History of Russia – Lesson 2 – SLAVIC MYTHOLOGY (Gods and creatures)

History of Russia series continues with Slavic mythology and Slavic mythological creatures. Slavic folklore is a controversial area of studies because very few historical sources are left. Slavic paganism or Slavic religion define the religious beliefs and ritual practices of the Slavs before the formal Christianisation in 988. There were dozens of deities, let’s mention some of the most important ones. The supreme god was called Rod. This was the god of the universe and of all other gods, the creator of all things in the world and the ruler of all other deities. Another important god was Svarog. The name literally means «Heaven». He was associated with military, smithery, and sometimes with fire (Ognebog), literally «god of fire». One of the most well-known Slavic gods was Perun. Perun means “Thunder“, and he was the son of Svarog, worshipped as the god of war. He is related to Thor and other Indo-European thunder gods. Perun was first associated with weapons mad