Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 16, 1905.djvu/45

 Midsummer Customs in Morocco. "^i

{nhar Idisan). In Andjra, if it rains on that day, the water {l-via de-ldisan) is collected and afterwards used for a variety of purposes. On l-dnsdra day about sunset a ring was painted with cowdung and red earth mixed with such water round the trunk of every fig-tree in the garden where I was living. The people told me that this would prevent the figs from falling and make them good, by giving baraka to the trees and averting from them the evil eye of any person who passes by. Those who have a sufficient quantity of l-ma de-ldisan wash themselves with it on l-dnsdra day. But this water is miracle-working also on other occasions. There is baraka in it from the beginning. A little of it is very beneficial to the crops, whereas much of it destroys themi, because the water is supposed to be salt. When it rains on April 27th the people let some rain fall on their bare heads so as to make the head strong. When l-ma de-ldisan touches the eyes of poisonous animals, such as snakes or scorpions, it makes the animal blind. Mixed with tar it is, in the hottest part of the summer, sprinkled on the door-posts to prevent snakes from entering the house. It is also sprinkled over the heaps of corn after threshing to protect them against the evil eye. Mixed with an egg, some henna, and seeds of cress {l-horf) it is given as medicine to cows suffering from stomach trouble. It is drunk by persons who have eaten bewitched food. It is poured over a plate on which a certain sura of the Koran has been written with Moorish ink, and is then given to schoolboys to drink so as to strengthen their memory. But in order to preserve its magic efficacy l-ma de-ldisan must on no account be allowed to touch the ground. I am told that, if there is no rain on April 27th, water taken from seven springs which are never used for drinking purposes is on l-'dnsdra day mixed with cowdung and red earth as a substitute for l-ma de- ldisan. A belief which I found among the Shluh is worth mentioning in this connection. My teacher in Shelha, a

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