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Dažbog (Deriv). Infrared image showing a portion of the Milky Way.

The Mysterious Mix of Myth and Sky Observations in Serbian Folk Astronomy

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Serbia is one of the Balkan countries that was influenced by many wars. However, even after centuries of very tense events, memory of the traditions from the first inhabitants has survived. Astronomy has strong roots in Serbia. It was explored by people for millennia and the country has one of the most fascinating European folk astronomy disciplines.

The main observatory in Serbia is the Astronomical Observatory Belgrade which opened in 1887. It is one of the oldest scientific institutions in the Balkans. It is also the oldest existing professional observatory in Serbia.

Main building, back view, Astronomical Observatory Belgrade.

Main building, back view, Astronomical Observatory Belgrade. (Astronomical Observatory Belgrade)

But the tradition of observing the sky is much older. Every civilization was curious about the space around Earth. Their methods were usually similar, but the imagination and results of analysis were often completely different. This difference is rooted in many cultural issues, including mythology. In Serbia, the culture has a mixture of many aspects. First of all, the people who lived there in ancient times were under Slavic influence. However, there was also a huge impact of Greek and Roman culture on this land.

Gods from the Sky

As in most cultures, the main object of interest for ancient astronomers was the sun. For the ancient Serbians it was anthropomorphized as a man. The sun was connected with all the male aspects of life.

Dažbog - one of the major gods of Slavic mythology, most likely a solar deity and possibly a cultural hero.

Dažbog - one of the major gods of Slavic mythology, most likely a solar deity and possibly a cultural hero. (Max presnyakov/CC BY SA 3.0)

The Moon wasn't seen as a woman, however, but as a brother or the uncle of the Sun. There was no place for the feminine in the case of the Sun and the Moon, what says a lot about the society as well. The planet Venus was considered a sister of the Moon or sometimes she is presented as the Moon’s wife. People in ancient times believed that the new Moon helped to make dreams come true.

Many of the Serbian folk beliefs related to astronomy have their roots in Proto-Indo-European beliefs. The understanding of the motif of the Sun suggests these origins too. The Sun is depicted as a God's eye riding a horse or in a cart. The moon is depicted as a human and sometimes his children are described. However, nowadays it is hard to pinpoint who the children of the Moon were. They were surely not the stars.

The Trundholm sun chariot - a Nordic Bronze Age artifact discovered in Denmark. It shows a sun chariot, a bronze statue of a horse, and a large bronze disk.

The Trundholm sun chariot - a Nordic Bronze Age artifact discovered in Denmark. It shows a sun chariot, a bronze statue of a horse, and a large bronze disk. (Nationalmuseet/CC BY SA 3.0)

Ancient Serbian Stars

The stars were said to be the sisters of the Sun and Moon, or just sisters. They were always associated with women and presented in the female form. Most of the stories related to individual stars are associated with sisterhood or female care, but the constellations and some stars also had a special meaning.

For example, the Big and Little Dippers, which are now called Velika kola and Mala kola (‘kola’ meaning ‘cart’), were associated with asterism (a pattern of a group of stars – smaller than a constellation). It may be one of the first example of asterism in the world. The name for Sirius in the Serbian language is also known. It was called Svinjarka, from the word svinja, meaning pig. It seems that people believed that pigs were related to the beliefs commonly connected with Sirius, although it is hard to find more details about this.

The big and little dippers.

The big and little dippers. (Bonč/CC BY SA 3.0)

Venus and Zorya

They also knew of a form of Venus, who in the Slavic mythology has many different names and attributes. Venus was related to the goddess Zorya, who is also known as Zorja, Zarja, Zora, and Zorza.

Sometimes Zorya is described as two or even three beings, but other times she is just one female. She was also a beautiful double guardian goddess known as the Auroras. As a daughter of the Sun, she was associated with the Zorja Utrennjaja, who was the Morning Star linked to protection, horses, light, and exorcism. It was believed that she took care of spiritual cleansing and brought good emotions.

‘Zorya’.

‘Zorya’. (The Zorya)

Zorya was also connected to the planet Venus and some of her attributes were similar to the Roman Venus and Greek Aphrodite. Slavic tribes worshiped her every morning when the sun was rising and bringing a new day, new hope, and new possibilities to accomplish their goals. As a star connected with daytime, Venus was also related to Danica, a daystar. Venus is always presented as a woman. Sometimes she seems to be connected with the Preodnica, meaning ''crosser over'', who appears on the East and West sides of the sky.

The Milky Way and Dragons in the Sky

The Milky Way must have been a fascinating object for the people who observed it from ancient primitive observatories. In Serbian it's called Kumova Slama, and there is a legend related to it. According to tradition, someone called ''kum'', associated with the role of the Godfather in later Christian terminology, stole straw from another person. However, as he was carrying it as far away as possible, he lost some of his treasure. A deity took it away and put it in the sky as a warning that all the thieves would be punished.

Meteorites had a very special place in early Slavic Serbian astronomy as well. The citizens of the earliest settlements saw them as dragons. Due to this belief, they were traditionally called “zmaj,” meaning “dragon.” The people observed the long “tail” behind the meteorites and they associated them with dragons. They imagined that the objects had supernatural abilities and believed that they were winged creatures which make a loud scary noise.

Dragon Bridge (Slovene: Zmajski most) is a road bridge located in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia.

Dragon Bridge (Slovene: Zmajski most) is a road bridge located in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. (FromTheNorth / Flickr)

Modern Serbians Exploring the Sky

Nowadays, this small country has an impressive number of observatories and research in astronomy. Traditions of exploring the sky though a telescope have stayed strong. Analysis of the sky is frequently related to history as well.

Now, researchers try to find out what people in ancient times could have observed from hills and other natural observatories. Due to their work, the discipline called archeoastronomy is thriving and has helped explain many motifs - connecting the history, mythology, and astronomy of Serbia.

Pavilion of Large Refractor “Carl Zeiss” 650/10550 mm of Belgrade Observatory, built 1932.

Pavilion of Large Refractor “Carl Zeiss” 650/10550 mm of Belgrade Observatory, built 1932. (Свифт/Svift/CC BY SA 3.0)

Top Image: Dažbog (Deriv). (CC BY SA 3.0) Infrared image showing a portion of the Milky Way. (Public Domain)

By Natalia Klimczak

References:

P. Wilkinson, Illustrated Dictionary of Mythology, 1998.

S. Kulišić, P. Petrović, N.  Pantelić, Српски митолошки речник, 1970.

J. Strzelczyk, Mity, podania i wierzenia dawnych Słowian, 1998.

Ancient Slavic Paganism by Boris Rybakov, available at:
http://sventovid.narod.ru/TXT7B/ryb1/ryb_p01.html

Etnoastronomija, available at:
http://www.b92.net/zivot/nauka.php?yyyy=2008&mm=07&dd=21&nav_id=309475

 

Comments

It appears to me along with my study of the Vedas that there is more to Dazbog. He appears to be a depiction of the coming Jesus Christ. His body forms a Celtic Cross...Serbs have Celtic blood in them. The halo around his head carries the unfolding of the many petaled lotus which signifies the complete and perfect unfolding of the crown chakra with the halo around that. He has a crown on his head with three points (father,son, holy ghost) and his heart chakra is depicted as fully open. At his feet is a lion laying down with a lamb on the other side. There is a complete halo around his body as well depicting that all his chakras are open, including the many petaled lotus above and he is crowned. This is the Christ, the perfected man to come.

Natalia

Natalia Klimczak is an historian, journalist and writer and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate at the Faculty of Languages, University of Gdansk. Natalia does research in Narratology, Historiography, History of Galicia (Spain) and Ancient History of Egypt, Rome and Celts. She... Read More

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