Turks’] preparations for a voyage have been made,” noted de Busbecq, “they come to the Greeks and ask whether the waters have been blessed; and if they say that they have not been blessed, they put off their sailing, but if they are told that the ceremony has been performed, they embark and set sail.” Sailors of all faiths—especially pirates and corsairs—revered icons of the Virgin Mary. Caught in a storm, a Frenchman was urged by a Turkish sailor to pray for the Virgin’s help, since he had heard, while a captive in Vienna, that her intercession was helpful. In this world one needed help from whatever quarter: impiety was far more grievous than belonging to a different faith. An English slave on a Turkish warship recounted how
at their first coming on board, they had been asked of what religion they were, and upon declaring themselves Catholic Christians, some mild endeavors had been used to persuade them to renounce their faith, and to become Mohametans; but upon their steady denial, they were told that, since they refused to embrace the true faith, they must as the next best chance for salvation, serve God in their own way; and immediately a small cabin was alloted them, which they were desired to fit up as a chapel, and in which they were compelled to pray daily and regularly. 21
Plagues, droughts, floods, earthquakes, pirates, wars and fires—all the afflictions and hazards of ordinary life in the Ottoman Balkans—compelled a respect for heavenly powers and for wisdom and knowledge of the divine among humans that ran across religious boundaries. Specific saints, for instance, were known for their protection of particular cities; their ability to ward off danger was recognized by Christians and Muslims alike. “Both the Christians and the Turks were ecstatic” when the relics of St. Nikolaos of Metsovon eased the plague in the town of Tríkala and averted locusts. Another plague of locusts—“like a dark cloud through which the sun’s rays could scarcely pierce”—was defeated on Cyprus by the use of the right hand of Saint Michael, again to general relief. Muslims as well as Christians were said to recognize the signs of sanctity—the sweet “indescribable” fragrance emanating from the corpse, the unearthly radiance, the failure of the corpse to decompose—when a martyr of the Orthodox faith was executed. And religion was no barrier to the panic that could grip towns visited by vampires, as happened in Agia, where they were seen “gliding about with large lanterns in their hands”; in Edirne in 1872, a Muslim hodja and a Christian priest both failed to exorcise the town of vampires, and the alarm abated only after a Turkish sorcerer was called in and did the job properly. 22
The Ottoman Balkans was thus a world densely populated by invisible spirits, both malicious and benign. Some families were dreaded because they were known to be vampires in human form. There were even reports of men with tails hidden by their undergarments. Charms were employed against the evil eye by devout members of all religions, as were garlic, rope with knots tied in it, animal horn such as boar’s tusks and certain berries. Priests were kept busy writing messages on amulets in response to their flock’s demands, and when Christians found their own amulets did not work, they would go and borrow Muslim ones. Many of these beliefs linger on today, though they are rarely expressed publicly for fear of ridicule. 23
Ridicule was, however, precisely what they attracted from many outside observers who looked at what they regarded as a display of superstitious ignorance with a blend of fascination, amusement, ethnographic detachment and horror. Catholic observers, resenting the almost unshakable grip of the Orthodox village clergy upon their flock, were particularly inclined to highlight priestly ignorance. The highly educated Jesuit scholar Ruggiero Giuseppe Boscovich, born into the Slav-Italian culture of Dubrovnik,
at their first coming on board, they had been asked of what religion they were, and upon declaring themselves Catholic Christians, some mild endeavors had been used to persuade them to renounce their faith, and to become Mohametans; but upon their steady denial, they were told that, since they refused to embrace the true faith, they must as the next best chance for salvation, serve God in their own way; and immediately a small cabin was alloted them, which they were desired to fit up as a chapel, and in which they were compelled to pray daily and regularly. 21
Plagues, droughts, floods, earthquakes, pirates, wars and fires—all the afflictions and hazards of ordinary life in the Ottoman Balkans—compelled a respect for heavenly powers and for wisdom and knowledge of the divine among humans that ran across religious boundaries. Specific saints, for instance, were known for their protection of particular cities; their ability to ward off danger was recognized by Christians and Muslims alike. “Both the Christians and the Turks were ecstatic” when the relics of St. Nikolaos of Metsovon eased the plague in the town of Tríkala and averted locusts. Another plague of locusts—“like a dark cloud through which the sun’s rays could scarcely pierce”—was defeated on Cyprus by the use of the right hand of Saint Michael, again to general relief. Muslims as well as Christians were said to recognize the signs of sanctity—the sweet “indescribable” fragrance emanating from the corpse, the unearthly radiance, the failure of the corpse to decompose—when a martyr of the Orthodox faith was executed. And religion was no barrier to the panic that could grip towns visited by vampires, as happened in Agia, where they were seen “gliding about with large lanterns in their hands”; in Edirne in 1872, a Muslim hodja and a Christian priest both failed to exorcise the town of vampires, and the alarm abated only after a Turkish sorcerer was called in and did the job properly. 22
The Ottoman Balkans was thus a world densely populated by invisible spirits, both malicious and benign. Some families were dreaded because they were known to be vampires in human form. There were even reports of men with tails hidden by their undergarments. Charms were employed against the evil eye by devout members of all religions, as were garlic, rope with knots tied in it, animal horn such as boar’s tusks and certain berries. Priests were kept busy writing messages on amulets in response to their flock’s demands, and when Christians found their own amulets did not work, they would go and borrow Muslim ones. Many of these beliefs linger on today, though they are rarely expressed publicly for fear of ridicule. 23
Ridicule was, however, precisely what they attracted from many outside observers who looked at what they regarded as a display of superstitious ignorance with a blend of fascination, amusement, ethnographic detachment and horror. Catholic observers, resenting the almost unshakable grip of the Orthodox village clergy upon their flock, were particularly inclined to highlight priestly ignorance. The highly educated Jesuit scholar Ruggiero Giuseppe Boscovich, born into the Slav-Italian culture of Dubrovnik,
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