Ancient symbols of Illyrian cults

When we analyse the motifs on numerous tombstones we notice that the most dominant symbols are depictions of crosses, swords, axes, hands, crescent moon, circles, etc. which in essence represent the symbols of the astral cult and the cult of fertility. As we all know the crescent moon and the cross are not original Christian symbol but symbols of Islam. Namely, the cross originated from a swastika, ancient symbol of sun and fertility, while the crescent moon belongs to the cult of the goddess Mother or goddess of moon. The circle motif comes from the cult of sun which is analogous to the Illyrian practice of carrying staffs which had a disc or circle on top of it. A raised hand is a classic ancient symbol of supreme gods along the Mediterranean belt and it symbolises demonstration of divine power and strength. Sword and axe as weapons also have their origin in ancient times and they represent weapons which symbolised courage, strength and power. Among the Illyrian tribes numerous axes were known to have two blades which can visually represent the symbol of a moon i.e. the phase of rising and the phase of falling moon which again fully forms a circle which can symbolise a full moon.

Among the ancient Bosniaks (Illyrians) the axe was without a doubt a symbol of the goddess of moon. In support of this claim the legend about the punished son can serve the purpose, namely the son raised his axe on his mother and god punished him immediately by killing him and carrying his body, with the hand still raised holding an axe, onto the moon's surface in order to warn people during a full moon that they need to respect the woman i.e. mother. Illyrian warriors were especially known by wearing their war axe with which they caused mortal fear in their enemies. Probably because of the above mentioned the axe became a symbol of divine protection of the house and family among the Bosnian people, precisely the characteristic which was traditionally prescribed to the goddess Mother or the goddess of the moon. Images of ancient axes on the facades of Bosnian houses could be seen until the Second World War along eastern Bosnia and around Sarajevo. Among the Bosnian Christians a cross regularly replaced an axe.  

 

Snake in the Bogomil legends

In numerous Bogomil legends the snake plays a main or supporting role like the one about Grandfather Ravuš, which folk tales describe as an old man with long white beard who performed his regular prayers, like all the other Bogomil priests, under a linden tree.

The daughter of bey Džafer, a Bogomil nobleman who converted to Islam, was a girl given for marriage. On one occasion the suitors came to ask for her hand and a beautiful young man from Duvno succeeded. The marriage was planned for a Friday, and the day before that the girl went to the meadow to pick some flowers with which she wanted to decorate the wedding procession. However, her niece was very jealous of her and her marriage and she was looking for a way to hurt her and seeing her jovially walking towards the meadow to pick some flowers she came up with the idea to plant some snakes which will bite her. Approaching her cousin carefully without her noticing it, she dropped a snake and walked away. As soon as the snake saw the girl it started to move towards her but at that moment out of nowhere Grandfather Ravuš appeared and made a circle around her uttering a few words which turned the snake into stone.

 

In another legend from Middle ages the snake is tied to two holly men so called evlije for which a tomb was raised which later became a pilgrimage site. When Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror, conquered Bosnia, all Bogomil population converted to Islam in a very short time period. New religion and customs were not as strange to them as much as Christianity was rigid to which they never wanted to surrender. We know little today about the events that took place during the medieval Bosnia, since legends hide the truth. One of them is tied to a father and a son which converted to Islam, and they lived in a village Kolun near Foča. The father was a man of exceptional physical strength, while the son was of a more gentle constitution. The reason for that is that at a very young age the boy lost his mother and he grew up on food that his father procured.

As he could not manage without a woman, the father re-married after some time to a woman which didn't show care and respect to his son, which she also secretly tortured. On one occasion, while he was sleeping, she placed a small snake in his mouth which entered him and all that the boy ate the snake would swallow. The boy ate a lot but he was pale and skinny regardless. His body became ever weaker. At night after he said his prayers, he asked Allah to help him and that evening he dreamt of his deceased mother, who told him in his sleep to enter the room where they keep yoghurt, which his stepmother forbid him.

Tomorrow, while the stepmother was out of the house, the boy entered the forbidden room, found the yoghurt in a wooden plate and drank it. At that moment the boy fainted. A miracle happened. Disturbed by the yoghurt the snake left the boy's body and hid under a shelf with cheese. Soon after that the boy woke up and escaped from the room. He was very hungry. As soon as the stepmother came into the house he told her that he is hungry and she replied that she will give him some food. She entered the room where she kept the cheese, and the snake jumped and bit her by her face. The stepmother died and the snake escaped. When the father came, he realised what was going on, and he promised his son that he will never get married again.  

Reincarnation in the tradition of the Bosnian people

Bogomilsm was based on Persian dualism: the master of the spiritual world was god, and the material, which was transitory, was ruled by the evil god Satan. The same principle is evident in Christianity, Islam and Judaism where the principle of good and evil are clearly accentuated, and that god for various reasons never managed to defeat Satan and that's why both of them have their kingdoms and eternally opposed armies. The balance of power is equal with a religious promise that Satan will be eventually beaten and destroyed.

The main element of the spiritual world was the soul, for which the Bogomils believed that with migrations or metempsychosis it aims at eternal perfection or nirvana - final liberation. According to Bogomil doctrine, it was forbidden to kill animals and birds, and even to destroy their eggs, because in every animal there can be a human soul doing penance for the sin's a man has done for his lifetime. That old Bogomil beliefs left a huge mark on the Bosnian people is best witnessed by the still active belief from north-western Bosnia which claims that evil people turn into animals after death such as pigs, cows, horses,. in order to serve humans in their new life and to pay for their sins.

One important record, which dates from the Ottoman occupation of BiH, named "From Bosnia with pictures" speaks explicitly about the very widespread idea of reincarnation among the Bosnian people. Author Clement Božić commented, like numerous other contemporary observers, seeing packs of dogs moving freely around the neighbourhoods and streets of Sarajevo: "Bosniaks take care of them (dogs), by giving them complete freedom; they say that some of them may contain a human soul and if someone has a bad dream, in the morning they buy bread and feed them to the dogs."

The only animal that cannot have a human soul is the snake, probably because of the Illyrian legend according to which a snake has been created 40 years prior to any living being on this planet. This mythological belief of the Bosnian people is completely analogous to the ancient representation about the forefather of all Illyrians which was wrapped by a snake when he was a baby. In many ways a snake has been officially given a favoured status and she had a special place among the Bogomils which can be seen from numerous legends created throughout the Middle Ages where this animal plays a major role. To the Bogomils, unlike other Christian churches, the snake didn't represent the reincarnation of evil since according to their doctrine the tree of knowledge of good and evil was a woman (Eve), and Adam sinned for copulating with her, and that's why both of them were banished from heaven. Thanks to this fact the existence of the cult of snake was never brought into question throughout any period of Bosnian history, not even during the turbulent Middle Ages. The answer to the question why was only the snake exempt from the karmic circle is that she as a holly animal cannot be the bearer of a human's sinful soul, her task is to use her mystical powers to protect every house and all souls living in them.

 

Even though the Bogomils weren't inclined, according to their religious belief, to excessive indulgement of earthly goods, they were, like all others, exposed to constant temptations which ruled the evil material world which additionally made it harder for a soul to achieve enlightenment. According to Bogomil's conception the end of the reincarnation cycle was only possible after receiving the sacrament at death with which the soul would achieve its spiritual regeneration. It was only possible through this type of cleansing and after separation from the material world which was under the control of evil. The final goal was to ensure the unification of the soul with the good god. In a lawsuit in Torino in 1388 a claim mentioned that a soul which doesn't receive consolamentum transfers into the first body to which it comes across to, either human or animal; this continues on until it is blessed by its spiritual father on its deathbed.         

When we summarise all that has been written so far we come to some sensational data which reveals to us that in Bosnia and Herzegovina we find very clear and evident basic doctrines about karma and reincarnation which can be considered to be rare, if not the only country in this part of Europe, with such traditional concept which certainly didn't form in the Bogomil religion, but it's appearance dates from ancient times. That's why this particularity deserves special research.

Reincarnation as a term was well defined in Bhagavad Gita, authoritative writing of a Vedic teacher which dates from the 5^th century BCE, defined as a cycle of birth and death in the circle of samsara, and karma as causal effect according to which by our own actions, thoughts and feelings we create our own destiny. The idea about reincarnation can be found on all continents. But, for us the most important data is that reincarnation as a thought was present among the old Celts and Persians, two peoples which more or less had a defining influence on the religious understanding of the Bosnian people, especially during ancient and middle ages.