Unclean force

, 1074. Miniature from the Radziwiłł Chronicle, late 15th century In Christianity, unclean forces are seen as fallen angels. According to apocryphal Christian beliefs, the unclean force is partly created by God, partly by Satan. Other of its varieties appear from the so-called "mortgaged dead" - unbaptized children, suicides or those who died another unnatural death (e.g., drowned). People kidnapped by unclean forces (by Leshy, Vodyanoy, rusalki) and children cursed by their parents could turn into evil. Children who had been conceived with an unclean force could also become unclean. The "masters" of certain loci - Domovoys, Vodyanoys, Leshies, Poleviks (field Domovoy), swamp spirits - are mixed with the image of chort, with "walking" dead people (spirits of the dead). Folklorist believes that under different names the contours of one character emerge, and the names change depending on the place of meeting with him. Such a generalizing figure, overlapping almost the entire variety of male demonic images, is the cohort in Polesia, as the main embodiment of all unclean forces. In Pyatina: In the title "Adam's Children" the folk reinterpretation of the biblical narrative was united with the peasants' ideas about a host of unclean people (Domovoys, Leshies, Banniks) as special, "hidden people", ancestors, the dead. They are connected by various (kinship, contractual and similar) relations with those supernatural forces and beings, which, according to pre-Christian beliefs, fill the whole world — earth, waters, forests. , 1934 == The undead ==

One of the euphemisms for unclean force is "undead". Other sources slightly different interpretation of the concept, attributing to it, for example, chorts. == Manifestations ==

In Volhynia, it was believed that on Thursday night, one should not beat a child and put it outside the door. Otherwise, the unclean spirit will take it away, and in its place will plant another one, who will eat a lot, but only the head will grow, and the legs and arms will be so thin that he will not be able to walk. In Polesia, if an infant cried incessantly at night, the reason for this was seen in the fact that the child was attacked by notsnitsa, "crixa molested", "notsnitsa walk in the house". In zagovory, the child was asked to leave the child in peace to the notsnitsa-sisters of the night, crixa-plaxa, forest women. == Spirits of Christmas Eve's ==

Svyatochnaya uncleanness or Svyatochniye spirits () appear in the "turning point" period of the winter solstice. It was believed that they began to walk on the second day of Christmas (Koliada), and on the day of Epiphany after vespers disappeared. According to Northern Russian beliefs, the rampage of the demonic army falls on the second week of Holy Week. The Slavs considered Svyatki a dangerous period, which belongs to otherworldly forces. According to the beliefs, God, rejoicing at the birth of the Son, releases the souls of the dead and all chorts from the "other world". To the category of "svyatochniye" spirits in the Russian North included , kulyashi, svyatke. They began to walk on the second day of Christmas, and on the day of Epiphany after vespers disappeared. On New Year's Eve, as it was believed, the dead awakened; taking the form of animals, they walked on the ground (Vladimir region). According to testimonies from the Russian North, the unclean time lasts from Nikola Zimniy until Epiphany: at this time "Satan commands his servants to walk the earth and predict people's fate". == See also ==