Category:
Rituals and Superstitions

Bone Pointing

The ceremony of bone pointing is a common ritual for bringing sickness among the [Australian] Arunta. The pointing bone or pointing stick is usually about nine inches in length, pointed at one end, and tipped with a lump of resin at the other. The stick is endowed with magical power by being 'sung over,' that is, curses are muttered over it, such as 'may your heart be rent asunder' and 'may your head and throat be split open.' On the evening of the day on which the bone has been 'sung' the wizard creeps stealthily in the shadows until he can see the victim's face clearly by the firelight. He then points the bone in the victim's direction and utters in a low tone the curses with which the stick was endowed earlier in the day. The victim is supposed to sicken and die within a month at the most. Two men may cooperate in the pointing operation. Spears may also be endowed with magic by 'singing' over them. A person who knows that he has been injured, even slightly, with a spear thus prepared will be likely to waste away through fear unless counter magic can be brought to his aid.
--from "Primitive Theories of Disease" by Spencer L. Rogers in Ciba Symposia (April 1942)

Shown below are two Australian Arunta men demonstrating how to point the bone at someone. Wikipedia adds an interesting piece of trivia:

In 2004 Native Australians who disagreed with his policies ritually cursed Australian Prime Minister, John Howard by pointing a bone at him. He is still alive as of 2012.

Posted By: Alex - Fri Jun 15, 2012 - Comments (5)
Category: Death, Rituals and Superstitions

Puerto Rican St. Pat’s Day

image

Do they still celebrate St. Patrick's Day with special fervor in Puerto Rico, thanking the saint for freedom from worms and ants? A charming thing, if they do.

Original article here.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Mar 15, 2012 - Comments (6)
Category: Holidays, Insects and Spiders, Religion, Rituals and Superstitions, 1920s, Caribbean

The Spittle Burier

Sir James Frazer's Golden Bough (1922) is full of curious information -- including his description of a very strange occupation, the spittle burier:

In the Sandwich Islands chiefs were attended by a confidential servant bearing a portable spittoon, and the deposit was carefully buried every morning to put it out of the reach of sorcerers. On the Slave Coast, for the same reason, whenever a king or chief expectorates, the saliva is scrupulously gathered up and hidden or buried. The same precautions are taken for the same reason with the spittle of the chief of Tabali in Southern Nigeria.

Even though the guy was burying spittle, he probably thought he was doing a pretty important job. And in his culture, perhaps he was.

The portrait below shows Kaneena, a chief of the Sandwich Islands in the late eighteenth century, whose spittle would presumably have been buried.

Posted By: Alex - Thu Feb 16, 2012 - Comments (5)
Category: Rituals and Superstitions

Fijian Cannibal Forks

If you're ever at a dinner party where the host has a set of forks that look like these, you might want to consider leaving, quickly.

These are Fijian "cannibal forks" used for eating human flesh. The iron dance blog offers this description of them:

The cannibal fork, or iculanibokola, was used by attendants during ritual feasts to feed individuals considered too holy to touch food. These forks arose for several reasons. First is a cultural taboo that prohibits chiefs and priests from touching food with their hands. Common Fijians generally did not use utensils until Europeanization. One of the most important ceremonies a chieftain participated in was the devouring of their or the tribes enemy. Combining the significance of the event and the inability to use their hands the chiefs needed a way to participate-hence the development of the cannibal fork. Forks became a way to show power and influence. The fancier more elaborate the fork, the higher status the owner had.

Fijian cannibal forks are still made, to sell to tourists. What the tourists use them for... I guess that's their own business.

Posted By: Alex - Wed Feb 15, 2012 - Comments (6)
Category: Cannibalism, Food, Rituals and Superstitions

Branded!



This TV theme song and imagery has stuck with me since childhood. It's undeniably powerful still, I think.

But who knew that the armed forces today still do the same thing? Read about the Canadian response to the conviction of a twisted soldier.

Posted By: Paul - Sat Nov 20, 2010 - Comments (6)
Category: Crime, Public Humiliation, Rituals and Superstitions, Television, 1960s, Armed Forces

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Alex Boese
Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes.

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