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Author Topic: Zorya and the Rusalka  (Read 3337 times)

baduhmtisss

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Zorya and the Rusalka
« on: July 20, 2014, 08:48:10 pm »
I read, off of this website, that Zorya is actually 3 Zori. One in the evening, one in the morning, one at night? Are they worshiped as separate beings, or as one triad?

Also, I was reading about the Rusalka and was really fascinated with them, I was wondering, are they commonly honored in the home? Or just beings to pay respect to when you come across a body of water?
« Last Edit: July 20, 2014, 08:49:57 pm by Raine »
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Jack

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Re: Zorya and the Rusalka
« Reply #1 on: July 20, 2014, 09:40:42 pm »
Quote from: Raine;153468
I read, off of this website, that Zorya is actually 3 Zori. One in the evening, one in the morning, one at night? Are they worshiped as separate beings, or as one triad?

 
So the funny thing about the Zorya is there's a morning and an evening. The midnight sister? Neil Gaiman's outright said he made her up for American Gods. I don't know of any references to her prior to AG being published.

Not that that stops someone like me, who's alllllll about the fictional deities, but I just find it fascinating that she's become so accepted.
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Re: Zorya and the Rusalka
« Reply #2 on: July 20, 2014, 10:09:31 pm »
Quote from: Raine;153468
Also, I was reading about the Rusalka and was really fascinated with them, I was wondering, are they commonly honored in the home? Or just beings to pay respect to when you come across a body of water?

 
From what I understand, if you gave offerings to the Rusalki, it would probably be most likely in an apotrophaic sense, where you want to placate them and keep them from doing anything to you. So it would mostly be done along the shores of bodies of water.

There is a specific time dealing when they're the most active as well, which is in early June and is called Rusalka Week.

baduhmtisss

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Re: Zorya and the Rusalka
« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2014, 10:24:57 pm »
Quote from: Jack;153475
So the funny thing about the Zorya is there's a morning and an evening. The midnight sister? Neil Gaiman's outright said he made her up for American Gods. I don't know of any references to her prior to AG being published.

Not that that stops someone like me, who's alllllll about the fictional deities, but I just find it fascinating that she's become so accepted.


See, now I thought it was odd to have a night version, and have an evening version, but I don't know hardly anything so I was curious. Are they considered 'one' deity, or two?
 
Quote from: Tom;153485
From what I understand, if you gave offerings to the Rusalki, it would probably be most likely in an apotrophaic sense, where you want to placate them and keep them from doing anything to you. So it would mostly be done along the shores of bodies of water.

There is a specific time dealing when they're the most active as well, which is in early June and is called Rusalka Week.

 
AHH, this makes sense then. I was confused about what was honored, especially since what I read about the Rusalka is that there seemed to be one 'main' one, and then all her... littler versions? But then again, it mentioned tickling men to death on accident when attacking them. It's one of those resources in the SIG though. I don't want to worship them or anything, but I was wondering if people did do that.
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KonJelen

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Re: Zorya and the Rusalka
« Reply #4 on: July 20, 2014, 11:48:43 pm »
Quote from: Raine;153468
I read, off of this website, that Zorya is actually 3 Zori. One in the evening, one in the morning, one at night? Are they worshiped as separate beings, or as one triad?


I was really surprised at the number three as I've only ever known of the two, Morning and Evening, so I started searching, and nothing came up... That's when it finally occurred to me to look below your post and see Jack's reply :D So, yes, traditionally there were two. According to some tales, they were born out of the eyes of the god Rod and are sisters of the Sun (who was in some places thought to be female, too, so maybe here's another variant for a triad?).
As for the worship, I'm not sure at all if they were worshipped as gods, at least among the Eastern Slavs. There don't seem to be any idols, and the tales are scarce... But they do feature in different zagovors (magic chants?) for health, safety, good harvest, to stop bleeding, - and also in privorots (love/attraction spells). There were also traditions of charging water with the energy of Zarya (putting a bowl of water outside from the evening so that Zarya may shine on it).
Seeing as how they are often mentioned in folklore as a composite image ("Zarya-Zaryanica" etc) - I, personally, think they were one deity (or an anthropomorphized nature phenomenon) who had two aspects. But I think the image of Zorya/Zarya wasn't exactly stable and uniform anyway...

Quote
Also, I was reading about the Rusalka and was really fascinated with them, I was wondering, are they commonly honored in the home? Or just beings to pay respect to when you come across a body of water?


Again, I can only say for the Eastern Slavs, and mainly for the Ukrainians, but Rusalkas were meant to be feared and stayed far away from. You were usually fine if you didn't have a hobby of going for a swim late at night or wandering the fields, especially in remote areas, but there were times when the Rusalkas got especially dangerous and the chances of meeting them increased dramatically - like the Ivana Kupala holiday (now the 6th-7th of July) or the Rusalka Week (a week starting from Pentecost in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, I think; it was time for remembering the dead). That is why there were different precautions - the Rusalkas seemed to be especially targeting girls, so girls had to carry mugwort with them or at least mention it to the Rusalka if one accosted them. Also, mugwort was hung on the doors and windows of homes.
The Rusalkas also did good, though - it was said that a field where they danced at night would have a great harvest.
So, during the Rusalka week, which also included "The Rusalka's Easter" (falling on Thursday), people used to hang clean linen and shirts on the trees for the Rusalkas to use/wear. There was also a tradition in Ukraine not to sew or plaster the walls during this week so as not to accidentally bedraggle the Rusalkas. Some regions had the rituals of burying, drowning or tearing apart the Rusalka straw-doll when the week ended, symbolizing that the Rusalkas finally return to the otherworld (or sometimes these rituals were meant to actively purge them from the land of the living).
All that said, apparently in Belarus there were tales of some Rusalkas living in someone's home as house-help, and there's one tale from Russia where a man put his crucifix on a Rusalka's neck and thus made her into a servant for a year, after which she escaped... Something I've never read/heard in the Ukrainian tales, though.

Btw, Rusalkas are not exclusively tied to the water. They are also considered field and forest spirits. In Ukraine, the forest Rusalkas are called Mavkas. They guard the forest animals, but are not usually friendly to humans and can get them lost, kill them or, in the case of attractive males, enchant them and make them mad. There's also a forest spirit called Chuhaister who is more friendly towards humans, but hunts Mavkas and eats them, but that's another story altogether...

PS: As for the main Rusalka and lesser ones, there are some tales that the oldest Rusalka can lead the other ones in their dances or other exploits, but that is kind of situational, I think..?

baduhmtisss

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Re: Zorya and the Rusalka
« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2014, 12:57:53 am »
Quote from: KonJelen;153494
I was really surprised at the number three as I've only ever known of the two, Morning and Evening, so I started searching, and nothing came up... That's when it finally occurred to me to look below your post and see Jack's reply :D So, yes, traditionally there were two. According to some tales, they were born out of the eyes of the god Rod and are sisters of the Sun (who was in some places thought to be female, too, so maybe here's another variant for a triad?).
As for the worship, I'm not sure at all if they were worshipped as gods, at least among the Eastern Slavs. There don't seem to be any idols, and the tales are scarce... But they do feature in different zagovors (magic chants?) for health, safety, good harvest, to stop bleeding, - and also in privorots (love/attraction spells). There were also traditions of charging water with the energy of Zarya (putting a bowl of water outside from the evening so that Zarya may shine on it).
Seeing as how they are often mentioned in folklore as a composite image ("Zarya-Zaryanica" etc) - I, personally, think they were one deity (or an anthropomorphized nature phenomenon) who had two aspects. But I think the image of Zorya/Zarya wasn't exactly stable and uniform anyway...



Again, I can only say for the Eastern Slavs, and mainly for the Ukrainians, but Rusalkas were meant to be feared and stayed far away from. You were usually fine if you didn't have a hobby of going for a swim late at night or wandering the fields, especially in remote areas, but there were times when the Rusalkas got especially dangerous and the chances of meeting them increased dramatically - like the Ivana Kupala holiday (now the 6th-7th of July) or the Rusalka Week (a week starting from Pentecost in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, I think; it was time for remembering the dead). That is why there were different precautions - the Rusalkas seemed to be especially targeting girls, so girls had to carry mugwort with them or at least mention it to the Rusalka if one accosted them. Also, mugwort was hung on the doors and windows of homes.
The Rusalkas also did good, though - it was said that a field where they danced at night would have a great harvest.
So, during the Rusalka week, which also included "The Rusalka's Easter" (falling on Thursday), people used to hang clean linen and shirts on the trees for the Rusalkas to use/wear. There was also a tradition in Ukraine not to sew or plaster the walls during this week so as not to accidentally bedraggle the Rusalkas. Some regions had the rituals of burying, drowning or tearing apart the Rusalka straw-doll when the week ended, symbolizing that the Rusalkas finally return to the otherworld (or sometimes these rituals were meant to actively purge them from the land of the living).
All that said, apparently in Belarus there were tales of some Rusalkas living in someone's home as house-help, and there's one tale from Russia where a man put his crucifix on a Rusalka's neck and thus made her into a servant for a year, after which she escaped... Something I've never read/heard in the Ukrainian tales, though.

Btw, Rusalkas are not exclusively tied to the water. They are also considered field and forest spirits. In Ukraine, the forest Rusalkas are called Mavkas. They guard the forest animals, but are not usually friendly to humans and can get them lost, kill them or, in the case of attractive males, enchant them and make them mad. There's also a forest spirit called Chuhaister who is more friendly towards humans, but hunts Mavkas and eats them, but that's another story altogether...

PS: As for the main Rusalka and lesser ones, there are some tales that the oldest Rusalka can lead the other ones in their dances or other exploits, but that is kind of situational, I think..?

 
Wow! This was very informative, thank you so much! I'll be doing some more research and putting down some personal notes about what you said. Thanks!
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