Serbs and Turks are one and the same people

After the battle at Kosovo 1389, when the Ottomans completely defeated the Serbian army, which lead to a catastrophic reduction of the male population, something took place which forever changed that people in its entirety. According to claims of historians in the entire Serbia there were only 200 thousand men left. Defeated and destroyed, Serbs became a part of the grand Ottoman empire and so suffered the worst fate of a looser. After the victory the Ottomans ruled over Serbia and in the long history of 500 years in entirety they changed the demographic image of the country. Namely, Turkish soldiers married Serbian women and girls or even raped them which resulted in every other child in Serbia, having a Turk as a father. That's why there is not one family in Serbia which doesn't have Turkish genes in their heritage. All of this unquestionably reflected in the physical appearance of the Serbian people which is very similar to the Turkish people which is especially evident in the facial features, namely, a larger part of the population has dark hair and eyes, just like the Turks. Because of this historical but also genetic connectedness, everything that was Turkish  became an inseparable part of the Serbian identity from the Turkish cuisine, language, music and even mentality.  

 

Today when you compare Serbs and Turks, besides physical similarity, you will notice some important links: both people are extremely nationalistically driven, both people strive for creating Grand Turkey i.e. Grand Serbia, both people do not accept minorities, both people committed genocide which they deny - over Armenians and Bosniaks, both people are trying to assimilate other people around them, both people pretend to be great religious people, both people claim other's cultural heritage as their own, etc. There are too many similarities in order to conclude something else instead of that they are brothers i.e. same people.

 

Bosniaks - one of the best genetically preserved people in Europe

 

Luckily, Bosniaks didn't have the same fate under the Ottoman rule since by converting to Islam they were spared all of the negative events which struck the Serbian people. Today, out of historical but also genetic research we know that Bosniaks are one of the rare European people which can brag with a large percentage of racial purity. This was noticed long time ago by Karl Steiner, doctor in Ljubinja, which in his work "Bosnian folk medicine" writes the following: "Bodily the tall man from Bosnia and Herzegovina represents undoubtedly the most beautiful type of South Slavic-Illyrian racial mixture. He is taller from his neighbours in Dalmatia, Croatia and Slavonia, his chest are powerfully kept, musculature firm and hinged; smooth or weak curly, brown or dark hair and black eyes we see among the members of all three religions, but as often brothers are similar but yet different, similarly our Muslims, Orthodox and Christians show certain characteristics, which through centuries came about due to mixture in breeding. For example among the Christians and Muslims the iris of the eyes is mostly light, often blue or yellowish, while eyes among the Orthodox are usually darker, often black. Among the Muslim and Catholic children one can often see light blue hair, soft, skin white as milk, generally typical Aryan type, but the hair and skin colour will darken bit by bit, while these characteristic among the Orthodox are rare."

 

Unlike the extremely large genetic mixture between Serbs and Ottomans in Serbia, in Bosnia and Herzegovina there is a completely different situation about which Ćiro Truhelka, archaeologist and historian, wrote the following in his anthropological study:

 

"Endogamy was among the Bosniaks (Muslims in Bosnia) so strict, that in my time I knew a dozen Bey families, which intermarried and they wouldn't allow in their harem women which were out of this circle, though they were from the best homes. Because of the mentioned reasons mixed marriages between the Ottoman and Bosnian Muslims were extremely rare and without evident effect on shaping the race."

Endogamy and with it harem enclosure were the most successful measure of protection of racial element in Bosnia, and I believe that I can say, that rare ethnic groups in Europe managed to preserve their identity like the Bosniaks in Bosnia. The merit goes to harem exclusivity, which in this case preserved racial characteristics of the forefathers. Similarly it is familiar that  there was antagonism between the Bosnian Muslims and Ottomans and that the Bosniaks dreaded from marrying their daughters to so called Turkuše (superlative of Turk), that antagonism often gained a dangerous political form, and was the cause of revolts.      

Dwarf Perkman

Political rise of Bosnia was followed from the first part of the XIV century by a corresponding development and progress. By expansion of the territories of medieval Bosnian state naturally the scope of trade had increased, which in its basis had the rise of production, especially mining. Bosnia was rich in ore and metal which were produced and processed in numerous places: Fojnica, Zenica, Vareš, Kakanj, Srebrenica, Foča, Banja Luka, Tuzla, Goražde, Ustikolina and Zvornik. Significant source of income for the rulers and nobility were the mines, especially of silver and lead. Migration of the Germans and the Slavs covered the continuous development of ancient mining in the late ancient and early medieval period on the territory of Bosnia. Mining still existed, but with reduced capacity on the traces of the ancient mines. A greater swing in the development of mining belongs only to the developed middle ages. The reason for these improvements is found in the fact that after the shortage of noble metals in western and middle Europe, a general search began for the metals which had its reflection also on this territory. For that purpose the German miners sasi or Saxons (German tribe) were employed, they were specialised in finding and organizing exploitation of ores. This is why Srebrenica was the homeland of the miners spirit, dwarf Perkman, north-German mythological being. Remnants of the medieval mining works for which it is believed that during their excavation the merry dwarf Perkman helped, they are visible by the promenade which leads towards the spa from the city.  

Living dead - lampiri

Vampire is a Bulgarian word, which comes from north Turkish word upir. That's why there is a logical question - did the belief in vampires even exist before the advent of the Ottomans to the Balkans?! According to the available data we can conclude that such mythological beliefs in the territory of the Balkans did not exist until the Ottomans came, which confirmed by the issue "Karadžić svesci" from 1900 where folk tales are described about how Muhammad became a vampire since "the Turks took care that no one leapt over Muhammad and not if someone stole him, since they believed in vampires".



The first known vampire in the Balkans is the one from Istra, Jure Grando, whose existence was documented in 1689. Jure Grando from a place Kringa, not far from Pazin, died in 1656 when Stipan Milašić decapitated him with an axe. There are testimonies about Jure the vampire in the work "Slava vojvodine Kranjske" from the Slovenian historian Janez Vajkarda Valvazor (Johann Weikhard von Valvasor).

Among the Bosnian people, both in BiH and Sandžak (Sanjak), the most widespread name for a vampire is lampir. According to etymology the name lampir stems from the folk name for a butterfly - lepir, lampijer, which is confirmed by the Bosnian belief that the vampire exits the grave through a small hole in the ground in the shape of a butterfly. In Serbia and Montenegro lampir is often called ukolak, which is why in some places in Bosnia we come across the name vukodlak (werewolf), though he has no real connection with the lampir.

Prevalent opinion about the lampir among the Bosnian folk is animistic i.e. it is a "rogue spirit" of a man who died i.e. his spirit mysteriously received such power that even without a soul it can temporarily resurrect a dead body:

-"But, in order to die we must be born, feel life for at least a moment, in order for our spirit and soul to achieve a balance, since without this alignment with two universal principles, or with two deities of our forefathers Bogomils, we cannot enter the adventure called death. Folk wisdom claims that the spirit is the representative of the god of evil and the soul, pure and holly, it represents the god of good inside of us. While the spirit has the possibility to, usually at night while the man is sleeping, go out of the body and travel the world and also perform some weird, often bad things and bring us into various temptations, the soul is firmly fixed for the human body and there is no possibility of exiting it until death"

Lampiri are socially aware. They know how to return to their home, make love to their spouse or disturb the neighbours by throwing rocks on their roof. Business is not strange to them, namely, "some lampir, stemming from Herzegovina, had his own store in Sarajevo where he sold all goods by a yardstick (scales), so when they pierced him in his birth place, they forcefully tried to break his store, but the store was nothing more but spider web and snowdrift. When people find out that someone in the village has become a vampire, then they make a fire on that person's grave and they sharpen a hawthorn stick to puncture the dead person's stomach. When a strong stick has been made with hammers it is bashed to bring him into the grave." In the descriptions of the treatment of the lampir among the Bosnian people we cannot but notice an almost identical treatment toward the soul and the dead which the angels Azrail and Džibril have according to Bosnian mythology:

-"Such belief confirms the belief that when the deceased is buried he is visited in the grave by angels, judges, Azrail and Džibrail. They question the deceased about his good deeds and sins, and if he is sinful they hit him and bury him into the ground. Folk claim that they can bury him up to 77 meters into the ground".(Soul and death in Bosnian tradition, author Raif Esmerović)

Making a fire on the grave is obviously alluding to the fire from hell which swallows the souls of the evil and sinful people. It is used to scare the deceased, moreover, give him a mortal fear so that the spirit runs from the body, which will then be decapitated and made unsuitable for use by puncturing its stomach. Lampiri can be very aggressive.

According to the documented case of Ahmed Ramov Mujović from Montenegro who got into a fight with this supernatural being. Coming back home one night from ploughing, "something stopped his oxen and they couldn't move forward". Seeing this he shouted: "Please if you are ukolak, but a devil, but a human, move away, by my faith I will return again". Then he went home, took his sabre, two pistols and a rifle and returned to that place where he shouted: "Where are ye that has waited for me?" at that moment ukolak appeared. They fought until the roosters sounds were heard. Tomorrow Ahmed came back to that same spot and found out that it was a lampir. He followed the bloody trail and arrived at the yard of the family Puranović. They found him there in the grave, they burnt him with quicklime and stuck him on to a stake made out of the tree Prunus spinosa.

Soul and death in Bosnian tradition

Death which represents the end of life, is probably the main "culprit" why the belief in supernatural appeared among the human civilizations. Inexplicable fear from that strange condition and generally panic from disappearing caused among the people on the entire globe frustrations and eternal questions from the earliest times - why are we born and why do we die? Though we don't know the answer to this question even today, yet we as a civilization tried to fill the world with things in order to introduce some order and thereby give a certain sense to everything we do.

This is why humans invent religion, its unrestrained imagination creates a large number of imaginary beings which surround him, and despite numerous human characteristics, still they have some exaltation which separates them from the world of humans. Throughout centuries religion experiences its constant trend, upgrades, adjusts to human advancement and finally in ancient Iran it receives its present nature through dualism of Persians Manesa and the prophet Zarathustra, on whose principles monotheism is born - direction which tries to convince us in the absurd i.e. how it is possible that in the universe there are two principles - good and evil, but that only one principle is important and the second one is less important?! Because of such an erroneous religious idea in Bosnia and Herzegovina around the tenth century, and probably even sooner, a revolutionary religious direction started to spread fast which seriously impairs the rigid Christian doctrine, it propagates that through the world, but also the universe, two equally important deities rule between which exists man and his primary spiritual mission to clean his soul from sins, and after death to return it to heaven. Such a claim is pretty rational, if we take into consideration the definition that according to the principles of quant physics all matter is actually condensed energy and that this is the reason why all of us are beings of energy or beings of light, what leads us into traditional belied in the spirit and soul, which every human possesses.

But, in order to die we must be born, feel life for at least a moment, in order for our spirit and soul to achieve a balance, since without this alignment with two universal principles, or with two deities of our forefathers Bogomils, we cannot enter the adventure called death. Folk wisdom claims that the spirit is the representative of the god of evil and the soul, pure and holly, it represents the god of good inside of us. While the spirit has the possibility to, usually at night while the man is sleeping, go out of the body and travel the world and also perform some weird, often bad things and bring us into various temptations, the soul is firmly fixed for the human body and there is no possibility of exiting it until death.

Spirit

Spirit and soul as two abstract terms are actually a basic framework of the entire spiritual thread which spans through the human race since its beginning. In Bosnian mythological beliefs it is an extremely dominant idea of similar, almost identical, representation of a few supernatural aspects of man himself. Namely, when we analyse some segments of traditional representations about the human spirit and soul, which are often not differentiated in folk tales which causes confusion, wild nature is clearly evident which according to mythological notion represents the essence of every man. While in classic European mythology the spirit, but also the soul, is represented by a see-through white silhouette, which in a human form hover through the air or suddenly appear and disappear, in Bosnian representation the spirit mostly resembles an energy ball whose shape has an astonishing similarity with a mouse. Certain mythological tradition describe the appearance of the soul as "fruit of the apple tree" i.e. such a description actually associates us with a light ball which exits a hole (mouth) and moves with fast steps towards the surface, emitting sounds similar to a mouse squeak. With such a comparison one receives an impression that the energy is restless and nervous, i.e. unrestrained, which it proves by exiting the human body.

A mouse was not chosen accidentally for the totem animal since it is used for the description of other supernatural events, closely tied to humans themselves. Some of the examples are as follows:

- Mouse in the folk tale about Noah's ark is an extremely negative character who wanted to let water in by trying to create a hole in the ark, and destroy the entire world. He would probably succeed if he wasn't prevented by the snake. Actually, the mouse is the incarnation of evil, a demon which wants to destroy mankind.

- snijet, which in mythology in Bosnia and Herzegovina is considered to be a dragon seed after intercourse with a woman, it is described as a small hairy creature, which resembles a mole or mouse, which runs and squeaks, even climbing walls in fear of a human hand touching it, or even worse, getting killed by a broom from one of the present women.

- in exotic séances of Bosnian dervishes and Imam's, in the ritual known as "skupljanje daire", the final sign of a successful performance, usually curing a mentally ill person, is the hanged or dead mouse on a nearby bridge. This is a signal that the Jinn use to show that the Jinn attacker has been punished by the severest punishment.

Ubiquitous Bogomil tradition

The human spirit is very restless. When a man is sleeping the spirit exits the body and walks away. The man dreams where the spirit goes, and when it returns into the body, the sudden energy surge wakes the man up. The spirit in Bosnian mythology is described as an etheric apparition which squeals. As for the soul, so as for the human spirit a bridge represents a very strong barrier and prevents it from further movement, namely, as soon as the spirit comes across a bridge during his nightly travels, he cannot cross it, it gets restless starts squealing and screaming. If someone would catch that mouse, the sleeper whose spirit is represented by the mouse would die immediately.

In Bosnian mythological representation a bridge is a notion of a place with high energy, which besides connecting two shores in the material level, on the spiritual it has the meaning of a spiritual portal through which the soul passes or perishes on its journey.

According to belief from south-eastern part of Bosnia a child's spirit is especially restless, like the child itself, it is restless and always in the mood for movement and games. Aware of this older women still today warn young mothers when moving a sleeping child from one place to another or if waking it to do it carefully, calling him by his name and pulling it lightly by the nose. If the child is a heavy sleeper they would imitate the sound of a mouse (cccc) in order to draw attention to the wandering spirit, this would force him back into the body. Otherwise, if the child would awake and the spirit hasn't returned, they would risk the child would fall ill mentally and physically.

Also for an adult the same rule applies, it should not awake suddenly, since its spirit is far away, traveling across the world. Apparently such a person could physically attack, start kicking the person that is awaking him at such an unpleasant moment. In that case it is necessary for such a person to be taken to the place where he is sleeping, for it to lie there again, and stay there until it awakes. If this is not done, the person could have some mental issues all its life.

As it is narrated among the Bosnian folk, according to the Bogomil principles, the human spirit belongs to the god of evil and the soul to the god of good. This is why it is believed that witches and wizards have to sell their souls to Iblis or some other ranked Jinn, in order to engage in magical practice and rule the unseen forces. They perform this with a ritual, usually by bringing the holly book Qur'an inside the bathroom and urinating or defecating on it. This is why the soul was purposefully exchanged for a certain power, the soul is trapped and no longer belongs to the human.

After such a situation and the disturbance of the equilibrium of good and evil, the human spirit in the body of the witch or wizard becomes extremely powerful but also evil and is capable of making various evil deeds. While the witch is sleeping, the spirit exits her, and the body gets a blue hue and becomes cold, almost as if she died, which is the consequence of a trapped soul. Her mouth gaps open and become black. It is considered that a spirit of a common man is capable of doing bad things during its nightly travels, such as attacking someone along the way, but this spirit like the witches spirit avoids crossing over all bridges which it encounters.

Similar belief exits in Iranian - Arabic occultism where it is claimed that every human possesses its astral doppelganger. Haamzad or Qarin is the name for the Jinn which follows the man at all times and tries to influence negatively his conscious and his behaviour. Qarin is the only Jinn which cannot be destroyed with exorcism or in any other way.

Soul tied to Halal

Soul is the holder of human destiny. In BiH it is believed that Allah in the first 40 days of inception in the mother's womb determines what the destiny and life of the child i.e. future man, shall be. This is why it is considered that only when the soul enters the embryo it can develop into a fetus and begin its formation. When a man is terminally ill his family and neighbours come to say goodbye - halale (forgive), in order to ease his death throes. Forgiveness is a very important segment of Islamic tradition, which shows mercy but also ensures an easier passing of the soul from the body. Namely, it is believed that the diseased dies in great pain and agony if someone who he has hurt won't forgive him. His parents, if alive, need to say their indulgences and by that comfort the diseased in his last moments.

How necessary halal is for the tranquillity of the soul is best described by a folk song. Sister in law while dying curses the bride Alibegovic. Time came for the bride to die, but she cannot separate from her soul which is why she asked to be carried to the tomb of her sister in law:

When they were close to the tomb,

From the tomb a small voice came:

Don't bring hither the cursed,

Until she has suffered enough!

They took her to the mountains, the mountains didn't want to take her, they took her to the water, the water threw her out. They brought her again to the sister in law. As soon as she forgave her, she immediately separated from the soul. How important halal (forgiveness) for the Bosnian people is, is testified by the custom that the person wronged by another says: "I shall die but I will not halaliti (forgive)!"

Bosnian people believe that the one who dies in the eve of Friday or during Eid is freed of all his sins, since then, it is believed, only the noble people die. Harbingers of death are numerous. In Velika Kladuša it is believed that when an old man starts to be dirty, no longer takes care of personal hygiene, or his favourite drink or food o longer tastes good that death is close by. Similarly, people give a lot of meaning to interpretation of dreams since through them one can foretell someone's imminent death. In dreams taking out a tooth and feeling pain, is a sign of death in the house, if the pain is not felt death will take place to other relatives. It is not considered favourable to plough or dig in dreams, and generally overturn earth, or see that the ground has cracked, at some location, since it foretells death in the family. Similar meaning is represented by a sunken foundation of the house or fallen beams from the roof. Such dreams are often disregarded or not shared for fear of them coming true. Usually as a counter measure it is said: "Dream is a lie and god is the truth" or, even, "Hey, let it be, thank Allah!"

Azrail

According to traditional belief the soul and body during a human's lifetime create a whole. If the soul leaves the body forever - death occurs. The body will decompose over time and disappear, it is believed that the soul is eternal and immortal. The soul cannot disappear, but over time it changes its habitat and goes to an unknown world which is called Ahiret or another world.

The soul doesn't leave the body on its own, Azrail intervenes, who in Bosnian mythology described as a skinny man with long arms and wings. Instead of nails he has claws, like a bird, which he uses to rip the soul or take it out of the body.

General belief is that the soul leaves the body slowly, since it is wrapped around every joint 99 times, it exits through the nose and mouth. Only with a man who has been hanged the soul does not exit in this manner, instead it exits through the rectum and this is why it gets dirty which makes it difficult for it to go to the next world.

The soul leaves the body from the legs towards the head. This belief has a rational interpretation since the feet and hands go blue to the deceased. On its way from the body the soul can be disturbed and confused if there is a noise and weeping inside the house that's why a general rule is that there should be peace and quiet around the deceased. Otherwise the dying shall die painfully and for a long time. It is believed that sinful people die with difficulty and suffer mightily before death. To ease the final moments the person is descended from the bed onto the ground, on a strewn carpet, while his shoes and socks should be taken off so he doesn't die with his socks on, in that case he would lose his religion. Rings are mandatorily taken off from a female in order to ease the passing of the soul.

When Azrail rips the soul from the human he carries it to the seventh heavenly floor and gives it to Allah, where it stays until judgement day. According to another belief, angel Azrail takes the soul from the body and there his job end. Separated from the soul, the soul stays there, close, for a certain period. It can follow what is going on with its body, but without any emotions since exiting the body it became free of any feelings, in the house, on the way to the cemetery and in the grave itself.

Are you a Muslim?

When a girl or boy would die one would place a stalk of nacre (ruta graveolens) above their heads. According to the custom one places an herb of a distinct smell next to the deceased in order to chase the Jinn away. One would usually use nacre, whose bouquets often adorned the grave of a girl or a boy. Nacre is according to this an herb dedicated to the cult of the dead in Bosnian tradition.

As soon as a person would die one would make "dead man's paste" and would distribute it across the neighbourhood. Necessity to follow his departure into the other world with good deeds, in order to ease it, was pronounced before and during the funeral. That's why next to the head of the deceased one would place a bowl of flour, or wheat, with a few tallow candles stuck inside of it. On the next day the candles and the flour were given to the poor.

According to folk knowledge, the deceased should be buried as soon as possible. Depending on the case the funeral should be done the same day, and if death occurred at midnight or during the evening - then the next day. If the person died suddenly in his bed, and he wasn't lowered to the floor prior to that, to die there, then it is done once he has died. His head is tied with a bandana and his eyelids are squeezed, so he can have a nice face. The deceased is placed so that his body is straight, it used to be a habit to tie the thumbs on the legs in order for the body to keep that position, while a heavy object was placed on the stomach, such as a knife, or a piece of earth, out of fear that the dead body wouldn't bloat, since that was explained as him "prikazati" i.e. - becoming a lampir. This is the reason why the house cat was locked away until the funeral has passed, out of fear that the cat will cross the deceased' body.

Deceased is covered with a white sheet and positioned so that his right cheek is turned in the direction of the holly city Mecca. One of the inhabitants, using a straight stick, takes a measure of the deceased, which is called "unčija" or "ulčija" in order to know the length of ćefin, the cloth of the dead, and digging of the grave. When the deceased is taken from the house, to the outside then care is taken that a part of him doesn't get stuck by a door or wall, since if that happens, it is believed, that his spirit will come back to the house and will disturb the inhabitants.

Bosnian folk believe that the soul can return home up to 40 days after the funeral. That's why lights or candles were turned on in the room where he lie, for the entire period, among the more affluent families, while the poor families would practice this ritual for seven or three nights. Place where the deceased was bathed was passed with fire, so that the Jinn and devils don't gather, and the room in which he lie was sprayed with water or was washed "so that the soul doesn't return". If the room was swept after the body was taken out, then the broom would be thrown far from the house.

After the body of the deceased is washed and all present men and women forgive him, halaliti, the body is taken to the grave where it is buried with a prayer. It is believed that when the Imam leaves the graveyard, since he has uttered all the necessary verses and prayers, the soul stays in the community of the dead. An interesting belief is that during the Imam's question of the deceased: "Are you a Muslim?" - the deceased in the grave lifts his entire body on the small finger of his right hand and answers readily: "I am a Muslim!" He does so that he is received by the dead. It is evident that the soul, according to belief, can resurrect the body so that it can lift itself up

Bridge for souls

Such belief confirms the belief that when the deceased is buried he is visited in the grave by angels, judges, Azrail and Džibrail. They question the deceased about his good deeds and sins, and if he is sinful they hit him and bury him into the ground. Folk claim that they can bury him up to 77 meters into the ground. In some parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina it is believed that the worst case scenario for the deceased is to be buried in the eve of Tuesday and Saturday, since then he will be visited by scary Jinn called suhaladžije, which beat the deceased until they break and shatter all his bones.

Road from this earthly world leads to heaven across a bridge called sirat bridge, which is according to belief "thinner than a hair, sharper than a sword, longer than thousand kilometres". Underneath the bridge is a scary chasm - hell. There a large and powerful hell fire for which it is claimed among the Bosnian people that it is so hot and strong that no earthly fire can compare to it "since our fire is washed by 99 waters". Apparently, when out of "spite" only one spark from hell fire would jump out the entire world would burn. That fire heats up a cauldron which contains a black mass "tar like", which is boiling and when sinners fal in it they are turning like bean beads in a boiling pot.

The soul of the deceased slowly crosses the bridge (thousand kilometres). That road could be cut shorter and the road could be crossed sooner if for Eid he would sacrifice his best, most healthy ram. The soul of the ram -kurban, will carry him across the bridge "like a horse", it is believed.

Depending on the region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Sandžak, the people have their beliefs on the movement of the soul. One part of the belief claims that the soul of the deceased leaves the earth after seven days, graveyards and the house and across the siratbridge carrying the good and bad deeds tries to reach the blissful, eternal life. It is believed that the man, while crossing the sirat bridge, carries the good deeds in his right hand or right shoulder, and the bad deeds on his left shoulder or left hand which he is hiding behind his back, that's why he is walking sideways so that the judge (Allah) has a harder time seeing the sins. Similarly, it is believed that the head needs to be raised high, and eyes looking at the sky. So that the soul doesn't see where it is walking when crossing the bridge. Out of many other beliefs a very interesting one is that if the deceased had sexual intercourse with someone else's wife during his lifetime, her menstrual blood will drip into his mouth and he will fall into hell. A similar punishment will be given to the one who has denounced a woman, broke up a wedding or killed someone.

Love - road towards heaven

Among the Bosnian people, especially in the south-western part of BiH, there is a custom that every family have their own graves, which are usually placed in the vicinity of the house. There is documented proof that there was a custom of burying the dead in the woods, yards or underneath bushes. In old graves one could usually see, especially around Sarajevo, a planted tree above the grave, so that often, the graveyard resembled a forest. This practice was familiar in the entire country. Reason for this was the desire to ensure good deeds to the dead, namely, if one would plant a cherry tree the fruit would be eaten by birds so called "bird's alms", which should ease the soul of the dead. But, there is probably a deeper tradition behind this practice, Illyrian one, dedicated to the cult of the deity of nature and fertility, Tana and Vidasus, therefore the act of planting a tree next to the deceased would have the role of gift for the ancient gods, such as, for example, the practice of leaving gifts at the spring to god Bindu with the goal of seeking amelioration. For people who spread hatred and quarrels it is said that they are the "firewood of hell", they're used to light a fire on which souls such as theirs will burn. The notion, that the largest sin which dooms someone to hell is if someone separates two people which love one another (i.e. husband and wife), was created based on the belief above. That sin is characterised among the people to be so large that it cannot be annulled even if the man builds nine mosques with his money and his own hands. Again, it is believed, Allah will not forgive his sin. Recount of a touching folk song:

Hazrat Fatima was walking,

Across heaven and hell,

She opened the doors of heaven,

She didn't see her dear mother,

She opened the doors of hell.

-"what are you doing there, mother dearest?"

-ask me not my dear daughter,

I committed a great sin,

I broke off a reel of a graft,

I muddied clear water;

I started a quarrel between a boy and a girl,

Allah would've forgave me everything,

Only not those two."

How much love is considered to be the most noble and to Allah the most dearest occurrence, with which an individual can gain many deeds and open the doors of heaven for himself, is evidenced by the belief which claims that the person who introduces two people, which fall in love and get married, earned so much good deeds with God that he is free of the obligation to pray and go to the mosque his entire life.

Hell

While crossing the Sirat bridge it is determined if the soul will receive punishment or reward. Out of the great weight of sins the unlucky will soon fall off the bridge into boiling tar. Souls which are good and noble, and with that have many good deeds, will easily cross the bridge and reach heaven. However, this belief is not the only among the Bosnian folk, we also come across different beliefs. As people claim the soul of the dead rests in the grave or on the seventh floor of the heavens, until judgement day. On that day everything will be levelled, hills and meadows will disappear and everything will be destroyed. The honourable Qur'an mentions this in the Surat Ez-Zilaz (Earthquake):

When the earth is shaken with its [final] earthquake, And the earth discharges its burdens, And man says, "What is [wrong] with it?" -That Day, it will report its news, Because your Lord has commanded it. That Day, the people will depart separated [into categories] to be shown [the result of] their deeds. So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it, And whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it.

To the dead ancestors one usually says prayers in the eve of Monday and Friday. The things one prayed and forgave, would be given (handed) to the dead in the next world. According to folk belief the thing one prayed is rolling down a large hill into the valley, like haystack carried by wind, where souls of the dead eagerly watch and wait if they will receive hedija from their loved ones. According to this description we get the idea of how people imagines the afterlife to be, at least the one which is reserved of sinful souls, which somewhat corresponds with the notion of hell which is located in a deep abyss. In the folk perception souls are trapped inside a space surrounded by tall mountains and hills, from which there is no escape. In that space they are treated as prisoners, which is after all confirmed by the belief of delivering the prayer.

That's why we need to conclude that in Bosnian traditions afterlife, especially hell, does not start and finish by the fall into the fire, instead through hell there are various scenes of torture and abuse of sinful souls. People claim that, for example, a woman which had an abortion or in some other way killed its child will be doomed to run madly after a small bird trying to unsuccessfully catch it. Bird as the personification of the soul is present in Bosnian mythology through the mysterious bird Meknjača or bird Plačo.

All evil which a person did during his life will come to the fore in the afterlife, where evil deeds are emphasized to the degree where they become absolute, so that the soul directly and brutally faces its sins. Suffering of sinful souls, according to Bosnian folk, stop only five times a day, while the Imam is uttering the Azzan (call to prayer). That's why farmers in the past would stop their field work when they would hear Azzan, because the living also need rest at that moment, empathising with the sorrows of those which serve them in hell and at the same time that short period should be moments of reflection and warning that they shouldn't sin and be bad people.

Bogomil doctrine on the migration of the soul

Furthermore traditional beliefs of our ancestors have a very strong impact on the century long spiritual reflections therefore we shouldn't disregard if we wish to get an overall impression.

Remnants of the old Illyrian-Bogomil beliefs are still present in tradition of Bosnian people therefore we come across folk notions which are complete opposites of what the Islamic tradition teaches. According to sayings of the older population souls of people that committed grievous sins during their lifetime, tortured and killed innocent, will not end up in hell but will be reborn in a body of an animal, usually domestic, such as a horse, cow, pig. in order to serve people and to amend their evils. The worst punishment, it is believed, is to be born in the body of a swine, since it is considered to be, because of its filth and tendency to eat its young, a demonic animal. That's why the human soul rarely frees itself of that damned form.

This belief of our people has spawned some humane habits towards animals, especially towards dogs, which is proven by some written records. In the past people from Sarajevo were prone to feeding stray dogs out of fear that some of them might harbour human souls. Still today it is considered to be a good dead to feed a bitch that just had puppies, Antun Hangi also wrote about this in his work on the life of Bosniaks. Belief that the human soul is inside animals, especially domestic, is evidenced by traditional warning statement: "An animal doesn't know how to forgive!" This suggested that humans should treat animals correctly and with care "since you never know which one of them is harbouring a human soul

White colour - symbol of sorrow

While mourning a dead family member, women avoided wearing red coloured clothes, white clothes was worn exclusively. Black was never worn since it was considered a sin. Women would, equally, take off all the jewellery and wouldn't wear it for the next 40 days, and some didn't wear jewellery for a year or two. During the time of mourning none of the family members can organize a wedding or goes to one if invited; there is no singing and no joy. During Eid a ram is sacrificed for the soul of the deceased. If the deceased appointed by his will for a ram to be slaughtered, then all the meat needs to be given to the poor, while in other instances only the blood goes for his soul, and the meat can be eaten by the members of the household. There was a custom in Sarajevo that the left side of the sacrifice is distributed to the poor and the right is left to the family. In Jajce on the eve of Eid, halvah and bread were distributed for the "soul of the dead". In Bihać on the eve of both Eid's people would bring halvah and pies in front of the mosque, they would be then distributed to the children "for the soul of the deceased". For the forgiveness of the sins of the deceased it was customary to distribute "čagate" (kefaret) i.e. money wrapped in paper with which a person can provide a meal for themselves. Čagete was distributed during the first seven days after the funeral, seven čageta for seven poorest households in the neighbourhood or for forty days.

Karl Steiner, doctor from Ljubinja, in his work Bosnian folk medicine, notes that Bosniaks do not consider as something horrible, instead every Friday, and often other days, they gladly gather in graveyards for conversation and rest, which the author considers as proof of great respect towards their ancestors. The interesting thing is that the author highlights that there is no sorrowful mood with the gathered people, instead everyone is feeling relaxed and especially with the young. Bosniaks even have a very special custom to make small dents on the gravestones in order to gather rain water for the birds but also leave food for them . Connecting birds with the dead i.e. graveyards is not a coincidence since the bird besides being a mythological personification in Bosnia of the soul, her symbolism is much greater and leads us to the Illyrian religious belief in which birds which pulled carriages of the sun god, are mentioned, the same god which is born each day in the "east" and dies in the "west". It is obvious that are ancestors considered birds as souls, holly animals, which has a foothold in Bogomil teachings that it is a deadly sin to kill animals and especially birds and to destroy their eggs.

Respect towards the dead is an integral part of Bosnian spiritual tradition since the old days. Passing by graveyards old people still today preserved a habit to utter El-Fatiha for the dead; first for god's messenger Muhammad, then for the deceased and in the end for all of the dead.

Serbs - mythological children of the swine

In certain folk stories and legends the Serbs are called "sons of swine" or "children of the swine", and for their largest saint tradition claim that he was able to transform into this animal. Namely, in folk story, St. Sava was attacked and disturbed by the devil himself, usually why he slept, therefore he turned into a pig and lied down among the other pigs in order to fool the devil and have his rest. Of course all those stories are not accidental but are directly connected to the physiognomy of the people. Average Serb is fat and the face resembles a swine.

 The most obvious example that demonstrates this is the face of the war criminal Slobodan Milošević, better known as the Balkan Hitler, on whose face the resemblance with a swine is most evident.

Way of life itself among the Serbs also corresponds to the life of this animal since a large part of the population is prone to alcoholism, among the folk there is a saying "you're as drunk as a pig", and their hygienic habits are pretty bad. Belgrade is one of the dirtiest cities in the Balkans where city dump and garbage, as well as the horrid smell of the sewer is seen on every corner.

Besides, swine in Bosnian mythology is a dirty animal in which evil people turn into so that their soul in the body of the swine would suffer and so release them from their sins.

Wild Grandma

In Bosnian mythology it is believed that in every chasm in the ground a wild grandma lives who has her kitchen utensils in the underworld and that she does the jobs that women do in the real world. Legend says that a sheepherder threw a stone into a chasm in the ground and soon he heard a threatening woman's voice: "If my hand's weren't covered in flour I would come out and I would punish you!" Belief in the wild grandma is a remnant of previous beliefs in pagan Bosnia when this mythological character represented a female demon or one of the goddesses of nature which controlled weather. In favour of it speaks the belief that every wind is born out of large chasms in the ground and still today one can hear from the old Bosniaks that when there is a wind blowing one should go and place a large stone on the openining of the chasm and that the wind will stop blowing.

Krkleri

In Sarajevo there was a belief that the one who wishes to see Dobre should go to Obhodža, on the eastern periphery of the city, or to a grave of a Šehid (martyr) or ascetic and to pray for his soul there. Then Krkleri will appear to him, forty Dobri, clad in green clothes, which, before dawn, rush one after the other to the morning prayer in the mosque. 

Ćosa

There are men who never grow a beard or moustache, they remain ćosavi, and that's why among the Bosnian people called Ćose, according to a Turkish expression for a beardless man. It is believed that they are not sexual people and that's why they never get married, but they are well regarded among the youth, since according to belief, they bring good luck to those that are in love and they fulfil hidden hopes. They are often adorned with a velvet voice and they are able to sing lavishly.

Zeleni čovuljak ( Green čovuljak)

When the summer rains pass and the level of river Bosnia falls, on one part of the river's course, a few round rocks appear. Each one of them, according to folk belief has its specific name: Zelenjak, Kusovac and Herdekovac.
According to mythological stories underneath the rock Zelenjak lives a scary dwarf, with big eyes and green skin, which is named by the people, since the old days, green čovuljak (little man). He is an evil water creature, a scary creature, which stalks lone swimmers, especially children, hidden in the brush close to the shore or underneath the water's surface. As soon as he spots a lone child swimming in the river he darts towards him, he enchants the child with his hypnotic powers and drags him to the bottom of the river, where, according to belief, his chambers are located. There are not many individuals who managed to escape the death embrace of this peculiar monster and share their traumatic experience with others.

Illyrians - the largest mystery of Europe

That are ancestors, the Illyrians, were a warlike, mystical people, with shaman cults is known regardless of the fact that there is little data about them. But, the thing that is more interesting is the fact that it has been written by Roman historians, such as Pliny, that among the Illyrians there were many magicians, healers and clairvoyants of high regard, known across the Roman Empire.
Illyrian religion constituted numerous shaman cults where among the most important deities were those that represented symbols of the cult of fertility - god Vidasus (Cernunnos, Pan) and Tana (Diana, Aradia). Similarly, among the numerous spirits and god's of the earth (nature) and sky, the dominant place was occupied by the snake, incarnation of the Grand Mother, to whom the hearth and threshold were dedicated. Still today in Bosnia it is traditionally believed that every house has its own snake protector, which protects the home and family from evil and bad luck. That this belief is not one of the many but very important, but also holly, is confirmed by its taboo - if the snake is accidentally or on purpose killed, the owner of the house will die.
According to a legend the snake is not only the protector of the house but also planet earth. Namely, in Bosnian mythology it is mentioned that above earth there is a gigantic snake which formed a circle with its body (bit its own tail) around the planet and in that way it protects it from all danger and bad luck, which additionally justifies her name of a protector.
Illyrian are equally prone to worshiping both earth spirits and gods as well as celestial ones, among which we will single out sun and moon as well as the stars. Belief of the Illyrians that stars are the seats of the human soul reveals an intriguing fact that our ancestors considered that they stem from another planet, i.e. space.
Traditional belief about Bosnia claims that one should not gaze at the stars at night because of the fear that at that moment one of them doesn't "fall", because if it happens to be the star of that person, the person will die immediately?! Analysing certain segments of Illyrian legends and beliefs, such as the one about the black dragon, god of evil, which attacks the sun and moon trying to swallow them (black out), we can see parts of the ancient myth about the demise of a civilization or even planets from which the ancestors of the Illyrians escaped.
Representation of the snake as the Grand Mother, symbol of life, and protector of humans from one side and the black dragon, god of evil, which constantly attacks sun and moon, trying to devour them and cause the end of life on earth, and humans themselves, is an ancient myth about the struggle of good and evil. But, behind it all is something much deeper and mystic. We could refer here to the theory of David Icke about the reptilian race of earth, which is present from the ancient times of Sumerian and Babylon, whose symbols are represented in various segments of the ruling families throughout the world.
If we recap the history of religion at its very beginning we will come to an obvious fact that today's monotheistic god is twice as young as all pagan gods, and that the teaching of monotheism cannot be taken seriously in the attempts to fathom the history of the human race and its genesis, irrespective of the fact that monotheism, especially Christianity, took numerous segments of the pagan religion. The oldest religious movement which is familiar to us is the Neolithic cult of the Grand Mother, which is called the first and oldest deity in human history. And the Grand Mother is what connects the Illyrians with the reptiles (snake, dragon, salamander) and their alien heritage or ancient race from which they stem.

What connects Bosnia and India?

There is a large possibility that the Illyrians had some connection or even common heritage with the people from India, which can be grasped if we analyse certain legends from Bosnian mythology. The most interesting tale about the mysterious creatures called utve zlatokrile - half humans, half birds, which didn't have sexual distinctions. It is claimed that they have escaped to Bosnia from India, "that cursed land".
Another rarity of the Bosnian people but also connection with India is located in the traditional belief in the migration of the human's soul into an animal and vice versa (reincarnation), which is actually the basic concept of the Bogomils in Bosnia during the Middle ages. How much this belief was widespread and accepted from the folk is best witnessed from the fact that still today in the 21^st century, there are old people who prolong the belief about the migration of the soul. In Velika Kladuša there are still old ladies from which you can hear the claim that evil people, especially murderers and thieves, turn into cows after death, horses, pigs, etc. so that they could repay their sins in the new life, serving other people. This traditional belief, which is found in total opposition about the classic monotheistic maxim of the soul leaving to heaven or hell, clearly points to the deep rooted belief about reincarnation among the Bosnian people.

Third eye or stars

In the end, we will return to the beginning of the text which speaks about the Illyrians as skilled mages and clairvoyants and the part about the belief in the connection of humans and stars in the sky and we will compare all that with the hinduistic teaching about chakras. Ajna or the sixth chakra is located in the middle of the forehead, above the eyebrows, and is connected with the pineal gland which is inactive in most humans, and it gives the ability of telepathy, clairvoyance, astral projection, etc. to mystics. This sixth chakra is often called the third eye and can be seen on ancient drawings of numerous deities.
In Illyrian-Bosnian tradition the third eye is called "star" which has the function to connect man with its star in the sky, seat of the soul. In practice this belief is widespread among the stravarke which annul negative energy while performing the ritual, using molten lead, covering their forehead with their hand i.e. their "star" for fear of negative energy blocking their invisible connection with the star in the sky. As each one of them claim, if that would happen, it could be possible for them to lose their mind and fall ill physically.
This ritual process directly goes in favour of the assumption that the Illyrian believed that they stem from another planet, with which they stayed in contact through the "star" on their forehead or the third eye. Or that their astral bodies descended to earth and populated it in the bodies of some ancient human beings. From that event it is easy to assume that through the generations they lost the precise detail from which part of the universe and from which planet they came so they considered all of the stars to be seats of the soul and their genesis.

Illyrian god’s and goddesses

In order to grasp the pagan world of our ancestors, especially the one connected with their religious life, we need to gather all the names of the god’s and goddesses of the Illyrian pantheon from the entire area of Illyricum from Albania across Bosnia and Herzegovina to Slovenia. Individual deities had several names but an identical function which is the reason why the Illyrians failed to establish a unique religion across the territory of Illyricum and why it was divided into many cults. But, according to all available data, worshiping the snake, the reincarnation of the Grand Mother, Thane and Vidasus were common to all Illyrian tribes mostly because these deities were connected with the cult of agriculture and fertility.

Dracon and Draccena: divine couple.

Nutrika: goddess, protector of children.

Sentona – goddess tied to the cult of agriculture.

Ika – goddess of fertility.

Histria – goddess, protector of the entire geographical area of Istria.

Boria – god of wind.

Nebra – goddess of storms and mist.

Trita – goddess of health. Her name has no connection to the Istria area, instead it can be recognized in the names from Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the form Tritan, Tritanon or Traitano. It is believed that the name of the goddess has an Illyrian-Celtic heritage.

Melosok – local Illyrian god, protector.

Anzotika, Irija or Prende: goddess of love.

Boa: divine snake.

Verbti: god of fire and the north wind which causes fires.

Beautiful celestials (in Albanian: Bukuri and Qiellit) in ancient Illyrian times, three gods which divided the world into the heavens, sea and underground.

Thana, Tana, Thiana or Zana (Albanian): Illyrian goddess equated to the Roman Diana. She is followed by three goats with golden horns. In Albanian mountains Zana lives as a faery adorned by bravery and beauty. Among the Bosniaks Zana or Tana is a forest faery (Zlatna) which lives in Bosnian forests and helps great warriors, such as Mujo Hrnjica. Deep connection of the goddess Tana is evident through folk songs where the scene of Mujo Hrnjica meeting with the faeries is described, the fairies were disguised as goats, with his shrewdness he manages to unmask them and subject them to his will. Even though in Bosnian mythology it is considered that the forest faery and Zlatna are actually two different faeries i.e. mother and daughter, we are probably talking about one faery which probably has a different name in various parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Identification of the Illyrian goddess in the name of the queen of faeries Zlatna (Zlatana) is more than evident in the name itself, namely, if we subtract first three letters from Zlatana we will get the name Tana or if we subtract the second, third and fourth letter – Zana.

Zlatna is called forest or mountain faery in north-western part of Bosnia with clear meaning of mountain i.e. forest faery or forest mother. Her epithet of queen, confirms her privileged position which she has as the goddess of our Illyrian forefathers.

Medauros or Armatos: god of war. Depicted as riding a horse, with a spear in his left hand.

Redon: protector of seafarers. God in the form of a boy next to which a dolphin appears.

En: one of the three supreme gods.

Perendi or Shurdi: god of thunder, husband of the goddess Prenda. A curious similarity appears between the “Slav” name of the god of thunder Perun and the Illyrian Perendi. If we take into consideration that the Illyrians, besides the Greeks, are the oldest people in the Balkans then it is easy to conclude that Perendi or Perin is nothing more than an ancient Illyrian deity which is wrongly connected with the forced Slav pantheon.

Vidasus or Vidas: one of the names of this grand god of the Illyrian pantheon is Messor or Žetalac which clearly alludes to his dominant role in the cult of fertility i.e. agriculture. Time of harvests was a period dedicated to him.

Mythological beings of Bosnian Roma population

Mythology is first and foremost a social phenomenon which successfully permeates and connects different religious, magical and geological influences producing absolutely fascinating effect - the created myths have a pronounced social effect since through them the Roma, as a nomadic people, could hold on to their unity but also assimilate more easily in all new locations.

The Roma population in Bosnia are mostly Muslims, but because of their dramatic and unlucky past, especially in Romania where they were treated as slaves for centuries, they kept some segments of Christianity such as celebrating certain Christian holidays such as Saint George's day (May 6th) or Christmas. Even though they have Muslim names and they celebrate both Eid's, the Bosnian Roma don't practice fast during Ramadan claiming that sin doesn't enter through the mouth but exits through them. Mainly, the Roma take from every religion the things that suit them and adjust it to themselves and in their everyday life. That's why in Bosnia there is a saying that "among Roma there is no religion".

Even though by analysing descriptions and activity of good and bad demons one can easily notice a chronic lack of old beliefs which they took with themselves from India, the Roma assimilated all myths from other peoples and enriched them with new and original additions making them part of their culture and identity. Though one gets an impression that, besides the names of mythological beings, there are no other connections with the motherland and its rich spiritual culture, still in some expressions one can hint the old beliefs such as the traditional burning of the dead. Namely, the Roma for the word "burial" use praxosarav, which means - I turn into ashes.

In some myths some specific characteristics of Roma are pronounced which actually reflect the mentality of the people, their habits, fears and thoughts. Belief about javišti, though a mixture of the Bosnian belief about Lampir and Prepasti, it is enriched by one of the biggest fears of ancient Roma prone to stealing, namely, they believed that javišta can warn the owner about the thief, and so make his undertaking dangerous and fruitless. Similarly, constant desire of all nations for gold and riches is deeply rooted in the Roma conscience. According to their belief the easiest way to get gold is through Karankočija but usually because of the lack of modesty, the demon would trick the human and would steal what he brought the first time. Karankočija can usually be seen by older people and through legends a lesson is imposed that man even in his old age cannot triumph over himself, his greed and imprudence.

The mythology of Bosnian Roma relies heavily on traditional legends and myths about various supernatural beings of Bosnia and Herzegovina but also numerous other peoples and cultures. A good example for observing common elements is the most famous demon of all - Karankoči. Besides the similarity in names Karankoči and Karanđoloz, which stem from the Turkish language and signify something black, dark, which alludes to a black physical form or black hat, both demons have identical time of appearance - winter. Karanđoloz always appears in the period of the greatest winter i.e. during zehemerija - January, and usually small disobedient children are frightened by this legend. Classic con of the described demon through transformation of gold is characteristic also of Bosnian legends about the Jinn, the legends say that some people, when they performed the spiritual ritual called daira, were fooled by the Jinn and instead of gold they received coal.

Another example of identical or very similar beliefs is also the demon Aždaha. Namely, Aždaha is among the Bosniaks a mythological creature which most resembles a dragon. Fragments of belief in Aždaha is still present today in practice of soothsayers, which, when analysing various forms of lead, see some sort of dent in the lead or an opening, sets the patients diagnosis with the statement: "something swallowed you as an Aždaha", alluding to the effects of the demon. According to the sayings of old Bosniaks, Aždaha is a demon which lives in dark caves or openings in the ground and attacks and swallows people and animals.

But, we shouldn't disregard the real possibility that the domicile people of an area in Bosnia and Herzegovina, under the influence of the Roma legends used some elements for creating their own. Ušušur, water demon which attacks and drags people under the water, it could have its mythological foundation in the myth about Ledaši or Karakončiju. In favour of this thesis the data that the legend about Ušušur is located in a very narrow area and is not present in a large part of BiH.

GYPSY DEMONS

Xalo (baldy): Roma that live in Rogatica believe that Xalo is a wind (bahval), i.e. a phantom, spirit.

Aždaha: is the same as Xalo, but it has hair on its body.

Prepeljaši: restless spirit, he sits in the dust.

Khasehko (spirit inside hay): when a gypsy goes into the field to steal hay and brings it with him, Khasehko sits on top of him and presses him so hard that he is unable to escape. That's why he must throw away half of the hay in order to escape.

Dromehko: If a person has been killed on a road, this demon appears in that spot and scares people.

Bibija or Bibi (plague) is among the Roma the most important deity and deamon. They also call her Tetka Bibija (Aunt Bibija) since centuries ago she saved them from the plague in Egypt. That's why they chose her for their deity. When they drink the Roma toast: "To Bibija's health! (Ande Bibijako sastipe!). Hasiba Salkanović from Čajnič described her in the following manner: "She is a forest divine woman which resides in large mountains, and great forests. She is tall, taller than humans, clad in a white dress, shining as if made out of gold. She can't walk she levitates. She flies at night so no one can see her. She hides from people. She appears only to honest and noble people. Bibija is a rich and beautiful woman, she doesn't have a husband nor children. She doesn't speak, nor sing, nor drink, nor eat. She enters homes but not the poor ones. When there is a big disease she appears as well and brings death to people. We then say: "Go to big men and big women, and hit them with the disease!" We defend ourselves from her by cutting a dogs, cats or a pigs ear and eating it. Then she can't hurt us. When we see her we say: "I eat your vagina, I eat your penis!"

KARANKOČI

Karakonči is considered as one of the most famous demon of Bosnian Roma. It is stated that he is a "gypsy" since he speaks exclusively using that language. He lives in the water, under the ice, he is short and has a red hat on his head or a dark coloured one which holds all his demon powers. He comes to people during the night in order to keep warm next to the hearth.

Around the description and his function there are a lot of conflicting data, which is a clearly and influence of mythological traditions that the Roma encountered. While it is often mentioned that Karankoči has a red hat on his head, in Vlasenica, Čajnič, Sarajevo and Visoko, the Roma believed that his hat was made out of dirty intestines which is placed over his head. Karakonči has horns which he uses to attack his victims. According to belief, while he is hitting the humans with his horns, they fall of into the water and out if it see walnut is created "šungurja".

While some Roma consider Karakonči as well-intentioned and harmless, others describe him as a demon which calls out to people at night to go out of their house so he can take them to a river and drown them. That's why the claims of Halil Salkanović from Čajnič are closest to a real mythological division:

"Ledaši live under the ice and not Karakonči. He comes among the Roma during the winter and speaks in gypsy language. He is good and won't do you any harm, he likes to play with the children. There are various Karakonči. They are dwarfish. They have dark hats on their heads. If you steal the hat of a Karakonči, he will be obedient and will be your servant. If you wish for a bag of gold he will bring it to you. When you give him back his hat, he farts, and instead of gold you are left with a bag of coal. Šungurja (Trapa natans) are the horns of Karakonči, that herb is good for magic".

There are several names for Karakonči, in Vlasenica they are called Demiri, in Čajniče two names are mentioned Amir and Demir, etc.

MEĐAŠI

Demon which is the size of a ten year old, he is green, has a moustache and a beard. He carries a handkerchief on his head. His season is the summer. He appears always at dusk carrying an axe on his shoulder. He can turn into a spruce tree and can fall directly on a human. He tries to harm people by all means. Međaši suck the blood out of people, the bite spot becomes dark. These demons are afraid to cross over water and walk in a ploughed field.

BAHVALJKO

Bahvaljko (wind spirit): turns into linen cloth and tries to cover a person with it. It is believed that at night this wind exits out of the dead person and attacks humans which are traveling at that moment. It jumps on their back and rides them until the person crosses over the territory administered by that spirit, the spirit dismounts and runs away. Humans are ill for half a month when attacked by Bahvaljko.

UMALJAKO

Umaljako (field spirit): a very evil spirit in the form of a cat or a dog. He throws iron over human legs and when a person falls to the ground he jumps on top of him and tries to choke him. When a man is carrying a haystack, the spirit jumps on top of it, and the man has to stop because of the weight. He must stop and sit down. If a man lights a match, Umaljko disappears and the man can continue.

E PHURDAKO

E phurdako (spirit under the bridge): he is like a small monkey. He rolls around, turning, playing in front of people in human clothes. If a gypsy comes to steal something, he shouts after him: "Look he is stealing!". On a bridge, one can be a victim of an attack by this demon which can paralyse his hand, leg and entire body. That's why Roma people avoid crossing bridges at night.

MUSTAKALO

Mustakalo (forest spirit, forest rooster): has big eyes and teeth, big moustache and backside. He is as big as a donkey. He resides on a spruce (tree) and when he likes a female he grabs her with his white hands. In Vlasenica it is believed that Mustaklo lingers in forests under large trees. They call him Ušonja or Ušan.

BENG

 Beng is a female demon that causes epilepsy among humans. In Zavidovići the Roma believe that when a child is caught by epilepsy one should take off all of his clothes, cut it with a knife and throw it onto the ground, in order for the seizure to stop. In Kozarac it is believed that Beng swears with a goat's leg when he is in trouble.

RUKIJA

Rukija is a female demon which doesn't get old or young, her face is the same as it was 2000 years ago. She hides and lives in a hole under the earth or under large rocks. She is as big as a woodpecker but she can grow and become larger. She is nude. She has a small hat on her head, she asks for bread and money. In another description the following is said; the lower part of her body is white and her upper black, she has a leather belt on her neck with beads. She comes to people at night, in the month of March. She creeps on the ground and feeds on animals but she likes to eat pumpkins. If she sees a man, she can bite. If you give her food or money, she will go away. You cannot kill her. She comes to people at night, she talks to them then. She is very evil and she would strangle humans if she could. At night she uncovers humans and says: "Pay me! If you won't, I'll kill you!" She then laughs and disappears. Rukija fights against Karakonči, she looks for him and wants to kill him since he doesn't want to be with her. She doesn't allow him to be under the ice. She hasn't been sighted since WWII.   

BILAHČE

Demon's which play in circles at dusk, usually at crossroads. They play every day, especially on Sundays. They are most dangerous at night, they don't have bones nor flesh, they are just wind that floats in the air. Bilahče are white demons, in white gowns. You cannot see their faces. There are male and female demons among them. Their main demon is called Hadžija. They don't speak any of the languages, not even the Roma one. They are present in houses, water, fields, hay, under the bridge and other places. They love to scare people, when you go, they go, as soon as you stop they stop as well. As soon as the rooster crows, they dissapear. They can cause such a strong gust of wind that can knock a person to the ground and make him sick. They turn into rabbits, birds, cats, dogs, pigs and wolfs and they scare people. A human can go mad out of fear, and can die out of shock. His limbs get stiff and he can't move. The diseased can be cured by an Imam. When a male and female Roma fight, Bilačke brings a rope and throws it between them. Bilahče also kicks with his feet. He allows a human to pick up a haystack, and then he jumps on the haystack, and a person can die from it. Bilahče is often the cause of great headaches. When a headache occurs, the diseased utters: "My head hurts". He needs to add: "May she be eaten by a dog". If a man is struck by the wind (Bilačho) he gets cramps and can go numb out of fear. We then curse and say bad things so we can free him of this state.

JAVIŠTA

JAVIŠTA: a spirit that the Roma are perhaps most scared of. That's why they are reluctant to about it. Javište is a demonic being which has identical characteristics of many beings from Bosnian mythology such as Lampir, Werewolf, Prepasti, Prikaze, Karanđoloz, Mubarećija. Javišta resides in graveyards and is dressed in a white gown. It is believed that she can originate only from a dead person. Specifics of this being is that it produces different sounds which can be sounds of the wind, some animal but also human voice groaning and moaning. Javište appears when a person dies and a cat or dog crosses over his body. It always appears at night, flying over houses and shouting: "There is the thief, he came to steal!". It speaks with a high pitched voice, and it can bark and growl like a dog. Javišta appears in different animal forms but also in the form of the wind, which is considered very dangerous. At night it can climb on a traveller's back, whose weight inhibits the person from walking. To chase it away the person must shout in Bosnian: "Džin baška! Šejtan baška! Nalet je bilo! Idi svojim putem, ko si da si!" It is afraid of fire and runs away from it.

ČOXANI

Is a bearded woman i.e. a witch that drinks blood of the children. According to belief the woman is doing it unconsciously, while she is asleep, that's when her soul exits her body and goes towards small children, attacking them and drinking their blood. She doesn't attack grownups. She appears in the form of a butterfly or a bird, sometimes a wolf or a large toad. She is also described as the wind which suddenly jumps on a man's neck or back. As soon as the man starts moving his shoulders he will feel a great weight on himself. She also feeds on shellfish and sometimes attacks chickens and cats. When she is in the form of a butterfly she attacks fire because she wants to take it with herself into the air and set ablaze the gypsy village. A formula uttered in Bosnian is used against her: "U gore, u mora neka ide, u kamenje i stijene, nalet ga bilo!".

GENOCIDE IN BOSNIA - SREBRENICA 11.07.1995 - 11.07.2014

Deities of Bosnian mythology

Archaeological monuments reveal, and ancient historical sources confirm the presence of Illyrians on the Balkans from the beginnings of the first millennia of the old era. Therefore the Illyrians appear on the historical stage of south-eastern Europe alongside the Greeks. The right to set this historical parallel was first given by Homer, who mentions in his work the Iliad at a dozen places the Illyrian tribe Phrygians, the allies of the Trojans. The Illyrians as well as other peoples, worshiped shapeless spirits in the form of natural phenomena for a long time such as clouds, rain, forest, moon, tree, streams… Varon recorded for the Romans that they worshiped god’s without statues and that they were anthropomorphized during the age of the Etruscan kings.

 Under the Roman occupation the Illyrians slowly accepted some segments of the Roman religion along with the language and culture, but they continued to worship their ancient gods in the new form, such as Vidas (Vidasus) and Thana (Tana). Besides the Romans a strong influence on the Illyrians were also the Celts and somewhat the Greeks. Even though according to the available data they never managed to establish a unique religion on the entire region where they lived (Illyricum) all tribes are besides their traditional deities worshiped the sun, moon, snake – incarnation of the Grand Mother, forest, trees and water.

Deities of our forefathers Bind, Tana, Vidas, Anzotika, Ika, Jutosika, Eja, Melesokus, Borija, Irija, Medaur, Black sky dragon are only some from the Illyrian pantheon which they prayed to and which they worshiped. Besides the Illyrian authentic deities in Bosnia and Herzegovina we also have Roman and Persian gods and goddesses, the influence of astral deities i particularly pervasive, primarily the solar god Mithra and Tir god of rain and fertility.

 

 

BIND

Bind or Bindus (old Indian bindu, h – drop) is the old Bosnian god of streams and water in general and he is represented as a naked man, with a rudder or trident in his right hand. His cult was especially widespread on the territory of north-western part of Bosnia and part of Croatia (Lika) where Japodes were dominant, a powerful Illyrian tribe with strong Celtic impurities.
In the area of Bihać, at the spring of Privilice, numerous archaeological and epigraphic findings which confirm the dominant influence of his cult in the lives of the Bosnian forefathers. It is considered that the name Bihać has its root in the name of the grand deity. At cult locations where he was worshiped numerous horns of goats were found, which proves that the Japodes sacrificed, among other things, animals to their deity. Thus on the monument dedicated to Bind, near Privilice above the votive inscription there is an etched picture of an altar between two mountain goats with their front legs raised; the third mountain goat is depicted under the inscription.
The connection our ancestors had with the cult of this deity is best proven by the century long practice of the Bosnian people’s pilgrimage in the early dawn, usually during the period of the new moon, towards individual streams which were considered to be medicinal where they would leave presents in the form of money, food or clothes to this deity as sacrifices for healing and help.

 

VIDASUS

Vidasus is the god of forests and nature, and together with the goddess Thana the deity of fertility. He was worshiped under various names, at some places as Vidasus, elsewhere as Magla (enus?), or Cor…, Messor and the like. This name Cor is unusually reminiscent of the Celtic god Cernunnosa which had an identical description.
Similarly, it is presumed that with this Illyrian deity the famous name Grabovius is connected (where from our Illyrian word grab (hornbeam) stems from), which is mentioned on the so called Iguvine tablets from Umbria in Italy. Given that on the same monument the name Japuzkum (Japudiscum) nomen is mentioned – the enemy of the Umbra – we conclude that the Umbra took the name Grabovius (this epithet comes with thename Jupiter, as well as that of Mars and Vovionus) from the Japodes.
 It is considered that Vidasus, or Romanised Silvan, was the supreme Illyrian god in the period before Rome, and he also kept that function after it. The Roman’s accepted him and equated with the Greek Pan the protector of forests, flocks and nature and a companion during hunting. Visual depictions of the Illyrian Vidasus depict him as a being which is half goat and half man. Vidasus was worshiped during the beginning of the lighter part of the year, at the end of April and beginning of May.

 

THANA

Thana or Tana, goddess of forests and hunting, was called Forest Mother by the Illyrians and numerous magical rituals and beliefs were connected with her, which we can still find in Bosnian magical beliefs about the Mountain faery which women call her in spells “Sister, mother” and they describe her as a beautiful young woman in white clothes with long hair. On one relief she is depicted with unbound hair, clad in a short belted tunic, which actually looks like it is made out of two parts, since the skirt is pleated, while the upper part of clothes is completely smooth with sewn in sleeves.

Thana has her hands half outspread and in one hand she is holding a leafy branch and in the other a fir branch. Thana is often connected with the god Vidasus (Vidas). Four votive monuments were dedicated to them, discovered in Topusko, close to warm stream. Remnants of temples and numerous inscriptions were also found in Topusko, dedicated to the Roman god of forests, pastures and streams, and based on that it was concluded that the Illyrian Vidasus by his attributes matches with that Roman deity and that, according to that fact, his chaperon Thana coincides to the Roman Diana.

It is interesting to note that there is a name Tanija among the Bosnian people.

FAERIES

The Illyrians revered mountain faeries – nymphs, protectors of streams, creeks, mountain glades and caves. On monuments they are always depicted as young and playful girls, often in a circle, to whom the god Vidasus is playing a flute.

 

TREE – GOD PROTECTOR

As I already mentioned the Illyrians before they began to anthropomorphize their deities, they worshipped them in their celestial shape (sun, moon, stars, etc.), natural (tree, stream, forest, etc.) or animal form – snake, salamander, frog… That’s why the initial religion of our forefathers could be called shamanism, while in the later periods, especially after intertwining with Greek, Celtic and Roman influences, it obtained its classic ancient form with a pronounced pantheon. Belief in a tree as a divine symbol among the Illyrian tribes perfectly coincided with their religious practice based on worshiping nature and its forces. Belief that inside a tree there are supernatural forces which have a fatal influence on a human’s life was present for centuries among the Bosnian people.

According to belief each man possessed his own tree in the forest, which is unknown to him, but if he accidentally cuts it down it can cause his death. Such beliefs were recorded in various parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina such as Rogatica or Kamengrad near Sanski Most. Identification of a man with a tree is then not accidental but as we can see it stemmed from Illyrian religion according to which each man has his own tree in which dwells his god protector. Each tree possesses in itself the strength of the Grand Mother, goddess of the earth, and that is why it is directly connected with the source of life but also dead forefathers. That’s why in traditional Bosnian belief the tree was always equated with humans and their luck or better to say with their lives.

Throughout the centuries, as the religious influence of our forefathers weakened, there were some alterations but never such drastic ones which could uproot the original belief. In ethnological books we can find the description of the ritual in Žepče according to which a person that has bad luck or has a longer streak of issues and difficulties, when something is not going according to his plan, he climbs a tree and another person stands underneath the tree trunk and starts to cut the tree down. Then the unlucky person, while still sitting on the tree asks: “What are you doing?” and the other one replies: “I will cut down your luck so you can get a new one!” Then he cuts the tree down which falls down to the ground together with the man sitting on top of it. After that it is believed that the person will receive new luck and that nice things will start to happen to him. By observing rituals we will notice a symbolic “death” and “resurrection” of man (luck) which falls down together with the tree. He willingly sacrifices himself to “die” together with the tree and in such a way he will avoid the anger of the tree deity which will punish anyone who cuts it down. With this ritual he will get a new tree as a protector and with it new luck.

 

 

The "grand" mother Tiamat

One of the oldest myths relating to the genesis is the one recorded with cuneiform on clay tablets from the ancient Sumerian civilization. According to a legend a large water abyss (Apsu) was always present and in it lived daemons and gods, until the intervention of the two deities Anshar and Kishar the grand gods of Babylon were created, among others Anu, Bal and Ea which started the creation of the world as we know it today. Apsu, god of chaos, along with goddess Tiamat "the mother of everything", was strictly opposed to this creative endeavour. Even though Tiamat is considered to be a personification of evil the title of mother is not taken away from her which creates a confusion when it comes to the understanding of this myth. Tiamat is also the guardian of the Tablet of destiny, which additionally confirms that she was a being of great power and position. It is believed that she was a hermaphrodite or a being with two bodies, since legends claimed that she had her male part called Kingu. Thanks to such a specific state Tiamat gave birth to numerous demons' out of which an army against the gods of creation was established. But, despite that Tiamat was defeated by Marduk who created the firmament and the world ocean by gutting her body, while they created humans out of her male part i.e. its blood.

In this myth which is based on the creative intervention of primordial gods, it is easily concluded that the creation of the world and humans from the body of Tiamat and its male counterpart has taken a central place. Tiamat - "the mother of everything" as a symbol that united the male and female principles inside it, represents a universal symbol of genesis and fertility. Without her sacrifice nothing would exist and she deservedly holds the title of "mother of everything". With this myth the human civilization received its first official name for the "grand" mother, the same one which in other cultures is known as Astarta, Izida, Demetra.
The cult of the Grand Mother (Magna Mater) according to the archaeological evidence dates from the beginning of human civilization and as such it became the first mass religious movement on earth. The earliest depictions of the goddess date from the Stone Age where it was depicted on the walls of the caves through symbols of a shield or a triangle, which represents her vagina according to the archaeologists. From that period we also have numerous stone and clay figures of the Grand Mother depicted as a large woman with big breasts and belly as well as pronounced hips.
A lot of religious historians agree the thesis that her cult of fertility probably arose somewhere on the territory of today's Syria, Turkey and Iraq from where it spread throughout the entire Mediterranean. It certainly is supported by an interesting find in southern Anatolia where the archaeologists found numerous miniature statues which depicted the goddess in three life stages: girl or virgin, mother i.e. a woman giving birth to a child or a bull and old lady. In Bosnia and Herzegovina there are several important archaeological localities where traces of Neolithic villages were found as well as life inside them, such as the locality Lug in the outskirts of Goražde where archaeologists, among others, found a couple of sculptures made out of baked clay for which it is believed that they manifest the cult of Grand Mother.