As you know, one of the most popular gods of the Slavic pantheon is the lord of thunder Perun. Many legends and traditions have been written about him, and with the advent of Orthodoxy, the "divine duties" of Perun were divided among several Orthodox saints. The ancient temples of the Slavic Thunderer, where his loyal servants once drew their mighty powers, also keep many secrets.
Son of Svarog
According to Slavic legends, Perun was the son of the blacksmith god Svarog, who once forged the earth, and the beauty Lada, the patroness of the family and women. From an early age, the sounds of the storm were the best lullaby for a young celestial, and as he grew up, he took thunder and lightning to his service. Observing the work of his father, who forged swords and arrows, Perun fell in love with weapons, imbued with respect for the soldiers and decided to be their faithful assistant on the battlefield.
I must say that Perun was revered as a warrior god for a reason. Coming out of infancy, he began to protect Yav (the world of people) and Prav (the world of the gods) from the cruel children of Chernobog - the ruler of the dark kingdom of Navi (the world of the dead). His fight against demons, basilisks and griffins was so successful that, by the decision of other gods, he became one of the supreme celestials. He rode across the sky in a chariot surrounded by his thunder servants and, seeing one of the demonic enemies, immediately struck him with lightning.
Our ancestors imagined Perun as a tall, broad-shouldered man with dark, touched gray hair and a golden mustache and beard. The thunder god wore a wide red cloak, and therefore the Slavic princes and the military leaders, whose patron Perun was considered, wore exactly the same ones during solemn ceremonies.
I must say that Perun was revered not only by warriors, but also by simple peasants, since this god protected their homes from evil spirits, chased away the terrible withering demon that sent drought, and sent a thunderstorm to the earth, thereby giving people a rich harvest.
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Magi and warriors
Today, archaeologists have discovered several temples of this great god. The most significant of them were located in Kiev, Novgorod and Lyubich.
Usually, the temple of Perun was set up on a dais, fenced in with a palisade and had the shape of an octagon, in each corner of which there was a kind of sanctuary, where a fire burned, which did not extinguish either day or night. In the center of the temple stood a statue of a god, and here the main services were held in his honor.
At each such construction there was a dwelling for the Magi - the thunderer's servants, here were the chambers of the high priest and young youths were trained. Our ancestors believed that the wise men of Perun have some kind of invisible power bestowed on them by the deity, and therefore only a special person, marked by God himself, could become a magician. Sometimes the role of the sorcerer passed by inheritance - from father to son, and sometimes the priests marked certain "signs" on the baby during the naming ceremony.
As soon as such a baby grew up, the parents themselves gave him to the sorcerer's disciples, and he took him to the house at the temple. There, the youth studied for several decades, and then became a wandering priest who passed from village to village, carrying to people a certain set of laws - "Perunova Pravda". He also performed rituals and sacrifices, healed diseases and wounds, while drawing knowledge from the source of human wisdom, and thus completed his studies. I must say that the magi-wanderers were simply necessary for our distant ancestors: according to historical data, in 885 in Kievan Rus there were only five large temples of Perun, headed by the high priests, and therefore their servants could only provide assistance to residents of limited territories. In some places, the rulers of small principalities assumed the role of servants of Perun.
Having spent several more decades, the Magi returned to the sanctuary, where they spent the rest of their years serving God until their death.
But if you believe some historical sources, Perun also had special warrior servants. They underwent special training and were fluent in all types of weapons. People turned to the Magi-warriors in those cases when they were "overcome by an unclean force." In other words, they rid the villages of monsters like evil werewolves or mischievous brownies, and also performed the duties of exorcists.
Flower challenge
However, a servant of Perun could become not only a person who underwent a long training at the temple, but also a daredevil who really proved the strength of his spirit. And for this it was only necessary to get the "Perunov color", or "heat-color", as our ancestors called the fern flower. Unlike later legends, Slavic legends say that Perun's flower appears in the forests of the reserved from the fire of his lightning. Most often this happens on a stormy summer night, when the god is fighting with might and main with the wither demon, as well as in late spring, when the mountain ash blossoms and the first thunderstorms rumble.
To get the treasured flower, you had to go to the forest with the onset of a thunderous night, when thunder rumbles in the sky and Perun's lightning flashes, taking with you a knife and a tablecloth. Having reached the reserved place, the daredevil drew a circle with a knife on the ground, sat in its center and covered himself with a tablecloth, which guaranteed him a reliable shelter from "competitors" - evil spirits. After some time, monsters began to creep up to a person and reptiles crawl, but since they could not cross the boundaries of the circle, they tormented the opponent with fear or sent him a heavy sleep. If the hunter for the "heat-color" withstood these tests, at the appointed hour he picked the cherished flower. However, it was not easy to bring the "prey" home! The monsters chased the daredevil up to the porch of his dwelling, and if he looked back at his pursuers, they tore the poor fellow to shreds.
The future sorcerer, who successfully reached home, cut his palm with a knife, then applied the obtained flower to the wound and immediately acquired powerful strength and age-old wisdom. All the treasures that were underground were also revealed to him, but this gift of God became an incentive for subsequent generations of "fern hunters" who lived already in the era of Christianity.
The sorcerer, who gained knowledge thanks to the "Perunov Tsvet", usually lived as a hermit, but people from all over the area flocked to him for help. He possessed magical abilities, predicted the future, could defeat any ailments and solve the most intricate problems of life. When one or another principality was in danger, the sorcerer came to its capital and instructed the ruler on the right path.
At the dawn of a new time
The arrival of Christianity at the end of the 10th century to the Slavic lands was the beginning of the end for the Slavic gods. However, the last years before the baptism of Rus were the "finest hour" of Perun. The future saint, Prince Vladimir, officially "appointed" him the main Slavic god and on the central square of Kiev erected a statue for him decorated with silver and gold.
But nevertheless, according to some legends, the old servants of Perun, to whom the future was opened, did not flatter themselves about the young prince. They sent their disciples into the dense forests, ordering them to preserve the main shrines of the mighty god. Perhaps this is how the cherished Santii were saved - the Vedas of Perun, the teachings that, according to legend, were dictated by the celestial to his servants and were originally cast on plates of unknown metal. Today, the translation of the Perunov Vedas in the book version is a significant historical literary monument, but, alas, it is not known where the original source is kept.
After the baptism of Rus, the idols of Perun in all large cities were hacked or thrown into rivers, and only yesterday the hotly revered Magi suffered heavy punishment from the adherents of the new faith. And yet, for more than one century, the priests of the thunder god, who took refuge in the forests, helped the common people on his behalf.
The past centuries took with them whole generations of wise wise men of Perun, but the people did not forget their heavenly patron for a long time. True, over time, his "duties" passed to Saints Elijah the Prophet, George the Victorious, and Boris and Gleb, leaving them to throw lightning and destroy monsters.
Magazine: Secrets of the 20th century №17, Elena Lyakina