#slavic deities

[that-ikea-alien-plush]

what my deities see when i give them their offerings

[lesoldatmort]

| JEZINKA |

Jezinka (Jezinky is plural in czech, sometimes called Bezinky) are certain kind of forest demon, also known as Divoženka (literally a "wild woman"). They could be interpreted as forest witches as we know them from classic fairy tales. Their role can be both negative and more of a neutral - just minding their own business, living in a forest, far away from civilisation - ah, what a dream!

More (folk)lore, info and WIPs of this project on my P/treon.

[blue-lotus333]

Yarilo 🤝 Persephone

[sisterofmercy]

Hi, so im looking for some witchy books in Polish or english about:

1. Hekate and hellenic polytheism

2. Folk witchcraft (mostly eastern european)/traditional witchcraft

4. Slavic paganism

5. Christian witchcraft

Andrew from sisters of mercy to catch your attention

[jezzzebel]

The person who re-blogged this wants you to know that they are open to questions regarding their spiritual path, witchcraft and faith, and in fact, would love to talk about their spiritual path with you and have a casual talk!!

(this applies to me pspspsps HMU , don't hesitate, i am always open to respectful discussion of our spiritual paths and just being friends!!)

[czortofbaldmountain]

Please pray for Poland and the people here, especially the oppressed minorities. There will be parliament elections on Sunday, currently we're ruled by an authoritarian right-wing party and things are only getting worse and worse. An actual fascist party is also gaining popularity. These elections are extremely important for the future of Poland, because the ruling party is destroying democratic institutions and we don't know how the next elections will look like if they win.

And please reblog so more people can see it.

🇵🇱 🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️

[vyvilha]

my mistress to whom all shall return

[diana-thyme]

The Ultimate Deity Journal Guide

Similar to my grimoire guide, this is a guide on deity journals.

What Is A Deity Journal?

A deity journal is a journal dedicated to a deity. It’s filled with information, offerings, devotional pieces, etc. If you like journaling or can’t give other physical offerings (like food, libations, etc.), it’s one of the best offerings out there.

What Do I Use For It?

Usually deity journals are physical journals and notebooks. Binders and folders work as well. I have seen deity journals online, using things like Notion or Google Docs. Those are a little harder to format, but are great if you don’t have a notebook or aren’t a fan of physical journals.

So, What Do I Put In It?

Devotional Artwork

Devotional Playlists

Pressed/Dried Flowers or Herbs

Prayers

Devotional Poems or Stories

Myths

Recipes

Stickers

Experiences or Dreams

Photos

The Basics (Name, Epithets, Domains, Family, Associations, Holidays, Symbols, Sacred Days, Sacred Animals, Etc.)

Spells/Rituals That You Want To Or Have Done With Them

Offerings And Devotional Act Ideas

Journal Prompts

Magazine/Book Cutouts

Hymns

Shopping List (Things You Want To Buy For Them)

Fabric Scraps

Letters To Them

Divination Readings With Them

Coins Or Other Currencies

How You Celebrate (Or Plan To) Holidays Or Sacred Days With Them

UPGs

Altar Plans (Drawings Or Descriptions Of Altar Ideas)

Incense, Herb, And Oil Blends

Drops Of Wax, Wine, Etc.

Seed Packets

Blessings

Charms

Charm/Spell Bags

Travel Plans (Places You Want To Go For Your Deity)

Maps That Remind You of Them

Sigils Dedicates To Them

Superstitions Related To Them

Research On Their Birth Place

Devotional Jewelry Charging Station

Affirmations Dedicated/Influenced By Them

Small Sticks Or Branches

Book Annotations

Divination Techniques Related To Them

Relationship Goals (Better Communication, More Signs, Etc.)

Their Associated Rune/Tarot Card/Etc.

Teas And Tea Blends

Folklore/Mythology Entities Related To Them

Vision Board

Goals

Diary Entries And Rants

Taglocks

Paper/Straw/Etc. Dolls

Doodles

References/Further Reading

[hi-im-just-a-fan-here]

Drawing this babygirl took me so fucking long holy shit

[thedansemacabres]

wine tip of the day: in these cold months, for the gods of frost and snow, or that of winter like Demeter, ice wine is a thing. They are extremely sweet and sometimes pricey, but they have a certain uniqueness to them I adore for the gods—especially Morena and Demeter in her grief. In these cold times, as the solstice comes, the sweetness is a perfect treat to ease the weight of winter’s bitter, deathly cold.

[slaviclore]

cheatsheet to your slav folkloric downfall

Since several people had questions about the lore that inspired this poll, I'll jot some notes down about what I was thinking. All of these have long and complex tradition that can't possibly fit in a tumblr post, but there's tons of great content on tumblr alone, so pls feel free to scroll through my tags for more info (you may like "demons", "witches", or "original art" for contemporary interpretations of the lore...) or use this post as a springboard for more research.

Because much of Slavic folklore was passed down orally and not written down, and because it covers a wide geographical range and is told in different languages, there are many versions of common stories, tropes, characters, etc.

***

Baba Yaga is a witch, super popular, tons of great lore about her, historical and contemporary. She was never just one single entity, but rather a version of herself in many different stories (more like fanfiction than like canon). Her character is inherently unpredictable, existing outside our societal rules and moral compass, and the variability in lore makes her even more impossible to predict. A young woman named Vasilisa did manage to perform all of Baba Yaga's tasks to her instruction, but not without her own magical help. Sometimes Baba Yaga is helpful and reasonable, and sometimes she will just casually eat you like a handful of berries. You never know what you're going to get.

The fern flower is a beautiful mythical flower that offers its holder immense knowledge and magic. It blooms very briefly only once a year during Noc Kupały (in Polish, the EN is Kupala Night). If you want to find it, you'll probably grab your boyfriend (gender neutral) around dusk and poke around your local woods for a while before giving up and just making out and then meeting up with your friends afterwards like "did you find it?" "no we didn't find it :( did you find it?" "nooo :(". Really, this is about seducing the boy you like, since you probably need magic just to see the flower anyway. If you do manage to find it and pick it, tons of greedy demons will appear and chase you to attempt to take it from you (and your life). You have to outrun or outsmart the demons. The demons may be metaphors for the corrupting forces of great power.

There are tons of ways to get lost in the woods. Some people help themselves by tying ribbons to trees as they go, but anything can spook you -- you can run into a demon, a werewolf, a ghost, a witch, a cat, anything -- and if you have to run away, you will most likely lose your way in the process. More specifically, if you have annoyed a leshy (a forest spirit/god-type thing who protects nature), he will use magic to confuse you, and even if you're very good at Not Getting Lost In The Woods, you're kind of screwed. You think YOU won't piss off the Leshy? Oops you just stepped on his favorite beetle -- screwed. Leshy can be placated with offerings of food and drink, but sometimes he needs something bigger...

There are actually lots of hot girls who live in lakes, much to the delight of about 20% of you, but probably the most common are the rusalki -- dead girls who experienced some tragedy in life, probably ending in drowning, and are now exacting revenge on the living, especially men. They will seduce you, take you into the water, and drown you with their hair, or possibly tickle you to death. Baby marry me, amirite? The original rusalka lore was probably nicer to them, treating them more like water spirits than vengeful ghosts. Rusalki are not mermaids and appear as women with legs. We do have mermaids, but usually these are river or sea beings -- the most famous is probably Syrenka Warszawska (the Warsaw Mermaid) who lives in the river Wisła and will not attempt to kill you unless you're trying to invade Warsaw, but also she's a warrior queen and you have no shot.

Slavic mythological entities love riddles, and if you're good at riddles you are really going to help yourself, but you don't want to get into that situation unless you have no other choice. A common demon you meet on the side of the road will probably not give you a hard one, but Poludnica (the Slovak name) will find you at high noon while you're working hard in the fields and the sun's been beating down on your head since dawn and you're feeling woozy and dehydrated, and she'll give you the hardest riddle you've ever heard, and you're going to blow it, and she's going to cut off your head with her scythe or give you heat stroke. If it's any consolation, she may be hot (pun intended). Pro tip: you may also wield riddles to your advantage. Demons are as egoistic as you are and can be enticed into solving your riddle. If you stump them, you may assure your safe getaway.

Human characters in Slavic lore tend to be young and naive, representing the listener of the tale, since they can't use magic or navigate the world they are entering. Knowledge and magic are two sides of the same coin, so if you want to survive, you will need to gain some wisdom (learning some riddles will help). Being nice is not good enough, but! If by being nice you manage to seduce someone who has access to knowledge and magic, or get adopted by a bored witch with an axe to grind, you'll really help yourself out.

The path to the endless dead wood is guarded by a giant magical cat, whose name I never knew but have recently learned that the Russians call him Baiyun (latinized name, obvi). If you ask Vasilisa, she'll tell you that sometimes he lives with Baba Yaga, but generally he hangs out on the boundary to some other dimension. Probably, if you go to meet the cat, it's because somebody sent you there to get rid of you, so if you survive the cat, whoever is trying to kill you will probably keep trying so fyi. Baiyun will purr or tell a tale in such a soothing way that you fall asleep, and then he'll eat you. If you manage not to fall asleep, you may attempt to catch him and earn magic. But probably you're cat food.

***

There you have it. If you learned your story differently, let me know! And if you're ever lost in a Slavic forest, you can put your clothes on inside out and maybe that'll break the magic. Good luck.

[that-ikea-alien-plush]

no one told me about this miasma shit before

like wdym gods refuse my offerings because im on my period

what do i do with those chocolate chip cookies now???

wdym i cant even do an e-offering or dance funny in your honor 😭😭😭

[lesoldatmort]

Dazbog | Domovoj | Basilisk | Rusalka | Simargl | Rarog

Last remaining pieces for my Slavic Deities and Bestiary series I've been working on past year and a half. Big thanks to my Patrons for making it possible! It was an honour to have the opportunity to create portrayals like these.

The exhibition is officially over but prints and postcards will remain available online. You can browse my gallery anywhere to find the rest of the project or join my Patreon to even find articles based on my research I wrote to each of the deities and demons.

💀 PATREON | X | IG | Prints

[blue-lotus333]

Female (gender-bend) Yarilo :333

[gachats]

Perun the Thunderer, 2013 - oil on canvas

— Andrey Shishkin (Russia, 1960–)

In Slavic mythology, Perun is the highest god of the pantheon and the god of sky, thunder, lightning, storms, rain, law, war, fertility and oak trees.

[jezzzebel]

I'm a pagan who worships lesser known deities, of course i am very happy when i see my deity mentioned anywhere (even as a name of a restaurant or something...)