Folk medicine in Kythera It is an aspect of our folk culture. Its primary source is folk tradition, which is why it is worth studying.
Folk medicine also includes charms, spells, medicinal herbs, and so on.
Some time ago, while gathering relevant material from older people, I wrote down the following recipes, which I am reproducing here exactly as I heard them expressed in the Kythirian dialect:
KAVELINA
«In the blink of an eye, the donkey bolted and smashed my little hat with its hoof. His father, who was calling out from behind the donkey, quickly grabbed one of the donkey’s manes from the ground and placed it on top of the barrel.».
THE MOUSE CAKE
«They would go to the mouse nest, catch the little mice, and dip them in a bottle of oil, where they’d leave them. The mouse oil was a remedy. They rubbed the mouse oil on the dog bite once, and it healed…’
SHAVING TOOLS
«Whenever a child had a runny nose or was sick, they’d say, ’He’s caught his cold,« and they would cut the child’s buttocks with a razor during the waning moon, when the fever was subsiding, because it drew out dark blood and relieved the child. ….»
