Myths of ancient Greece and Slavic deities. Myths of the ancient Slavs

Bylinas, Russian folk epic songs and tales, arose as an expression of the historical consciousness of the Russian people of the ΙΧ-ΧΙΙΙ centuries, and in the process of existence they absorbed the events of later times. They talk mainly about heroes - defenders of the homeland; reflected the moral and social ideals of the people. Northern Slavic tales or ancient Russian northern epics are performed in one voice, usually in short chants of a declamatory-narrative style, while southern choral epics are similar in music to widely chanted Don songs.

All known epics, according to their place of origin, are divided into: Kyiv, Novgorod and later all-Russian. Bylinas are epic songs about Russian heroes; Slavic epic tales reflect the history of their lives, their exploits and aspirations, feelings and thoughts. Each of the epic songs speaks mainly about one episode in the life of one hero, and thus a series of songs of a fragmentary nature are obtained, grouped around the main representatives of Russian heroism.

Epic verse and versification of Russian oral folk poetry are quite multifaceted. There are three types: spoken verse (proverbs, sayings, riddles, jokes, etc.) - purely tonic, with paired rhymes, without any internal rhythm (raesh verse); recitative verse (epics, historical songs, spiritual poems) - unrhymed, with feminine or (more often) dactylic endings, the rhythm is based on a tact, sometimes simplified to trochee, sometimes loosened to accented verse; song verse (“lingering” and “frequent” songs) - the rhythm is closely related to the melody and fluctuates between a relatively clear trochee and very complex, not fully explored options.

In ancient times, including the Paleolithic, there are inscriptions made in the Old Slavic syllabary, the so-called “Makoshi runes”, “Rod runes” and “Mary runes”, that is, various types of Slavic writing associated with the corresponding Slavic deities. The word “runes” was also used on many medieval inscriptions.
The name “Makoshi runes” connects the writing with the oldest and most powerful Slavic goddess - Makosh, from whom all the other gods of the Slavic pantheon descended. The Mokosh runes were distinguished by their sacred character and were most likely intended not for the population, but for the priests. It is impossible to read Mokosh runes, especially those connected into ligatures; these texts require solving, like puzzles. During the Grand Duke's period, Mokosh runes were used everywhere in Rus', but they are gradually falling out of use, and in different cities at different times. Thus, in Kyiv they give way to the Cyrillic alphabet already in the 10th century, while in Novgorod they exist unchanged until the 19th century.

The runes of the Family are called proto-Cyrillic, that is, the letter that preceded the Cyrillic alphabet. The runes of Rod apparently originated from the runes of Mokosh and were used to sign products, first of all, of the Temple of Rod, for which it received its name. This letter existed in the form of secret inscriptions (pictocryptography) and was included in drawings throughout Europe until the middle of the 19th century. Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius, based on the runes of Rod, by adding Greek and compound letters, created a Slavic Christian letter in the 1st century AD, named after the first brother in the Cyrillic alphabet.

The runes of Mary are the most mysterious type of ancient Slavic writing. Presumably, this is not a special font, but a clue to the meaning of written words. Mara was the goddess of death and disease, and her cult was very strong during the Paleolithic period. The runes of Mara should mean something not just secret, but also somehow connected with the afterlife. It should be noted that it was the mythical power of Mary over the afterlife that gave the temple of Mary very real power over its contemporaries, so that it was this temple that performed the most important social functions in Slavic communities.

The chronology from the creation of the world in the Slavic version totals the seventh thousand, that is, at the time of 2017 from the birth of Christ (according to the ancient Slavic calendar, the year is already 7526) - this, not counting the fourteen previous eras, is a time with a total length of more than six hundred thousand years! Each era had its own beliefs and religious worship, and before Christianity was introduced into Rus' by Vladimir in the tenth century, Slavic paganism, or clan belief, ruled.

Old Russian paganism: what did our ancestors believe in?

Before Christianity, paganism dominated the territory of the ancient Slavs, the basis of which was beliefs in the power of nature spirits, supernatural entities (demons, their accompanying totem animals) and gods: Svarog, Veles, Kolyada and Yarilo, Dazhbog and Lada. People believed in goblin and kikimora, living in the forest and protecting it from harmful influences, brownies - the true owners of the house, merman and mermaids, into whom the souls of people who died a violent death turned.

Next, the Slavic gods and their meaning will be considered, as well as the influence on the life of the tribes that inhabited the eastern part of Europe (the territory of present-day Russia, the Baltic states, Belarus and Ukraine). Only after consultation with them did the sowing or harvest begin, the spirits were called upon to facilitate childbirth and eliminate diseases, sacrifices were made to the gods for the sake of a rich harvest or a successful easy hunt, and they were asked for protection in days of military operations and natural disasters.

It is noteworthy that in the religion of our ancestors there were no priests, clergymen or a specially trained caste in charge of worship and sacrifices: this mission was usually performed by the oldest resident of the tribe or elder. Since the majority of Slavic tribes led an agricultural lifestyle, it was quite natural that the cult of the earth and the cult of ancestors, in which Slavic myths about the creation of the world played a primary role, were considered the most important in their religion.

The essence is the same

In legends, ancient tales and mythology of different countries there are many similar facts about both the current religion - Christianity and its key figures, and earlier pagan beliefs. For example, Slavic legends about the creation of the world are largely intertwined with the stories of other countries and religions about the same process:

It is not for nothing that Slavic paganism and the religion of the Hindus are very similar to each other: historians claim that Hinduism arose from a mixture of Slavic-Aryan beliefs and local customs of India, over time it acquired folk interpretations and allegories, preserving the basis of the religion, the images of the gods and their meaning.

"The Book of Kolyada": author Alexander Asov

This book is a collection of ancient pagan and legends of Slavic culture, collected by the author over many years of work. It is often called the Slavic Vedas or the Holy Russian Vedas, which are part of the even more significant work of Asov - the “Book of Veles”. The collection tells about Slavic myths about the creation of the world, the birth and significance of the Slavic gods in people's lives: Svarog, Perun. The topic of everyday life of ancient people, their culture and customs is touched upon.

Also in the book there are many entertaining stories about the nature spirits of the Slavs, the god Semargl and Kupala, the previously unknown gods Kryshen (in Hinduism - Krishna) and Vyshen (Vishnu) are introduced. Not all historians and scientists like this work of Alexander Igorevich: many consider it openly fake and insulting real Slavic history and religion. Each position has adherents and ardent opponents. To form your own opinion and for general development, the book is still worth reading, like the works of Asov’s opponents.

The myth of the creation of the world from the chronicle of Asov

According to the story told at the beginning of the book, the universe was in the darkness of non-existence for quite a long time. But the Almighty (God, Cosmic Mind) materialized from the seed a golden egg, in which resided the Progenitor of everything - the Spring (Rod). He was gradually filled with love and in the end, with pressure from within, he broke the sacred egg with this primary and most powerful force, which turned into a woman - the goddess Lada, who spread this great feeling throughout the universe.

Next, the Spring created two worlds: the Heavenly (spiritual) and the Celestial, that is, material, physical, thus dividing Light (mind) and Darkness (ignorance). From this it becomes obvious that everything around Rod is Nature, the true essence of everything. God's words - muttering, voicing of various sounds gave birth to Barma, the god of words, poetry, sound, who in turn carried the teaching about the gods and their instructions about the rules of life throughout the world. Also, from the breath of the Progenitor, Svarog arose - the god of the Slavs, the father of the material world, whom the Slavs respectfully called Heavenly Father. Rod gave him four heads - one for each side of the world, so that he could completely control what was happening.

Then Rod turned into a Spring and appeared to the world in the image of the World Ocean, from the foam of which, like Aphrodite in Greek mythology, the World Duck was born. She became the Foremother of numerous deities, demigods and higher beings. This is how the first myth about the creation of the Earth arose. In Asov's work it is described in more detail.

Slavic gods and their meaning. Analogues in other religions

In the above retelling, it can be noted that identical archetypes of entities exist in the Hindu religion and not only. Greek mythology also has quite a lot of similarities with Slavic legends:

• The genus is the fundamental principle of all things, the Progenitor, who emerged from a golden egg, which he split with the power of his love. Often depicted as a gray-haired grandfather holding a wheel (of Samsara) while standing on a fish. Identical in Hinduism is the god Brahma, who in many respects was very similar to Rod: he had four faces (hands in Hinduism).
• Svarog is the god of the Slavs, considered the patron of spirituality and heavenly palaces, an analogue of heaven in subsequent Christianity. The name Svarog is a Sanskrit word meaning “sky walker”, that is, the father of heaven - God in Christianity and Ishvara in Hinduism. It was this deity who taught earthly inhabitants the art of making cottage cheese and cheese, “buttering” them from milk, and also gave people heavenly fire for cooking and protection from the cold, so the Slavs knew for sure that it was forbidden to speak swear words near fire - it was sacred. It was believed that Svarog had four heads, which watched and protected all directions of the world from the influence of evil forces.
• Barma - the second name of Svyatovit, was considered the god of prayer, born from the words of Rod (muttering prayers, reading the Vedas and mantras). He was considered a good-natured person, but if he got angry, he would sweep away everything in his path. Some linguists draw parallels with Brahma in Hinduism due to the consonance of names and similar factors, but there is no unanimous opinion on this matter.

• Lada - patronized lovers, guarded the family hearth and married couples, and was also considered the goddess of fertility and spring. She was the wife of Svarog and also had a swan in her entourage.
• Mother Cheese-Earth - according to some sources, was the wife of Rod, thanks to her energy love was born, with which the Progenitor split the sacred egg, creating the world. In Hinduism, this is Prakriti - feminine energy and the Mother of all things.
• World Duck (Rocking in the language of the ancients) - world swing, primary ancient vibration. It was a bird. According to Slavic mythology about the creation of the world, she retrieved the Alatyr stone from the bottom of the World Ocean. The mother of all demons (asuras), including Satan. The World Duck is often identified with Mokosh, the goddess of fate.
• Dyi was considered the absolute opposite of the spiritual Svarog and was the patron of the material, earthly world, the god of gold and valuable things, as well as the ruler of the night sky. The ancient Slavs believed that he could easily turn around and it was almost impossible to see him in his real guise.

Reality, Rule and Nav: the basis of the three-dimensional world

The current system includes three worlds:

• Physical: the material level, the one that can be seen and touched. The world of people, animals, birds and all other physical beings, called Reality by the Slavs. It is considered the crudest manifestation of divine existence, but at the same time the strongest manifestation of the power of his love, since the human world is the most emotional and feeling among the rest.
• The astral (or etheric) level of habitation of creatures of the subtle plane, invisible to the naked eye: the world of demons, demons, nature spirits and others, called Navy, that is, unmanifest reality, non-revelation.
• The mental (divine) level Prav (from the word “rule”) was divided into two parts: Heaven - a place where there is no god, and Heaven - where there is no demon (devil, demon). That is, Heaven is above everything, below it is Heaven, then Nav and at the very bottom is Reality - our earthly manifested world.

There is also an opinion that there is another world - Glory, which is the world of the ancestors and is located between Heaven and Navy. That is, it is an intermediate mental world, a kind of purgatory for souls. The unconditioned was the key to the world of Rule, that is, Orthodoxy was considered the right path for spiritual growth, and the glorification of the gods was the main direction. From here we can draw a simple parallel to Hinduism, in particular to the Vaishnava tradition of chanting the Maha Mantra (Hare Krishna), which is considered the easiest way to achieve unity with God.

Similar structures of the Slavic creation of the world are also actively used in the myths of other countries, continents and religions: the names of entities, names of gods and places change, but the primary essence remains the same - in order to become a highly spiritual person, you must love God.

What is Alatyr?

From ancient Slavic legends you can learn that the white-flammable stone Alatyr is the “navel of the Earth”, from which Mother Cheese-Earth arose, that is, land, which means this stone is an important sacred object. According to myths, this is so: Svarog hits it with a hammer, and the sparks that fly away from the blow turn into various gods and divine entities. Moreover, Alatyr is considered an altar stone on which the Almighty sacrifices himself for the sake of peace. This is where it came from: “altar” is a place for worshiping God.

They say that Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus is the visible part of that same Bel-flammable stone, a sacred place for communication with God. It’s not for nothing that the mountain is indicated as the last refuge of Noah’s Ark, which was pointed out by a dove released by a direct descendant of Adam. Another part of this miracle stone appears to the eye of a person in Altai: Mount Belukha and the small island of the Sun in the White Sea in the north. All these places are warmly revered by the Slavs as places of power and the appearance of gods to people.

Where did the Alatyr stone come from?

According to the Slavic, the Bel-flammable stone was taken from the bottom of the ocean by the Duck, a magical bird (analogue: a dove in Christianity, a harbinger of land during the flood). When Svarog looked around the world he created, he was dissatisfied: the sky and dawns, the ocean - everything is wonderful, but there is no land, that is, land. For a long time he peered into the distance, but saw nothing but water, only a small bird - a duck - swaying and tumbling on the foam of the waves.

Svarog began to ask her where the land was, to which the Duck pointed out to him that there was land deep under the water. Then, by the power of his power over all things, Svarog ordered the World Duck to get a piece of land. She dove and disappeared for a whole year, and when she returned, she said that she had failed the task. She also dived the second time and after two years she appeared exhausted, explaining that she was not capable of such a mission.

Then Svarog began to get angry and, gathering the power of Rod, breathed it into the small body of the bird, ordering him to try again. Three long years passed, and the Duck returned, carrying a handful of damp earth in its beak, gave it to Svarog, but hid a small pebble, which was Alatyr - the stone of universal wisdom with sacred knowledge inscribed on it.

But Svarog is the founder of everything. He sensed something was wrong and began to knead the damp earth, warming him with the warmth of his hands and the sun, blowing him with his breath and the universal winds. Mother Cheese-Earth began to increase in size, turning into dry land, and with it Alatyr. The Duck realized that she was no longer able to hold the stone of wisdom, and dropped it, and where it fell, the Alatyr Mountain - Elbrus - grew. For a long time it was called Alatyrka, or Golden Mountain.

Semargl

There was another significant god of the Slavs - Semargl (or Simargl). This was the name of the god of fire, born from a spark that flew off from the blow of Svarog’s hammer on a white-hot stone. The ancient Slavs considered him the god of sacrifice, a mediator between the world of people and gods, who could turn into a huge dog with wings. In the "Tale of Bygone Years" - one of the main chronicles of the Russians, there is an entry from 980. Simargl is mentioned in the myth about the birth of the world. There were other deities of the religion of that time. These include the Black Snake, or Chernobog, who was the son of the World Duck (a prototype of Satan in Christianity and Shiva in Hinduism).

Chernobog wanted to be like Svarog and also began to knock on the Alatyr-stone, striking sparks from it. But it was not gods who were born, but demons. The god of the Slavs, Semargl, challenged him to battle, but could not win - he did not have enough power, he had to go to his father in the heavenly forge. They say that after that battle the light faded on the earth and impenetrable darkness reigned. Then Svarog himself went out into battle and defeated the Black Snake, already weakened by Semargl, driving him into the ghostly world of Navi. This was the very first world battle of Good and Evil, which was subsequently presented in Christianity as the victory of St. George the Victorious over the serpent and presented as a primordially Orthodox fact.

Does the work of Alexander Azov have historical value and reliability of facts?

Almost all of the works of this author are considered by scientific researchers, historians and linguists to be a not very diligent forgery, falsification and profiteering from antiquity, which does not accurately correspond to the authenticity of the legends. The most common accusations include ignorance of the grammar of the ancient Slavic language, spelling and similar flaws. It is also alleged that Azov himself invented some images of gods that had never existed before, much less were not revered, on the territory of ancient Rus'. Therefore, the value of the “Book of Kolyada”, together with the “Book of Veles” and other tales about the life of the ancient Slavs, is negligible and has more artistic rather than historical value.

Moreover, Azov’s books are actively promoted as insulting Christianity, in some cases they are even called extremist and insulting human dignity. But where is the freedom of choice of religion, so protected by everyone, if being a Muslim or a Jew is allowed on Russian soil, but an Old Believer or Rodnover is not? Of course, everyone has their own opinion on this matter, so there is no point in arguing now about who is right and who is wrong.

Considering that these works have a fairly detailed description of various vital aspects of antiquity, coinciding with real facts, it is still worth not cutting down the many years of work of Alexander Igorevich and, perhaps, regarding the Slavic myths about the creation of the world as high-quality historical stories or fantasy novels with elements of real-life aspects of the life of the ancient Slavs, which will be very informative to learn.

Myths of the ancient Slavs. History of Slavic culture and mythology. The existence of the ancient Slavs was closely connected with nature. Sometimes helpless before her, they worshiped her, prayed for shelter, harvest and successful hunting, for life itself. They animated the tree and the river, the sun and the wind, the bird and lightning, noticed the patterns of natural phenomena and attributed them to the good or evil will of mysterious forces.

The white-flammable stone Alatyr was revealed at the beginning of time. He was raised from the bottom of the Milk Ocean by the World Duck. Alatyr was very small, so the Duck wanted to hide it in her beak.

But Svarog uttered the magic Word, and the stone began to grow. The duck couldn't hold it and dropped it. Where the white-flammable stone Alatyr fell, the Alatyr Mountain rose.

The white-flammable stone Alatyr is a sacred stone, the focus of the Knowledge of the Vedas, a mediator between man and God. He is both “small and very cold” and “great as a mountain.” Both light and heavy. He is unknowable: “and no one could know that stone, and no one could lift it from the ground.”

Churila, who lived in Svarga, was so handsome that he drove all the celestials crazy. Yes, he himself fell in love, and not even with an unmarried woman - with the wife of the god Barma himself, Tarusa.

“A sad thing happened to me,” Churila sang, “from the sweetheart of the red maiden, from the young Tarusushka... Are you sorry for you, my maiden, I keep suffering in my heart, is it because of you that I can’t sleep on a dark night...

In a broad sense, the Vedic and pagan culture of the Russian people is the essence of Russian folk culture, which is fundamentally united with the culture of all Slavic peoples. These are Russian historical traditions, life, language, oral folk art (legends, epics, songs, tales, fairy tales, and so on), ancient written monuments with all the knowledge contained in them, Slavic wisdom (philosophy), ancient and modern folk art, the totality of all ancient and modern creeds.

In the beginning, Veles was born by the Heavenly Cow Zemun from the god Rod, who flowed from the White Mountain by the Solar Surya, the Ra River.

Veles appeared in the world before the Most High, and appeared as the Descent of the Most High. Vyshen then came to people and incarnated as the Son of Svarog and Mother Sva. Like the Son who created the Father. And Veles appeared as the Descent of the Almighty for the entire living world (for people, magical tribes and animals), and incarnated as the son of the Heavenly Cow and the Family. And therefore Veles came before Vyshny and paved the way for Him, preparing the world and people for the coming of Vyshny.

Veles and Perun were inseparable friends. Perun honored the god Veles, for thanks to Veles he gained freedom, was revived and was able to defeat the fierce enemy of his Skipper-beast.

But, as often happens, a woman destroyed a man’s friendship. And all because both Perun and Veles fell in love with the beautiful Diva Dodola. But Diva preferred Perun and rejected Veles.

When Dyi imposed too heavy a tribute on the people, they stopped giving him sacrifices. Then Dyy began to punish the apostates, and people turned to Veles for help.

God Veles responded and defeated Dyi, destroying his heavenly palace, made of eagle wings. Veles threw Dyya from the sky into the kingdom of Viy. And the people rejoiced:

Then Veles asked Svarog to forge him a plow, as well as an iron horse to match him. Svarog fulfilled his request. And Veles began to teach people arable farming, how to sow and reap, how to brew wheat beer.

Then Veles taught people faith and wisdom (knowledge). He taught how to make sacrifices correctly, taught stellar wisdom, literacy, and gave the first calendar. He divided people into classes and gave the first laws.

Then Surya ordered his sons Veles and his brother Khors to look for spouses. Khors and Veles shot arrows into the field - wherever the arrow lands, there they should look for the bride.

Svarog.

Svarog became the father of many gods and people, he is the creator of the earth's firmament. Svarog is also the opposite of Veles, the god of evil. According to the beliefs of the Slavs, the world in ancient times existed in conditions of eternal confrontation between Svarog and Veles, between whom a truce sometimes occurred. From Svarog and Lada, Perun was born - the Thunderer, the god of war and warriors.
From Perun came the god of sunlight, Dazhbog, who was believed to bring many gifts to people. Dazhbog was born unusually. Perun fell in love with the beautiful mermaid Ros, but could not meet her, since they were separated by a stormy river. Perun then took the bow from his shoulder, pulled the tight bowstring and shot a golden arrow. The arrow flashed like lightning, and deafening thunder rang out high in the sky. The arrow hit a flammable stone, behind which Ros hid, and in this stone a fiery image, similar to a human one, appeared. Perun exclaimed, turning to Rosi:
- Only the god Svarog can hew your son out of a stone,
call the heavenly Svarog!
Ros called Svarog. For three days he hewed the stone, hitting it with a fiery hammer. This is how Dazhbog was born. His legs were silver, his hands were in gold, the sun shone on his forehead, and the moon was on the back of his head. Countless stars were scattered through his hair.
Then Svarog said to Dazhbog:
- You need a heroic horse so that you can ride it for a whole year without rest! Therefore, go to the high mountains, to the deep cave. Behind twelve iron doors, behind twelve
with copper locks in that cave you will find a heroic
a horse chained to a post with a heavy chain. Break it
these doors, and when the horse hears you, he will break free from his chains. And you gather your strength
and hold him!
Usually Dazhbog rides across the sky in a wonderful chariot drawn by four white, fire-maned horses with golden wings. Twice - in the morning and in the evening - Dazhbog crosses the Ocean-Sea on a boat pulled by geese, ducks and swans. So it’s not for nothing that people attribute special powers to talismanic amulets in the form of a duck with a horse’s head.
Dazhbog has a majestic gait and a direct gaze that knows no lies. And also wonderful hair, sunny-gold, easily flying in the wind. His eyes are blue, like the clear sky on a sunny afternoon, like the unbearably blue core of a fire. The Son of Heaven looks around at the wondrous wonders of the Earth: fields and hills, tall oak groves and resinous pine forests, wide lakes, free rivers, sonorous streams and cheerful student springs.

Dazhdbog.

One day Dazhbog went to the high mountains, where he found a deep cave that he had been told about. He immediately began to break down the iron door, and as soon as the heroic horse heard him, he neighed and broke free of his chains. He smashed all the iron doors and wanted to break free. However, Dazhbog jumped on the horse, reined it in and saddled it. Then Dazhbog exclaimed to the high heavens and wind:
- Is there anyone braver than me? Maybe who is stronger than me? Who is more cunning
me? Is there a horse that is faster than mine?
And Mother Ros answered Dazhbog:
“I would like to give birth to you as brave as the formidable Perun, as strong as the mighty Svyatogor, and as cunning as Volkh Zmeevich, but Mokosh did not foresee that. However, young Dazhbog, you are also daring, and you shouldn’t be offended by fate!
Dazhbog was married three times. For the first time he married the daughter of the great knight Svyatogor, Maya-Zlatogorka. However, Marena liked him, and with the help of a love potion she married him to herself. From Dazhbog and Marena, a son was born Bogumir, who later married Slava, from whom they had three daughters - Dreva (foremother of the Drevlyans), Skreva (foremother of the Krivichi) and Poleva (foremother of the Polyans).
The insidious Marena did not stop there and, having drunk the hero again, abandoned him for Koshchei. The evil Koschey, jealous, crucified Dazhbog on the Caucasus Mountain, but the goddess Zhiva came to the hero’s aid, who resurrected Perun’s son with the help of living water. She then became his third wife. They claim that they had children Arius and Kisek (the forefather of the Germans), and from Arius were born Kiy (the forefather of the Kievites), Shchek (the forefather of the Czechs), Khoriv (the forefather of the Croats) and their sister Lybid.

Genus.

One of the legends of Slavic mythology tells that at the very beginning there was nothing, no material world. There was only Darkness and the god Rod, who was in the Egg, and when he was freed, with the power of his Love he was able to destroy the prison and give life to the Universe. He created many star worlds, including the earthly world. God gave birth to the Kingdom of Heaven, separating the Ocean with a rocky firmament from the heavens. He also Separated Light and Darkness, Truth and Falsehood. From now on, everything that was born by Rod received his name: nature, homeland, parents.
God Rod divided the earthly world into three parts: upper, middle and lower. The upper world is located in the heavens. This world is inhabited by gods who rule over people. They always act righteously, and therefore the inhabited heavens are called Rule. The world of people is located below. This world was revealed to man by the gods, therefore its name is Reveal. The lower one is the world where our ancestors went, this is the world of the past. The lower world is called Navy. Nav is the world of the dead, the land of the night. It was believed that you could get there if you crossed the Ocean-Sea that surrounds the Earth.
There are nine heavens around the Earth, each of which has its own purpose. One sky is for the Sun and stars, another for the Moon, and a separate sky for clouds and winds. The seventh heaven was considered the “firmament” and was the transparent bottom of the Heavenly Ocean. It stores supplies of living water, as well as a source of rain that never runs dry.
You can get to any of these heavens by moving along the World Tree, which connects the Lower World, Earth and nine heavens. The World Tree is like a huge spreading oak on which the seeds of all trees, plants and herbs ripen. With its branches, the oak tree connects all levels of the world, spreading to the four cardinal directions and influencing the mood of gods and people. It was believed that a green tree meant prosperity and a good share, and a dried one meant despondency and silence.
Where the top of the World Tree rises above the seventh heaven, in the “heavenly abyss,” there is an island called Iriy or Paradise. Iriy was sometimes called “Buyan Island”. The ancestors of all birds and animals live on this island. They are called “elder wolf”, “elder deer”, etc. In Slavic mythology, it was believed that migratory birds fly to the island in the fall. The souls of animals hunted by hunters, according to the beliefs of the ancient Slavs, ended up there and were held accountable to the “elders.” They tell them how people treated them in the earthly world. The hunter had to thank the animal for allowing him to take his skin and meat, and in no case mock him. In this case, the “elders” quickly released the soul of the beast back to the earthly world, so that this beast could be born again, and the fish and game would not run out. If a person was guilty, there would be trouble. God Rod became the Heavenly Spring and gave birth to the waters of the Great Ocean. From the foam of the Ocean waters a wonderful bird was born, called the World Duck, from which many gods originated. From Rod came the cow Zemun and the goat Sedun, and from their milk came the Milky Way. Next, the earthly knight Svyatogor came into the world, who was supposed to guard the twelve pillars on which the earthly firmament of Svarga was based.
God Rod gave birth to the masculine principle named Svarog, as well as the feminine principle - the goddess Lada, who became the eldest of the women in labor. The youngest was her daughter Lelya. From Lada came all the words associated with family order: “get along”, “establish”, “okay”. In addition, Lada became the mother of twelve months, into which a year is divided. Lelya was the guardian of the future harvest. Rod, Lada and Lelya were revered in Slavic mythology as deities of the continuation of the human race, as well as protectors of pregnant women and small children.

Mokosh.

The mythology of the ancient Slavs is not only pre-Christian deities, but also ideas about space and earth, about nature and its laws, about human destiny, about the hearth, etc. We will consider the Slavic pantheon of gods in more detail.
Mokosh is the only female deity among those placed by Prince Vladimir at his court in Kyiv. Mentions of this goddess are found in many sources, but all of them are unclear. It is difficult to determine the origin of the word "Mokosh". Some researchers associated it with the Finnish tribal name “Moksha”, others considered Mokosh to be a deity close to the eastern goddess Astarte or the Greek Aphrodite, and others equated it with a mermaid.
B. A. Rybakov believes that this name contains the word “cat”, “kosch” (“lot”, “fate”) and is the root of words denoting containers for grain (for example, “basket”). Hence, in his opinion, Mokosh is the goddess of fate and good luck.
Interestingly, Mokosh in the same sources is usually mentioned together with the Rozhanitsy - goddesses who can be seen embroidered on towels and shirts. Mokosh was often depicted with her hands raised to the sky, as if praying to the Supreme God to irrigate the sown fields with rain. By the days of the summer solstice, when the ears of corn had already grown, Mokosh was depicted surrounded by solar circles, with her arms down. Hence the connection with the folklore image of “Mother-damp-earth”.
The cult of Mokoshi was accompanied by the installation of idols in temples and in the open air. As an ancient agricultural deity, she was the "mother of the harvest", the goddess of life's blessings and abundance.
The Mother Goddesses were subordinated or subordinated to Mokoshi. In the visual arts they have always been in dual number. The cult of Rozhanits differed from other pagan rites primarily in its openness and solemn feasts in honor of the goddesses. These feasts were contrasted to a certain extent with the “laying of treasures” to other pagan gods. The sacrifice of animals and birds could be carried out in their own yards without much publicity. Meals dedicated to the Family and the Mothers of Birth were held publicly.
The Russian people who adopted Christianity in the 11th-12th centuries, according to the author of the medieval work “The Lay of Idols,” still prayed “across the Ukrainians” to their “cursed god Perun, Khors and Mokosha and the pitchforks, but they did it like otai” (secretly). Clearly despising pagan rituals, this author continued: “This cannot be deprived of this, even in filthiness, even to the village of that cursed setting of the second meal for the Family and the Rozhanitsa for the delight of faithful Christians.”
The birth feast was called the “second meal” and was held after the church celebration, in addition to the feasting permitted by the church in honor of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary. The main holiday of Rod and two Rozhanitsa was a public autumn holiday, like the Harvest holiday in honor of the Western Slavic four-headed Svyatovid. For the second time, Rod and Rozhanits were honored at Christmas (after December 25). On that day they brought bread, pies, etc. to the temple. The fusion of pagan with Christian, Rozhanitsa with the Mother of God was especially clearly expressed in Russian embroidery and Russian applied art.
Gradually, the cult of Mokosha was pushed aside, on the one hand, by the cult of the Christian Mother of God, and on the other, by the cult of the Christian saint Paraskeva-Pyatnitsa and remained in this form until the beginning of the 20th century. Our ancestors prayed to St. Paraskeva about all prosperity and happiness at home, about success in trade. At a later time, Mokosh began to be revered as the patroness of women's work, especially spinning and weaving.

Surrounded by the wonders of television, wireless Internet, miracle scales that can determine the percentage of muscle and fat in your body if you stand on them with wet feet, spaceships to Mars and Venus and other dizzying achievements of Homo sapiens, modern people rarely ask themselves the question - But are there any higher powers above all this vanity? Is there something that is not amenable to even complex mathematical calculations, but can be known by Intuition and Faith? Is the concept of God a philosophy, a religion, or something real that one can interact with? Are the legends and myths of the ancient Slavs about the Gods just fairy tales?

Are the gods as real as the ground beneath your feet?
Our ancestors believed that the Gods are as real as the earth under our feet, like the air we breathe, like the sun rolling brightly across the sky, like the wind and rain. Everything that surrounds a person is nature created by the Family, it is a harmonious manifestation of the Divine presence.

Judge for yourself - the Earth either sleeps, then wakes up and bears fruit, then falls asleep again - this is Mother of Cheese Earth, a generous fat woman, lives her long day, equal in length to a whole year.

The sun does not stand still, but moves tirelessly from dawn to dusk? This is a redhead Horse, God of the Sun Disc, like a diligent groom, performs a daily jog with his fiery Heavenly Horses.

Are the seasons changing? They stand guard, replacing each other, powerful and eternal Kolyada, Yarilo, Kupalo, Avsen.

These were not just legends and fairy tales; the ancient Slavs allowed their Gods into their lives as relatives.

Can you just ask the gods for help?
The warriors, getting ready for battle, asked for help from the solar gods Khors (God of the Solar Disk), Yarilo (God of Sunlight), Dazhdbog (God of Daylight). “We are the children and grandchildren of Dazhdbog,” claimed the Slavic men.
Slavic combat magic is a gift from these bright, sunny, full of masculine Gods.
Slavic warriors fought only during the day, and the preparatory ritual consisted in the fact that the warrior, turning his gaze to the Sun, said: “As I see (name) this day, so allow me, Almighty Dazhdbog, to see the next one!”

Women turned to their Goddesses - to Lada, the Patroness of family and marriage, to the Mother of Cheese Earth, the Giver of Fertility, to Lada, the protector of Love and Family.
Everyone living according to the laws of the Family could turn to the Ancestor - Guardian, Chur. An expression has been preserved to this day - a talisman: “Keep away from me!”
Perhaps the Gods actually come if they continue to be called? Perhaps the legends and myths of the ancient Slavs are not just fairy tales?

Can you just meet gods?
The Slavs believed that Gods often come to the manifest world in animal or bird form.

Yes Yes, we're talking about werewolves. Numerous fantasy horror stories, to please the public, have distorted the original knowledge about these mystical creatures. In horror films and cartoons, werewolves act as spies, hired soldiers, and merciless night monsters. This is all a fascinating untruth.

Werewolves occupied the most important place in the spiritual life of the Slavs. Bears, wolves, deer and birds - all could turn out to be Gods who descended into this world. Even people could transform, but that’s not what we’re talking about now.

These animals were worshiped, they were considered the patrons of the clan, these secret teachings were passed down from generation to generation, traces of this have survived to this day. Here is a towel with deer, here are painted boxes with birds, here is the skin of a wolf - and all of this is still considered powerful amulets.

The very word “turn around” meant acquiring sacred consciousness and becoming a being endowed with enormous physical strength and supernatural abilities.

Chur, ancestor - guardian most often appeared in the form of a wolf. The cult of the wolf is still one of the strongest, surviving to this day.

Mighty Veles, God of Magic, Wisdom and Music often appeared in the form of a brown bear, Kolyada- in the form of a black or red cat, certainly with green eyes. Sometimes he appears in the form of a black shaggy dog ​​or a black sheep. And summer Kupala often turns into a rooster - not for nothing on all the towels associated with the Kupala holidays - the famous Russian roosters. Lada, Goddess of the Hearth, may fly to you in the form of a dove or appear to be a white swan - in old songs Lada turned into the Swa Bird.

Svarog, God the Blacksmith, turns into a red horse in Yavi, so the temple dedicated to the supreme god of the Slavs must certainly have the image of a swift horse.

It is probably not without reason that in the most archaic northern painting - Mezen, the roots of which go back thousands of years, the main motifs are a horse and a bird. It is the spouses Svarog and Lada who protect modern people from evil and misfortune and bring love into the home.

That’s right, in the forest or even in the yard you could meet God – a werewolf, and directly ask him for help.

This is what the hero of the northern fairy tale did “About how Makosh returned Goryuna’s share”(publishing house "Northern Fairy Tale").

Goryunya is completely dizzy, he keeps thinking, if someone could help, if only he could ask someone. And then one day he went to collect resin. He cut one pine tree, then another, and began to fasten it so that the resin would flow into them. Suddenly he sees a wolf come out from behind a pine tree and looks at him very carefully, and the wolf’s eyes are blue, and his skin shimmers with silver.

“This is Chur himself, the progenitor of the family,” Goryunya realized and fell at his feet. - Father Chur, help me, teach me how to get rid of my evil lot!

The wolf looked and looked, then walked around the pine tree and came out no longer a wolf, but a gray-haired old man, but his eyes were the same, blue and looking attentively.

“I,” he says, “have been watching you for a long time.” Your parents died and went to Nav, your mother, grieving for you little orphan, accidentally took your share with her, and when she realized what she had done, she still suffers. But only Makosh, the goddess of fate, can help you return your happy lot. She has the goddesses Dolya and Nedolya as her assistants, only they obey her. You are a pure guy at heart, you are not embittered by your bitter misfortune, it did not break you, you are striving for happiness, ask Makosh, whatever she decides, so it will be.

Thank you, Father Chur, for your wise advice,” Goryunya bows.

These are the tales they tell about a simple and understandable matter - how to get to know God and ask him for help and support.

So, after this, think about whether there is a God if he just walks down the street!
Perhaps the Gods never left, but simply live nearby, waiting for disbelief to cross all boundaries and the pendulum to swing again?

I wish you to find God - if not on the street, then at least within yourself.

Unfortunately, Slavic mythology originated in a time when there was no written language and was never written down. But some things can be restored from ancient evidence, oral folk art, rituals and folk beliefs.

The myth of the creation of the world by Rod

At first there was nothing but chaos, everything was one. Then Rod descended to earth in a golden egg and got to work. At first he decided to separate light and darkness, and the sun rolled out of the golden egg, illuminating everything around.
Then the moon appeared, taking its place in the night sky.
Afterwards, the progenitor created an immense water world, from which land later rose - vast lands on which tall trees stretched to the sky, various animals ran, and birds sang their wondrous songs. And he created a rainbow to separate land and sea, Truth and Falsehood.
Then Rod rose up on the golden egg and looked around, he liked the fruits of his labor. God exhaled onto the earth - and the wind rustled in the trees, and from his breath the goddess of love Lada was born, who turned into the bird Sva.
Rod divided the world into three kingdoms: heavenly, earthly and underworld. He created the first for the gods, who were supposed to maintain order on earth, the second became the abode of people, and the last - a haven for the dead. And through them grows a gigantic oak tree - the World Tree, which grew from a seed thrown by the creator. Its roots are hidden in the world of the dead, its trunk passes through the earthly kingdom, and its crown supports the sky.
Rod populated the kingdom of heaven with the gods he created. Together with Lada, they created the mighty god Svarog. Having breathed life into him, the creator god gave him four heads, so that he could look to all corners of the world and keep an eye on order.
Svarog became a faithful assistant to the progenitor: he paved the path of the Sun across the firmament and the path of the moon across the night sky. Since then, the sun rises at dawn, and at night the moon floats into the star-lit sky.

How Chernobog wanted to take over the Universe

The evil god Chernobog, the lord of darkness, was born in time immemorial. And Krivda began to plunge his mind into dark thoughts and lead him to evil deeds. He succumbed to temptations and planned to subjugate the whole world to himself, turned into a Black Serpent and crawled out of his lair.
Svarog, who was keeping an eye on the world, sensed something was wrong. He made himself a huge hammer in the forge and swung it down on Alatyr to create helpers for himself. Sparks flew in all directions, from which the gods immediately appeared. The first to be born was the heavenly god Dazhdbog. Then Khors, Simargl and Stribog appeared.
The Serpent crawled up to Alatyr and struck silver sparks with its tail on the stone, which turned into earthly and underground evil spirits. Dazhdbog saw this and sent Simargl, a messenger between heaven and earth, to tell Svarog about everything. He flew away to his father and told him that a great battle was coming between evil and good. Svarog listened to his son and began to forge weapons for his army in the heavenly forge.
And the time for battle came - the forces of light met the forces of evil. That battle lasted for a long time and was not easy. Dark forces made their way into the heavenly palace and almost penetrated Svarog’s forge. Then Svarog forged a plow and launched it at Chernobog as soon as he appeared at the door. He called the children to help, and together they harnessed the Snake to the plow and captured all the evil spirits.
Then the dark god prayed and asked to spare his offspring. Svarog was fair and compassionate, he promised to spare the Navi people only if none of the gods of the entire Universe ruled. And he ordered to dig the great boundary between the two worlds. And that boundary will pass through the entire world of people, on one side there will be the kingdom of Svarog, on the other there will be dark lands. Chernobog agreed, because there was no choice anyway - so the gods came to an agreement.
The gods began to divide their kingdoms with a plow; the world of the light gods became on the right, and Navi on the left. That furrow went through the middle of the human world, which is why good and bad are alike on earth. The World Tree united three worlds. On the right, in its branches sits Alkonost, the bird of paradise. On the left is the dark bird Sirin.
Svarog and the goddess of fertility Lada began to populate the world with animals and birds. They planted trees and flowers.
And after all the work, they began to play in the forest clearing. They started throwing stones over their shoulders. The Mother of Cheese, the Earth, moistened them with dew, which is why they turned into people. Those who fell from Lada became maidens, and the Svarogs became fine fellows. Then Lada didn’t have enough of that, she began to rub the branches one against the other. Divine sparks appeared, from which beautiful maidens and lads appeared. Rod was pleased because the world that he had once created was blooming again. The gods ordered people to live according to the covenants carved on the Alatyr stone. And Mokosh began to spin the threads of fate, assigning a deadline to everyone.

The myth of the magic lily of the valley

Perun decided to take the rain goddess Dodola as his wife. Many gods were invited to the wedding, and Veles was not forgotten. The Thunderer hoped to reconcile with his old enemy. The wedding took place in the heavenly kingdom, and a feast began in the Garden of Eden.
The gods rejoiced at the holiday and drank hops for health. Only Veles sat gloomier than a cloud - he liked the bride, and did not take his eyes off her throughout the feast. His heart was corroded by envy of Perun for taking such a beauty as his wife.
Veles then descended to earth from Iriy and wandered for a long time through the dense forests. One day Dodola went for a walk on earth through the forests and meadows. Veles noticed her, and feelings flared up, and he almost lost his mind from them. He turned into a lily of the valley at her very feet. Dodola picked a flower and smelled it. And then she gave birth to a son, Yarila.
Her husband found out about this and immediately separated with righteous anger. He wanted to destroy the vile Veles, who was so grateful for his kindness. And then those two gods came together in battle. That battle lasted three days and three nights, until the Thunderer defeated Veles with difficulty. Perun brought him to Alatyr-stone so that the gods would judge him. And the gods then banished Veles from Iriy to the underworld forever.

How Veles stole the heavenly cows

This happened when Veles was already living in the underworld. Yaga persuaded him to steal the heavenly cows from the gods. God resisted for a long time, but then he remembered that when he lived in Iria, he took better care of the cows than anyone else. And no one will look after them better than him now. Then Yaga raised a whirlwind from the earth to the very sky, which carried all the cows into the underworld. There Veles hid them in a large cave and began to look after them.
When the forest animals learned about this, they decided that now they could do anything. The wolves dispersed the most - they lost all fear and began to drive away the livestock. And people began to steal each other’s animals. But this is not all the troubles that have begun on earth. All the pastures and all the crops dried up, all because the clouds disappeared along with the cows of heaven.
The people of the gods began to pray that Veles would return the cows, so that the drought would end, and everything would be as before. Perun and Dazhbog heard the prayers and decided to help. They descended to earth, to the gates of the underworld. And there the army of Veles is already waiting for them. And he himself hid in the roots of the World Tree in order to quietly attack the gods.
But Perun was the first to notice him and threw his lightning at the root. Lightning struck the Tree strongly, it staggered, and the earth trembled. Dazhbog stopped the thunderer, fearing that the Tree would fall, and with it the whole world.
Perun challenged Veles to a fair fight, and God could not refuse because of pride. He turned into a fire-breathing Serpent, and they fought in battle. And all its inhabitants came out from the underworld to watch that battle, opening the stone doors.
Dazhbog slipped into the underground kingdom and began to look for the heavenly herd. The two gods fought for a long time, and with difficulty Perun defeated the Snake. He then took on his true form and started to run. The Thunderer pursued Veles and shot lightning arrows after him. And Perun heard the voice of Dazhbog asking him to throw lightning at the mountain to rescue the heavenly flock. Perun split the mountain with a shot, and the cows of heaven returned to Iriy.

How Veles locked underground waters

For many years people revered various gods with prayers and sacrifices, but they forgot about Veles, the ruler of the underworld. His idol fell into disrepair, and the sacred fire, where gifts were once brought, almost went out.
Veles was then offended that people forgot about him, and he closed all the water sources with locks. Then a drought began on the earth, the livestock began to get sick because all the pastures dried up. And people began to pray to the gods for help. One family even left their relatives at home and went into the forest to Perun’s idol to ask the rain to moisten the dry soil.
The raven heard people's prayers and soared up into Iriy itself, the abode of the heavenly gods. He found Perun and told about the misfortune that had happened to people. God listened to the raven and became angry with Veles. And he decided to teach him a lesson because he had locked the underground waters with strong locks. He took his bow and lightning arrows, saddled a snow-white horse and went to look for the Serpent.
Veles then inspected the land to which he had sent a drought, and was pleased that he had punished the people. But he saw Perun flying in the sky, got scared and wanted to hide underground. But the Thunderer prevented him by shooting lightning from his bow. Then the Snake decided to crawl into the hollow of the old oak tree. But the good god managed to set the tree on fire, shooting his arrow from the high sky. Veles then decided to hide under the boulder, but it shattered into small pebbles when Perun hit him with a bow.
The Serpent realized that he could not hide from Perunov’s anger, and then began to beg for mercy. He promised to show all the locks to which he had locked the underground springs. Then the Thunderer had mercy and agreed. The Lord of the Underworld pointed out all the secluded places in which he had locked up the water. But I lost my keys while I was hiding from Perunov’s lightning. Perun smashed all the castles with his club, and water returned to the springs and rivers, and the wells and lakes were filled again.
And so the drought ended, and the pastures sprouted with green grass. And people no longer forgot to honor Veles along with other gods.

News from chronicles, archaeological finds, records of ancient beliefs and customs make it possible to literally recreate, bit by bit, the complex and original religious system of the Eastern Slavs.

The ideas of the pagan Slavs about the earthly structure were very complex and confusing. Slavic scholars write that it seemed to them like a large egg; in the mythology of some neighboring and related peoples, this egg was laid by a “cosmic bird.” The Slavs have preserved echoes of the legends about the Great Mother, the parent of Earth and Sky, the foremother of Gods and people. Her name was Zhiva, or Zhivana. But not much is known about her, because, according to legend, she retired after the birth of Earth and Heaven.

In the middle of the Slavic Universe, like a yolk, is the Earth itself. The upper part of the “Yolk” is our living world, the world of people. The lower “underside” side is the Lower World, the World of the Dead, the Night Land. When it's day there, it's night here. To get there, you need to cross the Ocean-Sea that surrounds the Earth. Or dig a well right through, and the stone will fall into this well for twelve days and nights. Surprisingly, whether it is an accident or not, the ancient Slavs had an idea about the shape of the Earth and the cycle of day and night.

Around the Earth, like egg yolks and shells, there are nine heavens (nine - three times three - a sacred number among various peoples). This is why we still say not only “heaven” but also “heaven”. Each of the nine heavens of Slavic mythology has its own purpose: one for the Sun and stars, another for the Moon, another for clouds and winds. Our ancestors considered the seventh to be the “firmament,” the transparent bottom of the celestial Ocean. There are stored reserves of living water, an inexhaustible source of rain. Let us remember how they say about a heavy downpour: “the abysses of heaven opened up.” After all, the “abyss” is the abyss of the sea, the expanse of water. We still remember a lot, we just don’t know where this memory comes from or what it relates to.

The Slavs believed that you can get to any sky by climbing the World Tree, which connects the Lower World, the Earth and all nine heavens. According to the ancient Slavs, the World Tree looks like a huge spreading oak tree. However, on this oak tree the seeds of all trees and herbs ripen. This tree was a very important element of ancient Slavic mythology - it connected all three levels of the world, extended its branches to the four cardinal directions, and with its “state” it symbolized the mood of people and Gods in various rituals: a green tree meant prosperity and a good share, and a dried one symbolized despondency and was used in rituals where evil Gods participated.

And where the top of the World Tree rises above the seventh heaven, in the “heavenly abyss” there is an island. This island was called “irium” or “virium”. Some scientists believe that the current word “paradise”, which is so firmly associated in our life with Christianity, comes from it. Iriy was also called Buyan Island. This island is known to us from numerous fairy tales. And on that island live the ancestors of all birds and animals: “elder wolf”, “elder deer”, etc.

The Slavs believed that migratory birds fly to the heavenly island in the fall. The souls of animals caught by hunters ascend there and answer to the “elders” - they tell how people treated them.
Accordingly, the hunter had to thank the animal for allowing him to take his skin and meat, and in no case mock him. Then the “elders” will soon release the beast back to Earth, allow it to be born again, so that fish and game will not be transferred. If a person is guilty, there will be no trouble... (As we see, the pagans did not at all consider themselves “kings” of nature, who were allowed to plunder it as they pleased. They lived in nature and together with nature and understood that every living creature has no less right for life than a person.)

Levels of Slavic mythology

Slavic mythology had three levels: highest, middle and lowest.

At the highest level were the Gods, whose “functions” were most important for the Slavs and who participated in the most widespread tales and myths. These are Svarog (Stribog, Sky), Earth, Svarozhichi (children of Svarog and Earth - Perun, Dazhdbog and Fire).

The middle level could include deities associated with economic cycles and seasonal rituals, as well as gods who embodied the integrity of closed small groups: Rod, Chur among the Eastern Slavs, etc. It is possible that most of the female deities belonged to this level, revealing close ties with the collective, sometimes less human-like than the gods of the highest level.

At the lowest level there were various highly specialized beings, less human-like than the Gods of the highest level. These included brownies, goblins, mermaids, ghouls, banniki (baenniks), etc.

The common Slavic word “God” was probably associated with the designation of share, luck, happiness: one can compare the words “rich” (having God, share) and “poor” (opposite meaning), in the Ukrainian language - nebogo, negoga - unfortunate, beggar. The word “God” was included in the names of various deities - Dazhdbog, Chernobog and others. Slavic data and evidence from other most ancient Indo-European mythologies allow us to see in these names a reflection of the ancient layer of mythological ideas of the Proto-Slavs.

For clarity, you can depict a diagram of the levels of the Slavic Gods:

Supreme Gods of the Slavs

Mother Earth and Father Sky

The ancient Slavs considered the Earth and the Sky to be two living beings, moreover, a married couple, whose love gave birth to all living things. The God of Heaven, the Father of all things, is called Svarog. This name goes back to an ancient word meaning “sky”, as well as “something shining, brilliant.” Scientists note that another name for Heaven was Stribog - translated into modern language as “Father-God”. Legend tells that Svarog once gave people blacksmith's pliers, taught them how to smelt copper and iron, and before, according to the Slavs - and this is very similar to modern ideas - the Stone Age reigned on Earth, people used clubs and stones. In addition, Svarog established the very first laws, in particular, he ordered each man to have only one wife, and a woman to have one husband. In “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” - a famous monument of literature created at the end of the 12th century - among the richest pagan symbolism one can find the allegorical name of the winds: “Stribozh’s grandchildren”. This means that the winds were considered the grandchildren of Heaven.

We still call the Earth Mother, and this is difficult to dispute. But people don’t always treat her as respectful children should.

The pagans treated her with the greatest love, and all the legends say that the Earth paid them the same. In one of the epics, the hero is warned not to fight with such and such a hero, because he is invincible - “Mother Earth loves him”...

On the tenth of May they celebrated the “name day of the Earth”: on this day it could not be disturbed - plowing, digging. The earth witnessed the solemn oaths; at the same time they touched it with the palm of their hand, sometimes they took out a piece of turf and placed it on their head, mystically making a lie impossible. It was believed that the Earth would not carry a liar.

Some scientists believe that the Goddess of the Earth was called Makosh (however, others, no less authoritative, argue fiercely with them.) You can try to carefully select the word according to its composition. "Ma-" means mother, mother. What does “cat” mean?

Let's remember the words “WALLET”, where wealth is stored, “KSHAR”, where living wealth - sheep - is driven. “KOSH” is the name given to the leader of the Cossacks; “KOSH” was also used to describe lot, fate, and happiness. And also a box, a large basket, where they put the harvested crop - the fruits of the earth, but it was this that constituted the wealth, fate and happiness of the ancient man. So it turns out: Earth - Makosh - Universal Mother, Mistress of Life, Giver of the Harvest.

Dazhdbog Svarozhich

The ancient Slavs considered the Sun, Lightning and Fire - two heavenly Flames and one earthly - to be siblings, the sons of Heaven and Earth. The Sun God is called Dazhdbog (or, in another pronunciation, Dazhbog). His name does not come from the word “rain,” as is sometimes mistakenly thought. “Dazhdbog” means “the giving God,” “the giver of all good things.” The Slavs believed that Dazhdbog rode across the sky in a wonderful chariot drawn by four white golden-maned horses with golden wings. And sunlight comes from the fiery shield that Dazhdbog carries with him. At night, Dazhdbog crosses the lower sky from west to east, shining on the Lower World.

Twice a day (morning and evening) he crosses the Ocean on a boat drawn by waterfowl - geese, ducks, swans. Therefore, our ancestors attributed special power to amulets (this word comes from the verb “to protect”, “to protect” and means an amulet, a talisman) in the form of a duck with a horse’s head. They believed that the Sun God would help them wherever he was - in the Day World or in the Night World, and even on the road from one to the other. In “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” Russian people are called “Dazhbozh’s grandchildren” - the grandchildren of the Sun. Although it tells about events that took place almost two hundred years after the official adoption of Christianity. This shows that the influence of paganism persisted for a very long time even in the conditions of Christianity, and some elements of paganism entered deeply into Russian Orthodoxy.

The Morning and Evening Dawns were considered sister and brother, and the Morning Dawn was the wife of the Sun. Every year, during the great festival of the summer solstice (now known as Midsummer), their marriage was solemnly celebrated.

The Slavs considered the Sun, which strictly monitors the morality of people and the fair observance of laws. It is not for nothing that at all times criminals waited for the onset of night, hiding from justice - not only earthly, but also heavenly, and the eclipse in the same “The Word and Igor’s Campaign” is taken as a terrible sign. And since time immemorial, the sacred sign of the Sun has been... the Cross! It is not difficult to see if you squint at the Sun. Is this why the Christian cross, so similar to the ancient pagan symbol, has taken root so well in Rus'? Sometimes the Solar Cross was circled, and sometimes it was drawn rolling, like the wheel of a solar chariot. This rolling cross is called a swastika. It was turned in one direction or the other, depending on which Sun they wanted to depict - “day” or “night”. By the way, not only in Slavic legends do sorcerers, when casting their spells, walk “salt” (that is, on the Sun) or “anti-salt”, depending on whether their magic is good or evil.

Unfortunately, the swastika was used in fascist symbols and is now disgusted by most people as a fascist sign. However, in ancient times it was highly revered and was widespread from India to Ireland. It is often found on ancient Russian jewelry found by archaeologists. It can even be seen in the ornaments and patterns on clothes in the Ryazan Museum of Local Lore. As for the “fascist sign,” it is not difficult to see that it depicts the “night” Sun, rolling along the inner side of the lower sky. Thus, the real object of “worship” of fascist mystics is not the Sun, but rather its absence - the darkness of the night.

The interpretation of the swastika in the Buddhist tradition is interesting. It is called "manji" and is considered a symbol of perfection. The vertical line indicates the relationship between Heaven and Earth, the horizontal line indicates the struggle between the eternal opposites Yin and Yang, the essence of which we will not consider here. As for the transverse strokes, if they are directed to the left, then, from the point of view of Buddhists, this personifies movement, gentleness, compassion, goodness; to the right - firmness, constancy, intelligence and strength. Thus, the two types of manji complement each other: love and compassion are helpless without strength and firmness, and soulless intellect and strength without mercy lead only to the increase of evil. In general, “good must be with fists,” but it is Good.

Perun Svarozhich

Perun is the Slavic God of Thunder, the God of thunder and lightning. The Slavs imagined him as a middle-aged, angry husband with a red-gold, swirling beard. Let us immediately note that a red beard is an indispensable feature of the God of Thunder among a variety of peoples. In particular, the Scandinavians, neighbors and relatives of the Slavs in the Indo-European family of peoples, considered their Thunderer (Thor) to be red-bearded. The hair of the Thunder God was likened to a thundercloud. Scandinavian legends note that an angry Thor "shaked his hair." It is not definitely said what color Thor’s hair was, but the Slavic Perun’s hair is really like a thundercloud - black and silver. It is not for nothing that the statue of Perun, which once stood in Kyiv, is described in the chronicle as follows: “The head is silver, the mustache is gold.” The Slavs saw their God rushing among the clouds on horseback or in a chariot drawn by winged stallions, white and black. By the way, the magpie was one of the birds dedicated to Perun, precisely because of its black and white color.

The name Perun is very ancient. Translated into modern language, it means “He who hits hard”, “Striking”. Some scholars see a connection between the name of the Thunder God and words such as “first” and “right”. As for the “first”, Perun was indeed the most important God in the pagan pantheon of Kievan Rus and, probably, the eldest son of Svarog. The similarity of his name with the “right” is not without meaning: our ancestors considered Perun the founder of the moral law and the very first defender of Truth.

Perun’s chariot rushing desperately thunders across the uneven clouds - that’s where the thunder comes from, that’s why it “rolls” across the heavens. However, there were different opinions on this matter. They also said that thunder and lightning are the echo and reflection of the blows with which Perun rewards the Serpent Veles, who seeks to rob the Gods and people - to steal the Sun, cattle, earthly and heavenly waters. And in distant antiquity, it was believed that thunder was actually a “cry of love” at the wedding celebration of Heaven and Earth: it is known how well everything grows after a thunderstorm... According to some sources, Perun’s lightning was of two kinds: lilac-blue, “ dead”, striking to death, and golden, “living”, creating, awakening earthly fertility and new life.

It has long been noticed how clean and fresh the air is after a thunderstorm. The pagan Slavs found an explanation for this too. The whole point, they said, is that evil spirits scatter in fear before Perun’s wrath, hide in holes and do not dare to appear out for a long time.

Perun, who is largely “responsible” for fertility, has a special relationship with bread. A legend has been preserved about how a certain woman went to the field to work on the holiday of Perun (July 20), which, according to custom, was impossible to do. The angry Perun initially restrained his anger. But when the child, left at the boundary, soiled his diapers and the mother wiped him with a bunch of ears of grain (according to another version, a piece of baked bread was desecrated), a whirlwind arose and carried away the entire harvest into the cloud. They still managed to grind some of it back, but the bread never became “hundred-eared” (a hundred ears on each stalk) again...

The legend about the origin of pearls is also connected with heavenly thunder. The Slavs believed that it originates from the reflection of lightning captured in the eyes of a pearl mollusk at the moment when it fearfully slams its shell shut at the sight of a thunderstorm...

Perun's weapons were initially stones, later - stone axes and finally - a golden ax: The gods “progressed” together with people.

Since ancient times, the ax - the weapon of the Thunderer - has been attributed miraculous power. An ax was used to hit the bench on which someone had died: it was believed that by doing so Death would be “cut down” and expelled. The ax was thrown crosswise over the cattle so that they would not get sick and would reproduce well.

With an ax they drew the Solar Cross over the sick person, calling on two brothers-Gods for help at once. And symbolic images of the Sun and Thunder were often engraved on the blades of axes. Such an ax, planted in a door frame, was an insurmountable obstacle to evil spirits seeking to penetrate human habitation. There are countless customs and beliefs associated with the axe.
Even the well-known “chicken god”, a pebble with a hole in the middle, which caring owners are now trying to hang in the chicken coop, is nothing more than a memory of an ancient stone ax, one of the symbols of the pagan God of the Storm...

Another symbol of Perun is the so-called thunder sign, similar to a wheel with six spokes. Scientists believe that ancient people used the shape of a snowflake here, because Perun’s sanctuaries were built as close as possible to the clouds and the Sky - on the most elevated places where snow appears first. This sign can still be seen on the old huts. It was cut both for beauty and for purely “practical” reasons - as a lightning rod...

When the Slavs had princes and fighting squads, Perun began to be considered the patron saint of warriors. Therefore, some researchers now write that Perun is an exclusively “army-princely” God, not at all popular among the common people. It is unlikely that this was really the case! After all, a thunderstorm is not only a heavenly battle, it is also necessary for a plowman waiting for the harvest. And Perun’s main feat was precisely that he returned fertility to the Earth, returned the Sun and rain.

An animal was dedicated to Perun - a wild aurochs, a huge, mighty forest bull. Unfortunately, in the wild, the last aurochs was killed back in 1627, and only the domesticated descendants of aurochs - domestic bulls and cows - have survived to this day. The tour was much more aggressive than the angriest domestic bull. Predatory animals were powerless against him, and among people, hunting aurochs was considered a feat.

People believed that Perun, walking around the world, willingly takes the form of a forest bull. And on July 20 (the holiday of Perun), the turs allegedly ran out of the forest themselves and allowed themselves to be slaughtered for a sacred feast. Later, when people angered the Gods with something, the tours stopped appearing, and sacrificial bulls were specially fattened in the villages. This tradition was strictly observed in many places even in the last century. Only now a pagan feast was held near the church, and a Christian priest blessed it.

Perun also had his own tree - an oak tree, and he also had a favorite flower, which in Bulgaria is still called “perunika”. It has six lilac-blue petals (thunder sign), overgrown with golden hairs (lightning). It blooms in the spring, when the first thunderstorms thunder. This iris flower is Greek for "rainbow".

Perun's sanctuaries were built in the open air. They were shaped like a flower; in those sanctuaries that have been excavated by archaeologists, there are usually eight “petals”, but in ancient times, according to scientists, there were six.
The “petals” were pits in which unquenchable sacred fires burned. A sculptural image of God was placed in the middle. It is sometimes said that the ancient Slavs believed in idols. But this is the same as saying that Christians believe in icons. An altar was placed in front of the image of God, usually in the form of a stone ring. Offerings were placed there, sacrificial blood was shed: most often - animal, and if the people were threatened with serious misfortune - then human. Life has always been considered a sacred gift of the Gods: human sacrifice was an extraordinary, exceptional act. And we must also take into account that, according to the plots of some films and works of art, the person designated as a sacrifice did not necessarily burst into bitter tears and try to escape. The sacrifices were also voluntary: a person went to the Gods to tell them about the needs of his people, to ask for help, to avert trouble - as we would put it now, he “closed the embrasure,” that is, he performed a revered feat...

After the adoption of Christianity, Perun was not forgotten. Only a few customs that have survived to this day are mentioned here; in fact there are a great many of them. When the Orthodox Church forbade praying to the former Gods, the sanctuaries were destroyed with the same unnecessary cruelty with which churches were destroyed almost a thousand years later by militant atheists. However, scientists say that Christianity not only “smashed” paganism, but also tried to peacefully coexist with it, subordinating it to its hierarchy of values. It is no coincidence that particularly acute conflicts rarely occurred, because over time a kind of symbiosis arose. In particular, having been baptized, yesterday's pagans continued to honor the old Gods, only under new names. So Perun “transferred” many of his qualities to Ilya the Prophet, one of the most revered Christian saints. Another “heir” of the Thunder God is Saint George, the serpent fighter, whom we still see on the coat of arms of Moscow today.

Fire Svarozhich

The third brother of the Sun and Lightning, the third son of Heaven and Earth was Fire. We are still talking about the “fire of the hearth” - although most houses do not have fireplaces, but gas or electric stoves. In ancient times, Fire was truly the center of the world in which a person’s entire life took place, and even after death, a funeral pyre often awaited his body. In ancient times, Fire drove away darkness, cold and predatory animals. Later, he gathered around himself several generations of the clan - a large family, symbolizing its indivisible community.

During the meal, Fire was treated to the first and best piece. Any wanderer, a complete stranger, became “one of our own” as soon as he warmed himself by the fireplace. He was protected as if he were his own. Evil spirits did not dare to approach Fire, but Fire was able to cleanse anything defiled. The fire was a witness to vows, and this is where the custom of jumping in pairs over fires comes from: it was believed that if a guy and a girl were able to fly over the flames without releasing their hands, then their love was destined to live a long life.

What was the name of the God of Fire? Some scientists believe that the Western Slavs who lived along the southern shore of the Baltic Sea called it Radogost (Radigost). These researchers have serious evidence, and their no less authoritative rivals have refutations, so the final word has not yet been said. Most likely, the name of the God of Fire was so sacred (after all, this God did not live somewhere in the seventh heaven, but directly among people) that they tried to pronounce it out loud less often, replacing it with allegories. And over time, it was simply forgotten... This happened in the same way as the real name of the bear was forgotten: people tried to call strong and dangerous animals allegorically (in relation to a bear - “clubfooted”, “brown”). So the word “bear” means “knowing honey” - “loving honey.” Its real name is apparently lost forever.

But a great many signs and beliefs associated with Fire have not been forgotten. In the presence of Fire, it was considered unthinkable to swear: “I would tell you... but you can’t: stove in the hut!”

A Russian matchmaker, who came to woo the bride, would certainly stretch out her hands to the stove, warming her palms, no matter what time of year this happened: thereby she called upon Fire to be her ally and enlisted its support. The young husband solemnly led the newlywed three times around the hearth. And if at the moment of the birth of a child the Fire suddenly died out, then this was seen as a sure sign of the birth of a future villain. And here, finally, is why they break a plate in front of the newlyweds (“For good luck”), and before they broke a pot that had just been in the Fire: “How many pieces, so many sons!” Now most often they do not remember the meaning of this action.

A special sacred power was attributed to Fire, obtained in the most primitive way - friction. Why did everything ancient enjoy such honor, and still do today? The fact is that all the most ancient customs, techniques and tricks were believed to have been learned directly from the Gods by the forefathers and foremothers of living people. Let's remember the blacksmith's tongs and the plow, “fell from heaven,” or the “first” laws! Accordingly, all subsequent technical and social progress was partly a distortion of the ancestral “divine” wisdom, higher than which, in the opinion of ancient people, nothing could be.

So, Fire obtained by friction was considered “pure”, not in contact with any defilement. The coming of the new year was celebrated every time by lighting such a fire. At the same time, it was believed that all the sins of the past remain in the past year along with the extinguished old Fire: thus, every year the world is given a chance to be reborn, to become kinder and better. Let us note in passing that the beginning of the New Year in Rus' was repeatedly postponed, it was celebrated either in March or in September, but scientists still recognize the New Year as one of the oldest, celebrated on the days of the winter solstice, December 22-23.

The pagan Slavs also associated the emergence of people with Fire. According to some legends, the Gods created a Man and a Woman from two sticks, between which Fire ignited - the very first flame of love... According to another legend, Perun and Fire competed in accuracy, and at the moment when the flame and lightning struck the same point. unexpectedly for the Gods themselves, the first people appeared.

And this is not all that can be said about Fire. There are a great many striking examples of modern traditions that have come to us from ancient times. Where, for example, did our “cheesecake” come from? This is from the Ancient word “vatra”, that is, “hearth”.

Other Gods of the ancient Slavs

Rod and Rozhanitsy

It has already been said that the light irium was considered by the ancient Slavs to be the source of all life, the ancestral home of plants, birds and animals. There were gods, especially
“responsible” for the prosperity and offspring of all living things in nature, as well as for the multiplication of the human race, for marriage and love between people. These are Rod and Rozhanitsy, mentioned in ancient Russian literature.

Scientists have long argued about how important the role the Slavs assigned to God named Rod. Some argue that this is a small “family” Deity like the Brownie. Others, on the contrary, consider Rod one of the most important, supreme Gods who took part in the creation of the Universe: according to the beliefs of the ancient Slavs, it is he who sends the souls of people from heaven to Earth when children are born. In addition, researchers suggest paying attention to how many important words come from the root “clan”, which is consonant with the name of this God: RODNYA, UROZHAY, HOMELAND, NATURE.

The Goddesses of Birth are usually spoken of in the plural. Ancient manuscripts speak briefly about them, only mentioning bread, honey and “cheese” (previously this word meant cottage cheese), which were sacrificed to them. However, the manuscripts were compiled by Orthodox figures, so it is difficult to find detailed and accurate descriptions in them. However, modern scientists, having processed a large amount of archaeological, ethnographic, linguistic material, turning to information concerning neighboring peoples, came to the conclusion that there were two Rozhanits: Mother and Daughter.

The Slavs associated the Mother in Childbirth with the period of summer fertility, when the harvest ripens, becomes heavier, and becomes full. The ancient Slavs gave her the name Lada, and perhaps no fewer words and concepts are associated with it than with Rod. All of them have to do with establishing order: “GET GOOD,” “IMPROVE,” etc.
The order in this case was thought of primarily as a family one: “LADA”, “LADO” - an affectionate address to a beloved spouse, husband or wife. "LADINS" - wedding conspiracy. Bulgarian "LADuvane" - fortune telling about grooms. But the scope of activity

Lada is by no means limited to the home. Some researchers recognize the Great Lada as the mother of the twelve months into which the year is divided.

The ancient Slavs had a Goddess named Lelya - the daughter of Lada, the younger Rozhanitsa. Let’s think about it: it’s not for nothing that a child’s cradle is often called a “cradle”; a tender, caring attitude towards a child is conveyed by the word “cherish.” A stork that supposedly brings children is called “leleka” in Ukrainian. The Slavs believed that it was Lelya who took care of the barely hatched seedlings - the future harvest. Lelya-Vesna was solemnly “called out” - they invited her to visit, they went out to meet her with gifts and refreshments.

The holiday of Rozhanitsa was celebrated in the spring - April 22-23. On this day, sacrifices were made of vegetable and dairy products, which were solemnly eaten at a sacred feast, and then at night bonfires were lit: huge, in honor

Lada, and around it there are twelve smaller ones - according to the number of months of the year. According to tradition, it was a women's and girls' holiday, and men watched it from afar.

Yarila

Often, unfortunately, Yarila is mistakenly considered the God of the Sun. Among the ancient Slavs, Yarila had a different role. What do we mean by the word "rage"? In Russian language dictionaries you can find: “fury; a mash of blind, spontaneous, often senseless force.” And there are many more related words, and they all talk about strong emotions uncontrollable by reason. This side of love, which poets call “ebullient passion,” was “under the control” of the Slavic God Yarila. Even in the last century, in some places in Russia they celebrated the holiday “Yarilki”, timed to coincide with April 27, the very peak of the spring riot of nature.
It was believed that this love increases the harvest, which meant so much to the ancient farmer. After all, as we remember, the pagans did not oppose themselves to nature and did not reject its laws.

Yarila was imagined as a young man, an ardent, loving groom. In some places, wanting to emphasize his youth and beauty, they dressed up a girl as “Yarila”. They put her on a white horse, put on a wreath of wild flowers, gave her some ears of corn, and on the right... a symbol of death - an image of a human head. The horse and “Yarila” were led through the fields, saying: “Wherever you step, there is a heap of life, and wherever you look, an ear of corn blooms!”

According to another version, Yarila appeared before people in the spring as a boy on a young stallion, in the summer as an adult man on a strong horse, and in the fall as an old man on an old horse. The ears symbolized life, and the image of the head may be due to the fact that he, like the Egyptian Osiris, died and was reborn every year. The holiday was also dedicated to the farewell and “funeral” of the bald, aged Yarila. People knew: winter would pass and Yarila would return and rise.
Just as a grain buried in the ground is resurrected as a stalk, an ear, and ultimately a new grain. It is no coincidence that grain crops that are sown in the spring (as opposed to winter crops) are called “spring”...

Snake Veles

Scientists write that a fairy tale is a myth that has ceased to be sacred for those who tell and listen to it. This is a myth that is no longer widely believed. (By the way, in Ancient Rus' the word “fable” meant a reliable story, more often a written one. And what we now call a fairy tale was then designated by the word “fable”. From it came the modern “fable” and the expression “fabulous” - embellished, fantastic , legendary.

So, there are many fairy tales about the Serpent Gorynych, who kidnaps (or is given as tribute to) beautiful girls and with whom heroes and heroes fight - from the epic Dobrynya Nikitich to Ivanushka the Fool. But this is also an echo of an ancient pagan myth that has survived to this day.
The myth about the struggle of the thunderer Perun with his eternal enemy - the monstrous Serpent. Similar legends exist among many nations.

In Slavic pagan mythology, the “bestial God” Volos (or Veles) is known, clearly contrasted with Perun. His connection with the “cattle” (that is, animal) kingdom already follows from his name: Hair - hairy - shaggy - shaggy. It is possible that the word “magician” comes from the name of this God and from the custom of his priests to dress in “shaggy” fur coats turned outward to imitate their Deity. Meanwhile, the name “Hair” just as definitely takes us into the world of snakes and worms. Anyone who has ever been to a village in the summer has probably heard chilling stories about “living hair” that lives in a river near the shore and can bite and be sucked under the skin. There is also a belief that a hair - animal or human, especially from a bad person - dropped into water or entangled in an egg comes to life and begins to do evil deeds. In general, hair was considered an important receptacle of vitality. And there will be no trouble if the cut and discarded hair is picked up by an unkind sorcerer... This legend could have appeared from the legend of the forge Kiya, who was able to forge a person’s fate with the help of a hair.

In a word, many good reasons force some scientists to identify Volos with the legendary Serpent - the enemy of the Thunder God.
Let's listen to their story.

According to legend, the Hair Serpent somehow combines hairiness and scales in its appearance, flies on membranous wings, knows how to breathe fire (although he is deathly afraid of fire, especially lightning) and loves scrambled eggs and milk. Therefore, another name for Volos is Smok or Tsmok, which means Sucker. Here it is appropriate to recall Smaug, the evil dragon from J. R. R. Tolkien’s fairy tale “The Hobbit”. This name was not chosen by the writer by chance!

But if you carefully re-read folk legends and fairy tales, it turns out that the Serpent in them is not so much evil as unreasonable and greedy. It is easy to see that the appearance of the Serpent is “composed” by the human imagination from parts taken from different animals. Perhaps it embodies the forces of primeval Chaos, the violent forces of disordered, wild, uninhabited nature, often hostile to ancient man, but essentially not at all evil?..

The pagan Slavs worshiped both divine opponents - Perun and the Serpent. Only the sanctuaries of Perun were built, as already mentioned, in high places, and the sanctuaries of Volos - in the lowlands. There is reason to think that Volos, tamed and driven underground, became “responsible” for earthly fertility and wealth. He partly lost his monstrous appearance and became more human-like. It’s not for nothing that the last bunch of ears of corn was left in the “Beard Hair” field. In addition, there is a connection

Volos-Veles with music and poetry, it is not for nothing that in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” the singer Boyan is called “Veles’s grandson”...

In 1848, a stone idol was found in the Zbruch River, clearly reflecting the division of the pagan Universe into the World of the Gods, the World of People and the Lower World. So, the Human World is supported from below by a kneeling mustachioed humanoid creature. He looks unhappy. Of course, there are no explanatory inscriptions on the ancient idol, but scientists believe that this is Veles, who settled in the depths of the Earth...

Dark Gods

The life of ancient man was not always easy. Difficulties forced us to look for the culprits; they appeared in the form of evil Gods. Among the Western Slavs, Chernobog was such an embodiment of evil: this name truly speaks for itself. It is known that his sculptures were black, with a silver mustache. Whether the Eastern Slavs (the ancestors of Belarusians, Ukrainians and Russians) believed in him or not cannot be said with certainty. Perhaps they believed, it is unlikely that they had less reasons for this than their Western brothers.

But the evil Goddess named Morana (Morena, Marana) was definitely known both in the West and in the Slavic East. She is associated with darkness, frost and death. Indeed, her name is related to such words as “pestilence”, “darkness”, “haze”, “haze”, “fool”, “death” and many more equally unkind ones. From India to Iceland, mythical characters are known who cause all sorts of evil: the Buddhist Mara, who tempted righteous hermits, the Scandinavian “mara” - an evil spirit capable of tormenting a sleeping person, “trampling” him to death, Morrigan, the Goddess of the ancient Irish, associated with destruction and war; finally, the French word for “nightmare.” You can also remember Morgana, Morgause and Mordred from the epic about King Arthur and his knights.

Echoes of the legends about Moran can be traced in the epics about Dobrynya and “Marinka”, who tries in every possible way to destroy the hero, in particular, turns him with her witchcraft into a tour - golden horns. The same epics tell about the unholy connection of “Marinka” with the Serpent. There is reason to see the ancient Morana in the Bulgarian legend about the “evil woman” who “killed many people” and threw a dirty veil over the silver Moon: from then on it became covered with dark spots and, frightened, began to walk above the Earth much higher than before (between By the way, astronomers write about secular changes in the orbit of the Moon...). Other legends tell how Morana and her evil minions try every morning to stalk and destroy the Sun, but each time they retreat in horror before its radiant power and beauty. Finally, the straw effigy, which is still burned in some places today during the ancient pagan Maslenitsa holiday, at the time of the spring equinox, undoubtedly belongs to Morana, the Goddess of death and cold. Every winter she briefly takes power, but she is not allowed to establish herself forever: again and again the Sun, Life and Spring triumph...

Low level gods and spirits

Among the many small deities, it should be noted Dvorovoy (the owner of the courtyard), who was already slightly less benevolent than Domovoy; Ovinnik (the owner of the barn) - even less so, and Bannik, the spirit of the bathhouse, which stood at the very edge of the yard, and even beyond it, is simply dangerous. For this reason, believers considered the bathhouse - a symbol of seemingly purity - unclean. Sometimes he is represented as a tiny old man with a long, moldy beard. Fainting and accidents in the bathhouse are attributed to his evil will. To pacify Bannik, the Slavs left clean water, a broom and food in the bathhouse, otherwise the bannik could get angry and seriously harm the person, even to the point of murder. Bannik’s favorite pastime is scalding those washing with boiling water, splitting stones in a stove and “shooting” them at people.

Behind the fence of the courtyard of the ancient Slav the forest began. The forest provided the ancient Slav with building material, game, mushrooms, berries, etc. But in addition to the benefits bestowed on man, the wild forest always concealed many deadly dangers. The owner of the forest was Leshy. Leshy literally means “forest”. His appearance is changeable. He seemed to be either a giant or a dwarf. In different places, Leshy is told differently. However, most often he looks like a person, but his clothes are wrapped “in reverse” (sometimes, however, instead of clothes he only wears his own fur). Leshy’s hair is long, gray-greenish, but on his face there are no eyelashes or eyebrows, and his eyes, like two emeralds, burn with green fire in the forest darkness. He could lead a person into a thicket, scare him, beat him, but he knew how to pay good for good.

When people began to clear forests and plow open “burns” for bread, of course, new deities appeared - Poleviki. In general, there are no fewer beliefs and signs associated with a grain field than with housing. Sometimes people also met old Belun in the field - nondescript in appearance and extremely snotty. He asked a passerby to wipe his nose. And if a person did not disdain, a purse of silver suddenly appeared in his hand. Perhaps in this way our ancestors wanted to express the simple idea that the Earth generously bestows only those who are not afraid to get their hands dirty?

The working day in the village always began early. But it’s better to wait out the midday heat. The ancient Slavs also had a mythical creature who strictly ensured that no one worked at noon. This is Midday. They imagined her as a girl in a long white shirt or, conversely, as a shaggy, scary old woman. Poludnitsy (or Rzhanitsy) were afraid: for non-compliance with the custom, she could severely punish - now we call it sunstroke. Having caught a man in the field at noon, she sometimes forced him to solve her riddles to the point of exhaustion. But Midday was not only formidable.
She taught the person who became friends with her to dance to the envy of everyone. Living in a region abundant with rivers and lakes, the ancient Slavs naturally developed a whole complex of religious veneration for water. For example, the Slavs were sure that the most inviolable oaths were made near water; they also tested it with water in court, and used water to tell fortunes about the future. Water was addressed as “you”. She could have drowned her, destroyed her for nothing. It could demand victims, wash away the village with a spring flood. That is why the Vodyanoy, the mythical inhabitant of rivers, lakes and streams, often appears in legends as a creature hostile to humans.

The central myth of the ancient Slavs

Now that we have become acquainted with all the main Gods of the Slavs, we can convey the content of the fundamental legend of ancient Slavic mythology. This myth tells about the appearance of evil gods and the opposition of good gods to them.

One day, the Sun-Dazhdbog and his brother Perun traveled together in the Underworld. And here, from beyond the edge of the Universe, a dark star appeared without rays, with a long bloody tail. She wanted to strike the Earth, which was fast asleep, to death - her husband, Heaven, came to the rescue: he shielded the Earth and took a cruel blow. But he was unable to completely avert the misfortune. A tailed monster swept over the entire Earth, burning forests with a terrible, unprecedented fire, and finally fell somewhere at the far edge.

...The God Brothers almost drove the greyhound horses, flying to the eastern edge of the Ocean. When the boat crossed it, drawn by white swans, and the winged stallions soared again, Dazhdbog for many days did not dare to look down brightly and clearly as before. For a disfigured, dead strip stretched across the entire Earth, and there, in the black smoke, a frightened, understanding Fire was rushing about. And from the wounds of Heaven, water gushed down to the ground in streams, flooding the lowlands, destroying and washing away everything that had survived the fire...

The young Gods didn’t think twice: they rushed to save their mother and father. To save your world before it again becomes the shapeless lump it was before birth. They bandaged the wounds of Heaven with white stripes of clouds and damp shrouds of fog. Calmed the Fire. They lit a rainbow over the few surviving People, showing the way to salvation...

That’s when we saw mountains at the far edge of the Earth that were not there before, mountains that looked like monstrous clouds from a distance. They firmly fused into the body of the Earth. The Gods carefully headed towards those mountains... It turned out that the mountains were iron. Hot, they managed to cool down, and the sharp peaks breathed black frost, stored somewhere inside, and before our eyes they were overgrown with snow and ice. Never before had the young Gods seen anything like this... Well, most of these mountains fell down, beyond the edge of the Underworld, lifeless for centuries, and only one ugly ridge desecrated the face of the green Earth. The Gods saw: all living things were retreating from the Iron Mountains, everything was fleeing from the deadening cold - forests, rivers, grass, flowers...

They carefully drove around the Iron Mountains and, in one deep abyss, discovered a path through the Earth, all the way to the Lower World. A thrown stone would have flown there for twelve days and nights, but the sparkling chariots, of course, were faster. Soon the brothers found themselves in the Underworld. And when Dazhdbog raised his fiery shield, they saw two creatures desperately shielding themselves from the light, a man and a woman, looking more like terrible dreams than People or Gods...

It was then that for the very first time Perun wanted to swing his ax not to ignite life, but to destroy it. But the man and woman fell to their knees and began to beg for mercy. And Perun lowered his hand with the ax raised. He has not yet learned to be merciless and strike when they kneel. Perun and Dazhdbog fed them and told them about the earthly and heavenly structure.

But a year later, frost began to come from the direction of the Iron Mountains, devastating the Earth, and the Svarozhichi brothers sought to quickly pass these places.

But then a lot of time passed, the Earth recovered from the blow, the wounds of Heaven healed, although a scar remained - the Milky Way, where, according to the beliefs of the Slavs, the souls of the dead flew away. Dazhdbog warned the Month not to approach the cold mountains when he was walking in the sky, because, although the gods of the Iron Mountains kindly received the brothers, they still aroused mistrust. The Young Moon gave his word to Dazhdbog and kept it for a long time, but once he could not control his curiosity.
He directed the white bulls that drove his chariot to the Iron Mountains. A dirty blanket rose from there and dragged the Month into the cave. When the brothers-gods entered this cave, they saw the completed feast and realized that Morana had seduced the Month, and immediately celebrated the wedding.

This time Perun’s thunder sounded angrily, and his ax cut the Month in half. The brothers took the dead Moon home, where the morning star Dennitsa, their sister, cured him with living and dead water. Since then, the Moon rarely appears in the sky full, and sometimes disappears completely, and after Morana wrapped him in a veil, he was able to wash away the stains. People believed that the Moon was waning and hoped to be born pure again, but fate was merciless.

The evil Morana and the lawless Chernobog were buried for a long time in the darkness of the damp caves, not daring to come out into the light. And Perun, who had desecrated his golden ax with blood, worked for a year in the workshop of the forge Kiya - he atoned for the sin. Murder was generally considered a terrible sin in Rus'. Even warriors who returned from a campaign did not sit down at the same table with their relatives for a long time and worked in forges and in the field, atonement for their guilt. Since then, all evil spirits have been afraid of iron, feeling the power of Perun, and if you line the door with iron or hang an iron horseshoe over it, then evil spirits will not dare to enter the house.

Meanwhile, Chernobog and Morana stole the snake's egg. Before this, snakes were not poisonous and lived in peace with people. They wrapped this egg around the hair of the woman who wiped the child with ears of bread and sucked all the living things out of him.

A snake hatched from the egg, which they called Volos, or Veles. He grew up quickly and became very strong. But he was not evil - just greedy and stupid. He flew around the earth, turned into whoever he wanted and committed various sins. But one day, Morana, with his help, took out an ice needle and made him an ice tooth, which could be used to put the Svarozhichi to sleep.

One day they stole Perun’s bride Lelya and Dazhdbog went to the Iron Mountains to check what was going on with Chernobog and Morana. But there Veles hit him in the back with an icy tooth, and the Sun did not rise over the Earth at the appointed hour. Perun went after Dazhdbog, leaving the Fire to shine on people and warm them. But no matter how much Perun fought with Veles, he could not defeat him - Chernobog and Morana stood behind him, helping him. Perun's eyes and heart were torn out and chained in ice.

For thirty-three years the Sun was not above the Earth, thunder did not roar and Perun’s lightning did not flash. But one day the grown-up children of the blacksmith Kiya - brother and sister Svetozor and Zorya - came to the sanctuary of Perun, lit a fire and
Svetozor sacrificed his blood. Then the earth opened up and the exhausted Perun climbed out of the crack. The cue helped him recover from his wounds, find new horses and find an ax, which, after the fatal battle, was not given to Veles, but flew away to the Earthly world.

Perun, having gained strength, with Kiy and the Kieviches came to the Iron Mountains and in a fierce duel defeated Veles, broke the ice tooth and imprisoned Chernobog and Morana in underground darkness. Despite all Morana’s assurances that it was impossible to melt the icy grave of Dazhdbog and Lelya, Perun and Kiy managed to do this and resurrected the Gods.

Religious holidays

If the Slavs worshiped natural phenomena, then it is easy to guess on what occasions and at what time of year they would celebrate their religious holidays, which are closely related to nature and changes in it. The holiday of Kolyada, Ivan Kupala, and Maslenitsa were deeply revered by the people. At these festivities, the Slavs worshiped stone and wooden idols - figures of gods.

These idols were placed in the center of a round platform with a raised middle or, conversely, with a funnel-shaped depression in the center. The site was surrounded by one or two ditches and low ramparts. Sometimes the inside of the shaft was fenced with a palisade. An altar was placed next to the idol. The places where idols were worshiped were called “temples” (from the Old Slavonic “kap” - image, idol), and those where sacrifices were made (“requirements”) were called “treasures”. By now, many pagan idols have already been found, but the most remarkable monument of Slavic paganism is the four-headed Zbruch idol, found in the 19th century on the Zbruch River, a tributary of the Dniester. Conventionally, this idol is called Svyatovit. This is a tall tetrahedral pillar three meters high, on each side of which there are a series of images. Three horizontal tiers of images symbolize the division of the Universe into heaven, earth and hell.
At the top, on each side of the pillar, crowned with one common cap, are carved full-length figures of four deities - the goddess of fertility, Perun, a female deity with a ring in her right hand, and a male figure with a saber at his belt. In the middle tier, figures of men and women alternate - this is the Earth and a round dance of people holding hands. In the lower tier there are three figures of mustachioed men. These are underground gods who support the Earth above them. The Slavs also had wooden statues. Around 980, the Kiev prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich placed huge idols of pagan deities in his capital. Among them, the wooden idol of Perun was especially luxuriously decorated: it had a silver head and a golden mustache. Wooden idols of the Eastern Slavs are pillars, in the upper part of which human heads were carved.

Sacrifices were made to these idols: animals, grain, various gifts, and sometimes human sacrifices. Near the image of the pagan gods, fortune-telling and ritual lots took place, which were performed by mysterious “magi.”

Magi, fortune-tellers, magicians, Bedouins, witches... Very little is known about the Slavic Magi, but Sergei Mikhailovich Solovyov, in his work on the history of ancient Russia, draws a close connection from the Slavic Magi to the Finnish Magi, explaining this by the close proximity of the two peoples; and notes that after the adoption of Christianity, the Magi mainly appear in the Finnish north and from there they trouble the Slavic peoples.

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Slavic myths and legends

Slide 2

Target:
Know what is called a legend, heroes of Slavic myths. Be able to retell legends

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A legend is a work of oral folk art. A poetic narrative about the past, about fantastic and wonderful events. The legend is based not only on fabulous, but also on real events. The legend tells about significant historical figures, about the defense of the homeland, about national disasters, about people who left a memory of themselves.

Slide 4

The religion of the Eastern Slavs was paganism. Paganism is a pre-Christian and non-Christian religion based on the worship of many gods associated with natural phenomena. The term “paganism” comes from the New Testament, in which paganism meant peoples (“tongues”), contrasted with the early Christian communities. The beliefs of the Slavs were pagan. The Slavs believed in good and evil spirits, spirits of forests, rivers, and dwellings. Later, a pagan pantheon of gods emerged.

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Totemism was also widespread - this is the belief in the origin of the human race from some species of animal.

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Perun
The main Slavic thunder god.

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Perun is the supreme god in ancient Russian pagan mythology, the patron saint of the prince and the squad (god of war). Associated with thunder and lightning. Perun's weapons: “thunder arrow” (fossil arrowheads) or “devil's finger” (belemnite stones), lightning arrow, axes, clubs. When Perun throws stones and arrows on the ground, a thunderstorm arises.

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Svarog
God of heavenly fire

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Svarog taught people to cook (create) cottage cheese and cheese from milk, which were once considered sacred food, a gift from the gods. It was Svarog who started the Iron Age and taught people to use iron tools. The sounds are pleasant to Svarog - because he is the primary patron of crafts and all skilled craftsmen - the blows of hammers, the clanking of chains and the howling of fire. Requisites are brought to Svarog either with cheese (syrniki) or cottage cheese. The word "cottage cheese" means created, it has the same root as the name Svarog, and is a symbol of heavenly bread.

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Dazhdbog
Sun God

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Dazhdbog, Dazhbog is one of the main gods in East Slavic mythology, the god of fertility and sunlight, the ancestor of princes and Russian people in general.

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Stribog
God of the Wind

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Stribog - In East Slavic mythology, the god of the wind. Usually they were represented in the form of a gray-haired old man living at the end of the world, in a dense forest or on an island in the middle of the sea-ocean.

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Veles
God of cattle breeding and wealth, patron of the animal world

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Makosh
Patron of women's work, spinning and weaving, mother of the harvest, goddess of abundance.

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Makosh (Mokosh) - the Goddess of all Fate (kosh, kosht - fate, the syllable "ma" can abbreviate the word "mother"), the eldest of the goddesses, the spinner of fate, as well as the patroness of women's handicrafts - on Earth; guards women's fertility and productivity, thriftiness and prosperity in the home.

Slide 17

Zarya
Sister of the Sun.
Other names of Dawn: Morning, Zarnitsa, Dennitsa, Mertsana. The image of this Goddess is very complex and multifaceted. She is the Goddess of Light, driving away Darkness, the Warrior Maiden. She is also the Heavenly Intercessor who protects from troubles.

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Viy
God of the Underworld

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Viy - in East Slavic mythology - the spirit that brings death. Having huge eyes with heavy lids, Viy kills with his gaze. In Ukrainian demonology - a formidable old man with eyebrows and eyelids reaching down to the ground. Viy cannot see anything on his own, but if several strong men manage to raise his eyebrows and eyelids with iron pitchforks, then nothing can hide before his menacing gaze: with his gaze Viy kills people, destroys and turns cities and villages to ashes.

Slide 20

Undead
Spirit of nature

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Goblin
Master of the forest and animals
Leshy, hung, forester, forester, leshak, forester, woodsman, in some places even just a forest - a supernatural creature of Slavic legends and Russian fairy tales.

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The spirit's place of residence is a remote forest thicket, but sometimes also a wasteland. However, this spirit does not live in the forest all the time, but only during the warm season. “On Erofey,” the peasants believed, “the goblin parted with the forest.” On this day (October 17), the spirit falls underground, where it hibernates until spring, but before wintering, the goblin goes berserk: it raises a storm, breaks trees, drives animals into their holes and goes berserk. According to Polish belief, the goblin likes to sit on old dry trees in the form of an owl, and therefore peasants are afraid to cut down such trees. According to Russian belief, the goblin likes to sit not on the branches, but in the hollows of such trees. There is a saying about this: “From an empty hollow, either an owl, an owl, or Satan himself.” The procession of the goblin is accompanied by the wind, which covers his tracks. In this way, the goblin is reminiscent of the forest elves of Swedish folklore.

Slide 23

Mermaid
Water creatures.

Slide 24

Eastern Slavs Mermaids, bathers, waterworts, rags, etc. - one of the lower spirits in Slavic mythology, usually harmful. Dead girls, mostly drowned women, people who bathe at inopportune times, those who were deliberately dragged away by the merman into his service, and unbaptized children turn into mermaids. Most often they live in water, but sometimes in fields - middays, or in trees - “tree mermaids”. Usually women, although there are stories of male mermaids. Sometimes she acts as a guardian, rescuing drowning people. They are presented as beautiful girls with long hair (cf. South Slavic forks, Western European undines), less often - as shaggy, ugly women (among northern Russians). Plain hair, unacceptable in ordinary everyday situations for a normal peasant girl, is a typical and very significant attribute. The image of a mermaid is associated both with water and vegetation, combining the features of water spirits and carnival characters (such as Kostroma, Yarila), whose death guaranteed the harvest. Hence the connection between mermaids and the world of the dead is likely.

Slide 25

Water

Slide 26

Vodyanoy - in Slavic mythology, a spirit that lives in water, the owner of the waters. The embodiment of the element of water as a negative and dangerous principle. The merman was represented in the form of a naked, flabby old man, goggle-eyed, with a fish tail. He is entangled in mud, has a large thick beard (according to some sources up to the waist), and a green mustache. He could turn into a large fish, a log, a drowned man, a child or a horse. In addition, he appears in the guise of a man with individual animal features (paws instead of hands, horns on his head), or an ugly old man, entangled in mud, with a large beard and green mustache.

Slide 27

Famously
An evil giantess who devours people.
To remember badly (to remember badly about someone),

Slide 28

In East Slavic mythology, Likho is the spirit of evil, misfortune, the personification of grief. The appearance of the dashing man is not clearly defined. Like many inhabitants of another world, it is famously both similar to and different from a person. Dashingly appears either as a huge one-eyed giant, or as a tall, scary, thin woman with one eye. When Likho is next to a person, a variety of misfortunes begin to haunt him. Often Likho becomes attached to such a person and terrorizes him all his life. However, according to Russian folk tales, it is the person himself who is to blame for the fact that Likho became attached to him - he is weak and cannot withstand everyday difficulties.

The mythology of the Slavs is an extremely interesting and educational phenomenon. Despite the fact that in a number of its manifestations it has similar features to the same ancient or Slavic system of beliefs, it is a completely unique complex of knowledge, traditions and legends concerning all the main issues of the world order.

The myths of the ancient Slavs have reached us in a highly revised form. Since, unlike the same people, writing appeared among these peoples already at the end of their pagan history.

At the same time, it is of interest that, despite the ethnic and religious diversity, the Slavs have managed to preserve common features and ideas characteristic of their distant ancestors to this day. The most striking example of this is the tradition of burning an effigy, symbolizing the end of winter.

Of great interest is the early gods, in which they formed a kind of pantheon, in which three main levels can be distinguished:

1. The highest level was “inhabited” by those deities on whom all life on Earth directly depended - Svarog, who personified Heaven, Earth and their children - Perun, Fire and Dazhdbog;

2. At the middle level, the myths of the ancient Slavs placed those gods who were “responsible” for the development of a particular tribe, as well as for all economic activities: Rod, Chur and others;

3. The lowest level consisted of creatures that “controlled” certain areas of the environment - goblins, brownies, ghouls, mermaids.

Myths focused primarily on the problem of the origin and development of the world, as well as the veneration of their long-dead and legendary ancestors.

Like most other peoples, the Slavs had a thunder god - Perun, who for a number of tribes personified Heaven.

Other tribes considered Svarog to be the god of Heaven, who nominally occupied the highest position in the hierarchy.

One of the most revered gods was Svarog's brother Veles, whose main task was to protect livestock and contribute to the accumulation of wealth in the clan and tribe.

Since the myths of the ancient Slavs, for the most part, most likely developed even before they were formed, they did not require the introduction of any special cults and rituals; our ancient ancestors did not have a developed priestly class.

In Rus', the first idols appeared only under the influence of the Varangians and were dedicated mainly to the main deities - Perun, Dazhdbog and Khors. All these images were thrown down from the hills and destroyed.

The main feature of Slavic mythology was the close relationship between the real world and lower-level creatures that lived everywhere, either helping people or hindering them. Constant communication with the beregins, goblins, and brownies made everyday life more complex and mysterious, and everyone immediately found many interpretations. As for the gods of the middle and highest level, here people could only listen carefully to their desires, meekly carrying out their will. The fear of the forces of nature and the wrath of the ancestors was so great that various holidays were dedicated to them, some of which have survived to this day.