"Найбільш яскраво межова семантика виявляється у віруваннях,

Hello! Regarding your post about opening asks, I was wondering if you have any advice about searching for Ukrainian sources about folklore/magic/superstition etc that are actually specific to Ukrainian beliefs? Every time I try to do research I find things that *say* Ukrainian, but all the sources are Russian. For example when I try to read about Mokosh, who is said to be an earth goddess for "all slavic people" (already a red flag statement) I can only find Russian sources and stories. People tend to lump us into one group, an issue Im sure you're familiar with. Either way, thank you for your time!! <3

That is a simple one - you would have to be more specific in your research. Do not look up Ukrainian beliefs about Mokosh, Ukraine nor Ukrainians (or Russians, for that matter) did not exist when this deity was worshiped. Research the history itself, or any particular region, subject, or group, and make your own conclusions.

With Mokosh, however, the trick is that the one reliable primary source in existence, the Tale of Bygone Years, also known as the Primary Chronicle, only states the name itself, without a hint towards gender or patronage. The rest, academically, is conjecture derived from romantic pet theories and the images of the Virgin Mary and St. Friday in folk imagination. This is not to say there is no earth goddess making herself known through this name, or through the saints mentioned, for that matter, but it has to be acknowledged there is no way of knowing who this being was at the time of writing.

When Fern Blooms (Hope Floats): Elusive

Kupala Night, also called Ivanа-Kupala, is a traditional eastern Slavic holiday which is celebrated in Ukraine, Poland, Belarus and Russia during the night from 6 to 7 July (on the Gregorian calendar). (This corresponds to 23-24 June on these countries’ traditional Julian calendar.) Calendar-wise, it is opposite to the winter holiday Koliada. The celebration relates to the summer solstice when nights are the shortest and includes a number of Slavic rituals.

The name of the holiday was originally Kupala; a pagan fertility rite later adapted into the Orthodox Christian calendar by connecting it with St. John’s Day which is celebrated on 24 June.

The Ukrainian, Belarusian and Russian name of this holiday combines “Ivan” (John, in this case John the Baptist) and Kupala which was thought to be derived from the Slavic word for bathing, which is cognate. However, it likely stems from the proto-Slavic kump, a gathering. The two feasts could be connected by reinterpreting John’s baptizing people through full immersion in water. However, the tradition of Kupala predates Christianity. The pagan celebration was adapted and reestablished as one of the native Christian traditions intertwined with local folklore.

The holiday is still enthusiastically celebrated by the younger people of Eastern Europe. The night preceding the holiday (Tvorila night) is considered the night for “good humour” mischiefs (which sometimes would raise the concern of law enforcement agencies). On Ivan Kupala day itself, children engage in water fights and perform pranks, mostly involving pouring water over people.

Many of the rites related to this holiday are connected with the role of water in fertility and ritual purification. This is due to the ancient Kupala rites. On Kupala day, young people jump over the flames of bonfires in a ritual test of bravery and faith. The failure of a couple in love to complete the jump, while holding hands, is a sign of their destined separation.

Girls may float wreaths of flowers (often lit with candles) on rivers, and attempt to gain foresight into their romantic relationship fortune from the flow patterns of the flowers on the river. Men may attempt to capture the wreaths, in the hope of capturing the interest of the woman who floated it.

There is an ancient Kupala belief that the eve of Ivan Kupala is the only time of the year when ferns bloom. Prosperity, luck, discernment, and power befall whom ever finds a fern flower (Chervona ruta). Therefore, on that night, village folk roam through the forests in search of magical herbs, and especially, the elusive fern flower (Chervona ruta).

Traditionally, unmarried women, signified by the garlands in their hair, are the first to enter the forest. They are followed by young men. Therefore, the quest to find herbs and the fern flower (Chervona ruta) may lead to the blooming of relationships between pairs within the forest.

According to folklore, the flower is Chervona ruta. The flower is yellow, but according to legend, it turns red on the eve of Ivan Kupala Day. Ferns are not angiosperms (flowering plants), and instead reproduce by spores.

In Gogol’s story The Eve of Ivan Kupala, a young man finds the fantastical fern-flower, but is cursed by it. Gogol’s tale may have been the stimulus for Modest Mussorgsky to compose his tone poem Night on Bald Mountain, adapted by Yuri Ilyenko into a film of the same name.

SOURCES: Image #1: Wikimedia Commons: License: Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Source Photographer: Simon Kozhin/С.Л.Кожин Title: Kupala Night, Divination on the Wreaths Artist: Simon Kozhin/С.Л.Кожин Image #2: Wikimedia Commons:   Title: Night on the Eve of Ivan Kupala Artist: Henryk Hector Siemiradzki License: Public Domain Image #3: Wikimedia Commons: Title: Івана Купала (Ivanа-Kupala). Stamp of Ukraine (1998) License: Public Domain Text:  Wikipedia: Kupala Night:  Fern Flower: Chervona ruta. License:  Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License

Reminder that if you're asking spirits to help you with something long-term (i.e. protecting your home, bringing in job opportunities etc) it's good practice to have an agreement on "rest" and "finished" commands. I.e.

"When I tell you that it is time to sleep, return to your vessel and rest until I ask you to continue again."

"When I tell you that your work is done, I will thank you with an offering and our relationship is completed so you may leave my space."

Signed, someone who forgot to do this and had an unhappy spirit asking where their offerings where because I forgot to say that I now *had* job and didn't need them bringing me more!

Magic Old New Year fortune telling - 6 tasty ways to find out your fate

The holiday period from January 7 to 19 is considered special in Ukraine. Ukrainian ancestors believed that during this time the fate could open its secrets and mysteries, so they tried to get answers to the most personal questions. They found out about the future from various folk sayings and divination. The Old New Year is celebrated on January 13. The Old New Year evening, which is also called Generous, was deemed to be one of the best days for fortune telling. What’s interesting, both unmarried girls and young men tried to discover their fate. Ukrainians also closely observed what happened in nature and in the house during the whole holiday day and Old New Year evening.

Some folk sayings have survived to this day. For instance, if there is money in the house during the Old New Year evening - you will live in abundance all year round. This day you should in no case lend your money in order not to take happiness out of your house. Ukrainians observed the Old New Year nig…↴ https://ukrainian-recipes.com/magic-old-new-year-fortune-telling-6-tasty-ways-to-find-out-your-fate.html

“People believed clay to be an embodiment of the primordial cosmic matter and honoured it as such - like a life-giving substance of the world with wonderful properties and abilities. Only clay of all natural materials gives people the fullest creative ability to materialise the products of their imagination. Thus, temples, houses, dishes, ritualistic and decorative objects were made of it; it was used in folk medicine, magic, astrology and rituals. They believed that people who work with clay, potters, are also special, knowing more than others.”

— Folk Medicine and Magic of Ukrainians, by Iryna Ihnatenko.

My Western, mostly American and Anglo-Saxon friends: Halloween

My Celtic friends: Samhain

Me, a Slav: DZIADY

But seriously, I really recommend you to read about Dziady (or the Forefathers’ Eve, as that’s how it is sometimes translated into English). It is traditionally celebrated in Belarus, Ukraine, Baltic countries, and some parts of Poland as well. Similarly to Celtic Samhain, it is also believed that during Dziady our ancestors come back to the world of the living. As the descendants, we are obligated to welcome them properly, commemorate them, and learn from whatever advice they may have for us. It's really cool, Adam Mickiewicz, the national poet of Poland, Lithuania and Belarus, even wrote a drama inspired by this feast!

(“Dziady, pradziady, przyjdzcie do nas!” Depiction of dziady ritual in Belarus, Stanisław Bagieński. Source: Wikipedia)

More under this link:

en.m.wikipedia.org

Dziady - Wikipedia

Dziady - Wikipedia

rusalki are not mermaids. stop translating the word "rusalka" as "mermaid" and stop calling rusalki "slavic mermaids". it's confusing, it's misleading, and it's simply isn't true. the association of rusalka with a western mermaid and undine began in 19th century, when russian empire poets wanted to adapt a popular western motif of a sorrowful water maid that is unrequitedly in love with a mortal man. this literature character of rusalka has nothing to do with actual rusalki folklore and cult.

rusalki are natural undead spirits that are connected to slavic ancestral worship. they don't have tails. they are not in any way connected to the sea: only lakes, ponds, and rivers. often, they're not even connected to water at all: there are forest rusalki, field rusalki, meadow rusalki, etc. they are in close relationships with their human kin: during the spring and summer, they are used in agricultural rites and are believed to help with farming and raising crops. rusalki were sacred to slavic people. the "week of the rusalki" festival, when rusalki are believed to walk on earth and visit their relatives, is celebrated to this day. to call them "slavic mermaids" is very diminutive of their actual role in slavic cultures.

Vinok wreath

The Ukrainian wreath (Ukrainian: вінок, vinók) is a type of wreath which, in traditional Ukrainian culture, is worn by girls and young unmarried women. The wreath may be part of a tradition dating back to the old East Slavic customs that predate the Christianization of Rus. The flower wreath remains a part of the Ukrainian national attire, and is worn on festive occasions and on holy days and since the 2014 Ukrainian revolution increasingly in daily life.

On the day of Ivan Kupala, young women placed their wreaths in the water with a lighted candle, foretelling their romantic future by how the wreath flowed down the river or lake. From the wreath’s direction, the girl could tell whom she would marry: if the wreath stayed in one spot and did not float down the water, she would not marry; if it went under, she would die; if the candle went out, misfortune would follow. The young men would dive into the water, trying to retrieve the vinok of the girl each loved. One of the ritual Kupala songs says, “Who will catch the wreath will catch the girl, who will get the wreath will become mine.“ It dates back to pre-Christian times when it was thought that the headdress would protect girls from evil spirits. The ceremonial, religious value diminished, and was later replaced as a national character of girlhood: to lose a wreath in folk songs and traditions means for a maiden to transition into womanhood.

Like most Ukrainian folk dress, the vinok had significant symbolic value and only specific flowers were used. It was traditionally worn by girls who were eligible for marriage. The wreath’s name, vinok, is related to the Ukrainian word for a wedding ceremony vinchannya.

The flowers used to make the wreath were generally fresh, paper or waxen and were attached onto a band of stiff paper backing covered with a ribbon.

The wreath varied in many of the regions of Ukraine; young women throughout the country wore various headdresses of yarn, ribbon, coins, feathers and grasses, but these all had the same symbolic meaning. In parts of central and eastern Ukraine the flowers were raised in the center front. Usually multicolored, embroidered ribbons were attached to the back.

During the Ukrainian wedding ceremony, the vinok was replaced by the ochipok, a cap that she would wear for the rest of her life.

Ukrainian folk healers, known “as a babka, or babka-sheptukha (granny or granny-whisperer) are elderly women who perform magico-religious rituals such as the ‘pouring forth of wax’ (vylyvaty visk sometimes called strakh vylyvaty, ‘to pour fear’) to treat a variety of maladies. They are usually respected figures in their communities, and are seen by many to possess a valuable form of wisdom that cannot be learned in books. Though some babky are rumoured to be witches who practise both white and black magic, and their practices are derided by some as superstitions their fellow villagers usually respect them, seeing them as God’s chosen healers. The babky see themselves (and are seen by most villagers) in terms of what Faith Wigzell has described as the role of the Russian znakharki (knowing ones). Historically, she writes, znakharki were folk healers who (in contrast to witches and sorcerers), did not embody supernatural powers, but acted as mediators with the unclean force [1998:49].

…In the villages I visited, people frequently utilised the services of babky. Most babky indicated that they had patients every day, and people came from distant villages and cities to seek the services of several of the better-known babky. In addition to performing the wax ritual, many babky were also skilled in administering herbal remedies, conducting rituals to remove the evil eye, throwing (reading) cards, and performing healing massage. While babky treated people of any age, they indicated that frequently their patients were young children suffering from fear sickness, stuttering, irritability, difficulty sleeping, and similar ailments. For their services the babky usually received a small amount of money (2-5 hryvni) or barter in the form of eggs, sugar, flour, butter, hrechka (buckwheat groats) or moonshine.

…The moon held special significance in the beliefs and practices of several babky, and some prayers involved invocations to the new moon. Eva told me, for example, that one must follow this procedure to cure a toothache: when the molodyk appears, that is the new (literally, young) moon, when you can see just a tiny sliver of the moon, then you must stand on a rock and say, ‘Molodyk, molodyk, have you been to the other world?’ ‘I have.’ ‘Do people die there?’ ‘They do.’ ‘Do teeth hurt there?’’They don’t.’ ‘Then don’t let ours hurt either.’ Similarly, Paraskovia Moroz told me the following prayer: Clear moon, young prince, don’t let anyone have them [dry patches from eczema or psoriasis] not Oksana. Take it away, you are young, you see everything at night on the earth.’ Babky often told patients to time their rituals and prayers to the appearance of the new moon. In some cases, the new moon was seen to have powers to renew a spell, if a particular incantation was repeated with each new moon.

…In general, the babky said they felt freer to practice their craft since the fall of Soviet rule in Ukraine. Paraskovia Moroz, who was born in 1930, had wanted to study to become a doctor or veterinarian. Her parents, who warned her that all students were forced into the Komsomol (Communist Youth League), dissuaded her. Komsomol members during the turbulent war years in Western Ukraine were oftentimes tossed into the river, she reported. Paraskovia said that when she began to heal people in 1964 (she was then thirty four years old) she had to practice in secret. Folk healing was actively repressed by the Soviet regime, and anyone practising it could have been arrested, she said.

…Earlier Paraskovia had always pleaded with patients to keep her healing a secret, but now she felt free to heal and everyone knew of her abilities. The fact that women like Paraskovia Moroz had protected knowledge of these prayers, rituals, and folk remedies is evidence both of their strong character, and the tenacity of these beliefs and practices.

…Anthropologists who have studied ritual and shamanism note that, across cultures, ritual practice becomes more prevalent in times of social upheaval [Turner 1967, 1969, 1974]. 

In the context of a significant decline in living standards, widespread impoverishment, and uncertainty about the future in Ukraine, it is not surprising that villagers (and frequently, urban dwellers) would seek the services of a diviner-healer.

As Wigzell [1998: 191] notes for contemporary Russia, fortune-telling (in our case, represented by divinatory practices associated with the wax ritual) has an important role to play in helping individuals cope with their lives. This insight, I think, can be extended to the entire range of healing practices espoused by babky in Ukrainian villages. Coping mechanisms, and, especially, attempts to restore and maintain harmony, are encoded in all the roles fulfilled by the babky. In today’s trying times, I would argue, Ukrainian babky carry out gendered performances that accord them a measure of prestige and power; complement and replace the system of state medicine; act as psychotherapists; and specialise in psychosocial ailments to simultaneously heal persons and communities.

…As previously stated, babky are generally held in high esteem as wise women. They are believed to have special knowledge of prayers and ritual practices, and to possess a unique connection to God, Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary and the saints. The concomitant suspicion that babky may also dabble in black magic may diminish the esteem with which some villagers regard these women, but also garners them additional respect (out of fear). In general, however, most villagers associate babky very positively with pious religious belief and practice. For many, they embody the nurturing mother figure.”

Excerpts from the article: Waxing Like the Moon: Women Folk Healers in Rural Western Ukraine by Sarah D. Phillips ; University of Indiana

For full article (it includes details of the pouring of wax and other details, as well as a bibliography):

https://journals.ku.edu/…/article/download/3744/3583/4458

Photo source: Ірина Шараневич

“Babusya z poliovymy kvitamy, Ukraine, from Iryna with love”

Ukrainian Night Tarot

I’ve been searching for a Ukrainian Deck since I started reading cards, so you have no idea how excited I was when I saw Mariya Tobischek (dvodushnyk // oldgodstemple on ig) doing art for the cards. But now the kickstarter for the whole deck is live.

In honour of that here are some of my favourite cards so far

And a bonus card