Mati-Syra-Zemlya

Mati-Syra-Zemlya [Rus]
- chthonic / elemental spirit - infer
- female
- (moist mother earth)
- (mother moist earth)
- the earth
- never personified
- mati [OCS] (mother)
- mati [OCS] (mother)
- zeme [OCS] (earth, soil)
- zeml[a]ja [OCS]
- mother earth
- eating earth
- settler of disputes
- witness to oaths
- witness to marriages
- possessed prophetic powers
- her aid is invoked during epidemics & in childbirth
- ploughing digging striking the earth prohibited at certain times
- before Maslenica
- vernal equinox
- offerings of hemp oil
- wife to Yarilo

Other names:
aka Mati-Syra-Zemlja
aka Mat' Syra Zemlya [Rus]
aka Mat' Syra Zemlia [Rus]
aka Mati Srra Zenlja
aka Mati
aka Matka
aka Matka Syra Ziemia >MAHT-kah SEAR-ah zhem-EE-ah< [Pol]
aka Matka Ziemia
aka Matka Syra Zjemlja >MAHT-kah SIHR-ah ZHYEM-yah<
aka Mata Syra Zjemlja
aka Matushka Zemlia
aka Mati Zemlya
- mother earth
- wife to Svarog

FROM: Mati-Syra-Zemlya
_____

NAME: Mati Syra Zemlya `Mother Moist Earth,´ Matka, Mata Syra Zjemlja, Matushka Zemlia. (Possibly also Mokosh a later human formed nature Goddesses & St. Paraskeva in a try to Church her up after she refused to go away.)

SYMBOLS: Unplowed moist dark earth, stalks of wheat, sheep.

USUAL IMAGE: Not viewed as human in form but as the Earth itself. She was thought of as not a spirit that represented Her sovereignty but as the ground beneath one's feet alive and all knowing. It was thought that at some times, most often Zemlya's Night on the 24th who would take human form and appear as a dark skinned Slavic woman dressed in brightly colored ribbons and ornaments, as such she would visit homes bestowing blessings.
HOLY BOOKS: N/A

HOLY DAYS: May 1st (A day on which no plowing could be done) June 24 & August 1st.

PLACE OF WORSHIP: In the home or on unplowed or freshly plowed earth.

MAJOR TABOOS: Plowing on her holy days.

RELATIVES: All the people, animals & plants of the earth, which she used as oracles when asked. Though there are some who say that her husband was the Slavic Dioceses Yarilo who's name comes from the word for passionate and uncontrolled. He was depicted as a blonde young man wearing a white tunic and going barefoot who carried a bunch of wheat in one hand and a skull in the other. His festival day was June 4th.

FORM OF WORSHIP: In holes dug in the earth place bread and pore wine, whisky. Respect for the Her by making sure you do not hit or cut her (plow) on her holy days such as May 1st when she is pregnant.

SYNODEITIES: Nerthus (German), Zemes Mate (Baltic), Zem (Zoroastrian), Semele (Greco - Phrygian), Gaia (Greek), Changing Woman (Native American.)

DETAILS: Moist Mother Earth, which is what Mati Syra Zemlya means, was the oldest and most powerful of the Pre-Christian slavic Goddesses.

So powerful in fact that she survived into the twentieth century despite efforts by both the Church and later the Party to do away with her.

I wouldn't doubt that in some form or other she is still honored in some way on the land that she was said to be.

Moist Mother Earth was prayed to by digging a hole in the earth and speaking into it, or in times of plague by cutting a furrow around the home village being trouble so that Her power would be relased and drive the demons of illness away.

She was also invoced to confirmed oaths and marriages by eating some of her earth or placing some of Her on the head while the oath was spoken.

She had all knowledge and on being asked would release signs that could be interpreted.

Never given a human image she however was said to take the form of a dark woman from time to time to aid those who observed the proper rites and traditions. Sometimes even taking the time to shear sheep, her totem animal.

After the coming of Christianity, she was confessed to if no priest was available. The Church tried to equate her with Mary, but this was not entirely successful and during times of great illness there was a tendency for the people to revert to worship of Her.

Often the village women would take to digging furrows around their homes or village at night while carrying scythes to release the power of Mati Syra Zemlya and to kill any men who happened on them while preforming this rite.

I have to wonder if this might not be a perfect example of a clash between two forces.

One of which is represented by priests who were contacted by a power that came from the driest of deserts and the other which comes from a moist living earth.

(c) Magentashadow
FROM: Mati-Syra-Zemlya (Slavic / Russian)
____

('Moist Earth Mother') was the Slavonic earth goddess. Archaeological evidence suggests that her worship may have originated in the basin of the River Don as much as 30,000 years ago. Believed to possess the ability to predict the future and to settle disputes wisely, she was an object of veneration up to the early years of the twentieth century, when Russian peasant women were still performing elaborate rites in order to summon her presence to protect them from disease.
FROM: HERE

___

She is also linked to Mokosh, though because Mati-Syra-Zemlya was never personified [she was seen as the Earth itself] it's not a complete connection.

Mokosh is an earth goddess. She rules over fertility and midwifery. She is commonly called Mati-Syra-Zemlya, or "Moist Mother Earth." Mokosh spins flax and wool at night and shears sheep. She also spins the web of life and death. She wanders during Lent disguised as a woman, visiting houses and doing housework; at night strands of fleece are laid beside the stoves for her. She may have originally been a house spirit concerned with women's work.

Evenrually, her worship was transmuted to the modern widespread reverence for Mother Russia. Mokosh is dark, like good, black soil.She is portrayed with uplifted hands, flanked by two horsemen. Mokosh became St. Paraskeva, whose hair hangs long, loosely, and whose icon is decorated with flax and birch. Paraskeva is also known as Mother Friday.
One prayer to Mokosh involves going to the fields at dawn in August with jars filled with hemp oil.
Turn East and say: "Moist Mother Earth, subdue every evil and unclean being so that he may not cast a spell on us nor do us any harm." Turn West and say: "Moist Mother Earth, engulf the unclean power in your boiling pits, in your burning fires."
Turn South and say: "Moist Mother Earth, calm the winds coming from the south and all bad weather. Calm the moving sands and whirlwinds."
Turn North and say: "Moist Mother Earth, calm the north winds and the clouds, subdue the snowstorms and the cold." Oil is poured out after each invocation, and finally, the jar is thrown to the ground.

FROM: Moist Mother Earth {This is also a great place for those interested in Slavic beleifs and Paganism.}

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Mokosh (Mokosz, Mokusa, Mokoš, Cyrillic Мокошь) is a goddess associated with the sacred feminine in Slavic pantheon. She is a goddess of fertility, home and earth (russian: mat' syraja zemlja - mother - moist earth), and female occupations such as spinning, weaving and fate. She is supposed to be the protector of women, goddess of bounty, as well as occult knowledge and divination. Many scholars, however, doubt that such a goddess ever existed in Slavic pantheon.

She wanders as masked woman and visit houses doing domestic duties. At night a piece of hair was left as an offer to Mokosh. At the beginning she was a domestic spirit. She is black as fertile earth.
Wife of Svarog (according to some OldSlav legends); she talked him into creating a life on Earth that would look as him, so he breathe a life into an oak tree from which first man, named Dubravko, came to life; she revived another one, a woman, Ljubljenica. Her statues in temples are in sitting position (as Svarog's are).

Her sacred day is Friday; and her feast day falls between October 25th and November 1st. One reference fixes this day to October 28th. She was offered vegetables, which was the focal point of the feast day. At night, women would leave strands of fleece beside the stove in her honor. It was said that women who made satisfactory offerings would be helped with their laundry, associating her as a water goddess. This is illustrated by the fact that rainfall is sometimes called Mokosh's milk.

In Christian times she became conflagrated with the Virgin Mary and Saint Paraskeva. She is sovereign over the Domowije and the patroness of midwifery. In one myth, she is the wife of Perun, and was represented as a woman with a large head, long arms and unkept hair. In another myth she is wife of Svarog, which created a marriage of heaven and Earth.

FROM: Wikipedia "Mokosh"

Perkons/Perun

Perkons

Perkons (Lithuanian Perkunas, Prussian Percunis, Russian Perun) - Thunder god - is one of the main deities in Baltic (i.e. Latvian, Lithuanian, Prussian) folk religion. Etymologically, the word perkons is derived from the Indo-European stems per(k) (Ivanov, Toporov 1974, 1985.) or per+g(q) (Muelenbach 1904, Endzelins 1951). Three possible interpretations of the word's etymology are known (Biezais 1972):

1. God of thunder and rain (Muelenbach, Wiedemann);
2. God of height, mountain, comparable to Gothic fairguni - "mountain". Hethic peruna - "rock", old Hindu parvata - "mountain" (Karsten, Ivanov);
3. God of oaks, perk-us as compared to Latin quercus - "oak" (Porzig, Hirt, Speht).

According to the archaeological data cult of Perkons in Baltic region was widely spread during the 2nd - 4th century CE along with the establishment of the agricultural society there. The first information about the cult of Perkons (Perkuns) practiced by Curonians (one of the Latvian tribes) can be found in the Livlaendische Reimchronic (1290). Perkuns, among other Lithuanian deities, is mentioned in the Russian addition of the Chronographie des Johannes Malalas (1261). In 1326 Peter von Dusburg mentions the sacral place Romove in Prussia, and these some sentences serve as a basis for the well-known Prussian pantheon, (re-)constructed by Simon Grunau in 1520. Percunis is one of the three central deities there.

This entry is based on Latvian folklore material as a notable source for the comprehension and reconstruction of Perkons' manifestations in Latvian folk religion.

The functional synonyms of Perkons' name in Latvian folklore are:

• Perkonins, Perkonitis - likely a diminutive form, characteristic of Latvian folk song (dainas) meter, and rarely used in other texts.
• Perkona tevs - father Perkons.
• Vecais tevs - Old father (see further)
• Dievins; - diminutive form of Dievs - the God, the a central figure in Latvian folk religion.

Although sometimes denoted with the same word - Dievins - each of the deities, Dievs and Perkons, maintain their own sphere of influence. As Latvian folk religion cannot be discussed in terms of a hierarchy of gods, a subordinate position of Perkons (e.g., in magic spells or some legend types), its substitution by Dievs (e.g., in the legends, where Perkons takes care of people's welfare), can be regarded as a display of the Christian syncretism. Formula Dievins in Latvian folklore serves also for denotation of mythic beings of lower strata, such as home spirits and spirits of the dead. The differentiation of meaning is determined by context. In the following example (LD 33700) clearly Dievins is Perkons.

Dievins ruc, Dievins ruc.

Zibenus met ozol....

(Dievins roars, Dievins roars,

(And throws lightning into an oak.)

Functions

1. Fertility god.

The origin of Perkons is closely connected with its natural appearance - rain, thunder, and lightning. The word perkons has two meanings in all three Baltic languages - "Thunder god" and "thunder". Catholic clergyman D. Fabricius writes in 1610: "During a drought, when there has not been rain, they worship Perkons in thick forests on hills and sacrifice to him a black calf, a black goat, and a black cock. When the animals are killed, then, according their custom, the people come together from all the vicinity, to eat and drink there together. They pay homage to Perkons by first pouring him beer, which is then brought around the fire, and at last pour it in this fire, asking Perkons to give them rain."

Consequently the main function of Perkons is promotion of fertility. All Perkons' family takes part in this process: the sons thunder, strike, lighten; the daughters and the mother (i.e. wife) sift rain; and the daughter-in-law thunders like Perkons himself. Obviously Perkons' family is created by differentiating the appearances of thunder phenomena. The origin of this greatest mythic family in Latvian folk religion is influenced both by the pattern of God's sons (Dieva deli) and Sun's daughters (Saules meitas) - the ancient mythical beings, having their parallels in Lithuanian, Hindu, and Greek mythology, and by the model of ordinary peasants' family.


In folksongs a peasant asks Perkons to bring rain, because the "shoots of barley are faded" (LD 33711) as well as thanks Perkons for the harvest in autumn. In some legend types traces of food offerings to Perkons are preserved. Examples:

1. To entice Perkons a man holds in his hand bread with butter or a honey pot. In the other hand there is an axe or a knife to kill Perkons. Perkons strikes the man (LFK 1552, 851.
2. Perkons drowns a woman named Baba, because she has violated the ritual norms, offering Perkons spoiled food or grass. (LFK 828, 21517). A food offering was used also to prevent thunder. Folk belief has it that during thunderstorms honeycombs must be put into the fire to make the clouds disperse (LTT 23472).

2. Persecution of a Devil.

The notable contributors to the Indo-Europeistic theories V.V. Ivanov and V.N. Toporov in their reconstruction of "basic Indo-European myth" about the fight between the Thunder god and the Devil (Dragon) (Ivanov, Toporov 1974) regard Perkons/Perkunas/Percunis as one of the two central figures of the myth. Latvian folklore material cannot serve as evidence of this hypothesis. In most of the texts, especially in folk tales, legends and magic spells, the international motifs dominate. There, Perkons does not fight with the Devil (Velns, Jods), but persecutes and kills him. The ready-made opposition of the Devil as the evil force to Perkons (frequently substituted by Dievs as the Christian God) as one who implements an absolute justice, is obvious result of the influence of Christian worldview. There is no folksong text with the direct reflection of the fight between Perkons and Velns, although a few allusions are met: a man kills the Devil (Jods) with a sword, hammered of sparkles made by Heavenly smith (Perkons) (LD 33731).

3. Participant of Heavenly Wedding

In the Latvian version of the Indo-European myth of the Heavenly Wedding, reflected in Latvian folksong material, God's son (Dieva dels) or Morning star (Auseklis) or Moon (Meness, masculine in Latvian) marries Sun's daughter (Saules meita, Sun - female in Latvian), and Perkons is a relative of the bride (sometimes of the groom). On his way to the wedding Perkons strikes the golden oak. The oak is the Thunder god's tree, not only in Latvian folk religion. There exist some hypothesis why Perkons strikes the oak. They were discussed, amongst others, by Zicâns in 1936. The most appropriate version for Latvian folksong material is that, by striking the oak, Perkons performs an exorcist act to expel evil spirits. (sic! Velns frequently hides under the roots of an oak, see beliefs, legends, etc.) In Latvian wedding songs, when a bride comes in her new husband's house, the husband's relative (also Dievs - God, Laima - Fortune), cuts a cross in the door-post with the same intention.

4. Heavenly Smith

Can be found only in a small group of folksongs. There are two opposite viewpoints of what deity is represented by the Heavenly smith. The first: it is an independent deity, comparable to Hephaestus in Greek, Volundr in Scandinavian and Ilmarinen in Finnish mythologies (Ivanov, Toporov, Gimbutas etc.). V. Toporov supposes that the Lithuanian deity Teljavelis, mentioned in the chronicles from 1252, reflects three archaic motifs, later related to a mythical smith with no name (Toporov 1970). Unfortunately, the connection of these motifs (Heavenly smith as a servant of Perkons; Heavenly smith hammers magic arms; Heavenly smith takes part in the fight of Perkons with Velns (Devil)) with those of Latvian folksong material is vague.


More plausible is the second point of view: the Heavenly smith is Perkons himself (H. Biezais, V. Greble etc.). The well-known riddle textually doubling the introductive formula of most of "Smith songs" - "Smith hammers in the heaven / Coal bursts in the sea" has an answer "Perkons" (LFK 884, 1912). One of the later versions of the "Smith songs" tells: "Perkons hammers in the heaven" (LTDZ 10495).

5. War god

This hypothetical function of Perkons (see Ivanov etc.) is probably rooted in Dumezil's division of the main Indo-European deities according their social functions: juridical power, defense (war affairs) and promotion of fertility (Dumezil 1986). Although Perkons is well armed, he is not involved in war affairs. Therefore, according Dumezil's division, he undoubtedly fulfils the role of a fertility god.

Appearance

In Latvian folklore Perkons appears most often as a well-armed rider, e.g., the riddle: "Golden horse, silver rider" has an answer "Perkons". The diversity of arms differentiates him from other Latvian deities. Perkons has a sword, an iron rod, a golden whip, a fiery club, also a gun, a knife and a specific one - a thunder-ball. Perkons uses his arms to create thunder and lightning and in persecution of the Devil.

Archaeologists have discovered that among other adornments, small axes as the symbols of Perkons were worn on the clothing of the ancient Balts. It seems that the idea of Perkons' axe has its origin in beliefs about Perkons' ball, well known also in the other parts of Europe. Latvian belief states: "Ancient sharpened stone axes are taken for thunder-balls and it is believed that they can heal illnesses." (LTT 23341)


Perkons' horse, on the one hand, belongs to the paradigm of folksong horses, ideal of which is a well-kept and a splendidly equipped young man's horse. On the other hand, in some texts description of Perkons' horse has a specific mytho-poetical background - it is "stone horse" (LD 33705), "led mare" (LD 33712), etc. Perkons can ride also a cloud or lightning. The chariot is a well-known attribute of a Thunder god (e.g., in Lithuanian, Hindu, Scandinavian, etc. mythologies) and is not characteristic for Latvian Perkons.


Perkons' portrait in Latvian folklore is formed using the traditional formulas: "old man" and "tiny man". The first of them in version Vecais tevs (Old father, LD 33719) appears in folksongs, but in versions "Old man with white beard" (LFK 720,2, LFK 941,2681), "Grey haired man with long beard", (LP vol.7, p.465) - in folk legends. Taking into account that this formula in Latvian folklore texts fits for portraying also God, Devil and the Old man - leader of flying lakes (sometimes concretized as God and Perkons) as well as Old man in magic spells, it belongs to the internationally recognized archetype of the Old man. The formula "tiny man" does not express doubts in Perkons power, although sometimes it has a lightly humorous connotation. In one legend type the formula obtains a special meaning, opposing Perkons as a "tiny man" to the Devil appearing as a "tall (black) man". Generally the formula "tiny man" is less characteristic for the description of Perkons than of God, Devil etc.

FROM: HERE

Article "Perkons" created on 03 March 1997; last modified on 08 April 2002 (Revision 2). 1724 words.
© MCMXCV - MMVI Encyclopedia Mythica™. All rights reserved.

MORE INFO:

Baltic God (Perkons):
Latvian Sky Deities
Perkons, or Perkunas, or Perkunis, or The Thunderer
Perkūnas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Perkons : Perkele

Slavic God (Perun):
Perun
Perun - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Perun | Encyclopedia of Religion
Perun
Perun (outline-ish thing with info)
Moist Mother Earth: Slavic Myth and Religion

The Zorya

In Slavic mythology, the Zorya (alternately: Zarya, Zvezda, Zwezda) are the three (sometimes two) guardian goddesses, known as the Auroras.

They guard and watch over the doomsday hound that threatens to eat the constellation Ursa Minor, the 'little bear.' If the chain breaks loose and the constellation is devoured, the universe is said to end. The Auroras represent the Morning Star, Evening Star, and Midnight Star, respectively, although the Midnight Star is sometimes omitted. In some myths, the morning Zorya was the wife of the male Myesyats, the moon god, and was a major goddess. In other myths, the Zoryas are virgin goddesses who flank the sun (see sundog), and Myesyats is an unrelated female moon goddess. The Zorya are associated with marriage, protection, and exorcisms.

The Morning Star is Zorya Utrennyaya (also Zvezda Danica, Zvezda Dennitsa, Zwezda Dnieca, Zvezda Zornitsa, Zora). She opens the heavenly gates for the chariot of the sun in the morning. She is depicted as a fully armed and courageous warrior. She is the patron goddess of horses, and is associated with the planet Venus. She is invoked to protect against death in battle, and her prayers were addressed as "Defend me, O maiden, with your veil from the enemy, from the arquebus and arrow..."

The Evening Star is Zorya Vechernyaya (also Vecernja Zvezda, Zvezda Vechernaya, Zwezda Wieczoniaia, Zwezda Wieczernica, Zvezda Vechernitsa, Zarja). She closes the gates of heaven each night as the sun returns home.

The Midnight Star is Zorya Polunochnaya (also Zwezda Polnoca). Some legends omit this Zorya, leaving only the Morning and Evening Auroras. Each night, the sun dies in the Midnight Zorya's arms and is then restored to life. She is a goddess of death, rebirth, magic, mysticism, and wisdom.

The Zorya are sometimes associated with the Triple Goddess mythic archetype, with the Morning, Evening and Midnight Zoryas representing the maiden, mother, and crone, respectively.

From: Wiki

Zorya (Slavic) There were three Slavic dawn goddesses. There was Utrennyaya, the morning star; Vechernyaya, the evening star; and the midnight star was Zorya. All have the same duty, to guard a chained dog from eating the constellation Ursa Minor, the little bear. If the chain should break and the dog became loose, the universe will end. Due to this the Zoryas are guardians.
From: here

• Vechernyaya Zezhda 5
- celestial spirit - infer
- female 4,5,6,11
- the evening star 2,4,6,11
- the planet Mercury or Venus AHD4
- prominent in the west shortly after sunset AHD4
- sister to Zezhda Dennitsa 5
- sister to Zorya Utrenyaya, Zorya Vechernyaya & Polunocnica 5,6
aka Zwezda Wieczo[a]rniaia [Pol] 4
aka Gwiazda Wieczorna 4
- Gwiazdka (little star) 4
aka Vechernyaya Zvezda 2,6
- sister to Zvezda Dennitsa 6
- daughter to Dazhdbog 6
- daughter to Solntse 6,20
aka Vechernitsa 11
- vecher (evening) 11
- the planet Venus 11
- daughter to Dazhdbog 11
- associated with razputno vreme 11
- the hours after midnight 11
- (evil hours when roads mess up & lead to nowhere) 11
- literally: no roads time - infer
- raz- [OCS] (dis-, un-) 27
- po[o]t' [OCS] (way / road) 27

• Zezhda Dennitsa 5
- celestial spirit - infer
- female 2,5,6,11,20
- the morning star 2
- wife to Myesyats 2
- sister to Vechernyaya Zezhda 5
- sister to Zorya Utrenyaya, Zorya Vechernyaya & Polunocnica 5
aka Zorya Zwezda Dnieca 4
aka Zwezda Dnieca [Pol] 4
aka Gwiazda Poranna [Pol] 4
- gwiazdka (little star) 4
aka Zora Zornicka [Pol] 4
aka Zvezda Dennitsa 2,6
- sister to Vechernyaya Zvezda 6
- daughter to Dazhdbog 6
- daughter to Solntse 6,20
see Zorya Utrennyaya 6
aka Danica 6,20
- (day star) 6,20
- the planet Venus 6,20
- visible in the east just before or at sunrise AHD4
- seduced by Myesyats 6,20
- sister to the sun 20
aka Danitsa [Cro] [Srb] 6,20
aka Denica [Rus] 6,20
aka Dnevnitsa 11
- (day star) 11
- the planet Venus 11
- daughter to Dazhdbog 11
- associated with razputno vreme 11
- the hours after midnight 11
- (evil hours when roads mess up & lead to nowhere) 11
- literally: no roads time - infer
- raz- [OCS] (dis-, un-) 27
- po[o]t' [OCS] (way / road) 27
- vre[h]me[o] [OCS] (time) 27
aka Zornica 11
- (dawn star) 11
aka Zornitsa 11
aka Zurya Utrennyaya 20

• (the) Zorya / (the) Zorza [Pol] [Rus] 4,10
- prognostic spirits
- female 4,5
- the auroras 4,5
- the Slavic fates 4
aka (the) Zorya (ZOR-yah) 5
- daughters to Dazhdbog 5,6
- Zorya Utrenyaya 5
- Zorya Vechernyaya 5
- Polunocnica 5
aka (the) Zori 11
- zora (dawn) / zori (pl) 11

• Zorya Dennitsa 6
- temporal spirit - infer
- female 6
- aurora of the dawn 6
- wife to Svarog 6
- mother to Dazbog 6
see Zorya Utrennyaya 6

• Zorya Utrenyaya >ZOR-yah< 5,6,10
- temporal spirit - infer
- female 2,5,6,10,20
- aurora of the dawn 5,6,10,20
- sits on the fiery stone Alatuir 6,20
aka Alatyr 1
- from under which flows a healing river 6,20 / four rivers 1
- in Bouyan 6,20 or Bonyan: the otherworld paradise 6
- Buyan 1
- sister to Zorya Vechernyaya & Polunocnica 5
- sister to Zezhda Dennitsa & Vechernyaya Zezhda 5
aka Zorya Utrennyaya 2,6,20
- utro / jutro [OCS] (morning) 2,6
see Zvezda Dennitsa 6
see Zorya Dennitsa 6
aka Utrennyaya 6
aka Dnieca [Pol] 6
aka Dennitsa 20
- seduced by Myesyats 20

• Zorya Vechernyaya >ZOR-yah< 2,5,6,10,20
- temporal spirit - infer
- female 2,5,6,10,20
- aurora of the evening / sunset 5,6,10,20
- vecher (evening) 2
- dusk / twilight 6
- in Bouyan 6,20 or Bonyan: the otherworld paradise 6
- sister to Zorya Utrenyaya & Polunocnica 5
- sister to Zezhda Dennitsa & Vechernyaya Zezhda 5
aka Zarya Verchernyaya 6
aka Zvezda Vechemyaya 6
aka Wieczo[a]rniaia [Pol] 6
aka (the) Zarya 20
- the morning star 20
- vre[h]me[o] [OCS] (time) 27

From: Here

Zorya, Zarya : Verchernyaya, Utrennyaya
The Slavic ‘Three Fates’. ‘Three little sisters', they included Verchernyaya ('she of the aurora of Dusk/ Twilight', Pol. Wieczorniaia), she of Midnight, and the dawn-goddess Utrennyaya ('she of the aurora of Morning’, Pol. Dnieca). Utrennyaya and Vechernyaya were the most prominent, being daughters of the sun-god Dazhbog. Utrennyaya was identified with the morning star, Vechernyaya with the evening star. The latter was also a warrior-maiden.

Zorya Utrenyaya sits under an oak tree (i.e. Slavic 'world tree'?) on the fiery stone Alatuir and under her seat flows the healing river. Each day Zorya Utrennyaya opens the sky-palace gates for her father, who rides out across the sky. At the end of his daily travel, Zorya Vechernyaya closes the opposite gates.

Like the Norns of Norse mythology, the Zorya kept the doomsday wolf fettered to prevent it from wreaking destruction on the world. The Slavic wolf was bound to the pole star in Ursa Minor. When the chain breaks it will herald the end of the world. In fact, one of the Norns, Skuld, also was known as a Valkyrie ('warrior maiden'), paralleling Vechemayaya. Thus the Zorya are guardian goddesses of the universe. An Egyptian parallel of the three Zorya was the goddess Reret, who also kept the powers of destruction fettered by a chain.

The Zarya rule in Bouyan (or Bonyan), the Slavic otherworld paradise equivalent to the Celtic Avalon, Greek Hesperides, and so on. There are four streams issuing from under the magic stone Alatuir in the island paradise of Bonyan.
*
Zvezda Dennitsa
‘The Morning Star’. Daughter of the sun god, Dazhbog. She is synonymous with Zorya Utrennyaya. She is known to some as the wife of the moon god. She helps Vechernyaya Zvezda care for their father’s horses that he drives cross the sky each day.

Zvezda Vechemyaya
Slavonic goddess of the Evening Star. Another name for Zorya Vechernyaya.

From: Here

Svarog

Slavic sun and fire god, originally the supreme god of the Slavic pantheon. He is the divine smith, and patron of the fire of the hearth and of blacksmiths. In his capacity as a smith he is often equated with the Greek Hephaestus. He is also thought responsible for institutionalizing marriage. His sons are the gods Dabog and Svarozic. In later times he degrades to some kind of fire demon.
From: here

Svarog, Svarogich, Dazhbog

The name of Svarog is found only in East Slavic manuscripts, where it is usually equated with the Greek smith god Hephaestus. However, the name is very ancient, indicating that Svarog was a deity of Proto-Slavic pantheon. The root svar means bright, clear, and the suffix -og denotes a place. Comparison with Vedic Svarga indicates that Svarog simply meant (daylight) sky. It is possible he was the original sky god of the pantheon, perhaps a Slavic version of Proto-Indo-European *Dyçus Ph2ter. Svarog can be also understood as meaning a shining, fiery place; a forge. This, and indentification with Hephaestus from historic sources, indicates he was also a god of fire and blacksmithing. According to the interpretation by Ivanov and Toporov, Svarog had two sons: Svarogich, who represented fire on earth, and Dazhbog, who represented fire in the sky and was associated with Sun. Svarog was believed to have forged the Sun and have given it to his son Dazhbog to carry it across the sky.

It can be shown Dazhbog was known among all three branches of Slavs, and was therefore a major Proto-Slavic deity. In Russian manuscripts he is equated with Sun, and folklore remembers him as a benevolent deity of light and sky. Serbian folklore, however, presents a far darker picture of him; he is remembered as Dabog, a frightful and lame deity guarding the doors of the underworld, associated with mining and precious metals. Veselin Èajankoviã pointed out that these two aspects fit quite nicely into a symbolism of Slavic solar deity; a benevolent side represents the Dazhbog during day, when he carries the Sun accros the sky. The malevolent and ugly Dabog carries the Sun through the underworld at night. This pattern can also be applied to Sun's yearly cycle; a benevolent aspect is associated with young, summer Sun, and a malevolent one with old, winter Sun.

Svarogic was worshipped as a fire spirit by Russian peasants well after Christianisation. He was also known amongst Western Slavs, but there he was worshipped as a supreme deity in the holy city of Radegast. Svarogich is a simply deminutive of Svarog's name, and thus it may simply be another aspect (a surname, so to speak) of Dazhbog. There is also a point of view that Svarog was the ancestor of all other Slavic gods, and thus Svarogich could simply be an epithet of any other deity, so that Dazhbog, Perun, Veles, and so on, were possibly all Svarogichs.

From: Here

(Fear-Lord) God of fire, and one of the eight primary deities. He was patron of smiths, and is considered a patron of artisans and craftsmen, as well. He also has some connection to marriage. He is the father of Dazhdebog and was represented as a horseman with spears.
From: Here

Also:
Svarozic
Svarozits (Sanskrit for "brightness")
In his capacity as a smith he is often equated with the Greek Hephaestus.
In Christian times, he may have become St.George.

About him:
He was not quite as well known as Perun, but he was more important.
He was the father of all gods and the "heaven walker." He was the oldest of the Russian gods.
He was the god of the elements (especially the sky).
He was a sort-of blacksmith-god and was associated with fires.
He forged the sun:
1. Khors: The sun, itself
2. Dazhdbog: The sunlight
3. Stribog: The winds and the atmosphere
4. Svarozhich: The hearth fire
5. Dabog
He was sometimes depicted with three heads.
He could assume many shapes (bull, grey wolf, horse and especially a falcon).
He was thought responsible for institutionalizing marriage.
He didn't create the World, only the living universe.
He and Dazhbog were the givers of life and the providers of wealth.
In later times he degraded to some sort of fire demon.
From: Here

Veles/Volos

Veles (Cyrillic: Велес; Polish: Weles; Old Russian and Old Church Slavonic: Велесъ) also known as Volos (Russian: Волосъ) (listed as a Christian saint in Old Russian texts) is a major Slavic god of earth, waters and the underworld, associated with dragons, cattle, magic, musicians, wealth and trickery. He is also the opponent of thunder-god Perun, and the battle between two of them constitutes one of the most important myths of Slavic mythology. No direct accounts survive, but reconstructions speculate that he may directly continue aspects of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon and that he may have been imagined as (at least partially) serpentine, with horns (of a bull, ram or some other domesticated herbivore), and a long beard.

Veles is one of few Slavic gods for which evidence of worship can be found in all Slavic nations. The Primary Chronicle, a historical record of the early Eastern Slavic state, is the earliest and most important record, mentioning a god named Volos several times. Here, Volos is mentioned as god of cattle and peasants, who will punish oath-breakers with diseases, the opposite of Perun who is a described as a ruling god of war who punishes by death in battle. In the later half of 10th century, Veles or Volos was one of seven gods whose statues Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev had erected in his city. It is very interesting that Veles' statue apparently wasn't standing next to others, on the hill where the prince's castle was, but lower in the city, on the marketplace. Not only does this indicate that Veles was connected with commerce, but it also shows that worship of Perun and Veles had to be kept separate: while it was proper for Perun's shrines to be built high, on the top of the hill, Veles' place was down, in the lowlands.


A similar pattern can be observed amongst the South Slavs. Here the name of Veles appears only in toponyms, the most well-known of which is the city of Veles in Macedonia, over which looms a hill of St. Elias the Thunderer. Another example is the town of Volosko in Croatia, situated on the seashore under the peak of Mount Ucka, nicknamed Perun. Amongst Western Slavs, the name can be principally found in 15th and 16th century Czech records, where it means either dragon or devil.

The main problem with etymologising the name of this Slavic deity is that there are two different forms of name know from historic sources and toponyms, Volos and Veles, and it is difficult to establish a relation between them. Proto-Slavic *Velsъ or *Volsъ would both have yielded Volosъ, but not Velesъ. Old Russian Велесъ is only known from The Tale of Igor's Campaign (ca. 1200, though its authenticity is disputed). Suggested identity with toponyms such as Macedonian Veles, Greek Βελεσσα or Albanian Veles remain doubtful. Vasmer (1979) argues against an identification of Veles and Volos and considers a connection with Old Church Slavonic velьjь "great". Volosъ himself appears as a Christian saint in the Laurentian codex, as well as listed among other saints, in the 11th c. birch bark document nr. 914) and has been connected to Saint Blasius (Βλασιος), an association reinforced by the nature of Veles as a god of cattle, and the function of Blasius as a protector of livestock.


The Indo-European etymology of the name is unknown, already because we do not know whether Volos or Veles should be considered the original form, but connections have been suggested with Vala, the enemy of Vedic thunder-god Indra, and to Vels or Velinas, a devil of Baltic mythology and enemy of Baltic thunder-god Perkūnas, as well as Nordic Vǫlsi "priapus". One possibility is that the name derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *wel-, meaning wool [1] (if so, the English word "wool" would actually be fairly closely related to the name of this god). "Volos" is also the Russian word for "hair." This seems logical since Veles was believed to be deity of a horned cattle. The name may also be related to Slavic terminology for oxen, for which the South Slavs and Russians all use "вол/vol."


The Russian philologists Vyacheslav Vsevolodovich Ivanov and Vladimir Toporov reconstructed the mythical battle of Perun and Veles through comparative study of various Indo-European mythologies and a large number of Slavic folk stories and songs. A unifying characteristic of all Indo-European mythologies is a story about a battle between a god of thunder and a huge serpent or a dragon. In the Slavic version of the myth, Perun is a god of thunder, whilst Veles acts as a dragon who opposes him, consistent with the Vala etymology; He is also similar to the Etruscan Underworld-monster Vetha and to the dragon Illuyankas, enemy of the storm god of Hittite mythology.

The reason of enmity between the two gods is Veles' theft of Perun's son, wife or, usually, cattle. It is also an act of challenge: Veles, in the form of a huge serpent, slithers from the caves of the Underworld and coils upwards the Slavic world tree towards Perun's heavenly domain. Perun retaliates and attacks Veles with his lightning bolts. Veles flees, hiding or transforming himself into trees, animals or people. In the end he is killed by Perun, and in this ritual death, whatever Veles stole is released from his battered body in form of rain falling from the skies. This Storm myth, as it is generally referred to by scholars today, explained to ancient Slavs the changing of seasons through the year. The dry periods were interpreted as chaotic results of Veles' thievery. Storms and lightning were seen as divine battles. The following rain was the triumph of Perun over Veles and re-establishment of world order.

The myth was cyclical, repeating itself each year. The death of Veles was never permanent; he would reform himself as a serpent who would shed its old skin and would be reborn in a new body. Although in this particular myth he plays the negative role as bringer of chaos, Veles was not seen as an evil god by ancient Slavs. In fact, in many of the Russian folk tales, Veles, appearing under the Christian guise of St. Nicholas, saves the poor farmer and his cattle from the furious and destructive St. Elias the Thunderer, who, of course, represents the old Perun. The duality and conflict of Perun and Veles does not represent the dualistic clash of good and evil; rather, it is the opposition of the natural principles of earth, water and substance (Veles) against heaven, fire and spirit (Perun).



Ancient Slavs viewed their world as a huge tree, with the treetop and branches representing the heavenly abode of gods and the world of mortals, whilst the roots represented the underworld. And while Perun, seen as a hawk or eagle sitting on a tallest branch of tree, was believed to be ruler of heaven and living world, Veles, seen as a huge serpent coiling around the roots, was ruling the world of dead. This was actually quite a lovely place, described in folk tales as a green and wet world of grassy plains and eternal spring, where various fantastic creatures dwell and the spirits of deceased watch over Veles' herds of cattle. In more geographical terms, the world of Veles was located, the Slavs believed, "across the sea", and it was there the migrating birds would fly to every winter. In folk tales this land is called Virey or Iriy. Each year, the god of fertility and vegetation, Jarilo, who also dwelt there during winter, would return from across the sea and bring spring into the world of the living.

Veles also regularly sent spirits of the dead into the living world as his heralds. Festivals in honour of him were held near the end of the year, in winter, when time was coming to the very end of world order, chaos was growing stronger, the borders between worlds of living and dead were fading, and ancestral spirits would return amongst the living. This was the ancient pagan celebration of Velja noc (Great Night), the relic of which still persists amongst many Slavic countries in folk customs of Koleda, a kind of combination of carnival and Halloween, which can happen anywhere from Christmas up to end of February. Young men, known as koledari or vucari would dress long coats of sheep's wool and don grotesque masks, roaming around villages in groups and raising a lot of noise. They sang songs saying they travelled a long way, and they are all wet and muddy, an allusion of the wet underworld of Veles from which they came as ghosts of dead. The master of any house they visited would welcome them warmly and presented them with gifts. This is an example of Slavic shamanism, which also indicates Veles was a god of magic and wealth. The gifts given to koledari were probably believed to be passed onto him (which makes him very much like a dragon hoarding treasure), thus ensuring good fortune and wealth for the house and family through entire year. As seen in descriptions from the Primary Chronicle, by angering Veles one would be stricken by diseases.

Veles' nature for mischief is evident both from his role in Storm myth and in carnival customs of Koledari shamans. In his role as a trickster god, he is in some ways similar to both Greek Hermes and Scandinavian Loki, and like them, he was connected with magic. The word volhov, obviously derived from his name, in some Slavic languages still means sorcerer, whilst in the 12th century Russian epic The Tale of Igor's Campaign, character of Boyan the wizard is called Veles' grandson. Since magic was and is closely linked to music in primitive societies, Veles was also believed to be protector of travelling musicians. For instance, in some wedding ceremonies of northern Croatia (which continued up to 20th century), the music would not start playing unless the bridegroom, when making a toast, spilled some of the wine on the ground, preferably over the roots of the nearest tree. The symbolism of this is clear, even though forgotten long ago by those still performing it: the musicians will not sing until a toast is made to their patron deity [1].

Veles' main practical function was protecting the cattle of Slavic tribes. Often he was referred to as skotji bog, meaning "cattle-god". One of his attributes, as mentioned, were horns of bull or a ram, and probably also sheep's wool. As stated already, Veles was a god of magic, and in some folk accounts, the expression presti vunu (weaving wool) or, particularly, crnu vunu presti (weaving of black wool) stands as allusion to magical crafts. In some of surviving Koledo songs, Koledari sing they are coming along and "weaving black wool".

Thus, being a "wooly" god, Veles was considered to be a protector of shepherds, which reveals one additional trait of his enemity with Perun, who, as a giver of rain, would be god of farmers. Veles, however, did have some influence over agriculture, or at least harvest. Among many Slavic nations, most notably in Russia, a harvest custom persisted of cutting the first ear of wheat and tying it in a sort of amulet which protected the harvest from evil spirits. This was called 'tying of the beard of Veles', which also indicates Veles was imagined to be bearded. In several South Slavic languages, witty expressions such as puna šaka brade (full fist of beard) or, particularly, primiti boga za bradu ("to grab a god for [his] beard", the forgotten god in this expression most likely being a pagan Veles), allude to exceptionally good fortune and gaining of wealth.

From: Wiki

Perun and Veles

Ivanov and Toporov reconstructed the ancient myth involving the two major gods of the Proto-Slavic pantheon, Perun and Veles. The two of them stand in opposition in almost every way. Perun is a heavenly god of thunder and lightning, fiery and dry, who rules the living world from his citadel high above, located on the top of the highest branch of the World Tree. Veles is a chthonic god associated with waters, earthly and wet, lord of underworld, who rules the realm of dead from down in the roots of the World Tree. Perun is a giver of rain for farmers, god of war and weapons, invoked by fighters. Veles is a god of cattle, protector of shepherds, associated with magic and commerce.

A cosmic battle fought between two of them echoes the ancientIndo-European myth of a fight between a storm god and a dragon. Attacking with his lightning bolts from sky, Perun pursues his serpentine enemy Veles who slithers down over earth. Veles taunts Perun and flees, transforming himself into various animals, hiding behind trees, houses, or people. In the end, he is killed by Perun, or he flees into the water, into the underworld. This is basically the same thing; by killing Veles, Perun does not actually destroy him, but simply returns him to his place in the world of the dead. Thus the order of the world, disrupted by Veles's mischief, is established once again by Perun. The idea that storms and thunder are actually a divine battle between the supreme god and his arch-enemy was extremely important to Slavs, and continued to thrive long after Perun and Veles were replaced by God and Devil. A lightning bolt striking down a tree or burning down a peasant's house was always explained through the belief of a raging heavenly deity bashing down on his earthly, underworldly, enemy.

The enmity of the two gods was explained by Veles theft of Perun's cattle, or by Perun's theft of Veles's cattle (since Veles was god of cattle, the matter of ownership here is not clear). The motif of stealing divine cattle is also a common one in Indo-European mythology; the cattle in fact may be understood simply as a metaphor for heavenly water or rain. Thus, Veles steals rain water from Perun, or Perun steals water for rain from Veles (again, since Veles is associated with waters, and Perun with sky and clouds, it is unclear to whom rain should belong). An additional reason for this enmity may be wife-theft. From folklore accounts it seems clear that the Sun was considered to be Perun's wife. However, since the Sun, in the mythic view of the world, dies every evening, as it descends beyond horizon and into the underworld where it spends the night, this was understood by Slavs as Veles's theft of Perun's wife (but again, the rebirth of the Sun in the morning could also be understood as Perun's theft of Veles's wife).

From: here

The Slavic god of cattle and horned livestock (skotyi bog). Veles also became associated with commerce, wealth, and prosperity; merchants often sealed their agreements by swearing upon his name, and legal documents sometimes concluded with oaths to him. This second attribute has led Roman Jakobson to speculate that, as an older, Indo-European deity, Veles absorbed some of the functions of the Vedic god Varuna, who was seen in part as a protector of world order and a guarantor of promises. B. A. Rybakov argues that Veles emerged during the neolithic era as a "master of the forest" – presiding over the souls of wild animals killed for food – then underwent a transformation to a "god of flocks" as Slavic societies made the transition from hunting and gathering to a more settled, agricultural existence. Some Baltic groups worshipped Veles as well, but connected him more with the underworld and the dead; the Lithuanian root vele means "shade of the deceased" or "shadow of death."

After the Christianization of the Slavs, Veles's identity was absorbed into the new religious order in several ways. In some places, he disappeared altogether. In others, Veles was depicted as the devil; the fact that he had often been pictured as a horned god made this equation natural, and as late as the 16th century, the Czechs referred to Veles as a demon. On the other hand, most Orthodox Russians identified Veles with St. Vlas (Blasius), who became the patron saint of livestock. Icons of St. Vlas were placed in cattle sheds, and on the saint's name day (February 12), cattle were treated to special feed.

From: here

About him:
He was the god of wealth, cattle, harvest, grain, merchants, poetry and oracles.
He became particularly associated with commerce.
His idol was often placed in marketplaces.
He was sometimes the god of farmers.
His cult was very popular around Novgorod.
He was a mischievous god, and he was fond of playing tricks and casting spells.
He became St.Vlas (Blaise or Blasius).
A treaty between the Russians and the Greeks signed in 971 refers to him as "god of flocks."

From:here