Spirits of water in Slavic mythology. Lizard - the god of water among the ancient Slavs

The most basic spirit of Water among our ancestors was considered the Water One (Water grandfather, Vodovik) - who most often took the form of a large old man, all overgrown with hair, predominantly green and a long beard.

Often entangled the body of the Water Ooze, and his legs were replaced by a fish tail - an attribute of many aquatic inhabitants. The state of the Lord of the water world depended directly on the phases of the moon: the strength of the water grandfather increased for a young month, and noticeably decreased after the full moon.

The Slavs believed that Water has a real gift of prophecy, and that water itself stores information about the future and the past.

Therefore, unmarried girls on Christmastide always went down to fortune-telling to the ice-hole, and hoped that the Water One would let them see the reflection of their betrothed. Fishermen to Vodyanoy brought abundant sacrifices so that he would drive more fish into the net and not cause harm to everyone in his power.

In the retinue of Vodyanik there were waterworms, otherwise called mermaids, beautiful girls with very long hair, and very pale, almost transparent skin. According to legends, those who accidentally drowned or who were killed by someone's evil will became Vodyanits. These spirits of Water constantly played pranks and often brought harm to people: they confused the nets of fishermen, destroyed dams and bridges. Nevertheless, their behavior was, to put it mildly, not very unambiguous. Often the peasants called Vodyanits directly to the fields, because they knew that where the water maidens run, the land will give an excellent harvest. Sometimes it happened that, having fallen in love with a mortal man, Vodyanitsa married him, but their marriage was unhappy.

Kikimora is another ancient water spirit. She lived in swampy swamps, so it's not particularly surprising that our ancestors considered her to be an insidious and dangerous creature. Kikimora looked like a small woman, sometimes even taking the form of a girl, dressed with swamp flowers in her hair and fluffy moss. She showed herself to people very rarely, mostly screaming out of the bog in her terrible voice. She could drag an unwary traveler to her and torture him to death.

The Slavs undoubtedly attributed Brodnits to the good spirits of Water, this is a kind of Beregin, who are well-disposed towards people. Such beautiful maidens often settled near beaver dams and erected their passages from tree branches across rivers so that one could get from shore to shore. Moreover, as their name implies, the Brodnitsy guarded the fords, they were not allowed to collapse, and indicated these fords to usually strayed travelers from the road.

People from ancient times knew that no matter what spirits of Water possessed properties, it was possible to establish contact with them only by expressing their deepest respect and showing concern for the elements. Otherwise, even a very negative spirit or deity would become intimidating and unfriendly.

Water grandfather is the master of waters. Aquatic at the bottom of rivers and lakes graze herds of their cows - catfish, bream, carp and other fish. Commanded by undines, mermaids, and other aquatic inhabitants. In general, he is usually kind, but sometimes the waterman is not averse to pampering and dragging a gaping person to the very bottom so that he entertains him. By the way, the drowned go to the service of this strange grandfather.

Our ancestors represented the aquatic one in the form of a flabby, naked old man, goggle-eyed, and even with a fish tail. He was all entangled in ooze, has a thick, large beard, and a green mustache. The merman could turn into a large fish, a horse or a child. He dwells more often in pools, likes to settle under a water mill. He is capable of destroying dams, because he needs to be propitiated by sacrificing some animal.

The water springs were endowed with special power, according to legend, the springs arose from the lightning strike of Perun himself - a very strong deity. These keys were called "rattling" and this is preserved in the names of many sources.

Swamp kikimors. From time to time strange sounds are heard in the swamps - as if the voice of some unknown creature. As much as you like, you can assure that these are the cries of the squelching mud and the cries of marsh birds - the local population will still believe in monsters living in the bog and dragging people away to them. According to the well-known Russian belief, dangerous otherworldly entities called kikimors live in the swamp. Girls who are cursed by their mothers in the womb or before the moment of baptism, as well as those who have died unbaptized, can become kikimors. Such children are abducted by unclean forces even in infancy, and at the age of seven they also turn into terrible and evil spirits - kikimor. Some kikimors later marry brownies, and then begin to do dirty tricks in the houses, others - for the goblin.

For many Russians folk beliefs, Kikimors love to lure cautious travelers into the bog. Usually they do not show themselves to people, they only shout in a loud voice from the swamp, calling for help. Those who rush to this call will inevitably perish. Kikimora can turn into a beautiful girl. If he beckons the traveler to him, he will step up to her - and she will drag him into the swamp ... Sometimes the children of the kikimora and the leshawk, the goblin, lead people from prank into the swamp. At best, in its ugly appearance, the kikimora jumps on the traveler's back and rides on him, as if on a horse, while leaving him alive.

One of the most popular heroes of beliefs, fairy tales, parables and proverbs. The mention of him occurs both in ancient times and in modern language... The image of a trait is multifaceted: on the one hand, it is a generalizing name for any unclean spirits, and in peasant beliefs it is difficult to distinguish it from a watery, a devil, a bannik, etc. But along with this there is a specific image of devils as inhabitants of hell, the underworld, where they torment unfortunate sinners with fire. The devils leave their abode for the sole purpose of doing nasty things to people. They originate, according to the same beliefs, from rebellious angels who were cast out of Heaven as punishment. Some of them fell underground together with their leader Satan, and they turned into devils, demons, devils. Others, having fallen to the ground, settled in forests, swamps, rivers, houses and began to be called brownies, water, wood gobies, swamps. In the hellish kingdom, devils have their own hierarchy. “Damn, devil, demon, Satan - to these fictitious persons, commoners determine different degrees and merits and assure that the devil confuses, the demon incites, the devil urges, and Satan creates signs to vibrate firmly in the faith of those who abide”. From the above, it can be seen that devils differ from other malevolent people, according to popular beliefs, they are less harmful and often have a good-natured character. The devil seduces people and loves to play a trick on them, which is why in many areas he was called a "buffoon". One of the stories told about a little imp who refused to do dirty tricks and prayed to God to help him avoid punishment from the older devils. God heard him, hid him, and after that the devil became an angel. The devil was usually depicted in the form of a black hairy creature with a tail, horns, sharp claws and hooves on its legs. He flies, his eyes burn like coals; may be chrome and bald. The devil is a werewolf, appears to people in the form of a man, an animal, a bird, a reptile, is also shown in his favorite guise - a whirlwind that will pick up, whirl, and knock a person out of the way. ("Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka").

They tried not to use the word "devil", otherwise he would become attached, he would not leave alone, he would constantly persecute and do evil. More often than devil they said: “accursed”, “crafty”, “black”, “horned”, “unwashed”. Devils live, as a rule, in swamps, ravines, pools, which were considered the entrance to the underworld of Satan. They are also found in mountain caves, abandoned houses, in water mills, in impassable thickets. They love to gather at crossroads and play grandmothers or beat on fists, it is here, if there is a need for that, that they seek a meeting with the evil one. In exchange for a soul, the devil can bestow whatever you want - and glory, and wealth, and love, but the reckoning for this is terrible - eternal torment in hellish hell. The devil is omnipresent, he penetrates into the bathhouse, and into the barn, and even into the hut itself, where he conveniently hides in the attic or in the underground. “Let the devil into the house - you won't knock your forehead out” *. The evil one enters the house through a pipe, which is considered "an unclean place." Prudent housewives usually baptized her three times before lighting the stove. On the other hand, during fortune-telling, the pipe was left open. Devils, like ordinary mortals, have their own wives and children. Usually, damn weddings happen in the summer and people seem to be dust whirlwinds, very dangerous for humans, because they can bring all kinds of ailments with them. Devils marry devils, witches, but sometimes visit longing women, taking on the guise of a loved one. Children born of such unions are devils, witchers, atheists; toads, snakes, and mice are also born. The devils also have their own duties - to guard the treasures, especially the sworn ones. It is not easy to take such a treasure, even if you find it, the devil all the same, having committed some trick, will take the treasure right from under his nose. They are looking for such treasures with a fern flower, which blooms only once a year, on the night of Ivan Kupala. This flower makes a person all-seeing and shows him where the treasure is buried. The devil, by hook or by crook, is trying to prevent the cherished flower from falling into the hands of a person. Almost all of the treasure hunt stories had a bad ending. According to popular beliefs, drunkenness and smoking, mankind is also indebted to the devils, who invented these occupations solely for inciting quarrels and fights between people.

The favorite demonic prey is a late lone drunkard. "A drunkard is a devil brother." Diseases, especially mental ones, mental disorders, hysteria, damage, evil eye are also attributed to the introduction of an unclean person into a person. Devils are especially active during the Christmastide period, more than one fortune-telling is not complete without them, however, those who want to look into their own destiny should be extremely careful, this is fraught with death. But in winter there are less devils than in summer. With the onset of warmth, they appear in such a quantity that Elijah the Prophet has to quite often sit in his winged chariot and drive the unclean all over the world. A faithful and reliable remedy for adversaries is thistle, but flax seed, chapel (alder grass), aconite, weeping herb (from which all unclean people cry), incense ("Afraid like the devil of incense"), cock a sign, swearing. It was also recommended to be vigilant and not be tempted by various promises from strangers, do not remember the devils, by the way, do not take off the pectoral cross. Many Russian proverbs are also associated with the devil: “The Lord is in the tongue, the devil is in the heart”; "Angelic voice, devilish thought"; “Call God, but do not anger the devil”; “He has a devil in his lining, Satan in a patch”; “God sent a job, but the devil took away the hunt”; “Do not be afraid of death, but be afraid of devils”; “To God - a candle, and the devil - a poker,” etc.

Bereginya, Mermaid, Vila, Bathing
Ancient female Spiritinhabiting the waters. Bereginya - Mermaid is usually a young, slender woman, seductively good. This full-breasted maiden with green eyes appears either naked or dressed in one shirt, without a belt. Beregini - Mermaids always have long loose hair of light or green colour... There is information that she has a membrane between her fingers, and instead of legs - a fish tail. Lives Bereginya - Mermaid in the water, preferring empty and deaf places, but sometimes comes ashore. There she can swing on coastal trees, preferring willow or weeping birch. Traces from Beregini - Mermaids occasionally remain on wet sand, but this can only be seen by catching her by surprise, otherwise she digs through the sand and smooths out her tracks. Bereginya appears - the Mermaid can be alone or with her friends. Together they swim, sing funny songs with delightful and tempting voices, sway on the branches, bounce around among themselves, weave wicker baskets from flowers and decorate with them, lead round dances with songs, games and dances. When they splash in the water they like to confuse the nets of the fishermen, and spoil the millstones and dams of the millers. While playing, they steal threads and yarn from women. They love Beregini - Mermaids attract a passer-by and start tickling him, to repulse you need to have wormwood, which you need to throw in your face. Out of boredom, a herd of geese that slept overnight wrap their wings behind one another. Of the magical items, Beregini the Mermaid has a comb with which she can flood a dry place. As long as she scratches her hair with it, until then water will flow from her, but if her hair dries up, then she will die, so she does not go far from the shore.

Demons
Demons (a common Slavic word; Old Orthodox units, part Bs, Ukrainian bic, Bulgarian byas, demon, Serbo-Croatian vises, Slovenian bks, Czech bus, Polish bies, etc .; originally related to Lithuanians . baisus, "terrible" and ultimately goes back to Indo-European. bhoi-dho-s, "causing fear, horror"; Demons - the same root as the word "fear"), in ancient Slavic pagan religious and mythological representations, evil spirits ( traces of this use of the term are in archaic folklore texts, especially in conspiracies). From pagan terminology, the word fell into the Christian tradition, where it was used to translate Greek. daimones are demons. In the old church teachings against paganism, the word "Demons" continued to be used in the original meaning of "evil spirit", although the category of evil spirits was expanded to include the old glories, pagan gods (Perun, Belee, Mokosh, etc., are also called Demons here). Bes is one of the names of Chernobog. Later - a generalized name for evil spirits. Ugly, with pork snouts, long ears and tails, horned and shaggy. They know how to quickly move in space. They are especially zealous in bad weather in autumn and winter. They grunt, chomp, howl, squeal, spit, circling in a frantic dance. They knock a lonely traveler out of the way, lead him into an impassable thicket or bog, push him into an ice-hole; frighten horses and, clinging to the mane, drive them to death. They can turn into inanimate objects. The demon is an evil spirit, demon. In the folk demonology of the Slavs, ideas about Demons developed under the influence of the church-book tradition and approached the beliefs about the devil. In the monuments of Old Russian literature ("The Word of Law and Grace" by Metropolitan Hilarion, XI century) and chronicles, the highest and lowest pagan deities were ranked as "demons", and the word "demon" could mean "pagan god", "idol" ( image of a deity). In the lives, stories, incantatory prayers, Demons act as unclean evil spirits that seduce a person and cause him physical and mental harm (cause illness, hysteria, drunkenness, introduce into - prodigal sin). The demon has usually been described as being of black (blue) color, cf. Russian black, blue "demon, devil"; A shaggy, winged, tailed demon, with claws on its hands and feet, spreads smoke and stench around itself. It can appear in the form of a beast, a snake, a black dog, a bear, a wolf, a warrior, a monk, a foreigner (Ethiopian, Pole, Lithuanian), a buffoon, sometimes an angel, even Jesus Christ. Iconographic images of Bes emphasize his zoomorphic appearance (wings, tail, bird paws) and, especially, his pointed head and hair "shishom" (compare Russian dial. Shish, bump "devil"). In Russian monuments of the 17th century. there are images of Demons with hypertrophied genitals.

Alkonos, Alkonost (Alkion, Akolnost, Alkanost, Alkonot, Alkunost, Alkonost, Antonost) is a bird of paradise, represented by a half-woman - a half-bird with large multi-colored feathers and a girl's head, shaded by a crown and a halo, in which a short inscription is sometimes placed. In addition to the wings, Alkonost has hands in which she holds flowers of paradise or a bundle with an explanatory inscription. She lives on a paradise tree, on Buyan Island (Makariyskiy), together with the Sirin bird, has a sweet voice, like love itself. When she sings, she does not feel herself. He who has heard her wonderful singing will forget everything in the world. With her songs, she consoles and elevates future joy. In winter, Alkonost flies to the sea and lays eggs there, incubating them for seven days. During this time, the sea is completely calm.

Barn, Barn (Anbar)

Barn - The spirit of the barn, its "owner", brother of the Brownie. People turn to the granaries in order to find out the future. Standing at the barn, they listen to what the Barnacle will say or whisper to them. The girls stood up near the barn and said: "The betrothed-mummer, come and measure the rye!" If after that it was heard that grain was being poured in the barn, then it was believed that the fortuneteller would marry a rich man; if it seemed that the floor was being swept with a broom, she would be married to a poor man.

Baba Yaga (Yaga (-ya) Baba, Yagabikha, Yagabova, Yagaya, Yaginishna, Yagikha, Egebitsa; Jedza, Jedzi-baba - Polish; Jenzi, Jezi-baba - Slovak, Jezinka - Czech; Gvozdenzuba - Serbian; Jerzy baba ; Yaga baba - Bulgarian.) - a mysterious old forest woman, a big woman over witches. Outwardly, Baba Yaga is an ugly, hunched-over old woman with long locks of unkempt hair, with a long, blue, snotty hook nose, with one bone or gold leg. Her huge iron breasts hang down to the waist and below. Baba is dressed in one shirt without a girdle. Yaga's eyes glow with red flashes. Her bones come out from under her body in places. Baba Yaga has bony hands and sharp iron teeth. She lives in a dense forest or in a swamp, in a "hut on chicken legs." The hut is surrounded by a fence made of human bones with skulls on pillars. At the gate, the legs are faithful, and instead of constipation, the hands. Instead of a lock - a jaw with sharp teeth... Baba Yaga's hut can turn around its axis, but mostly it faces the forest in front. To get into the hut, the hero needs to cast a spell: "Get up the old way, as your mother set! Back to the forest, in front of me." Baba Yaga rides or flies through the air in an iron, stone or fiery mortar, drives with a pestle or a hook, sweeps the trail with a broomstick. During Baba Yaga's train, the winds howl, the earth moans, the cattle roars, the age-old trees crack and bend. She kidnaps and eats children, which she throws into the oven with a shovel and roasts. The rude old woman conducts most sitting on the stove, spinning a tow, weaving canvases. Baba Yaga loves to make riddles and solve them. She senses the presence of a person and, when she meets, exclaims: "Fu-fu! The hitherto Russian spirit has not been seen by sight, not heard by hearing, but now the Russian spirit is manifested in the eye!" or: "that it smells of the Russian spirit." Baba Yaga is served by black cats, crows, snakes. She knows the language of animals and plants. Baba Yaga lives with her daughters. Sometimes Baba is predisposed to the hero and hospitably meets, and then sets a task or service. Often the task is to guard Baba Yaga's mares, into which her daughters turn. As a reward, Yaga gives magical things: a fire-breathing, fast-footed horse; sword - self-cutting; gusli - samogudy; boots - runners; Magic carpet; a tangle showing the way.

Bannik (Baennik, Baenny, Baynik, Bannitsa, Bannitsa, Obderikha, Laznik) - the owner of the bath. Bannik is a spirit invisible to humans. May seem like a relative or friend. Sometimes he sticks in his true guise - a naked old man with long black disheveled hair and a musty beard. It can turn into a cat, dog, frog, white hare or broom, coal. The bathhouse settles when a child is born in the bathhouse. He lives under a shelf or behind a stove - a stove. Sometimes not alone, but with his wife - a bathhouse and children. The owner of the bathhouse can be cruel - he screams, knocks, tickles, steamed, breaks stones from the stove and throws himself at people, can drag them onto the stove, or he can peel the skin and hang it on the stove. The bunnik loves to take a steam bath and bathes either in the fourth or seventh steam, after sunset or at midnight. Often he is not alone, but with his family and guests, whom he invites to get-togethers - mermaids, goblin, barnmen. He can steal the baby, or replace him with his own child, who is ugly, not talkative and grows poorly. It is necessary to keep the bath clean, leave water, soap, broom to the bathhouse. You can not wash in the fourth steam, or after sunset. Having washed, you need to thank the bathhouse and invite him: "The owner with the hostess, with the little children, visit us." Or turn to the bathhouse itself: "For you, bathhouse, in a standing place, but for our good health." To appease the bannik, you need to bring a piece to the bath rye breadsprinkled with salt and throw a handful of salt on the stove. You can protect yourself from the intrigues of the bannik by strangling a black rooster and burying it on Thursday under the threshold, walking backwards and bowing. You can learn to play musical instruments at the bannik. He has a hat - invisible, which can be obtained once a year. The bannik also has a "non-water" ruble. In order to get it, you need to swaddle a black cat and at midnight throw it into the bathhouse with the words: "You have a baby on you - give me a permanent ruble".

White Woman, Wench

White Woman, Wench is a harbinger of misfortune. Outwardly, White Baba is tall woman dressed in white cloth from head to toe. She suddenly appears most often from the forest on the road. White Baba usually stands silently with closed eyes or cries and wails. Sometimes she asks to buy her a white cloth, and in return predicts the future. Disappears as suddenly as it appears. With her appearance, she foreshadows misfortune, war, illness, death. If there was a patient in the house, in order to prevent White Baba under the porch, they buried the mare's head, hung a scythe over the gate or on the upper jamb of the door, stuck a juniper branch under the mat, and nailed a horseshoe to the threshold.

Schur
Shchur is the god of the boundary, on the other side of which death (squint), not to be confused with churas, chur is associated with the cult of the ancestors-guardians of the dwelling (shunned). Churas are guardian spirits, and churas are of the type of Roman larvas, lemurs, spirits of death, from which they bought off.

Water is one of the elements that plays an important role in human life. The most famous gods of water among the ancient Slavs are Pereplut and Dana. People revered them, asked for help, especially for a good harvest. Water is given to a person in order to illuminate and cleanse both body and soul.

Facts about the god of water Pereplut among the Slavs

They represented him as a kind fat man who constantly ate something. He also had a beard. It was believed that Pereplut patronizes the earth, abundance and seedlings. They believed that the watermen were subordinate to him. In general, the existing data about this god are not enough, therefore, it is impossible to define his functions more broadly and fully.

Slavic goddess of water Dana

She imagined a girl-river. She helped the travelers get drunk and watered the land so that the seeds would sprout. She was revered as a bright goddess who gives life to all living things on earth. Dana's holiday can be considered, since it was at this time that she was most revered. This goddess is glorified near the rivers, which were previously cleansed and decorated with ribbons around the perimeter. The Slavs believed that such water becomes healing. This pagan goddess of water was also called by young girls to find their soul mate. It supports health and beauty, since this is precisely the role that water plays in the life of the Slavic people.

Dana is the wife of Dazhdbog, who helps free her when winter hinders her movements. The union of the opposites of Water and Sun is blessed by the gods. In order to make it rain and ask Dana for help, the Slavs sacrificed bread to her, since it was he who was considered the most valuable and best gift from a person. The sacred tree of this goddess is linden, and the best day to convert is Friday. Was among the Slavs

Hello dear readers of the Sprint-Answer website. Today is Friday, October 13, 2017, which means that the famous TV game "Field of Miracles" is on air on Channel One. We have already discussed the first question of the TV game in the previous article, but here we will dwell in more detail on the question of the second round of today's game "Field of Miracles". The answer must be 7 letters long.

What was the name of the spirit of water among the Ancient Slavs, an assistant to a waterman or a swamp with a very fierce disposition?

Anchutka - in East Slavic mythology, an evil spirit, one of the most ancient names for the demon, the Russian version of the imp. By Explanatory dictionary the living Great Russian language of V.I.Dal, anchutki are devils.

According to beliefs, there are bath and field ones. According to legend, they, like any evil spirits, instantly respond to the mention of their name. Therefore, it is believed that it is better to keep quiet about them, "otherwise this faint-hearted, faint-hearted one will be right there."

Anchutka seems to be either mindless or fistless, which usually characterizes evil spirits... There is a tale that the deaf is anchutka because "once a wolf chased him and bit off his heel."

As you can see, in the above quote, not everything is clear, although the answer is completely correct. But then everything becomes clear that this is the correct answer to the question of the second round of the game "Field of Miracles" for October 13, 2017, this Anchutka (7 letters).

It is also believed that the water also has its own anchutka - an assistant to the water or bog. Legend endows him with an unusually ferocious disposition, in addition, he also seems disgusting.

The Water One, also known as the Water Grandfather or Vodovik, is the main spirit of Water in the mythology of the ancient Slavs. He takes on the guise of an old man with a green beard and hair. Often, instead of legs, the Water Grandfather had a fish tail (a symbol of the water element and everything connected with it), and his body was entangled in mud. The powers of the Water One strongly depend on the phase of the Moon - when the Moon is increasing, the Water One has the greatest power, and when the Moon is decreasing, it becomes much weaker.

Whom does the Water One help

It was believed that Vodyanoy knows about the secrets of the past and the future, because water stores all the information about what happened and what will only be. A Christmastide rite was widespread, when young girls wondered at their betrothed near the ice hole, asking the Water Grandfather to show them their future husband. Also among fishermen, Vodyanoy personified a good spirit, which helps with the catch, if it should be properly appeased. Of course, many brought gifts to the Water One so that he would not harm people. This was done mainly by those whose fishing was associated with water.

Water suite

The Water Grandfather's retinue is made up of Vodyanitsy - beautiful long-haired young girls with pale skin. Drowned women and women who were killed by the evil will of ill-wishers, according to legend, became Vodyanitsy.

The behavior of Vodyanits (sometimes called mermaids) is not so straightforward. It is believed that they mainly harmed people, committed minor mischief. However, the Vodyanitsy were also beneficial - if they run across the field, then this land will have an excellent harvest. There were cases when Vodyanitsy from Vodyanoy's retinue married mere mortals, but a person could not see happiness in such a marriage.

Kikimora - the dangerous spirit of the swamp

The ancient Slavs had another spirit of Water. She took the guise of a short woman, less often - a young girl, with bog flowers in her hair and fluffy moss in her outfit. This is a very dangerous creature that brings only trouble to people. You should never forget about it.

Kikimora lives in the swamps, it is extremely rare to meet her. Basically, the spirit utters terrible screams from the bog, but sometimes it can drag a person to its lair. And the fate of the one who is captured by Kikimora will be terrible, for he will never return alive.

Brodnitsa - good spirits of Water

The ancient Slavs also had good spirits of Water, helping people in every possible way. Brodnitsa was considered the main one. The beautiful maidens who watched the fords pointed them out to the lost travelers. They usually lived near beaver dams. The spirits helped people get from one side of the river to the other, laying out neat water crossings from the branches.

People have long known that jokes with the spirits of Water do not end well, and therefore they always tried to appease these creatures. And it doesn't matter whether the spirit is good or evil, because if you do not express the deepest respect, do not bring gifts, do not take care of the elements, then it will be possible to cause the terrible anger of water creatures. We should not forget about this now, and then the spirits of the water element will only help you in any life situations.