Flight of witches
Hexenflug or Hexenritt means the medieval and early modern idea that witches could fly through the air on brooms , animals, chairs and the like. Together with the idea of the Witches' Sabbath, the flight of witches is one of the decisive elements of the early modern doctrine of witches .
Development until the 15th century
The idea of so-called " Strigen " was adopted in Europe from antiquity . It was imagined that these demonic beings transformed into owl-like animals and flew through the air looking for children to suck the blood out of. In addition to this idea, there was also the idea of a group of women who were to follow the goddesses Perchta or Holda on night flights . Since the 12th century at the latest, these ideas have been mixed up. The Edda , created around 1220, mentions a magic spell to ward off “female fence riders” (túnriđur) who have mastered the art of magical flight. The reality of the flight of witches was rejected in the Canon episcopi by Regino von Prüm in the 10th century .
Development from the 15th century
Even if theology denied the reality of the flight of witches, the belief and the idea of nocturnal excursions were widespread among the population. With the appearance of Heinrich Kramer's witch's hammer and the arguments it contained, the church could no longer reject the witch's flight.
Presentation of the process and meaning of the flight
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In its Hexenhammer, Kramer describes that with hexene from (especially unbaptized) children produced flying ointment objects such as chairs or pieces of wood einrieben. With the help of a demon, they then take to the skies to take part in meetings of other witches and in witch sabbaths. But Kramer also points out that a flight is possible without the influence of the demon, without ointment and also without objects.
The ideas of witch sabbaths and witch dances were firmly entrenched in the minds of the European population (with the exception of Scotland and the Orthodox areas of Eastern Europe). Since it was imagined that the witches were making pacts with the devil at such events, the flight of the witches was essential, as these meetings would otherwise have been inaccessible for the witches.
See also
literature
- Wolfgang Behringer: Hexenflug, in: Take off! 1000 dreams of flying . Book accompanying the exhibition in the art kite museum Detmold from April 30 to September 19, 2004.
- Fabian Bross: ars volandi - The flight of witches in the Hexenhammer , in: Aventinus. The historical internet magazine by students for students, issue 04 - winter semester 2007/08 ( online ).
- Éva Pócs: Flight of fairies and flight of witches in Central and Southeastern Europe. Rite and myth, experience and report , in: Dieter R. Bauer and Wolfgang Behringer (eds.), Flying and Floating, approaching a human sensation, Munich 1997 ISBN 3-423-04693-7 .
- Werner Tschacher: The flight through the air between illusion theory and proof of reality. Studies on the so-called Canon Episcopi and the flight of witches , in: Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte 116, Canonical Department 85/1999, pp. 225-276.
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Edda (Simrock 1876): Hâvamâl, Odin's rune song
