BlogENG — Witia

Slavic faith – part 2 – the meaning behind prayers

In the previous post we discussed religious sacrifices made by pre-Christian Slavs. We came to conclusion that, considering the historical context, our ancestors’ sacrifices to the Gods were of much higher value than our modern offering are. We also mentioned that, due to the nature of Slavic Gods, our ancestors had to be precise in their prayers – know exactly what they wanted to pray for, which God they wanted to pray to, when and how.

Today as promised we will discuss if it’s possible to adapt prayer/sacrifice rituals of pre-Christian Slavs for the reality of XXI century and - if so - how can it be done.

A disclaimer: this post discusses exclusively the issues off the worship of Slavic Gods. The issues of veneration of the ancestors will be discussed another time.

Slavic FaithMagda LewandowskaFebruary 23, 2020Slavs, Slavic culture, slavic ethics, slavic prayerComment

The Slavic faith – part 1 – historical reenactment or a religion?

We don’t know much about pre-Christian Slavs, but we do know one thing about them for sure: they were tough, resilient, pragmatic and resourceful people. Their strength and determination helped them not only to live and thrive in conditions – for us, the people of the XXI century – pretty much unimaginable, but also to create a culture, which, despite active uprooting and persecution by Christians, survived through centuries in the memory and hearts of generations.

Recently the culture of our ancestors has been gradually gaining the regard and recognition it deserves. More and more Slavs find their roots, begin to discover pagan ideas and reject Judeo-Christian dogma and morality. But in the eyes of many the faith of our ancestors still remains closer to Medieval historical reenactment than to the reality of XXI century. Many still worship the old Gods by repeating the actions performed by our ancestors, without realising the meaning and purpose of those actions. It’s a bit like putting on a lab coat to become a doctor. Like wearing a lab coat does not make anyone a doctor, so throwing meat into the holy fire does not make anyone a Rodnover.

Slavic FaithMagda LewandowskaFebruary 7, 2020Slavs, zertwa, RodnoveryComment

Let’s argue!

“the Slavs are most courageous and violent, and if it was not for disputes caused by the proliferation of divisions in their branches and fragmentation into tribes, no people would be able to match their strength” Those words, written over a thousand years ago by Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, are one of the best known and most cited description of the Slavic nature – a description rarely (if at all) questioned.

Magda LewandowskaDecember 21, 2019 Comments

Contemplating the Slavic soul

Recently I was following a Facebook discussion about Slavic souls, focusing particularly on when the soul develops. As it usually happens with this sort of discussions in a few comments the topic branched off towards abortion, pro-life movements and family planning. Again – as it usually happens - the gist of some of the comments indicated that at least some of the commentators remain under a more or less conscious influence of Judeo-Christian ideas. Therefore, I decided to contemplate the topic of the Slavic soul, to try and separate the Judeo-Christian layer of indoctrination from the true Slavic tradition.

Magda LewandowskaNovember 30, 2019Slavic culture, Slavs, slavic demonology, Slavic soulComment

First – thou shalt not make new vampires

A lot is being written and said about the toxicity of the modern society. Lack of tolerance, marginalisation of the minorities, ignoring of the needs of our mental health, excessive pressure, criticising or bulling in schools, work places or even in the public space (streets, busses, supermarkets etc). This toxicity of the modern society (often after adding to the mix computer games and/or violent action or horror movies) is cited as the main cause of rise in aggression, crime, delinquency and so on.

Magda LewandowskaNovember 17, 2019demons, vampires, slavic ethics, slavic demonologyComment

Dziady and the ritual Slavic masks

A night walk on the slopes of Ślęża is not an activity I would recommend to faint-hearted or faint-spirited. Following a forest trail, in the dark dispersed only by a soft light of a torch, listening to your own breathing, screeching of the trees and wind, with every cell of your body sensing the presence of the spirits and souls inhabiting the sacred mountain of the Celts and the Slavs – this is (in my experience) a fusion of a horrifying horror movie and a cross-country race without a map, physical fitness and prescription glasses for astigmatism.

Magda LewandowskaOctober 31, 2019Dziady, Ślęża, Slavs, Ritual masks Comments

The lost ancestors

Veneration of the dead has always been one of the most important pillars of the Slavic culture. One of the way in which our ancestors revered their dead was by preparing celebratory feasts, during which the departed were summoned, and then fed, asked for advice or for blessings. Initially those feasts were lead by a priest (zhrets, volkhv), who after the Christianization of the Slavic land was replaced by a dziad – a travelling bard. It is difficult to say which came first – the name of the celebratory feasts (Dziady) or the name of the traveling bard (dziad), but there is no doubt that both played a significant role in the Slavic culture. The function of the travelling bard was still known in the XIX century and the tradition of Dziady (the feasts for the ancestors) remains live even now, after it was incorporated in the Christian liturgical year.

Magda LewandowskaOctober 23, 2019Slavs, Slavic culture, Dziady, All Souls Day Comments

A fabric embroidered with fate

Embroidered towel carries many symbolic meanings. For centuries it has been a companion of human life, from sunrise to sunset, on regular and on holy days, from birth to death. It used to be present in every household, today it’s seen rarely – on icons in Orthodox churches or in small villages in Eastern Poland. Do we realise that this white piece of fabric is a magical object, full of mysterious and deep meaning?

Magda LewandowskaOctober 23, 2019Slavs, Slavic culture, Embroidered towels, Scared towels, SymbolsComment

The „primitive” art of Slavs

Zbruch Idol

Known widely as Sviatovid the sculpture is the most identifiable symbol of the Slavic religion, although its meaning, origin and even age remain controversial among the scientists.

The typical arguments questioning the authenticity of the Idol are:

- The material of which the sculpture is made;

Magda LewandowskaOctober 23, 2019Comment

The miracle of marketing – a few words about pop-culture and Christianisation

Why is pop-culture so popular? What makes the simple, predictable and often unoriginal melodies, paintings or movies be so popular, have hordes of fans and generate so much profit? There is for sure many reasons, but the main one is… their popularity – not in the “well known or accepted” meaning of this word but rather in the other “plain, easy to grasp, common, ordinary” meaning.

Magda LewandowskaOctober 22, 2019Slavs, Slavic culture, Christianisation, pop cultureComment