Magical Ways of Thief Punishment and Returning Stolen Goods (in the Peasant Culture of the Mid‑19th — Early 20th Centuries)

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2023-1/72-87

Abstract

The article analyses the magical ways to punish a thief and return the stolen goods based on published and unpublished archive materials, periodicals, collections and dictionaries containing folklore texts, descriptions of ritual and magical practices and linguistic data. Magical punishments are viewed in the context of exchange theory which understands the negative reciprocity as a retribution for the damage caused. Although anthropologists have paid attention to the social functions of magic and magical practices as a part of customary law system of different peoples, they have rarely become the subject of special research within the anthropology of law. This article discusses the ways to punish and return stolen goods using contagious and sympathetic magic. It was revealed that the rituals mostly consisted in affecting different objects, and this destructive influence was projected onto the thief’s body as the main object of magical manipulation. Flame, heat and smoke were the most popular means for causing damage, which allows us to compare the magical ways of punishment with the rituals of recognizing witches. The article concludes that maintaining social stability was the main function of magical punishment.