Seckauer hail evocation

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The Seckauer Hagelbeschwerung (formerly also called Grazer Hagelsegen) is the oldest surviving hail spell in the German-speaking area . Recorded on a sheet of parchment of the 12th century, it is the Latin for the Bene Diktions-Code Graz, UB 784 Seckauer Canons as rear cover reinforcement.

Digital copy of the manuscript of the Seckauer Hagelbeschwerung (Ms 784 148v)
UV fluorescence image of the manuscript of the Seckauer Hagelbeschwerung (Ms 784 148v)

Lore

The Seckauer hail evocation from the 12th century is the oldest surviving hail spell in the German-speaking area. This Christianized incantation was preserved as waste . The old parchment sheet served as the rear binding reinforcement for the Latin Benediction Codex Graz, UB 784 of the Seckau Canon Monastery. On the front of this parchment sheet, there is an incantation in Latin for the purpose of discovering a theft . On the back there is the very difficult to read hail evocation in German. An author is not known. Since the parchment sheet with the incantations was stuck to the back cover of the book, the handwriting was severely affected by the detachment from the book cover. With the help of archivist Joseph Zahn, Anton Schönbach succeeded in transliterating the hail evocation by repeatedly using sulfur ammonium.

The 148-sheet Latin collective codex contains adjurations (incantations) and benedictions (blessings). These rituals were intended for monastic use. Due to the content and the recognizable handwriting of the individual scribes , it is assumed that manuscript 784 is part of the original equipment of the Seckau Canon Monastery. Since it can be related to other manuscripts in terms of content, it is possible to localize the individual scribes in Seckau. However, the scribes' hands do not necessarily have to be members of the pen. In principle, four different main scribes can be found in this manuscript alone, but not all connections to Seckau can be made. Nor can they be identified by name. Only Bernhard, probably the most famous scribe of the Seckau Canons' Monastery, can be named. In this manuscript he acted as a rubricator and proofreader , probably less as a scribe.

Transliteration and translation

Transliteration

† Ivie reefs. Ivie reefs. Ivie reefs. hin vil michel. hin vil

michel. hin vil michel. From tubs gent swarzev wolchen.

there is holy christian with his church. daz is the holy one

christ with his quantity. The parting ( l. Parting) trvbev wants to

chen. the wil veimen wize stones. daz e show. e si cerde gen.

before the same wihen words. daz us ce doll. Father. Father.

Father. Do you hear nv hail. wa you the wartman. by doing

saw walde. Hard you lie. angels dv iӕge. daz you me

getar. ie. sva man you nant. Mm Father.

Translation attempt

[Sign of the cross] I call restlessly, call restlessly, call restlessly: Far away, far away, far away! Where do the black clouds come from? This is the Holy Christ in his glory, this is the Holy Christ with his entourage. May he separate the dark clouds, froth the white (hail) stones, so that they melt before they fall to earth, thanks to these sacred words. So help us magic ("luppe / lüppe") [or "ze luppe" = ze love: "That is helpful to us"?]. Father, father, father! Be mindful, hail: where the guards (hail keepers) saw you over the forest, you lay hard (on stones), angels (white clouds?) You drove around. You shouldn't dare anything where you were banned. Maria Mater (prayer abbreviation "Mm"; or symbolic number, e.g. for "zig" ??] Our Father.

interpretation

If one now takes a closer look at the content of this evocation of hail, the following interpretation emerges: It begins with a three-fold invocation to the threatening hail clouds. With this invocation and the following three-fold request that the storm may move far away, the clouds are both addressed and banished. As a result, it is described how the dangerous “white stones” should dissolve in water in time through the action of a cloud-like structure, which is led by Christ himself. Finally, offerings can be found in the form of prayer services.

Both the content of this incantation and its form have magical components. Magic and sorcery have always played a major role in people's lives, especially those of the Middle Ages. In doing so they explained the inexplicable and the incomprehensible or saw it as the last resort when no other means could help. Missing knowledge and knowledge about diseases, weather and other amazing events were made more tangible and understandable. The hail was the greatest threat, as its destructive power is enormous.

The structure of the hail spell contains some components that can also be found in other medieval spells . The addressing as text entry is a fixed component. The hail conjuring has a three-time invocation preceded by a sign of the cross as a text entry († Ivie riffe. Ivie riffe. Ivie riffe) . This symbol indicates that it is addressed to a higher power or deity. Next, we can find the ban (hin vil michel. Hin vil michel. Von wannen gent swarzev wolchen.) . It belongs to the heart of the incantation, since one wanted to gain power over the danger or something similar by naming it directly. After that, a large part of the saying is the story of analogy (also called Historiola). Here a previous event is reproduced in order to secure oneself and to awaken a memory of the holy power that is to become effective again. This is followed by the incantation (daz du me getar. Ie. Sva man dich nant.) . It is a specific speech act , usually kept in the imperative , which contains everything that is effective and reminds of the core of the request. Finally, there is the victim order (Mm pater.) . This contains prayer instructions, in our case probably for Hail Mary and the Lord's Prayer .

Since people used the many spells, incantations, blessings, magical formulas, etc. to cure their illnesses and solve their problems, the temptation to get on the wrong path was great. The line between white and black magic is a very fine line, and the weather magic is close by. But as long as the threatening storm or the threatening hailstorm was wished to a distant, uninhabited wasteland, no problems were to be feared. However, if the incantations were supposedly used for vengeful or harmful purposes, the limit to black magic was exceeded. If we look at the Seckau hail conjuration, it could be assumed that black magic resonates, but due to the strong Christian focus and the traditional situation, an evocation can be assumed that can be assigned to white magic.

further reading

  • Ernst Hellgardt , The German-language manuscripts in the 11th and 12th centuries. Collection and characteristics in a chronological outline, in: Deutsche Manschriften 1100–1400. Oxford Colloquium 1985, ed. by Volker Honemann and Nigel F. Palmer, Tübingen 1988, pp. 35-81, here p. 59 (No. 69).
  • Ernst Hellgardt, Seckauer manuscripts as a carrier of early Middle High German texts, in: The medieval literature in Styria. Files of the International Symposium Seggau Castle near Leibnitz 1984, ed. by Alfred Ebenbauer, Fritz Peter Knapp and Anton Schwob (Yearbook for International German Studies. Series A, Congress Reports 23), Bern a. a. 1988, pp. 103-130, especially pp. 112f.
  • Ernst Hellgardt, The German magic spells and blessings in the context of their tradition (10th to 13th centuries). A sketch of the history of tradition, in: Atti della Accademia Peloritana dei Pericolanti. Classe di Lettere Filosofia e Belle Arti, Vol. LXXI, Anno Accademico CCLXVI (1995), Messina 1997, pp. 5-62, here pp. 13 and 21f.
  • Verena Holzmann, "I woo you worm and wyrmin ...". Forms and types of old German magic spells and blessings (Viennese works on Germanic antiquity and philology 36), Bern a. a. 2001, p. 171 (No. 83).
  • Jürgen Wolf , Psalter and prayer book am Hof: Links between the clerical-literal and the laical-oral world, in: Orality and Literacy in the Middle Ages. Essays on a Conjunction and its Consequences in Honor of DH Green, ed. by Mark Chinca and Christopher Young, Turnhout 2005, pp. 139–179, here p. 172 no. 31.

Web links

  • Friedrich Wilhelm (ed.), Monuments of German prose from the 11th and 12th centuries, Section A: Text; Department B: Commentary (Munich Texts 8), Munich 1914/16 (reprinted in a volume Munich 1960 [Germanistische Bücherei 3]), No. 20, A: p. 51, B: p. 130f. Dept. A online , Dept. B online
  • Anton Kern, Die Manschriften der Universitätsbibliothek Graz, Vol. 2 (Manuscript directories of Austrian libraries, Styria 2), Vienna 1956, p. 42. online
  • Anton Kern, Die Manschriften der Universitätsbibliothek Graz, Vol. 3: Supplements and registers compiled by Maria Mairold (manuscript indexes of Austrian libraries, Styria 3), Vienna 1967, p. 75. online
  • Silvia Madl: Learning to understand spells. Scientific and didactic considerations for the development of an electronic portfolio for practical and transnational use in German lessons for the 3rd and 3rd 4th grade of lower secondary level and 1st and 2nd grade 2nd grade of secondary level II. Graz 2014. online

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d Hans Zotter: 784. In: Special Collection Graz University Library. Retrieved December 8, 2017 .
  2. ^ Hans Zotter: 784. In: Special Collection Graz University Library. Retrieved December 8, 2017 .
  3. ↑ a b Seckauer hail conjuring. Retrieved December 8, 2017 .
  4. ↑ a b c Anton Schönbach: Blessing from Grazer Hss . In: Journal for German antiquity . No. 18 , 1875, p. 79 .
  5. ^ A b Andrea Hofmeister, Wernfried Hofmeister: Three ʿ St. Lambrecht's weather conjurations ʾ. Edition and analysis in the context of medieval storm exorcisms . In: Anna Grotans, Heinrich Beck, Anton Schwob (Hrsg.): Göppinger works on German studies . tape 682 / I . Kümmerle, Göppingen, S. 161-176 .
  6. ↑ a b c d e Silvia Madl: Learning to understand magic spells. Scientific and didactic considerations for the development of an electronic portfolio for practical and transnational use in German lessons for the 3rd and 4th grade. 4th grade of lower secondary level and 1st and 2nd grade 2nd grade of upper secondary level . Graz 2014, p. 27-38 .