No, it is not a death spell, it is a love spell. read on...
A Lover’s Binding Spell. (3-4th century CE).
The text of this love spell from Egypt was written in Greek on a lead sheet and placed in a vase with a female figurine pierced with needles.
I entrust this binding spell to you chthonic gods, Pluto and Kore Persephone Ereschigal and Adonis also called Barbaritha and Hermes chthonian Thoth Phokensepseu Erektathou Misonktaik and Anoubis the powerful Pseriphtha, who holds the keys to Hades, and to you chthonic divine demons, the boys and girls prematurely dead, the young men and women, year after year, month after month, day after day, hour after hour, night after night; I conjure all the demons in this place to assist this demon Antinous. Rouse yourself for me and go to each place, to each neighborhood, to each house and bind Ptolemais whom Aias bore, the daughter of Horigenes, so that she should not be fucked, buggered, or should not give any pleasure to another man, except to me alone, Sarapammon, whom Area bore; and do not let her ea or drink nor resist nor go out nor find sleep except with me Sarapammon, whom Area bore. I conjure you, Antinous spirit of the dead, in the name of the Terrible and Fearsome, the name at whose sound the earth opens up, the name at whose sound the demons tremble in fear, the name at whose sound rivers and rocks burst asunder. I conjure you, Antinous spirit of the dead, by Barbaratham Cheloumbra Barouch Adonai and by Abrasax and by Iao Pakeptoth Pakebraoth Sabarbaphaei and by Marmararaouoth and by Marmarachtha Mamazagar. Do not disregard me, Antinous spirit of the dead, but rouse yourself for me and go to each neighborhood, to each house and bring me Ptolemais, whom Aias bore, the daughter of Horigenes; prevent her from eating, from drinking, until she comes to me, Sarapammon, whom Area bore, and do not allow her to accept the advances of any man other than me alone Sarapammon. Drag her by the hair, by the guts, until she does not reject me, Sarapammon, whom Area bore, and I have her, Ptolemais, whom Aias bore, the daughter of Horigenes, subject to me for the entire extent of my life, loving me, desiring me, telling me what she thinks. If you do this, I will release you.
Sounds to me like buckets of trouble for the one who cast it.
ReplyDeleteMarjie
I agree. If this is what he does to someone he likes, I'd hate to see what he conjures up for his enemies!
ReplyDeleteYes, there is good article on his type of magic by John J. Winkler called "The Constraints of Desire: erotic magical spells" in J. Winkler, *The Constraints of Desire: the anthropology of sex and gender in Ancient Greece*. (New York and London, 1990), 71-98. He talks about how this was probably more theraputic for the practitioner and in that way, defused his fervid heat, however I'm not entirely convinced by that, although I do agree that it would "get it all out" for the afflicted practitioner to an extent. Oh, also Winkler was saying (and Christopher Faraone also says it in *Ancient Greek Love Magic*) that in ancient Greece strong sexual desire, sexual attraction, was considered to be a curse, an illness. You did not want to be affliced with this illness, so in a way this spell is theraputic in that it rids the illness of the practitioner and actually puts it onto the target of the spell. Ethical - of course not, but that's what people used to do, apparently.
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