The following story is collected from my friend. She lived in Turkey for the most part of her life. She talks about a Turkish tradition in this collection. This interview is done on phone. “A” refers to me, the collector. And “B” refers to the participant.
A:”What is “Lead Melting”
B: “It is a practice we do in Turkey in order to send bad spirit away from us.”
A: “Do you have any personal experience with this tradition?”
B: “Yes. I was feeling bad and wanted to do this practice. My mom was not believing in “lead melting” so I could not do it at first. One time I went to my aunt and talked about this subject. She told me she believes in this practice and do it once in a while if she feels negative energy on herself. She told me if your life is not heading in the right direction and you are not sure how to solve it, you can try it. She told me her neighbour in the apartment actually do this practice for those who want. So we went to her home. She started to melt the lead and covered my head with a towel. With one held she holds a pot filled with water and on the other hand, she holds a spoon full of melted lead. She poured the melted lead to the water while she was praying. As the lead quickly turns solid, she says “Nazarini aldim” (“Nazar” vaguely refers to “bad energy” and people use various methods to prevent it, such as wearing an amulet. Phrase can be translated as “Taking away Nazar”, which means bad energy is thrown out of the body). Then the lady looked at the solid lead, shaped in an abstract and random way, to tell my fortune and problems. She says how people’s “eyes” affected me. And I really felt relieved and better. I paid her and left.”
A: “Did she say anything real?”
B: “She told me I was having problems in my career. It was true, I lost my job a few months ago.”
A: “Would you say this practice is common in Turkey?”
B: “Yes. Many Turkish people believe it is true and many people practice this.”
A: “Do you believe it really works?”
B: “I believe there is an energy in the universe, sometimes good, sometimes bad. I feel like, if a person emotionally feels good after doing this, for whatever reason, the practice is a success.”