There is a beautiful ancient legend about the origin of Kostroma. The goddess was born on the day of the summer solstice together with her twin brother, Kupala. It happened on the bank of a river, presumably the Volga, and the parents of the children are the goddess of the night, the Bathing Lady and the god and patron of the flora, Semargl. Even in adolescence, the children were separated due to interference with their fate by the birds of Alkonost and Sirin. Kupala, having heard the singing of Sirin, at the behest of Chernobog, ended up in the kingdom of Navi and spent many years there. Meanwhile, Kostroma has grown into a beautiful girl.
Once, walking along the bank, she weaved and put a wreath on her head, but a strong wind tore it off and threw it into the river. By coincidence, he fell into the hands of Kupala, and, according to tradition, now the young man had to marry the girl from whose head the wreath was lost. Young people, separated in childhood, did not know about their relationship and got married. Only after the wedding did the gods tell them that they were blood relatives. Unable to endure such a shame, Kupalo threw himself into the fire, and Kostroma chose to drown in a forest lake (according to another version, in the river on the banks of which all these events took place).
The gods were unable to fully resurrect the dead, but were able to turn them into a beautiful flower, now called Ivan da Marya, thus uniting the immortal souls of lovers. Initially, this flower was called Kupalo da Mavka; it received its current name with the arrival of Christianity in Russia.
In this legend, Kostroma is present not as a specific character, but, rather, as a kind of collective image, personifying the girl's purity, devotion and some naivety inherent in youth. After her death, she gave rise to the genus Mavok, a species of mermaid that lives in lakes and rivers. Thus, both the life and the afterlife of Kostroma are associated with the element of water, the patroness of which she became in the eyes of our ancestors. Water, in turn, is necessary for growing a rich harvest, so Kostroma was also revered as the goddess of fertility.
Judging by the scant data that have come down to our times, celebrations in honor of this goddess were held in the spring, before the start of field work. A scarecrow, usually made of straw, was dressed up in white clothes, after which it was burned or torn to pieces, thus transferring the creative energy of Kostroma to the earth, awakening from winter sleep. This action, in all likelihood, was accompanied by the crying of young girls grieving over the death of a young and beautiful goddess. According to another version, the stuffed goddess was buried in the ground, conducting a kind of “ funeral ” of the winter season.
Like most Slavic pagan characters, Kostroma is a complex image, the study of which encounters formidable obstacles, the main of which is the inexorable time separating us from the ancient beliefs of our ancestors. Nevertheless, thanks to the efforts of specialists, we can, at least a little, but touch the traditions of those distant times.
Promotional video: