 Scholars studying the Magyars ' religion also take into account ethnographic analogies , folklore , linguistic evidence , and archaeological research . Artifacts depicting a bird of prey or a tree of life imply both symbols were important elements of the Magyar religion . Trepanation – the real or symbolic wounding of the cranium – was widely practiced by 10th @-@ century Magyars . Gyula László writes that real trepanations – the opening of the skull with a chiesel and the closing of the wound with a sheet of silver – were actually surgical operations similarly to those already practiced by Arab physicians , whereas symbolic trepanations – the marking of the skull with an incised circle – were aimed at the disposal of a protective talisman on the head . According to Róna @-@ Tas , a Hungarian word for cunning , ( agyafúrt ) – verbatim " with a drilled brain " – may reflect these ancient practices . 
