8/26/2014

ČOXANI

Is a bearded woman i.e. a witch that drinks blood of the children. According to belief the woman is doing it unconsciously, while she is asleep, that's when her soul exits her body and goes towards small children, attacking them and drinking their blood. She doesn't attack grownups. She appears in the form of a butterfly or a bird, sometimes a wolf or a large toad. She is also described as the wind which suddenly jumps on a man's neck or back. As soon as the man starts moving his shoulders he will feel a great weight on himself. She also feeds on shellfish and sometimes attacks chickens and cats. When she is in the form of a butterfly she attacks fire because she wants to take it with herself into the air and set ablaze the gypsy village. A formula uttered in Bosnian is used against her: "U gore, u mora neka ide, u kamenje i stijene, nalet ga bilo!".