Illness narratives in the esoteric vision of the world : Agnieszka Pilchowa’s views and concepts

The article is an attempt to reconstruct and present the illness narratives formulated by Agnieszka Pilchowa (1888-1945), a clairvoyant and healer from Wisła (Silesia). Although alternative medicine was widespread in Poland in the interwar period, especially in the esoteric milieu, concepts like the one created by Pilchowa did not appear often. Pilchowa presented a consistent, yet at the same time fully mythologized vision of the world, which would answer questions about the source of evil, suffering, and illness. The article describes the most important traits of Pilchowa’s vision, focusing on those elements that create the picture of illness and show the process of its healing. The article is a pioneering one Agnieszka Pilchowa and her ideas have not been the subjects of any research so far.