Magic rites for pets

"O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Eternal Heavenly Father, Thou hast said with Thy most pure lips that without Thee nothing can be done. I ask Thy help! Every work to begin with Thee, for Thy glory and the salvation of my soul. Now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen."

"Nicholas, God's saint, God's helper. Thou art in the field, thou art in the house, on the journey and on the road, in heaven and on earth: intercede and guard against all evil."

"Our Father, who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."

Lead the purchased animal around yourself, holding the halter or rope not with bare hands but wearing mittens, and say, addressing the house spirit, the domovoi:

"Here is for thee, master, a shaggy beast for a rich yard. Sing, feed, and stroke it with thy mitten."

"Provider, dear father, as I love these cows (sheep, pigs, and so on), so love and cherish them too."

When buying an animal, pay so that there is change — then your livestock will thrive. Hide this change above the entrance to the shed, or in the house if they are dogs or cats.

"O Lord, bless for our home our milk, butter, cheese and meat. Amen."

These words are spoken as you hand over the money for the cattle.

Brush her down with a birch besom and say:

"May thy fleshy body be smooth, thy milk white and sweet, thy sour cream rich and tasty. And thou, father domovoi, lead her home into the shed. Guard her day and night; let no one bewitch my little cow. Key, lock, tongue. Amen."

So your animals stay fortunate and hardy, do not forget to say when buying their feed:

"I buy, and bless in Christ's name. Amen."

Take a cup of salted water, walk three times around the animal and say, sprinkling the animal:

"I cut and I salt, and I give nothing away. I shall let no one spoil them — neither kin nor stranger nor fool. Neither out of folly, nor greed, nor envy, nor gain, nor malice. My foot shall step forward first, my hand shall overturn, and the hex shall perish. Amen."

Look straight into the animal's eyes and say three times:

"Pure water, pure eyes, wash away illness, tears. Amen."

Cut an apple into two halves above the sick animal's head. Rub the ringworm with one half of the apple. Put the halves together and carry the apple to the bridge over the river. Lay the apple halves on the bridge railings on opposite sides, saying:

"As this apple was whole and became divided, as I lay its two sides facing each other, so may my cattle be free of ringworm. Amen."

"In the open field stands a dry shalga — a barren stalk. As upon that stalk no grass grows and no flower blooms, so may my cattle have neither fistula, nor wound, nor bleeding, nor abscesses, nor sick growths, nor grievous disease. I seal it with my power, my will, my word. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

To raise a fallen animal (a horse, a cow, and so on) to its feet.

Before going to heal the animal, light a candle or vigil lamp in the house and open the casement window. Stand at the animal's feet and say twelve times without stopping, in a low voice:

"Rejoice and be well. The Lord gave thee to us for sustenance; now is not thy time to perish — rise."

Take three armfuls of hay, on any day from August 18th to 31st, from three haystacks, saying:

"Flor and Laurus, come feed my cattle in winter."

Hide this hay away, and on the day of the Protecting Veil of the Mother of God — Pokrova — feed it to the animals. The cattle will be strong and hardy.

Stand beside the animal and whisper into its ear:

"A hewn corner and an oaken cross, that the ear ache not nor twist, neither by day nor by night, neither at morning dawn nor at evening. Neither at the new moon, nor in wind, nor at rest. Forever and ever. Amen."

Animals in labour can be eased with this incantation:

"Opening the golden gates, I lift the heavy throes, the birth pangs, I drive away the pains — both the first-born and all that follow. Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

"Thief, turn to a pillar. As a pillar neither sees nor hears, so mayest thou grow deaf and blind and steal not my cattle. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Take a knife and, in the field or the forest, draw a circle; stabbing the knife into the circle, read:

"I pray you, Yuri, Yegori — St George — I pray you as God: restrain your greyhounds of the field, the forest and the pinewood; clamp shut their teeth and lips. That with their eyes they see not, with their ears they hear not my cattle (name) in the field, in the forest, or in any place. And set it, O Lord, in such a place that my cattle (name) appears to thy hounds as a dry stump, a rotten log."

Then leave the knife standing in the circle overnight, until the cattle return home.

A binding condition: no one must see or hear what you do. And least of all must you boast that the spell brought the cattle safely home.

At the full moon, take a whip and, cracking it, walk counter-clockwise around the herd, shouting:

"Wolves, tear not; men, steal not; ticks, kill not; suck no blood. As I led them here, so I lead them back; as I took, so I return. Begone, ye black, speckled, white, raven, curly ones, and all of every kind. God grant me count them all. Amen. Amen. Amen."

Tear a red rag into three pieces. Tie them together and drop them where the missing cattle used to spend the night. Dropping the ties, say:

"As surely as I have twisted three red knots, so surely shall I find the missing cattle."

In the middle of the yard, burn the bedding from beneath the stolen cattle and read the incantation three times:

"As this place burns, so may the thief's bone, marrow and blood burn. May fear and forty sicknesses fall upon him. May it pinch and break him, gnaw and toss him, shake and crush him, knot his veins into knots. As this fire dies out, so shall the thief suffer. Amen."

"Thief, turn to a pillar. As a pillar neither sees nor hears, so mayest thou grow deaf and blind and steal not my cattle. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

On Maundy Thursday, put on a sheepskin coat inside out. Approach each of your cattle in turn, shake a bucket and say:

"On the eastern side, in a distant land, walk Vlasiy and Feodosiy. In their holy hands they hold golden keys. O ye saints, lock up my carcasses of meat, my rivers of milk, that none approach these rivers, that none destroy my household. Run, little milk, through the little veins, from the veins straight to the udder, from the udder to the pail, from the pail to the jug. Find appetite for my little beast, and thou, appetite, turn to fat — grow sleek, grow fleshy. Ward my deeds, amen my words. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen."

So that your animals are never spoiled by witchcraft.

In Passion Week, on Wednesday between noon and one o'clock, while the church service is underway, walk around your farmstead holding a nail in one hand and a hammer in the other. When you have walked all the way around three times, drive the nail beneath your porch, saying:

"As the nail obeys the hammer, so shall all sorcerers bow before me. As the nail entered the plank and as my eyes behold it, so shall no sorcerer harm my yard. Amen."

"The down prickles and fluffs. As the moon changes and is born anew, so may the down upon my goats grow and fluff. I comb, I card, I rake, I charm, I bless. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

So a cow stands still during milking.

"Remember, O Lord, King David and all his meekness. Tame, O Lord, this cow with Thy strongholds. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

The charm is read over water with which the udder is washed:

"O Lord God, bless. As I speak, so shall it be. So may my cow (the cow's name) stir not from her place. Grant her, O Lord, neither kicking of legs, nor swishing of tail, nor butting of horns. Stand as a mountain — milk as a river: a lake of sour cream, a river of milk. Key and lock to my words. Amen."

The words to be said after calving.

So that all your animals always stay healthy. As soon as the cow has calved, stroke your hand up the wall from bottom to top, then along the cow's spine, saying:

"The walls shall stand, and thou shalt bear young. As firm as the walls, so firm thy womb."

Dip the cow's tail into the colostrum and read the charm three times:

"Thou shalt keep thy calf, and we thy milk. Saints of Christ, give my little cow to drink, that she may feed and nourish us, as you nourish her."

This charm should be read on Thursdays in spring, as you drive the animal out to pasture. Then there will always be plenty of rich milk, thick sour cream, good cheese and curds.

"Black coat (or whatever colour), onto the green field, onto the spring waters, along milky shores, toward hard cheese, thick sour cream, rich butter. With thy horns fend off foes, with thy hooves rake away, with thy tail brush aside; come home a milking cow and bring me every profit. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Buy a new milk pail at the full moon, in the first half of the day. When buying it, take no change — overpay instead. Before milking your little cow into this pail for the first time, do not forget to say, looking into it:

"Upon the ocean-sea stands a golden Throne, and upon that Throne sits the Mother of God, gazing at me with kind eyes. I shall rise, cross myself, approach Her and bow low. Mother, Mother of God, wish my little cow to give milk — three measures high, three times three, and thrice three times three. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen."

Ask for the cow to be set on her feet, stroke her belly clockwise with your hand and say three times:

"My word shall prevail; the cow shall calve now. Abraham, Panteleimon, Moses. Amen."

For this work you must store up rainwater from a thunderstorm in advance. Such water is kept in cellars — to give the cow, gathered just after thunder during rain, when labour is hard.

Ask the shepherd who pastured your cow for his whip. Enter the shed where the cow lies and, holding the whip above the cow, say:

"Open field, free expanse. Go, forty saints, across that field, that free expanse. Find my beast amid the herd. Cross it with your finger, drive it with this lash. Raise it from evil misfortune. The Lord's Cross, the shepherd's lash. Amen, amen, amen. Do this three times."

Pour the cow's very first milk onto the wall and say:

"Mother-heifer, stand as a wall, milk as a river, that buckets of cream stand full and jugs of sour cream stand rich. Key to my words, lock to my deeds. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen."

If a cow has lost her milk, take a straining cloth, lay it in a pot, pour over it water blessed in church, set the pot in the stove and boil it, stirring with a blessed willow twig on Willow Sunday. When the water in the pot boils, the woman who cast the hex will come running to beg forgiveness — so fiercely will the fire burn in her breast — and the milk will return to your cow.

"As the viper cannot master the whale, so no witch shall take milk from my little cow. As the viper cannot bite through iron, so no witch shall bite my little cow."

If a cow has been spoiled and gives no milk, or her milk spills entirely onto the ground as she walks home, at sunset sprinkle the cow's back with Thursday salt — salt prepared on Maundy Thursday — chanting:

"I forbid thee, accursed demon, unclean spirit, to dwell in this place. Begone to thy own place, and thy place is hell. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Take a wisp of hay from a chewing cow's mouth, charm it and give it straight back to her. See to it that the cow chews the hay completely. The hay is charmed thus:

"In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. I, God's servant (name), unlock 77 veins, 77 lesser veins, 77 roads, 77 paths. Flow, little milk, along these roads, these trails, to the cow's udder. As water in the river runs and hastens, never lingering, so none shall take or hold back my little cow's milk, now, forever and endlessly. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

If you bought a cow from other owners and she will not willingly walk to your home — and some cows are simply straying creatures that will not go to the yard! As you send the cow out to pasture, say after her:

"As ants walk home, so may my cow walk home."

For an easy success. Read over water, and give the horse this water to drink.

"King David, King Solomon, ye were gentle and meek. So may my herd never swing a hoof, never throw me to the ground from its back. Lips, teeth, key, lock, tongue. Amen. Amen. Amen."

If rabbits keep dying, or the doe crushes them, do the following. Take a piece of bread, let three members of the family each bite it, and give the rest to the rabbits, saying:

"As surely as three ate of one piece, so surely shall no rabbit die again. Amen."

With a knife, mark twelve crosses on the hutches where the little beasts live, and say:

"As the Christian world multiplies, so multiply ye. As the steel of the knife is strong, so shall ye be strong and hardy. Twelve crosses, one knife, I and my prayer. Amen."

"Piglet, come home; upon its bones be meat, upon the meat be lard. God grant luck in this purchase."

Have no fear that the piglet will suddenly die or fall ill. It will be healthy, greedy and merry.

The gilt chosen for breeding must never be beaten; scratch her belly as often as you can, so she grows used to tickling and will not drive away the piglets when they suckle. Read the charm over her swill for three days at dawn, three times each, holding little finger to little finger interlaced:

"Morning dawn, Marya; evening dawn, Darya. Dawn, little dawn, the sow is farrowing. As the morning dawn never catches the evening, so the sow shall never touch her piglet with her teeth. Amen."

So pigs gain weight well, charm their food and drink:

"As people eat greedily after a fast, so may my pigs eat, growing fatter every minute. To my words be the mouth, to the teeth the lock, to the tongue the key. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

When you brew feed for the pigs, throw in by handfuls what you are cooking, saying thus:

"As a witless fool gorges, mindlessly, and fairly bursts with it, so may my pig gorge and grow fat. Amen."

"O Saint Joseph, thou who hadst a dog — the one that saved thee from the Chaldeans as thou sleptest. Thou who attained holy office and the holy crown. Save my dog from death. May a single tear raise him up. Amen."

First read the charm to staunch bleeding three times:

"A black raven flies across the seas, bearing a silken thread in its beak; thou, thread, snap — and thou, blood, stop."

Pause and blow upon the wound or the cut.

Then read the charm for healing wounds on three evenings in a row:

"Two brothers hew stone, two sisters gaze from the window, two mothers-in-law stand in the gates. Thou, sister, turn away, and thou, blood, be still. Thou, brother, submit, and thou, blood, be sealed. Brother runs, sister shouts, mother-in-law scolds. And may my word hold firm to still the blood, at this hour, at this minute. For the wound to close — edge to edge, skin to skin, fur to fur — all shall heal over. Amen."

As soon as the dog steps through the door into the street in the morning, say after it:

"As thou crossest the threshold, so may all devils leave thee. As surely as thou shalt now piss, so surely shall the worms leave thee. Amen."

"Bees swarm, bees breed, bees grow meek. I stand upon the wax facing the far side and hear the bees' hum and drone. I take a bee of the swarm, I trim it, I settle it in the hive. It is not I who settle thee — the white stars settle thee, the horned moon, the fair red sun. They settle thee, they clip thee. Thou, bee, swarm and settle in rings at (such-and-such's). I lock every road to thee, queen bee, with key and lock. And I cast my keys into the ocean-sea, beneath the green bush. And in the green bush sits the eldest queen of all queens, holding her sting, stinging disobedient bees; and if ye obey not my words, I shall banish you to the ocean-sea, beneath the green bush where sits the queen, eldest queen of all queens. And for your disobedience she shall sting you with stings. My word is firm. Amen."

Read in spring over the hive, when the bees begin to swarm:

"In the heavenly church stands a crystal table, and upon the table stands the bridal cup, and honey is poured in that cup. Whoever drinks of it never drinks to the bottom; the honey in the cup never lessens but grows ever more. So may bees haul honey to my hives, fill the combs, brim the cups. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

At the full moon, standing by the poultry house, say three times:

"Domovoi, stand here and guard my birds from polecats, foxes and wolves. Amen."

Light a candle by the poultry house, saying:

"May the thieving kite fly past, and Saint Thomas guard the chicks. Amen."

When you go to buy doves, take a handful of millet with you. Ask the doves' owner to hold this millet in their hand. Coming home, feed the millet to the doves.

At Easter, have the millet blessed and sprinkle it crosswise in the dovecote, saying:

"I cross myself with my finger, I scatter in the sign of the cross. None shall lure away my doves, none shall break my charm. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

At the new moon, scatter grain for the doves and say:

"O Lord, watch with Thine eye over God's birds, over my doves. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Hold the first hatched gosling — or the first one you buy — in both hands and say:

"Thrive and never dwindle, breed and never cease breeding; as many feathers as thy mother bears, so many geese for my pasture. Amen."

Read the "Hail Mary" and walk toward the geese.

Scatter wheat and peas with both hands at once when feeding the cock, saying:

"I, God's servant, feed the cock. I forbid thee, bird, to lunge and rage. My word is firm and fast. Amen."

Before putting hens together in one coop, say:

"As the egg pecks not the hen, so ye shall not peck one another. Amen."

"As thou, mother-hen, canst not crawl back into the egg, so thou shalt not abandon thy eggs."

When the young hens begin to lay, let the eldest in the family eat the thirteenth egg, saying as he crosses himself:

"The hen from the egg, and the egg from the hen. Amen."

Toward nightfall, draw water, set it in the moonlight and say thus:

"I rise with a blessing, crossing myself thrice; I spit over my left shoulder, I blow upon the tallow candle. I walk to the blue sea; upon the blue sea are gates — gates of stone, gates carved, gates of gold. Gold and silver glitter; below stands the white-flaming Alatyr stone, and upon the Alatyr stone sits Paraskeva, holding in her white hands the white cat Kotofeich, the comely cat Kotofeich. Paraskeva strokes the kitten, speaking cherished words of power. The words speak, the words declare. Fly to the sea-ocean, fly, and touch not my tomcat: burnings, fevers, agues, every sickness and ailment. From water thou camest — to water return, there sleep. Sleep in winter and in summer. No harm shall be. The word is under key. The key is kept by Paraskeva, the water maiden. Paraskeva guards that key and lets none take it. From age to age. From circle to circle. Now and ever. So let it be. Amen. Amen. Amen."

Give your pet the charmed water to drink.

"Begone, black sickness, white, eruptive, bloody, consumptive, eye-born, watery, inward, bony and fleshly — away from my cat. It has no place, neither in the head, nor the tail, nor the paws, nor the body. Out, sickness, out. Amen."

So your beloved pet never runs away, take it in your arms and, stroking it, whisper the charm over it seven times:

"With love and tenderness I bind thee, with care I hold thee. Never be lost, never run away on thy own; know thy place and thy home. From thief, from foe, from every misfortune I charm thee, (name). Truly!"

Read outdoors where the animal was lost, twice a day for a week. Then a seven-day break is needed before reading again.

"Gather thyself, my dear beast (name, coat colour, breed — cat, dog, whatever kind of animal), home for every night, as the Orthodox world gathers to the ringing of bells and the singing of the church. As the ants' children serve and obey their ant king, and as honeybees flock to their nests, forgetting not their young nor abandoning them. And as swift rivers, small and great, stream into the glorious ocean-sea, so mayest thou, my beast (name, coat colour, breed — cat, dog, whatever kind of animal), flow to my voice from all sides: from beyond lakes, from quaking mosses, from black bogs, from beyond rivers, beyond streams, beyond forests — flow to my house to sleep the night, to live out thy life. Amen."

So a cat or dog settles into a new home.

1. Clip a few hairs from its head, back and tail, gather them together and tuck them into some crack in the threshold or the floor near the way out of the house. Then speak these words:

"As the dog's (cat's) fur holds fast in the threshold, so shall the dog (cat) hold fast to this threshold. So let it be!"

2. Grease your pet's paws with butter. It is good if the cat begins to lick it off. While it does, read the charm:

"As butter clings to the paws, so shall the cat cling to the house. As the cat loves its own paws, so shall my home be dear and beloved to it. Amen."

3. Set the animal before a large mirror, so it sees its reflection, and say:

"As a reflection always finds its master, so shall this cat (dog) always find its home. Truly."

4. Lead the animal across a belt or strap, taken from clothes you often wear, laid crosswise over the entrance. This is done once, when the pet is first brought into your home. Also lead it around a post, so it finds its way home well.

5. Charm water and wash your doors and threshold with it.

as Thou didst bless the house of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

So a wild animal grows tame and obedient.

Lead the animal to the crossing of two footpaths. Cut a tuft of its fur there, drop the fur upon the ground and say:

"Crossroads upon crossroads, corner to corner, path upon path, each running its own way — while my dog (cat) stays with me. Amen."

To guard a pet against theft.

Lead it out into an open place and circle it three times clockwise, speaking the charm and clapping your hands in time with your words and steps:

"Blind to eyes, deaf to ears; no hands shall seize, no feet shall leave the yard; no stranger shall it greet, only me shall it know. Whoever plots theft shall not loose their hands, shall not open their eyes, but wander to another's yard. The words are firm, charmed and fulfilled. Amen."

If the animal refuses to stand still for a minute, it is better to tie it up.

In the middle of the yard, burn the bedding from beneath the stolen pet and read the incantation three times:

"As this place burns, so may the thief's bone, marrow and blood burn. May fear and forty sicknesses fall upon him. May it pinch and break him, gnaw and toss him, shake and crush him, knot his veins into knots. As this fire dies out, so shall the thief suffer. Amen."

For all young ones meant for sale, tie charmed threads or ribbons around their necks — especially puppies. Caution! Never put threads on kittens! But the charm may still be read over them. So: from a new skein of red thread or ribbon, unwind any length of thread or ribbon and cut it off. Read the charm three times over the cut threads or ribbon:

"I cut off, I severed, I led the unclean eye astray; I kept the little creature (a puppy, a kitten, say) safe and shielded it from hexes."

Then tie a charmed thread around each animal's neck. When a buyer comes, read three times over the animals — or as you carry them to market:

"Puppies, little pups (piglets, kittens — first name your own young), dear little fellows, leave my hands and serve your new master faithfully. Beautiful as ye are, they shall take you and carry you to their home. And I shall take my profit and grieve for you no more."

Stand beside the kittens or others you wish to sell, close your eyes and say:

"As lightly as I closed my eyes, so lightly may I sell (this and that). Key to my words, lock to my deeds. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Stroke the young ones at eventide and say:

"As my hands stroke and cherish you, so may every hand caress you ever after. May ye live in plenty, never know sorrow, kind masters, a warm home. Amen."

After this, try not to stroke the kittens or puppies nor take them in your arms.