Cult of fertility among the Bosnian People

Plum and gift for the Grand
Mother
It is necessary to emphasize
that cohabitation relationships in
the past often resulted in a real
fight between two women, which
tried to harm one another in all
possible ways and achieve the goal
that one of them is physically
removed from the house. Inoća i.e.
the other wife of the husband
could harm her rival via magic
without discrediting herself, all
the while hiding her animosity and
antagonism.
It is known from the narratives of
people that revolted women often
sought help from local witches so
that they can destroy love and
fertility in their rivals. One of
the more famous rituals which were
undertaken by a witch entailed
using the underpants of the victim,
seven grains of wheat and three
beads of beans. After wrapping the
beads into the underpants the
witch would bring them over a fire
and light them a bit and utter a
certain formula.
If pregnancy of the rival happens
before inoća has undertaken some
of the magical options, she
wouldn't give up but on the advice
of an elderly lady she would go to
the graveyard and she would pick
Raif Esmerović
15
one weed each from the top of
grave, then from the middle (hands)
and in the end from the bottom i.e.
above the legs of the deceased.
She would bring those three herbs
home, she would grind them and
place them into the food of her
rival discretely, in order to
cause a miscarriage. She would
also take a handful of dirt from
the grave, mix it in some water
and discretely rub the edges of
clothes of the woman whose
destruction she tried to invoke.
Whether she is acting individually
or with the help of a local witch,
the spells which were prepared at
the time were extremely negative,
filled with hate and desire for
destruction. Even when, despite
the undertaken actions, pregnancy
was not stopped, inoća didn't give
up her plan, she waited for the
time when her rival will be in the
most vulnerable state and position
- during birth and after it. She
would try at all costs to get some
blood that exited her rival, she
used that blood as the main
ingredient for preparation of
spells of hatred and discord.
Similarly, she would often, while
feigning care, make her maslenicu
(maslenjak) and she would bake it
on dried plum branches. According
to legends of old Bosnian ladies
if the woman that gave birth would
eat that maslenica, she would lose
Cult of fertility among the Bosnian People