Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Mythology Explained. In today’s video,
we’re going to be travelling all the way to central/eastern Europe- and even parts of Asia,
as the topic pertains to none other than Slavic Mythology.
Now- just because the most popular forms of Mythology,
like Greek, Roman, and Norse are often in the limelight, it certainly doesn’t mean
that other parts of the world have failed to establish their own mythology. In fact,
Slavic myth, though lesser-known, has deep roots. In fact, the roots of Slavic mythology can be
traced back to the Proto-Indo European period, possibly even as far back as the Neolithic era.
In today’s video, we’re going to be focusing on a pivotal figure in Eastern European folklore- the
BABA YAGA. If you aren’t familiar with Eastern European folklore, but still recognize the name
Baba Yaga, then it’s probably because you heard it mentioned in the popular John Wick film franchise:
Viggo Tarasov: John was once an associate of ours. They call him Baba Yaga.
Iosef Tarasov: The boogeyman? Viggo Tarasov: Well,
John wasn't exactly the boogeyman. He was the one you sent to kill the f****** boogeyman!
And while John Wick is a bonafide killer- the Baba Yaga is certainly no slouch either.
Let’s peel back the layers of the tale of the Baba Yaga-
the child eating witch of Slavic folklore. I’m going to warn you- this thing is terrifying.
Described as "one of the most memorable and distinctive figures in eastern European folklore"-
The Baba Yaga is a supernatural being resembling a deformed and ferocious looking old woman.
The first clear reference to Baba Yaga occurs in Mikhail Lomonosov's 1755 text
Rossiiskaia grammatika. In Lomonosov's text the Baba Yaga is mentioned twice among other figures
largely from Slavic tradition. She was a guardian of the fountains of the water of life,
and is said to have lived with two sisters (who were also known as ‘Baba Yaga’). Together they
lived in a forest hut which stood on chicken legs. The stories dictate that the house would
eerily spin atop the legs, and that the fence surrounding the home was topped with skulls.
Many of the skulls atop the fence were said to have belonged to the children that she cooked
and ate. .
Because of her long, stretched out almost ‘skeletal’ appearance- Baba Yaga earned herself
the epithet "bony leg". Consistent with many of the adaptations of the folklore that featured her,
she would often be described as “stretched out over the stove” or “reaching from one corner
of the hut to another”. This only further contributes to her terrifying appearance.
One thing worth mentioning, however, is that within Slavic folklore,
the baba yaga has been portrayed in a few different ways. According to
Vladimir Propp's folktale morphology, the Baba Yaga comes across as either an aid,
villain, or something else altogether. Her depictions vary greatly across tales,
ranging from a child-eating monster, to helping a protagonist find his missing bride.
Andreas Johns, an expert on Slavic folklore- has identified the Baba Yaga
has highly "enigmatic" - known for exhibiting behaviour in accordance with “striking ambiguity".
He describes her as "a many-faceted figure, capable of inspiring researchers to see her
as a Cloud, Moon, Death, Winter, Snake, Bird, Earth Goddess, totemic matriarchal ancestress,
female initiator, phallic mother, or archetypal image".
However, one of the most common depictions of the Baba Yaga
is the one that bears darker undertones- a ‘witch’
that bears a pestle and accompanies death on his travels, devouring newly released souls. This
same Baba Yaga rides through the air in an iron kettle- releasing tempests as she moves.
There is no ‘one story’ of the Baba Yaga- as her presence is interwoven with slavic folklore
as a whole, however, what you should take away from this video is that her existence is largely
‘ambiguous’, something that is emphasized through the diversity of her character in folklore.
That’s it for today’s video! If you enjoy the content, please like the video and
subscribe to support the channel. As always, leave your video suggestions down below.
Until next time
“There are no monsters in the world,
and no saints. Only infinite shades woven into the same tapestry, light and dark.”