Il Fascinum — Storia ed Etimologia della Parola 'Fascinazione'/en
The word "fascination" has a long and layered history that Seligmann analyzes with philological rigor. Its roots reveal the ancient understanding of the phenomenon.
Source: Seligmann, Vol. 2, p. 201 — Drive ISI-CNV
Greek and Latin Roots
Seligmann reports three proposed etymologies for the Latin "fascinum":
- From φάσκειν (phäskein) = to say, affirm, boast → the root of the word would be in the power of verbal declaration
- From βασκαίνειν (baskainein) → which would mean «φάσει καίνειν» (phasei kainein) = **to kill with the eyes**
- Indo-European root connected to the general term for bond/spell
The second etymology is the most powerful: fascinare derives from "to kill with the eyes." Not a metaphor — an operational definition.
The Fascinum as Amulet and as Weapon
Paradoxically, the same word indicated both the phenomenon (fascination, the spell of the gaze) and its main antidote: the **phallus** ("fascinus"). The phallus as an amulet against the evil eye was ubiquitous in Roman antiquity.
Seligmann notes: «Das Wort fascinum hat dann noch eine andere Bedeutung; es wird nicht nur als Bezeichnung für "Behexung, Beschreiung" gebraucht, sondern auch für ein Mittel gegen diese Art der Zauberei, das sehr häufig angewendet wurde, nämlich für das männliche Glied.»
The same word indicates the weapon and the remedy — like poison that in small doses heals.
From Fascination to Hypnotism
The history of the term reveals the conceptual chain:
- **Fascinum** (Ancient Rome) → magic of the gaze + protective phallus
- **Fascinatio** (Middle Ages) → general ocular spell
- **Fascination** (18th century) → in Mesmer and Du Potet: state produced by the magnetic gaze
- **Fascination** (1875) → Donato as innovator of the method: "direct fascination"
- **Fascination** (19th-20th century) → clinical state classified by Luys, Bottey, De Rochas
- **Paret Method** (21st century) → contemporary systematization
The term has two thousand years of continuous history — from the Roman amulet to the Parisian clinic of La Charité.
"Fescennine Verses" — Obscene Verses as Protection
Seligmann mentions the "Fescennine verses" — the licentious and obscene verses that the Romans recited in triumphs and weddings to protect the victor/groom from envy and the evil eye.
The function is the same as the phallus amulet: deliberate vulgarity breaks the spell of envious admiration. The evil eye operated on excellence — ritually belittling excellence protected against its effect.
Sources
See Also
- Il Potere dell'Occhio nelle Culture del Mondo — Dr. Seligmann (Die Zauberkraft des Auges)
- Le Origini Storiche del Potere dello Sguardo — Da Babilonia all'EMDR
- Donato — La Fascinazione degli Animali e il Meccanismo Trans-Specie
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