Collector's Categorization: de dragoste (for love)

Local Designation: de dragoste (for love)

Informant: Unknown

Translator(s): Sanda Golopentia, W. R.

Reference(s): Golopentia_1998 043, p. 145–147; Lupascu_1890 p. 47; Gorovei_1931 p. 319

Timing & Setting: [None]; None (home, church, out of the village, Abraham's trail, Jordan's well, back to the village) [V] [None] [T]

Inventory Items
Auxiliaries	Mother of the Lord (Holy Mary) [V]
	Religious (Abraham's trail, Jordan's well) [V]
Adversaries	Sorcerers and Sorceresses (charm-sayers, sorceresses) [V]
Substances	Water/Dew [V]
	Impure (pitch, tar, fuel oil) [V]
	Gold [V]
	Love (garments of love) [V]
Objects	Holy (icons, a staff of gold) [V]
	Clothes (white smock, snake skin dress, garments of love) [V]
Acts/Gesture	Wash (I washed my eyes) [V]
	Cross oneself and kneel (I crossed myself before the icons) [V]
	Go to a specific place (I ran to the church) [V]
	Climb on the fence/Mount a horse (children climbed on the fences) [V]
Acts/Speech	Scream/Whisper (I shouted, I wailed) [V]
	Ask a question (All asked: Who is that?) [V]
Animal	Snake (dressed me in a snake skin) [V]
	Cuckoo (the call of the cuckoo in my mouth) [V]
	Wild positive (listened to me as if to a nightingale) [V]

The Charm (Romanian):

M-am sculat
m-am mânecat
pe ochi cu apă m-am spălat
la icoane m-am închinat
cămeșă albă am îmbrăcat
la biserică am alergat
în pragul ușii am călcat
nime în lume nu m-o văzut
nime în lume nu m-o auzit
numai descântătoarele
și fermecătoarele.
Ele hălălăia
și pălălăia
pe mine din sat mă scotea
cu piele de șerpe mă îmbrăca
cu smoală păcură mă ungea
de râsul lumii mă făcea.
Eu am țipat
m-am văerat
nime în lume nu m-o auzit
nime în lume nu m-o văzut
numai Maria, sfânta Maria
pe mine m-o auzit și văzut.
în cârjă de aur s-o coborât
de mână m-o luat
pe cărarea lui Avram m-o îndreptat
la fântâna lui Iordan m-o așezat
glas de cuc în gură mi-o pus
de lumea ca de privighetoare m-o ascultat
toată lumea la mine s-o uitat
cu straie de dragoste m-o îmbrăcat.
Pe drum am plecat
la mine bolnavii s-o uitat
copiii peste gard s-o înălțat
de au uitat babele cârpele
moșnegii căciulele
și copiii brâiele.
Toți au întrebat
— Cine este aceea?
— Voduleasa cea frumoasă
hătmăneasa cea aleasă.
în veci așa să fie
lumea toată s-o mângâie.

The Charm (English translation):

I woke up
went out
washed my eyes with water
crossed myself before the icons
dressed in a white smock
ran to the church
stepped on the threshold of the doorway
nobody in the world saw me
nobody in the world heard me
only the charm-sayers
and the sorceresses.
They blazed out
and glared out
took me out of the village
dressed me in a snake skin
smeared me with tar and fuel oil ¹
made me the world's laughingstock.
I shouted
I wailed
nobody in the world heard me
nobody in the world saw me
only Mary, holy Mary
heard and saw me.
She climbed down leaning on a staff of gold
took me by the hand
led me on Abraham's trail
seated me by Jordan's well
put the call of the cuckoo in my mouth
so the world listened to me as if to a nightingale
so the whole world looked at me
she dressed me in garments of love. ²
I set out on the road
sick people looked at me ³
children climbed over the fence
old women forgot their kerchiefs
old men their caps
and children their belts.
All asked:
— Who is that?
— The beautiful Voduleasa ⁴
the chosen hetmaness. ⁵
Forever let her be so
let the whole world caress her. ⁶

Golopentia_1998/043: Love charm and countercharm scenario: Against hate for beauty and love

Collected in Moldova

The Charm (Romanian):

The Charm (English translation):