Information about the ancient Slavic gods, as well as about the culture, life and traditions of our distant ancestors, are, in the overwhelming majority of cases, fragmentary and contradictory. The main source of information about the beliefs of the Slavic tribes have been and remain the chronicles of the authorship of Christian priests and monks that have come down to us, in their writings violently denouncing "idolatry", bringing gifts and other manifestations of "paganism". In these works, there are often quite detailed, although set out from a certain point of view, descriptions of ceremonies and rituals associated with the name of one or another Slavic deity. Another priceless artifact of the past centuries for modern researchers is the ancient Russian collection of the twelfth century "The Tale of Bygone Years". It is in this chronicle that there is a mention of the goddess Mokoshi (Mokoshi),whose idol was installed in Kiev on a par with the supreme gods of the Slavic pantheon in the tenth century.
On the issue of the origin of the name Mokoshi, experts have no consensus. The most famous, but completely unproven, hypothesis is the following: Ma - mother and Kosh - fate or lot. Because among the ancient Slavs, Makosh was considered the mistress and master of human destiny, then this assumption has a very real basis. In any case, to date, no more intelligible decoding of the goddess's name has been proposed.
The image of Mokoshi is primarily associated with spinning and weaving, i.e. crafts that are fully consistent with her feminine essence. In a broader sense, these pursuits mean making the thread of life, and not only of an individual person, but of life as such. In this matter, according to folk legends, Mokoshi is helped by two assistants, Dolya and Nedolya, who are sometimes called her daughters. Their task is to wind the yarn made by the goddess into balls. The life path of each person completely depends on whose hands, Share or Nedoli, the thread of his fate falls. In this context, it is easy to see a parallel between the image of Mokoshi and the Scandinavian norns or Greek moira, which perform similar functions.
In addition, Makosh, as a female goddess, is considered the patroness of crafts related to household management and the keeper of the hearth in general. It is possible that she was approached with requests for a good harvest and livestock. What kind of gifts were brought to Mokoshi, today, unfortunately, it is no longer possible to establish precisely. Popular legends say that this goddess knows everything, the most intimate secrets of the past and the future, so other gods often turn to her for advice.
Given the presence of Mokoshi on a par with the highest Slavic deities, it would be logical to assume that she is the daughter of the Rod itself. Traditionally, she is called the wife of Perun, although in some modern sources Veles is indicated as her life partner. The day of the week Mokos is called Friday; according to legend, on this day it is strictly forbidden to spin yarn, thereby paying tribute to the main craft of the goddess. A woman who, for any reason, violated this prohibition, should have prepared for an early and severe punishment at the hands of Mokosha.
Makosh, by all indications, should be ranked among the common Slavic deities. The name of the goddess is present, in one or another transcription, in most adverbs belonging to the Slavic language group.