I’m Getting Really into My New Hobby of Bjära-Conjuring
We’ve all seen the multitudes of self-help articles recommending new hobbies for the 2020 lock-down. Non-experts are really good at suggesting all sorts of things to do to keep ourselves occupied while we’re banned from dining out, normal shopping, and just carousing in general. There are tons of suggestions for baking, writing, arts/crafts, D.I.Y. projects, etc.; the list is essentially endless. But this spring I’ve decided to blaze my own path and so I have taken up bjära-conjuring instead.
Bjära-conjuring is a unique and special past-time that was all the rage back in 15th and 16th century Sweden. The activity starts with gathering some old unneeded materials from around the house — so you can easily comply with your local stay-at-home orders. Typical materials include things like old yarn, nails, butter, dirt, and ashes. And then you mix them with the skeletal remains of a rabbit, but you can also use a dead cat or dead bird if you can’t get your hands on a dead rabbit.
Next, you chant evil incantations in archaic Swedish while pricking your finger and dripping your own blood over the mess and making a pact with the devil. It’s a fairly technical and complicated ritual that requires a lot of practice and concentration to do it right, but the effort can be very rewarding, especially when the bjära comes to life and starts…
