The mythologized world of the ancient Slavs was inhabited by all kinds of supernatural beings. They should not be confused with the ancient Slavic gods who lived in an ideal otherworldly world inaccessible to mortals.
Supernatural beasts and demihumans
The most famous creature of ancient Slavic mythology is the Serpent Gorynych. It is a huge fire-breathing dragon with several heads, usually their number varies from three to twelve or more. According to legends, the Serpent Gorynych lives "in the mountains by the river of fire" and guards the bridge to the kingdom of the dead. This creature is often an evil character who burns fields, ravages villages and kidnaps girls. The destruction of the Serpent Gorynych is the main task of many heroes of Russian epics and fairy tales.
Alkonost, Gamayun and Sirin are wonderful birds of Slavic mythology. Alkonost and Gamayun live in Iriya - an ancient Slavic paradise. They have a female head on a bird's body. The wonderful singing of Alkonost makes you forget about everything in the world. Gamayun serves as the messenger of the gods, proclaims the future, and her cry portends happiness. Sirin is a beautiful woman to the waist, and below is a bird. She is a harbinger of disaster and serves as a messenger for the ruler of the underworld.
Arys-field is the most ancient image of Slavic mythology. This is a young woman, turned into a lynx by a witch, who can regain her human form for only three days a week in order to feed her child. The plot of a beauty turned into an animal is found in the mythology of many peoples of the world.
Mythical creatures of forests, fields, rivers and swamps
Every place in the imagination of the ancient Slavs had its own supernatural master, a kind of guardian spirit. So, the goblin is the owner of the forest, the swamp is the swamp, the boletus is the pine forest, the water is the pond or river, the field worker is the field. All these creatures are united by such traits as caring for their possessions and punishing people who violated unwritten laws or entered forbidden territory.
In addition to guardian spirits, other creatures lived outside the ancient Slavic settlements, most often hostile to humans. Rivers and lakes were the habitat of mermaids - the spirits of drowned girls. Using their beauty, they lured guys into ponds at night and drowned them.
Those who worked in the field on a hot afternoon risked meeting at noon. These creatures appeared before a person in the form of a beautiful girl in a translucent dress or an ugly old woman. On its victim, the noon puts a deep sleep, after which you may not wake up. These creatures also kidnap children left unattended in the field.
Anchutka is a petty devil, a devil. These creatures were found almost everywhere in the world of the ancient Slavs. There are mentions of water and marsh anchutka, field and bathhouse. This imp was distinguished by evil pranks: he could grab a swimmer by the leg with an icy hand or run his cold palm over the heated back of a person washing in a bath.
