A complete charm scenario consists of one or several versified formula(s) and/or one or more technical indication(s) concerning the gestures to be accomplished while reciting the first. When the gestural indications are missing, one can at times find implicit or explicit information about them in the formulas. In what follows, we concentrate on some of the basic gestures used (a) to learn about one's future marriage; (b) to ensure the successful accomplishment of the charm scenario by respecting certain interdictions and procuring the necessary plants, objects, and substances; (c) to get the needed help from a number of important magic auxiliaries; (d) to perform specific love charms, such as those for beauty, honor and love; for seeing one's fated spouse; for undoing negative charms, for weakening/suppressing a rival etc.
| throwings and workings: | 1 (verse) |
| [no qualifier]: | 2 (verse) |
| children climbed on the fences: | 1 (verse) |
| I crossed myself before the icons: | 1 (verse) |
| gathered the love: | 1 (verse) |
| I ran to the church: | 1 (verse) |
| set out by the way, by the trail: | 1 (verse) |
| walk in front of all: | 1 (verse) |
| the sun, the moon, two morning/evening stars: | 2 (verse) |
| [no qualifier]: | 1 (verse) |
| [no qualifier]: | 3 (verse) |
| chase the doings: | 1 (verse) |
| hit, peck: | 1 (verse) |
| shake the fence: | 1 (verse) |
| shake the lake, torture and steer the fateman: | 1 (verse) |
| torment, torture, steer toward charmsayer: | 1 (verse) |
| trouble the lake: | 1 (verse) |
| [no qualifier]: | 3 (verse) |
| facing sunrise: | 1 (verse) |
| I washed my eyes: | 1 (verse) |
| washed and cleansed: | 1 (verse) |
| with water and basil: | 1 (verse) |
| put cake in the middle of the house or on the threshold: | 1 (tech) |
Preparatory acts involve specific abstentions as well as reaching a specific location at a specific time, gathering the necessary plants, objects and substances, or preparing the cakes (rolls etc.) that will be needed for divinatory purposes or for charming.
| from the well, ice-hole etc., bring it in one's mouth: | 1 (tech) |
Water is the most important substance in all charms for beauty and love as well as in countercharms. The charmer has to fetch it before sunrise, without being seen and without talking to anybody. The last condition is ensured by the stipulation that the charmer carry the water in her mouth on her way home.
| grind corn, bake a small cake at the door of the oven: | 1 (tech) |
In divinatory charms, the charmer often bakes a small cake (using the water she secretly fetched at sunrise), puts it on the door sill and offers it to a dog or cat. If they eat the cake, the charmer will marry during the year.
| facing sunrise: | 1 (tech) |
While pronouncing the formulas containing invocations (to Lord Sun, Lady Moon etc.), the charmer often crosses herself and kneels. Borrowing from religious gestures often occurs in love and beauty charming as well as in countercharming (meant to regain lost love or beauty).
| [no qualifier]: | 1 (tech) |
The acts of boiling an egg, roasting or cutting a chicken’s heart, veal meat (or motives of the same kind in the formulas) are thought to magically operate on the fated spouse’s heart, body etc.. By thus torturing him/her, the charmer steers the fated spouse to the charmee.
| wash one's face with source water while holding in one's hands a silver coin and basil: | 1 (tech) |
Washing, quenching embers etc. are typical acts in countercharming. The first is a general purification act and requires secretly fetching “unstarted water†from the river or well, at sunrise. The second magically appeases the suffering caused by evil charms.
| bring he-cat: | 1 (tech) |
| avoid: the priest, sitting, giving hand with people, kissing (even a baby): | 1 (tech) |
| change the position of the dishes: | 1 (tech) |
| climb to the summit of a poplar: | 1 (tech) |
| fast on the eve of Boboteaza; bake a pogace; put it on the pole of căput: | 1 (tech) |
| get everybody out of the house: | 1 (tech) |
| go on the road: | 1 (tech) |
| go to the fence by night: | 1 (tech) |
| hide objects and substances under 9 dishes: | 1 (tech) |
| hit the pigsty with one's bottom: | 1 (tech) |
| kick the cow until it stands up: | 1 (tech) |
| look into mirrors, go to the well, river etc.: | 1 (tech) |
| pass each hair through the ear of sewing needle: | 1 (tech) |
| put one's hand on a post: | 1 (tech) |
| put pork scraps on pranic: | 1 (tech) |
| raise up a dish to find an object and/or substance: | 1 (tech) |
| tie post nr. 1: | 1 (tech) |
| [no qualifier]: | 1 (tech) |
