Nothing compares to her

Once upon a time, before silicone and Botox, before Sex and the City, artificial tan, and duckface, there were women with natural looks, and more importantly, natural minds. They were beautiful, each in her own special way, with unique features that made them so different from one another. And yet, the climate of their homeland gave them certain quality they shared, which made their origin obvious at the very first sight. While a woman from Latin America, for example, would easily be recognized by her voluptuous curves, Slavic women had always been known for their uniquely simple and pure beauty. One of those beautiful, sensual women was most certainly Lada, Slavic goddess of summer, love, and beauty.

Lada, or Lado, was a gentle flower, with long golden hair, perfect, light complexion, purple eyes, and raspberry lips. With a wreath made of fresh wildflowers and birch leaves in her hair, wearing a simple, white, softly transparent dress, she brought happiness and joy to people. Her symbols were ears of wheat and the Sun, and according to astrology, her planet was Venus.  

Although her life revolved around love, feeding the hungry, and achieving world peace, she was more than just a Miss World contestant coming from Jav. Apart from being more beautiful than all Victoria’s angels put together, she was also a woman of sharp mind, righteous, patient, and dignified. Although she was aware of her qualities, she was never vain or conceited. She didn’t need an elevator in her home to help her with the troubles of high heels, because she always walked barefoot. She didn’t need a home video of the most intimate kind, because the very way she moved was more erotic than any of those. She didn’t need to put make up on her face as soon as she woke up, because she had healthy rosy cheeks. She didn’t have to frown in order to make people notice her, her lovely, sincere smile was enough. She wasn’t arrogant, although she was proud. When she loved, she loved all the way, and she wasn’t afraid of showing it. No wonder she was the one to capture the heart of the god of war, Jarilo.

Side by side, they ruled the world seven months a year. While her man strived to obey Svarog’s laws and protect the Slavs, Lada awakened the nature and preserved its fertility by giving it enough sunlight, summer rain, and warm nights. Since she was the protector of young people, love, and relationships, people often prayed to her during various rituals, asking her to protect their future marriages or mend broken hearts. Her animals were deer, rooster, and ant, and her plants were cherry, dandelion, peony, and birch. Her songs are known as Ladaricas, and one of the Christian holidays related to Lada is the Day of the Holy Trinity.

Towards the end of fall, when cold and winter begin their reign, Jarilo and Lada used to retreat to their chambers and enjoy each other’s presence. We can only guess what happened behind those doors and what pleasures were enjoyed within those walls. After all, Lada was a lady, and she never talked about intimate matters in public, not even with her best friends, over a cup of hot coffee. 

Anyway, on several occasions, at the beginning of spring, Jarilo did appear with a few extra pounds. I’m not sure what that tells us about him, but it definitely shows that, apart from other skills, Lada possessed the one that men value most – the one of cooking.

( images retrieved from www.pinterest.com)

You know you’re a Slav if:

1. You use both Latin and Cyrillic alphabet effortlessly. 
   
2. If you’re a he, you’re the most handsome of all men.
3. If you’re a she, you are the fairest of all the ladies.
4. Bravery level: you enter a bear cave barehanded in order to save “the damsel in distress.”
5. Insanity level: you enter a bear cave barehanded just to prove how brave you are.
6. You don’t want to shake off that hangover, you want to maintain it.
7. You can be both a good guy and a bad guy in a Hollywood movie, except if you’re Russian. Then you’re definitely the bad guy.
8. When you swear, everybody in the world understands you.
9. When you protest against something, no one in the world understands you.
10. You’re not afraid of getting ill, because things like that don’t happen to you.
11. You’re the best at every single sport.
12. You can split your country in two, and then those two new countries into four, and so on, ad infinitum et ultra.
13. You love music more than you love bread, and you eat bread with pizza.
14. You always fall for the Three-card Monte trick.
15. You know many words from 13 different languages, although you’ve studied only one.
16. Although you’re glad your neighbor is doing worse than you are, you’ll always be there for him.
17. Every conspiracy theory involves your country.
18. Brandy/vodka is the universal cure for all illnesses and life’s problems.
19. You don’t agree with statement No. 12.
20. You’re proud of your Slavic origin, although you know other people’s history better than your own. 

Jarilo is Slavic word for THE man

A couple of days ago, we celebrated the International Men’s Day, so I’ve decided to dedicate my today’s post to my favorite Slavic god: Jarilo.

Jarilo, Jerovit, or Gerovit, or even Rudyevit, is Slavic god of war and spring. Among Christians, he is better known as Saint George (that’s right, the one that had slain the dragon, and the saint in whose honor, on the 6^th of May, Christians enjoy in at least one of the remaining pagan customs, such as making fresh flower wreaths).

Jarilo is a son of the celestial couple, Perun and Ziva. When he was still a baby, Veles, god of the underworld, stole him from his parents and took him to his kingdom of Nav. Jarilo grew up believing in two utterly painful lies. The first one was that his father was Veles, who was actually his uncle who kidnapped him out of pure jealousy and spite. The other lie brought him even more pain. Everyone kept from him that his one and only love, Morana, was in fact his sister. The only difference was that he was stolen, and Morana, goddess of winter, went to Veles on her own. When he abandoned Nav and joined his real parents in Jav, Morana became his eternal enemy, since she never forgave him for leaving. Honestly, I can’t think of a woman who could forgive him that. And here’s why.

Besides being the Slavic god of war: brave, determined, skillful knight in shiny armor, on a white horse (and he literally rides a white horse), Jarilo is also the god of spring, which is the reason why he looks so good he makes Apollo look like Nicki Minaj compared to him.

Jarilo carries eight swords and a big shield covered in gold. Seven swords represent the seven months of the year governed by Jarilo, and the eighth sword is his personal weapon. His greatest temple could once be seen on the island of Rügen and its roofs were covered in purple. The root of his name, “jar” stands for fire, vehemence, rage, and symbolizes his fiery temperament. However, he’s not some bloodthirsty god of war, like Mars. Oh, far from it, he’s extremely honorable and righteous. Obeying Svarog’s laws, he is, above all, the guardian of all Slavs, but also the guardian of all the weak and helpless. Of course, if someone got on his bad side, they would have a really good reason to be very afraid. 

Jarilo is mighty fire and celestial bliss in one. Perfect balance between two completely opposite worlds. On one hand, there is vehemence, strength, bravery, and skill of war, and on the other, there is warmth, beauty, fertility, and gentleness of spring. Combined with a certain dose of humanness typical of all Slavic gods, it all makes up a man that would make Angelina leave Brad. Unfortunately for her, he is taken, and when he’s taken, he’s faithful.

Step aside, Thor, we’ve got our new favorite god!

Yarilo

In holy time, in Lelya's week
Girls go mad with a dance of spirits.
In Rusalkas' days, in forests
We glorify young Yarilo
Oh, yeah, Yarilo! Yarilo, Yarilo!
Cloudy heaven shows you to us again
Hoy, you, young god!
Hoy, we call you!
We sing the song
With our April hearts

It will roll, it will roll
in the sky, in the bright sky
Turn gloomy clouds out
Hey, to Seven Hills!
To Mighty Seven Hills
That have stood in the darkness for centuries
Kolovrat, turn time back
Make people go on your road*

Oh, yeah, Yarilo! Yarilo, Yarilo!
Cloudy heaven shows you to us again
Hoy, you, young god!
Hoy, we call you!
We sing the song
With our April hearts

Hoy, you, hoy esi! Hoy esi, Yarilo!
Kolovrat turned time back
We wish you roll, roll till dawn
But do not forget to came back in the morning

Taken from http://lyricstranslate.com/en/yarilo-yarilo-yarilo.html#ixzz3JvU8oiE2

Fun Fact Monday - Slavs and Nature

It is a well-known fact that the early Slavs worshiped nature above all else. They respected it, loved it, and worked hard to preserve it. It filled them with awe. Not only were their divinities and mythological creatures inextricably related to nature, but Slavs also strived to live their lives in perfect harmony with nature and its laws. This made their lives so wonderfully simple. They believed that everything happened simply because it had to happen, because it was natural. A man is no different than an oak, a donkey, or a frail dandelion. A man is a living being who comes to this world, grows old, and eventually dies. Unless they suffer from a fatal illness, they die simply because it’s time to move on, because they grew old and embraced old age with everything it might or might not bring.

Everything natural was seen as beautiful. A little lamb and an old sheep alike. Figuratively: because a lamb symbolizes a new morning, fresh rush of strength and will, and a goat represents wisdom at the end of the day, the night that brings us dreams, whatever they may be. Literally: because mutton is delicious, and sheep that give birth to lambs are to be carefully looked after.

Although this may be difficult to comprehend nowadays, the early Slavs loved people, too. Regardless of different personality traits and tempers, they loved and cherished human life, since life is the most valuable human possession.

Human body was considered sacred, especially because they believed they were descendants of gods. They literally worshiped their bodies. They loved the light skin hidden underneath layers of clothes, perfect abs that were the result of hard work, and deep lines on the forehead, caused by frowning whilst aiming at prey.

They didn’t need to come up with No-Shave November in order to have a reason for growing a beard. No 7-day detox was necessary to keep their metabolisms running. Large female behind may have been used as a replacement for the timpani, but certainly not as a leitmotif in songs. After all, it serves the exact same purpose as a little one, if you know what I mean. An attractive naked girl in a field would perhaps grab the attention of an entire village, but only if she possessed something completely different in comparison to others; otherwise, a greater scandal would be the lack of honey brandy at one of their festivals where they celebrated life.  

To be honest, if one of today’s promiscuous celebrities happened to wander into the world of the early Slavs, she would end up burning in a bonfire during the festival of Kupala. On that holiday, they used to burn a woman-shaped doll that represented Morana. I’m just not sure if they could deal with the smell of burning plastics, though, since they used to make their scary dolls out of hay.

During their numerous festivals, they wore wreaths made of vine and wild flowers and enjoyed the magic of love, music, and dancing. Happy and free, in accordance with the greatest law, the law of nature, they were, in a way, the original hippies, who, unfortunately, had to realize that they would have to learn how to fight in order to defend themselves, and replace their Woodstock with battlefields.  

                Time went by and they became known as brave and fearless warriors. However, they never gave up on their love for nature. For the life it gives and takes. They taught their children how to survive and carry a sword, but there was no need for them to teach their offspring that they shouldn’t harm nature - they already knew that on their own. 

Today I saw two adorable little girls, singing a pop song and rollerblading past a dumpster. One of them decided to throw some trash into the dumpster, even though she was obviously too far from it. After failing to do so, she just went away with her friend, both of them giggling as if they’d just met Justin Bieber, leaving the entire content of the bag she threw lying on the sidewalk.

Of course we can’t live our lives the way the early Slavs lived theirs. However, until scientists find a way to artificially create all living beings, of until we move to Mars, we should at least try to be like them in this one respect. In their love and respect for the nature. Our one and only home. The Earth. 

image retrieved fromhttp://enlightenyourday.com/

Fun Fact Monday - The Cult of the Wolf

The cult of the wolf has long been an important part of Slavic history and mythology. It is strongly related to two major divinities: Dazhbog and Hors.

Dazhbog is one of the mightiest Slavic gods. He is the god of the Sun, rain, and the underworld, as well as the patron of miners, and the ancestor of all Slavs. He appears both in human and animal form, either as limping old man who often comes down to Earth to help and protect the humans, or a limping white wolf. The given features of the wolf are in no way random; in fact, they carry strong symbolism.

The fact that the wolf is limping does not imply its frailty; it indicates the strong connection between the wolf and the Moon. With the exception of the full moon phase, the Moon is always seen as incomplete, and this incompleteness is reflected in the wolf’s limping. As the phases change, so does the strength of the wolf. The wolf’s power is at its peak when the Moon begins to decline.

The color white symbolizes the fact that Dazhbog belongs to the underworld. In European folklore, the creatures and divinities residing in the underworld are almost always represented as wearing white clothes.

The myth of Dazhbog also includes the story of the son of Morana and Dazhbog, Van. It is believed that he is the original ancestor of Serbs. According to this myth, Morana wanted to take revenge against Dazhbog, so she blinded their son, and was severely punished in return. Boiling with rage, she cursed Van and made him transform into a wolf. Seven years later, his sister managed to lift the curse and help him regain his human form. This is one of the main reasons why Serbs used to believe they were descendants of the wolf.

As far as Hors is concerned, he is the god of the Moon and the morning sun, and is thus closely related to wolves. Being the god of the Moon, he is also the god of the night, which is the time of the day when wolves’ activity and strength are at their peak.

Belief in werewolves, inspired by this relationship between the Moon and wolves, was common among the Slavs long before Hollywood turned it into entertainment.    

After the conversion of Slavs to Christianity, the cult of the wolves survived, as wolves found their patron in Saint Sava, one of the greatest Serbian saints. Today, the significance of wolves is reflected in the common Slavic name Vuk (wolf) and numerous last names derived from this word. 

(images retrieved from www.pinters.com , video retrived from www.youtube.com Van-Vuk)

Fun Fact Monday - The Mischievous Womanizer

In Slavic mythology, Leshnik (or Lesnik, Lesovik, Leshy…) is a forest spirit, protector of wild animals and guardian of the entire forest in which he resides. His name in English would be Hazel, and he is one of the oldest fairy creatures. 
Capable of changing his appearance whenever and however he wishes, he can take various shapes and sizes. One moment, he can be as small as a blade of grass, and the very next second he can be a giant the size of a sequoia. He most often takes the form of a tall man, with long hair and beard made of grass and vines. His eyes are green and glistening, his blood is blue, and it is believed that he has no shadow and wears his shoes on opposite feet. 
This infamous womanizer is known to kidnap beautiful women and do God knows what kind of naughty things with them behind the closed doors of his fur-covered cabin. He often makes young girls dance kolo in front of him, so he could enjoy their beauty and their graceful movement. 
Although he is the protector of wild animals, he takes care of the domestic animals as well, preventing and solving the problems that arise from the antagonism between them. He has a pet bear that follows him around wherever he goes. 
Leshnik is in no way evil, though he is a rather mischievous spirit. He enjoys leading people down the wrong forest paths, making them desperately lost. He hides lumberjacks’ axes in order to prevent them from hurting the trees. He is extremely noisy and is a truly talented piper. This, coupled with his great sexual desire and potency, makes him rather similar to Pan. 
It can’t go unsaid that the myth of Leshnik sounds like it was created by women at a time when Jane Austen novels and rom-coms were nothing but a distant future.

(images retrieved from www.pinters.com and www.epica.org respectively)

Belgrade Book Fair Photo Book

I've always enjoyed going to the Book Fair. Being surrounded by books, book lovers, great authors, it is truly a sort of a holiday for everyone who enjoys reading. Every year, I make lists of books I want to buy, book stands I’d like to check out, and authors I hope to meet. This year, it was the first time I visited the Book Fair as an author, and it was absolutely amazing. I had so much fun, meeting so many people who've read my novel, signing their copies, and chatting with everyone. Such a fulfilling experience.
For all of you who couldn’t come to the fair, here is a little photo book. I hope that we’ve managed to capture bits of that magical atmosphere and save them for you.

Preparations - Arkona Purpure bookmarks: Cvecara Bloom and Senka Simić, thank you so much for these, they're gorgeous! 

My team - from left to right: my editor, my publisher, and my publisher's husband, the best and also the kindest bookseller in the whole wide world.

The Scent of Legacy

Happy book shoppers

Geronimo Stilton :)

Book signing

Blowing off steam

By the way, I was happy to hear that the wonderful Tony Parsons had a great time at Belgrade Book Fair as well. He says that he loves how it’s bustling with life and great energy, and how it’s focused on the people and the books, not the business. Couldn’t agree more.

Hope to see you next year!

Fun lovers around the world, unite!

Today is a joyful day for all the children and those young at heart. The costumes, the trick-or-treating, the Jack-o’-lanterns, and gorgeous Halloween cookies; even the darkest and the bluest of the hearts can’t help but have fun today.

This year, Halloween coincides with an important Slavic holiday, the holiday of Mokosh, perhaps the most important and the most powerful of all Slavic goddesses. Mokosh is the protector of women and her holiday is celebrated on the Friday between October 25 and November 1. On this day, no work should be done (hmmm, doesn’t that rhyme with fun?). In ancient times, Slavs would celebrate this holiday by visiting a lime tree and making offerings consisting of herbs and vegetables. It wasn’t, and still isn’t unusual for the Slavs to break into song and dance, especially on holidays, as it often happened on the day of Mokosh.

Nowadays, Halloween has become a sort of a global holiday, and is celebrated by the Slavs as well. So, whatever your reason for celebrating today might be, let the fun begin! 

images retrieved from anakarniolska.deviantart.com and www.wallpapersandimages.comrespectively)

A Brief Overview of the Holy History of Beer - Slavic Edition

Beer is one of the world’s favorite beverages, and it has been for quite some time. It had even made its way into a vast number of religions. Here is a list of Slavic deities that were in one way or another associated with either brewing or consuming this popular drink.

* Mati Syra Zemlya: Slavic Goddess of the Earth

In English, her name would be Moist Mother Earth and she is considered to be the oldest known Slavic deity.Due to her immense power and control over the Earth, the Slavs prayed that she would bring peace in the nature and save them from harm. They believed they could propitiate her by burying bread and pouring beer into the ground. If one was to stumble upon a hole in the ground, they believed it was Mati Syra Zemlya’s sign they should offer beer in order to appease her. 

 Pereplut: Slavic Goddess of Drinking and Changing Fortune

Some sacrifices are really not hard to make. If you’re a Slav and your luck has recently changed for worse, you know what to do. To get on this goddess’s good side, you should drink from a ram’s horn. No wonder so many sports fans drink beer during a match. Keep this in mind in case your favorite team is on a losing streak. 

* Perun: Slavic God of Thunder

Appeasing this mighty god was believed to require animal sacrifice. The Slavs used to kill animals in his honor, in hopes of good weather in the future and the end of a drought season. Afterwards, they would gather around the fire and eat and drink together, venerating Perun by pouring him beer and spilling it in the fire, praying that he would give them rain in return.

* Radegast: Slavic God of Hospitality

In case you had the need to thank someone for the invention of beer, you could thank Radegast, since the Slavs believed he was the one to create this beverage.

* Ragutiene: Slavic/Baltic Goddess of Beer

This goddess is a part of the holy trinity of beer making. She is the partner of the god of fermentation, Raugupatis and the spouse of Ragutis, the god of beer. She is said to be a goddess with a truly intoxicating personality.

* Ragutis: Slavic/Baltic God of Beer

Also a part of the trinity and the god of beer, Ragutis was celebrated together with his wife and Raugupatis for letting humans in on the secrets of food preservation and inebriation. 

* Raugupatis: Slavic/Baltic God of Fermentation

Raugupatis or Raugo-Zemepatis was thought to be the spirit responsible for making dough rise and turning grain into beer. Today, with magic long gone from our everyday lives, we believe it’s just yeast. 

 Semargl: Slavic God of Barley

There are many different beliefs about this god. Some thought him to be a griffin with dog’s body, some believed he had seven heads, and there is also a story of two gods of barley, Sem and Argl, who eventually grew to become one god. 





(Images retrieved from journeyingtothegoddess.wordpress.com, goddesses-and-gods.blogspot.com, meettheslavs.com, holistix.org, livingthepath.blogspot.com, rugutis.wordpress.com, pinterest.com, and artnow.ru respectively. For more beer gods and goddesses, visit brookstonbeerbulletin.com)

Day of the Ancients

October 26 is an important date in Slavic tradition. On this day, the Slavic tribes celebrated the Day of the Ancients, the fourth such day in a year. It was the time when the living ones remembered their deceased relatives and went to the graveyards in order to take care of the graves and bring ritual food prepared for the occasion. A plate of food and a glass of beverage were left on every grave for the deceased, and the rest of the food and drink was consumed by the living in honor of the dead. It was a day for people to remember those who were no longer with them, not only with sadness, but also with smiles on their faces, sharing the memories of their loved ones, grateful for the light they used to bring into their lives. This kind of celebration survived even after the Christianization of the Slavs, with the dates and customs varying across nations.

(image retrieved from culture.pl)

Cold, cold heart

(image retrieved from Pinterest)

Every Ice Queen was once a woman who loved and had her heart broken. Such is the story of Morana, Slavic goddess of winter and death.

Once upon a time, Morana was born as a daughter of the Sun, child of the supreme god Perun. She grew up to become a lovely maiden of glorious beauty. And as it usually happens, she fell in love with a strapping young man, son of the Moon, Jarilo, god of spring and war. Their love was great and at the beginning of summer, on the festival of Ivan Kupala, they joined their holy hands in marriage. Thus began a time of happiness and joy, and both the gods and the humans rejoiced, enjoying the glorious effect this union had on both the Earth and the Sky. With Jarilo being the son of Veles, god of the underworld, and Morana the daughter of Perun, the supreme god, their marriage brought peace between the two great deities and harmony between the two worlds. The nature on Earth flourished and soon the people celebrated their gods, grateful for the rich harvest that ensued.

But this golden age did not last for long. Shortly after the harvest, Jarilo found out that Morana was keeping a secret from him. Terrified that he would leave her had he known the truth, she did all she could to prevent him from finding out that they were siblings, and that he was, in fact, a son of Perun, stolen by Veles when he was still an infant. Overcome with pain, disgust, and a whirlwind of dark thoughts, he decided to leave her, never to return again. Morana was crushed. Her immortal, yet fragile heart could not stand the pain, and it grew dark and cold. She wanted revenge. She wanted him to pay for abandoning her. And so she killed him, in the cruelest way imaginable, and became the goddess of winter and death, feared by all the Slavs for bringing cold, disease, and famine among them throughout the freezing months of winter. 

Humans began to see her as a hideous hag, with her dark soul reflecting on the outside. But human eye is imperfect and subjective. In the eyes of those who could see beyond the mortal bounds, Morana was still beautiful, but forever changed. Her fair dark hair, pale skin, and slender figure, although appealing to the eye, made her a personification of what she represented: death. 

For the attentive readers of this tale, it is probably clear that the events described match the yearly cycle on Earth. This means that the story told here takes place every year, from the beginning to the end, with Morana’s heart being broken again and again, forever and beyond.

Fun Fact Monday

(image retrieved from www.littlemakeupface.com)

Monday is commonly considered to be the most depressing day of the week. Although watching funny cat videos is a perfectly acceptable way of fighting off the Monday blues, I have decided to make my modest contribution to the cause and introduce: Fun Fact Monday!

In the spirit of my desire to bring Slavic mythology closer to the public, in my own particular way, at the beginning of each week, I will post exciting facts about Slavic gods, creatures, and more, in hope that their magic will make everybody's Mondays more bearable. Stay tuned!

WOO HOO!!

 Here is a fresh trailer for my book! Hope you like it! 

Great Book Event in Sun-kissed Belgrade

As belated summer with its glorious sunny days awakens the Nature all across the Balkans, I feel invigorated and enjoy following my characters on their journey from the cliffhanger (in both literary and literal sense of the word) of the first part of the trilogy, through the plots and twists of the sequel.

However, with the second part coming out no sooner than next spring, and many events in store until then, I’d like to invite all book lovers to the 59th International Belgrade Book Fair (October 26 - November 2). It should be a wonderful event, many great authors will be there, and I will be joining them, available to sign your copies of The Scent of Legacy, answer any questions you may have about the book, and more. Hope to see you there!