Fleabane – Protection against beschreien and counter-magic

Folkloristic tradition uses the terms fleabane or beschreien-herb for a group of plants whose names refer directly to their protective function: they were meant to work against ‘berufen’ and ‘beschreien’. Alongside annual fleabane, these include toadflax, betony, vervain, thyme, as well as sprigs of juniper and mugwort.

What these plants have in common is their role in protecting children and young livestock, who were considered especially susceptible to the evil eye.

In older German usage, ‘berufen’ denoted the idea that misfortune could be brought about simply by voicing an expectation, for instance when someone effusively praised a child’s health only for the child to fall ill shortly afterwards. ‘Beschreien’, closely related, referred to the harmful effect of an admiring look or a loud exclamation, related to the more general belief in the evil eye.

Children in the cradle and young livestock were considered especially at risk because they could not protect themselves. For this reason, fleabane was placed in the cradle, pushed under the pillow, or given to the child in the form of a herbal bath if it was suspected that beschreien had already occurred. Attached to the stable door, the same herb was meant to protect calves and foals from the same danger.

The Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens records numerous regional variants of berufen- and beschreien-herbs, pointing to a practice widespread throughout the German-speaking world.

The working principle of fleabane rests on the idea of counter-magic: harm that has already occurred, the beschreien, is meant to be undone through a second act. Tradition often links the very name of the plant to its task: what is called upon (‘berufen’) is also meant to be revoked.

Unlike preventive protective herbs, which are set up permanently, fleabane in tradition often acts in response to a specific occasion: as a reaction to suffering already experienced and attributed to beschreien, such as a baby’s persistent crying or a cow failing to give milk.

Belief in the evil eye and the associated protective practices extends far beyond the German-speaking world, for instance in the Mediterranean region under the names malocchio or mati. The specific fleabane herbs of German tradition, above all annual fleabane, are by contrast used mainly in Central Europe.

What the various cultures share is the basic idea that children and young animals require special protection, and that harm caused by words or looks can be undone through targeted countermeasures.

In tradition, fleabane is used specifically against beschreien and berufen, that is, against harm believed to arise from excessive praise, envious looks or thoughtless remarks about children and young livestock.

As counter-magic, it is also applied to complaints already present and attributed to the evil eye, such as a child’s persistent unease with no discernible cause. The Protection Compass classifies fleabane among the herbs against the evil eye.

Several forms of use are recorded: placing the herb in the cradle or under the child’s pillow, adding an infusion to bathwater, and hanging a bundle at the stable door. In some regions, the herb was also burned when beschreien was suspected, and the smoke wafted over the affected child or animal.

Tradition itself sets limits: fleabane was regarded as a response to suspected harm, not as proof of actual harm. It was understood as part of a broader protective practice that also included protective prayers and amulets, not as a replacement for them.