajevo magazine:
-I was melting lead to a man, he was imprisoned by etniks
(name for Serbian paramilitary army which committed the
most war crimes in BiH), he was imprisoned in a
concentration camp and was tortured, also a grenade
exploded in his building. He was ready to die. He couldnt
walk normally any more. He wasnt able to go alone
anywhere, so he took his child with him everywhere he went.
He couldnt even go to the toilet without the child taking him
there. He was a butcher by trade, a good man. He asked
doctors for help but they couldnt help him, his medical
results were good but he couldnt walk straight. I have
molten 77 lead pieces for him and he recovered. He is now
working in a butcher shop on Ilida.
Obviously the issue of great fear in a man requires great
effort, which is evidenced by another case from the practice
of this stravarka:
-There was once a woman. And an ox wanted to kill her, but
he didnt. And due to such a shock she fell into a coma.
From that day she always slept a little and fell into a coma a
little. It happened that no matter where she was, she would
feel a bit weak, she would then fall to the floor. She would fall
unconscious. Here, there are 79 leads that I molten for her
until now and now the condition has gotten better, she only
feels like this maybe once a week. While I melt a couple
more she will recover completely. There is only cure in
7

Illyrian inheritance
For the lead melting ritual, which is familiar in numerous
Balkan countries, but also Middle East such as Palestine,
Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iranian anthropologists believe that it
stems from the Illyrian warriors, which spread it across the
Roman empire while serving its armies, to all corners that
the powerful, ancient Empire covered. That is why the Turks,
Arabs, Persians and the Jews took it over, which confirms
that we are dealing with an effective and efficient ritual for
annulling fear, spellbound eyes but also magic.
Curiosity which is among the folk usually connected with the
gift of divination and lead melting is that both techniques are
often a gift of supernatural forces to an individual. Namely,
knowledge about lead melting, according to a stravarka, it
often comes in a dream, i.e. the stravarka to be dreams it.
One of such examples was the already mentioned Emina
Hadihasanovi:
-I dreamt that I will die. And my house in the dream is placed

on a high hill. I was looking for someone to say the prayer

skill is solely practiced by women, lead can be molten by

Yasin for me, and I couldnt find anyone. I then placed a

men, but they say that it is not appropriate for a man to melt

blanket next to this bed and I lay down to die. I started

lead for a woman, because of the conservative society.

uttering Yasin and three mubina (chapters) of Yasin I finish,

and I die. When I woke up in the morning, I remembered the

The ritual with lead without a doubt stems from shamanism

dream and what had happened, I then went to an Imam on

which is based on animism. Probably because of its

Vratnik to tell him what had transpired.

somewhat mysterious power of transformation, to change

from solid into the liquid state and reverse, the lead spurred

He said: It is good for you that you dreamt it if you are going

ancient Illyrian shamans to try and change the state of the

to melt lead. I never did, I said, but I can start. From there I

diseased with the help of lead, through a magical ritual.

came here, there was a woman there she went from one

Besides, stravarke, but also some Imams, which practice

doctor to the other. She was struck by it, she couldnt move.

this method, agree that lead has a lethal power towards

She said: I dreamt last night that you will melt lead for me. I

humans but also demons. Namely, as a rifle bullet can kill a

smiled and said: I have never molten lead for anyone. She

man so too can lead in a shamanistic ritual kill i.e. more

said that I shall to her, now. I said when this is the case then

precisely trap energy of a spirit and so remove it from the

I shall. She entered the house through the stairs on her

diseased person.

knees. She couldnt bend her leg. There I took a spoon and I
started melting lead. When I have finished melting lead for

In three consecutive lead melting rituals, the figure of lead

her for the third time, she suddenly rose up and started

does actually come out in a form similar to the thing that

walking. She lived for another three-four years and died. And

caused the fear.

from that day on I melt lead.

-Women come to me and they dont know that theyre afraid
of their husband. I reveal this immediately and I tell her you
Doctors cannot cure fear

are afraid of your husband! Of course, sometimes I find a

figurine which shows that the husband is afraid of his wife.

Stravarka Hadinca from Potur in Travnik is another one of

To remove the fear it is important to find the cause.

the rare people which havent received much attention from

internet portals and media in general. During an interview
with a journalist, Hadinica revealed some of the secrets of

She helps only to those that need such a help

this ancient technique.

When talking to other stravarke with which I had the
-This is no divination, it is useful, but there are people which

opportunity and pleasure to talk to, I came across an

think otherwise, and I wouldnt like if you would reveal my

identical opinion. Each of the categorically claim that

identity. I wouldnt like it because of my family either, you

everything that is shown in the lead can no longer hurt the

know how it is, she explained. She says that people come

diseased person.

from all over the place, from central Bosnia, Zenica and even
Sarajevo. Everyone comes with his own story and his own

-Lead melting will always help to the one who is a case for it,

troubles. From workers, up to doctors, politicians and

i.e. who is full of fear or some other negative energy, and if

singers. It is a tradition to charge for lead melting. Someone

his problem cannot be solved by the ritual then he will have

gives some money, someone a present, but for everything to

no use from it, said Mevlida O. from Velika Kladua, one of

be complete, a reward must be given. Thats why lead

the stravarka which inherited her knowledge from her mother

cannot be molten by closer relatives which live in the same

in law.

house. Although it is popular belief that this ancient exorcist

8

-No one knows how old this custom is. I feel sad because it

Punishing the spirit which causes fear

is dying out, there are no young women which would like to

learn it, and there are few of them that could says
Hadinica and she explains the stern predispositions: the

Besides lead melting and odsjecanje skrate stravarke also

one which is experienced in lead melting, gives to the

know other methods of curing fear, such as "uvarivanje

student izun, i.e. permission. The woman needs to be pious,

strahe or knife cutting. This last method is very rare and it is

with a covered body and it would be good if she is educated,

difficult to find a stravarka which practices it. Now deceased

especially in an Islamic spirit. She doesnt have to go to Hajj,

Fatima Dizdarevi, was known for this method during the

but as Hadinica says, it wont hurt.

end of the previous century, she had learned it from her

mother in law.

Continuing the discussion stravarka Hadinica said that they

brought her a singer which sang in a nearby restaurant.

Stravarka takes a knife with a black handle (sheath) and as

she touches the frightened, which is lying on the floor or the

-He says, I dont know what is wrong with me, I just want to

bed facing the ceiling, she follows the text of the esoteric

quarrel?! I thought tha someone must have frightened him. I

basma. As in all other variations of curing with the help of

melt lead for him, and each time a figure of a man shows. I

magical formulas in this one too, the stravarka starts by nami

ask who scared you? He then told me everything, that he

body parts, starting from the head:

accepted a friend in his house so he can spend the night

there, but in actuality the man was a crook and he wanted to

Im not cutting you N nor your body,

rob him. The singer kept quiet about this event and kept the

but Im cutting the head of the black fear,

fear to himself, but when the problem escalated he came to

Im cutting its throat,

seek help.

shoulders left and right hand,

fingers from the smallest to the largest,
Im opening its chest,
cutting the heart and taking out the intestines,
cutting its stomach and breaking its spine,
cutting both legs,
feet and all ten fingers.
Be gone you dirty heathen,
you will not eat nor sleep here,
be gone black fear,
far away from N;
where the dog doesnt bark,
where the cat doesnt meow,
the rooster doesnt crow,
with my formula and gods will, huuu!
After blowing into the knife, stravarka repeats the
movements with the knife from head to toe citing the text of
the formula and repeats it nine times in total. After the last
time she repeats it the stravarka throws the knife behind her
back.

Power of saliva
It is noticeable in shorter or longer exorcist formulas that
fear is always chased away from the bones (among the folk
it is said when one person scares another he struck fear into
his bones!), like this one from Sandak where the Bosnian
stravarka says:
Be gone, fear,
It is evident from the text that fear is seen as a supernatural
parasitical being without sexual characteristics i.e. a black
spirit which has possessed the diseased. At the end of the
formula the stravarka calls it contemptuously dirty heathen
dirty mater alluding that she has uncovered him and
beaten him. With imitative movements and words, the
stravarka touches the diseased gently with the blade of the
knife, and she ritually punishes the spirit because he dared
to enter the human body and he dared to torture it.*
Personification of fear through the form of a dark spirit is no
coincidence, it is based on the belief of all stravarke about
the existence of a dark spirit (terror) which enters a humans
head and it is difficult to get it out. Similarly, there is daily
fear and nightly fear if someone gets scared during the
day will be cured of the fear much more easily than the one
frightened during the night since it is the dark terror and it
enters the humans head!*.
Punishing fear is not a rare occurrence in the folk medicine
of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In anthological works of Antun
Hangi about the life and customs of Bosnian people, the
author describes the method of lead melting and mentions
that at the end of the ritual the stravarka uses scissors to
cut the surface of the water in all directions, alluding with
such movements that she is cutting the fear. Another data
clearly points to the folk representation of fear as a spirit,
namely, all stravarke have some rules which they or the
diseased perform as a precaution that the fear doesnt come
back, whether it is putting on new clothes, hanging the
scissors and knife above the entrance door, not looking
back, etc.
10

from the bones under the skin,

from the skin onto the hair,
from the hair into the black sea!
Among the Bosnian folk there are some prophylactic
processes which serve for annulling the influence of fear.
Most frequently it is spitting lightly into ones own chest.
When were talking about negative particulars, especially
about disease, or if a person is scared of something, there
was a custom of lightly loosening the collar of the shirt, in
order to separate it from the body, this would enable the
saliva to reach the chest, close to the heart.
Traditional custom of spitting to the side or in front of oneself,
when one wants to chase away evil, is a segment of an
identical practice. Namely, in such a case if one notices
thrown lead pieces and coal pieces on an intersection,
remnants of a lead melting ritual intended for a random
passerby to walk over, one should spit towards these objects
and say: "On whom you have dwelt, on him you should stay,
fear!", with the goal of saving oneself from such a
supernatural transmission.
Fear like magic, according to folk belief, can be directed from
one person onto another but only during that most recent
moment, while it hasnt overtaken completely the mind of the
person. As soon as the first shock has passed, the
frightened person, and if he sees another person at a fair
distance can repeat three times the following formula,
focusing on his target:

On a worm a worm,
on an ant an ant,
on a horse a horse,
on a cow a cow,
and on you my fear, huuu,

unconsciously, bringing themselves into a light half-trance. In that state it

was easier for them to harmonize the frequency of their body with the
frequency of the spirit which is located in the diseased person, and in such
a manner through repetition of clearly determined exorcist formulas, they
can act towards the banishment or removal of the spirit.

from God help and from me magical words!

Then he spits on his finger (index finger) and wipes it off of a
tree or earth, in order to chase the fear and cleanse the body

When fear attacks the stomach

with such a ritual procedure.

In folk medicine in BiH women often heal issues with the
stomach, they're called eludarice, and as with fear, like
*In folk medicine in BiH the practice of using metal, as a useful means of

stravarke, they claim that one can die due to dislocated

scaring spirits of disease, is traditional and its origin should be sought in

stomach!.

the earliest human history. This skill is based on the belief that anything
that can hurt or kill a man, such as lead (bullet) or iron (knife), can also
have an identically destructive effect on the demons of disease. Ultimately
such a notion is understandable if we take into consideration that spirits

Most of them resonate that the stomach should be

positioned inside the body in line with the bellybutton. Due to

which attack and possess humans, exist in a similar manner as humans

some unfavourable occurrences, such as lifting a heavy

themselves and are thereby vulnerable.

load, falling from heights, undertaking long dietary trends,

* In Bosnian tradition there is a day of fear Tuesday, namely, it is

believed that the Judgement day will occur on a Tuesday night, and thats
why, allegedly, even when the Imam utters the last daily prayer he hurries

sleeping on ones hands or holding the hands above the

head, in women after birth or similar things, there can be
some negative implications on the work and position of the

the last words out of fear that he wont be able to complete them on time.

stomach. Sometimes the cause can be a stronger cold,

In this mythological belief, perhaps lies hidden the answer, of why the best

when due to aggressive coughing, the stomach jumps out

results for eliminating fear through lead melting rituals are achieved on a
Tuesday. Similarly, in some beliefs it is suggested that Tuesday is
dedicated to the deceased, since on that day the deceased are shaving
and cutting their hair in the next world or if clothes are washed on

of its place. Symptoms are heartburn, vomiting and loss of

body mass.

Tuesday the dirty water is poured into the eyes of the deceased and

Influence of shock, stress and generally fear is also a

similar things, which correlates with the previous belief about Tuesday

frequent cause for stomach dislocation. When one confirms,

day when the humankind will be destroyed. All of the above, without a
doubt, has its beginnings in ancient shamanism, the oldest form of
spirituality among people, in whose beginnings rests the belief that
supernatural entities and the souls of the dead rule over the world.
Shamanism was along with animalism the basis of religion of our Illyrian

through observation, that fear has attacked the stomach,

one should have a mellow and soft approach towards the
diseased. It contains three or more stages which could be
divided in the following categories:

forefathers from which was born the ritual of lead melting. Ancient
shamans developed their own unique methods for detecting spiritual
presence from which the most famous was trance, with whose help they
blocked the physical body in order to enable the astral body to consciously
exits and communicates with the spirits of diseases. Observing individual
stravarke while they perform lead melting rituals, it is more than evident
that they are true successors of those things which could be combined

Prophylactic approach
Natural healing

under one phrase ancient Bosnian (Illyrian) shamanism. Namely,

Exercising magic

besides the usage of lead in the rituals of detection and overpowering of

Massage

the spirits of diseases, stravarke used rhythmical repetition of certain

formulas and movements of the upper body left and right, consciously or

11

face due to stomach aches.

Prophylactic approach
It is believed among the folk that the psyche influences the
stomach, i.e. tendency towards nervousness, worrying
especially panic. Actually, as we could have concluded by
now, any form of mental tension or fear has a direct
influence on the human health. For a person which loses its
appetite suddenly, eats less or is yellow in the face it is
believed that it has issues with fear. It is known, also, that
irascible and frightened people someone who gets scares
(strunjiva) easily they have the most issues with the
stomach. It is discretely suggested to such persons to search
for a stone ustavljak and to place the stone in a glass which
they use for drinking water.
Namely, as Antun Hangi writes, Bosnian mothers are prone
to calming down hysterical children, which cry a lot and
refuse to go to sleep, by using the stone ustavljak. They
would obtain it easily: they would throw small stones onto a
tree outside until one of them, or more, would get stuck on a
branch. Such a stone would be taken and placed under the
childs pillow. Stone ustavljak in folk medicine in BiH has
calming and relaxing properties, thereby curing (1). For
issues with fear, which affect the stomach, hawthorn tree
would be chosen.

Exercising magic
In collective consciousness of Bosnian folk fear is
inseparable from heart and stomach issues, which is
presented through an identical way of healing. Namely, ritual
under the name uvarivanje strahe based on the use of
boiled water and upturning the empty pot, so that the
vacuum sucks in the hot water inside the pot, was used to
cure both the stomach and fear. The only difference in rituals
is that in case of curing a dislocated stomach the water in the
end is spilt and doesnt come into contact with the diseased,
while during neutralisation of fear the diseased uses it to
wash his face and wash his hands and legs.

Massage
Light massage with oiled up hands, starting from the left
hand going towards the shoulders and descending down the
back, between lower ribs and the pelvis, from the back side,
a massage of the entire body is performed with the goal of
putting the stomach back in its place. We should note that
the massage is performed with worst cases, when neither of
the previous techniques had any effect. Some folk healers
use stronger pressure to massage only the lower part of the
hand up to the elbow, and then they tie it with a rag and
leave it for half an hour.

Natural healing
All stomach diseases created by constant exposure to
stress and shock, were treated by folk healers
(stravarke/eludarice) during the first phase with traditional
medicine such as the one when nine nacre leaves are
crushed and mixed with one kilogram of honey; the medicine
is taken for 40 days (2). Tea out of quince branches was
shown to be effective, it has a very pleasant taste and nice
read colour, which according to homeopathic beliefs
stimulates the psyche just like chamomile tea, whose
yellow colour ideally affects those which are yellow in the
12

forms of mental but also certain physical ailments. Beneficial

power of one or more prayers mixed into the content of the
amulet or talisman, which replaced pagan bajalice (spell)
and oaths, is based on the same principle of directing wishes
or pleas for freeing the body from the negative influence of
some entity, which found a home in the host due to a
transgression of a certain taboo.
Namely, according to Islamic mythology when Allah created
Adam and Eve, he had to place an invisible curtain between
them and the Jinn (demons), so that the monstrous
appearance of the Jinn wouldnt frighten them and awaken
shudders every day. Similarly, he made it so that people will
be more or less protected from evil spirits, and he ordained
them to sleep and rest during the night, so that the Jinn may
have the freedom to move. That myth created a lot of taboo
with which literally all contact with Jinn was avoided,
* Magical role of stones in various segments of magical activity is known to
us from the Neolithic period and is based on the cult of the Grand Mother,

because of their detrimental influence on the human body

and psyche.

the oldest deity in human history. From that period date the first stone
statues and sculptures of all forms of the Grand Mother one which gives
life and protects it. Even most of the rituals and solemnity which were
performed in her honour were held in caves, in order to have a closer
contact with this ancient deity, without whom the beginning of human
civilization would be unimaginable, in the womb of the earth.

From the most familiar taboos among the Bosnian folk the
ones tied to sunset are mentioned, when demons exit from
their hideouts and gain power, which will last until sunrise i.e.
dawn. Thats why people avoided to go outside in the
evening, to pass by walnut trees, places where wood is

* According to stravarke the dirty water in which lead was molten and then
used for washing, should be thrown into a stream or river and as soon as
it crosses nine rocks the evil and disease should break!. A verse of an
exorcist curse is known to us on nine rocks it should fall and break. Nine

being chopped, where dirty water is being thrown, etc.

If it happens that an individual accidentally or on purpose

is also, along the number 40, symbol of the Grand Mother (nine months of

disregards some of the numerous taboos, he can become a

pregnancy/40 weeks), and its influence is literally omnipresent in Bosnian,

target of the demons and risk possession i.e. entrance of the

but also all other magical practice in the world.

Jinn in the human body. The most obvious symptom of

presence of an evil spirit inside a man is the appearance of
inexplicable fear. Namely, suddenly the person starts feeling
a more intensive restlessness and fright from night, closed
space, certain animals, food, etc.

Jinn cause fear and blockades

Talismans used against fear
Utilization of amulets and talismans in curing traumatic

With the development and spread of writing, the cognition

conditions is perhaps one of the most fascinating segments

that vows and curses, if written down on paper, take on their

in folk medicine in BiH. Since the old days, the amulets were

material form and exist longer, and with that last longer as

brought to the level of almost universal panacea in curing all

well, unlike uttered formulas whose effect is immediate but

13

disperses quickly. Although it has been recorded that our

Bogomil forefathers used certain holly texts when creating

All spiritual authorities in BiH are of the opinion that fear can

amulets used for curing and protection, only with the

be placed on someone with the help of various forms of

beginning of the Ottoman occupation and advent of Islam did

divinations, among which the most famous techniques are

this practice see an expansion in BiH.

those of directing an evil spirit through spells. Specifically,

were talking about numerous phobias and the most frequent

As far as we can comprehend from pretty modest literature

of all is the sudden fear of the dark achluophobia and this

and data, the Ottomans were under direct influence of

issue is usually solved by writing the following talisman (1)

Persian-Arabic magical beliefs, combined with certain

which the diseased carries with him at all times, until the

Islamic teachings. But, what is especially interesting is that

uneasy feeling subsides.

the Ottomans are as a Mongolian people known for

shamanistic practices and retention of numerous animalistic
beliefs. This is why Turkish magic abounds in various
syncretic elements and this peculiarity is especially visible in
the form of the talismans. While Arabic-Persian talismans
follow a standard form of construction, according to which
the amulet possesses a holly text and magical square (vefk),
with Turkish talismans the form is based on what I would call
shamanistic diagrams i.e. they abound with graphical
representations of spiritual beings through one or more lines.
According to magical principles the Jinn, main culprits of all
mental diseases, can succumb to the will of an individual
with the help of ancient seals and invocations. Controlling

With the help of magical rituals one can, allegedly, influence

a person in such a way that he/she will start to feel an
inexplicable fear towards a certain individual or it can happen
that a man is scared of a woman or vice versa sexophobia.
In that case a Bosnian Imam creates the following talisman,
which the diseased will, like in the first example, carry with
him at all times.

those negative spiritual strengths the wizard can consciously

inflict great evil on an individual or even a group of people.
When he wants to block a person i.e. make him
unsuccessful in certain or all segments of life, the magi
ritually directs one or more Jinn towards him, they will
possess him and with their destructive influence they will
awaken inside of him various phobias from which he will be
completely blocked: unsure of himself, scared, prone to

It is evident that the craze for amulets from Imams did not
stop in the 21st century and every so often we can read in

jitters, lack confidence and hysterical.

the printed media or internet portals that some famous

Allegedly, with very decisive magical gestures fear can be

numerous Imams, seeking help for their issues. Besides the

awoken in any human. Individual Bosnian stravarke, such

as deceased Fatima Dizdarevi, explain how one can cause
phobia from graves and the dead, namely, it is enough to
discretely throw some dirt from a grave onto someone,
without them noticing it. But, similarly if someone is scared of
the above mentioned then it is recommended for them to

persons, especially from the show business, visited one of

mentioned famous persons, regular people also visit these
spiritual healers, trying to get a positive resolution to an
unpleasant situation in which they find themselves in. When
were talking about curing fear then the inscriptions for
passing exams are most sought after, when one wants to
neutralise jitters and blockages.

look at their own reflection in the water which was used to

bathe the deceased person.
14

*(Babilonsko oko, H.M.ajlakovi)

LIJEENJE STRAHA U NARODNOJ

MEDICINI BiH

RAIF ESMEROVI

Prema definiciji strah se opisuje kao intezivan i neugodan

negativni osjeaj koji ovjek doivljava kad vidi ili oekuje
opasnost, bila ona realna ili nerealna. To je uroena, genetski
programirana reakcija na prijetei ili bolan podraaj. Strah je
primarna emocija, kao i srea, tuga, iznenaenje, ljutnja i gaenje,
to znai da se u razliitim kulturama izraava na isti ili slian
nain, odnosno da izraavanje straha nije naueno. Strah nije
nefunkcionalan, on poput boli, iji je cilj zatititi tijelo od daljnjih
oteenja, svojom intezivnom neugodom i iskljuivanjem svih
drugih stvari koncentrira tijelo na obranu od onoga to izaziva
strah, postavlja sistem u stanje spremnosti i potie na paljivo
motrenje onoga od ega prijeti opasnost. (Wikipedia)

15

UVOD

tradicionalno gui svaka elja za razliitou ili

individualizmom.

Prouavajui etnoloku grau sa prijelaza devetnaestog u

dvadeseto stoljee vrlo je lako zakljuiti kako su ljudi u
nedostatku medicinskih i naunih spoznaja bolest dijelili na
dvije vrste fizike i duevne. Najrairenijim uzronikom
bolesti, zbog kojeg je najvie i pomrlo ljudi, bosanski narod je
vidio u destruktivnom uticaju zlih oiju. Odmah iza toga je
dolazio strah. Upravo iz tog razloga u sluaju pojave bilo
kakve bolesti prvo bi se vrio obred sa gaenjem ugljena u
vodi, protiv zlih oiju, ili izvodio ritual salijevanja olova/strahe,
zbog sumnje u pojavu straha. Ukoliko se niti jedna metoda
ne bi pokazala uspjenom traila bi se neka druga rjeenja
poput ljekovitog bilja, mehlema, hodinih molitvi i hamajlija,
etc. Vrlo esto, tek na kraju, za pomo se obraalo nekom
lijeniku, ali samo ako bi se on nalazio relativno blizu kue
tog bolesnika. Potreba da se pomo prvo trai u magijskoreligijskom domenu produkt je arhainog vjerovanja po
kojem se bolest zapravo smatrala boijom voljom ili kaznom,
ili posljedicom agresije zlih duhova, koji bi svojim
zaposjedanjem ljudskog tijela izazivali velike bolove i druge
tegobe.

Zbog toga uvijek i kaem da je pomalo ironino da iz

najljepeg perioda ljudskog ivota, kao to je djetinjstvo,
ponesemo najvie trauma, kompleksa i frustracija, posebno
od strane roditelja, sa kojima se onda borimo cio ivot. I
prije, kao i sada, najvei problem u prekidanju tog zaaranog
kruga igra povrnost i skoro nikakva volja za promjenama.
Problem svakog drutva je neshvatljiva potreba konstantnog
nametanja sa kojim se mlado ljudsko bie susree od
doslovno prvog dana; nameu nam religiju, nain ponaanja,
oblaenja, komuniciranja, razmiljanja... Naravno da trebaju
da postoje odreene ivotne i svakodnevne norme
ponaanja i reda, kako bi mogli ivjeti jedni pored drugih, ali
isto tako mora postojati sloboda izbora, jer bez toga ovjek
nije ovjek nego obini robot. Miljenja sam da upravo u tom
nametanju strah ima svoje startno mjesto.

Strah od zlih duhova, boije kazne, zlih oiju ili psihikog

oka nije samo odraz neprosvjeenosti jednog vremena ve i
njegove surovosti. Koliko je strah ukorijenjen u kolektivnoj
svijesti ovog naroda moda je najbolje predoiti kratkim
saetkom istorije Bosne i bosanskog naroda, koji je jo od
antikih, ilirskih vremena, bio konstantno izloen povijesnim
previranjima, ratovima i okupacijama od strane veih drava,
te je u skladu sa tim vrlo lako zakljuiti zato je on
akumuliran u tolikoj mjeri. To je u konanici stvorilo
psiholoki dojam da postoji strah od straha, koji je intenzivniji
od onog normalnog.
Naime, kako to tvrdi moderna psihologija ovjek se raa
samo sa dva straha od gladi i buke, dok sve one druge
fobije najee stiemo u djetinjstvu i sa njima se borimo
skoro cio ivot. Strah od gladi i strah od buke usko su
povezani sa nagonom za preivljavanje, i oni se kroz
odrastanje nadopunjuju sa nekim novim instinktivnim
strahovima ija je primarna funkcija odravanje ivota. No,
strah osim te pozitivne, egzistencijalne svrhe ima i svoju
negativnu stranu, kada djeluje sasvim suprotno odnosno
protiv samog ovjeka, ugroavajui tako direktno njegov
ivot.
Krug straha poinje u djetinjstvu
U narodu se vjeruje da su rtve samog straha mnogo vie
djeca nego odrasli ljudi, prvenstveno zbog njihove tjelesne i
psihike ranjivosti. Ve vijekovima u konzervativnom drutvu,
kakvo je uostalom i bosansko, djeca se vaspitaju strahom,
odnosno nad njima se vrila odreena psihika tortura kako
bi se ona doslovno programirala da se ponaaju prema
licemjernim mjerilima patrijarhalnog drutva u kojem se
16

Na osnovu svega do sada napisanog stie se racionalan

zakljuak kako je za bolje razumijevanje samog pojma
straha i njegovog uticaja na na ivot, ali i svakog pojedinca,
potrebno posvetiti to vie panje prouavanju ovog
fenomena ljudskog bia, a najbolje polazite takvog
istraivanja uvijek se krije u narodnoj medicini, koja je za
razliku od oficijalne, puno fleksibilnija i irih pogleda, te na
jedan suptilan nain zadire u samu intimu svakog pojedinca.
Kad se strah svee za smrt
Nekad se mislilo da e se ovjek razboljeti ukoliko
neoekivano pred njega iskoi neka ivotinja iz grma ili ga
neto drugo iznenadi na drugaiji nain. Posljedice jednog
takvog oka imaju jednako poguban uinak kako za psihu
tako i samo fiziko tijelo. Kroz neka empirijska, ali i magijska
iskustva, bosanski narod je oduvijek smatrao da se usljed
uticaja velikog oka ili straha ljudsko tijelo doslovno smanji,
ili bolje reeno, - zgri, to je svakako poznato i mnogim
drugim kulturama svijeta, gdje su se takvi neprirodni
deformiteti rjeavali masaom, iji je osnovni cilj da opusti
tijelo i vrati ga u njegov normalni oblik.

No, posljedice oka imaju daleko kompleksniji uticaj na

ljudsko tijelo i um, to se po miljenju naroda, najbolje oituje
u tvrdnji da se usred naglog straha mogu pomjeriti pojedini
organi u tijelu, poput srca i eluca. Oba organa sklona su da
u tom naglom tjelesnom gru, kada ovjek doslovno izgubi
dah, promjene svoj poloaj i samim time dodatno
zakompliciraju bolesnikovo stanje. Na osnovu takvog
uvjerenja u narodnoj medicini kreirani su magijski obredi
vraanja u prvobitno stanje poput salivanja olova i salivanja
strune, o emu e kasnije biti vie rijei.
Usljed intezivnog stresa odnosno velikog straha kod ovjeka
dolazi do rapidnog gubitka tjelesne tekuine u ustima, sline,
pa se od davnina uplaenom nudila aa vode "da doe do
sebe". Osjeaj straha je toliko jaka emocija koja trenutno
oduzima tijelu veliku koliinu energije -hipoglikemija- zbog
ega je potrebno hitno reagirati kako bi se ona povratila
nazad. Na temelju te spoznaje ustaljena praksa meu
bosanskim narodom je da se uplaenoj ili potpuno
malaksaloj osobi daje zaeerena aa vode. Opepoznato
je kako hladna voda ima blagotvoran uinak na osobu u
oku ako je se poprska ili umije, poto sama hladnoa
dovodi do kratkotrajnog i uinkovitog oka, ali ovaj put onog
pozitivnog.
Privlaenje panje praktikuje se i u drugim situacijama, na
primjer, u cilju smirivanja djeijeg plaa, koji je najee
uzrokovan strahom od nekog ili neeg, a to se generacijski
prenosilo sa majke na kerku. Naime, nae nene su
uplaenom i uplakanom djetetu znale uz povlaenje prstima
vrha nosa, kako bi se tom gestom privukla panja, i
isputanjem visokog tona koji najvie podsjea na
oglaavanje mia (cccccc...), tako to bi stisnule usne i
uvlaei zrak u usta proizvodile zvuk slova C, privui panju i
smiriti onaj najintenzivniji nagon za plakanjem histeriziranjem. Time bi kod djeteta dolazilo do postepenog
smirivanja.*
Strah prema kazivanju naroda ima toliko destruktivan uticaj
na samog ovjeka da mu moe izazvati ak i smrt. Pojedine
stravarke po Bosni tvrde: da se u odreenim situacijama
strah moe svezati bolesniku za smrt odnosno, od njega
ovjek doista i umre, te se takvim osobama ne moe pomoi.
O tome je pisao jo u vrijeme austro-ugarske okupacije BiH i
doktor Leopold Gluck (Prilog narodnom ljekarstvu Bosne i
Hercegovine), gdje on na samom poetku svoje studije o
folklornom poimanju straha kod bosanskog naroda navodi:
Istina je, da nenadani i nagli duevni potresi, koji se obino
oznaavaju uasom i stravom, suvie u rjegjim prilikama,
tako zvanim shokom, t.j. naprasnom klenuti ivaca u
glavnijim organima, naroito u srcu, moe i smrt nastupiti.
Ma da se je to i rijetko kad utvrdilo, opet je to narod primjetio,
samo to je to u duhu narodnjeg ljekarstva postalo
svagdanjom pojavom"

17

* Mada se pla djece u prvim mjesecima, ali i godinama ivota, ne smatra

loim poto pripomae razvijanju plua, nije se dozvoljavalo due plakanje

muke djece zbog straha od pojave bruha (hernia) ili klinia (hidrokela).

Mjerenjem protiv straha

Strah odnosno uplaenost mogu uzrokovati mnogi imbenici
poput lavea psa, udara groma, poara, vode, loih vijesti i
drugog. Vrlo esto upravo je on glavni krivac za mnoge
ivotne potekoe i neuspjehe jer ini ovjeka nesigurnim i
sklonim povlaenju, podcjenjivanju samog sebe. Uplai li se,
na primjer, beba od nekog ili neeg u prvim mjesecima
ivota to esto moe biti od glavnih razloga zbog ega neko
dijete teko napravi prve korake ili openito prohoda.
Uplaenost se moe pojaviti bilo kada i bilo gdje, no ipak
postoje specifine situacije kada smo mu direktno izloeni,
kao u sluaju neke opasnosti. Osjea li se ovjek preko dana
kao mamuran a naveer pati od loeg spavanja, razdraljiv
je, sklon depresiji i tjeskobi, onda se obino misli da je rtva
pretrpljenog oka. Postoje i neki alarmantni znaci da je strah
u pretjeranoj mjeri prisutan u ovjeku a to su none more.
Stravarke otkrivaju da ukoliko neka osoba sanja konja ili
neku drugu ivotinju da nasre na njega, siguran je znak
velikog straha koji u sve veem intezitetu obuzima tijelo i um.
Zanimljivo je navesti kako se u Latinskoj Americi strah
naziva susto, to se doslovno prevodi kao "gubitak duha" i
prema miljenju tomonjih curanderosa (iscjelitelja), susto je
bolest uzrokovana jednim ili vie traumatskih iskustava.
Simptomi ukljuuju nemir, letargiju, depresiju, nesanicu i
razdraljivost. Svaki od njih se slae da je to jako loe stanje
za ovjekov duh. Posebno zabrinjavajue je ako preplaena
osoba budi se umorna, ima teke noge i esto osjea
gubitak tekuine u tijelu, naroito u ustima.
Bosanske stravarke su mnogo vie u prolosti nego li u
dananje vrijeme prakticirale jednu interesantnu metodu
anuliranja uinaka straha iz bolesnika koristei se mjerenjem

duine tijela uplaene osobe. Za nju postoji nekoliko naziva

poput odsjecanje krajice, urezivanje krajice, mjerenje
skrate ili jednostavnije mjerenje od straha.
Procedura provjere da li je bolesnikovo tijelo zgreno od
straha nekada se izvodila na sljedei nain: bolesnik lei na
zemlji ili podu okrenut licem prema dolje rairenih ruku i
nogu. Stravarka uzima jedno zrno jema i paljivo ga
prepolovi na etiri priblino jednaka dijela. Ove minijaturne
komadie stavlja bolesniku pod dlanove obje ruke te ispod
lijeve i desne noge. Kako je uoljivo u ovom primjeru ona
slijedi drevno magijsko pravilo da se uvijek poinje i
zavrava sa desnom stranom, koja se smatra pozitivnom i
boijom*, odnosno prvi komadi zrna stavi se pod desni
dlan, drugi pod lijevu nogu, trei ispod lijevog dlana a etvrti
pod desnu nogu.
Kada zavri sa prvim dijelom rituala stravarka prelazi na
mjerenje duine bolesnika tako to e s vunenom niti
dijagonalno mjeriti od desne ruke, vrha srednjeg prsta, do
lijevog stopala, tojest vrha palca. Pri tome se nit zategne,
kako bi se precizno odredila duina. Onda se poetak niti
koji je bio na vrhu srednjeg prsta stavi na lijevu ruku, takoer
na vrh srednjeg prsta a onaj koji je bio na lijevoj nozi na
desnu nogu palac. Nit se ponovo zategne, kao u prvom
sluaju. Ispostavili se da postoji i minimalna razlika izmeu
prvog i drugog mjerenja (mjere) stravarka donosi finalnu
dijagnozu bolesnik je obolio usred velikog straha! No,
utvrdi li se pak da su obje mjere iste duine objavljuje se
kako bolesnik pati od neke druge tegobe.
U treoj i finalnoj fazi rituala, koja je uslovljena ispravnom
dijagnozom, ako je bolesnik obuzet strahom i tijelo mu se
zgrilo odnosno smanjilo zbog toga, stravarka izree vunenu
nit s makazama ili noem na devet jednakih dijelova i kasnije
ih odnosi baciti na centar njoj najblieg raskrija. Nakon to
se uplaeni podigne paljivo sa poda, stravarka uzima metlu
i istim redom kako je postavljala dijelove jemenog zrna
pomete ih u smjeru etiri strane svijeta, pri tome ponavljajui
kratku egzorcistiku formulu: Bjei strava, ubost e te
krava!. Iza toga izvue etiri slamke iz metle i njih isto baci
jednu po jednu u smjeru etiri strane svijeta slijedei
sunevu putanju ( u smjeru kazaljke na satu), kako bi i tom
ritualnom gestom uticala na ozdravljenje bolesnika. On dok
naputa stravarkinu kuu mora se strogo pridravati pravila
da se na putu do svog doma ne okree nazad, zbog
vjerovanja da u suprotnom duh bolesti moe tu gestu
protumaiti znakom slabosti i vratiti se nazad u tijelo
bolesnika.

* Svi magijski oblici lijeenja u bosanskoj narodnoj medicini baziraju se na

borbi protiv snaga lijeve strane zlih duhovni bia, uzronika bolesti i
nesree te se kroz ritualne geste i postupke potencira dominacija desne
strane na kojoj prema mitolokom vjerovanju borave meleci i druge iste i
pozitivne sile.

Uticaj straha na ivce i crijeva

U ljudskom tijelu strah se manifestira na dva naina kroz
crijeva i ivce. Kako je zabiljeio doktor Leopold Gluck prvi
oblik javlja se prvenstveno kod djece u vidu nekontrolisanog
trzanja tijela u vremenu dok spavaju, to se deklarira blaim
oblikom, te u pojavi epilepsije, to je svakako tei oblik
oboljenja. Kod odraslih strah se manifestuje kao akutni
umobol ili estoka glavobolja, slabost u udovima, naroito
drhtavica u nogama i tamni krugovi oko oiju. Isto tako i
este none more su takoer popratni simptomi straha.
Kada je strah akumuliran u crijevima onda bolesnik pati od
kroninog proljeva, usljed kojeg mu tijelo onemoa i izgubi
snagu. U prilog tome, jo i danas se smatra da odrasli ljudi
koji od masne hrane dobiju proljev ili openito pate od onog
to se u klasinoj medicini klasificira nazivom iritabilna
crijeva u djetinjstvu su bili podvrgnuti fizikom ili psihikom
zlostavljanju usljed ega im se pojavio veliki strah.
U sluaju da je strah izazvao epilepsiju narodna medicina
sugerira da se bolesno dijete u vrijeme epileptikog napada
ne smije se niti hraniti niti dodirivati, sve dok grevi traju, a
pod nos mu se mora staviti krpa zamoena u ocat, u namjeri
da otar miris ublai trenutne potekoe u kojima se nalazi.
Onda kada grevi postanu slabijeg inteziteta, majka djetetu
obrie slinu sa usta, te mu stavlja obloge odnosno lanenu
krpu umoenu u ocat na glavu (elo) i pupak*.Tek onda kada

18

grevi potpuno prestanu, nakon nekog vremena, majka smije

podojiti dijete.
Ako je strah (bolest) zahvatio crijeva, prije suneva izlaska,
preporuuje se nabrati nekoliko granica sedefila (Ruta
graveolens), stucati je, pomijeati sa malo vode, pa tu
mjeavinu procijediti kroz gazu. U procjeenu tekuinu doda
se po pola kaikice meda i eera te se na kraju ta smjesa
ostavi negdje napolju na Suncu i zraku 24 sata. Ovaj
lijek se bolesnom djetetu daje tri dana uzastopno u zoru,
odnosno sat vremena prije izlaska Sunca. Odraslim se, pak,
ovaj je lijek daje dui period, obino oko devet dana, ili samo
voda u koju je potopljeno istucano lie biljke Veronica
officinalis.

Osim klasinog simptoma napetosti, umora, bljedila u licu i

naglog trzanja u snu, osoba kojoj se "pomjerilo srce" esto
gubi dah i neto je probada u grudima. Jedini lijek tome
stanju je, prema tvrdnji stravarki, ritual salivanja olova, ija
efikasnost u ovom sluaju oito se bazira na ideji da e
preplaena osoba, nad kojom se izvodi ritual, doivjeti novi
ok od jakog zvuka koje proizvodi rastopljeno olovo u dodiru
sa hladnom vodom.
U toku tog kratkotrajnog stresa, tokom ponavljanja tri puta
izlijevanja rastopljenog olova u posudu sa vodom, srce e se
postepeno vratiti na svoje mjesto. Materijalni dokaz tome
stravarke pronalaze u samom obliku olova koje mora imati
oblik duguljaste suze, to se naziva - srce.

Listovi ove biljke u prolosti davani su kao profilaktiko

sredstvo, u vidu amuleta, trudnicama, rodiljama i djeci, da ih
nose na grudima kako bi bili zatieni od uticaja straha.
U Visokom ali i drugim okolnim mjestima, Veronica officinalis
ili stravna trava stavljala bi se u metalnu posudu sa
izvorskom vodom, koja bi se poklopljena drala na poretu
sve dok voda ne provrije. im se to desi, stravarka drei u
jednoj ruci lavor ili tepsiju iznad bolesnikove glave, ali tako
da nema fizikog dodira, u nju izlije prokljualu vodu iz
posude a onda okrene naopako tu posudu na sredini tepsije.
Ukoliko vakuum povue vodu ispod posude -"upije vodu"bolesnik e se osloboditi posljedica straha. Identian
postupak se ponovi jo dva puta. Vodom se na kraju
bolesnik umije po licu, obriu mu se ruke i noge a ostatak,
zajedno sa biljkom, izlije na raskre.
Za lijeenje simptoma straha bosanske stravarke esto
preporuuju i ovu ajnu mjeavinu: po prstohvat Mentha
pulegium i Veronica officinalis se prelije sa dva decilitra vode
i ostavi pola sata poklopljeno. aj se pije zaslaen s medom
tri puta na dan.
Ljekovita mo olova
Za olovo se u bosanskom narodu vjeruje da posjeduje
profilaktika svojstva emu svjedoi i obiaj da im se uje
neka loa vijest, posebno o bolesti ili nesrei, kae se: "olovo
u ejtanove ui!". Najpoznatija specifinost olova, zbog koje
je uostalom i neizostavni rekvizit u lijeenju straha, jeste ona
da absorbira negativnu energiju u sebe.
U folk medicini BiH primjetan je uticaj homeopatije te
psiholokog uvjerenja kako se ok moe lijeiti novim
okom. Naime, kada se neki pojedinac, a posebno dijete,
jako uplai usljed neoekivanog i krajnje negativnog
iznenaenja, da ga doslovno preplavi jeza i trnci po stomaku
i grudima, preplaena osoba na tren izgubi dah i onda se
moe desiti, prema miljenju stravarki, da se srce pomjeri "iskoi"- nekoliko milimetara ili centimetara na lijevu ili desnu
stranu.
19

Nakon to je tako podvrgnuta egzorcistikom obredu sa

olovom u vodu se bace i tri vrua ugljena iji zvuci pitanja
treba da imaju umirujui efekat na bolesnika, poto taj
prigueni ton sam po sebi simbolizira gaenje odnosno
smirivanja. Vodom se nakon svega poduzetog bolesnik
umije i malo je otpije, ime je lijeenje zavreno.
Nekada je egzistiralo pravilo da se mjerenje od straha izvede
prije samog salivanja olova, kako bi se na taj nain u
potpunosti eliminisao svaki uticaj straha. Stravarke misle da
strah moe ovjeku ui u krv i kosti i "tada ga je teko
istjerati iz insana", pa se mora biti uporan i domiljat u
lijeenju.
* Bitno je za dokumentirati kako se upravo navedena mjesta na tijelu u
bosanskom okultizmu smatraju dvjema kardinalnim takama preko koje je
svaki ovjek povezan sa spiritualnim svijetom.

Primjeri lijeenja straha

Borba sa strahom nije jednostavna i esto iziskuje puno
strpljenja. Tome najbolje svjedoe stravarke ija su radna
iskustva prepuna razliitih sluajeva. Stravarka Emina
Hadihasanovi jedne prilike je ispriala novinaru nekog
sarajevskog magazina sljedee:
- Ja sam lila (salivala strahu) ovjeku, fatali ga etnici,
zatvarali i svata mu radili, a i u zgradi mu eksplodirala velika
granata. Bio taman da umre. Vie nije mogao mai. Nije
smio nikud sam to nije dijete sa sobom vodio. Nije smio u
WC otii da ga dijete ne bi odvelo. A mesar bio dobro
sposoban, kran. I doktorima iao, iao, a nema nita - sve
dobro, a tetura. Ja sam mu sedamdeset i sedam straha
salila i onda je doao do zdravlja. Eno ga sad opet radi na
Ilidi u mesari.

prouim, i umrem. Kad sam se izjutra probudila, znam ta

sam sanjala i ta je bilo, i onda odem jednom hodi na
Vratnik i kaem mu taj san.
On kae: To je dobro za tebe to si sanjala ako e salijevati
strahu. Nisam nikad, rekoh, ali, eto, mogu poeti. Odatle
doem ovdje, kad, gore ima jedna ena - sve od doktora do
doktora. Ufatilo je, ne moe da makne. Kae: Ja te noas
sanjala da mi salijeva strahu. Ja se nasmijah i ree': nisam,
bogami, nikome. E, kae, meni e je sad salit. E, reko', kad
je tako, hou. A ona uz stepenice moje na koljenima izie.
Ne moe da previje nogu. E, tu ja uzmem kaiku i ponem
da salijevam strahu. Kad sam joj salila treu strahu, ona se
ovako neta uinu, die se na noge i pone hodati. ivjela je
iza toga tri-etiri godine i umrla. A ja otad salijevam strahu.

Oito je da problem velikog straha u ovjeku zahtjeva i veliki

angaman, emu svjedoi jo jedan sluaj iz prakse ove
stravarue:
- Bila ti je neka ena. I htio je vo da je ubije, a nije. I ondar ti
je ona pala u komu i od tada uvijek pomalo spava, pomalo
pada u komu. Gdje god je zadesi, pane. Nita ne zna. Evo,
ima 79 straha da sam joj do sada salila i sad joj je to
prestalo, haman eto po jednom je u hefti snae. Dok jo koji
put salije, prestat e joj skroz. Samo straha. Nita doktori ne
znaju. Gledaju - sve ispravno, sve fino, a ovjek ne mere da
ivi. Straha oivi sve ivo. Udari i u noge, i u ruke, i u glavu, i
u sve. Tri strahe salije - isto ko da rukom odnese. Otkako
je svijeta i vijeka izliva se straha.

Ilirska ostavtina
Za ritual salivanja olova, koji je poznat u mnogim zemljama
Balkana, ali i Bliskog istoka poput Palestine, Sirije, Libanona,
Egipta, iranski antropolozi misle da potie od ilirskih ratnika,
koji su u vojnoj slubi Rimskog carstva proirili ga po svim
onim zemljama gdje je sezalo mono carstvo antikog Rima.
Zbog toga su ga preuzeli Turci, Arapi, Perzijanci i idovi, to
dovoljno potvruje da se radi o djelotvornom i uinkovitom
obredu anuliranja straha, urokljivih oiju ali i magije.
Kuriozitet koji se u narodu iskljuivo vezuje sa darom
proricanja i salivanja olova jeste to su obje tehnike esto
poklon nadnaravnih sila nekom pojedincu. Naime, znanje o
salivanju olova, prema kazivanju stravarki, esto "doe na
san", odnosno budua stravarka ga sanja. Jedan od takvih
primjera je bila je i ve spominjana Emina Hadihasanovi:
- Ja sanjala da u umrijet. A ova mi se kua k'o obrela
negdje na velikom brdu. I sad ja traim nekoga da mi proui
Jasin, i nikoga ne naoh. I onda turim pored ove seije deku
i legnem da umrem. Ponem uiti Jasin i tri mubina Jasina
20

Doktori ne mogu lijeiti strah

Stravarka Hadinica iz Potur mahale u Travniku jo je jedna
od onih rjetkih kojima su internetski portali i openito mediji
posvetili malo prostora. U razgovoru sa novinarom koji ju je
intervjuisao, Hadinica otkriva neke od tajni ove drevne
tehnike.
- Nije ovo nikakva gatka, ovo je korisno, ali ima ljudi koji
misle drugaije, pa ne bi voljela da se pie kako se zovem.
Ne bi voljela ni zbog ostale familije, zna kako ti je to pojanjava. Kae da joj dolaze ljudi odsvakud, iz cijele
srednje Bosne, Zenice, pa i Sarajeva. Svako doe sa svojom
priom i sa svojom nevoljom. Od radnika, pa do doktora,
politiara i pjevaa. Adet je da se salijevanje strahe mora
naplatiti. Neko da neto novca, neko donese poklon, ali da bi
sve bilo potpuno, mora se dati nagrada. Zato strahu ne
mogu salijevati blii srodnici koji ive u istoj kui. Iako je
uvrijeeno da se ovom starom egzorcistikom vjetinom
bave samo ene, strahu mogu salijevati i mukarci, ali kau

da nije zgodno da mukarac salije eni strahu.

Ritual sa olovom bez svake sumnje potie iz amanizma koji
se bazira na animizmu. Vjerovatno zbog svoje pomalo
misteriozne moi preobrazbe, da mjenja stanje iz vrstog u
tekue i obratno, olovo je ponukalo drevne ilirske amane da
uz njegovu pomo, kroz magijski ritual, pokuaju da
promjene i trenutno stanje u kome se nalazi bolesnik. Osim
toga, stravarke, ali i pojedine hode, koji prakticiraju ovu
metodu, slau se u miljenju kako olovo ima jednako ubojitu
mo prema ljudima ali i demonima. Naime, kako god
puano zrno moe ubiti ovjeka tako i olovo u
amanistikom ritualu moe ubiti odnosno preciznije kazano
zarobiti u sebe energiju nekog duha i tako ga udaljiti od
bolesnika.

Pomislim sigurno ga je neko prepao. Salijem strahu, kad

svaki put figura mukarca se pokae. Pitam - ko te uplaio? I
on mi onda ispria sve, kako je jednog prijatelja primio u
kuu da prenoi, a ovaj zapravo bio lopov i htio ga opljakati.
Pjeva je taj dogaaj preutio i zadrao strah u sebi, a kad je
dolo do problema, tek je onda potraio pomo.

U tri uzastopna izlijevanja rastopljenog olova ono doista

oblikuje jednu ili vie figurica onog ega se neka osoba
uplaila.
- Dou mi ene i ne znaju da se ustvari plae svog mua. Ja
to odmah otkrijem i kaem joj - tebe je tvog mua strah!
Naravno, ponekad naem i figuru koja pokazuje da se mu
plai svoje supruge. Za uklanjanje straha najvanije je otkriti
uzrok.

Pomae samo onom kome treba takva pomo

I u razgovoru sa nekim drugim stravarkama sa kojima sam
imao priliku, a i ast, da razgovaram naiao sam na
identino miljenje. Svaka od njih kategorino tvrdi da sve
ono to se pokae u olovu prokazano je i ne moe vie
nauditi bolesnome.
- Salivanje olova e uvijek pomoi onome ko je sluaj za to,
odnosno, ko je pun straha ili neke druge negativne energije,
a ako njegov problem nije za strahu onda nee ni od nje
imati koristi, govorila je za ivota Mevlida O. iz Velike
Kladue, jedna od onih stravarki koja je svoje iscjeliteljsko
znanje nasljedila od svekrve.
- Niko ne zna koliko je star ovaj obiaj. Meni je ao to
izumire, nema mladih ena koja bi htjele uiti, a i malo je oni
koje bi to mogle - kae Hadinica i pojanjava predispozicije
koje su veoma stroge: onaj ko je ve iskusan u salijevanju,
ueniku daje izun, odnosno dozvolu. ena mora biti
pobona, pokrivena i bilo bi poeljno da je obrazovana,
posebno u islamskom duhu. Ne mora biti obavljen Had, ali
kako kae Hadinca, nije zgoreg.
U nastavku razgovora stravarka Hadinica ispriala je kako
su joj jedne prilike doveli i nekog pjevaa koji je pjevao u
oblinjem restoranu.
- Kae on meni, ne znam ta mi je, samo bi se svaao?!
21

Presjecanje straha
Osim salivanja strahe i odsjecanja skrate stravarue
poznaju i druge metode lijeenja straha, poput "uvarivanja
strahe" ili presjecanja noem. Ovaj zadnji metod vrlo je
rjedak i danas je pravo udo pronai jo neku stravarku koja
ga prakticira. Po tome je krajem prolog vijeka bila poznata
sada ve rahmetli Fatima Dizdarevi, koju je tome poduila
svekrva.
Stravarka uzme no sa crnom drkom (koricama) i kako
dodiruje prestraenog, koji lei na podu ili krevetu licem
okrenut ka plafonu, tako prati tekst egzorcistike basme. Kao
i u svim drugim bajanjima i u ovom stravarka poinje sa
uenjem "od glave pa na dolje":
Ne sjeem N tebe i tvoje tijelo
ve sjeem tebi crni strahu glavu,
sjeem ti grlo,
sjeem ti ramena,
lijevu ruku, desnu ruku,
prste od najmanjeg do najveeg,
param ti grudi,
sjeem ti srce,
vadim ti drob,
presjecam te po stomaku,
lomim ti kimu,
sjeem ti obje noge, oba stopala,
i svih deset prstiju.
Bjei, prljava pogani,
nee ovdje jesti ni spavati,
bjei, crni strahu, od N daleko;
gdje pas ne laje,
maka ne mjaue,
pijetao ne kukurue,
sa mojom basmom a boijom hazmom, huuuu!

Nakon to hukne u no stravarka opet ponavlja pokrete

noem od glave do pete citirajui tekst basme i tako ukupno
devet puta. Nakon zadnjeg ponavljanja no stravarka baci
sebi iza lea.
Uoljivo je u samom tekstu formule kako se strah doivljava
kao neko nadnaravno parazitsko bie bez spolnog obiljeja
odnosno "crni duh" koji je opsjeo bolesnika. Pri kraju
formule stravarka ga prezrivo oslovljava i sa "prljava pogani"
- neista materija - aludirajui time da ga je pobjedila i
razotkrila. Dodirujui njeno otricom noa bolesnika po tijelu
stravarka imitativnim pokretima i rijeima ritualno kanjava
duha zbog toga to se usudio ui u ljudsko tijelo i muiti ga*.
Personifikacija straha kroz oblije mranog duha nije
sluajna ve utemeljena na vjerovanju svih stravarki o
postojanju crnog straha koji ue ovjeku u glavu i vrlo ga je
teko istjerati. Isto tako, postoji "dnevna straha" i "nona
straha" - uplai li se neko po danu lake e se izljeiti od
straha nego ukoliko se prepao nou "jer to je crna straha i
ona insanu ue u glavu!".

Mo pljuvake
U bosanskom narodu poznate su neke od profilaktikih radnji
sa kojima se eli trenutno anulirati uticaj straha. Najee je
lagano pljucanje sebi meu grudi. Kada se govori o
negativnim pojedinostima, a posebno o bolesti, ili se pak
ovjek neega uplai, bio je obiaj da se blago razvue
okovratnik koulje ili majice, kako bi se oslobodila od dodira
sa tijelom, i tako omoguilo pljuvaki da padne na grudi,
blizu srca.
Tradicionalni obiaj pljucanja u stranu ili ispred sebe, kada
se svjesno eli udaljiti zlo, segment je istovjetne prakse.
Naime, u onom sluaju ako se opaze na sredini raskra
baeni komadi olova i ugljena, od salivanja strahe, a u cilju
da ih neko nagazi i primi strah bolesnika na sebe, pljune se
prema vienom i kae:" Na kome si bila na toga i prei", u
nakani da se sauva od te natprirodne transmisije.
Strah se poput magije, prema narodnom uvjerenju, moe
usmjeriti sa sebe na drugu osobu ali samo u onom
najsvjeijem trenutku, dok jo nije ovladao potpuno umom
osobe. im proe prvi ok, preplaena osoba, ukoliko vidi
neku drugu na pristojnoj udaljenosti, moe tri puta ponoviti
ovu kratku formulu fokusirano gledajui u svoju "metu":
Na crvu crv,
na mravu mrav,
na konju konj,
na kravi krava,
a na tebi moja strava,
huuuu od Boga hazma
a od mene basma!

Primjetno je u tekstualno kraim ili duim egzorcistikim

formulama da se strah uvijek protjeruje iz kostiju ("utjerao mu
strah u kosti"), poput ove sa Sandaka gdje bonjaka
stravarka govori:

Zatim pljune na svoj prst (kaiprst) i obrie ga uz drvo ili

povrinu zemlje, kako bi tim ritualnim postupkom dodatno se
protjerao strah i na neki nain proistilo tijelo od njega.

Bjei, straho,
iz kosti pod kou,
sa koe na dlaku,
sa dlake u Crno more!

*U narodnoj medicini BiH praksa koritenja metala, kao uinkovitog

sredstva zaplaivanja duhova bolesti, tradicionalna je i njeno porijeklo
svakako treba traiti u najranijoj ljudskoj povijesti. Ova vjetina temelji se
na uvjerenju kako sve ono to moe povrijediti ili ubiti ovjeka, poput olova
(metak) ili eljeza (no), moe takoer imati identian destruktivni uinak i
na same demone bolesti. U krajnjem sluaju takva je predodba i
razumljiva ukoliko uzmemo u obzir da duhovi, koji napadaju i opsjedaju
ljude, egzistiraju na slian nain kao i oni sami te da su samim time ranjivi.

Kanjavanje straha nije rjetka pojava u narodnoj medicini

Bosne i Hercegovine. U antologijskom djelu Antuna Hangija
o ivotu i obiajima Bonjaka autor opisuje metodu salivanja
olova i navodi kako stravarka na kraju obreda makazama
"sjee" povrinu vode u svim smjerovima, aludirajui tim
pokretima na sjeenje straha. Jo jedan podatak jasno
upuuje na narodnu predstavu straha kao duha, naime, sve
stravarke imaju neka pravila koja izvode one ili sam bolesnik
zbog opreza da se straha ne vrati nazad, bilo da je rije o
oblaenju nove odjee, vjeanju makaza i noa na ulazna
vrata, ne osvrtanja unazad, itd.
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Kad strah udari u stomak

U narodnoj medicini BiH najee ene lijee probleme sa
elucem, koje se nazivaju eludarice, i kao u sluaju straha,
poput stravarki, i one tvrde da se od "pomjerenog eluca
moe i umrijeti!".
Veina njih rezonira da bi eludac trebao u tijelu biti
pozicioniran u visini sa pupkom. Usred odreenih
nepovoljnih akcija i deavanja, poput podizanja tekog
tereta, pada sa visine, provoenja dugotrajnih dijeta,
spavanja na rukama ili dranja ruku iznad glave, kod ena
nakon poroda i slinog, moe doi do negativnih implikacija
na rad i poloaj eluca. Ponekad uzrok tome moe biti jaa
prehlada, kada usred agresivnog kaljanja, eludac "iskoi"
iz svog leita. Simptomi su goruica, povraanje i gubitak
tjelesne mase.
Uticaj oka, stresa i openito straha takoer je est uzronik
pomjerenog eluca. Kada se odreenom opservacijom utvrdi
da je"strah udario u stomak" inzistira se na krajnje blagom i
njenom pristupu bolesniku. On sadri tri ili vie etapa koje bi
se mogle podijeliti u slijedee kategorije:
Profilaktiki pristup
Prirodno lijeenje
Magijski angaman
Masaa

Prirodno lijeenje
Svaka bolest eluca nastala usred konstantne izloenosti
stresu i okovima stravarke i eludarice u prvoj fazi tretiraju
tradicionalnim lijekovima poput onog kada se devet listova
sedefila istuca i pomjea sa kilo meda te uzima tokom 40
dana (2). Uinkovitim se pokazao i aj od granica dunje,
koji ima izuzetno ugodan okus i lijepu crvenu boju, koja
prema homeopatskom shvatanju "stimulativno utie na
psihu" ba poput aja od kamilice, ija uta boja idealno
djeluje na one koji imaju "uto lice zbog bolova u stomaku".

Magijski angaman
U kolektivnoj svijesti bosanskog naroda strah je neodvojiv sa
problemima srca i eluca, to dovoljno uvjerljivo prezentira
identian nain ljeenja. Naime, ritual pod nazivom
"uvarivanje strahe" koji se bazira na upotrebi prokljuale
vode i okretanja prazne posude, kako bi vakuum povukao
vruu vodu unutar posude, koristi se za lijeenje eluca ali i
straha. Jedina razlika u ritualima je da se u sluaju lijeenja
pomjerenog eluca voda na kraju prolijeva i ne dolazi u
kontakt sa bolesnikom, dok kod neutralisanja straha bolesnik
se njome umiva i peru mu se ruke i noge.

Profilaktiki pristup
U narodu se vjeruje kako na probleme sa elucem dosta
djeluje psiha, odnosno sklonost nervozi, brizi a posebno
paniarenju. Zapravo, kako smo do sada mogli zakljuiti,
svaki oblik psihike napetosti ili straha ima direktan uticaj na
ljudsko zdravlje. Za onu osobu koja naglo izgubi apetit, slabo
jede ili je "uta u licu" vjeruje se kako ima problema sa
strahom. Poznato je, isto tako, kako plahe i bojaljive osobe
- "ko se esto i lako prepada odnosno "strunjiva"- imaju
najvie problema sa elucem. Njima se diskretno
preporuuje da potrae kamen "ustavljak" i stave ga u au
iz koje esto piju vodu.
Naime, kako to pie Antun Hangi, bonjake majke su za
smirivanje histerine djece, koja puno plau i ne ele zaspati,
koristile kamen ustavljak. Do njega se dolazilo na vrlo
jednostavan nain: na neko drvo napolju bacalo bi se sitno
kamenje sve dok jedan ili njih vie ne bi se sluajno
zaustavilo na nekoj grani. Taj se kamen uzimao i stavljao
djetetu pod jastuk. Kamen ustavljak u narodnoj medicini BiH
ima svojstvo da smiruje, oputa i na taj nain ozdravljuje (1).
Za probleme sa strahom, koji utie na eludac, odabiralo se
drvo gloga.
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Masaa
Laganim masiranjem nauljenim rukama, poevi od lijeve
ruke te idui prema ramenima i sputajui se niz lea,
izmeu donjih rebara i zdjelice, sa stranje strane, vri se
cjelokupna masaa tijela u namjeri vraanja eluca na svoje
mjesto. Treba naglasiti da openito masaa se izvodi u
onom najteem obliku, kada niti jedna prethodna metoda nije
imala uinka. Poneke eludarice jaim pokretima izmasiraju
samo dio ruku do lakta a onda ga podveu sa nekom krpom i
tako ostave pola sata.

Dini izazivaju strahove i blokade

Upotreba zapisa i tilsuma u lijeenju uticaja straha jedan je

od onih moda i najfascinantnijih segmenata u narodnoj
medicini BiH. Zapisi su od davnina bili dovedeni u rang skoro
pa univerzalne paneceje u lijeenju svih oblika duevnih ali i
pojedinih fizikih oboljenja. Blagotvorna mo jedne ili vie
molitvi ukomponiranih u sadraj zapisa, koja je zamjenila
paganske bajalice i zaklinjanja, temelji se na istom principu
upuivanje elje ili molbe za oslobaanjem tijela od
negativnog uticaja nekog entiteta, koji se usljed krenja
odreenog tabua udomaio u bolesniku.
Naime, prema islamskoj mitologiji kada je Allah stvorio
(1) Volebna uloga kamenja u razliitim segmentima magijskih aktivnosti

poznata je iz neolita i temelji se na kultu Velike Majke, najstarijeg

boanstva u ljudskoj povijesti. Upravo iz tog vremena potjeu i prve
kamene statue i kipovi svih oblika Velike Majke "one koja daje ivot i titi
ga". ak i veina obreda i sveanosti koja su se izvodila u njenu ast
obavljali su se u peinama, kako bi se u zemljinom utrobi ostvario to blii
kontakt sa ovim najstarijim boanstvom, bez kojeg je bio nezamisliv
poetak ljudske civilizacije.
(2) Prema kazivanju stravarki prljava voda od kupanja vodom u kojoj se
salivalo olovo, treba se proliti u potok ili rijeku, i "im pree devet kamenja
zlo i bolest se razbilo!". Poznat je i stih egzorcistike basme "na devet
kamenja da se obije i razbije". Devet je isto tako, uz broj 40, simbol Velike
Majke (devet mjeseci trudnoe/40 tjedana), a njihovi uticaji su doslovno
sveprisutni u bosanskoj ali i svim drugim magijama svijeta.

Adema i Havu, morao je postaviti ljudskom oku nevidljiv

zastor izmeu njih i dina (demona), kako ih njihova
monstruozna oblija ne bi svakodnevno plaila i budila jezu.
Isto tako, uinio je da tokom dana ljudi budu vie manje
zatieni od zlih duhova, a za no im je odredio da spavaju i
odmaraju, kako bi dini mogli imati slobodu kretanja. Ta
predaja izrodila je mnotvo tabua kojima se doslovno
izbjegavao neposredni kontakt sa dinima, zbog same
tetnosti njihovog uticaja na ljudsko tijelo i psihu.
Od najpoznatijih tabua u bosanskom narodu navode se oni
vezani za akam (zalazak Sunca), kada demoni izlaze iz
svojih skrovita i dobijaju mo, koja e potrajati do sabaha
odnosno zore. Upravo zbog toga u predveerje se
izbjegavalo izlaziti napolje, prolaziti pored oraha, mjesta gdje
se cjepaju drva, prolivati prljavu vodu itd.
Ako se pak dogodi da pojedinac sluajno ili namjerno
zanemari neki od mnogih tabua, moe se desiti da postane
demonskom metom i riskira opsjednue tojest ulazak dina u
ljudsko tijelo. Najoitiji simptom prisustva zlog duha u

Zapis protiv straha

ovjeku je upravo pojava bezrazlonog straha. Naime,

sasvim neoekivano ta osoba poinje osjeati sve intenzivniji
nemir i jezu od noi, zatvorenog prostora, pojedinih ivotinja,
hrane, itd.

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Navodno, i vrlo decidiranim magijskim gestama strah se

moe "probuditi" u bilo kojem ovjeku. Pojedine bosanske
Tilsumi koji se koriste protiv straha

stravarke, poput rahmetli Fatime Dizdarevi, objanjavaju

kako se izaziva fobija od mezarja i mrtvih, naime, dovoljno je
diskretno na neku osobu baciti malo zemlje sa mezara, a da

Razvojem i irenjem pisma rodila se i spoznaja da zakletve i

molitve koje, ako se zapiu na papir, poprimaju svoj
materijalni oblik te dui vremenski kontinuitet postojanja, a
samim time i djelovanja, za razliku od izgovorenih formula
ija je uinak trenutan i vrlo brzo se raspri. Iako je
zabiljeeno da su i nai bogumilski preci koristili odreene
svete tekstove u spravljanju hamajlija za lijeenje i zatitu,
tek poetkom Osmanlijske okupacije i pojave islama ta
praksa doivljava pravu ekspanziju u BiH.
Koliko se moe dokuiti iz prilino skromne literature i
podataka Osmanlije su bile pod izravnim uticajem perzijsko-

ona to ne primjeti. No, isto tako, ukoliko se neko plai

navedenog onda mu se preporuivalo ogledanje na povrini
vode koja se koristila za kupanje mrtvaca.
Svi duhovni autoriteti po BiH miljenja su da se strah moe
nekom nametnuti raznim oblicima vraanja, u emu su
najpoznatije tehnike usmjeravanja zlog duha kroz sihir
odnosno arku. Konkretno, u pitanju su mnogobrojne fobije a
najuestalija od svih je iznenadni strah od mraka - aklufobija
- i taj se problem klasino rjeava ispisivanjem sljedeeg
tilsuma* kojeg bolesnik nosi stalno uza se, sve do potpunog
nestanka ovog neugodnog osjeaja.

arapskih magijskih vjerovanja, ukombiniranih sa pojedinim

islamskih uenjem. No, ono to je posebno zanimljivo jeste
to da su Osmanlije kao mongolski narod, poznat po
amanistikoj praksi, zadrali prilino mnogo svojih
animistikih vjerovanja. Zbog toga turska magija obiluje
raznolikim sinkretikim elementima a ta specifinost se
posebno jasno uoava u formi i izgledu tilsuma. Dok
arapsko-perzijski tilsumi slijede standardni obrazac izrade,
po kojem tilsum posjeduje sveti tekst i magijski kvadrat
(vefk), kod turskih tilsuma izgled se bazira na onom to bi ja
osobno nazvao "amanski dijagrami" odnosno obiluju
grafikim prikazima duhovnih bia kroz jednu liniju ili njih
vie.

Uz pomo magijskih postupaka moe se, navodno, uticati na

neku osobu da bez ikakvog ozbiljnog razloga pone osjeati
neopisivi strah prema odreenom pojedincu ili se dogodi da
se mukarac plai ene i obratno - seksofobija. U tom
sluaju bosanski hoda izradit e slijedei tilsum, koji e
bolesnik, kao i u prvom primjeru, nositi stalno uza se.

Prema magijskom naelu dini, glavni uzronici svih

duevnih bolesti, mogu se potiniti volji nekog pojedinca uz
pomo drevnih peata i zaziva. Kontrolom tih negativnih
spiritualnih snaga arobnjak moe svjesno nanositi veliko zlo
pojedincu ili ak grupi ljudi. Kada eli zablokirati nekog
ovjeka odnosno uiniti ga neuspjenim u pojedinim ili svim
ivotnim segmentima mag na njega ritualno usmjerava
jednog ili vie dina koji e ga opsjednuti i svojim
destruktivnim uticajem u njemu probuditi razno-razne fobije
od kojih e biti u potpunosti blokiran - nesiguran, uplaen,
sklon tremi, nepovjerenju u sebe i histeriji.

Evidentno je kako pomama za hodinim tilsumima nije

prestala ni u 21.vijeku i svako malo mogue je proitati u
printanim medijima ili internetskim portalima kako su neka
poznata imena, posebno iz svijeta estrade, posjetili nekog od
mnogobrojnih hoda traei pomo za svoje probleme. Osim
javnih osoba navedene posjeuju i sasvim obini, anonimni
ljudi, pokuavajui i na takav nain uticati na pozitivan ishod

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neugodnih situacija u kojima se nalaze. Kada je u pitanju

lijeenje straha onda se najvie trae zapisi za uspjeno
polaganje ispita, kada se eli neutralizirati trema i
blokiranost.

*Babilonsko oko, H.M.ajlakovi

e-book ANZOTIKA
Velika Kladua, 2016. godina

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