Lapti (bast shoes) were used in magical practice as a talisman. The Russians hung out old bast shoes near the barnyard, in front of the house, or at the gate. This was done in order to protect the house and livestock from the evil eye: anyone who came will first look at the pile of bast shoes and “break his eyes” at them, therefore, will lose the opportunity to inflict damage. These rituals can also be viewed as a sacrifice of shoes to deceased ancestors, who, according to Slavic beliefs, periodically visit their native places and need shoes for their travels.
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Leaky bast shoes could serve as the amulet called the “Chicken God” (see our previous posts). Old and leaky bast shoes also served as a talisman in family rituals. To prevent the baby from crying at night, a bast shoe was placed at the head of the crib with the words: “Let the child be silent as this bast shoe”.
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Lapti were also used in fertility stimulating rituals. For example, when planting cabbage, old bast shoes were buried at the end of each row so that the cabbage heads were large and dense. And in the Vologda region, a calving cow was fumigated from the owner’s right bast shoe.
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What do you think they did with the remaining bast shoe from the owner’s left foot? ?
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To be continued…
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Perun’s Day is a Slavic warriors holiday
Perun’s Day is a Slavic warriors holiday celebrated on the 20th of July. After praising Perun, the warriors begin to sanctify their weapons: swords, axes, knives and other weapons are placed on the shields at the shrine. Warriors’ amulets are sanctified over the sacrificial fire.
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Eight days prior, lots are drawn (“cherty”, to determine the sacrifice, and “rezy”, to determine its quantity). A bull, a rooster, money or food can be chosen as a sacrifice. The lot can also be drawn for warriors to engage in a duel. The fighters agree among themselves on the choice of weapons or wrestling.
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Then a ritual battle begins, dedicated to the victory of Perun over Veles (Perun defeats Veles and returns the herd of heavenly cows). At the end of the battle, the warriors carry a boat with gifts and put it on “krada” (ritual fire).
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On this day, ceremonial initiations into warriors are held, as well as a rite at which all fallen Slavic warriors are commemorated. Ritual food: beef, game meat, chicken, porridge. Drinks: honey, red wine, beer, kvass.
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Based on materials from the book by V. S. Kazakov “The World of Slavic Gods”, 7th edition.
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An arrow whistled past him…
«…Mirko heard the warriors shouting: “There! Get him!” An arrow whistled past him. Then another…»“
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Our graphic novel about customs and beliefs of the Slavic people in the early Middle Ages is available here: https://www.slovene.online/boar
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Slavic bast shoes – Lapti
Bast shoes (lapti) were known mainly among the Eastern Slavs. They have been used in a variety of ceremonies and rituals. Water from bast shoes was given to a woman in labor to facilitate childbirth. Before the wedding in the southern Russian regions, the groom personally wove holiday bast shoes for his chosen one. Bast shoes could be a wedding gift to the bride or a gift to a girl in matchmaking (if she accepted them, this was a sign of agreement).
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Bast shoes woven in a special way were put on the dead. Slavs believed that these shoes protect from evil spirits and prevent deceased from turning into a vampire. Even when Slavs no longer wore bast shoes in everyday life, they still preferred to put them on the deceased, instead of boots – because boots had “a lot of iron”, which would make it hard for a deceased to walk in the “other world”.
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Ukrainians and Belarusians destroyed old bast shoes in Kupala bonfires along with other old utensils. And in the Bryansk region, on Kupala night, people hung bast shoes on a high pole and burned the entire structure while singing Kupala songs.
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Do you see bast shoes are being used in our time anywhere outside of the museums?
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To be continued…
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The life of a Dvoedushnik after death
The second soul does not die after the Dvoedushnik death, and the second heart does not decay and continues to live. Western Ukrainians and Poles believed that after death Dvoedushnik becomes a vampire, who wanders at night and drinks the blood of people and cattle. And from the drunken blood, the impure soul of a Dvoedushnik gains strength and materializes. They also believed that sometimes after death Dvoedushnik becomes Vetrennik – an atmospheric demon that takes water, delays the rains, turns them into storms and sends them to the fields. Poles also believed that Dvoedushnik could become Topielec – a water demon who drowns people.
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To stop the atrocities of the “undead” Dvoedushnik, it was necessary to dig a grave, chop off his head, turn the body around with the feet where the head was, or turn him face down, and pierce his heart with a linden, aspen or hawthorn stick.
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What other vampire-like creatures do you know?
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More interesting facts can be found in: “Slavic Antiquities” – encyclopedic dictionary in 5 volumes by Institute for Slavic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
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Illustration: Lucas Staniec https://www.artstation.com/lucasst
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