Głos Syreniusza w sprawie wykorzystywania roślin w magii

The subject of the article is “Zielnik herbarzem z języka łacińskiego zowią…” (In English: “Herbarium”) by Szymon Syreński, also known as Syrenius, published in 1613 by the printing house of Bazyli Skalski. The thoughts of the eminent Polish botanist and physician presented in this work concern two issues: the expression of the author's attitude towards plant witchcraft (love and protective magic) and the assessment of people (alchemists, witch doctors, traders) dealing with secret practices in which particular species were used. The theses of the author were discussed having taken into account the position of Renaissance medicine and the role of natural and demonic magic in the life of society at that time. The important context for the analyses conducted herein is also the presentation of the work of Syrenius juxtaposed with other literary texts and treatises from the 16th and 17th centuries, the authors of which dealt with similar issues (incl. “Czarownica powołana or Postępek prawa czartowskiego przeciw narodowi ludzkiemu”). The article is based on the researches of literary scholars, general and medicine historians as well as anthropologists.