The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1901-08-02
CURIOUS FIRE LORE
HEARTH FIRES WHICH ARE NEVER
ALLOWED TO DIE OUT.

The Manner An Which the Living
Fire In Generated-A Peculiar Cere-
mony Which illustrated the Uses
of the Sacred Fire.
The domestic hearth fire IS sacred
among all Slavic peoples, without distinc-
ton Of stage of culture. 1t may never b.
started by blowing with the mouth. A
bride, on entering her new home, is led
thrice around the hearth by the grooms-
man. She must stir the fire with the polk
er and utter the following words: "As
many as the sparks that fly. SO many
may the cattle be and so many the male
offspring that shall bless our new home"
The form of the andiron in the peas
ants houses has from time immemorial
been either where one side is shaped to
represent snake and the other the head
of cock or where some domestic animal
is represented. The fire on the hearth is
never permitted to go out. 1t is the eter-
nal sacred fire of the PEASANTS home. Its
extinction betokens misfortune or is a
sign that some member of the family will
die.
The servants employed on the farm
gather about the fire and pass away the
long autumn and winter evenings in live
ly conversation. On Christmas eve the
sacred billet. badujak, is lighted, and is
sprinkled by the father Of the house with
wine, olive oil and honey. On st. Ivan's
day the Ivan's fire is lighted and main
tanned the whole night. The young people
Of the village gather together and dance
the kolo, accompanying their dance with
d. A.
most highly of all, because, as the Slavic
tradition goes in the Balkan peninsular
and the Carpathians, it possesses special
curative powers.
The living fire is generated as follows:
In some places las in the mountains OF
old Servia) 1t is customary to select two
children, a boy and girl. between II
and IA years of age, who are intrusted
with kindling the fire. They are con-
Quoted into perfectly dark chamber,
where they are obliged to remove all
their clothing and not to utter a single
word. Two dry cylindrical pieces Of
linden wood are given to them, which
they alternately rub briskly together un-
til the pieces are ignited. A piece Of
finder is fred by the sparks thus pro-
duced and dedicated to sacred uses. This
manner of obtaining the sacred fire is the
oldest, but has now passed almost alto
gether out of USE
Another method prevails among the
Servians of western Macedonia. Two
slabs of oak wood are driven solidly in
to the earth, and in their upper extremi-
ties two round holes are bored, in which
a cylindrical piece of linden wood is so
inserted that 1t can be rapidly rotated.
A stout cord is drawn tight around two
upright slabs to prevent their springing
asunder. A primitive violin bow is then
constructed, the string of which is wound
once around the piece of linden wood
By moving the bow to and fro the
cylindrical piece of wood is brought into
rapid rotation, and through the heat of
friction thus generated a piece of finder
inserted In the holes of the uprights is
ignited.
In the autumn Of 1899, while In the
Kosmaj highlands, saw the sacred fire
produced In a different manner. Two
peasants drove two semicylindrical pieces
of wood into the ground and drew a rope
taut about them. The piece of light
linden wood was so inserted that 1t could
be- readily rotated by means of a sim
pie rope wrapped once around 1t. device
which was even more eficacious than
that of the primitive violin bow and led
quickly to the desired and.
The purpose for which the sacred
fame, or living fire. is used in the peas
ants homes remains to be explained.
While on a scientific journey in the
interior of the great forest districts of
Servia several years ago ! accidentally
had an opportunity Of witnessing cere.
mony which illustrated the uses of the
sacred fire.
1t was In the autumn. In the village Of
Setonje. at the foot Of the HomOlje noun
tains, there ragged a general epidemic
among the children, which the prejudiced
peasantry concealed from the authorities
for fear that the physician of the prov
ince would visit the place. Two old wo-
men who were Obliged by tradition to
have the names Stana from stati, to
stand. not to spread repaired to q spot
outside the village. One of them carried