Before the adoption of Christianity, the Slavs were pagans. This means that in their view, man and nature were closely related. They perceived the world as a living and wise creature, having its own soul and living according to certain laws. Such a sense of the world and contributed to the emergence of myths about the gods and spirits that govern human life.
Patron gods of the ancient Slavs
All Slavic pagan gods in one way or another acted as patrons of any kind of activity, or a particular social group. So, Veles is considered the patron saint of animals and trade, Perun - princes and warriors, Svarog - fertility, the goddess Lada - the patroness of peace and harmony, Alive - youth and love, Makosh - fate and female needlework, etc. This is due to the fact that each deity was responsible for a certain natural phenomenon and sphere of human activity, and therefore could contribute to success or failure in him.
To strengthen the connection with their patron, the Slavs made charms with the symbolism of the deity and carved idols. And also they sent prayers to the Slavic gods.
Gods of the sun of the Slavs
The Slavic god of the sun had four forms in accordance with the four seasons, as well as the cycles of human life:
- winter sun - Kolyada, a newborn baby;
- spring sun - Yarilo, a strong, full of life young man;
- the summer sun - Kupayla, a mature strong man;
- the autumn sun - Sventovit, a wise withering old man.
In this understanding of the structure of the annual cycle, the pagan idea of the infinity of the cycle of birth and death is embodied. So, an old man dies - Sventovit - before the Winter Solstice, and the next morning a newborn Kolyada appears.
Yarilo - the god of the sun
Yarilo is the Slavic god of the spring sun, youthful strength, passion, unbridled thirst for life. This god is distinguished by purity, sincerity and fury. Yarilo launched the sun's rays to the earth, which in some cases are interpreted as love arrows. The Slavs imagined God as the life-giving force of the spring sun, which fills the earth with life and joy after a long winter, awakens from hibernation.
The Slavic god Yarilo is considered the patron saint of people with kind, pure, bright and cordial thoughts. He was asked for help in conceiving children. He was also responsible for fertility and was considered the embodiment of rage in the highest sense.
Yarilo could be called Yarilo, Yarovit and Ruevit.
What does Yarilo look like?
Yarilo, the sun god, seemed to be a young attractive young man. His hair was light or reddish, his eyes were light blue, clear, and a red cloak fluttered behind his broad, powerful shoulders. Yarilo sat on a fiery horse-sun. Many girls fell in love with a beautiful young man. And God is ready to reciprocate each. Being the god of fertility and procreation, Yarilo acts as a deity of bodily love of man and woman. This explains the fact that the Yarila doll was often made with a large phallus, which is the oldest symbol of fertility.
Attributes of god
Yarilo, the god of the sun, was endowed with attributes such as an arrow, a spear, a golden shield or a circle representing the sun. Amber is considered the stone of the god, gold and iron are the metal, and Sunday is the day. Also, all solar symbols can be identified with Yarila.
Yarila Holidays
Yarilo, the god of the sun, was worshiped from March 21, the
vernal equinox, which also coincided with the
pagan holiday Maslenitsa. From this day began the time of the spring sun god. And it lasted until June 21-22, when the moment of the longest day and the shortest night of the year came.
Another day of Yarila is April 15th. For God, a bride was chosen at the festival - the most beautiful girl in the settlement. They called her Yarilikha or Yariloy. Yarila's beloved was dressed up, put on a white suit horse, a wreath of spring flowers was put on her head, the girl took ears of corn in her left hand, and the image of a severed human head in her right hand is a symbol of death. A horse and a bride were driven through the fields - it was believed that this rite promotes fertility. This rite has another option when a girl portraying Yarila is tied to a tree, and then round dances with ritual songs are led around her.
Closer to mid-summer, Yaril was again honored. At this time, boys and girls gathered on the “yarylina bald patch” - a specific place outside the village. All day the people walked, sang, treated themselves, danced. At this holiday, a young man (Yarilu) and a girl (Yarilikha) were dressed up, dressed in white clothes and decorated with ribbons and bells.
As soon as night fell, bonfires were called, called "yarylinyh lights." Often the celebration ended with the symbolic funeral of the bride and groom - stuffed from straw in clay masks were thrown into the water or left in the fields. Thus, people seemed to say that it was time to stop having fun, it was time to work.
Myths about Yaril
Yarilo is the embodiment of youth and life, so often in myths he acts as a lover. Moreover, according to some signs, it becomes clear that God is in love with all women on earth and even the Earth itself.
The main myth about Yaril is the story of the creation of life. There is such an option. For a long time Mother Earth slept soundly, but somehow Yarilo appeared and began to wake her with her caresses and passionate kisses. The kisses were hot as sunlight, and the Earth, warmed by them, was awakened. And in the place of kisses appeared fields, forests, meadows. The sun god continued to kiss the earth. And on it appeared lakes, rivers, seas, oceans. The earth was heated by the caresses of Yarila and spawned insects, fish, birds and animals. The last person to be born.
That sounds like one of the variants of the pagan myth of the creation of the world and the emergence of life.