As a Bogomil legend says, zviždenjaci were created out of fallen angels. Namely, when god punished all evil angels and threw them from heaven into hell, there were so many of them that they were falling all day and night, until hell was full and until it closed its gates. Those angels that fell on earth after that were turned into zviždenjak.
According to the Bogomil doctrine human souls are fallen angels trapped in the body. Perhaps in this information we can find hidden the answer as to why it is believed that zviždenjak eats a dead body inside the grave - frees a fallen angel from the human body or better yet a demon inside an animal body is freeing a demon from a human body. But, we shouldn't ignore the historical fact that the Bosnian people before the advent of Christianity (Bogomilism) and Islam had a long continuity of pagan past with its numerous Illyrian cults of nature where a central place was occupied by the cult of fertility and the Grand Mother. That's why this Bogomil legend needs to be observed strictly from the point of cultivating that same cult through folk religion which existed along with monotheism.
The cult of the Grand Mother is full of magic, mystic rituals and codexes of behaviour based on the worshiping of natural forces which can appear to humans in a human, vegetable or animal form. A special feature of this cult is that from its beginning it had the role of a public service i.e. it helped human communities which is best seen through the belief that the Grand Mother thought people everything about agriculture.
In folk tradition zviždenjak is a classic example of creative energy. He has the power to endow a human with creative energy which leads us to the idea that this animal in folk religion of our people, and especially our ancestors, had a divine status and probably represented a form of natural force. This is supported by magical practice through which one asks for blessing from this animal.
When a young man wishes to master something, especially hand crafts, he would go at spring time in search for a zviždenjak. As soon as he would find him, he would take him into his hands and would pass him three times under his belt. After that, it was believed, he will be successful in any craft he chooses. In another example that man which wanted to become a skilful master would catch a zviždenjak and would pass him along with an axe through his clothes and his belt, from his chest, downward, letting the axe hit the ground but holding the zviždenjak in his arms and uttering: "As you managed to decorate yourself like that zviždenjak, so shall I be able to make everything I want with my hands." He would then place the animal on the axe and walk home. Tomorrow he would come back to check if the zviždenjak is still on the axe, if he is that means he will become a master, but if he is not then his wish won't come true.
Girls who were unable to make embroidery nor weave and make other hand crafts would at spring time search for a zviždenjak and would pass him three times through the sleeve of their right arm and would take him home and bound in him in a ball of yarn, a piece of cloth or something else and leave him there until morning. At dawn, before sunrise, the girl would take the bound zviždenjak and would go to a spring which is turned towards east. She would place the cloth (yarn) in the water and the zviždenjak as well, uttering: "As you are multicolored zviždenjak, so too shall I know how to weave and start all work: who gave you let him also give me!" She would then take the cloth and quickly, without looking back, go home leaving the zviždenjak in the stream.
In folk tradition, because of his name, zviždenjak is considered to be a male animal, bsides the fact that there are female animals of this breed, that's why it has the title of uncle. On the ither hand, snake and frog are animals of female sex.
In certain parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina zviždenjak is called diževnjak, družd, daždenjak, probably from the old word dažd - rain, but we shouldn't exclude the possibility that such a name comes from the Turkish word daidža, which was retained in the Bosnian language, and means uncle. The following example from ritual practice of our people gives us this idea, namely, farmers before Jurjevo or Hidirlez would catch a zviždenjak and would throw him into milk on the day of the holiday, the milk would be milked that morning and they would utter: "So shall we be multicolored lambs, like you are dazed, uncle!" They would then take him out of the milk and would bring him to a forest and would leave him there,
Why is ziždenjak called uncle in this formula is hard to discern. Eventual family relation between a snake and zviždenjak arises as a relatively acceptable idea, as two divine beings, i.e. they are brother and sister, children of the Grand Mother personified in nature overall. But, it's a motive for further research of interesting Bosnian mythology which constantly confirms the deep connection of our people with the ancient Illyrian cults of nature.
