Traditional Magic Spells for Protection and Healing

An in-depth collection of ancient spells and magic practices drawn from rare and newly discovered texts.

Traditional Magic Spells for Protection and Healing presents more than 600 magical prescriptions for healing and protection from both pagan and Christian sources. It examines the practice of diagnosing illness through magic and explores ancient beliefs about curses and other evil spells, as well as devils, demons, and ghosts. The book also includes spells from the heavily guarded gypsy tradition of magic and healing, drawn from newly discovered materials.

Since the beginning of history, people have sought remedies for the myriad ills that have beset them, ranging from physical ailments to threats posed by evil or hostile individuals. In many folk healing and pagan traditions, it was believed that the assistance of a plant's or substance's guardian spirit must be gained through prayers or offerings before its chemical properties would be effective. While the Church decried these spells and practices as pagan superstition, it did not seek to exterminate these beliefs. Instead, it transferred the responsibility for their healing powers to the apostles and saints.

Drawing on his extensive knowledge of ancient texts, Claude Lecouteux presents more than 600 magical prescriptions from both pagan and Christian sources from the last 2,000 years, covering everything from abscesses and shingles to curses and healing animals. He examines the practice of diagnosing illness through magic and investigates the origins of disease according to the evolving beliefs of magic practitioners over the centuries. Lecouteux explores ancient beliefs about curses, devils, demons, and ghosts and provides a detailed look at protection magic. This includes protection of health, animals, and cultivated land, defense against curses, witchcraft, bad weather, and beasts, as well as safeguarding a home and ensuring safety while traveling.

He includes spells from the heavily guarded gypsy tradition of magic and healing, drawn from newly discovered materials collected by two Romanian ethnologists who lived and traveled with gypsies in Transylvania in the mid-19th century. The author also reproduces rare texts on magic healing from the 14th and 15th centuries.

Revealing the vitality of these practices in the remoter areas of Eastern Europe, Lecouteux shows how the influence of this pagan worldview is still detectable in the work of modern folk healers in France and Scandinavia. He also highlights how the condemnation of unorthodox methods of healing has not vanished from the contemporary world, as medieval legislation against healing by wizards and bonesetters is echoed in modern health codes that challenge the authority of naturopaths and faith healers.