According to legend, the demon Mara can cause the death of a person who is in a dream. Scientists argue that the most defenseless state in which a person can be is sleep, therefore the spirit appears to a person only at night and poses a threat to his health and life.
Who is Mara?
It is believed that Mara is a kind of evil spirit that comes to people at night with the aim of scaring or even bringing deadly disease. When a person falls asleep, the demon king Mara comes to him, climbs onto his stomach and begins to choke him. As a result, the victim, who has come out of sleep, but as if half-delirious, is not only very frightened, but also suffocates.
Different legends describe this evil in different ways: Russian legends describe him as an old decrepit witch with long flowing hair, Ukrainian legends say that his appearance is similar to a human, but his facial features are strikingly different, and early Buddhists considered him just an annoying nuisance.
Mara - mythology
In mythology, Mara is the daughter of God and Lada, the goddess of love, beauty and the goddess of fertility. She has excellent external qualities, beautiful long hair and wears red clothes. Mara bestows not only death, but also life. People have always honored her on February 15th, sometimes sacrificing their cattle to her at the altar.
According to legend, Mara with her minions every morning tries to prevail and destroy the rising Sun, but every time she is powerless before his power and beauty. Being engaged in needlework, Mara uses in sewing not simple threads, but the threads of the destinies of living people. When she cuts the thread, the person passes away.
Demon Mara - Buddhism
In Buddhism, Mara is the personification of evil, equivalent to the destructive forces of pride and lies, volatility. The demon Mara is the embodiment of death and the finiteness of human life. This demon is believed to contribute to (repeated death). Demon Mara in Buddhism has four meanings:
- mrityu-mara (in other words, "death");
- skandha-mara (in other words, "form");
- klesha-mara (in other words, “suffering, trouble”);
- devaputra-mara (in other words, "God's child");
- kamma-mara (in other words, as the power of sensual desires).
Black Mara - who is it?
Black Mara is the spirit of retribution and revenge. Her image is associated with death and with the seasonal rite of resurrection and dying of nature. It has the appearance of a young girl or an old woman in black clothes. She is able to send nightmares and diseases, which can be protected from with the help of prayer. As a rule, she comes at night, addressing by name, asks to play with her or take her somewhere. If the victim cannot be lured to certain death, she touches him with her ice hand and from that moment man will sleep in anxiety and nightmares until the end of his days. Like vampires, a clove of garlic will help against a demon.
If Mara comes to the victim at night and starts to whisper something, the most The best way confrontation is not to be afraid and calm down. Black Mara is capable of tormenting not only people, but also livestock. There were cases when, back in 1646, there were first words that a home soon was dying in a barn every night at the hands of an old witch.
Slavic Mara
Mara, the Slavic goddess, has the ability to control the passage of time, and the ability to take life and save it. Mara is characterized by changes in appearance depending on the season, but it is believed that she is the goddess of winter, so she was revered on March 1, the last holiday of the winter deity. In another way, it is called "Morena" from the word "Mor", "Stain".
It is believed that she sends her messengers all over the world, who appear to a person in the guise of a beautiful girl, or in the guise of a double of a person who is threatened. deadly danger. And if trouble happened in the village, with her idol or face, the Slavs went around him, asking Mara to allow the spirits of ancestors to be present at a difficult hour, which could help.
Mara is the goddess of the Slavic pantheon, symbolizing death and the cold of winter. The image of Morana is not unambiguous. She stands guard over the worlds of Yavi and Navi, meets the souls of the dead on the viburnum bridge near the currant river.
The goddess Mara among the Slavs is strict and principled, she does not forgive betrayal, who turned to her for help and did not keep his word will be punished.
The goddess of death and winter cold is also the patroness of magic and sorcery.
Mara among the Slavs
The Slavic goddess Mara (Morena, the giver of death) belongs to the first generation of gods. According to one version, she is a sister and Lelya (Alive) and was created from sparks formed from a hammer blow on the sacred stone alatyr.
All 3 had equal power and complemented each other, managing different parties being.
According to the second version, Mara is the daughter of Kashchei, who ruled in the dark kingdom. Despite the lack of confidence in her origin, one thing remains unchanged - the goddess of death is beautiful. Her beauty is cold and pure.
According to the legends that have come down to our days, Mara is the patroness of witchcraft and magic. She appears at the end of her life at the time destined by fate and takes her to her kingdom.
Also, the Slavic goddess helps babies move from the world of Navi to the world of Reveal. Together with the Truth, it is an image of fair justice.
AT Slavic mythology there is a mention that the goddess of death collected the souls of the fallen on the battlefield.
AT different sources (different peoples) Maru is described as the Goddess of death. Some sources associate it with evil and hopelessness. The part speaks of the great predestination "without death there will be no new life." It is also undeniable that Mara is above the concepts of good and evil and performs the work inherited from creation, which was determined by Svarog.
In Slavic mythology, Mary had many children, each of whom had his own sphere of influence: hunger, devastation, pestilence (wraith), illness, death.
Image of Morana
The description and image of Mary have their own characteristics. The goddess of death among the Slavs is beautiful. She was depicted as a young girl with white skin in elegant snow-white robes with bright black long hair flowing freely over her shoulders - this is the image of a young goddess at the beginning of winter.
The goddess Mara through dreams warns a person about the future, but not everyone can see the essence in them.
The image in the form of an old woman in worn out clothes and with a scythe on her shoulder also corresponds to Mara, but symbolizes the end of winter.
Force moraines
The goddess of death is subject to the movement of time, not only within the framework of one individual, but also on a global scale. She can take life from both mortal and immortal beings, and it is also in her power to bestow a new life.
Before death, people often receive a warning about its approach. In the legends of the Slavs, such an aspect is highlighted. Meeting your doppelganger or a woman with long black hair was considered a sign of an imminent end. By sending such signs, the goddess of death gave time to prepare for the transition to the afterlife.
Goddess Mara - rules in all three worlds (Reveal, Rule and Navi). It is in her power to both take life and give it. The goddess of death can also bestow immortality.
Mara spins the thread of fate from living entities, at the end she cuts it with a sickle, which means death
In addition to power over the duration of life, Morena had a colossal magic power and often practiced it both in the world of Yavi and Navi together with her friend Yaga.
One of the manifestations of her power are dreams, through which people receive warnings and advice. Another issue is that not everyone knows how to correctly interpret what they see.
Attributes of Mary
All attributes are interconnected with the concept of death:
- black Moon;
- the raven of which, in addition to the messenger of trouble, is closely connected with the magical world;
- a sickle with which she terminates the earthly existence of a creature, cutting the thread of fate;
- black Swan;
- griffin.
The attributes of the goddess of death are also: a goat, m juniper, pine and spruce.
Mara Morana is the goddess of death in real world, she was also revered as the guardian eternal youth in the afterlife. 
Amulet of Mary and the meaning of her symbols
Zigzag (waves) of Mary is the main symbol of the goddess of death.
Mara keeps the balance in the world togetherwith Chernobog. Despite the fatality of its destiny for every living person, it cannot be called evil.
The main symbol is waves symbolizing cold water. The symbol symbolizes the "bridge" between the worlds: the present and the afterlife, which makes the amulet in demand for people involved in the field of magic.
The amulet has great power, but people who are not ready for contact with the kingdom of the dead e fits.
Symbol of Goddess Mary
Another symbol of the goddess is the Mara Viy sign, depicted in the form of 2 triangles directed with their vertices towards each other. This is a symbol of winter, which has absorbed the whole essence of the fatality of being.speaks of the inevitability of the end of every life.
Protective properties of the Amulet of Mary
BUT Mary's mulet represents the image of a cross with equal sides. Each top of Mary's amulet cross is adorned with a mini cross.
Amulet - the cross of Mary, a protective symbol that helps to find harmony
The main meaning of Mary's amulet is to maintain balance. Such a talisman helps to save the owner's vitality from rapid waste. Also, Mary's amulet has the ability to smooth out hypertrophied character traits, which corresponds to the canons of maintaining balance.
Celebration in honor of Mary
In literature, Mary holds a cup in her hands, after drinking from which a person receives death
Day Slavic goddess afterlife was on the day spring equinox(20th of March). In her honor, gifts were brought in the form different colors, berries and fruits. Blood sacrifices were offered during the epidemic. For this, the blood of animals was let out at the altar of the goddess. human sacrifice in Slavic culture were not brought.
It is interesting. Unlike other deities of the pantheon, the idol of Mary (made of wood or straw) was installed right in front of the offering. They were surrounded by stones, outlining a circle and placed in front of the idol wooden board, on which the gifts destined for the goddess were assigned. After the feast (or offering), the altar was dismantled, and idolburned, in rare cases drowned.
The burning of a scarecrow of winter at Shrovetide is a reflection of the ancient custom of honoring the goddess of winter and death, marked by the day of Marena. Shrovetide celebration also takes place at the end of March and is a symbol of the arrival of spring.
A powerful and formidable deity, patronizing death and winter - this is how the ancient Slavs represented it. Madder in the mythology of our ancestors was originally a good entity. Then she became a force that brings withering. The image of Mary is complex and ambiguous. She is the personification of peace and the transition of the human soul from one world to another.
Sister of the Light Goddesses
The mistress of winter appears in Slavic legends under various names: Morana, Mara, Marzhana. She was described as a tall, stately woman with snow-white skin, dark strict eyes and curls as black as night. Sometimes Morana was portrayed as a hunched old woman with long gray hair and a predatory look.
She brought death and at the same time reminded a person of the need to value life. The patroness of "haze" and cold was born among the bright deities. Her father was Svarog, and her mother was Lada.
Marzhana had 2 sisters and one brother.
- Lelya, patroness of spring, love, girlish honesty.
- Alive in the Slavic mythological tradition personified summer, fertility and joy.
- The god of justice Perun was the brother of divine beauties.
Dark reincarnation
The forces of Darkness envied the well-being of the light deities. The skipper-beast - the lord of the above-ground Hell, attacked Perun and closed him in the cellar. The goddesses Morana, Lelya and Zhiva were captured by this half-human half-scorpion. The messenger of Chaos cast a spell on the goddesses, and they turned into monsters.
Not only Morana's appearance has changed. The character of Svarog's daughter has undergone radical transformations.
How the new essence of Morana was revealed:
- the bright deity forgot about its origin;
- the daughter of Svarog became cruel and comprehended the secrets of black magic;
- like her sisters, Marjana commanded the forces of the Skipper Beast.
Now she wanted to subjugate the world of Reveal. Perun, freed from captivity, defeated the Skipper-beast in a duel. Then he disenchanted his relatives. Lelya and Zhiva again became good deities. The appearance of a beautiful maiden returned to Morana, but she did not want to give up dark magic. Having gone to Nav, Morana became the patroness of withering, winter and death.
Mary's role in the pantheon of gods
New duties of Marena, the "winter" goddess:
- take away the ability to conceive from women;
- destroy people;
- immerse the world of Reveal in the cold;
- freeze crops;
- send pestilence on cattle;
- starve people to death and disease.
Unlike Yarila and Alive, who personify the solar energy of life, Morana represents the triumph of Dead Water, non-existence or Mari. Marzhana's possessions stretch beyond the black currant river. This river separates the worlds of Yav and Nav. In some myths, she was depicted in a black and white robe as a symbol of the inseparability of beginning and end. The mistress of withering and cold is identical to the Greek goddess Hekate.
Her personality traits:
- pride;
- thirst for power;
- craving for magical knowledge;
- respect for strength and valor: the Slavic "Snow Queen" is distinguished by an insidious disposition, she plays with human destinies and does not feel affection for anyone, but an inventive magician who is not afraid of the mysteries of Morana can gain her patronage;
- impudence;
- insight;
- dark sexuality - the expression "love to death" fits this essence very well, if Morana kisses an earthly man, his heart will freeze;
- dislike for fun, joy and flowering.
The patroness of the cold is offended that people are not looking forward to her, as they are waiting for her sister Lelya. Her favorite pastime is to cover the ground in blizzards. Wanting to punish people, Marzhana could cause the loss of livestock in the village.
The Slavs have many legends about how a proud beauty tried to seize power over the world, but the bright deities, Yarila and Lelya, restrain Morana's unbridled impulses.
Morana's husband
The companion of the mystical essence was Kashchei - the patron of evil and death. His second name is Chernobog.
According to an ancient legend, Kashchei competed with Dazhdbog for the love of Morana. The cold beauty for a long time could not make the final choice between her admirers. Unable to resist the assertiveness of Dazhdbog, Morana married him, but soon the offended Kashchei stole his beloved and took her to his possessions.
The lord of Navi, together with his wife, often intrigued their opponents - good deities. Morena tried many times to steal the sun from the sky. great strength life, enclosed in Yaril, did not allow the mistress of the cold to approach him.
Children and helpers
Speaking about the "procreation" of Kashchei and his wife, the legends convey different information to us. The most common version of the myth: the Slavic goddess Marena could not have offspring. Abandoning family ties, this entity wanders the world with one goal: to bring misfortune and death to people.
In later sources, Morana was credited with 13 daughters - Fever. Their second name is Sisters-Shakers. AT warm time years, these spirits live in the dungeons of the Dark World. In January, they come to our world and send diseases to people.
The Slavs associated with Marzhana not only death, morovitsa, but also "haze", "fool" (deception, obsession). Even in summer, when her power over the world is minimal, Morana can steal health and sanity from a person. Spirits-maras (servants of the goddess) live among people. Every night they walk under the windows and whisper the names of the household. As soon as the gullible villager responds to the voice of the entity, he will fall ill and die.
Another meaning of the image of Marena is fate, fate. A guest from the world of the dead sometimes appeared in dwellings like a ghost. The person who saw Morana died within a year. She could do happy marriage unfortunate, bringing barrenness to a young wife. When the loss of livestock began in the village, people consulted among themselves on how to appease Marzhana.
The Slavs rarely mentioned the names of Chernobog and Morana for no particular reason, but their attitude towards the dark deities was very respectful. The mistress of snowstorms was perceived by our ancestors as a dark hypostasis of her kind sister Zhiva.
Attributes and holidays in honor of Morana
Marena had gloomy attributes: a black moon, a sickle and skulls. According to myths, a gloomy deity cuts the threads of life with a sickle. The time of the undivided reign of the goddess is winter. One of the symbols of Marzhana was a black swan.
Our ancestors wanted to appease Morana in order to avert misfortune from themselves. Sacrifices were made to her - red wine and honey. In ancient magical tradition, the ritual of sacrificing to Morana was popular poultry: white chicken or duck. Only an experienced healer could perform the ritual of sacrifice.
Holidays dedicated to the queen of cold:
- the days from November 22 to 25 have long been considered the days of Morena, the goddess of death, at this time people met winter: it was impossible to have fun and rejoice, so as not to incur the wrath of a harsh deity;
- On January 13, the winter mistress comes into full force: according to the legends, on this day, the daughters of Morana, the Shaker, come out of the dungeon;
- March 1 in the Slavic tradition is a significant day: people honor Marzhana before her imminent departure to the Dark World;
- spring equinox: March 20-22 - magical days, at this time the patroness of illness and cold finally loses her power over the world of Reveal.
During the spring ritual holidays, it was customary to make Marena - a straw doll. Scarecrow dressed in women's clothing and drove around the village. The ritual action was accompanied by songs and dances. The doll then had to be burned, drowned, or torn into small pieces. The first version of the destruction of the scarecrow was practiced more often. The fire was kindled outside the village. When the symbol of winter burned down, boys and girls jumped over the fire. People believed that these ritual actions would scare away trouble from them and attract good harvest. A similar ceremony was held on Kupala night.
The symbolic "victory over death" was important event in the lives of our ancestors. All the inhabitants of the village tried to participate in the ritual of burning the effigy. Being late for a holiday or not getting to it at all was considered a bad sign.
The attitude of the ancient Slavs to the winter queen was ambiguous. In winter, no one encroached on her authority, but with the approach of spring, people were not so afraid of Marzhana. Being the patroness of infertility and death, Morana could not avoid the annual death. She allowed Spring to conquer herself, and with the onset of cold weather she returned to the world of people again.
Traditions of different nations
In the legends of different nations, one can find references to an evil spirit, deity or fairy with the name "Mar", "Moran" or "Mora". These and other names go back to the common Indo-European root "mor" (or "mar"), meaning death, death.
In ancient Germanic mythology, a dark elf was called a mar. Marut spirits are mentioned in Germanic folklore. These are the souls of warriors who died in battle. They can raise a storm or drive thunderclouds into the sky.
In English and Welsh legends, the evil entity, the avenging maiden, was called Fairy Morgana. This magical person was the sister of the legendary King Arthur and harmed him.
Bulgarian version: souls of babies who died not baptized become maras. Sometimes the evil entity took the form of an earthly child. If people picked up such a “baby” and brought it home, the whole family could be mowed down by the sea.
In the minds of our ancestors, Marena was an otherworldly "orderly", removing everything sick, weak, decrepit from the planet. Marzhana could take the body of a person, but his soul remained immortal, so experienced people did not experience panic fear or hatred for her.
Patroness of Mages
Death cannot be defeated or ignored when it arrives, but Morana can be pleaded to back off from her victim while they are still alive. This is what our ancestors thought. Wanting to help the seriously ill, the healers of the Slavic tribes created texts of conspiracies addressed to Morena. In Slavic mythology, she was considered the personification of fate, so a prayer to Chernobog's wife was the only way to extend someone's life.
A deity from the Navi world demands respect. It was believed that Marzhana despises cowards and perjurers. Few daredevils were destined to win the patronage of the Dark Lady. Basically, they were magicians, eager to gain unlimited power over the destinies of people. Some astrologers are sure: Marzhana herself chooses "her" people and helps them. If you were born between November 21st and 30th, you can be called a "winter person".
What qualities does the queen of cold and death endow with her wards:
- love of freedom;
- resourcefulness of mind;
- colossal physical strength;
- patience.
If you consider yourself a "pupil" of Marzhana, you can ask her for help in a critical situation. Cases when an earthly person can turn to Morana: a serious illness of a spouse or children, threats from an evil enemy, a sudden madness of a relative.
No one knows what payment Marena will require from you for his help (mythology does not answer this question). However, the unceasing interest of magicians and astrologers in Marzhana speaks of one thing: the patroness of cold is fraught with tremendous power.
A creature not from our world
“The deity of death among the ancient Slavs was female and wore different names. The most used: Madder, Mara, Morena, Morovaya Maiden, Maara, Morena Kashcheevna. She appeared to people in different guises, either as a terrible hunchbacked old woman with long black hair, or as a very beautiful young girl, again dark-haired. She dressed in bright red or white clothes and always had a ball of thread with her. The ball was not easy, and Morena was engaged in needlework not at all out of love for art. Each thread in the yarn meant someone's fate. The threads were intertwined with others, which meant turns, changes in a person's life. Sometimes the threads were torn, or they were torn by Morena herself, and then her ward died.
Mila Tarasevich, a third-year philology student at Leningrad University (1964 model), put her book aside and thought. She was not interested in reading about Mara, she was preparing a term paper on the poetry of contemporary Leningrad poets, in particular about Joseph Brodsky, but her supervisor did not advise writing about Brodsky. It turned out that the young poet is a parasite, and they are going to attract him for this. This is where it arose new topic, about Slavic long-forgotten mythical creatures.
Sacrifices in honor of Marena
Mila sighed and continued reading.
“Some researchers argue that in honor of the goddess of death, the Slavs occasionally arranged sacrifices. Huge effigies were built from branches and straw, similar to the figure of a maiden, and empty in the middle, they cooked.
They surrounded them with brushwood, firewood, and inside they brought criminals sentenced to death. Sometimes there were crazy volunteers who decided to sacrifice themselves to a deity from the afterlife, and they themselves went to the fire, climbing into these dummies.
Marena, Mara, Morena Mara Maruha
- Was faith so strong that it forced normal people to end her life in such a painful way, thought Mila, and went to the kitchen to make tea. - There was no Mary-Marukha, there was ignorance and savagery of our ancestors. And what is the point of studying their barbaric customs today?
The doorbell rang. In the morning, Milka did not wait for anyone, her parents were at work, her girlfriends were at school. Opened. On the threshold stood a young beautiful and tall girl with black flowing hair. She was dressed in a red trouser suit, on her feet shoes matching the color of the ensemble.
“Are you Lyudmila Alexandrovna Tarasevich,” she asked, “after consulting the note in her notebook.
- Yes, - Mila decided that an employee of the dean's office had come to her soul, and the misconduct that this visit could follow began to spin in her memory.
“Don't worry,” the girl said, “I'm not from the dean's office, I'm from your supervisor Semyon Markovich. He asked me to transfer some notes on the topic of your term paper. And I live nearby, so I undertook to bring it in.
- Oh, - Mila was delighted, - come in, will you have tea, I just made it?
She nodded affably, smiled, and walked into the kitchen.
“My name is Lyudmila,” the student chirped, but everyone just calls Milka, and you?
- And I'm Maria, but for friends - Mara.
- Ma-ra, - Milka drawled, - and I’m just writing a term paper about Mara, Marena -.
“I know,” the girl pointed to the package she held in her hands, and took out a cardboard folder entitled “The Goddess of Death - Mara,” this is from Semyon Markovich.
“Well, of course,” Mila nodded understandingly, “you are from his pulpit, I haven’t seen you before.
- I recently transferred from Moscow, I am a graduate student.
Over tea they started talking, and the conversation turned out to be curious. The speech again turned to Marena, Morena, Morova Maiden.
“What do you think of her,” asked the graduate student Milu?
- Yes, nothing special, they gave me a topic and I write.
- In vain, Masha objected, the girl or the old woman was extremely interesting, whoever liked to represent her.
- Exactly, to imagine, - objected Milka, - it was not really there.
- Why did you decide so, Lyudmila, - Maria looked at her very carefully?
- How is that why? Tales, legends?
Have you heard that our thoughts create the surrounding reality?
- How is it, - Mila did not understand?
Roughly speaking, everything a person thinks about becomes a reality.
“Are you saying that if I write and think about Morena, I thereby call her to life?”
Quite simplistic, but generally correct.
Mila thought, and Maria began to get ready.
“Sorry, I have to go.
She took the bag, from which a ball of multi-colored threads unexpectedly rolled out.
“Do you knit,” asked Milka?
- I'm trying, it's not working out so far. They are constantly torn, probably, the threads are bad, look.
She pulled a thin blue thread from the ball and easily tore it into two pieces.
At the threshold, they said goodbye and Maria suddenly, suddenly turning around, said: “You should not have called her Maruha, this is not a good word, Mara may be offended, but she is vindictive!”
When the door slammed shut behind the stranger, Milka stood for some time in confusion: “And how did she know that I called Maru Marukha?”
But I didn’t think for long, I had to do a coursework. Lyudmila sat down at the table, untied the ribbons of Semyon Markovich's folder, opened it and began to read.
VIDEO: Gods of the Slavs: Mara is the goddess of death
Gods of death in the culture of different peoples
“The dark world of death has always been present in the folklore of all nations. Among the mystical and divine beings, representatives of the underworld occupied one of the leading places.
This is understandable. The grave has always scared and still scares people. We know very little about life, let alone death.
Non-existence horrified our ancestors, what is beyond the horizon? And there, perhaps, something terrible is happening.
That is why the ancients treated the kingdom of the dead with respect, feared and revered the creatures involved in it in one way or another.
And, of course, passing away from life was perceived not as a natural act, but as a manifestation of the divine will.
Sometimes in the realm of the dead one being dominated, and sometimes this position was shared by several at once, as in Ancient Egypt. Anubis, Selket, Meritsekert and a few others, smaller ones, ruled there.
AT Ancient Greece looking after the dead was carried out by Hades and his beloved wife Persephone (Proserpina), the mistress of the souls of the dead.
In Hinduism, the dead were guarded by the goddess Kali, one of the incarnations of the Great Mother Goddess Devi.
Death is female?
Among the gods of the dark, evil, in charge of the kingdom, where the souls of the dead live, there are representatives of both sexes.
For the Germans, for example, death is masculine, life is neuter.
But most often. Why this happens is a question, but the old woman with a scythe is a symbol understandable to everyone.
Although this image is not unique.
Sometimes death appears in the form of a beautiful girl, and dying in her arms is much more pleasant than in the hairy hands of a man with dirty nails.
In addition, the “bony”, although she fulfills her immediate duties, can sympathize with those who are leaving.
The goddess of death has no plans to destroy everything that exists around her to the root. She fulfills the will of the supreme deity and at the appointed hour takes the souls for another life.
Goddess Mara
The grave has always scared and still scares people. We know little about life, let alone death, even more so.
The Slavs were no exception, and their goddess of death was also a woman and wore beautiful name Mara or Marena.
Although if you listen closely to the sound, we will catch the related word "Pestilence", a synonym - an epidemic.
By the way, “mara” in Sanskrit means “killing”.
It is not surprising that the Slavic queen Mara also ruled over the periods of resurrection and death of nature.
Mara - bride, sister, wife, mother, daughter, granddaughter
- The genealogy of the goddess of death is so confusing that Svarog himself will not understand. Here are some versions of her family connections.
- Mara, the giver of death, belongs to the first generation of Slavic gods.
- Morena is the daughter of the Black Serpent. This monster guards the Kalinov bridge, along which you can cross from Yavi to Nav.
- Morova Maiden is the granddaughter of the Lizard, the creator of universal evil and the ruler of the underworld.
- Maara is Koshchei's wife, he is also her brother on her father's side.
- From her husband-brother Koshchei, Morena gave birth to daughters: Snezhana, Ledyanitsa, Zamora, Nemocha, Vodyanitsa and several more, who were associated with the pestilence of livestock, dying, crop failure, devastation, hunger.
- Later, Mara Kashchei deceived, bound with sorcerous chains in the casemates of his palace.
- Then the insidious Morena seduced Dazhbog and married him to herself. . Poor Mara never found family happiness and was left alone with her strength.
- Next version: Mara is not Kashchei's wife, but his daughter, who ruled in the kingdom of the dead.
- Another common option is Morena, Zhiva and Lada - three goddesses who were born from the sparks of Svarog's hammer, which he carved from the sacred stone Alatyr.
image of madder
As in the case of genealogy, the image of Mary doubles, triples and tenfold.
You will never guess which one is the wearer, or maybe all of them are real, it’s just that the goddess changed her disguises, depending on her mood, season, time of day, and so on.
- Mara, the goddess of death among the Slavs, is beautiful, remarkable for her beauty, which can be called magical. You will not find this in ordinary earthly girls.
- She is a young girl with very white skin and long black hair that falls freely over fragile shoulders. Such an image was typical for a young goddess at the beginning of winter.
- The goddess Marena is dressed in red or dazzling white clothes and in this form often appeared among the ripening bread.
- Marvelous beautiful girl in Slavic beliefs there was also the goddess Lada, but, according to some evidence, the Morovaya Maiden was in no way inferior to her in beauty and attractiveness.
- The next image is directly opposite to the one drawn above. Mara is a direct embodiment of a nightmare: an ugly, hunched old woman is very tall with matted long hair.
- Sometimes Mara appeared in old worn-out clothes with a scythe in her hands.
- Before mere mortals, she could also appear in the form of a skeleton with white bones.
- And again Morena took the form of a beauty in a dress of azure color, trimmed with white lace.
- It was believed that she lives in a large palace of transparent ice.
The deity of death among the ancient Slavs
In the view of the ancient Slavs, Mara was above the concepts of good or evil, she performed the work that the supreme God of the Slavs Svarog doomed her to.
The goddess of death ruled in the realm of shadows, it was there that her possessions were, but sometimes Mara visited the world of people.
Goddess Mara
Mara, the goddess of death, is beautiful in that beauty that can be called magical. You will not find such beauty in ordinary earthly girls.
Appeared to the person, at the time destined by fate, and took him to her kingdom. Sometimes she came to warn of upcoming events - pleasant or tragic, so that a person could prepare for them.
In addition to her ice palace, Mara could be found in other rather gloomy and dark places: grottoes, damp caves.
There were spells that called Mara, but it was very dangerous to specifically seek a meeting with the goddess of death. Once in the arms of a dark maiden, it was not always possible to escape from them. Mara did not like to be remembered in one form or another.
A few more qualities characterized the beautiful goddess. She was principled and strict, she never forgave treason, insults and people who did not keep their word.
Mara's abilities and powers
Mara is a sorceress who is able to change the world beyond recognition, however, only for a short time.
In addition, she was subject to the passage of time, both globally and locally.
Favorite hobby is needlework.
In mythology, the Roman goddesses of fate are better known - Parks (Clotho, Lachesis, Atropos). Clotho began to spin the thread human destiny, Lachesis - spun and untangled, Atropos cut it and the man died.
“... The noise of the sea is not heard and the stars are bright,
And the north wind blows steam from the mouth,
And eternal peace, how this shore is empty,
And threads are woven by invisible parks.
Morena did it alone. And spun, and untangled, and cut. The ancient Slavs believed that the threads of fate, the threads of life and death of all people on earth were hidden in her yarn. As the threads are woven into the pattern, so will the life of a living being.
Goddess Mara
Before mere mortals, she could also appear in the form of a skeleton with exposed bones.
Legends say that Mara owned witchcraft, magic and, thanks to these abilities, the lives of not only people, but also the gods themselves, turned out to be in her hands.
Marena was also friends with the all-powerful wife of Veles Yaga. She gave Yaga the souls of people, and she allowed the beautiful brunette to visit the Navi world, where, according to Svarog laws, the passage was closed to both gods and people.
Through the dream pictures that Mara sent to people, they received a warning of imminent death.
Among the Slavs, it was considered a sign of the near end - to meet your double or with a woman with long black hair. On the part of the goddess, these signs were gestures of goodwill, which made it possible to complete earthly affairs with dignity and prepare for the transition to another world.
They also say that the power of Marena spread to such an extent that she could not only take life, but resurrect a person and give him eternal life.
The goddess Mary also had her minions who helped her, carried out assignments. Mortal people saw them in the form of black-haired beauties.
Attributes of Mary
The attributes of Mary, with which the Slavs associated her existence, are a great many. Most of them represent death, which is natural for this goddess.
Here are some of them:
- Black Swan;
- The sickle, with the help of which she terminated the earthly existence of a person, cutting them the thread of fate;
- Black Moon;
- Griffin;
- And, of course, the raven, a bird associated with the world of the dead, a harbinger of misfortune and trouble.
The attributes of Mary were also - winter, cold, death, darkness, decay, destruction.
Her personal symbol, the so-called "Water of Mary" - a frozen stream of water, containing energy frozen for the time being, also indicated that the element of water was also subject to this goddess.
The next sign-symbol of the great goddess Mary is the sign of Winter or Mara-Viy. Two triangles connected by vertices symbolized trouble, the death of all living things. Extremely negative sign.
Amulet, amulet of Mary - protective properties
An unusual cross, the so-called cross of Mary, acted as a talisman for the beauty of the goddess. The symbol that protected helped to achieve harmony in life and in thoughts.
The amulet is a cross with equal sides and another mini cross on each top.
The symbolism is as follows: 4 seasons, 4 cardinal directions, 4 elements. Skewed one of the characters could lead to serious consequences.
Goddess from another world
Winter is definitely the physical manifestation of Mary. On cold, hopeless winter nights, she reigned supreme over nature, over the entire Russian land, and filled Nav with new souls of peasants who died from the winter cold.
Goddess Mara
Through the dream pictures that Mara sent to people, they received warnings of imminent death.
And according to the legends, she was not cruel undividedly and without reason, on the contrary, along with the truth, she was also considered the goddess of justice.
Mara - Goddess from another world The real actions and deeds of Marena were incomprehensible and inaccessible to the human mind. Why she acts one way or another, no one knew. After all, Morena ruined the world many times, but she saved it more than once. Mara is a goddess who exists in a different layer of reality, as if in a different dimension, where such concepts as “good” and “evil” are completely ambiguous.
Features of the cult of Mary
How the goddess of death was worshiped
In honor of Marena in Russia, many altars and temples were built, but honors could be paid to her everywhere. Images of a black-haired maiden were carved from wood, made from straw. They chose a place for the ritual, surrounded it with stones. The largest stone was placed in front of the image, it was something like an altar.
When the rite ended, all the attributes of the sacrament were removed.
Sometimes, during severe plagues and epidemics, animals were sacrificed to the goddess of death, sometimes people, but very rarely.
Goddess Mara
On winter nights, she reigned supreme over nature, over the entire Russian land, and filled Nav with new souls.
In addition, the victims were volunteers who deliberately burned in giant straw dolls.
Mara's revenge
Mila Tarasevich, a third-year student at the Faculty of Philology at Leningrad University, submitted her essay three days later. On the next week Semyon Markovich praised the student.
“This is thanks to your materials from the folder that Maria brought,” Lyudmila said gratefully.
— Folders? What folder, - the supervisor was surprised? But then he was distracted and the conversation was interrupted.
Lyudmila shrugged her shoulders, put the notebooks in her bag and headed for the exit.
The next day, Lyudmila Alexandrovna Tarasevich died in her bed from a detached blood clot.
Many relatives gathered for the funeral, there were classmates and representatives of the university.
A little further away stood a dazzlingly beautiful young girl with black flowing hair.
She had a ball of thread sticking out of her bag at her side, with knitting needles gleaming in the sun carelessly stuck into it.
Goddess Mara
Mara is a goddess who exists in a different layer of reality in a different dimension, where such concepts as “good” and “evil” are completely ambiguous
