Slavic mythology, in contrast to Greek, which was already an object of literature from the 7th century BC, remained undescribed. Like other Indo-European peoples, the Slavs rose from a lower stage of development to a higher religion. But very little is known about how this happened. What historians now know is the rich world of magic and various spirits surrounding the Slav. This world was the basis of the worldview of the Slavic people from antiquity to the end of paganism.
Medieval Russian writers preferred to follow the traditions of the fathers of the ancient church, who ridiculed the paganism of ancient times. But they did not describe him as they were. They appealed to listeners who performed pagan actions, were full of relevant thoughts and witchcraft spells, who willingly participated in pagan games and avoided serving in the church. For this reason, medieval writers mainly condemned the Slavs. However, in the 15-17 centuries, historians have already ceased to neglect the myths of their ancestors and began to collect ethnographic and written data about the gods and the cult of the Slavs.
Unfortunately, in these works, Slavic mythology was compared and compared with Greco-Roman. Therefore, these sources reliably say only the names of Slavic goddesses and gods. Chronicles tell of such gods as Stribog, Perun, Horse, Dazhdbog, Semargl, Makosh, Svarog, Veles, Rod and women in labor. Later Lelia and Lada appeared. Little information has been preserved, especially about the mythology of the Western Slavs.
Developing, the culture of the Eastern Slavs and Western passed through several stages. They believed in the gods of the heavenly bodies, death and life (Maron and Alive), war and heaven, the plant kingdom and fertility. Not only water and the sun were deified, but also numerous spirits. In ancient times, the word as an expression of rites and traditions was understood in close connection with what it expressed. An event or belief is imprinted by the name. So Slavic mythology was born, and language became an indispensable tool of tradition.
The method, which was originally associated with comparing languages, was first transferred to folklore by Buslaev in Russian science, who applied it to study the mythological traditions of the Slavic people. He said: "The people used to be a poet. And individuals were considered storytellers or singers. Rites of the ancient Slavs, traditions completely dominated the narrator, not allowing him to stand out. It was at this time that the epic epic developed. Subsequently, a fairy tale stood out. At the same time, the people keep "their traditions not only in fairy tales and epics, but also in sayings, proverbs, riddles, sayings, brief conspiracies, signs, oaths and superstitions." Buslaev’s mythological theory gradually develops into a school of borrowing theory and comparative mythology. Her focus was on the problem of creating a myth. According to theory, Slavic mythology was created by the Aryans.
There is a comparative method according to Afanasyev. He believed that fairy tales and epics are of particular importance for the correct understanding of Slavic mythology (the term "epics" was introduced by Sakharov, before that all epic songs were called antiquities). The heroic epics of Russia can be put on a par with heroic myths in some other mythological systems. The difference lies in the fact that the epics are more historical, as they tell about different events that occurred in the 11-16 centuries. Their most famous heroes are Mikula Selyaninovich, Ilya Muromets, Vasily Buslaev, Volga. Moreover, they are perceived not only as individuals related to a certain era in history, but also as the ancestors and protectors, epic heroes. It is from here - their unity with nature, invincibility and magical power.