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Icelandic Sorcery & Baba Yaga
39 Plays1 year ago
Nylene takes us into the dark and gritty history of Icelandic Sorcery. Keeping with the dark magical vibes, Nym spins the tale of slavic witch, Baba Yaga.
Enter the nightmare for show notes, sources, and transcripts.
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Transcript
Introduction and Setting the Tone
00:00:25
Speaker
Welcome to Nim and Nyleen's Nightmare Cottage, where we explore history, mysteries, and other tales of the macabre. I'm Nim. And I'm Nyleen. Let the nightmare begin.
00:00:41
Speaker
Disturbing and mature content to follow. Into the nightmare, if you dare.
00:00:54
Speaker
So here we are. Welcome back. I feel like I start an every episode with like just the biggest sigh. You do. And you always say, so here we are.
00:01:05
Speaker
It's like a a cleansing. Like, all right, let's just get it all out. Be open. Ground and center and be ready to talk, which I know you're ready to do because god you're so frustrated. so frustrated.
00:01:17
Speaker
I don't know where we left off. Like when i I don't
Nyleen's Day of Mishaps
00:01:20
Speaker
remember. You had to remove the frame from the door. Oh my God. Because this has been going on for so fucking long. It was supposed to be like a quick thing. We were just supposed to get the couch delivered and put it in the fucking room. Okay. That was it.
00:01:33
Speaker
And then all this other shit happened. so yeah, they took off the door frame. And of course it comes off in one piece, which is great. Better than we expected. And then they get the couch through the door and it's like, okay, it barely fits in the room because we haven't taken everything out we were supposed to Whatever. It's fine. It's in the f***ing room. It will die there. i don't care. I'll sell the house with it. I do not care at this point. It lives there. And so they go to put the frame back on and ah
00:02:04
Speaker
I don't. I don't know how. So they decided it needed some like foam filling inside or something. Oh, because they were like, well, we need some, some kind of padding. And I forgot what they call the padding. Like it's supposed to keep basically a gap between like the door frame and the door, the door frame and the like walls.
00:02:21
Speaker
And they added some additional foam in there because I told them like, you know, we might be hanging out in there. So like make it extra soundproof for you, whatever. And they did expanding foam.
00:02:31
Speaker
Oh, no. So they put it in, realized that they didn't have the pressure gun they needed to like, be able to nail everything. They had to wait for Ace's dad to go to come bring the pressure gun. They got it all nailed in They go to put the door back on And the door doesn't fit because because of the expanding foam.
00:02:52
Speaker
And so I'm like, okay, well, I was like, we're just, we're done with this for the night. I'm not, this has taken a whole freaking day at this point. Right. So we just, they took it off.
00:03:03
Speaker
They'd had to take all of the foam out on one side, put it back on. It's on there now. It's been like, I think a week maybe. And the doors fit in kind of tight lately.
00:03:16
Speaker
I don't know if it's cause it's like starting to get really cool compared to when they did it. Right. And so I'm like, this is just going to be my existence now. Like messing with this door over a stupid couch.
00:03:27
Speaker
Everybody can't see Nyleen right now, but she's rubbing her face in the most dramatic ways. Like she's trying to remove her skin. You don't even know how stressful it's been. Because like, I can't deal with clutter like this. I can't like, and it's been cluttering because it's a massive couch. So not only this, like, okay.
00:03:45
Speaker
The reason that this was so dramatic was because this kicked off Like the worst luck I have had in a really long time. And it's like, it's the dumb luck too. It's not like actual anything serious luck. It's just like the dumbest, most inconvenient. The night that we couldn't get the door on, no, that we couldn't get the couch through the doorframe, we decided to order some pizza hat. Cause we were like, okay, let's order some pizza. I'm not leaving this house. I'm done. Done.
00:04:14
Speaker
And so we did. Spent like a hundred something dollars on pizza and wings and whatever because I was going eat my feelings. And it been like an hour and it said it had already delivered. And I look outside and there's no pizza there. And I look at my phone and apparently DoorDash had like been assigned to it.
00:04:33
Speaker
And the guy was like, hey, sorry, there's like a really long wait. They're really busy. And I was like, it's cool. No problem. Whatever. And then I waited like another 30 minutes and I was like, what, what's happening? And so I messaged him. and I was like, Hey, it says it delivered.
00:04:47
Speaker
I'm obviously like, you haven't even picked it up. Right? Like, do i need to call them? And he's like, i don't know what's going on. They won't talk to me. They won't talk to anybody. and i was like, that's weird. So I try calling them. It rings, it rings, it rings. They hang up on me.
00:05:01
Speaker
What? I called again. Rings, rings. They hang up on me. And so I messaged him and I was like, hey, like, I don't know, like, can you... Tell them to cancel the order. Like, I'm so sorry. Like, I don't know what's happening.
00:05:14
Speaker
They won't let me like, they won't pick up the phone. He's like, you know, um they just keep hanging up the phone. So like, they're like physically just hanging up the phone. And I'm like, okay. So like, I tried to go on the website. There's no way to like cancel on the website. So I'm like, okay, how do I contact their customer service? Like, I'm not trying to be a bitch. I don't want to like get anyone in trouble. I just want to cancel my order so I can go find something else to eat.
00:05:34
Speaker
Right. Their customer service just leads you back to call the store. And so I just kept going in this loop. And so i was like, okay, i found an email and the email was like, we'll get back to you within like a week. And I was like, I hate my life right now. And so I asked the guy, i was like, oh so like, what, what do I do? Like, is there anything that you can do? he was like, well, you can contact DoorDash through your account.
00:05:55
Speaker
I didn't call DoorDash. Like DoorDash has nothing to do with me. I can call them, but I don't have an account. And he's like, yeah, that's not going to work. They won't do anything. And so he had to call me and do a three-way dial. When was the last time you had a three-way fucking dial? now Let me just start there. A three-way dial with our customer service to get this order canceled. And it was the stupidest. was just so mad at that point because it's stupid. Because you're hangry. was very hangry. And my poor husband, my poor husband and his friend who had tried to help push this couch through my freaking door all day long, we're just sitting on the couch silent. looking at me working on this on the phone just like afraid to say a word because I was just I couldn't i couldn't I couldn't anyways we get the money returned to us and we're like it we're gonna get a burger let's go let's go we're gonna go get a burger so we go to this burger place everything's great we order our food And you know what? Like, I know I'm not like, i made it pretty simple. I was just like, listen, just dry.
00:07:02
Speaker
Just give me a lettuce and tomato and cheese. That's it. Dry burger, lettuce, tomato, and cheese. I'll figure out my own condiments. I'm i'm fine. Because I hate mustard. I fucking hate mustard. I know.
00:07:13
Speaker
So I get my burger. Everyone else's is right. And mine has mustard and pickles on it. ah two things in this world acting hate more than anything and I was so nice about it I really thought about just like eating it and I was like if it was just the pickles I'd pick them off but I cannot with free mustard it's so bitter I can't it's disgusting And so I went up there and i was like, hey, my burger's are wrong. Like, i actually, you know, it's not supposed to have any pickles or mustard. Can we get that off? And he's like, yeah, sure. And I showed him the ticket. It said dry lettuce, tomatoes, cheese. And I showed it to He's like, oh, yeah, no we'll make it no problem.
00:07:51
Speaker
He personally brings me the burger and says, this should be right now. Can you open it? Did they scrape it off? No. Okay. It literally was a hot brand new burger with mustard and pickles and cheese. No lettuce or tomato.
00:08:08
Speaker
it was like, this is not right. And he goes, that's weird. I'm sorry. One second. Like he was very apologetic. Like he was like, it it wasn't like a spite thing. Like he was literally like, what happened?
00:08:21
Speaker
And this is the manager at this point. And I'm like, what are you doing? What are you doing? Anyways, I was very nice about It it was very nice. And I was just sitting I know because I'm not, i i get frustrated so easily. And poor Ace and his friends still sitting across from me, just looking at their burgers. And I'm like, eat.
00:08:39
Speaker
Just eat your food. Stealing fries off my child's plate. Yeah. And then the third time it came, it had mustard on it, but no pickles. And it did have lettuce and tomatoes. And I was like, hey, like, buddy, is still, I'm not trying to be I'm not trying to be a jerk. I just, I really, I can't do mustard.
00:09:00
Speaker
Anything else, put anything else on and I will eat it. Just please, no mustard, just please. I'm not trying to be difficult, but I've paid like $11 for this burger at this point. And like, just, just give just give me, just give meat and cheese. I don't care.
00:09:13
Speaker
And they finally got it right after like, what, the fourth time? Oh my god. Yes. And like, I have continued to have problems with food like this ever since then. And I'm like, I don't know. i know it's like a weird correlation. Correlation is not causation. I understand this. But like, it's just been like this weird kickoff of like, the stupidest, most inconvenient that I'm just like,
00:09:36
Speaker
That's a lot. i so I'm sorry. and well, you also, you're dealing with all the, you know, life and everything. Wow. That's... Oh, yeah. Potty training. Working on potty training, too, in the middle of all that. Right. And a brand new day job for the first time in a
Exploring Icelandic Sorcery
00:09:50
Speaker
decade. Yes. And a brand new day job.
00:09:52
Speaker
And of course, like, I do this thing where, like, whenever I start new chapters in my life, I have to, like, burn everything to the ground. Yeah. and start over not in like a shitty way like I just I don't know what's wrong with me I have to and so of course I decided to paint my room too and that's been a thing because you had didn't have enough to do no and then my sink got clogged while I was painting the room we did not put paint on the sink okay i didn't say I know that was the first question i was like did any anyone put paint down the sink They were like, no, we didn't. I'm like, okay, yeah. And so we've, I've been, and of course it's the sink that the air conditioner condensation drains into to drain out.
00:10:31
Speaker
And so even though it's clogged, it's clogged below that line. So the sink keeps filling up with water. And so I keep having to get a bucket and empty it out with a cup.
00:10:43
Speaker
This has all been like, this has been my week. And this is why I'm just like, every time you message to me, I'm like, I can't. I literally can't. Yeah, I know. And I, you know, it's so funny you know, the first couple years of your kiddo's life.
00:10:57
Speaker
I, on purpose, avoided reaching out to you. know. Because I knew that everything was a lot, but apparently it never stops. It doesn't. It doesn't. But you know what?
00:11:08
Speaker
To balance this whole mess out, he's actually started being like, just walking up to me randomly and giving me kisses. oh Or walking up to me randomly and hugging me and telling me he loves me.
00:11:21
Speaker
And like, honestly, it makes it all worth it. I know that sounds so cheesy and corny. No, because every time he calls me Uncle D. Nim, I die for the uninitiated.
00:11:32
Speaker
I don't know why he calls me Uncle D. Nim. No idea. But ah he has other aunties and, you know, he's got Uncle Monkey, who's my husband. And I'm Uncle D. Nim. yeah And I am I feel so freaking honored because I have my own title. Just Uncle D. Yeah.
00:11:47
Speaker
Yeah. And so that murders me. and I get such a small dose. And he just completely melts me every fucking time. Yes. Oh, yes. And we just had his birthday last week, too. So my goodness, it has been eventful. But we are here.
00:12:03
Speaker
So how about you? Well, I mean, i actually really didn't have anything, but you made me think I feed the crows outside of my office building at work every morning. Really? yeah So I get a big ass bag of walnuts that I keep in my desk. And I, you know, every morning when I get in there, they line up on the building and they call at me when I get there.
00:12:21
Speaker
Which makes me so happy. That is fantastic. And then I'll walk into my office, grab a handful of walnuts, walk back outside and just toss them and they go across this little patch of grass that's in front of my window.
00:12:33
Speaker
This morning there was like nine crows just eating. Are you counting crows? I don't know what to do with you. Yes, actually I am. And they're so cute and they get so excited. And then there's one fat squirrel that'll come and hang out with them sometimes that it is brave enough to deal with the and crows. but there's at Are crows the ones that bring you trinkets or those ravens? Corvids in general will can do that, you know, so grackles.
00:13:00
Speaker
Oh, yeah. and And then crows and ravens, all of those can do that. We don't have ravens in the area where we live. I would be interested if those started bringing you stuff, though. That'd be pretty cool. Yeah, well, I've gotten a feather and a couple of shiny, like gum wrapper kind of situations. But they could just they they don't have to bring me anything just and i'm saying it's cool when they say good morning to me and I probably look like a crazy person to all the other people that are walking up to their buildings and stuff and i I'm just grinning up at the roof saying good morning I'm gonna need you to try to get a picture of them if you can I know sometimes it's hard with this I have I have some yeah I'll I'll put something on Instagram yeah I don't really have a whole lot going on but that is a fun thing it sounds awesome I love that
00:13:51
Speaker
So besides my allergies, if you hear me snuffling, I promise it is just turning to fall and my face hates it. So I wanted to talk about Icelandic sorcery. Ooh. Yes. I thought it was a fun one. I actually ran into like part of it and I was like, this is real weird. And as I've told you before, i like these whole regions just, they get real crazy.
00:14:17
Speaker
And you're like, I don't even know how y'all got here, but we're going to talk about that. All right. So just to start. As we all know, life in the 17th century, pretty rough. As we all know. As we all know. We've we've been there, lived there, seen it in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. So, you know, people at the time struggling to survive. They were facing pirate raids constantly, natural disasters, because like it's it's Iceland. And even the richest of the people, they're living in stone huts. So if the rich people are living in stone huts, imagine what the worst of them are living in, right? Well, makes sense. Stone hunts will be the things that won't catch fire. Yeah. Poor people can burn up.
00:14:59
Speaker
Exactly. So basically, the peasants of the time are feeling pretty hopeless. So they decided to turn to witchcraft. Like you do. Yeah, like you do. So, sorry.
00:15:09
Speaker
ah I just went flashback to being a teenager and feeling hopeless and turning to witchcraft. It's exactly what happened. Same. Yeah. Anyways, so what's interesting about Icelandic sorcery is that most of the rituals were usually done for practical reasons. So not really spiteful reasons. It's mostly like controlling the weather or helping them feed their families. They got pretty grotesque with it, but it was always for like, you know, reasons that would benefit them or the community. It wasn't, you know, I hate Margaret down the street and I want her house to burn down or something like that. So her house was probably made of sticks. So you can do that without craft. It's true. Exactly.
00:15:51
Speaker
So with roots in paganism, Icelandic magic, it it was split into two types of magic. And so there's a little bit of a background on their beliefs in magic before we get into what they did, right? So the two types of magic were...
00:16:03
Speaker
I'm going to butcher all of this. Galdr and Seder, I think, is what it is. And they were mostly split by gender. So one type of magic was for males, the other one for females. So Galdr, of course, was for males and it was considered to be a positive and respectful magic.
00:16:20
Speaker
Yes. So it was practiced in a self-awareness state. Like there was no altered state. Like you weren't getting high off shrooms or something like that. It was believed that the Norse god Odin was one of these kinds of pra practitioners of magic. And then to add another level to it, there were three different types of galder. There's the white magic based on naturalistic supernatural practices for beneficial purposes.
00:16:43
Speaker
Of course, black magic was darker, a demonized magic with supernatural powers for evil purposes. And then Varnar Galder was another type of that magic. And it was important because it consisted of like protection spells that were applied at the end of different spells or bull belief or practices that they did. And that would protect the sorcerers from wrath of other sorcerers. So basically, like if I did a dark spell on you, i would put this protection spell at the end of it so that you couldn't trace it back to me.
00:17:13
Speaker
Oh, isn't that interesting? So I can't star 69 the spell. Exactly. I love that. Yes. That would take notes on that for when I learn magic. So Seder was practiced by females and that was the magic they did. And it was believed the Norse goddess Freya was one of them. Yes, this was considered a lesser magic and it was shameful for men to practice it.
00:17:35
Speaker
And Seder required an altered trance-like state to practice it. Just a little background on that. And then there were a few books on the types of magic that they did for Icelandic magic. There was the Icelandic book of magic.
00:17:49
Speaker
It's called the Galdrackr. It's also known as Little Book of Magic. And there's also the Red Skina, also known as the Red Leather, which sounds really yeah not great.
00:18:03
Speaker
The Icelandic Book of Magic dates back to the 1600s. It's a real thing. You can see there's apparently an Icelandic sorcery museum in Iceland, which I need to go. is It actually looks really amazing. And they didn't provide like a lot of information about each item that's in there. but You can see like all the cool items that are in there. But yeah, so the Icelandic Book of Magic dates back to 1600s. It's about 32 pages long. And it has three additional loose pages that they just like shoved in there, which I thought was funny. Like, you know, I wrote the book and like, I got a few more to put in there. It has all kinds of things in it. So there's like prayers, rituals, spells, superstitions, like which day of the year will bring bad luck for for them. And then there's the Red Skuna, which is the red leather book.
00:18:43
Speaker
And it is the darkest book of magic. And it is bound in unshaven red hair. They believe it's most likely like a red skinned bull or something like that. Okay. Yeah, I know. I went a different direction with that. Same. It was written in gold lettered runes by a bishop up in the late 1400s and early 1500s to obtain control of Satan.
00:19:04
Speaker
Oh. Yes. So his plan was to make Satan his slave when he decided to rule the world and to ensure that no one else could get a hold of his secrets. He made sure that this book was buried with him. There's a whole bunch of other books and they have all sorts of interesting stuff in them. I'll add a link to our page.
00:19:19
Speaker
If you want to like look into them, because like, man, it was so much. I was like, I can't put all this in here. It just it it goes way off the wall. That was the background. Now to get into the specific ones that were just real weird.
00:19:32
Speaker
In my opinion, Icelandic sorcery involves some pretty nasty stuff. It usually had some kind of body sacrifice with it, an elaborate ritual. So the things I'm going over today, they're mostly based in folklore and found writings. Body sacrifice or human sacrifice? Body sacrifice. So...
00:19:51
Speaker
You will get into what that means in just a moment. Because i I too was like, wait, that was a very specific choice of words you chose. Yes. So most of the stuff that we're going over, like they say that they don't have anything exact saying that they did happen.
00:20:09
Speaker
But like a lot of this stuff is very elaborate. Yeah. Most of the items you see today are replicas, but how detailed the instructions are, it feels like someone had to like really go through these steps a few times to comb through this process, right? And so I'm like, ah I don't know. I think you guys tried some of this stuff. So to start, Nabrock, also known as Necropants.
00:20:30
Speaker
Necropants. Yes, they're just as disgusting as they sound. But wait, there's more. I thought it sounded awesome. I want some Necropants. Oh, you just wait. You just wait. Okay. And if you still want them, I will donate.
00:20:44
Speaker
I don't know. Okay. They were literally leggings made from the skin of a dead friend. Oh. The wearer would need to make a pact with the friend before they died, stating that once they died from natural causes, so you can't kill me,
00:20:58
Speaker
they would have permission to skin them from the waist down. After their friend died, the sorcerer would need to wait until they were buried, dig them up, and then skin them without creating any holes or tears.
00:21:10
Speaker
So you got to get the whole thing in one swipe. If all this wasn't bad enough, the necropants would have to be worn against your bare skin. And then the belief was that wearing them would manifest endless wealth after a coin was stolen from a penniless widow, which is rude. Like she's penniless and a widow at that time. I'm just going to take her her her money. That's oddly specific. It is.
00:21:33
Speaker
But there's more. The coin would then need to be placed in the now empty scrotal flap. I don't have one of those. You might have to find someone else. With a scrap of paper that had an Icelandic stave symbol on it.
00:21:48
Speaker
And it was said that the pants would eventually meld with the wearer. my God. As long as the original coin wasn't removed. And it would continue to filled with coins for the rest of time. Yeah, i really wish I understood what the thought was behind this ritual. Like to be a fly on the wall when this was thought up really brings a whole new meaning to money sack.
00:22:06
Speaker
ah yes so Like, it's just not okay. Let's say that you got tired of your overfilling money sack, right? So you have to convince someone else to take the pants and step into each leg as you get out. Otherwise, they'll just stick to you forever.
00:22:25
Speaker
i Do you still think necropants are cool? You still want necropants? Well, no. I mean, maybe. i don't know. Okay, well, you have to find someone else. I do not have a scrotal sack for you to put coins in. yeah I don't think you would put it on my ass anyways. I could be the penniless widow if you want.
00:22:42
Speaker
I'd have to kill Ace first. I guess I could use his necropants. He's got... That's true. And then I would be a penniless widow at that time. There you go. Two birds. Are you going to give me your scrotal sack coins?
00:22:55
Speaker
Yeah, sure.
00:22:59
Speaker
Ace, if you're listening. um Don't listen. Yeah. Don't. That's just one of them, right? Another ritual was to summon a zombie, as you do.
00:23:10
Speaker
This required you to shout poetry and invocations over a dead person's grave. And then you walk around the church graveyard and spit on their grave. Oh.
00:23:21
Speaker
When doing this, you have to be very careful who you choose to summon as they will be nine times stronger than they were in real life. So you'd want to make sure you found someone who was fairly weak in life. Like, right? Like you don't want someone like that was like a guard or something or a bouncer.
00:23:35
Speaker
Because once they arise, you have to fight them and then get face to face with the zombie and lick up all the liquid that comes out of their nose and mouth until it's clean. This will tame them and put them into your control.
00:23:49
Speaker
And then once you set the zombie on someone, they will not only follow the person until their life is over, but for the next seven generations as well. So we're going to necromancer the necropants?
00:24:00
Speaker
That's the name. Oh my gosh. Yes. um That one. And see, it's funny because they were like, you know, most of it was done to like help you. And it's like, these don't feel helpful. This feels... This does not sound like practical magic. No, this not sound practical. I mean, I guess at the time, maybe.
00:24:20
Speaker
i mean, you need money and everyone's poor. Okay. That's kind of practical. And then... Yes. And wearing my friend's ass's pants...
00:24:31
Speaker
Is also practical. Yeah. And then, like you know, the zombie thing you're setting them maybe on the rich people or something. So anyways, next one. Tilbury was this two-headed snake thing that would help people steal goat milk.
00:24:49
Speaker
Practical. But again, disgusting. So these things look like something out of a nightmare. It was summoned by stealing a rib from a corpse that was recently interred.
00:25:00
Speaker
And then they would wrap the bone with gray wool that was stolen from the sheep of a widow. Again, this this poor lady, like they just keep taking her things. This would then be kept between a woman's breast while she spit out her communion bread or wafer.
00:25:16
Speaker
You know what that is, right? Yes. For three Sundays and then feed it to the totem. So basically, she steals a rib and some wool, wraps it around the wool, shoves it under her tit, goes to church, takes the communion, spits it out, and then feeds it to her tit thing for three Sundays. ah Okay. But wait, there's more.
00:25:38
Speaker
They believed this would bring the Tilbury to life until it was suckling the inside of her thigh. where it would leave a mark like a wart.
00:25:49
Speaker
Does this sound familiar? Should it? Yes, because it's similar to the lore on witch's teat, which was said to be used to feed their familiars. Yeah, okay. for yeah Yeah. So I thought that was kind of interesting. the Yeah. But back to the Tilbury. Once this creature reached maturity, it was believed that it would find its way to a neighbor's land and suck all their goats milk until it was full enough to roll back to the creator's home and expel its stolen milk.
00:26:13
Speaker
I just feel like it'd be easier to go and ask for some goat milk. I i agree. and because, yeah i mean, you said before that they weren't nefarious. They were just practical. But that's also, I mean, it's a lot of thieving. It is a lot of thieving. And then like you're spitting out your comedian wafer, which then is blasphemous, depending on what you believe in. And then you're feeding it to your to your to your rib tit monster. Your rib tit monster. i'm I'm just calling it as it is. Okay. I would call him Steve.
00:26:41
Speaker
Sorry. Continue.
00:26:48
Speaker
Anyways, there is also book called The Sorcerer's Screed. Yeah, I know it sounds... Yes. Which contains the largest selection of ancient Icelandic spells in existence, and each is accompanied by a stave with detailed instructions on how to use them and what to use them for. staves, I think we discussed earlier, they're sigils created to invoke varying things. So like a few going to go over, but some of these seemed insanely complicated. Even if they did work, I'm not sure it would be worth all the effort. And then if you mess it up, like, do you start over or are you just screwed? So one in particular was to be used to raise the dead, exercise evil spirits, or for laying ghosts.
00:27:32
Speaker
Which I assume is like getting rid of ghosts. I don't, I'm not sure what laying ghosts is unless you're like screwing them. I don't know. So for this one, you would inscribe it onto the scalp of a horse using a mixture of seal blood, fox blood, and human blood, reciting a specific verse over the stave.
00:27:51
Speaker
Right? Like it just feels so complex, complex but like for why? Yeah. not Well, I guess if you're exercising evil spirits, like, I mean... I mean, it should be complex, right?
00:28:02
Speaker
if If it wasn't, anybody could do That's true. Another is listed as the Greater Shield of Terror. um This one had to be drawn on black paper with raven bile, which, rude. mean, you're going to make a poor raven throw up? um And then placed in the nest of a brooding raven until the raven's eggs hatched.
00:28:20
Speaker
Then the paper was... to keep you safe from your would-be enemies, regardless of the number. So you basically would hold it up before you when you're facing your enemies, and it would appear to them as endless black dragons, and you can set them loose on your people.
00:28:35
Speaker
I'm just picturing somebody being like, yeah, and holding out a piece of paper and feel like looking all fierce and stuff. and Everybody looking, I'm like, ah okay. They probably were just like, that dude's crazy. where you And they're like, yeah, it worked.
00:28:48
Speaker
You know? Yeah, it's pretty bad. So another state was called the looking glass, which is said to reveal backwards and forwards for years and centuries throughout the world, which I thought was interesting because i think that was very similar to a book we were reading recently. where they had the mirror. Yeah. Yeah. Right. So this, I actually wanted to quote because it was, it was really nice the way they put it. So quote, the stave is to be drawn on calf skin that has never been out under the bare sky with water from a Raven's eye and blood from the heart of a man and woman who have loved each other with all their hearts, but never consummated their love.
00:29:25
Speaker
And the stave is to be drawn with water, with a water rails feather. Okay. The myrrh is to be strewn over the entire stave. When the stave is dry, go to a spring whose temperature remains constant winter and summer and over which no bird has flown that day and strike the water with it. making sure to turn the stave downward. Then let the stave lie still in the water while circling the spring four times counterclockwise.
00:29:52
Speaker
Take the stave from the water and peek through it. And he who drew the stave will be able to see if he wishes throughout the world, backwards and forwards through the four cardinal directions.
00:30:03
Speaker
Then the stave is to be enclosed in an amnion, and never taken out unless it's to be used. Do you see what I mean? Like, it's way too complicated. Like, at that point, it's like, gosh, it's like trying to follow the most ridiculous instructions. It's just, it's too much. Like, is it even worth it anymore? It's suppose just why it's IKEA furniture and their instructions.
Icelandic vs. Salem Witch Trials
00:30:23
Speaker
Oh my
00:30:30
Speaker
of course, witchcraft was rejected by the Christian church in Iceland, just as it was in Salem and other parts of the world. But oddly enough, males were more often victims of witch hunts in Iceland. So the Icelandic Brunenold, I can't say that word.
00:30:47
Speaker
I can hear the word in my head. Brunenold, or the Age of Fire, was their Salem witch trials. Over 200 people were charged for either practicing sorcery or being in possession of dangerous magical artifacts. So just like in Salem, meeting misfortune meant blaming someone they disliked, leaving the accused to prove that they were in fact not a sorcerer. In the unfortunate event that they happened to be in possession of any oddly shaped pebble, runic booklets, or inscribed pieces of wood or raven feathers, They would be condemned as a sorcerer for possessing magic artifacts, which meant being burned at the stake by an anointed man of God.
00:31:24
Speaker
Yeah, so I'd be f***ed because I have so many pebbles. I love rocks. I i don't know. Yeah, that's my usual vacation souvenir is a rock from wherever I went. Aw, that's good to know. That's cute. I like that.
00:31:38
Speaker
So yeah, that's a little bit of, ice a little bit, a lot of bit of Icelandic sorcery and just all over the place. Cause man, it gets, it gets crazy. So yeah, that's definitely more, yeah we'll just say f***ed up than I expected it to be. Right? Like it's just, why does everything have to do with like carving open someone's skull and blood and bile and pants and scrotums and. Because it's f***ing metal. ah Well, that was a lot. It was a lot. It wasn't a little bit of lot, was a lot of lot. Yeah.
00:32:11
Speaker
don't even know how to follow up with that. I know a lot about a lot of different cultures of witchcraft and stuff just from personal interest, and I didn't know any of that. So that's that's a lot of fun.
00:32:24
Speaker
Thank you. Yeah.
Baba Yaga in Folklore and Media
00:32:31
Speaker
So are you familiar with Baba Yaga?
00:32:35
Speaker
It sounds familiar. Wasn't that the... Oh, no, I'm thinking of, yeah. Isn't that like the boogeyman? So you are remembering it from John Wick fame because they call him Baba Yaga and they translate it as boogeyman. I'm thinking of one from the from the last one that we did.
00:32:52
Speaker
From the first, was it the first From London After Midnight? Yeah. Okay. Am I confused? I'm confused. I'm always confused. We're going to discuss the Baba Yaga of, was about to say of Icelandic folklore, of Slavic folklore. Okay. Okay. So there's several different versions of her. this a closet monster?
00:33:09
Speaker
No. Okay, never mind. Oh, it's a lady. It's a lady. Never mind. The one I'm thinking of is ah is a guy. Yes. There's there's several different versions of her, but they all share some similarities. So I'm kind of going to just like break down the entomology of the name to kind of describe here. So Baba basically means granny or old woman. Okay. In some Eastern European languages, Baba is also a name for pelican, which might come out.
00:33:31
Speaker
Again later. More recently, it's been used as a derogatory term to describe an annoying or difficult old woman. There isn't a totally decided on entomology for Yaga, but in Croatian, Serbian, Czech, Old English, Old Norse, and several others, there's words that are similar that mean things like disease.
00:33:50
Speaker
fury, anger, pain, and my personal favorite, legendary evil female being. oh Yeah. Her D&D alignment would definitely be chaotic. Depending on which story you're listening to, it would be chaotic, good, neutral, or evil. Just depends. She may help you. She may trick you. She might be both.
00:34:08
Speaker
There's so many classic Russian fairy tales with her present, but it's rarely her story. Generally, she's like a cog in the wheel of like the main character. She's either going to give them a chance to prove themselves worthy, like the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood kind of situation.
00:34:21
Speaker
o Not quite. Not quite. But I mean, I don't know. There wasn't really any positive from the wolf, but I think she has some stories that are actually very similar to that. So fair enough. Okay. proving that they're garbage and punishing them in varying degrees of horror and hilarity. She's known to have mastery over both nature and death. And her house is most often depicted as a hut on chicken or pelican legs. Oh, yes. That sounds familiar. That constantly rotates until you whisper the spell to make it stop.
00:34:49
Speaker
o I want that house. Most typically, Baba Yaga resembles an old wrinkly witch stereotype. She has a long hooked nose or sometimes referred to as a beak like a pelican, a long stringy white hair and the boniest appendages ever. And depending on which story, it either means that she's just like scrawny and bony or it's actually exposed bone. So it just depends on how dark the tail goes. She was known to fly in a low riding mortar, like a mortar pestle, propelled by of the pestle. And she would sweep away her tracks with her broom. In some stories, she's known to eat children, but she's also been depicted as a beautiful deity. There's actually some scholars that believe that she's the Slavic equivalent of the Greek Persephone. Ooh. Yeah. Interesting.
00:35:28
Speaker
So the earliest recorded reference to Baba Yaga was from woodblock prints from the 17th century from Russia. And at that point, she had already been legend for generations at least. And this was, you know, 17th century. So here's a pretty classic picture.
00:35:43
Speaker
Ugh. That does not look great. That honestly looks like my sleep paralysis demon. Not a fan. Great. Well, I think she's super fascinating because there's a lot of different versions of her. There's the deity of life and death. She's widely associated with forest wildlife. And there's also a lot of tales of her escorting death on his collections and devouring the souls of the dead.
00:36:05
Speaker
She's also the scary old witch that steals and eats children. She's got iron teeth, bear claws, and a vulture's beak in inf frequent descriptions. She's known to take children wandering by her hut with the intent of eating them, though there are no tales where she actually eats them, at least not in the surviving folklore. she just likes to play with her food. Yeah. But in modern retellings, there are people eating happening. Yeah, I know. um And then she's also the wise woman in the woods who might help you if you're worthy. So here's where I'm going to give a super freaking abridged version of a well-known Baba Yaga story. Hold on.
00:36:35
Speaker
Before you get into that, what makes you worthy? Is it if you're good if you're bad? if you're It's usually if you're good and this story will kind of, or if she perceives you as good in the story and in the subsequent story.
00:36:47
Speaker
thing I'm going to say after we'll kind of illustrate some of that. So she should be able to like see your inner soul, like your inner, not necessarily as you'll see in the story. um And there's, I mean, it depends on the version. There's a lot of really cool ones, but most of them are too long for me to have read. So, so this one has really heavy Cinderella vibes. It's called Vasilisa the beautiful. Oh,
00:37:11
Speaker
The last gift given to Vasilisa from her mother before her death was a doll. Her mother told her that if she fed the doll and asked it for help, it would help her through anything and she'd always be safe. Eventually, her father remarries a mean-ass woman with atrocious daughters.
00:37:25
Speaker
Obviously, they were jealous of her beauty and the fact that she wasn't a twat. They would make her do all of the hard chores, thinking it would make her look bulky and tired, but backfired. She got healthier while they got ugly from their spite, Dorian Gray style.
00:37:38
Speaker
Turns out she was feeding and asking the doll for help each night, and the doll would comfort her and then do all of her chores. Once it was time for Vasilisa to marry, the dudes just line which of course pisses off the stepmom because she wants everybody to line up for hers. yeah She throws a tantrum and makes a move out to the middle of the forest where Baba Yaga was known to live.
00:37:56
Speaker
So the stepsisters and Vasilisa were working by candlelight, and one of the sisters is a total bitch and blows out the light on purpose and forces Vasilisa to have to go to Baba Yaga for a new flame.
00:38:07
Speaker
I guess they were out of Tinder. i don't know what the deal was, but... they She blew out the flame and made Vasilisa go out. and Rude. So Vasilisa asks her doll for help, and the doll said as long as it was with her, she would be safe.
00:38:20
Speaker
She sets out in the night through the forest towards Baba Yaga's hut. As she passes through the trees, she comes across the White Horsemen of Morning, the Red Horsemen of Day, and the Black Horsemen of Night. The black horseman leads her to Baba Yaga's gate, which is made of human bones and skulls with flames coming out of the eyes. oh The lock was made of a sharp jaw. and I mean, I feel like she could have just gotten flame from there. but We're getting there. I'm sorry.
00:38:44
Speaker
You don't steal from Baba Yaga. Oh, my bad. I feel like you're already f***ed, so might as well just go hard. So Baba Yaga had been out and came barreling through it in her mortar just as Vasilisa arrived. Vasilisa bowed and requested a light as humbly as she could.
00:39:00
Speaker
Baba Yaga agrees to give her a light if she completes several challenges. If she fails, she will eat her. Vasilisa, of course, feeds her doll and asks for help. The doll completes all of the challenges except for one.
00:39:12
Speaker
Baba Yaga is surprised that Vasilisa could not only get these things done, but with the quality of work. She sends Vasilisa home with one of the skulls from her gate with the fiery eyes. who When Vasilisa returns home, her stepmother and stepsisters are happy to see her because they've been with no heat for days since she'd been gone.
00:39:27
Speaker
Because some asshole decided to blow the fire out. I was wondering about that. Anyway, when they greet her, flames shoot from the eyes of the skull and incinerates everybody except for Vasilisa. And that's where I'd like to end it, but I'm also going to kind of tie in. in the It ends with some bullshit about wooing a prince and living living happily ever after.
00:39:43
Speaker
this is one That's one of the more well-known ones. and There's a similar one that I prefer that's still kind of Cinderella-esque where the the good daughter does things correctly and is sweet and befriends the mice. And then Baba Yaga rewards her with riches. And then her evil stepsister is a twat, doesn't help, beats the poor mice with a rolling pin. And so Baba Yaga breaks her into pieces and puts her in a box.
00:40:01
Speaker
see and like i'm surprised though just to like really like dial back here right why didn't papa yakup get pissed that she used the doll to help her she didn't know let's assume she didn't know i don't know then how did she know about the sisters She didn't. She just gave her the skull.
00:40:20
Speaker
Oh, I assume that's why she gave her the skull so the flames would murder her. She asked for a light and i don't know, maybe it's because Baba Yaga was so impressed. She just charmed it to do her bidding. I don't know.
00:40:32
Speaker
I did leave out some details about the tasks and chores and stuff in the Vasalisa story because they kind of annoyed me. It was all cooking, cleaning, sewing, and then she gets married at the end. So it felt very like a story to teach girls how to be good wives or to want to be good wives but the other one's just vicious and f***ed up and romance free and those stories need to be told too so which brings us to the feminist f***ing icon of just being clever and badass and who gives no f*** and takes no s*** so in media from forever until now once a woman hits a certain age they become the wicked witch
00:41:03
Speaker
The evil stepmother, the nag, and countless other different negative stereotypes you associate with older femme. One thing that remains constant in Baba Yaga's tales is that she does what she wants. She gives no f***s, she takes no s***. You can't argue with her, but you can reason with her. And if you piss her off, meets back on the menu.
00:41:20
Speaker
I'm not condoning cannibalism, that's just folklore. That sounds like you're kid. But Baba Yaga is a fairy godmother, a trickster, a wicked witch, and an earth goddess, and sometimes a villain. And then a quote from Lindy Ryan, who put together a very cool compilation of Baba Yaga tales written by modern female horror authors. It's pretty cool. I'll link that. But she says, the essence of Baba Yaga exists in many cultures and many stories and symbolizes the unpredictable and untamable nature of the female spirit of Mother Earth and and the relationship of women to the wild.
00:41:52
Speaker
That was Lindy Ryan who said that. So since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Slavic and Russian folklore went out into the world and spread into media and pop culture. Yubaba from Spirited Away ah is a Baba Yaga character. Hellboy has a Baba Yaga character. There's a countless children's books, either with adaptations or classic tales, new stories, and just characters inspired by her. Some that i remember are, there's a book called Bony Legs and a book called Stone Soup. Oh, Stone Soup. I remember Stone Soup. Yeah. So here's Bony Legs and Strayton Ono is one of them and the Bone Soup. I have almost bought Bash Bony Legs multiple times. He'll probably end up with it.
00:42:31
Speaker
But she's also in Smite and Fortnite. so even the younger generations have an exposure to her. And I just think she's neat. And I want her house. Yeah, like, ah definitely not what I was expecting.
00:42:43
Speaker
I'll say that. Like, I don't know why i was expecting more of a, of like a boogeyman type character. Like it it more just sounds like she's like around and find out kind of person. Well, person, creature thing. Yeah, she's, she's just kind of the classic. Baba Duke. That's what I was mixing it up with.
00:43:00
Speaker
Another Baba. That makes sense. That makes sense. But yeah, that's Baba Yaga. Yeah. I mean, the house, I definitely remember the house from the the chicken feet really, really yeah triggered the memory. Yeah, triggered it for me.
00:43:16
Speaker
Yeah, the house does look pretty cool, but it is also kind of nasty. Sorry, I'm looking at pictures of the house. No, that's cool. I freaking love that. I really love the house so much.
00:43:34
Speaker
Did you bring me nightmare fuel today? It's not really related to this stuff. It's more just like, I told you that I like to watch like crime series stuff.
Thoughts on 'Little Miss Innocent'
00:43:41
Speaker
Yeah. And one of the ones that I've been watching lately, honestly, like,
00:43:45
Speaker
It was kind of weird because I was like, i don't understand why this is even a thing until like the final episodes. And I was like, oh God, like just the switch. So it's called Little Miss Innocent. i don't know if you've seen anything about it. I don't know if it's on Hulu.
00:44:01
Speaker
Or Netflix. But it's basic it's a true so it's a true thing. And it's basically about a woman who was tried for possibly murdering her ex-boyfriend's mother.
00:44:14
Speaker
Who worked in the same like clinic as her. And she... She maintains her innocence, but like, and you really, really feel like you believe her for a long time. and you're like, what is wrong with all these people being like, she definitely did it. It was no one else. And she's like, it was obviously all these other people, guys, all the evidence, guys, pay attention. every Everyone listen.
00:44:36
Speaker
And then like at the end, you see all the evidence they have against her and you're like, whoa, wait, wait a minute. So I don't know. It's one of those really interesting ones because I do like the whiplash effect on a lot of crime things. Where where was this one at? we're just Little Miss Innocent. Little Miss Innocent. Yeah, it's a Little Miss Innocent.
00:44:54
Speaker
Hulu. Cool. Yeah, so it's on Hulu. um I think it's only a couple of episodes, like like not a couple, a few So it's like three or more. Let's be. Yeah, it's three. Three of them. So yeah, it's it's really weird. It's like a limited series. Like that's the completion of it. 100%. Yeah. Yeah. And it's it's just it's a good quick one to watch. I say it's my nightmare fuel because to me, I don't understand people who can present themselves as one thing while internally being another or people who can turn on and shut off emotions very quickly. You used to be a waitress. Yeah.
00:45:27
Speaker
I know, but I was that waitress that always got the you'd be prettier if you smile, honey. um Because I just my I just have resting bitch face and I have a permanent scowl. And I say exactly what I'm thinking and what I'm feeling.
00:45:43
Speaker
And very few people understand that it's not quite as serious as it sounds half the time. So yeah. So to me, it's just very, very interesting, especially when with people like this. And there's another one I was watching about psychopaths. It's very similar where you just watch these people turn on and off. And I don't understand.
00:46:02
Speaker
I don't understand the switch. I feel like, you know, even to prepare myself from going from one friend group to another, because you're different around different friend groups, Right. there's shifts in your chain in your personality it it feels like that but just so quick it's just kind of scary sometimes but yeah so that's my nightmare fuel wow yeah so i'm going to recommend but this book does not have actually anything to do with baba yaga but it made me think of baba yaga because of the whole woman of a certain age situation there's a book called mary from an author named nat cassidy The author wrote it as almost like a love letter to Carrie, but as well instead of the starting your period, right, it's the menopause side. yeah And everybody's saying that this bitch is crazy and what she's actually going through. And it's horror. That does sound like some psychological thriller. Yeah, she like moves to this small town to take care of her crotchety old aunt. And there's like weird shit happening in the town. But she's also going through menopause. And so she's not sure what's real and what's not. And it's it's just a lot of fun. It's called Mary by Nat Cassidy. Interesting. I actually thought that one. Yeah, thoroughly enjoyed it. It's kind of one of those, like, good for her. I mean, I hope it ends good for her, but we'll see. You know, I just, you know, I have, it's it's a new favorite story.
00:47:16
Speaker
Genre I'm finding is is books that make me say good for her.
00:47:24
Speaker
After all of the darkness. Do we have a palate cleanser? are we ready I did not bring a palate cleanser. I did. So we talked about Baba Yaga, who's in Slavic folklore. So we're going to see which mythical creature from Slavic folklore are you? i didn't realize there were so many. Yeah.
00:47:41
Speaker
Okay. Where would you like to live? In a cabin in the woods. In a haunted house. At the beach. Somewhere in the mountains. Hell.
00:47:52
Speaker
Somewhere warm and sunny. In a city with history. Oof. So definitely nowhere hot because fuck all that. So not hell. Got it. Nowhere sunny and beachy. I just don't do well with big bodies of water either.
00:48:07
Speaker
It's either the cabin in the woods or the mountains. I want to say the cabin in the woods. Okay. I think that one's my ideal. What do you strive for in life? To be truly loved.
00:48:18
Speaker
To be admired and envied. To find yourself. To find peace. To find what it means to be happy. to be feared. To be comfortable and warm. To find peace.
00:48:29
Speaker
feel like I'm about to be a real old vengeful bitch. What's your favorite Shakespeare play? Merchant of Venice. Othello. Macbeth. Tempest. Hamlet. Midsummer Night's Dream.
00:48:40
Speaker
Romeo and Juliet. It's between Othello and Hamlet. Hamlet. Okay, the cliche question. Which element do you most identify with? Air, water, earth. Hmm.
00:48:52
Speaker
I want to identify with earth, but I am fire. So here's where I get to mispronounce a lot of things. Okay. Pick a traditional Polish soup. Ooh. There's borscht, which is beetroot soup. Yucky.
00:49:04
Speaker
Kodnik? Cold vegetable soup? Zurich, which is sour rye soup. Ew. Or vodka. I like that vegetable soup. ah Pick a Slavica aesthetic.
00:49:15
Speaker
Slav squat. Pickled everything. Ugh. Homemade alcohol. No. Communist era buildings. Floral prints and embroidery. Potatoes with everything.
00:49:27
Speaker
Or wheat fields with poppies and cornflowers. Potatoes potatoes with everything. Okay. Okay. ye Pick a piece of media inspired by Slavic folklore. Okay. Deathless by Catherine M. Valente. I haven't read Deathless, but I've read some of her other books. I'm just going oh, i'm goingnna pick The Witcher Saga for you. Okay. um I don't know if it's inspired by Slavic folklore.
00:49:48
Speaker
What kind of weird little girl are you in the in your heart of hearts? Okay. Horse girl. Swamp girl. Barbie girl in a Barbie world.
00:49:59
Speaker
Life is plastic. It's fantastic. Cutting my Barbie's heads and making morbid sculptures out of them. Book nerd, which is probably you. Torturing small animals. Not you. Climbing trees with scraped knees. Climbing trees with scraped knees.
00:50:14
Speaker
Pick a flavor of vodka. Hazelnut. Lemon. Plain. Raspberry. Plum and coffee. Lemon or plain. You gotta pick one. Lemon. Okay. Don't yell at me.
00:50:27
Speaker
Okay. You, going to need you to Google because I don't know what it is and there's not a picture, are a leshy. L-E-S-H-Y. E-S-H-Y. Uh-huh. Okay. The spirit of the woods and also the heart of the forest. who You feel most at peace in nature and surrounded by plants. Who can blame you? This is cool. You probably also really like potatoes. I love potatoes. Yeah, I think this was actually in The Witcher.
00:50:51
Speaker
And not the last, was not the last season. I think the one before that, but this is pretty cool. Okay. Let me see if I can show it to you. It looks like a Wendigo. Yeah, that's cool.
00:51:03
Speaker
I love Wendigos. Are you a Wendigo? Do I look like that? Do you know when to go? Oh my God. Goodbye. Sweet dreams.
00:51:18
Speaker
If you have topic requests, book or movie recommendations, or just want to say hi, email us at nightmarecottage at gmail.com or visit our website at nightmarecottage.com. Sweet dreams.
00:51:39
Speaker
Bye-bye.