Question one. Slavonic cultures in the V-VII centuries.

Tribal groups of the Eastern Slavs were among the first inhabitants of the land, later called Kyiv Rus. Sources of the 6^th century, including the Byzantine Procopius Caesarea, and author of gothic Jordan, identified Ants with Eastern Slavs – a group of tribes, which occupied area in the south up to the Black Sea, in the west - to the Lower Danube river and in the east – to the Seversky Donets river.

According to the first source on the early history of Russia – The Tale of Bygone Years (compiled at the beginning of XII century by Nestor, the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery), the ancient Eastern Slavs were more than a dozen tribes that lived on the vast territory spread between the Black Sea in the south to Lake Ladoga in the north of the Danube, and the Carpathian Mountains in the west up to the Volga River in the east. Among these tribes were Polyany, living in the middle stream of the Dnieper, Sloveny living around Lake Ilmen, and Drevlyans, Radzimichy, Vyatichi, Severany, White Croats, Duleby, as well as Krivichy, Tivertsy, Dregovichy and others tribes. Their initial origin is unknown. According to some theories, homeland of the Slavs delineated by the boundaries of the southern Pripyat marshes, the valley of the Vistula River and the northern Carpathians. Slavic tribes have long been engaged in farming, hunting, fishing and cattle breeding. In addition, many settlements of the Slavs, arose in the valleys of the Dnieper, the Donets and the Volkhov, and established primitive crafts, including pottery and weaving. The prevalence of cults of the gods and the natural East Slavonic pagan pantheon indicates the importance of agriculture economy of the early Slavonic tribal society.

The ancient Slavs were the people of Vedic culture, therefore, it is more correct to call the ancient religion not paganism, but Vedism. The word "Veda" is

Figure An extract of the written text of “Veles book”

corresponding to the modern Russian words "to manage", "to know." It is a peaceful religion of highly cultured people, akin to other religions, having common Vedic roots – that of Ancient India, Iran and Ancient Greece.

Veles book. The main monuments of Slavonic ancient history and culture are sacred songs, legends, myths. Although most of the scientists believe that the texts of the Ancient sacred songs, myths were destructed during the Christianization of Rus. Even the little that left – Veles book, “The Book of Veles” was written on tablets of birch in the 9^th century A.D. by magician Jagailo Hahn. This book is precious for Slavonic culture, as it contains stories about the ancestors and gods of the Slavs, describes the events of mythical and ancient history the Slavs, and many other peoples of Eurasia from the age of grandparents to the 9th century B.C.

Until now, there is a debate about the nature of Slavonic gods referred to in chronicles. Nevertheless there is a suggestion that the oldest stratum of Slavic myths is better preserved in ancient Greek and Indian texts, or the Bible. It is explained by a specific path of Slavonic culture development. Mythical stories were distorted even in ancient times when being rewritten and processed. Slavonic folklore is an oral tradition, which undergone a lesser extent of changes under the influence of written culture. Treasures of Slavonic folklore – folksongs, stories, tales, and religious poems – were actively collected and recorded only in the beginning of the 19^th century.

According to Veles book the ancient Slavs worshiped an archaic Trinity, called Triglav (Three Heads): Svarog (or Svarozich) – Heaven god, Perun – God of Thunder, Veles (or Volos) – God Destroyer of the Universe, although various priestly schools of Slavs understood the mystery of the Trinity differently. The ancient cosmogonic Slavonic myth about the creation of our Earth by our Progenitor – Rod (the Spring of the Universe) is associated with the name of Svarog.

Figure Veles or Vles	Figure Svarog

Female ancestors were reverenced and worshiped because of the prevalence of maternal cults. In the era of patriarchy maternal cults transformed into the female incarnation of the gods and got some single function – to protect home, a hearth, fire, territory, a country, an individual, a family, love, presented by housewives, grandmothers and mothers. However, in general, female worship, no matter what modifications it is met, always has one of its two manifestations: it represents the world of love, either heavenly (Slavonic goddess Lele) or terrestrial (Slavonic goddess Mother Crude/Wet Earth).