Author of all texts about mythology on these web-pages is Lidija Bajuk:

   lidija.bajuk@posluh.hr
   scena.hgu.hr/lidija-bajuk/

  1. PERUN
      - The Sky
      - The Mountain
  2. PERUNIKA
      - Leluya
      - Ball lightning
  3. AQUARIUS
      - Candlemen
      WATER MAID
      - Fairies
      - Witches
  4. DRAGON
      - Water
      SNAKE
      - Bogorodica
        (Rainbow)
  5. GREEN GEORGE
      - The Moon
      - Corn Spirit
  6. LEPA MARA
      - Hair
      - Embroidery
  7. GRABANCIJAŠ
      - Light
  8. PESJANEK
      - Forest
  9. LITTLE RED HAT
       (DWARF)
      - The Cap, Little Hat
  10. STRAHE & MRAKI
        (GIANTS)


BOGORODICA (RODICA, BLAGVA, BLAGA, BOŽJI POJAS/PASEC (God's belt), DOGA, DUGA (rainbow), IRIS, LUNA, MAJKE BOŽJE TRAK (Virgin Mary's streak), SPROGLJA, PROGA, PRUGA (stripe), PUGA)

Sun's sister, solar arch, uphill-downhill mountain trail, protective divine symbol, sometimes depicted as a snake or fairy.

Northwestern Croats believe that its tail ends are always immersed into water so that it can drink and create rainy clouds. This is where it finds its relationship with the lunar cults. Sometimes one of its tail ends reaches up to the ground and creates a large amount of underground treasure, i.e. water or fire (which belongs to the fairy dragon). Thus, blaga (treasures in Croatian) is one of its synonyms. According to these beliefs, a shooting star visible around the midnight of May 1st guides toward such a place. Fern on the feast day of St. John (Jun. 24 - celebration of the summer solstice) can also be of the same use and it is very probable to find this place during a solar eclipse, too. Since the kajkavian (Croatian dialect) fairy tails describe this goddess in a gown and belted by a rainbow, the symbolism of rainbow has been considered as an equivalent of the symbolism of belt. It is a sign of protection, readiness, fertility (material and spiritual), loyalty, faithfulness, and happiness. Un-belting means giving up, sacrificing, converting. On the other hand, if we imagine the over-ground part of this arch as a snake, and the underground part as a fairy extension from the snake's/dragon's throat (recognizable as a treasure in a hidden chest), then we can see a continuous elliptical sequence. This is a reminiscence of mythical stories about the beginning of the world from the cosmic egg in various cultures (is that not another reason for a circular lid on chests and a curved bottom of vessels, baskets, and boats?). The underground part can be also identified as high-priced materials (e.g. water), sustained life depicted as fruits from living beings in a basket, bottle, or boat. It can be also a new life perception of God's messengers on a throne.





If the color red is dominant in a rainbow then, according to these beliefs, the autumn will be plentiful in wine. If the color yellow dominates, then a wealth of grain and bread is expected. Lots of green color is a sign of having enough hay for the livestock during the whole year. Colorful ribbons, embroidery, and flags, as parts of a folk costume or ceremonies in ancient cultures, symbolize scattering of the white daily light, i.e. a reverse side of the Sun on a rainy veil. Together with the Milky Way (Kumovska Slama) as a nightly bridge, a rainbow symbolizes a daily bridge between the Sky and the Earth, which the souls of dead people have to cross before they find themselves in Rajevina (Eden-land), a green meadow, or in Paklina (Hell-land), according to their merit. That is why in Medimurje (northern Croatia) people use to say: "When you se rodica, she is going to take someone to the heavens." There is also a belief that a person who catches it, and swims in it, will get younger. In the same way, it is possible to change sex, i.e. life, by passing below a rainbow, (this reminds on an old and forgotten meaning of a "bridge" dance theme in the Croatian folk dances).