Mythology of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mythology of Bosnian Gypsy

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.

Karakonči


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

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


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!".

Bibija


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!"

Other Gypsy demons


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.

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.

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 (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 (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.

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.

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.

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.

Zrikavac - demon of the night


Zrikavac is a nocturnal demon which is described in Bosnian mythology as a vratilo (long stick) but it has the ability to transform and it often transforms into a bird or cat. Zrikavac is especially active at dawn and after sunset. With its call it causes fear in humans.

According to folk tradition on one occasion an old man went to the river Bosna and there he heard a commotion, it was audible in the entire village. When he approached the place where the horrible sounds came from he saw a black cat. The animal started screaming even louder, and the old man went deaf from it. In the vicinity of Visoko, in places Hasin Potok and Kužni Dol, it was believed that a demon-like creature was living there. If someone heard the sound of zrikavac at night he shouldn't try to imitate the sound or to mock it, such behaviour angers the demon and he mounts the human and forces the human to carry him the entire night, until the first roosters crow.

Zrikavac is a demonic creature which has similarities with other demons of Bosnian mythology such as Karanđoloz, Meknjače, Naletnjak; so we can presuppose that all evil spirits have similar characteristics.

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.

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.

Urok


It is interesting to point out that the Illyrians as a nation were prone to superstition, healing and magic, and that's why their mages were well known across the Roman empire. Based on that fact it is easy to presume why even today on the Balkans there are numerous magical beliefs, but also practice, which has nothing to do with monotheism but exclusively with ancient cults of the Illyrian tribes. One of the best examples is the belief in the evil power of spellbound eyes or urok.

Urok is an Illyrian word which means to spellbind or fascinate. The Illyrians, like all Mediterranean people were prone to belief in the negative power of the urok, evil demon of disease and bad luck which attacks humans, animals and even dead objects. Unlike other demons urok is closely associated to humans and lives inside them or next to them.

Urok has an effect (attack) motivates hate, jealousy, wonderment or excessive love of one person towards another. Caused by some of these emphasized emotions urok attacks a human, directly through human eyes and speech, causing various diseases and states such as a headache, increased temperature, sleepiness, fatigue . If its attack is directed towards small children then the urok can cause death in a short period.

Urok is a demon which can, according to Bosnian belief, make a happy man unhappy, a healthy man unhealthy, etc. The Illyrian used various prophylactic items to shield themselves from this demon, carrying amulets shaped like a snake, circle, various shells, etc. Red colour had a special power, according to belief, which protected the Illyrians from disease, especially the one caused by the effect of urok. All diseases created by the effects of urok were cured by tribal shamans and experienced older wives with the help of magical rituals and by uttering formulas. If someone would get sick in the middle of urok then they would take some dirt from a footprint of a person for which it is believed that has spurred a demon and they would then mix the dirt with water which would be used to sprinkle and wash the diseased person.

Stars - human souls



Since the Illyrian times the stars are guardians of life or better said they are human souls. According to Bosnian belief each human gets a star once he/she is born which will shine until he/she dies, the star then falls from the sky. The Illyrians were scared of staring at the sky since they could glimpse their own star and die, if the star happened to fall at that moment.



Still today among the Bosnian people there is a belief of connectedness between a man and his star by way of his forehead, between his eyebrows to be more exact, so called third eye, which was protected in the old days by wearing a hat or a bandana. Evil is always trying to harm humans in that particular area in order to disturb his life energy and undermine his whole fate and life. That's why in the past there was a custom that each morning and evening males put on a hat and females a bandana over that area, "in order to protect the star" and they would utter:



Sabah huzi hurmet, okolo mi kuvet,

šejtanu nalet, Muhammedu salavet.



This formula is repeated three times.

Black sky dragon


A dragon is one of the original representatives of Bosnian mythology whose cult was widespread among our Illyrian ancestors shaped in the belief of a black sky dragon who devours the sun or moon during an eclipse. That's why an eclipse inspired hysterical fear from end of the world, and the Illyrian's tried to save themselves banging on various metal buckets creating a dreadful noise in order to scare and chase away the dragon. The black sky dragon among the Illyrian tribes was considered a god of evil and the belief was upheld until modern times through various stories and legends.


The belief of our ancestors was preserved among the Bosnian people and that's why even today among the elderly we can hear statements that claim that the eclipse is nothing else but a dragon devouring the sun. That's why the elderly regularly warn people not to go anywhere during an eclipse, they should sit down and wait for it to pass. Since a dragon is described as a large snake in Bosnian mythology we can see open hostility of the sun and the snake. Namely, according to a belief from Central Bosnia when someone kills a snake the sun stops in the sky and utters "May your hands be golden!", and if someone comes across a snake and doesn't kill it the sun curses him with words "May your hands shrivel!".

An old Bosnian legend reveals that three sun's used to be in the sky, until a dragon ate two of them and the third was saved by a swallow, which took it high into the sky. That's why a swallow and a dragon (snake) are mortal enemies. As another legend mentions, the swallow saved mankind from a snake which went to god with a wish to feast on humans. As soon as the swallow heard that, she managed to trick the snake into stretching out her tongue and as soon as she did that, the swallow struck her tongue with her beak and split it into two parts, the snake went to god, and she wasn't able to speak clearly which infuriated god who determined that the snake shall feast on frogs and mice.



Among the Bosnian folk there are numerous beliefs and legends about snakes (dragon) as a confirmation how much this animal represents a totem to our ancestors, it had a dominant role in the spiritual consciousness of the Bosnian folk throughout history. Regardless of numerous legends the snake is after all considered as a saviour of mankind which is best illustrated by the legend of Noah's ark and the mouse.

Fenjeri


In the decades before WWII some chroniclers recorded unusual phenomena in various parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Certain glowing forms appeared, "fenjer (lantern)" which acted almost as intelligent beings: they moved, jumped, danced in circles ... The inhabitants of the village in Glamoč and Livno field reported that "fenjer" used to gather during summer nights to dance and play, but that they caused no harm besides scaring night travellers and their horses, which is a sign that they were clearly seen by animals. Glowing "fenjer" changed their size and shape and they disappeared at dawn. The people interpreted their appearance as a bad sign - the omen of great sorrow. Not long after those mysterious appearances the war came and numerous villages were burned and the people killed.





After the aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1995) stories appeared that in Foča and Jajce the Imam's call can be heard from the places where mosques stood before the war and where Muslims gathered for centuries to perform religious rituals. New inhabitants of these cities are confused and scared since they can't explain where the sounds are coming from.

Alkarisi


Alkarisi (or Al Karisi) are female Jinn which are according to Bosnian mythology connected to pregnant women and women at childbirth. It is believed that they originated from a girl that never married. They are given away by a goat's voice. It is considered that there are two types, one is black and the other yellow. The black ones are Alkarisi and they are more dangerous than the yellow ones, they are very shrewd and inteligentny. Yellow Alkarisi have the appearance of a blond girl but they sometimes take the form of a goat or a fox. One shouldn't believe anything from either of them. Alkarisi are afraid of men and they always run away when they fire their firearms, that's where the tradition of firing a firearm after a child has been born stems from. Also, they are scared of metal and that's why next to a pregnant woman there is always some sort of metal such as a nail.

Rahimino turbe


The legend from Srebrenik mentions that in the village Sladna Rahima (Raha) lived, an extremely pious woman with a big heart who didn't have nothing besides a small humble house and two cows. But, her poverty was never an obstacle to feeding a hungry man and to help where help is needed not caring much about the other persons religion or nationality. When she died, on the seventh night after the burial, on her tomb unexplainable lights appeared (nur) which shone for the next 40 days illuminating everything around the grave. Because of that miracle the people declared her a saint and decoded to build a mausoleum (turbe) for which people in Srebrenik still today claim that it protects them from every evil.

Hudam


In the tradition of the Bosnian folk a belief in special type of spiritual beings has been retained, these beings were called hudami. It is believed that the word hudam comes from the Arabic word hadim, which means the one that serves or servant. In order for a hudam to start serving a human, a contact must be established between them and then a type of contract, in which both sides define their obligations and interests.

In Bosnian mythology there are a few traditions which describe the way in which an individual can come into contact with a hudam. The first one tells how a person repeats special prayers for 40 days carrying all the while a pigeon's egg under his armpit. In another tradition about the connection with a hudam it is mentioned that a rooster after it lives for 20 years lays an egg. That egg must be carried under one's armpit for 40 days and repeat special prayers in order for a hudam to appear out of the egg, etc.

When a contact is established with a hudam and mutual obligations are established a different type of life begins for the human which seems strange for his surroundings. According to the ethnological works hudami even prepared and served coffee to their owners, sat at the table with them and ate. Such people usually lived a solitary life, and the testimonials about their shared meals with the hudi are fascinating and speak about the fact that the food disappeared from the plate before the eyes of the attendants, but that in fact they couldn't see anyone eating the food or where the food went. Furthermore, there were occasions when the hudami moved stuff around the room which caused disbelief, shock and fear among the present.

There are a few documented cases about the people about which it was known that they possess hudami and one of them was the well-known and rich Arifbeg Đumišić from Sanski Most. During one of his visits to his sister Hanumica, Arifbeg asked the mother in law of his sister to make him coffee early in the morning which she refused. The coffee was in the morning prepared and served, according to the story of Hanumica, by the maiden Gospa which later turned out that she was sleeping and that the room of the mother in law was all in disorder. Mysterious events of that morning were explained by the actions of hudami which prepared and served coffee but also messed up the room of the disobedient mother in law as a warning that the wishes of his master must be followed.

Ramo and Bajro


Ramo and Bajro are two mythological characters which represent the month of Ramadan and the holiday of Eid (Bajram), to whom the imagination of people has given the design and characteristics of humans. While Ramo is a stingy old man who spends his days in renunciation and avoidance of every opportunity to live a different life from the one that he is used to from his childhood, Bajro is his complete opposite. He is a jolly old man who is first of all a hedonist, loves company of friends and is always optimistic when it comes to the future. In those moments when they meet, which is often, they always get into a fight because of their differing life philosophies but they always, in the spirit of faith and Muslim solidarity, reconcile in order to convey a wise message to the listener.

Sometimes alongside them there are two other young men that appear Šaronja and Bjelonja. The first one represents a typical Bosnian who lives by the directive of that its important to fast the first, the middle and the last day of Ramadan in order to satisfy the least amount of necessary religion, while Bjelonja doesn't even undertake that. Unlike Šaronja, he doesn't wish to wear a mask of hypocrisy so he presents himself like he really is, with all of his flaws and virtues. All characters have a comical note to them and they often go from one extreme to another, but it always has a happy ending.

Utve with golden wings or Utve zlatokrile


In Bosnian mythology mystical being are mentioned and described as half women half bird which has golden wings. They are called utve with golden wings and according to mythological classification they belong to beings of positive action which help individuals during hunt or other activities, entire villages or even nations. According to belief utve are immortal and from the beginning there is always a same number of them, which still remains unknown, which brings us to a conclusion that they don't have the ability to reproduce.

The people describe them as beautiful girls with luscious breasts and from the stomach downward they have bird's legs and feathers. They are adorned with golden wings of a wide span and while they fly they spread light in a large circle. According to the legend about the king which conquered the Indus people in certain parts of Bosnia believed that utve had bird's heads and chests and legs and backsides like a woman. According to legend utve escaped from India into Bosnia after a powerful king invaded India with his army, in that "cursed land" and there he came across beings with a head of a rooster and a body of a man which offered resistance for months and warred against him until he conquered them.

But since people often connect directly or indirectly utve and faeries it is then completely clear that their appearance was more feminine and beautiful, i.e. that they had female heads and breasts with bird legs. In support of this thesis is the lack of any data that utve gave birth to a child or had a love relationship with a human being.

People recount about utve that they are like faeries who escaped into the mountains and hard to reach places from the time when guns and cannons appeared because they couldn't take the sound of guns which only brings evil and death.



Analyzing the tradition about utve we come to a conclusion that after all we are dealing with an ancient myth which probably comes from Persia and is based on the belief in Amenta Spentas, forerunners of angels of monotheism. Amenta Spentas are seven immortal winged beings whose purpose is to preserve the harmony in nature among the humans, spreading justice and truth. Belief in them was taken over by the Jews, Christians and in the end Muslims calling them Arch-angels.

Fairies of Bosnian mythology


If some faeries take particular care of a human, that then means that he carries a deeper connection to their world. Such persons shall stand out in life with enlightened wisdom. To be the favourite of the faeries, that is if he is noble and the faeries like him, means that one has the ability to hear their song or even distinguish their mysterious verses heard through the wind. Such a man will appreciate the truth since most faeries are guardians of truth and they drive away lies. However, if an encounter of a faery and a bad person takes place, that person is then risking mental illness.



Bosnian mythology enumerates many names for faeries, the most famous ones are: Bosnian faery, faery queen Golden, Red faery, Forest faery, faery of the mountains (mountain faery), Black faery, water faery etc. Certain faeries have characteristic names such as Gope, Gospa, Srebra, Bilka, etc.