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Proto-Indo European Wizards Sutra Chants echo in the Japanese mountains calling on the Buddhas and kami to protect the people, to cure illness, to purify the soul. Thousands of miles away a song echo's in Ireland based on chants which are thousands of years old. Not so long ago the magical systems that made up these two chants, and thousands more like them spanning across nearly every culture of Europe and Asia had a single root. Six thousand years ago a small series of tribes on the Eur-Asian Steppes stormed into history, lead by a cast of priest/wizards and warrior kings these people's language would become the Latin of Rome, Germanic, Celtic, Greek, Russian, Polish, in Europe, as well as the languages of Iran, Pakistan, and Northern India. Their decedents would write the Rigveda which would become the basis for Hinduism and eventually Buddhism even as they told similar epics to continue their religion in Europe. Although its impossible to know everything about these people there are a few things their decedents shared in common. The Priestly/Wizard Caste Every society I know of which was descended from the the Proto-Indo European peoples had a priestly or wizard caste which helped to guide and lead their people. This caste would have included such figures as Odin, Buddha, Merlin, and more. These priests while not the technical kings of a people would guide and control them with knowledge. Indeed people would often make no move against the will of this priestly caste. Spells were in hymns, poems and songs Religious Spells The poet wizard / priest was called upon by their people, and by the kings and patrons to divine the future, to exorsize evil spirits and illness, and to bring blessings for success. The songs used to call down the power of the deities began by identifying the deity in a positive way. This is done not only by stating the deities name but also by giving them a title such as 'the beautiful haired' or 'the splended one.' This is followed by the poet/singer stating they call upon the deity or power in question. For example to aid with hunting one might sing "I supplicate you, deer-shooter, fair-haired daughter of Zeus, Artemis mistress of beasts of the wild.' This initial greeting of the deity was followed by further chants discussing the deities abilities and historical successes. Finally the request is made. As with the rest of the poem this request is made in poetic form. Spells In addition to the poems which called on deities and other supernatural powers wizards and even ordinary people could use charms and other spells to help them in their everyday life. Such spells were of use because they didn't require the wizard or caster to persuade the deity to aid them, rather they were dependent upon individual power or upon compelling a supernatural power to aid the wizard whether it wished to do so or not. As with the religious spells the magical incantations were sung. One Vedic incantation goes thus: Let him yearn for me, yes, my dear yearn for me, yes: gods, send yearning, Let him burn for me That he yearn for m not I for him ever at all, gods sending yearing let him burn for me Send him, Maruts, Air, send him wild, Agni, send him wild, let him burn for me In order to be effective such spells would have a repedative element to them, with the desired efect repeated (often 3 times as 3 was a special number) Another important number was Nine. Often rituals themselves needed to be spoken by the wizard nine times or nine times three times. Herbal Magic The deities were believed to be immortal because of a fruit or herb they ate. In Celtic myth fairies were immortal because of a berry, in Greek, Indian, and Germanic mythology the fruit of a tree made the deities immortal. Some fairies state that it is secret herbs which make them immortal. From this we can know that the Proto-Indo Europeans believed herbs and plants to be some of the most important elements in the creation of magic. In order for such herbs to be effective the wizard would need to pick them in just the right way; during a new moon, with the left hand, with aset number of finger,s using an iron knife, etc. Curses Spells were not only used to heal and aid, they could also be used to put curses on people. Such curses often involved a form of sympathetic magic in which a person would place the curse by stabbing some object in order to bring harm to another. Indeed the word stabbing was often used in many chants for curses. One tomb has a curse for those who desecrate it which calls for those who do so to be 'stabbed to bits.' In addition to calling for a person to be stabbed a curse could also name specific parts of a person which the wizard desired to be 'stabbed' by the supernatural powers. Power from nature |