SVETOVID -God of Light ,Sun and Protector of the realm

God Svetovid is also known under other names, depending on the particular Slavic tribe: Svyentovit, Svantovit, Swietowit, Svevid or simply Vid. Svetovid was main deity of Baltic Slavs and his cult is highly connected with fortress Arkona, located at Ruyan (Rugen) Island, which was once considered Holy land of the Slavs. The bulk of data about Svetovid comes from this ancient Slavic sanctuary.

Svetovid was protector of the arable lands and the God of the sun and light for those who believed in him. And for all others he was a god of war, destruction and defeat.
The last known temple of Svetovid was on Ruyan Island.

In the center of Arkona was temple of god Svetovid surrounded by two wooden fences. The temple was also made of wood, like all other Slavic temples, so today we have almost no remnants of these buildings. It was highly decorated with carvings and paintings. The size of temple was 20x20m and in inner part of building was statue of god, 8m height, also made of wood. Svetovid had four necks and four heads, which represented small pantheon of main Slavic deities: Perun, Svarog, Lada and Mokos.
In his right hand he held horn made of different kinds of metals. This horn was filled with wine or nectar and according to the quantity of liquid in it, the priest predicted future of the land. In the left arm he held a bow. In possession of Svetovid was also a massive sword made of silver. The body of statue was with carvings divided in three parts. The upper part symbolized the spiritual world, middle was material and the lower part symbolized hell.

The sanctuary of Svetovid in Arkona was destroyed in the year 1168 by Danish king Valdemar.

Once per year, during the harvest period, in front of a temple, people sacrificed parts of animals, mostly heads of domestic animals. This was also a great religious feast in which many people took a part. The priest would then predict abundance or scarcity in the upcoming year and pray to Svetovid for fortune and prosperity for the whole land.

The day before the feast, the priest would clean the temple with the broom taking care not to breath inside the temple. When he needed air he would simply run to the door to take a breath since he could not allow the human breath to desecrate the sacred.

On the day of the celebration, priest would take the horn from the statue. If the quantity of liquid decreased, the following year would be poor, and if it is the same it promised abundance. The rest of the day people would eat, drink and dance which also was the part of the ritual and celebration of Svetovid.

Svetovid’s temple was also a well-known oracle, where Slavs came to learn their future. In the temple, a white horse was kept, which belonged to Svetovid. No one may touch it except the priest who would take care of the temple. It was believed that God rode on white horse and lead his people in combats against enemies. The white horse was used in prediction of outcome of the approaching battles. Before going to war, in front of the temple priests would set the triple row of spears and horse was taken to cross over them. In case the horse started with the right leg then it was considered that outcome would be favourable. And if he started with left then war would be postponed. The temple possessed a great treasure. Slavs were obligated to give the part of their harvest to the temple as well as prey they seized by robbery.

There are a lot of theories about the exact meaning of Svetovid’s name. Some think that name is combination of words “svet” which means saint and word “vit” which means hero, knight. This way Svetovid’s name would mean St. Hero or St. Knight.

Others think that word “vid” means light, so the name can be translated as Saint or Holy light. But the closest is the theory where word “vid” is translated as world, and “sve” as all, everything, entire. According to this, Svetovid is God who sees everything and knows everything. As a confirmation of this is a fact that Svetovid is presented as God with four heads turned on the four directions of the world. So he was the one who observed the universe, saw and heard everything.

MAKOS - The Goddess of women,mothers and magic rituals

    Goddess Mokos was worshipped by the Eastern Slavs, but some forms of her name also appear among the Western Slavs (Mukes, Mukus, Mococize). Mokos was the goddess of spinning, but she was also a protector of women, taking care about their health and their children. She helped the women in labour and protected their babies, at the same time helping the women keep a good marriage. Besides spinning, Mokos was connected with other duties reserved for women and with household management, but spinning was the skill that was in close relation with this goddess. There were many customs concerning Mokos as the protector of the spinners.

Slavic women would throw hemp, called "mokrica" (mokar = wet), into the water. The hemp was a sacrifice offered to Mokos. Hemp yarn was not to be left over the night, lest Mokos would spin it. Another of Mokos's roles was to protect the sheep and their fleece; the Slavs made offerings to her for that reason, too. A pair of scissors, basil and a skein of wool used to be put before the feet of Mokos's statue, with the aim of insuring protection for the lambs that hadn't been shorn yet. Even after conversion to Christianity, some beliefs related to Mokos were kept. In northern Russia, there was a belief that during the Lent Mokos went from house to house supervising the spinners. It is thought that Mokos had a role similar to that of the Sudjajas (Sudjaje = the Fates). Since she was connected with spindle and distaff, it is assumed that Mokos's area of influence stretched to the cosmic plain, making her the goddess that controlled human destiny and cut the short thread of human life.

            Another action related to Mokos was casting spells. The women that practiced sorcery in the 16th century Russia were called mokose. Aleksandra Bajic brings Mokosa in connection with Baba-Jaga, a witch from Russian fairy tales that lives in a cottage placed on chicken legs as foundations and helps boys and girls by giving them magic objects. A question arises, however, whether Mokos was originally a witch goddess or she became one after Christianisation.

            Mokos was a goddess of the Kiev pantheon. Her statue was erected by prince Vladimir in 980 AD on a hill above Kiev, but it was pulled down by the same prince eight years later, after he converted to Christianity. How was Mokos represented? In northern Russia she was imagined as a woman having a big head and long arms. Vollmer, the historian, mentions Mokos's statue representing a figure put together from parts of different animals. Owing to that, Mokos was considered to be the goddess of ugliness, pains, troubles and human passion, but this interpretation has no foundation in the traditional ways of representing Mokos.

            What can we learn from etymological analysis of Mokos's name? The name of this goddess is most frequently connected with the word mek (= soft), so she could be related to something that is soft. Since she was the spinners' goddess and the protector of the sheep, it is most probable that the adjective "soft" refers to fleece. Mokos could also be connected with the adjective mokro (= wet), which makes some authors identify her with Majka Vlazna Zemlja. This identification is certainly based on one of Mokos's characteristics – she was also seen as the goddess of fertility. The rain was therefore sometimes referred to as "Mokos’s milk". The term Mokos is also used in Finland, where it can usually be found as a surname. The Finns are thought to have taken this name over from the Slavs, or to be more precise, those whose last name is Mokos are thought to be of Slavic origin.
          

  Mokos is sometimes identified with Vida, Svarog's wife. She was, along with Svarog, the creator of mankind, and was consequently connected with the white bee, Slavic mythical ancestor. The bee is therefore Mokos's holy animal, along with the sheep and the snake. Her plants are lime, flax and "kantarion". Lime is of course related to the first woman made of lime-wood, created by Mokos. According to Cajkanovic, flax is a plant frequently used in casting spells, whereas "kantarion" is used in treating problems connected with female reproductive organs.
            Mokos's characteristics were transferred onto St. Petka. St. Petka is also the protector of women, and it is interesting to know that Vlach women frequently mention this saint while performing magic rituals. Some of them pray to St. Petka to help them perform the ritual, and she even appeared to a man to welcome him into a witch cult. Mokos's holy day is Friday – women must not spin on that day, otherwise Mokos will punish them. The festival dedicated to this goddess was celebrated some time between 25th October and 1st November, depending on which date happened to be Friday. As we know, St Petka's Day is celebrated on 27th October, and that holiday is fixed to that date, although it probably shouldn't be because Friday is dedicated to female deities Freya (Friday) and Venus (venerdì). On Mokos's holiday people would go to a lime-tree wood and make offerings usually consisting of herbs and various vegetables, but there is also a record that they sometimes sacrificed birds to this goddess.

JARILO - The God of Spring,Harvest and Defender of the righteous people

Jarilo alternatively Yarilo, Jarovit, or Gerovit, is a major male Slavic deity of vegetation, fertility and spring, also associated with war and harvest.

Jarilo was a son of the Slavic god of thunder, Perun, his lost, missing, tenth son, born on the last night of February, the festival of Velja Noć (Great Night), the pagan Slavic celebration of the New Year. On the same night, Jarilo was stolen from his father and taken to the world of the dead, where he was adopted and raised by Veles, Perun's enemy, He is celebrated with song and dance in festivals held in late spring and early summer.

Jarilo and his sister Morana (goddess of winter & death), children of Perun, are both associated with the end of winter and the beginning of spring

Sun Wheel (swastika) is symbol of Jarilo