A queimada is a Galician traditional drink consisting of aguardiente (strong distilled alcohol), coffee beans, sugar, lemon peel, and spices. It’s prepared ceremonially with friends and family, with the mixture set on fire and the queimada spell recited for purification before serving.
The Spell
Owls, night birds, toads and witches;
demons, goblins and devils;
spirits of the misty vales,
crows, salamanders and sorceresses;
the raised tail of a black cat
and all the spells of the folk healers….
Rotten pierced logs,
home of worms and vermin,
fire of the Holy Company,
evil eye, dark curses;
stench of the dead, thunder and lightning;
a satyr’s snout and a rabbit’s paw;
the bark of a fox, a marten’s tail,
the bark of a dog, herald of dearh…
The sinful tongue of a wicked woman married
married to an old man;
the hell of Satan and Beelzebub,
the fire of burning corpses,
will-o’-the-wisps of New Year’s Eve,
mutilated bodies of the indecent,
and farts from infernal arses…
The roar of the raging sea,
foreboding of shipwrecks,
The barren womb of a single woman,
the meowing of cats in search of females in heat,
the dirty mane of a poorly birthed goat
and the tangled horns of a male goat…
With this ladle
I will raise the flames of this fire
similar to that of Hell
and the witches will be purified
from all their wickedness.
Some will flee
riding their brooms
to go immerse themselves
in the sea of Finisterre.
Listen! Listen to these roars…!
They are the witches purifying themselves
in these lively flames…
And when this delicious beverage
flows down our throats,
we will also be free
from the evils of our souls
and from all witchcraft.
Forces of air, earth, sea, and fire!
To you I make this call:
If it is true that you have more power
than humans,
cleanse our land of evils
and make it so that here and now
the spirits of absent friends
may join us with this queimada.
