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The thrills of the "old world" - By daru

Some dark rituals of the "old world"
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The ones i want to present now are reffering to some rituals performed when a building of some kind was erected. The ideea, originating in ancient times (probably in neolithic) was that a construction must be similar in a way with a living organism, so, to last forever, it was need that a soul to be integrated in that construction, and that was done by walling in a human being. Another interpretation who was gived after, a more phylosophical one instead of magical was that anything important and durable need, or is based on, a sacrifice. This myth is spread in legends all over south eastern Europe (where one of the oldest world civilization apear, the so called "Old European Civilization"). This ritual was (is) preserved up to this days (middle of XX century at least when some folkloric habits was collected) in so called "popular magic", where is a more simplified, in a way, ritual, less "dangerous" or "gruesome" at first sight but with the same result at the end, when shadow of someone is "stolen" using a stick, then the stick is burried, or walled, at the base of a new construction. Several days after that the person who's shadow was "stolen" is said it will die, and his/her soul will be traped in that building beeing somehow "tied" by/with that stick. However, this habit or ritual was spread in other parts of the world too (human sacrifices for diferent reasons was quite spread in some historic eras all over the world), and in the medieval era (sometimes called "Dark Age" for the reasons of migrations and lack of sources of what happened then, but as we'll see, for some other reasons too) the guilds of masons will reuse this ritual in several circumstances. Some say that this masons guilds will form later (or will be at least part of) the "free-masons" of today. There is two places in Romania related with this legendary ritual. One is the Arges Monastery, a beautiful medieval monastery erected in fact at the begining of XVI century, in a place of an older one. However, the popular legend (there is a balad in fact) said about Radu Negru (Radu the Black) who is considered the mythical founder of Basarab dinasty who will rule Walachia and later will spread in two clans, Danestii- from Dan, one of the rulers, and Draculestii-from Vlad Dracul, son of Mircea the Elder (brother of Dan) and father of Vlad Dracula, clans who will had a bitter fight for power a long period. Radu Negru arrived in Wallachia from Transylvania, where new arrived hungarians tryied to impose their political control, and he established a new kingdom, called Wallachia. To leave something behind for eternity he ask the most famous masons in the country to build an impressive monastery in his name. If they did that, they will receive great tresures and will be allowed to obtain high positions in noble cast, but if not, they will die. It was 10 stonemasons who dare to take the task, lead by master Manole. Unfortunately for them, not far after they started the work, during night, some unknown forces make to crumble all they builded during the day. Radu Negru is obviously upset about the stage of the construction, and threaten them to kill them if they not build the construction as they said. At that point, master Manole had a dream in which he see that walls will resist just if someone will be walled in, the first wife or sister of the stone masons who will visit them. He tell that to the others, and all agree to do that, so the construction to not fall anymore. The first one who appear will be Ana, the wife of Manole. They had a little child too, and after Ana feed him, she come to bring some food to Manole as well. He is desperate seeing her coming, from the highest of the racks, and start to pray to God to unleash the wild elements of nature to make her go back so he dont lose her. And, the Sky seem to heard that, and start to unleash the storms, the cold rain, the wild winds and so on, but Ana is a devoted and loving wife and despite all this troubles, she go on, to reach his husband, and finnaly arrive at the monastery. Silently, the stone masons put her on a wall, and start to wall her in, starting with the feet. She believe is a joke at first, but soon she realize that they go on and on. The ballad say her words during those dramatic moments, and the drama of Manole, caught betwen building the work of his life, and the life of his wife. Finnaly, she is all walled in and the monastery is finished, just at the moment when Radu Negru arrived there. He is impresed by the sight, and ask the stonemasons if there is ever posible that they can build an even more beautiful monastery. Drunked by joy of the realisation, they said that "yes", they can do that. But Radu Negru is upset about this, he want that this to be the top of the realisations, and order to soldiers to break down the racks around the walls, so the masons to remain on the roof, without posibility to come down. Manole, still hearing Ana's voice, consider his work on this world was done, and he will meet with Ana again by death so he start to build some wings from weatherboard, followed by the other masons, to fly down from the top of monastery. But wings prouve to be useless and one by one they fall, and die. Manole is the last one, and he fly the longest distance. He fall to and die, and in the place he died, a water emerge from the earth, and the fountain of the monastery will be constructed there. As well, on a side of the walls is marked the place where Ana was suposedly walled in. A similar somehow story (the ritual was performed in a kind of backward way), but less known, is related with Black Church too. A kid who was lured on the top of the church when the construction was finished was left there to die so his soul to slip on the construction and strenghten the walls for ever, and his stone statue is still visible on one part of the church today looking down from the roof in a kind of a desperate attempt to come down somehow. Such stories was spread all over Europe at some point, from Scotland (legend of St. Oran), Welsh country, France (the bridge of Morbihan), Germania (Henneberg fortres, Winneburg tower) and all over south east and eastern Europe. Sometimes the sacrificed person was one of the builders, or someone from their families, sometimes it was a stranger, a kid usual lured with sweets and food, or even gold, or beggars lured with drinks.
Filed under: Art, General	March 17, 2010, 9:48 am | Permalink | 0 Comments
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