Mythological creatures. Mythological creatures in Russian folklore

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:43

Mythology is part of the culture of any society, created in every historical era. As a rule, the farther events lag behind us in time, the less truth remains in the legends. Folk tales, parables and fairy tales differ from the writings of chroniclers in that, in addition to people, mythological creatures act as characters in them, often symbolizing the spiritual principle - both positive and negative. At the same time, each of them has some features of their appearance, albeit an imaginary one, that distinguish them from other legendary characters.

A very long time ago

The myths of Ancient Greece, Egypt, Rome, India, China and many other ancient civilizations were most often part of the religious-state doctrine officially adopted at that time. Zeus, Apollo, Atlanteans, Sirens and Medusa Gorgon organically participated in the legendary events along with human heroes who acquired god-likeness for their exploits. Ancient mythological creatures, created by the imagination of priests and commoners, as a result of cultural and historical exchange becameprototypes of the mysterious inhabitants of the gloomy world of European and Russian land in the Middle Ages.

Good fellows lesson

A fairy tale is a special kind of myth, which is characterized by the penetration into the plot of characters that have developed over the centuries. They operate among people using their superhuman abilities. These stories are intended for children, and in addition to the people, many outstanding writers had a hand in writing them. What is a fairy tale without magic and who can make them better than mythological creatures? The main thing in them, of course, is not the methods and means, but the goals of actions. For evil characters, they are unkind and insidious, while for positive ones, on the contrary, as in life.

Babki-Ezhki, Kashchei and Kikimora

The USSR had its own official mythology, which assumed a materialistic approach when considering all social phenomena, even those that actually did not exist. But in art, mythological creatures were quite allowed, especially in works intended for children. Cartoons and films based on Russian fairy tales are full of, in addition to Alyonushki, Ivanushki, princes and other "human" heroes, such characters as the Serpent-Gorynych, Baba Yaga, Koschey the Immortal, Kikimora, Vodyanoy, and many others. As a rule, Russian mythological creatures borrowed from folklore look completely fearless, sometimes playfully cute, they even carry a certain negative charm in their images, andthe artists who play their roles play with inimitable humor. Children, of course, do not need to be scared, but how does this interpretation correspond to the original source?

Yaga

Baba Yaga was an evil old woman, but not a simple one, of which there are many, but special. This is almost the main mythological creature in Russian folklore. Yaga had a certain connection with demonic forces and the ability to move in three-dimensional space, in other words, to fly. Unlike European counterparts, who flew, as a rule, on a broomstick, the domestic Baba Yaga had a more comfortable means of transportation - a stupa, and used a pomelo only as a control device. She dressed simply, even too much - in rags. Initially, it was impossible to see anything funny in this image. Yaga personified evil will and possessed considerable technical capabilities for its implementation.

Gorynych

Some Russian mythological creatures are very similar to foreign counterparts. The Serpent Gorynych in the past centuries, not without success, frightened children. This is an almost identical analogue of the eastern or European dragon, which has all the features of a modern attack aircraft, namely: the ability to fly, strike ground targets, as well as high survivability. Killing him was troublesome and almost useless due to his unique regenerative ability, expressed in the growth of heads to replace the lost ones. In some mysterious way, the information contained in the brain was immediately restored and updated. ATbetween aggressive raids, Gorynych hid in an underground heap disguised as a mountain with a cave. There is nothing funny about feuding with such an opponent.

Koschey

Koshchei is usually depicted as a very thin, even skeletal, old man, who nonetheless possesses remarkable strength - both physical and moral. The name of the character comes from the word "kosht", that is, a bone. There is also a common root with the word “blasphemy” (blasphemy, they are also blasphemy), meaning witchcraft actions performed in ancient times on the remains of people. The title "Immortal" is most often added to the main name, expressing the ability to revive many times, even being crushed by someone's heroic power. Other demonic mythological creatures, the meeting with which also cannot please, are inferior to Koshchei in this sense. To neutralize it completely, you should know some secrets (needle, egg, bird, etc.).

Are there good monsters?

Not so well known are many other mythological creatures, the list of which is quite extensive. Faced with the unknown, horrified by it and feeling their own helplessness, people from time immemorial attributed their troubles to hostile influences and the intrigues of supernatural monsters. Sometimes some of them took the side of good, but in any case they had to be handled with extreme care so that they did not change mercy for anger. The names of mythological creatures are different for different peoples, but many common featuresindicate the similarity of perception and the ability to conjecture external signs.

Demons are represented as tailed, goat-legged and horned in almost all ethnic and religious traditions. The prophetic bird Gamayun, the reptiles Basilisks and Aspids, the Snowman (traditionally fashioned from snow), the Werewolf (in the German version Werewolf), the Ghoul (in Europe they call him a vampire), even Viy himself, the leader of evil spirits, who became the hero of the famous story by N. V. Gogol and the Soviet thriller of the same name, do not always become fairy tale characters. They represent the forces of evil, led by the Air Prince.

The Origins of Chimera Images

Be that as it may, the material embodiment of evil will is impossible without a visible or imaginary physical image. If the good beginning in most traditions is almost identical to human likeness (Buddha, God the Father, God the Son, Cherubim, Seraphim, Bogatyr, Giant, Fairy, etc.), then the mythological creatures representing the dark side of the immaterial world are more bestial. Particularly terrible are the images in which there is a combination of animal traits. In some cases, they are so colossal that one can assume the absence of bad intentions. So, Miracle-Yudo (“copied”, obviously, from the most ordinary whale) causes harm simply by negligence, due to its huge size. Chimeras, the statues of which adorn some medieval Gothic cathedrals, are intended, according to the authors, to intimidate the demons themselves, they must scare them away with their very appearance.

The terrible appearance of mythological creatures is symbolic. It emphasizes the strength, dexterity, courage and intelligence of good heroes who always win in the end.