Special attention is given to the examples of signatures on painted vessels in narrative scenes, for they do not imply any obvious connection to the proximate saintly figures, and thus seemingly undermine the delivered argument. After exploring the customary ways in which painters usually acquired a ‘sacred share’ of their work, the paper analyses the conceptualised understanding of inversion as an instrument pregnant with power and possibilities. Whether in the form of simple monograms or as part of a more complex formulation, this paper aims to show that they envisioned their names as amulets for the chosen saints, intentionally instigating paradox. Michael Astrapas, Eutychios and John Theorianos are the three Byzantine painters who are known to have left signatures painted somewhere amidst the attire of the warrior saints they depicted (swords, armour, shields, or garments). The comparison between two written sources with almost a thousand years of difference between them allows one to observe an inherited magical practice, and the change of attitude towards it in the value system. The similarities and differences in the two rites are discussed. 13–14) recounts the ritual acts performed by the sorceress to summon his dead son back from the world of the Beyond in order to ask him if his brother is alive and well. In Aethiopica (The Ethiopian Story or Theagenes and Chariclea), Heliodorus (6. 504–541 Fuchs), the sorceress Circe teaches Odysseus how to go to the entrance of the kingdom of Hades and Persephone, and what ritual actions to perform in order to learn from the Teiresias how to return home. The paper makes a comparative analysis of the retrieval of information from the dead through the magical rite described in the Odyssey and in the adventurous love novel An Ethiopian story (Aethiopica – Ethiopian Story or Theagenes and Chariclea) by Heliodorus. As a result, magical and mystical perceptions, experiences, views, beliefs, and practices are becoming more visible today. Thus, the created contact spaces between humans and supernatural forces bring different social and cultural aspects to the fore and in this way directly influence the identification strategies of the communities. The analysed magical and mystical practices testify to the fact that people still want to know the unknown and touch what cannot be seen. The articles are focused on the individual and communal magical rituals, the wonders of nature, sacred places, icons, and cultural monuments, which continue to gather many believers each year in different parts of the world. The new e-collection ‘Between the Worlds: Magic, Miracles, and Mysticism’ presents a variety of viewpoints and analytical perspectives related to magical and mystical perceptions, experiences, views, beliefs, and practices in different historical periods – from Antiquity and the Middle Ages, to Modernity and the contemporary globalised world. Additional material was collected from interviews with participants and eyewitnesses of such events.Īs in the first volume of the ‘Between the Worlds’ series, this collection includes chronologically, geographically and thematically diverse topics concerning the phenomena of magic, wonders, and mysticism, and are reflecting the different scholarly backgrounds of our authors. The ritual, being gradually forgotten in modern times, has been recorded on the pages of belles-lettres and ethnographic books, depicted in documentary films and theatrical events. The most common explanation for a modern man, who is not so keen on believing in super- natural/magical aspects of life, is that the repetition and monotony of singing bring re- lief to the participants of an Empty Night Ritual. Therefore, a prayer for the dead secures the peace of the living. When farewelled improperly, a person can return in the form of a demon/ghoul (wieszczi, òpi). According to folk beliefs of the Kashubian region, the deceased stays permanently in the vicinity of his household until the fu- neral. After praying the rosary, they stay to chant special religious songs and watch over them until the morning. Empty Night (Pustô noc) is the Kashubian name for the ritual that takes place on the last night before the funeral of a deceased person when people gather in the dead man’s house to pray.
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