One God to Rule Them All?

In Slavic mythology, there are a variety of gods who are often defined as the “supreme god” in an attempt to shoehorn Slavic polytheism into the Christian monotheistic hierarchy. Each of the slavic tribal lands had their own favorite supreme God—from Perun, to Triglav, to Rod, to Svarog. 

One of the favorite Supreme Gods was Perun, God of Thunder.

Perun: God of Thunder and War

Perun was the god of thunder, of the sky, and of the overworld. He was a towering figure, embodying the roaring power of thunder and the fierce flash of lightning.

Perun was also the god of warriors and of war. He is often depicted wearing armor and preparing to go to war. Warriors would pray to him for protection.

Perun’s presence is felt in the rumbling of storm clouds and the strike of lightning that splits the sky.

Guardian of Order and Justice

One of Perun’s jobs was to maintain order in the cosmos, wielding authority over the earth, sky, and rain.

In the Creation by Diving myth, Veles needed Perun’s help to create land because Perun had the ability to bring order and structure to chaos.

Symbolism and Worship

The oak tree, revered for its strength and endurance, is sacred to Perun, symbolizing his connection to the World Tree and to the natural world.

While the Slavs did not necessarily build temples, they would gather beneath the canopy of ancient oaks, where they sought favor with the ancestors and with the gods through offerings, song, and rituals.

Perun’s weapon, the mighty ax or hammer, symbolized his warrior aspect, and his ability to bring justice and order to those beneath him, striking down chaos and evil with the force of thunderbolts.

Perun is also symbolized by the element of fire, which often accompanies lightning and thunder. He also favored the iris flower.

Perun’s favorite animal was the eagle, and he would often take this form as he flew through the clouds. It was also said that he had a giant eagle as his familiar.

Perun is often depicted as an eagle, perched in the crown of the world tree.

The Eternal Conflict

Perun is often depicted in a perpetual struggle against Veles, god of the underworld, waters, and trickery. The conflict represents the enternal battle between sky and earth, order and chaos, mirroring the natural cycle of storms that nourish the earth and then recede.

In artistic depictions of this conflict, Perun often takes the form of a giant eagle, while Veles takes the form of a dragon, or giant serpent. In this way, this is conflict is the Slavic equivalent of the the Christian struggle of St. George and the dragon.

Perun’s Family

In the beginning of the creation story, Perun is depicted as having been one of the consorts of the earth goddess Mokosh, who gave birth to two children, Jarilo and Marzanna. The Great Battle was sparked by Perun’s jealousy over realizing Mokosh had also been seeing Veles (Perun’s chief enemy) as her other consort.

Despite this, Perun claimed both Jarilo and Marzanna as his own children, and he made them welcome in the overworld. Jarilo, he treated as his golden child. Marzanna, as a beloved daughter.

Perun’s wife was the warrior rain goddess Dodola. She was sometimes called Perperuna or Perunitsa or Perunka, signifying her relationship with Perun. Theirs was a much more harmonious partnership than the one between Perun and Mokosh had been. Slavic peoples would sing songs and do rain dances to honor and worship both Dodola and Perun in hopes that they would bring rain to their crops during times of drought.

Unlike the gods of the Greek and Egyptian pantheon, who are all blood relatives to each other, the other main gods and goddesses in the Slavic pantheon all emerged at different times from the chaos of the cosmic egg, to represent different ideas or aspects of the natural world.

Svarog emerged to represent fire. Rod emerged to represent family relations. Veles emerged to represent water and the underworld. Mokosh emerged to represent the Earth.

Some of the gods had offspring of their own, but the main Slavic gods are not blood kin to each other the way the Greek and Egyptian gods were.

Perun in the Modern World

Although the ancient Slavic religions have long since blended into other traditions and beliefs, the figure of Perun continues to inspire cultural and literary works, symbolizing the enduring power of nature an the human spirit’s quest for justice and order.

Perun’s tales are but one chapter in the rich tapestry of Slavic mythology. To delve deeper into these ancient stories and explore the legends of gods, heroes, and mythical creatures, please consider joining my free Reader’s Club. Enter your email, and you will receive monthly updates on my writing progress, book reviews, and new entries in my “Slavid Spirits” series. New Reader’s Club members will also receive a free short story as a thank you gift.

Twins with Two Fathers

Mokosh, goddess of the earth, gave birth to twin children from her two consorts, Perun and Veles. Both gods claimed the twins as their own, and they fought over the right to raise them.

Mokosh declared that the children would spend part of the year in the overworld with Perun, and part of the year in the underworld with Veles as their father.

Siblings of Summer and Winter

The twins absolutely adored each other, even though the two children were as different as could be.

Jarilo most resembled Perun. Although Jarilo was born a girl, they preferred to wear men’s clothes and keep their hair short. Jarilo was full of energy and springtime friskiness. When people were around Jarilo, they wanted to sing and dance and make wedding plans. Jarilo was the god of springtime, vegetation, and fertility. Everyone delighted in Jarilo’s presence.

Marzanna was the opposite. She most resembled Veles. She was dark and broody and could sometimes be secretive. When people were around Marzanna, they most often wanted to stay indoors and sleep. Marzanna was the goddess of winter, nature, dreams, magic, witchcraft, and death.

But despite their opposite natures, when the twins were together, everything in the world seemed to be in balance. Marzanna could calm Jarilo’s manic energy. Jarilo could make Marzanna smile and laugh.

Spring Awakens: Jarilo’s Arrival

Marzanna would be the first to notice Jarilo’s impending return. She would sense it in the lengthening days and the melting snow, and she would travel the underworld and overworld in search of her sibling.

Jarilo’s arrival would be preceded by storks, who would winter in the eternal springtime land of Vyrai, the land of air and unborn spirits, and then return to the earthly plane, carrying new souls who were ready to be born.

Jarilo would ride a white horse, and everywhere the horse stepped, flowers and grass would spring forth. As Jarilo rode through the forest, green leaves would unfurl from the trees. Birds would sing and flitter about. Bees would hum. Baby animals would be born. The air was thick with the scent of flowers and life and springtime love. Jarilo had returned to earth, and with their arrival, the world was renewed with new life.

All throughout the countryside, the Slavs would celebrate Jarilo’s golden return by wearing wreaths made from fresh leaves. They would make dolls from spring twigs and flowers and hang them in the trees in celebration of Jarilo’s arrival. They would sing and dance to the return of spring. People would fall in love and weddings were planned for the summer.

Summer: The Zenith of Stength and Love

As the days lengthened, Jarilo and Marzanna delighted in each other’s company. The nights were full of dancing under the full moon. The days were long and full of productive work and adventure. 

The siblings built a house together. Marzanna was a homebody and would keep the house and tend the garden. Meanwhile, Jarilo would go out riding with the men, and would firt with both the men and the women alike. All around Jarilo, people would sigh with love.

The height of Jarilo’s time on earth was the summer solstice celebrations. Jarilo was a god with a lot of energy. They burned brighter than most, because they knew their time on earth was limited. They’d be up all day and night dancing. They would flirt, kiss, dance, and sing with wild abandon and recklessness.

Because all too soon, the autumn would arrive and they knew the time for celebrations would come to an end.

Autumn: The Great Tragedy

Jarilo was a reckless sort. Inevitably, one of their suitors would become jealous.

Perhaps it would be a young man who had hoped to marry  and possess Jarilo as a wife. Perhaps it would be young woman who had thought Jarilo’s kisses were a promise of exclusive devotion.

In either case, the tragic story would unfold like this: a scorned lover would tell his or her family that they had been wronged by Jarilo. The family would plot their revenge. There would be an ambush. Jarilo’s white horse would be killed and then Jarilo would also be killed. As the sun set and the nights grew darker, Jarilo’s blood would soak into the freshly harvested wheat fields.

Marzanna would find Jarilo there. Beside Jarilo would be a scythe, the weapon that had harvested Jariolo’s soul. With tears in her eyes, Marzanna would pick up the scythe. She is often pictured holding a scythe, for she is a goddess of harvest.

Marzanna was Jarilo’s only true friend and companion. She would weep and gather their body into a funeral pyre, calling upon the departing birds to help guide their soul to Iriy, the paradise afterlife in the sky land of Perun where it was always summer and there was no suffering. She prayed that in Iriy, Jarilo’s spirit would heal and recover.

She would take the ashes from Jarilo’s funeral pyre and use it to build herself a new house. One where she would grieve throughout the long, dark winter.

Winter: A Time of Darkness, Dreams, and Death

Without Jarilo to keep her company, Marzanna would grow sad and sullen. Darkness would grow and the world would be cast into winter, for winter was Marzanna’s domain.

Winter is a harsh time in the north. It is cold, dark, and snowy. Families would cuddle in side. They would take the winter season as an opportunity to sleep and dream. They might go on midnight walks under the full moon, or tell stories beside the fire. Winter was a time of rest, recovery, and magic.

But there was always a deadly side to winter. Too many people in a small place might cause the air to grow stagnant. Diseases might spread. The food stores might become infested or run out before spring. The elderly and the weak might pass away.

This was why Marzanna was known as the goddess of dreams and magic, but also of winter and death.

She would sometimes be seen riding throughout the moonlit land riding a black mare—a nightmare, bringing sad omens and bad dreams.

The Drowning of the Marzanna and the Rebirth of Spring

In late winter, around the time of the spring equinox when the snow begins to melt and swell the rivers, the children of the Slavic world perform an ancient festival called the Drowning of the Marzanna.

In this festival usually happens in March 21st. An effigy of Marzanna is made of straw and rags. It looks like a doll or a scarecrow. The children all march together, parading the effigy through the village. 

The idea is that all the bad air, disease, nightmares, and sadness that everyone had experience through the winter would get sucked from the houses and into the effigy of the Marzanna. The children would then take the effigy down to the river and throw it in, thus cleansing their village with water, and welcoming the renewal of spring.

This is an important part of the goddess Marzanna’s story. She would see the melting snow, and know that her sibling, Jarilo had been restored, and was ready to be reborn back into the world.

Marzanna Searches for Her Lost Sibling

Marzanna dives into the water and goes into a portal into the underworld. This part of the underworld was called Nav. It was presided upon by Marzanna’s father, Veles.

Nav is the place where the souls of the dead first go. It is an upside down world, at the roots of the World Tree.

In some Slavic traditions, the land of Nav was imagined as a vast, grassy field. A place that was neither hot, nor cold. It was a waiting place, where souls would either be stuck, or they would gain permission to travel to the other parts of the world tree.

Marzanna would find her father, Veles, who would tell her that Jarilo had already come and gone.

Marzanna would climb up the world tree into the land of Iriy, where her father, Perun sometimes lived. Iriy was the Slavic version of heaven. It was warm and filled with plenty. It was a place where there was no suffering, and where people lived in harmony with nature. 

Marzanna would find her father, Perun, and ask him if he had seen Jarilo. Perun would tell her that Jarilo had already come and gone. Jarilo had chosen to be reborn, and had gone to Vyrai, the land of air and unborn spirits.

Next, Marzanna would climb down the world tree toward the lower branches. She would stand on the last branch and leap into the sky, into oblivion, into the land of clouds and air and unborn souls that surrounded the lower branches.

Here, she would find Rod, the god of ancestors and destiny and new life. Rod was Marzanna’s uncle. Rod would tell Marzanna that that Jarilo had returned to earth, riding on their white hors, accompanied by storks and the newborn spirits.

Joyfully, Marzanna would also return to earth where she would finally find her lost sibling. The re-united siblings would embrace. The god of spring had been reborn and the cycle of renewal and harvest would begin anew.

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