Plans for a small event have been made! In efforts to maintain a safe environment with Coronavirus on the loose, we’re keeping this a closed event, with only the participants holding the location address. But hopefully, by the time the planned date crops up, the entire pandemic situation will be a lot calmer. (If only we had a nickel for every time someone’s said that one!)
The following event has been added to the calendar of festivals and events:
Ritual Honoring Svarog the Cosmic Blacksmith
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Saturday and Sunday, August 21st and 22nd
A Full Moon Weekend
–Upstate New York–
Svarog is an Ancient Slavic Deity of Blacksmithing, Primordial Fire, and Creation. He is said to have crafted the world in a massive storm with his hammer and anvil. In other mythology, it is said he is perpetually asleep and dreams the universe into being in real time.
His son, Svarozich, who carries a similar name, is the personification of flame and fire itself. Svarog is the one who molds the world out of, and with the help of, his son, fire.
Regardless, Svarog is the only Slavic deity who was confirmed to have existed in nearly all regions of Eastern Europe.
The chosen weekend also happens to be around the time the Ancient Roman festival of Vulcanalia, which is usually celebrated around August 23rd. The Roman Vulcan, or the Greek Haphaestus, was also a deity of beneficial fire and the forge, but also of volcanoes. Vulkan can in many ways be seen as a parallel to Svarog, but he isn’t as associated with creation and creativity as much as Svarog.
Those who follow and honor Svarog, generally understand him to be very “put your head down and work” type of god, who loves to make beautiful and, very importantly, useful things, and has no time for nonsense, as he is also known for having a fiery temper. After all, his name is the originator of the old Slavic word “Svarka”, which in some languages means “blacksmithing”, but also “argument”, even though etymologically, Svarog’s name did originate from the words meaning “heavens” and “skies” of Proto-Indo-European languages.
We hope to document the experience enough for everyone to share later on for all of your viewing pleasures.
There will also be an option to separately honor Hecate, as the chosen date also falls on one of her festivals, but the main itinerary has been planned around honoring Svarog.
Have a good one everyone!
