The witch of Bakhkyut is a tale that has been passed down through generations in the small village of Bakhkyut. Legend has it that there was a powerful witch who lived in the outskirts of the village many years ago. According to the villagers, the witch was a mysterious and formidable woman who possessed dark and magical powers. It was said that she could control the elements and cast spells that could bring both good and evil. Some claimed she could heal the sick, while others believed she could curse people and bring misfortune upon them. The witch was known to live a solitary life, rarely interacting with the villagers except when they sought her help or protection.
Later on, this problem is somehow overcome, such that people from Universe B can cross over to Universe A.
Antimatter is perfectly harmless with itself and behaves exactly like ordinary matter other than the fact that they have positrons and antiprotons instead of electrons and protons. The reality you are in depends on your perceptions, and if you can attune your perceptions to another reality, you will leave this one and enter that one.
The witch was known to live a solitary life, rarely interacting with the villagers except when they sought her help or protection. She resided in a small hut in the forest, surrounded by herbs, potions, and other mystical objects. The villagers feared the witch, but they also relied on her.
Talisman of the interdimensional travel
Avi Loeb told Michael Shermer that he was very upset about a New York Times Magazine profile depicting him as an out-of-touch scientific pariah who makes basic analytical mistakes and is increasingly unmoored from reality due to his obsession with space aliens. He ran to Shermer’s podcast to complain about the magazine alleging that he is thin-skinned and uses the media to retaliate against criticism rather than produce strong science. But what else should we expect from a man who is now a regular on Ancient Aliens? Loeb’s quest for aliens is a bit of magical thinking according to his peers, so it’s appropriate that this episode of Ancient Aliens is devoted to the magic of talismans.
There are interesting things to say about talismans and the ancient idea that ritual objects can have magical results. By Late Antiquity, talismans were big business—fragments of either Noah’s or Utnapishtim’s ark were especially popular—and in the Middle Ages, specialists created all sorts of magical amulets claiming to draw on the mystical powers of ancient magicians. Medieval Arabic-language authors preserved stories about Egyptian talismans that supposedly protected the country from invasion, guarded tombs, and could heal or kill.
Segment 1
The show opens with the Christian cross as a “symbol of power,” or talisman. Stock footage illustrates the idea of talismans as the show tries to explain them as physical objects containing or focusing supernatural power, but as they talk about them, they quickly start to waffle on the literalness of talismans, introducing a number of symbolic items among those alleged to contain actual magic. Mitch Horowitz professes to be amazed that many talismans across time and space use the human eye, as though humans wouldn’t use prominent body parts in their art just by chance. This leads to a discussion of the Evil Eye, a nearly universal belief that nasty looks can transmit curses. The merkaba, a talisman originating around 100 BCE meaning “chariot” intended to represent Ezekiel’s vision of God’s divine chariot, is discussed in terms of the false idea that Ezekiel saw an alien spaceship. Given that the Merkaba school of mysticism emerged long after the Book of Ezekiel was written, there is no reason to assume the amulet is a direct copy of an alien spaceship.
Segment 2
The second segment discusses talismans in ancient Egypt, emphasizing the use of meteoric material—i.e. “extraterrestrial” material—for its magical power. Stylized symbols such as the ankh and Djed pillar are alleged to be technology, but most of the segment is devoted to repeating multiple times that sch symbols were “powerful.” The rest of the segment is repeated from previous episodes alleging falsely that the Djed pillar was a Tesla coil for generating electricity. Giorgio Tsoukalos claims that because Djed pillars generated electrical power, their talismanic function substituting magical power for real electricity. The show then claims that the British monarchy’s orb and scepter are copies of Egyptian talismans representing alien tech. This is false. The scepters used by Christian monarchs derive from those of the Romans, in turn derived from Etruscan symbols. They are not directly inspired by Egypt.
Segment 3
The third segment moves to East Asia to discuss Buddhist talismans and beliefs that statues are alive and contain the essence of the deities they represent. Statues carved by the Jomon, an indigenous culture of Japan, are shown. These are classic evidence for ancient astronauts popular in the old 1970s paperbacks when their stylized shapes were compared to astronaut suits. The show moves on to conflate the Jomon with Shintoism to discuss Shintoism’s sky gods but can’t sustain a discussion very long, pushing on to a global collage of various figurines with large eyes or reptilian features that the show implies represent the Greys and Reptilians. You see, big eyes = alien, which is why Garfield the cat is from outer space.
Segment 4
The fourth segment travels to Göbekli Tepe to rehash the dogma obsessing fringe pseudohistorians that the use of baskets or handbags is somehow a secret conspiracy. The show alleges that every depiction of a purse or bag in ancient art represents a carrying case for talismans, though there is no evidence for this. The show then discusses fulu talismans, Taoist symbols that contain nonsense writing said to be the secret language of the gods. (Cf. Christian “speaking in tongues.”) David Childress says that such talismans are linked to extraterrestrials, though there is no explanation for exactly what that would be, presumably the beaming of alien thoughts into human minds from previous episodes.
Segment 5
The fifth segment describes the Catholic dogma of transubstantiation, the belief that the bread and wine transform into Christ’s body and blood literally, not symbolically. However, the show immediately misunderstands this and describes the belief as “infusing” “energy” into the bread and wine. This leads to a discussion of using spoken words to perform magical and supernatural rituals. However, the show gets rather far afield from talismans in locating the source of magic in words. This leads to a cross-promotion with sister show The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch in which Travis Taylor tests whether magic words and sounds can open a portal to another dimension with vibrations. The Blazing Bear Drummers, a Native music group from Oklahoma, sing and pound drums, while Taylor alleges that a stone circle far from them up on a mesa suddenly changed temperature as they sang. Naturally, no conclusive testing occurred, nor did anyone visit the circle to look for reasons for thermal imagery changes, all the better to preserve the supposed mystery. How far from a stone circle can one sing and still have the circle know you are aiming your magic power at it? Obviously, Oklahoma is too far or else it would be lighting up three times per week at minimum. Do other circles also listen for singing? Or do they take turns? It is very confusing who in the portal dimension is in charge of directing the magic power to its destination and picking which destination that should be.
Segment 6
The final segment briefly discusses the use of human remains as talismans and the belief that body parts contain mystical connections to their former owners. The show alleges that “quantum entanglement” makes it plausible that the souls of the saints still are tied to their bones. William Henry then concludes that talismans are “quantum entanglement devices” channeling some vaguely defined notion of “power” from another dimension. But, ultimately, the show can’t quite decide whether “divine power” is supposed to be electric, psychic, or interdimensional, or supernatural, implying that they are all the same. The narrator suggests we are too stupid to understand the answer even if the aliens, who are also gods, told us.
Theoretically, this was to allow creatures from the Abyss to be able to climb up to the Seventh Heaven (although this would take a very long time) and wreak havoc. Plus, any dieties or similar beings killed in the tunnel (or encountered along the way) would be dead-dead. They wouldn't be able to reappear in their 'home plane'.
She was known to have prevented certain calamities and defended the village from external threats. Many believed that she had a deep connection with the supernatural and had the ability to communicate with spirits and otherworldly beings. However, the witch's powers also made her an enigma. Some believed that she had made a pact with the devil or gained her powers through dark rituals. Others saw her as a wise woman, with knowledge passed down through generations, capable of harnessing the energy of nature for the greater good. Regardless of how people perceived her, the witch of Bakhkyut remained an influential figure in the community. Villagers would seek her advice during times of trouble, pestilence, or when they needed help with matters that were beyond their control. Over time, the witch's influence waned as the village modernized and scientific explanations replaced mystical beliefs. The witch of Bakhkyut became a figure of folklore, a story told to children to teach them lessons about the consequences of their actions. Today, the witch of Bakhkyut is remembered as a powerful symbol of the village's history and culture. Her legend lives on through tales, songs, and festivals, where villagers celebrate and honor her mysterious powers. Whether she was a force of good or evil, the witch of Bakhkyut remains a captivating figure, forever embedded in the folklore and imagination of the village..
Reviews for "The Witch's Curse: Surviving Bakhkyut's Dark Magic"
1. Brad - 2/5 - I had high hopes for "The Witch of Bakhkyut," but unfortunately, it just didn't deliver. The story was slow and lacked depth, making it difficult to connect with the characters. The plot felt disjointed and confusing, with several subplots that went nowhere. I found myself losing interest halfway through and struggling to finish the book. Overall, I was disappointed with this novel and wouldn't recommend it.
2. Sarah - 1/5 - "The Witch of Bakhkyut" was a complete letdown for me. The writing style was convoluted and unnecessarily flowery, making it difficult to follow the story. The characters were one-dimensional, and I couldn't connect with any of them. The plot was predictable and lacked originality. I found myself constantly checking how much more I had left to read, just hoping it would be over soon. This book didn't live up to the hype, and I regret wasting my time on it.
3. Alex - 2/5 - I was disappointed by "The Witch of Bakhkyut." The premise seemed intriguing, but the execution fell flat. The pacing was incredibly slow, and it took too long for the story to pick up. The characters were poorly developed, and their actions often didn't make sense. The author tried to include too many unnecessary details, making the narrative feel cluttered. Overall, I struggled to stay engaged and found myself skimming through pages just to get to the end. I wouldn't recommend this book to others.
4. Emily - 2/5 - I had high expectations for "The Witch of Bakhkyut," but unfortunately, it didn't meet them. The writing style was overly descriptive, with long-winded paragraphs that slowed down the pace of the story. The characters felt flat and lacked depth, making it hard to care about their fates. Additionally, the plot was predictable, and there were no surprising twists or turns. While the concept had potential, the execution was lacking, and I struggled to stay interested. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone looking for an engaging read.
5. Mark - 1/5 - "The Witch of Bakhkyut" was a major disappointment for me. The story was confusing and lacked coherence. The protagonist's motivations were unclear, and I found it difficult to sympathize with her. The dialogue was stilted and didn't feel natural, making the characters feel distant and unrelatable. The pacing was slow, and it felt like the story dragged on unnecessarily. Overall, this book just didn't work for me, and I wouldn't recommend it to others.