Zoomorfna obeležja duša pokojnika u verovanjima slovenskih naroda
Zoomorphic Characteristics of the Souls of the Deceased in the Beliefs of the Slavic Peoples

Summary/Abstract: According to Slavic folk beliefs, the soul leaves the body at the time of death in the form of a fly, butterfly, bird or mouse. It can later appear to living people in the form of some other animals, whereby differences can be observed between the so-called souls of the pure deceased or ancestors (those who died “of their own” natural death) and the so-called impure deceased (those who died prematurely or violently, who were sinners, unbaptized, practiced magic, etc.). The paper deals with folk beliefs about the zoomorphic characteristics of the souls of the mentioned groups of the deceased. The reasons for tying certain types of animals to a certain group of the deceased is examined, followed by folk beliefs about whether the soul has or takes the form of an animal or simply moves into its body. The research is based on published ethnographic and folkloristic materials in magazines and anthologies of the Slavic peoples, on scholarly studies on representations of the soul and animals in the folk culture of the Slavs, as well as on our own field records from the Banat region (Serbia).

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