Self-proclaimed Moscow witch Natalia Malinovskaya has a new clientele – men fighting on the front lines in Ukraine, seeking supernatural protection from the consequences of war and economic insecurity, writes Reuters.
Malinovskaya claims to have inherited her abilities from her grandmother, and from her darkened apartment in Moscow she offers a variety of services, from love spells to protection from evil. She has also appeared on Russian television more than once.
While demonstrating how she detects bad vibrations in a person’s health by moving a lit match over glass, the “witch” said that most of her clients seek help with love-related issues. Among them are soldiers who are worried about whether their partners will be faithful. Malinovskaya said there were many such soldiers, but she could only perform the spell when the soldier was on leave. “It’s impossible to carry out a ritual at the front. Where would someone burn candles, and how would I even send them there?” asked the “witch.”
For centuries, Orthodoxy, mysticism, and folk superstition have coexisted in Russia, even during the tsarist and Soviet periods. Interest in the supernatural grew rapidly in the last years of the Russian Empire, when the influence of the healer Rasputin in tsarist circles caused widespread public discontent, and flared up again in the chaos that filled the years after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
After a period of reduced interest, Russians have returned to the supernatural.
In March, the Russian state pollster VTsIOM released the results of a survey that showed that 85% of Russians have turned to practicing magic. VTsIOM explained that the rise of mysticism has been fueled by geopolitical and economic challenges: “In such conditions, especially against the backdrop of military threats, belief (regardless of which gods are involved) turns into a tool of psychological defense.”
Russian armed forces have been waging an aggression in Ukraine for four years, triggering a crisis that has damaged Russia’s image in the international community, slowed the economy and made everyday life more expensive.
Almost half of Russians believe that some people can predict the future or have magical powers. In 2019, less than a third of the Russian population believed in this. Demand for crystal balls and protective amulets more than doubled last year, while sales of aspen poles quadrupled. There is a belief that aspen poles can ward off evil.
At a witch shop in Moscow that sells crystals, tarot cards and other “magical” items, a few shoppers browsed the shelves, looking for incense sticks that purify the air and bring good luck.
The shop’s co-owner, Yulia Gusanova, said black obsidian spheres are very popular and in demand.
They are considered a stone that brings safety. The voodoo-themed bar Marie Laveau offers tarot card readings, and its owner said it seems to have adapted to the situation perfectly.
True, there are opponents to the revival of magic. Last year, a group of deputies submitted a bill that would ban advertisements for services such as astrology and healing, warning that they allow for financial exploitation of vulnerable people. The ban was also supported last year by the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, Kirill. In January this year, he condemned the influence of fortune tellers and psychics. In an interview with the state news agency TASS, Patriarch Kirill said that dark forces are involved in fortune-telling: “If miracles involve divine power and grace, then fortune‑telling involves a devilish power.” He implied a connection to Satanism, which Russia’s Supreme Court outlawed last year.
Asked whether the church, which sometimes performs exorcisms, views psychics as competitors, church spokesman Vakhtang Kupshidze told Reuters that was not the point, as competition would suggest a battle for clients.
Read also: Trump deletes social media post after criticism