The bird of paradise next to the siren. Birds of the sunny garden: Sirin, Alkonost, Gamayun and other sacred birds. How to summon the Alkonost bird

As you know, the Slavs had three divine birds: Gamayun, Sirin... The latter was often nicknamed "the bird of joy". What Alkonost says about slavic mythology? Why is it associated with light?

Who is the Alkonost bird and what do they say about it?

In Russian art and legends, a bird of paradise with the head and hands of a virgin. Often mentioned and depicted together with the other bird of paradise, Sirin. Alkonost is a relative of the Sirin bird, which sings sad songs and prophesies trouble. She is not her opponent, the two birdwatchers, rather, organically complement each other. In Slavic mythology, there are many images of feathered creatures, and Alkonost, along with other half-girls, half-birds, belongs to them. She is called the sister of other mythological birds.

The singing of Alkonost is wonderful, like the singing of her sister Sirin, but it does not pose a threat to the life and well-being of the listener, but, on the contrary, fills the soul with joy and happiness, peace and tranquility.

Sirin and Alkonost were said to be sitting on the branches of an apple tree that gives golden fruits and grows in garden of Eden Slavs - Light Iria. Periodically, the Alkonost bird appears on Earth. She flies around the world, calming storms and thunderstorms. On the winter solstice, Alkonost lays an egg directly into the water of the sea-ocean. During this period, there is an unknown calm. Then the egg floats up and the bird-maiden takes her to Iriy. Some daredevils dared to steal the egg of a magic bird, but those who succeeded, along with universal wisdom, got death.

There is also a legend - in August, when the apples ripen, the Sirin bird flies into the garden in the morning, which sings sad songs and sheds tears. Then she is replaced by Alkonost with joyful and happy birds. On her wings there is living water, with which she irrigates apples. Since then, they have been filled with wonderful properties.

It was also said that Alkonost is the messenger of the Gods, and Svarog, the Heavenly Father, often gave orders to this bird so that it would transmit his orders.

Here's how they told about the magic bird:

Alkonost stays near paradise, sometimes it happens on the Euphrates River. When he emits a voice in singing, then he does not feel himself. And whoever will be close then will forget everything in the world: then the mind leaves him and the soul leaves the body.

In general, the Alkonost bird portends good luck and happiness. But only wise people who have acquired great knowledge are able to learn from her the secrets of the upper world. Like the rest of the birders, she is given power over the weather. The emotions that the singing of Alkonost evokes in the soul of those who hear him are compared to love. But this singing, despite the fact that people, having heard it, forget themselves, does not pose a danger, unlike the songs of the dark bird Sirin.

What does the Alkonost bird look like?

Alkonost, like other mythological birds, resembles a bizarre hybrid of a bird and a beautiful girl. A crown flaunts on her head - a symbol of the highest origin, secret knowledge. In one of Alkonost's hands is a flower from Iria itself. Her plumage is light, in contrast to Sirin, which indicates her character - light and joyful. It is often compared to a kingfisher in terms of beauty and brightness of plumage. Unlike Sirin or Gamayun, the Alkonost bird has always been depicted with human hands. In general, according to some researchers, the legend of the Alkonost bird is a rethought and transferred to Russian soil story about the virgin Alcyone, who, having learned about the death of her husband at sea, threw herself into the abyss. For this, the gods reincarnated her into a kingfisher, and her husband into a seagull. Therefore, during the period when the kingfisher sits on its eggs, the sea is always calm.

The Alkonost bird, along with other similar mythological characters, is a favorite image of the Slavs. She was gladly depicted on popular prints, panels, embroidery, furniture. The Alkonost bird also served as a talisman.

The virgin bird Alkonost inspires poets and artists, storytellers to this day. In general, the images of Slavic mythology are unusual and beautiful. Studying them, we come closer to understanding our ancestors, their picture of the world.

Read more about Slavic mythology.

Bird Gamayun is the 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.
The word "gamayun" comes from "gamayunit" - to lull (obviously, because these legends also served as bedtime stories for children).

In the old "Book of the Verb 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 blessed paradise; because it is so denounced that birds of paradise Gamayun and Phoenix fly into this island and wear out a wonderful fragrance. " When Gamayun flies, a deadly storm emanates from the east of the sun.

Gamayun knows everything about the origin of earth and sky, gods and heroes, people and monsters, animals and birds. According to the ancient belief, the cry of the Gamayun bird portends happiness. The collection of myths "Songs of the Gamayun bird" tells about the creation of the world and the origin of the pagan gods.

There are many stories associated with the Gamayun bird. And now, only one of them.

One hunter tracked down a strange bird with the head of a beautiful maiden on the shore of the lake. She sat on a branch and held in her claws a scroll with inscriptions. It read: "You will go through the whole world with falsehood, but you will not go back!"
The hunter crept closer and was about to pull the bowstring when the bird-maiden turned her head and said:
- How dare you, miserable mortal, raise weapons at me, the prophetic bird Gamayun!
She looked the hunter in the eye, and he immediately fell asleep. And he dreamed in a dream that he had saved two sisters - Truth and Truth - from an angry boar. When asked what he wants as a reward, the hunter answered:
- I want to see the whole world. Edge to edge.
“It's impossible,” Truth said. - The light is immense. In foreign lands you will sooner or later be killed or enslaved. Your wish is unfulfillable.
“It's possible,” her sister said. “But for this you must become my slave. And continue to live a lie: lie, deceive, bend the soul.
The hunter agreed. Many years later. Having seen the whole world, he returned to his native land. But no one recognized him or recognized him: it turns out that his entire native village fell into the open earth, and a deep lake appeared in this place.
The hunter walked for a long time along the shore of this lake, grieving over his losses. And suddenly I noticed on a branch the very same scroll with ancient letters. It read: "You will go through the whole world with falsehood, but you will not go back!"
So the prophecy of the things of the bird Gamayun was justified.

Alkonost, like Gamayun, is a kind bird that does not pose a danger to people. Alkonost is an inhabitant of the Slavic paradise Iria. The myth says that the bird of paradise lays eggs "at the edge of the sea", but does not incubate, but plunges into the depths of the sea. Therefore, the weather is calm for seven days until the chicks hatch.
There is also a story telling about the meeting of a man with a blissful bird.
Once a young birder in the evening pricked up the postuchs - nets for quails, and in the morning he went to check them. I came to the hemp-grower, where many birds had flown, and could not believe my eyes: a beautiful girl was struggling in the snare. Her face was female, and her body was a bird's.
Darkened in the eyes of the young man from her beauty.
- What is your name - asks.
- Alkonost, - she answered.
The bird-catcher wanted to kiss the captive, but the maiden covered herself with her wings-arms and began to cry and lament, assuring that after a man kisses her, she will forever lose her magical power and will never again be able to fly into heaven, and death will come to her on earth.
- Let me go, - said the bird-breeder, - and in return ask what you want, I will fulfill any of your wishes!
The young man thought: what to wish? Wealth? - it dries up. Love of beauties? - they will change ...
- I want to experience heavenly bliss during my life! - finally exclaimed the bird-catcher. At the same moment, there was a rustle in his ears, it darkened in his eyes, the earth disappeared from under his feet and the wind whistled around. In a moment he saw himself in a bright and extraordinary country. It was Irius - the kingdom of heaven on the other side of the clouds. The winged souls of the dead lived in Iria. Singing flowers smelt all around, streams of living water flowed. Alkonost sang sweet songs, from which clear sunny weather came on the ground. Everything around was beautiful, and the young man realized that he had reached the limit of his desires.
One day he dozed off under a tree, but was awakened by a raven.
- What are you doing in Iria, wingless? What are you looking for among the dead, alive? You have not yet tasted love and happiness, which fate measures out in full measure, why then hasten to voluntarily say goodbye to the joys of life? Return to your native land immediately!
The birder caught himself. To tell the truth, idleness was beginning to bore him, the local flying beauties did not pay attention to him, and the apples of paradise were already boring. But you won't catch birds of paradise in paradise to make yourself a stew!
“I'd love to be back,” he said timidly. - But how to find the way back?
- So be it, - the crow grumpily croaked, - I will lead you into the world of people. As a reward for the fact that your great-great-grandfather - also of sights - let me out of the net one day.
- Great-great-grandfather? - the young man did not believe. - But how ... when ... that can't be!
“Maybe, maybe,” the prophetic bird nodded. “Don't you know that we crows have lived for three hundred years? Now close your eyes and grab my tail.
The young man closed his eyes tighter ... the winds whistled around him ... and in a moment he felt under his feet solid ground... I opened my eyes and found myself in the same clearing where the quails were pecking on hemp.

He returned home, lived to a ripe old age, and only at the end of his life told his grandchildren about Iriya - a paradise monastery, where he was lured by the sweet songs of the bird-maiden Alkonost.

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. 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 misfortune and misfortune, and oh, and dies, and there is no strength to make him not listen to Sirin's voice. And this voice is true bliss!
There is also a legend associated with this bird.
A woodcutter saved the bird-maiden's child Sirin during a violent storm. As a reward, Sirin offered to fulfill any of his wishes.
- I want to see what is brighter than the sun and what no one on earth has seen, - the woodcutter wished.
“Beware of such desires in the future,” said Sirin. - Not everything is allowed to be seen by a person, and you cannot look at death like the sun with all eyes. But what is promised will be fulfilled.
Before he could blink, the woodcutter saw himself in a huge cave, where many candles were burning. From time to time someone invisible put out one candle or another.
- What is it? the woodcutter asked.
- This is life. A candle is burning - a person is alive. Well, it will go out ...
- I want to see the extinguisher! the woodcutter demanded.
“Think, human, before you ask for no one knows what,” Sirin said. - I can make you rich, I can show the beauty of the whole world. It is in my power to make you the master over people. Think three times!
But the woodcutter was stubborn and therefore repeated his wish:
- I want to see the extinguisher!
In a moment he found himself in impenetrable darkness and finally realized that he was blind. This is how the terrible prophecy of the Sirin bird came true: "You cannot look into death, like the sun, with all your eyes!"
The woodcutter grieved for a long time, having become blind. But every cloud has a silver lining: pretty soon he found himself both food and respect from his fellow villagers by the fact that he began to heal with the laying on of hands, as well as predict the future. It happened that he turned people away from the evil deeds that they were plotting, or said to the hunter and fisherman:
- Stay home tomorrow. All the same, the prey will leave you, but you will run into someone else's crossbow, or your boat will turn over on a steep wave.
At first, people did not believe him, but then they became convinced of the correctness of his prophecies. However, most of all, those whom he called to himself unexpectedly and unexpectedly and warned were trembling:
- Prepare for the funeral. The day after tomorrow your Agathon will go to the forefathers. These warnings came true without fail. And if someone dared to ask the blind woodcutter from whom he learned about the imminent disaster, he answered mysteriously:
- I see the extinguisher.

In our time, the time of high technology, interest in Slavic mythology among young people is inexorably decreasing. Computer games and the Internet have replaced things as simple but necessary as books. The only reliable sources of Slavic mythology. And if they exist, then the volume of the issue is negligible. Many information directly contradict each other. There is an example of how one author describes the Bird Gamayun in the form of the Firebird, while the other, in turn, presents it as the Phoenix bird. The next substitution of images is in the dispute between whether to consider Sirin a bird of misfortune and death, or bestowing bliss on those who managed to hear her singing. Sirin is a contradictory bird. She is the sister of Gamayun and Alkonost, her name itself comes from the name of the ancient Slavic paradise Iriy. But, she is also considered a messenger of the underworld of death.
Yet the divine half-birds attract attention. We can find a reflection of this in our culture. An example is the artist Nikos Safronov with his painting "Bird Gamayun". Well-known performers of popular songs like Boris Grebenshchikov and Vladimir Vysotsky use the names of semi-birds in their lyrics and song titles (the song "Domes"). The writer Vladimir Nabokov signed his works with the pseudonym Sirin.
Much is no longer possible to return and prove. We can only preserve what little remains of our ancestors in their tales and writings.

Information taken from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and compiled by the author.

Sirin and Alkonost - Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov. 1896. Oil on canvas. 133х250, State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

Sirin and Alkonost are two inseparable symbols, a pair of opposites. Grief and joy, misfortune and happiness, black and white ... In Vasnetsov's painting, these mythical maidens-birds are similar, like doubles, and, at the same time, completely different. Sirin is a black messenger of sadness, longing for a lost paradise. Alkonost is a bright messenger of joy and pleasure. According to Slavic beliefs, both birds arrive in the garden on the eve of the Apple Savior. Sirin mourns the passing summer, Alkonost endows the fruits with magical, healing properties.

Vasnetsov creates amazingly bright and colorful images of mythical birds of paradise. If Sirin has black plumage, an emaciated pale face, eyes full of tears in black eye sockets, closing wings, then Alkonost has a light plumage, a ruddy face, and spreading wings. Sirin completes the old, Alkonost begins the new. The branches on which the bird-maidens sit grow from the same tree at the same level, but on opposite sides of the trunk. On the left, and this side of the Slavs has always been "bad", but connected with the heart, is the embodiment of sadness and fading. On the right, on the good side, is the embodiment of hope, joy and pleasure.

The background for the picture was the morning orange sky. A light bird is illuminated by the sun, a dark one, on the contrary, takes refuge from the coming dawn. Sirin is all turned into the past, Alkonost is all in the future. Both bird-maidens are one and indivisible - the eternal companions of every person's life, capable of moderating too strong joy, relieving overwhelming grief. Great harmony.
source: Art Encyclopedia\u003e Gennady Zanegin

VIKTOR VASNETSOV (May 15, 1848 - July 23, 1926) - Russian artist, master of painting on historical and folklore subjects.
Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, one of the most famous modernist artists, was born (3) on May 15, 1848 in the village of Lopyal, Vyatka province, into the family of an Orthodox priest.
His first work as an artist was the painting of the Vyatka Cathedral, together with the Pole Michal Elviro Andriolli exiled to Vyatka. This was right after the end of the theological seminary. Then Viktor Mikhailovich, having established his desire to become a painter, went to study in St. Petersburg, first at the drawing school of Kramskoy, and then at the Academy of Arts (in 1893 he became its full member).
From 1878 Vasnetsov was a member of the Association of the Itinerants, traveled around Europe - visited France and Italy, then lived in St. Petersburg and Moscow.
Vasnetsov's work is very diverse. He started with the Wanderers, and then his plots were extremely descriptive. This period includes the "Bookstore", "Balagans in Paris", "From apartment to apartment".
The real peak of Vasnetsov's creativity falls on the period when he finds himself in the modern style. He can be considered the founder of a special Russian style. For this, he transformed the Russian historical style, enriching it with legendary and fairy-tale subjects.
At the same time, some of the paintings from this period are decorative panels typical of modernism. Who does not know "Alyonushka", "Ivan Tsarevich on the Gray Wolf", the famous epic heroes?
The artist embodied the principles of the "Russian style" not only in painting, but also in architecture. According to his sketches, the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery was built, the Church of the Savior Not Made by Hands was erected in Abramtsevo. The Russian style in architecture was a stylization of Russian antiquity.
In 1883-1885, the artist worked on the creation of the monumental panel "Stone Age" for the Historical Museum in Moscow.
Later, Vasnetsov's work is also associated with religious motives. The paintings "The Crucified Jesus Christ", "The Word of God", "The Mother of God and the Child" appear. The most ambitious work of Vasnetsov was the painting of the Kiev Vladimir Cathedral in 1885-1896.
In Soviet times, Viktor Mikhailovich continued to be engaged in creativity - he mainly worked on folk fairy-tale themes ("Fight of Dobrynya Nikitich with the seven-headed Serpent Gorynych", 1918; "Kashchei the Immortal", 1917-1926 and others).
The artist Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov died on July 23, 1926 in Moscow at the age of 78.

The maiden of paradise is a bird from Slavic medieval legends. It is believed that Alkonost brings happiness, however, in apocryphal literature and legends, the idea of \u200b\u200bAlkonost as a bird of sorrow and light sadness is also widespread. The legend of Alkonost partially repeats the legend of another fictional bird - and in many ways echoes it. Among the common people in Russia, ideas about these birds were widespread, images of which are often found in popular prints.

Origin story

The concept of Alkonost in Slavic folklore goes back to Greek mythology, to the myth of Alcyone, the daughter of Aeolus, whom the gods turned into a kingfisher bird. The girl married King Keik, who died in a shipwreck. Out of grief, Alcyone threw herself into the sea to share the sad fate of her husband, and at that moment the gods turned the woman into a kingfisher bird.

There is another version, according to which Alcyone and Keik were too proud and began to call each other by the names of the gods. For this he punished both and turned Keik into a seagull, and Alcyone into a kingfisher.

The Greeks called the period in the middle of winter, when the sea is calm, "Alkyon days." This calm weather lasts a week or two. It is believed that Aeolus at this time subdues the winds so that Alcyone can calmly hatch the chicks. Alcyone's nest floats on the waves.

This myth was also embodied in a revised form in the ideas of how Alkonost hatches eggs. In Slavic folklore, it is believed that the Alkonost bird lays its eggs on the days of the winter solstice. These eggs sink to the bottom of the sea and lie there for seven days, and then float.

While Alkonost's eggs are in the depths of the sea, the sea is calm, calm. Taking eggs from the sea, Alkonost takes them to the shore and incubates there. There are legends about how people tried to steal Alkonost's eggs in order to place them under the ceiling of the church.

The image of Alkonost penetrated into Russian culture thanks to translations, in particular, "The Six-Day" by John of Bulgaria. Early depictions of Alkonost can be found in twelfth century book miniatures. In the XIV-XVII centuries, the image of the bird of paradise Alkonost penetrates into the monuments of Old Russian literature, alphabet books and popular prints.

Myths and legends

Alkonost is depicted in Russian art as a chimera with the wings and tail of a bird, while with the head and arms of a girl. As attributes of Alkonost, an unfolded scroll, which the maiden-bird holds in her hand, and a flower of paradise are often depicted. The scroll depicts a text stating that those who have lived righteously on earth will be rewarded in paradise. The name "alkonost" comes from the Greek word meaning "kingfisher".

It was believed that birds of paradise live in lands close to paradise. According to legends, Alkonost lives on the fabulous island Buyan, known from Russian folklore. Either on the Euphrates - one of the rivers of paradise, or in Iria - the mythical country of East Slavic folklore, which is a variation on the theme of paradise and is located in the warm western sea.

In legends and art, the Alkonost bird is often paired with another magical bird - Sirin. Alkonost's mesmerizing singing promises happiness and joy, while the sound of the Sirin bird's voice can drive a person crazy. Sirin is considered a bird of things, whose songs about the future promise bliss. However, because of the harmful influence of these songs on the mind, people try to scare away the singing creature, firing cannons and ringing bells.

The image of the Sirin bird is raised to the Greek sirens - demonic maidens-birds who, with the sounds of their voices, lull seafarers to sleep, and then tear them apart and devour them.

You can get information about the Alkonost bird from the captions on popular prints. The image of Alkonost there approaches the image of Sirin. It is said, for example, that whoever is near Alkonost at the time when the bird is singing will forget about everything in the world, lose his mind, and the soul of this careless person will leave the body.

In popular Christianity, the image of Alkonost is associated with the harvest festival - the Apple Savior. At this time, the bird of paradise Alkonost brushes live dew from its wings. The fruits of the apple tree, which got this dew, become healing. Moreover, during this holiday Alkonost flies to the gardens where apple trees grow, in the afternoon, laughs and rejoices. And in the morning, Alkonost's "colleague", the bird Sirin, flies into the garden, crying and sad.

The image of Alkonost is captured not only in popular prints, but also on the canvases of artists. A painting is known where both birds of paradise are depicted. Moreover, the plumage of Alkonost is white, as a symbol of the fun and pleasures that the bird carries, and the plumage of Sirin is black.

A crown is usually depicted on the head of Alkonost. Vasnetsov depicted birds of paradise with female shoulders and a head, while in the popular prints at Alkonost there is also a woman's chest and arms along with wings.

Another fictional bird of paradise is. It appeared much later, in texts and objects of art of the XVII-XIX, and has nothing to do with Slavic folklore and mythology.

In Russian decorative and applied art (books, murals of cathedrals, etc.), sometimes there is a strange but attractive image of a bird with the face and hands of a virgin - a symbol of bright sadness. The character also appears in legends and bears the name Alkonost. Few people know what the authors put into this image and where this image came from.

Who is Alkonost?

Alkonost is a fabulous bird of paradise, the first description of which appeared in Russia in a miniature book of the 12th century - the Yuryev Gospel. The image comes from ancient mythology: the legend of the beautiful Alcyone, turned by the gods into a kingfisher's sea bird. Translated from the ancient Greek, kingfisher sounds like "alkion", but the book writers have distorted the name, which is unusual for hearing. As a result of misinterpretations, the sea bird has become a household name. Many ancient legends tell about her, and more often legends are intertwined with another mythical bird - Sirin.

What is the difference between Sirin and Alkonost?

Alkonost and - the keepers of the tree of life, the heroine of folk tales. According to the legend, sweet-voiced virgins fly to the apple orchard in the morning for the harvest festival Apple Spas. Sirin appears first, she is sad and crying. The second bird woman laughs, brushes off the life-giving dew from her wings and gives the fruits healing power. Sirin and Alkonost are birds of joy and sorrow, this is the main difference between them, but there are others:

1. In some legends, Sirin gains negative meaning and is the messenger of the dark world. And the follower of Alcyone is a resident of the Slavic paradise Iria.
2. The Virgo of joy does not bring evil to people, only lures, while her friend was sometimes equated with the sea Sirens, stupefying and killing travelers.

Bird Alkonost in Slavic mythology

Slavic legends about a bird with human face, whose voice is sweet as love, is a kind of interpretation of the legends about the Greek Alcyone. The image that came from the West came to the liking of the Russian people, because they considered themselves inseparable from the animal world. The wonderful winged maiden Alkonost in Slavic mythology is endowed with interesting features:

• its plumage is light, casts a blue sky or rainbow;
• around the head - a nimbus or crown;
• she controls the weather;
• hearing the singing of a virgin, you can forget everything in the world, but it comforts;
• in the description of Alkonost, the river Euphrates is sometimes mentioned as its habitat, and in some tales - the island of Buyan.

Alkonost is a legend

For many years, the legends about the feathered goddess have changed and acquired new details. In the ancient encyclopedia "Six Days" of the Exarch of Bulgaria, it was simply mentioned that she nests on the seashore and incubates chicks in the midst of winter. Later, the legend was supplemented with the following facts:

1. The Alkonost bird lays golden eggs - first it plunges to the bottom of the sea, and then incubates on the shore for a week.
2. While the masonry is in the water, the sea is completely calm. The weather is calm, although the cold season.
3. The mother does not look away from her eggs until the chicks hatch.
4. If there is no embryo in the egg, it floats from the bottom of the sea to the surface, but does not deteriorate. They hang him in the church under the chandelier.

How to summon the Alkonost bird?

According to legend, the goddess Alkonost heals with her singing and brings happiness to the dwelling, so people have more than once tried to lure her and enslave her in order to use the benefits she provides. But she herself does not go into the hands, so the hunters went for a trick: they stole a carefully guarded egg from the bright maiden, expecting that she would go in search of him and fall into a trap. There were beliefs that a meeting with the legendary maiden does not pass without a trace for a person - he finds peace and bliss, but always returns to the place where the meeting happened.

The Alkonost bird woman is an amazing and multifaceted image. She figures in many legends as the keeper of paradise, sitting on the gates, or the embodiment of the sun god Horos. In ancient pre-Christian drawings, popular prints, the virgin is often found. From the Middle Ages, the character came to our time: an amazing feathered creature is mentioned in the poems of Blok and Vysotsky, and the brightest image of both virgins - light and dark (Sirin) - belongs to Viktor Vasnetsov. The painting "Songs of Joy and Sorrow" is a living embodiment of the image that came from Greece.