“They know, they fear, but they never discuss”: witchcraft among the Transcaucasian Doukhobors

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2020-50-2/106-124

Abstract

Based on field material collected among the Transcaucasian Doukhobors, the article examines the “witchcraft” discourse that was formed in the sect over the two centuries, which the Dukhobors have lived in isolation from the Russian people. The contradiction between the folk tradition that they brought from their places of origin, where they lived among the Orthodox in Russia, and the religious doctrine that did not allow the sons of God to contact with evil force, caused the topic of witchcraft to be forced to the periphery of the cultural field and never be openly discussed. The paper examines traditional complexes of folklore stories that have survived in the Doukhobors environment to the present day, and draws attention to widely known stories that were unacceptable in their community. Although there were no people among the Dukhobors who were actually engaged in witchcraft practices, the article shows the mechanisms of “creating” the image of a sorcerer. The need for such people was exhausted by the desire of the villagers to hold them responsible for problems and misfortunes.