| PAGANISM |
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Page 1 of 9 In this work I'd like to tell about some traditions and beliefs of the pre-Christian period in Great Britain and Russia. In spite of all differences both of these cultures have many similar features. We can find them in old tales, songs and lyrics of old England and Russia. The folks of Europe created a lot of fantastic images which inhabited all surroundings. Like most other folk, Russian and English peoples had an inexhaustible aspiration for mystery and supernatural forces. The belief in the pagan supernatural beings never quite died out even after strengthening of Christianity in Europe. WOOD – GOBLIN, WATER – SPRITE, COCIDIUS, LATIS, KIKIMORA Each of supernatural beings is responsible for any sphere of everyday life and environment. They inhabited forests, lakes and rivers. Some of them were considered masters of land and sea. The best well-known are wood-goblins and water-sprites. Wood-goblin, undoubtedly, is probably the best well-known characters of old Russian tales and legends. He is a master of forests, looks like an old man and grazes with wild animals. The wood-goblin is hostile toward people. According to beliefs, he decoys them deep into the dense forest, abducts young women and sends illness. The faith in a wood-goblin appeared when the Slavic tribes were settling woodlands, and was thought to be connected with the fear of the dense forest and powerful wild nature... Water-sprite lives in rivers and lakes. He is a master of waters. Water-nymphs are subservient to him. The water-sprite is pictured as an old man with a beard , his body is covered with water-plants. According to some legends, the water-sprite possesses a fish-tail. His favorite places of residence are deep pools and water-mills. The water-sprites are considered dangerous beings, and people avoid meetings with them. Sometimes the water-sprites drag people under the water to their death. The British Isles are also rich in folklore and legends about fantastic beings on land and sea. For example, Cocidius is a god associated with forests and hunting, and Latis is a goddess associated with water. Kikimora is another being in Russian mythology which associated with forests or, sometimes, dwelling houses. She looks like a small, untidy and unprepossessing woman and lives in dwelling-houses under the floor or behind the stove. A small girl, unchristened or damned by her mother, can become a kikimora. Wizards kidnap these girls and abandon them in random houses. The kikimora avoids meeting people but tries to play pranks at night. The kikimora can tangle yarn, break the dishes and steal hens, chickens and even children. In some legends the kikimora is represented as a wood-goblin's wife. |