Slavic goddesses of the seasons 2/4.

In Slavic mythology, significant goddesses are associated with certain seasons and thus acquire the characteristics characteristic of that time.

Morana was the goddess of winter and death, and because of that she was not one of the favorite deities among the Old Slavic peoples. Morana represented a long and cold winter that could bring with it death in the form of hunger and unbearable cold, which could be the cause of the disease. Because of that, her arrival was always eagerly awaited, and her departure was celebrated stormy and joyful. She represents Vesna's opposite and there was a constant struggle between these two goddesses. Vesna, as the goddess of spring, unlike Morana, would be welcomed with a celebration and her arrival would emphasize the birth of nature and the end of winter. Many rituals were associated with the farewell of Morana and the winter, which the Old Slavic people did not like at all, which is understandable given the climate that this people inhabited. Most often, a doll was made of straw or reeds, which represented this goddess and which the people would beat with sticks, and later throw into the water or possibly burn. In the month of March, another ritual related to the goddess of winter was practiced. These were so-called cats made up of a masked procession of people gathered with the aim of scaring and driving away Moran.

Morana is described as a woman with dark hair and a frightening appearance, and an identical description is associated with another mythical creature of a similar nature - the Plague, which most likely represents only one aspect of Morana, just as Mora represents - a female demon attacking people sitting at night. on the chest and cause nightmares.

There are also several myths associated with this goddess that connect her with other gods of the Old Slavonic pantheon. According to one of these myths, the sun god Dažbog went to the underground world called Nav by the Slavs, to look for his wife Zlata Maja, but there he met Morana who seduced him. After a while, she got bored of Dažbog and after she found another lover - Crnobog, Morana decided to poison Dažbog. However, Živa saves him, after which Dažbog burns Morana and persecutes her in Nav. This myth explains the movement of the sun and the sequence of the seasons. According to another myth, Morana is associated with the god Water, who appears as her spouse. Voden, like Moran, and Moran drown people in dark waters, which is why the Slavs very often tried to appease them and appease them with sacrificial offers. As a water deity, Morana also appears as Modruna, a witch who, according to the Slavs who lives in the vicinity of the Urals, lives in ponds and usually appears as an ugly grandmother, but to one who does not show fear in front of her appears as a young and beautiful girl in a white dress. .

Although seemingly Morana takes on the characteristics of a negative deity, she is not. That difference between absolute good and evil came only with the advent of Christianity. There is no such thing in the pagan belief, and the appearance of Morana and the fear she caused is just an example that the old Slavs paid significant attention to what did not bring them good.