Gamayun bird in Russian mythology. Prophetic birds of the Slavs. Character and magical abilities

The duality of mythological creatures can be traced in all folk cultures. The birds Alkonost and Sirin are the guardians of the Slavic Paradise and reflect the cycle of Life and Death in the world order.

general characteristics

Despite similar appearance There are many differences between birds. They lie in the nature and origin of these creatures.

This bird-maiden in Slavic mythology is identified with a bright beginning. She is credited with the role of a messenger of joy and prosperity.

origins

The progenitor of the Slavic bird-maiden is the Greek woman Alcyone. According to myths, the girl learned about the death of her husband and threw herself into the sea, for which the gods of Olympus turned her into a sea bird.

From Greek alkyone (ἀλκυών) is translated as kingfisher. This breed builds its nests on the shores of the sea and feeds on fish.

Appearance

The appearance of creation has changed throughout Russian history. According to the surviving images, Alkonost had the following external features:

On popular prints, the bird maiden has a female face, breasts and arms, and the creature holds a flower from Paradise and a scroll that describes heavenly rewards for a righteous life. In these drawings, Alkonost has a colorful plumage.
Viktor Vasnetsov in the 19th century depicted a creature with white plumage, indicating its light essence.
The head of the creature is crowned with a golden crown.
The claws on the creature's right paw are gold, and those on its left paw are silver.

According to the legends, Alkonost has both positive and negative character traits. The creature descends to the ground and mourns with the song of the fallen warriors. The creation sings of happiness and joy in Heaven to the righteous, and promises retribution for sinners for their deeds. Among the magical features of the creature are:

Messenger of the gods. In some Slavic interpretations, Alkonost, as a bird of Paradise, acts as a messenger of the god Khors or Svarog. With its singing, the creature told people the will of the pantheon.
Weather management. According to legends, the creature can raise storms over the sea or calm the water surface.
Accompanying souls. The creature escorted the noble dead on the battlefield to the gates of Iriy.
Dopey voice. The songs of Alkonost could enchant an unprepared listener, because of which a person forgot about everything in the world. Datura passed when the bird-maiden finished singing.

Despite the bright beginning inherent in the image, Alkonost could also seriously harm a person. According to legend, a bird lays a magical egg on the winter solstice and lowers it to sea bottom. During this period, storm winds and storms subside.

The creature itself watches the water surface from the shore and waits for the egg to float. According to legend, Alkonost eggs are able to protect from any evil and fulfill desires, so many people tried to steal the masonry. The stolen egg was hung under the ceiling beam of the church. The bird did not forgive such an insult and pursued the thief until the end of his life. Finding a daredevil, Alkonost took his soul and left it to wander the earth forever.

Habitat

Alkonost, according to mythology, lives on the banks of the Euphrates River. The bed of this river flows through Iriy (Right) - a Slavic paradise. The place where the bird lives is called Buyan Island.

On some popular prints, Alkonost is depicted on a tree with the fruits of knowledge, guarded by the dragon Ladon.

Sirin bird

Unlike Alkonost, Sirin is presented as a bird of sadness and grief. According to popular beliefs, this creature guards Nav - the world of the dead.

origins

The name of the creature comes from the Greek word "Seiqmer", which is given as "siren". These bird-like creatures that live on rocks in the seas are the progenitors of the Sirin image. With the Slavic bird-maiden, they also have in common a dangerous and enticing voice for sailors.

The first images of Sirin date back to the 10th century. The dark creature was depicted on earthenware and door locks. In Russian legends, this creature is a paradise inhabitant, whose singing fascinates any mortal.

Towards the end of the 17th century, Sirin was mentioned in such literary memos as Physiologists, Chronograph and Alphabet. In them, creation was described as a messenger of death.

Appearance

The appearance of Sirin has a number of differences from Alkonost. Among them are:

The plumage is dark or grey. The hair is tarry, the eyes are blue.
Around the head of the creature after the baptism of Russia, they began to depict a halo.
The claws on the paws of the creature are covered with silver.

In the pre-Christian period, there are images of Sirin with white plumage as a symbol of rebirth. Through the weeping of the bird-maiden, the souls were cleansed of earthly litigations.

Character and magical abilities

The general character traits of the dark creature have varied throughout culture. Initially, Sirin was a negative creature. The bird-maiden intoxicated the heads of people, because of which they lost their minds and forgot about their past life. Sirin's voice made the Slavs not to be afraid of death, but the warriors themselves began to crave killing. A meeting with a bird of death can end in suicide for a person.

It was possible to fight this creature - Sirin cannot stand the noise. According to legend, if the creature descended to the ground and began to sing, then it is necessary to beat the bells, shoot from cannons and rattle weapons. In this case, the maiden-bird will be frightened by loud sounds and fly away.

There is another way to overcome her enchanting voice. To do this, you should start singing yourself. If the human voice turns out to be more beautiful, then the creature will listen and fall silent. After that, Sirin can help with advice. But a bad voice will anger the creature, it will severely punish the daredevil, taking his soul.

With her singing, the bird-maiden is able to arrange a whirlpool that will lead to the death of the ship.
The gift of foresight. The words of the creature's song could often describe the future, positive and negative predictions always came true. For this reason, the Slavs were afraid of bird singing.
Creation often tests people with its singing. For those who resist, the bird brings a reward, and for those who succumb to temptation, death. So the gods tested mortal heroes on their willingness to give up vicious weaknesses.

Habitat

In the early legend, Sirin's habitat was Nav - the world of the dead. There, the bird maiden mourned the fallen soldiers with sad songs. The creature was the messenger of the Koshny God, who commands the dead.

In later sources, Sirin lives in Iria, guarding the trees and the magical river. The bird occasionally flies to the ground to honor the fallen soldiers with a sorrowful cry.

Legends of Alkonost and Sirin

There are several references to sacred bird maidens in the legends of the Slavs. Some of them belong to the pagan period, others to the Christian.

Resurrection of Perun

According to the myths of the Slavs, the main god of their religion was born by Svarog and Mother Sva. However, in infancy, the deity was stolen by the Skipper Serpent, a hundred-headed dragon with a scorpion tail. Together with Perun, the monster also stole his sisters, the goddesses of love, death and life - Lelya and Zhiva.

The serpent skipper buried the sleeping Thunderer in the depths of the underworld. 300 years after the abduction, Mother Swa gathered the Perun brothers, the Svarozhechs, and ordered them to find the main god.

To speed up the search, three gods turned into birds: Volos - into Sirin, Yarilo - into Alkonost, and Striver took on the guise of Stratim. In this form, they were looking for a brother for seven years. the gods called Skipper the Serpent to account, but he tried to hide the truth.

The magical birds did not fall for the dragon's lies and were able to find Perun sleeping in a dead sleep. To revive him, the gods asked the Gamayun bird to bring the magical Surya from a well in the Riphean mountains.

After the Svarozhichi washed the face of the Thunderer with living water, he woke up. His first feat was the victory over the Skipper-serpent, whom Perun deprived of all heads and banished to the ends of the earth.

Apple Spas

Traditionally, Apple Savior is celebrated on August 19th. Despite the Slavic roots, this festival passed into Christianity.

This day marks the end summer season which marks the harvest. According to legend, the joyful Alkonost and the sad Sirin fly to Yavl from Prav to Yav. They carry healing herbs in their paws.

First, Sirin flies around the gardens and sings sad songs, mourning all the dead and those who lived in falsehood. For this reason, it is undesirable to eat apples before August 19 - according to popular belief, the one who has tasted is threatened with a year full of misfortunes.

After Sirin, the apple tree is visited by Alkonost - the bird of happiness. Her singing is full of joy and light, it marks the constant cycle of life and death, the change of seasons and the constant renewal of nature.

From the wings of a bright maiden-bird shakes off the dew, irrigating the trees with it. According to legend, after visiting the Alkonost gardens, apples acquire healing properties. They are given to fresh friends and relatives, and they also feed children for the future. This ritual will help people avoid winter ailments.

The holiday reminds people that the highest values are spiritual. On this day, they treat the poor and the poor, visit distant relatives and thank the older generation for their lives. This is due to the fact that the bird-maidens Sirin and Alkonost are also the guardians of the hearth. The Slavs revered these creatures on a par with other coasts and asked to protect the house from quarrels and want.

Other Slavic bird-maidens

The same mythological creatures of Eastern Europe may have a number of differences depending on the region. Some creatures acquire similar traits and abilities.

The bird-maiden Sva is the progenitor of all Slavs. She appeared from the golden eggs that were laid by the World Duck that created the world.

The goddess looks like a bird with a female head. Her plumage is multi-colored, her hair is golden, and her eyes are blue. Traditionally, Mother Swa is depicted without a weapon, but with her wings she closes all of Russia from enemies.

The bird is able to raise the morale of the Slavs, because of which they, even with a small army, could win on the battlefield. Warriors blessed by Mother Swa lost their fear of death and experienced joy when they died. This makes the goddess related to Alkonost and Sirin, who also sang to the dead about happiness and piety in the Rule.

Among the southern Slavs, Mother Swa was associated with the Gamayun bird. According to legend, in this form the goddess appeared before people. In its true form, the creature is depicted on fire, which symbolizes the inextinguishable fighting spirit of the Slavs.

In paganism, mother Sva is the wife of the heavenly blacksmith Svarog. Together they gave birth to the entire Slavic pantheon.

The habitat of Mother Swa is the sky. From it, the bird-maiden illuminates the Russian lands and guards the borders.

The messenger bird is a famous character in many cultures. Gamayun is traditionally considered the messenger of Veles. In the southern regions, this creature is the messenger of Perun.

Gamayun's habitat is Buyan Island. Some legends also mention the Makary Mountains.

This creature lives on Buyan Island. The creature looked like a snow-white bird with a female head. Stratim has nothing to do with the gods and other worlds. The Slavs described this creature as a mighty chimera that covers the whole world with its right wing.

Stratim has a crystal crown on his head, and the main ability of this bird is to control nature. Like Alkonost, this creature is able to calm storms and hurricanes. Unlike the bright bird-maiden, Stratim causes storms and earthquakes.

Stratim does not belong to the shores. In the understanding of the Slavs, this creature personified the power of nature, before which any person is vulnerable.

Simurgh combines the head of a lion and the body of a bird. In some images, the creature has a human face. According to Iranian mythology, this creature sits under and guards him from evil.

This deity carries the will of the Creators to people, playing the role of a messenger bird. According to legend, the Simurgh sings joyfully in the spring, thanks to which the trees and plants wake up from their sleep. In autumn, this creature sings a sad song, under which the whole living world plunges into a winter dream.

Like Alkonost, Simur is able to control the weather. From the flapping of its wings, the winds rise, and where the herald bird flies, it will rain.

Conclusion

Sirin and Alkonost are bird-maidens in Slavic mythology, whose connection demonstrates the cycle of Joy and Sorrow, Life and Death. Despite the similar appearance, the creatures have a number of distinctive features.

In the culture of the Slavs, the functions of dual creatures were performed by many magical birds - Mother Swa, Gamayun and the Firebird. In the mythologies of many countries, you can find references to similar creatures.

… “Why don't people fly like birds?”* Any person, probably, is familiar with the feeling of flight - everyone flew in their childhood in a dream. And then all our lives we miss this feeling, and therefore we envy the birds so much. And we readily accept them as mysterious creatures endowed with mystical abilities, able to predict the future, bring happiness or just good luck.

The bird in Slavic mythology occupies a special and very significant place. The supreme deity Rod - the beginning of all beginnings, in his earthly incarnation took the form of a gray duck, which was his symbol and the bearer of his strength. It was this duck that laid two eggs - Yav and Nav - the embodiment of good and evil, life and death ...

The images of birds that have come down from the depths of time are very diverse, which is explained by the vast territories inhabited by the Slavic peoples. In general, for ease of perception, I would divide the birds endowed with mystical qualities by the people's consciousness into three groups.
The first must be attributed mythical creatures- half-birds, half people with the gift of prophecy and the ability to bring people misfortune or happiness, grief or good luck. These include Gamayun, Alkonost, Sirin, Stratim and Phoenix.

Messenger of the Slavic gods, their herald. She sings divine hymns to people and proclaims the future to those who agree to listen to the secret.
In the old "Book of Cosmography" the map depicts a round plain of the earth, washed on all sides by a river-ocean. On the eastern side is marked “Makariysky Island, the first under the very east of the sun, near the blissful paradise; therefore it is so named because the birds of paradise Gamayun and Phoenix fly into this island and wear a wonderful fragrance. When Gamayun flies, a deadly storm comes from the east of the sun.

Gamayun knows everything in the world about the origin of the earth and sky, gods and heroes, people and monsters, animals and birds. According to ancient belief, the cry of the Gamayun bird portends happiness.

This is a wonderful bird, a resident of Iria - Slavic paradise.
Her face is feminine, her body is birdlike, and her voice is sweet, like love itself. Hearing the singing of Alkonost with delight, he can forget everything in the world, but there is no evil from her to people, unlike her bird friend Sirin. Alkonost carries eggs "at the edge of the sea", but does not incubate them, but plunges them into the depths of the sea. At this time, the weather is calm for seven days - until the chicks hatch.
The Slavic myth about Alkonost is similar to the ancient Greek legend about the girl Alcyone, who was turned by the gods into a kingfisher.

This is one of the birds of paradise, even its very name is consonant with the name of paradise: Iriy.
However, these are by no means bright Alkonost and Gamayun.
Sirin is a dark bird, a dark force, a messenger of the ruler of the underworld. From the head to the waist, Sirin is a woman of incomparable beauty, from the waist - a bird. Whoever listens to her voice forgets about everything in the world, but is soon doomed to troubles and misfortunes, or even dies, and there is no strength to make him not listen to Sirin's voice. And this voice is true bliss!

Ancient legends claim that the Stratim bird - the progenitor of all birds - lives on the sea-ocean, like Alkonost. When the Stratim bird cries, a terrible storm rises. And even if she only moves her wing, the sea is worried, swaying.
But if the Stratim-bird takes off, then such waves rise up that sink the ships of the sea, open up the deepest abysses and wash away cities and forests from the shores. In this sense, it is similar to the Sea King. In some legends, she helps the hero get out of a deserted island and fly to the ground - because he saves and has mercy on her chicks. A strange and mysterious prophecy has been preserved: “When Stratim trembles at the second hour after midnight, then all the roosters throughout the earth will crow, and the whole earth will be illuminated at that time.”

(possibly from the Greek. "Purple, crimson") - a mythological bird with the ability to burn itself. Known in mythology different cultures. It was believed that the phoenix has the appearance of an eagle with bright red plumage. Anticipating death, he burns himself in his own nest, and a chick appears from the ashes. According to other versions of the myth, it is reborn from the ashes.

Of the birds-fairy-tale characters, the Firebird most likely has a direct prototype from mythological birds, namely the Phoenix. This fairy bird, a character in Russian fairy tales, is usually the target of a hero search. The feathers of the firebird have the ability to shine and with their brilliance amaze the human eye. The extraction of the firebird is associated with great difficulties and is one of the main tasks that the king (father) sets for his sons in a fairy tale. Only a kind youngest son manages to get the firebird. Mythologists (Afanasiev) explained the firebird as the personification of fire, light, and the sun. The Firebird feeds on golden apples, which give youth, beauty and immortality; when she sings, pearls fall from her beak. The singing of the firebird heals the sick and restores sight to the blind. Leaving aside arbitrary mythological explanations, one can compare the firebird with medieval stories, very popular in both Russian and Western European literature, about the Phoenix bird reborn from the ashes. The Firebird is also the prototype of peacocks. Rejuvenating apples, in turn, can be compared with the fruits of the pomegranate tree, a favorite delicacy of Phoenixes.

Prophetic birds of the Slavs

Stratim bird

The progenitor of all birds and bird-people was Stratim-bird (or Strefil-bird). No one knows where she flew to the sea-ocean, to the White Stone, but her name comes from the Greek word strufokamil (ostrich). The Stratim bird flapped its wing - the sea began to worry, screamed - a storm arose, and when it flew - it blocked the white light. Huge waves rose on the sea, the ships went to the bottom, and the water washed away all living things from the shores. The bird embodied the most destructive forces of nature.
Ancient legends claim that the Stratim bird - the progenitor of all birds - lives on the sea-ocean, like Alkonost. When the Stratim bird cries, a terrible storm rises. And even if she only moves her wing, the sea is worried, swaying.
But if the Stratim-bird takes off, then such waves rise up that sink the ships of the sea, open up the deepest abysses and wash away cities and forests from the shores. In this sense, it is similar to the Sea King. In some legends, she helps the hero get out of a deserted island and fly to the ground - because he saves and has mercy on her chicks. A strange and mysterious prophecy has been preserved: “When Stratim trembles at the second hour after midnight, then all the roosters throughout the earth will crow, and the whole earth will be illuminated at that time.”

"... Which bird is the mother of all birds?
And the Stratim bird is the mother of all birds.
And she lives on the ocean-sea,
A builds a nest on a white stone;
How the guests-shipmen will run
And on that nest of the Stratim bird
And on her on the kids on the little ones,
Stratim-bird will tremble,
The ocean-sea will rise,
As if fast rivers overflowed,
He drowns the living ships,
Sinks many scarlet ships
With precious goods!

("Pigeon Book")

Bird Alkonost

Alkonost (alkonst, alkonos) - in Russian and Byzantine medieval legends, the bird of paradise-maiden of the sun god Khors, bringing happiness. According to the legend of the 17th century, Alkonost is near paradise, and when he sings, he does not feel himself. Alkonost comforts the saints with his singing, proclaiming to them the future life. Alkonost lays eggs on the seashore and, plunging them into the depths of the sea, makes it calm for 7 days. The singing of Alkonost is so beautiful that the one who hears it forgets about everything in the world.

The image of Alkonost goes back to the Greek myth of Alcyone, who was turned by the gods into a kingfisher. This fabulous bird of paradise became known from the monuments of ancient Russian literature and popular prints.

Alkonost is depicted as a half-woman, half-bird with large multi-colored feathers (wings), human hands and body. A maiden's head, overshadowed by a crown and a halo, in which a brief inscription is sometimes placed. He holds heavenly flowers or an unfolded scroll with an explanatory inscription in his hands. The legend about the Alkonost bird echoes the legend about the Sirin bird and even partially repeats it. The origins of these images should be sought in the myth of the sirens. There is a caption under one of the popular prints depicting her: “Alkonost stays near paradise, sometimes it happens on the Euphrates River. When in singing he emits a voice, then he does not feel himself. And whoever is close then will forget everything in the world: then the mind departs from him, and the soul leaves the body. Only the Sirin bird can compare with Alkonost in sweetness.

Sirin bird

Sirin [from Greek. seirēn, cf. siren] - bird-maiden. In Russian spiritual verses, descending from paradise to earth, she enchants people with singing, in Western European legends she is the embodiment of an unfortunate soul. Derived from the Greek sirens. In Slavic mythology, a wonderful bird whose singing disperses sadness and melancholy; is only happy people. Sirin is one of the birds of paradise, even its very name is consonant with the name of paradise: Iriy. However, these are by no means bright Alkonost and Gamayun. Sirin is a dark bird, a dark force, a messenger of the ruler of the underworld.

Sometimes the beautiful bird Sirin is found in the form of a real bird, without any human components. Her feathers are covered with an invisible mass, symbolizing the Elements. “Her wings were white with blue and red stripes like caramel, her beak was soft purple, pointed, like a blade, and her eyes were bright, green, the color of young foliage, and wise, supportive.”

Bird Gamayun

Gamayun - according to Slavic mythology, a prophetic bird, the messenger of the god Veles, his herald, singing divine hymns to people and foreshadowing the future for those who can hear the secret. Gamayun knows everything in the world about the origin of the earth and sky, gods and heroes, people and monsters, birds and animals. When Gamayun flies from sunrise, a deadly storm comes.

Initially - from eastern (Persian) mythology. Depicted with a female head and chest. The collection of myths "Songs of the Bird Gamayun" tells about the initial events in Slavic mythology - the creation of the world and the birth of pagan gods. The word "gamayun" comes from "gamayunit" - to lull (obviously, because these legends also served as bedtime stories for children). In the mythology of the ancient Iranians there is an analogue - the bird of joy Humayun. "Songs" are divided into chapters - "Tangles".

The Firebird is a fabulous bird, a character in Russian fairy tales, usually the goal of finding a hero. The feathers of the firebird have the ability to shine and with their brilliance amaze the human eye.

The extraction of the firebird is associated with great difficulties and is one of the main tasks that the king (father) sets for his sons in a fairy tale. Only a kind youngest son manages to get the firebird. Mythologists (Afanasiev) explained the firebird as the personification of fire, light, and the sun. The Firebird feeds on golden apples, which give youth, beauty and immortality; when she sings, pearls fall from her beak. The singing of the firebird heals the sick and restores sight to the blind. Leaving aside arbitrary mythological explanations, one can compare the firebird with medieval stories, very popular in both Russian and Western European literature, about the Phoenix bird reborn from the ashes. The Firebird is also the prototype of peacocks. Rejuvenating apples, in turn, can be compared with the fruits of the pomegranate tree, a favorite delicacy of Phoenixes.

Crow

RAVEN is a prophetic bird, a faithful companion of the God-Controller Varuna. He accompanies the Souls of the dead to the Gates of Vyriya in the Great Svarga the Most Pure and informs the Navyam Souls about what high goals they have achieved in their Spiritual and Soul development and in the fulfillment of Life Purpose.

If God Varuna decides that a person needs to be given the opportunity to complete the started deed, which he did not have time to complete due to a sudden death, then he sends his assistant, Raven, to the Soul of the deceased person.

Raven - the keeper of Living and Dead water, gives the opportunity for the Soul of the deceased to return to his own body, so that a person, returning to the World of Reveal, could complete his unfinished business. In the world of Reveal, they say about such a person: "He survived clinical death" or "He returned from the next world." Oddly enough, but after the return of the God-Controller Varuna of a person to his former life, a person changes his behavior, neither burns his life in vain and completes the work that he did not have time to finish.

In fairy tales, he sometimes helps the hero and even saves him, warning him of danger. In the form of Raven Voronovich, he kidnaps the sister or mother of the hero and either enters into a mortal battle with him, or becomes a true friend and observes the laws of kinship.

Bird Simurgh

Simurgh is a prophetic bird, originally found only in Iranian myths, but later the Turkic tradition also became its habitat (the Simurgh flew there, leading a flock of peri and devas).

In the new place, Simurgh completely settled down, as evidenced, for example, by the fact of his presence in Uzbek dastans. In fairy-tale dastans, the Simurgh is a positive image: a giant bird, as a rule, helps the hero by providing him with transport services, for example, transfers him to his relatives. In the classical Turkic lyrics, the image of the Simurg already carries a different semantic load - the mysterious bird lives on Mount Kaf - a mountain range that encircles the earth along the edge and supports the heavens - that is, it lives at the very edge of the world.

The Simurgh is a phantom, no one can see him. In the language of poetry, the expression "to see the Simurgh" means to fulfill an unrealizable dream. This image was further developed and somewhat different interpretation in Sufi literature. In "The Conversation of the Birds", the famous poem by the Persian poet Farididdin Attar, Simurgh is an allegorical expression of true knowledge, a symbol of the identity of the creator and creation. Alisher Navoi expounded his own version of this poem in the Turkic language, calling it "The Language of Birds".

In Navoi's poem, the birds go in search of the wise Shah Simurgh so that he saves them from the suffering of life. Having passed seven valleys (seven steps on the path of perfection), having passed many trials, the birds at the end of their journey reach the lush gardens of unity - the abode of the Simurgh - where in each rose, as if in a mirror, they see their own reflection.

It is revealed to the birds that Shah Simurg is they, thirty birds (out of a huge flock, only thirty reached the goal). The word "si" in Persian is thirty, "murg" is a bird.

The Simurgh and his subjects are united:

He who was lifted up to unity at once,
The secrets of the one god reached his mind.
The brilliance of the rays of unity will give light to his gaze,
Between "you" and "me" will destroy the barrier.
(Navoi, "Language of Birds")

Embodying such abstract ideas, the Simurgh, however, is not completely devoid of material plumage: the poem "The Language of Birds" tells how, flying over China, he dropped a feather of extraordinary color - sparkling so brightly that all of China (in the poem - the city) dressed in brilliance. Since that day, the entire Chinese population has become addicted to painting. The most virtuoso painter was Mani, the legendary founder of Manichaeism (a religion that combines the features of Zoroastrianism and Christianity), - in the classical oriental poetry of Mani - the image of a brilliant artist.

Thus, Simurgh, in addition to the three hypostases mentioned above, can also serve as a symbol of art.

Bennu bird (Ben-Ben)

Bennu (Ben-Ben) - in Egyptian mythology, a bird - an analogue of the phoenix. According to legend, it is the soul of the sun god Ra. The name is related to the word "veben", meaning "shine".

According to legend, Bennu appeared from a fire that burned on a sacred tree in the courtyard of the temple of Ra. According to another version, Bennu escaped from the heart of Osiris. It was depicted as a gray, blue or white heron with a long beak and a crest of two feathers, as well as a yellow wagtail or an eagle with red and gold feathers. There are also images of Bennu in the form of a man with the head of a heron.

Bennu personified the resurrection from the dead and the annual floods of the Nile. Symbolized the beginning of the sun.

… “Why don't people fly like birds?”* Any person, probably, is familiar with the feeling of flight – everyone flew in their childhood in a dream. And then all our lives we miss this feeling, and therefore we envy the birds so much. And we readily accept them as mysterious creatures endowed with mystical abilities, able to predict the future, bring happiness or just good luck.

The images of birds that have come down from the depths of time are very diverse, which is explained by the vast territories inhabited by the Slavic peoples. In general, for ease of perception, I would divide the birds endowed with mystical qualities by the people's consciousness into three groups.
The first must include mythical creatures - half-birds, half-people with the gift of prophecy and the ability to bring people misfortune or happiness, grief or good luck. These include Gamayun, Alkonost, Sirin, Stratim and Phoenix.

Messenger of the Slavic gods, their herald. She sings divine hymns to people and proclaims the future to those who agree to listen to the secret.

In the old "Book of Cosmography" the map depicts a round plain of the earth, washed on all sides by a river-ocean. On the eastern side is marked “Makariysky Island, the first under the very east of the sun, near the blissful paradise; therefore it is so named because the birds of paradise Gamayun and Phoenix fly into this island and wear a wonderful fragrance. When Gamayun flies, a deadly storm comes from the east of the sun.

This is a wonderful bird, a resident of Iria - Slavic paradise.

Her face is feminine, her body is birdlike, and her voice is sweet, like love itself. Hearing the singing of Alkonost with delight, he can forget everything in the world, but there is no evil from her to people, unlike her bird friend Sirin. Alkonost carries eggs "at the edge of the sea", but does not incubate them, but plunges them into the depths of the sea. At this time, the weather is calm for seven days - until the chicks hatch.

The Slavic myth about Alkonost is similar to the ancient Greek legend about the girl Alcyone, who was turned by the gods into a kingfisher.

This is one of the birds of paradise, even its very name is consonant with the name of paradise: Iriy.

However, these are by no means bright Alkonost and Gamayun.

Sirin is a dark bird, a dark force, a messenger of the ruler of the underworld. From the head to the waist, Sirin is a woman of incomparable beauty, from the waist - a bird. Whoever listens to her voice forgets about everything in the world, but is soon doomed to troubles and misfortunes, or even dies, and there is no strength to make him not listen to Sirin's voice. And this voice is true bliss!

But if the Stratim-bird takes off, then such waves rise up that sink the ships of the sea, open up the deepest abysses and wash away cities and forests from the shores. In this sense, it is similar to the Sea King. In some legends, she helps the hero get out of a deserted island and fly to the ground - because he saves and has mercy on her chicks. A strange and mysterious prophecy has been preserved: “When Stratim trembles at the second hour after midnight, then all the roosters throughout the earth will crow, and the whole earth will be illuminated at that time.”

(possibly from the Greek "purple, crimson") - a mythological bird with the ability to burn itself. Known in the mythologies of different cultures. It was believed that the phoenix has the appearance of an eagle with bright red plumage. Anticipating death, he burns himself in his own nest, and a chick appears from the ashes. According to other versions of the myth, it is reborn from the ashes.

Of the birds-fairy-tale characters, the Firebird most likely has a direct prototype from mythological birds, namely the Phoenix. This fabulous bird, a character in Russian fairy tales, is usually the target of a search for a hero. The feathers of the firebird have the ability to shine and with their brilliance amaze the human eye. The extraction of the firebird is associated with great difficulties and is one of the main tasks that the king (father) sets for his sons in a fairy tale. Only a kind youngest son manages to get the firebird. Mythologists (Afanasiev) explained the firebird as the personification of fire, light, and the sun. The Firebird feeds on golden apples, which give youth, beauty and immortality; when she sings, pearls fall from her beak. The singing of the firebird heals the sick and restores sight to the blind. Leaving aside arbitrary mythological explanations, one can compare the firebird with medieval stories, very popular in both Russian and Western European literature, about the Phoenix bird reborn from the ashes. The Firebird is also the prototype of peacocks. Rejuvenating apples, in turn, can be compared with the fruits of the pomegranate tree, a favorite delicacy of Phoenixes.

The third group includes all birds that do not carry something unprecedented in their appearance, but are simply endowed with fabulous properties to talk, help or harm fairy-tale human characters and are, as a rule, companions of such characters as Baba Yaga or Kashchei the immortal. These are crows, owls, blackbirds.

In Russian literature and painting, birds are quite common. In poetry, such poets as Blok and Klyuev turned to the images of mythological birds, in painting - Vasnetsov, Vrubel, Bakst.

* A. Ostrovsky "Thunderstorm"

Birds of paradise in Slavic mythology. Alkonost, Sirin, Gamayun.

(Bilibin-bird Alkonost)

In the famous song of Vladimir Vysotsky "Dome" there are these words:

Like seven rich moons
Gets in my way -
Then I have a gamayun bird
Gives hope!

It is difficult to say why for Vysotsky the gamayun bird is associated with the appearance of seven moons: such a connection is not noted in any sources. But this bird is mentioned among other representatives of the feathered kingdom, well known in Russia - this is the Sirin and the Alkonost. And if by the end of the XIX century. all three of these birds began to be perceived as paradise (each, however, with some specific characteristics) and even depicted in almost the same way, then they came to Russian culture and the Russian language in different ways.

Alkonost and Sirin are, so to speak, Greeks by origin, and with each of these birds are connected coming from Ancient Greece mythological tales, colored in the Middle Ages with various fantastic details.

Alkonost (or alkonos) had another name - alcyone. In the dictionaries of the Russian language, we find such interpretations of these words: “Alkonost (Alkonos). The same as Alcyone"; "Alcyone. Sea bird (kingfisher)" (1); "Alkonost. Seabird" (2). IN AND. Dahl in his dictionary shares the meanings of these two words. Here is how he interprets the word alcyone: "Alcyone, alkyd, bird Alcyon, alcedo, glacier, willow, kingfisher, martynok." About Alkonost V.I. Dahl writes the following: “Alkonost. A fabulous bird of paradise with a human face, depicted in our popular prints” (3). In all these interpretations, as we can see, firstly, there is no indication of the connection between the bird alcyone (or alkonost) with ancient Greek mythology and, secondly, no explanation is given for the connection of these two words (they are either simply equated to each other, or are considered different words).

Let's start by answering the second question. According to the expert in the Old Russian names of animals O.V. Belov, the original form should probably be recognized as alkion (from the Greek alkion). The name alcuonest in the list of the 13th century. the first Slavic encyclopedia - "Shestodneva" by John the Exarch of Bulgaria is a distorted alkuon eat. Subsequently, this form took root in the form of akonost, alkonos, although along with the new form, though very rarely, the original form, “alkyon”, was also used. O.V. Belova summarizes: “So, as a result of a misreading of the text and further fixing the error in writing, the fabulous bird gets its own name and becomes Alkonost” (4).

The name of the bird Alcyone (Kingfisher) goes back to the ancient Greek myth of Alcyone (or Halcyon), the daughter of the god of the winds Eol, the wife of the Thessalian king Keik, the son of the god of the morning star Eosphorus. As Ovid tells in Metamorphoses, Keik died tragically in a raging sea. Alcyone was waiting for Keik at the top of the cliff. When the body of her deceased husband was washed to the cliff by a wave, Alcyone threw herself from the top of the cliff into the waves of the raging sea. And a miracle happened: the gods turned Alcyone into a sea bird-kingfisher. Then Alcyone the kingfisher revived her dead husband. The gods and Keik were turned into a bird, and they became inseparable again.

The Greeks believed that when Alcyone hatches eggs, a calm sets in for two weeks in the Ionian and partly Aegean seas (a week before and a week after the winter solstice), since Alcyone's father Eol, the god of the winds, keeps the winds subject to him at this time. Ovid writes about this in his Metamorphoses:

In winter, sometimes for seven serene days, Alcyone Smirno sits on her eggs in a nest, above the waves of the soaring sea. By sea, the way is safe then: guards his winds, Not letting go, Eol, presenting the sea to his grandchildren.

The days of calm at sea, when Alcyone the kingfisher brought out her chicks, the Greeks called "alcyones, or kingfisher days." In the Old Russian language, they were called Alkionite, Alkiontsky, Alkuonitsky or Alkonostsky (5), as well as Alkonotsky, Alkuontsky, Alkionitsky, Alkionov, Alskonstiya, Halkionskaya, etc. (6)

(Bird of Paradise Alkonost. Late 18th - early 19th century. Unknown artist. Ink, tempera)

In ancient Christian monuments, the legend of Alcyone is found in the Six Days, which, as already mentioned, were encyclopedias of that time (the name recalls the six days of the creation of the world - folkor.ru). Such are the "Six Days" of Basil the Great, Ambrose of Milan and Pseudo-Eustace. In "Physiologists" ("Descriptions of nature" translated from Greek - folkor.ru) and "Bestiaries" ("Descriptions of animals" translated from Latin - folkor.ru) this legend came later. In Russia, they learned about alkyone-alkonost, most likely, from the "Shestodnev" of John Exarch of Bulgaria (7).

The legend of Alcyone the Alkonost gradually underwent various changes and additions. In the "Shestodnev" of John Exarch of Bulgaria, it is simply said that Alcyone builds a nest on the seashore and hatches chicks in winter:

"Alcyone (kingfisher) - sea bird, makes a nest for himself on the seashore, lays eggs in the very sand. Lays eggs in the middle of winter, when the sea beats against the ground due to frequent winds and storms. But, however, all the winds cease [to blow], and the waves subside at the time when Alcyone incubates the eggs for seven days, for on these days he hatches chicks. But since they also need food, the other seven days for the rearing of the chicks were given by the great giver God to this small belly. This is known to all sailors and they call these days alkyonic” (8). The following is the interpretation of this legend: if God holds back the winter sea for the sake of a small bird, what is there, what cannot he do for the sake of man, created in the image and likeness of God?

An early version of the legend about Alkonost-Alcyone can be conveyed as follows:

Breeds alkonost chicks near the water,
On wet sand, among coastal stones.
And the sea, so that the bird does not do trouble,
There are fourteen days of calm.
The Lord also cares about the bird's fate.
And what to say, man, about you?
(Poetic arrangement by the author)

In the future, this legend was supplemented by a message that Alcyone-Alkonost lays eggs not on the shore, but in the depths of the sea. Here is what he writes about this, for example, the Alphabet of the 17th century:

“There is a bird named Alkonost, has a nest on a sandy breeze at the edge of the sea, and that lays its eggs; but when it is thought that her child is shed in the winter year, she takes her child in her eggs and carries them into the midst of the sea and lets them go into the depths, then the sea will attack the shore with many storms, but when it always carries the alkonost of the egg to a single place and he will plant on them the top of the sea and her eggs, which exist in the depths, and the sea is unshakable for seven days, until the Alkonost eggs hatch in the water, in the depths, they come out and know their parent; this seven days the ships will call Alkonostsky" (9).

In later collections, the property of a strufokamil (ostrich) is attributed to the alkonost, which does not take its eyes off the eggs in the nest until the chicks hatch. It is also said that if an alcyone egg is “idle” (i.e., does not have a chick inside), then it floats to the surface; it does not deteriorate and is hung under the chandelier in the church (10).

Alcyone-alkonost in this, its first incarnation of a kingfisher, was depicted as an ordinary bird, sometimes large, often laying eggs in the depths of the sea. Such is he, for example, in the front list of the XVIII century. "Collection on Certain Properties of the Nature of Animals" by Damascus the Studite. Unlike the image, the name of this bird in the Old Russian language varied significantly. You can build a number of options:

Alcyone, alkydon, alkuon (eat), alcyone, lakion, halcyone, alkonost, alkonos, alkonot, alkonost, alkunost, alkonost, antonost, etc. (11)

Alkonost in its second incarnation is not a kingfisher, but a mythical bird of paradise. Here is how it is described in the wall print "Bird Alkonost and Bird of Syria":

"Bird of Paradise Alkonost:
Stays close to paradise.
Once upon a time it happens on the Euphrates river.
Whenever in "singing the voice emits
then she does not feel herself.
And who will be in her vicinity,
that everything in the world will forget this.
Then the mind departs from it and the d(u)sha from its body proceeds.
With such songs from (vy)ty he consoles
and proclaims their future joy.
And many good things say
then he will show with a finger” (12).

In its second incarnation, Alkonost had practically no orthographic variants, and its images did not differ much either: on luboks of the 17th–18th centuries. he is depicted as a bird with a girl's face, a crown on his head, sometimes with hands. The lubok image of the Alkonost differs little (of course, except for the technique and skill of the image) from the Alkonost in the famous painting by V.M. Vasnetsov "Songs of Joy and Sorrow".

So in Russian culture, the Greek woman Alcyone went through an even more amazing chain of transformations than in Ovid's Metamorphoses:
a girl - a kingfisher bird - a fantastic sea bird Alkion-Alkonost - a beautiful bird of paradise Alkonost.

(bird Sirin-image on the chest)

No less interesting than that of Alkonost was the centuries-old history that eventually became its indispensable companion

Sirina, descending from the Greek sirens.

In ancient Greek mythology, sirens are demonic half-woman half-birds, or rather birds with female heads. There are many myths about the origin of sirens. According to one version, they were the daughters of the river god Achelous and the muse Terpsichore or Melpomene. According to another, the daughters of the guardian of all sea monsters Phorkis and the muse Terpsichore or Sterope, the daughter of Portaon.

According to legend, the sirens were turned into half-birds-half-women by Aphrodite, angry that the sirens, out of pride, did not allow either people or gods to deprive themselves of their virginity. Another myth reports that the sirens were turned into women with bird bodies by the Muses because, having beautiful voices, they challenged the Muses to a singing competition.

(John William Waterhouse, Odysseus and the Sirens, 1891)

There is another version of their transformation. Sirens were originally nymphs from the environment of the young goddess Persephone. When she was kidnapped by the ruler of the underworld Hades, the angry mother of Persephone, the goddess of fertility Demeter, gave the sirens their half-bird appearance. In another version of this myth, they themselves wanted to turn into birds in order to find Persephone. When people refused to help them, the sirens settled on a deserted island to take revenge on the human race. Since then, they began to lure sailors with their sweet singing and killed them on the shore, sucking their blood. The rocks of the island of the Sirens were littered with the bones and dried skin of their victims. The habitat of the sirens was called either the coast near Sorrento (!), then the island of Capri, then small islands in the Strait of Messina, not far from the location of Scylla and Charybdis. According to legend, the dead body of one of the sirens, Partenope, was washed by the waves to the coast of Campagna and gave the name to the city now called Naples (13).

Homer in the Odyssey tells that Odysseus, wanting to hear the sirens singing and stay alive, plugged the ears of his companions with wax, and ordered himself to be tied to the mast. Sirens, seducing him, promised him omniscience:

Here no sailor passes with his ship,
The heart of sweet singing in our meadow did not listen;
Whoever heard us returns to the house, knowing a lot,
We know everything that happened in the Trojan land and what
The fate, by the will of the immortals, befell the Trojans and Achaeans;
We know everything that is going on in the bosom of the blessed land.

Sirens undergo an interesting transformation in classical antiquity, losing their wild chthonic character. In Plato's work "The State" they find themselves in the retinue of the goddess of inevitability Ananke, the mother of Moir. Sirens sit on each of the eight spheres of the world spindle, sandwiched between Ananke's knees, creating the harmony of the cosmos with their singing.

The mythical bird, which has a human face and captivates people with sweet singing, was well known in Russia and was called Sirin. Here is what one of the ancient Russian Azbukovniks writes about this:

“Sirin is a bird from the head to the waist, the composition and image of a man, from the waist is a bird; the nations are lying about this, saying with a sweet song to be her, as if anyone who listens to her voice, forget all this life and go into the wilderness along it and in the mountains I will err and die ”(14).

The word siren meant a creature resembling a mermaid:

(Herbert James Draper)

“Sirens: maritime div, panyansk to the waist, and then ribeye” (i.e., to the waist - a female body, and then a fish);
“Siren, her gender is a maiden, her gender is like a fish”;
“Sirins (...) some kind of maritime surprise. From the top to the waist, the body of a girl, and from the waist to the foot, the corpse of fish, which kill people with their sweet singing, put them to sleep, drown them with sea water ”(15).

In Western Europe, the first appearance of sirens with fish tails, so to speak, mermaid sirens, in miniatures and reliefs dates back to the 12th century. An interesting miniature from a medieval bestiary depicts three sirens with female faces, torsos and arms, with bird wings and legs, but at the same time with fish tails (16). This is a hybrid of a classic siren and a mermaid siren.

Ideas about siren-mermaids have long existed in Europe, especially among sailors. The explanation for this can be found in the similarity with the sirens-mermaids of such marine animals from the order of herbivorous whales as the sea cow, or cabbage, already completely destroyed today, as well as the manatee and dugong.

In addition, in the ancient Russian monuments there is a description of, as it were, “inverted” classical sirens with a bird’s top and a human bottom, similar in their actions to quite classical sirens: “... they sit on the island and attract them to them with their sweet singing alas, to death hold. And by seeing the wife from the waist to the top, they have the appearance of a Strusov’s face, the bird’s jet and feather are red, like they have, and from the floor to the feet the female camp” (17).

They mention some ancient Russian monuments and some Sirins, who have a human image up to the loins, and below - a goose (18). O.V. Belova notes the comparison of these Sirins with demons, which obviously goes back to the Hebrew original, where se "irim means "zoomorphic demons living in desert places." Probably, it was these Sirins who were depicted as anthropomorphic creatures with a covered head and a snake tail or with forelimbs in the form of webbed feet and with a sharp, goose-like tail (19).

And, finally, it should be noted, so to speak, the "realistic" meanings of the words "sirin" and "siren" in Russian. Let us first turn to the field of zoological terminology. IN AND. Dahl writes: “Sirin is a long-tailed owl that looks like a hawk; flies by day, Sumia." He also indicates the following meaning of the word siren (or siren): "American swamp, two-legged lizard" (20). The Dictionary of Foreign Words specifies that sirens, or rather sirens, are “a family of tailed amphibians whose external gills persist throughout life; live in freshwater bodies of southeastern North America" (21).

As already noted, representatives of the order of herbivorous whales vaguely resemble siren-mermaids, which was given the common name "siren". A.E. Bram describes these animals in this unpoetic way: “Care for food absorbs all their attention, except perhaps the protection of cubs; to the rest of the world, these lazy, stupid creatures are quite indifferent. Their voice is not at all like the wonderful singing of the fabulous mermaids, from which they got their name, but consists of a weak, muffled groan ”(22).

And, of course, the sound of such devices, also called “siren”, is very far from the voice of the classical sirens of antiquity, mermaid sirens or the siren bird, such as: “1. Emitter of sound waves of high intensity, used in lighthouses, ships, etc.; 2. Signal horn with a sharp howling sound "(23). However, these useful devices differ from their beautiful namesakes in that the sounds they make do not plunge people into danger, but warn against it.

In the XVII-XVIII centuries. Sirin was included among the birds of paradise along with Alkonost. His singing served as a designation of the divine word entering the human soul, and on luboks he was depicted very similar to Alkonost, only Sirin had no arms, and around his head you can often see a halo instead of a crown.

An interesting transformation of the idea of the singing of Sirin as the word of God entering the human soul has undergone in the work of N.A. Klyuev, who wrote:

I am a tree, and the heart is a hollow,
Where is the siren-birds winter hut.
He sings - and the canopy is light,
Silence - crying with blood.

Klyuev's Sirin bird is his muse, and his song is poetry that comes from the poet's soul and enters the souls of those who listen. The poet becomes, as it were, a repeater of the divine word addressed to people by the Creator through Sirin.

("Sirin and Alkonost. Song of Joy and Sorrow" 1896 V.M. Vasnetsov)

As already mentioned, the birds of paradise Sirin and Alkonost became characters in the famous painting by V.M. Vasnetsov "Songs of Joy and Sorrow", which inspired the young Alexander Blok to his early poem "Sirin and Alkonost. Birds of Joy and Sorrow”, dated February 23-25, 1899. Both Vasnetsov and Blok’s Sirin becomes a symbol of joy, unearthly happiness. Here is how the young poet describes this bird of paradise:

Throwing back the waves of thick curls,
Throwing your head back
Throws Sirin full of happiness,
Bliss of otherworldly full look.

Alkonost, on the contrary, appears as a symbol of inescapable sadness, the center of the power of dark forces:

The other is all powerful sadness
Exhausted, exhausted...
Anguish everyday and all-night
The whole chest is full...
The chant sounds like a deep groan,
A sob lingered in my chest,
And above her branchy throne
A black wing hung.

It must be said that neither the joyful, happy Sirin, nor the more exhausted by sadness Alkonost find correspondences in the history of the legends associated with these birds. Greek half-bird sirens, medieval mermaid sirens or mysterious half-duck sirens have never been associated with anything joyful. On the contrary, as we remember, the tragic motifs of the death of those who listen to their enchanting songs or meet them on their way in desert places are associated with them. Alcyone-Alcyone-Alkonost, of course, had a good reason for the deepest sadness when her husband Keik died. But the gods performed a miracle, saved them, turning them, however, into birds, but not leaving their care in the form of a bird. It is no coincidence that the alkonost in the Six Days, Physiologists, and Bestiaries is a symbol of God's concern for even His smallest creation.

On luboks of the 17th-18th centuries. the birds Sirin and Alkonost were both depicted as cheerful, close to God in his heavenly abode and also could hardly be considered as symbols of joy and sadness.

The dualism of both Vasnetsov and Blok is, of course, already a phenomenon of the New Age, signs of the lightning lightning of history that illuminated the horizon of the coming terrible 20th century. At the turn of the century, the artist and poet created their own new myth, reflecting a new understanding of the essence of the world by man of the outgoing golden age of Russian culture.

The Alkonost bird as a bird of sadness and sadness is also found in the works of N.A. Klyuev, to whom ancient Russian mythology in general was especially close. Here is the rethought, if I may say so, “Russified” form of the myth about Alkonost in Klyuev’s poem “Pogorelytsina”:

Carver Olyokha - a forest miracle,
Eyes - two geese, lip rudo,
Raised a bird with a girl's face,
The lips are cursed with a secret cry.
The trees of the cheeks also became full,
And the voice is flimsy, like the splash of sedge,
The carver smelled: “I am Alkonost,
From the eyes of the goose will be filled with tears!

And here Alkonost, born under the chisel of the Russian Pygmalion Olyokha, promises many sorrows to the human race.

A new interpretation of the word alkonost appears in various kinds of reference publications. Thus, the encyclopedic reference book "Characters of Slavic Mythology" calls the alkonost "a bird of sadness and sadness" (24).
(V.M. Vasnetsov "Gamayun, the prophetic bird", 1895)

Another bird of paradise hamayun - unlike Sirin and Alkonost, it did not come to Russia from Greece. Its roots are found, according to Academician O.N. Trubachev, in the East, and not in Arabic, but in Iranian. The ancient form with which the word gamayun is associated is the Young Avestan humaiia  "skillful, cunning, miraculous", whence the proper name *Humaya (25) was used in the ancient Iranian world. IS HE. Trubachev notes that the bird, the prototype of the gamayun bird, “was not only heavenly, but also cunning. This image, which was probably born on the basis of Iranian folklore, crossed the borders of countries and cultures early and became international” (26).

In Russia, the gamayun bird was well known from various works of a natural science and geographical nature. First of all, various “Cosmographies” (i.e. Cosmographies or, bringing this name closer to modern terminology, geography) were the source of information about it. So, in one of the "Cosmography" XVI or early XVII in. we read: “In the same part of Asia, Simov’s lot, many islands in the eastern sea: the first island Makaritsky is near the blissful paradise, and therefore it is said near it that the birds of paradise Gamayun fly from there and the Phoenix smells wonderful.”

The “eastern” origin of the gamayun bird is due to its appearance in the titles of eastern rulers, first of all, of course, the Turkish sultan, as well as the Shah of Iran. Card file of the Old Russian dictionary, stored at the Institute of the Russian Language. V.V. Vinogradov of the Russian Academy of Sciences, contains extracts from various letters and messages to the eastern rulers containing the mention of this bird, and always in the same stable form. Here, for example, is the full title of the Turkish Sultan Ibrahim from one royal letter sent with ambassadors to Constantinople:

“Gamayun imitator Ibragim Sultan Sovereign of Constantinople, the White Sea (i.e. the ruler of the Western Sea, the Adriatic - folklor.ru), the Black Sea, Anatolian, Urum, Roman (from the name of the region Rum, Rumelia - folklor.ru), Karaman and other Great Sovereign brother and good friend of ours.

And here is how Tsar Vasily addressed the Turkish ruler:

“To the high authority and exalted with honor like a horn and a son of a horn to an imitator of Gamayun and according to this most desirable lordship of a face than the song of Sirin ... Sovereign of Constantinople Salim-shagkhan-diker.” It is curious that in this address Gamayun is mentioned along with another bird of paradise - Sirin.

The style of Boris Godunov’s letter to the Shah of Iran Abbas is characteristic, combining the glorification of the shah with self-deprecating characteristics of Boris: stableboy boyar ... yard and viceroy of Kazan and Astrakhan Boris Fedorovich Godunov beats your high majesty with a forehead.

The appearance of a turnover of gamayun (or gamayun) to an imitator in the titles of eastern (including Iranian) rulers once again confirms the etymologization of this word proposed by O.N. Trubachev.

Curious information about the "royal" greatness of the gamayun bird can be found in the article by V.K. Trutovsky about the Smolensk coat of arms (perhaps the article was not published):

“The bird Gamayun, called by the Tatars “Gyumay”, and in the Turkish language “Gyuma ...” is considered among Muslims to be especially important and meaningful, both for every ordinary faithful and for Muslim rulers ... over whom it will fly so close, whoever blows his wings on his head, he will certainly be the master. From here, the word “gumayun” was created in the Turkish languages, which in its original meaning is equivalent to the word “August”” (27). The gamayun bird was so popular in Russia that its name was even used as an intra-family name, from which the surname Gamayunov originated (28).

The gamayun bird entered not only diplomatic correspondence, but also the life of Russian tsars. So, in 1614, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich was bought several outlandish little things from the Moscow guest Mikhail Smyvalov, including:

“The bird Gamayun is rounded with pearls near the neck, in the middle there is a large pearl, behind it on the back there is a silver burdock, on the burr there is a pearl grain” (29).

I.E. Zabelin also mentions that on October 21, 1626, “the clerk Zhdan Shipov took the Gamayun bird to the sovereign in the mansion, which in this case could be some kind of little thing depicting such a bird as it is described above” (30). Perhaps it is about this little thing that the so-called “Book of the verbal constable: A new code and dispensation of the rank of the falconer's way” (1656) writes. Here we read: “Vasily Botviniev, according to the sovereign decree, take a letter from Gamayun, birds of paradise ... And the clerk ... unbuttoning Gamayun’s bird, takes out a letter and ... reads aloud” (31). In this case, the Gamayun described by Zabelin and in the "Sergeant" can be a casket made in the form of a bird of paradise.

("Gamayun". Painting by V. Korolkov)

Lived at the court of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and quite alive Gamayun - his favorite gyrfalcon with the name of a bird of paradise. The previously cited book “The Sergeant” writes about this, mentioning this gyrfalcon before other birds: “The painting of the Sovereign hunters, who are instructed to keep the birds. First Parfentiev article. Parfentius himself: the Siberian colored Gamayun gyrfalcon" (32). I. Tarabrin notes: “Wasn’t this bird depicted on the centenary banner of falconers and stirrup grooms in the Riga campaign of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich on May 15, 1656, at least in the Inventory of Banners of 1664 under No. 10 it was indicated that this was a banner of black taffeta, a gamayun bird is sewn in the middle, a white taffeta edge” (33).

Another living bird, called Gamayun, but having nothing to do with birds of prey, was presented to the sovereigns Fedor and Peter Alekseevich in 1686 by I.E. Zabelin notes on this occasion: “The merchants of Okhotny Ryad, called to the Kazyonny yard to announce her price, looked at the Gamayun bird and said that they had never seen such a bird in the row and they don’t know the price. It is not known how long this unprecedented bird lived in the palace, which the scribes ranked among the birds of paradise ”(34).

Gamayun, being a bird, nevertheless, along with such monsters as the asp and the basilisk (Folklor.ru: see the Articles section), gave the name to the squeaking cannon, a description of which can be found in the Acts of the Moscow district of the 17th century. under 1696: “The Great Sovereign in the treasury in the cannon yard there are regimental squeakers ... the gamayun squeaked with a cannonball and the same length, weighing 25 pounds 30 hryvnias on a Turkish camp.” Judging by the weight, I.E. Zabelin in his book “History of the city of Moscow”, along with others collected by the order of Peter I in Moscow to create the Museum of military trophies: “Gamayun, weight 102 pounds, poured by master Martyan Osipov 1690, with the image of the Gamayun bird” (35). Gamayun is depicted on this squeak as a legless bird (36). It is curious that the pischal with such an image is, as it were, a real reproduction of the coat of arms of the city of Smolensk: a cannon and a legless gamayun bird sitting on it.

(coat of arms of Smolensk, Soviet version)

The leglessness, and sometimes even the winglessness of the hamayun (sometimes also called mancoria, mantzkodis, paradyzeya - the last from the word "paradise", Paradise - paradise) is noted by many written monuments. About this in the manuscript, called the "Book of Natural", the following is reported: "About the hamayun. Gamayun is a bird of a different kind and a mancoria, which also calls it a bird of paradise, majesty more than a rabbi’s tail to have seven spans, not to have a leg and wings, but it flies incessantly through the air with its tail, and never rests, the blossom of its feather is very beautiful to eat, and wish human vision ... "(37)

The coat of arms of Smolensk with the image of a cannon and a gamayun is ancient. On the seal of Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible, however, this coat of arms is depicted in the form of a grand-ducal throne, on which is laid the cap of Monomakh. But it happened, as the author of the now classic book “Russian Heraldry” A.B. Lakier, “either according to the symbol generally accepted for all former great principalities ..., or by mistake of the master” (38). At least on the silver plate of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (1675), we find a well-known plot in the coat of arms of Smolensk: a cannon (without a gun carriage), and on it a legless bird sitting. In the diary of Korb, who accompanied in 1698 and 1699 the ambassador of the Holy Roman Empire, who was sent to the Russian court to negotiate a war with Turkey, an image of the Russian state seal. Here we also find the coat of arms of Smolensk: a cannon on a carriage and a legless bird on it. A similar coat of arms was also preserved on the seal attached to the letter of Prince Fyodor Kurakin, addressed to Prince Nikita Ivanovich Odoevsky. It should be noted that here the bird is depicted not only legless, but also seemingly wingless, but with a magnificent, almost peacock-like tail. At the bottom of the seal is a not very legible inscription: “gamayun bird” (39). It resembles the image of a hamayun in one of the editions of Karion Istomin's Facial Primer, which can be confused with the image of a hedgehog (40).

In the register of coats of arms presented by Count Munnich in May 1729 to the Military Collegium, the coat of arms of Smolensk is described as follows: “a black cannon, a yellow lathe, a yellow bird without legs on the cannon, a white field” (41). Approximately in the same form, this coat of arms was approved on October 10, 1780 as the coat of arms of both the city itself and the Smolensk Viceroyalty: in a silver field there is a black cannon on a golden carriage, and on the cannon a bird of paradise (42). A curious explanation of the lack of legs of a bird on the Smolensk coat of arms is given by Lakier: “Usually, the Smolensk coat of arms consisted of an image of a gun carriage on which a bird of paradise sat shot down ... it can lead to a hunch that Smolensk, a border and always well-armed fortress, more than once served the fact that Poles and Lithuanians were repulsed and defeated; and all the epics about the bird of paradise testify that the most coveted and unattainable objects were designated by it. Wasn’t Smolensk like that for Poles and Russians too?” (43).

(Smolensk region 1780)

Over the years, the Smolensk bird of paradise, obviously due to the stabilization of the situation near Smolensk, got to its feet. In 1856, the coat of arms of the Smolensk province was approved as the highest: “In a silver field, a black cannon, a gun carriage and wheels in a gold frame, a bird of paradise in the flare” (44). On this coat of arms, the bird of paradise not only has legs, but also stands firmly on them and, proudly lifting its magnificent tail and spreading its wings, confidently looks to the west, towards Poland, which had already been completely defeated by that time.

Rational XVIII century. gave his explanation of the leglessness of the bird of paradise, which adorned the coat of arms of Smolensk. The “Commercial Dictionary”, translated from French by Vasily Levshin and published in Moscow in 1790, describes in detail, among other goods and “the names of the main and latest things related to Commerce”, exotic birds of paradise brought by the Portuguese to Europe from the islands southern seas. Moreover, they were brought not alive, but in the form of specially prepared stuffed animals: “This bird, sold dried, without legs and internals, and from such preparation that can be preserved for a long time, is brought from the country of Papuan, otherwise - New Guinea, to the Moluccas Islands by the inhabitants of the Aro Islands , or Aru" (45).

The dictionary notes that local people buy these withered and legless birds of paradise “for use in certain festivals celebrated by them at certain times of the year”, and also “according to some superstitious opinions: the former carry them with them in war time, going to battle, hoping that by their strength they could not be wounded; the latter hope to acquire the favor of their gods through the keeping of birds at home or wearing them in solemn passages ”(46).

The Portuguese, who were the first Europeans to see these birds, called them Pissaro del Sol, i.e. The bird of the sun, "because it seems to be flying near the sun", the Spaniards called them Pixaro del ciclo, i.e. bird of heaven; "for they are seen only as they fly in the air." “The inhabitants of the Ternat Islands of Moluca call them Manuko Devata, which the Europeans turned into Manukodiyata, which means “Bird of God”; because it appears to come from heaven, the dwelling place of their false gods; no doubt from this imagination she was nicknamed the Bird of Paradise ”(47).

Explanations, as we see, are quite in the spirit of Cartesian rationalism, without any mysticism. However, it is curious that rational European scientists also believed in the leglessness of these pseudo-paradise birds, and for this reason: “How they are sold without legs, and they cannot find the remains of their torn off legs in the dried ones, this gave the first travelers the opportunity to invent various fables , namely, that these birds do not have legs, but for rest they cling to tree branches with their tails. The Portuguese divulged this in Europe, which was believed not only by the vile people, but also by the great testers of nature, such as Gesner, Scaliger and others, who described them as legless ”(48).

Be that as it may, the name birds of paradise has entered zoological terminology. Moreover, A.E. Bram writes: "The most famous of the birds belonging here is the legless bird of paradise (Paradisea apoda) named by Linnaeus." Here, however, it is noted that this legless bird has “red legs” (49).

Whatever, however, may be, so to speak, military-strategic or biological-zoological arguments about the leglessness of the heraldic hamamoon in the coat of arms of Smolensk or the stuffed birds of paradise studied by Linnaeus, but the mythical bird of paradise gamayun is legless for completely different reasons, and its eternal flight has a huge meaning. We already know what will happen if a gamayun blows its wings on someone's head: to be his master. If the gamayun interrupts its flight, it is fraught with great troubles. Here is what the “Book of Natural History” writes about this: “and even if it falls to the ground, then by its fall it proclaims the death of kings or kings, or which prince is autocratic” (50). Hence the idea of Gamayun as a bird of things.

(picture taken with computer graphics person under the nickname flicker - flicker.ucoz.ru)

It is interesting to note that Gamayun, the same bird of paradise as Alkonost and Syria, was never depicted on a lubok together with them. She, like a prophetess, is always alone. Such is she in the picture of V.M. Vasnetsov. A. Blok, shocked by this picture, writes in February 1899 a short poem “Gamayun, the prophetic bird”:

On the endless waters
Cloaked in purple by sunset
She speaks and sings
Unable to raise the wings of the confused ...
The yoke of evil Tatars broadcasts,
Broadcasts a series of bloody executions,
And a coward, and hunger, and a fire,
The villains force, the death of the right...
Embraced by eternal terror,
A beautiful face burns with love,
But things sound true
Mouths covered in blood!

In 1900, A. Blok tried to publish this poem, as well as the second, dedicated to Alkonost and Sirin, in the journal World of God. Having run through the poems, the editor of the magazine, the old liberal V.P. Ostrogorsky said: “Shame on you, young man, to do this when God knows what is happening at the university!” - and escorted the poet "with ferocious good nature" (51). The experienced editor did not understand, did not see that in front of him was a poet who himself was destined to become a prophetic Gamayun, that through his mouth an ancient bird foreshadowed a time of unheard-of catastrophes and upheavals, “both a coward, and famine, and fire”, and “a series of bloody executions” , and "villains strength, death of the right" - all that was destined to experience Russia in the coming XX century.

Thus, the cunning Iranian bird that came from the depths of time turned at the turn of the century in the mouth of the great poet into a formidable prophet of the fate of a vast country.

In the last third of the XX century. another poet and bard turned to the theme of birds of paradise - this was done by Vladimir Vysotsky in his already mentioned song "Domes". Vysotsky, unlike Vasnetsov and Blok, brought together all three birds in his song - Alkonost, and Sirin, and Gamayun. There are also traditional motifs already known to us in their image, but new notes also appear, as it should be not with an imitator, but with a continuer of tradition. First of all, the general stylistic tone of the entire work. There is something surreal in it, even visionary. All three birds at Vysotsky turn out to be prophetic, but at the same time fabulous, unreal:

How will I look now, how will I breathe?!
The air is cool before a thunderstorm, cool and viscous.
What will sing to me today, what will be heard?
Prophetic birds sing - yes, everything is from fairy tales.
The bird of Syria joyfully grins at me -
It amuses, calls from the nests,
On the contrary, he yearns, mourns,
Poisons the soul of the wonderful Alkonost.
Like seven treasured strings
Ringing in your turn
This is the Gamayun bird.
Gives hope!

This, of course, is not lubok, not Vasnetsov, and not Blok. The bird of joy Sirin appears as a playful and importunate coquette. The bird of sadness and sadness Alkonost is some kind of almost Boschian vision from a narcotic nightmare. And only the tragic prophet Gamayun suddenly becomes the embodiment of hope. The non-randomness of such an interpretation is emphasized by the fact that at the end of the song the verse about Gamayun with some variations will be repeated again. Well, in that sleepy power that, according to Vysotsky, “was limp, swollen from sleep,” even the cataclysms foreshadowed by Gamayun may have been seen by him as a hope for the best. The poet of the times of "stagnation", Vysotsky created his own, both traditional and updated, myth about the bird of joy Sirin, the bird of sadness Alkonost and things to the bird Gamayune.

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