I guess you got me there! He had to fly or die and he flew. He saw everything...his father and sisters after Ned had to kill Lady, his mother on the ship, the looming storm, and north to the curtain of light. He flew, but maybe he doesn't realize that he can do this at will?
Never really looked at it this way before to be honest, but Bran is quite literally a flying wolf in that chapter. Mayhaps he is already chained, too, by his paralysis.
"I can see it. You have more of the north in you than your brothers."
I think Bran has found his throne, and is now wed and chained to it. The warg-block failed, and Bran stands to become the most powerful warg in memory. This litter of pups is the undoing of all GQA's noble intentions.
I want Bran out of the tree, but I agree that the warg black has failed.
And the idea of the winged wolf:
QUOTE: Turning back to the stair, Sansa climbed. The smoke blotted out the stars and the thin crescent of moon, so the roof was dark and thick with shadows. Yet from here she could see everything: the Red Keep's tall towers and great cornerforts, the maze of city streets beyond, to south and west the river running black, the bay to the east, the columns of smoke and cinders, and fires, fires everywhere. Soldiers crawled over the city walls like ants with torches, and crowded the hoardings that had sprouted from the ramparts. Down by the Mud Gate, outlined against the drifting smoke, she could make out the vague shape of the three huge catapults, the biggest anyone had ever seen, overtopping the walls by a good twenty feet. Yet none of it made her feel less fearful. A stab went through her, so sharp that Sansa sobbed and clutched at her belly. She might have fallen, but a shadow moved suddenly, and strong fingers grabbed her arm and steadied her.
She grabbed a merlon for support, her fingers scrabbling at the rough stone. "Let go of me," she cried. "Let go."
"The little bird thinks she has wings, does she? Or do you mean to end up crippled like that brother of yours?"
Sansa twisted in his grasp. "I wasn't going to fall. It was only . . . you startled me, that's all." Clash, Sansa IV
In the hidden face of a crescent moon, with and impending battle almost as a kind of sacrifice, she's getting compared to Bran. I had never thought of "little bird" as being tied to "winged wolf." But I think it is.
QUOTE: "Ser Gregor the Mountain," she said softly. "Dunsen, Raff the Sweetling, Ser Ilyn, Ser Meryn, Queen Cersei." It made her feel queer to leave out Polliver and the Tickler. And Joffrey too. She was glad he was dead, but she wished she could have been there to see him die, or maybe kill him herself. Polliver said that Sansa killed him, and the Imp. Could that be true? The Imp was a Lannister, and Sansa . . . I wish I could change into a wolf and grow wings and fly away. Storm, Arya XIII
The wolf-maids need wings. It would be a kind of power. So, who came up with the rumor that Sansa had wings and flew away? Is that a trace of an old belief? And why tied to wolves?
True, I think. If Dany had not woken the dragon, she would have remained far more natural a child-woman of surpassing loveliness, than the fearsome mother of fire she has become. But then, as Sansa must weigh and balance wolfishness with ladyness, so too must Dany weigh dragonhood against humanity. And her humanity lost the tilt the second she chose to sacrifice her child to save Drogo's life.
It seems to me GQA was waging a similar battle in the north. Fire consumes, and the Wall melted a bit under her stewardship.
Reminds me of LmL 's moon swallowing the sun imagery. Had Dany stayed the Moon, vs. embracing the role of Stallion, she might have been safer.
Mayhaps, but the wolf Jojen saw in his dreams was winged and chained. I'm thinking the chain is a necessary quality, rather than a predicament from which Bran could be saved. The 3EC told Bran he would fly, and his arms drank the wind, but there has been a price for that gift.
Interesting--and in the quotes with Arya and Sansa above--those wolf-maids are tethered or chained from flying. But they can move and act in other ways. Bran--the chain is flight.
In the case of the Winged Knight, and falcon mounts, these seem far less tethered in the tales. It might well be that they are, particularly if Preston Jacobs is correct in his idea that Robert Arryn is green-gifted, and being possessed by his weirwood throne. In such a case, I see the cotf as librarians collecting their dues. Debts are paid not in blood, but in consciousness. I think those gifted with warghood exhibit fractured/blended consciousness. Haggon was right.
Ah, here we may diverge a bit. While I believe the Andal Faith of the Seven is most certainly the source of the negative rap warghood receives south of the Wall, and that the Stranger (being a representation of the ominous-unknown) likely was cast in such a animalistic way intentionally, I do not think Mel is of the same branch of magic as is Dany/Targ/Valyria.
Ah, here we may diverge a bit. While I believe the Andal Faith of the Seven is most certainly the source of the negative rap warghood receives south of the Wall, and that the Stranger (being a representation of the ominous-unknown) likely was cast in such a animalistic way intentionally, I do not think Mel is of the same branch of magic as is Dany/Targ/Valyria.
Being that the sept in question is on Dragonstone, I think it highly likely Targaryens would portray the Stranger in a Wargish light. I too see the Stark/FM/cotf branch in a more natural light, and believe this is precisely why GQA sought to break it.
Mel's branch, while not without insights of its own that are, at times, quite accurate, seems to be of shadow, rather than wood or fire. Fire consumes the ever-preserving weirwood, and casts many shadows in the process.
I actually agree with this. My point was more that when she sees the Great Other, she sees a warg. Almost as if wargs and the magic that produces Others is connected.
But I agree re: the Targs. It's like traces of a fear showing up in snippets.
All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol do so at their peril. It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Oscar Wilde.
I actually agree with this. My point was more that when she sees the Great Other, she sees a warg. Almost as if wargs and the magic that produces Others is connected.
I had always taken that (bolded) as a given. Look at Coldhands? True, it's unclear whether he is being controlled by the singers or BR but either way it confirms that BR or the singers possess the ability to control wights. George has a pretty simple magic (not unlike the force actually, pre-midi's anyway). GRRM's world does seem to have a power flowing through it, the godhood of the old gods, the great river. Within his world are certain people who can manipulate those forces (workers of magic, Mel etc) and those who can use those forces in a much more organic way (wargs, greendreamers etc). When it comes to the WW's, my feeling has always been that the power is of the organic, old gods side but that in this instance the magic has been worked. In essence I'm saying that the CotF accidentally created the WW when attempting to set a wolf among the woods of man. Bran's last chapter is absolutely key in understanding the motivations of the singers and surely understanding why the singers are even bothering to help us (are they helping us?) and why they helped TLH back in the day is key to understanding the genesis of this mess.
Last Edit: Dec 21, 2015 19:09:38 GMT by pieceofgosa
I wonder if it has to do with the connection between ravens and wolves? In the real world the two creatures have been known to work together. The ravens will lead wolves to prey, and then the wolves leave carcasses for the ravens to feed on.
I....did not know this. Makes perfect sense though - a symbiosis of sorts.
Side note: a raven landed my yard yesterday. He was HUGE.
This is really stupid but does it occur to anyone that dragon eggs stopped hatching as they (the actual, physical eggs) got further from Valyria and closer to TLOAW ? Dany's eggs probably never even left Essos right ? Probably not a coincedence that they are the only eggs to have hatched successfully in the past 150(?)years
This is flight of fancy stuff but if we accept TLOAW as the "source" of GRRM's ice-based magical force then we can imagine a similar place existing past Asshai, a land of always summer, as it were. If true that puts Valyria roughly about halfway between the two as a sort of nexus-point. Now if we remember that Essos and Westeros used to be connected, then we have a physical link between TLOAW & TLOAS with Valyria slap bang in the middle. Now consider this, what if the physical link was the thing that allowed the powers of ice and fire to exist in balance ? When that link was severed (by the smegging elves) it may have thrown some shit out of whack, like maybe the seasons ?
In the hidden face of a crescent moon, with and impending battle almost as a kind of sacrifice, she's getting compared to Bran. I had never thought of "little bird" as being tied to "winged wolf." But I think it is.
Great catch SW. I think you're right. I mean, Sansa is definitely a little bird still at that point, but she was born, and always will be, a She-wolf of Winterfell.
Just to hammer the parallel home a bit more, there is also this:
A Game of Thrones - Jon II
Her eyes found him. They were full of poison. "I need none of your absolution, bastard." Jon lowered his eyes. She was cradling one of Bran's hands. He took the other, squeezed it. Fingers like the bones of birds. "Good-bye," he said.
A Game of Thrones - Bran III
There are different kinds of wings, the crow said. Bran was staring at his arms, his legs. He was so skinny, just skin stretched taut over bones. Had he always been so thin?
While thankfully, Sansa is not so thin as Bran, each is portrayed as a struggling little winged wolf, yearning to take flight. And, each struggles with chains forged in Casterly Rock.
The wolf-maids need wings. It would be a kind of power. So, who came up with the rumor that Sansa had wings and flew away? Is that a trace of an old belief? And why tied to wolves?
It reminds me of a bat (flying fox). Bran's skin is stretched over thin bones, and both he and Sansa flee under cover of darkness. I found this page, but I don't put much faith in it. Mayhaps someone will have heard of a winged wolf in folklore... warriorsofmyth.wikia.com/wiki/Winged_Wolf
It could also be a bit of a play on words. When legged creatures flee quickly, we say they have taken flight. A direwolf in flight sounds like the sigil of House Stark to me...
Interesting--and in the quotes with Arya and Sansa above--those wolf-maids are tethered or chained from flying. But they can move and act in other ways. Bran--the chain is flight.
It might be that for each of them, their chain is/creates their flight. Did Sansa/Lyanna fly away, or was she abducted? ...seems quite analogous.
I actually agree with this. My point was more that when she sees the Great Other, she sees a warg. Almost as if wargs and the magic that produces Others is connected.
Are you referring to this passage?
A face took shape within the hearth. Stannis? she thought, for just a moment … but no, these were not his features. A wooden face, corpse white. Was this the enemy? A thousand red eyes floated in the rising flames. He sees me. Beside him, a boy with a wolf’s face threw back his head and howled.
Because while agree she seems to wonder if this is the Great Other, the enemy, I think it's just Bloodraven and Bran (the warg). Though I may be mistaken, I tend to view BR and Bran as working to un-do the Others, hence Mel's wondering if they represent the enemy, as I think her R'hllor is the Great Other.
Post by whitewolfstark on Dec 22, 2015 5:58:52 GMT
It reminds me of a bat (flying fox). Bran's skin is stretched over thin bones, and both he and Sansa flee under cover of darkness. I found this page, but I don't put much faith in it. Mayhaps someone will have heard of a winged wolf in folklore... warriorsofmyth.wikia.com/wiki/Winged_Wolf
It could also be a bit of a play on words. When legged creatures flee quickly, we say they have taken flight. A direwolf in flight sounds like the sigil of House Stark to me...
Semargl is an actual creature in Slavic mythology--a minor creature, like how we think of a hippogriff. Sometimes it's depicted as a lion with wings or a wolf with wings. Other times it has a bunch of parts including bits and pieces of a wolf and a lion and an eagle.
I wonder if it has to do with the connection between ravens and wolves? In the real world the two creatures have been known to work together. The ravens will lead wolves to prey, and then the wolves leave carcasses for the ravens to feed on.
This has a lot to do with my thought process on the Black Gate, Bloodraven+Bran, and GQA's warg-blocking. I think direwolves and crows seem intrinsically linked in Westeros, and I think there will be plenty of carcasses for both.
I had always taken that (bolded) as a given. Look at Coldhands? True, it's unclear whether he is being controlled by the singers or BR but either way it confirms that BR or the singers possess the ability to control wights.
We have no evidence CH is being "controlled" by anyone, let alone evidence the wights are in any way beholden to the cave dwellers.
Bran's last chapter is absolutely key in understanding the motivations of the singers and surely understanding why the singers are even bothering to help us (are they helping us?) and why they helped TLH back in the day is key to understanding the genesis of this mess.
This is really stupid but does it occur to anyone that dragon eggs stopped hatching as they (the actual, physical eggs) got further from Valyria and closer to TLOAW ? Dany's eggs probably never even left Essos right ? Probably not a coincedence that they are the only eggs to have hatched successfully in the past 150(?)years
This is flight of fancy stuff but if we accept TLOAW as the "source" of GRRM's ice-based magical force then we can imagine a similar place existing past Asshai, a land of always summer, as it were. If true that puts Valyria roughly about halfway between the two as a sort of nexus-point. Now if we remember that Essos and Westeros used to be connected, then we have a physical link between TLOAW & TLOAS with Valyria slap bang in the middle. Now consider this, what if the physical link was the thing that allowed the powers of ice and fire to exist in balance ? When that link was severed (by the smegging elves) it may have thrown some shit out of whack, like maybe the seasons ?
Interesting, but the land was severed long after the magical lengthening of the seasons. And the lands of always summer are not in Asshai. The "Lands of the Long Summer" are actually a part of Valyria. Valyria is Fire the way the heart of winter is Ice, I think. Asshai, in my opinion, is but a tangential gutter of corruption.
Semargl is an actual creature in Slavic mythology--a minor creature, like how we think of a hippogriff. Sometimes it's depicted as a lion with wings or a wolf with wings. Other times it has a bunch of parts including bits and pieces of a wolf and a lion and an eagle.
Very cool. Any info on Semargl traits? Might provide some inferences as to GRRM's winged-wolf.
"I can see it. You have more of the north in you than your brothers."
Post by whitewolfstark on Dec 23, 2015 20:57:18 GMT
It's very hard to find information on Semargl/Simargl (I've seen it spelled both ways), but it appears that they can have both bird-like wings and bat-like wings. And apparently Semargl/Simargl has an association with Fire.
An artist's rendition of a Semargl/Simargl:
And another from Russian myth:
And here's a third one I found with an artist translating some Cyrillic text talking more about it, though the name apparently is attached in the Ukraine to a fire god--with whom a winged wolf is associated, but not the same thing. So I'm getting different things from different countries (general Slavic countries vs Russian vs Ukrainian) and I don't know enough about Slavic mythology to decipher it all on my own so I'm just going to post what I'm finding:
I would like to thank the brilliant artists at deviantart for their artistic talents in helping to capture the mythology of the Slavic peoples. They are a great help, even if they're second-hand information. And obviously they have much talent.
Semargl (or Simargl) - Ognebog.
There is mention of the appearance Semargl the light from the flames. It is said that once he heavenly blacksmith Svarog, magical hammer hitting a rock Alatyr carved stone divine spark. Sparks flared brightly, and their flame appeared Semargl fiery god, seated on a horse Goldrinn silver suit. But it seemed quiet and peaceful character, Semargl left scorched trail wherever no one had gone before his horse.
It is not known the name of the god of fire, probably because his name is very sacred. Sanctity attributed to the fact that this God dwells not somewhere in heaven, and directly to the people of the earth! Try to say his name out loud rarely, usually replacing the allegory.
Slavs have long been associated with the appearance of fire people. According to some legends, the gods created man and woman out of two sticks between which the fire broke out - the first flame of love. Semargl also does not let the world of evil.
Semargl night stands guard with a flaming sword, and only one day a year he comes down from his post, in response to the call Globeflowers that calls him to love the game in the autumnal equinox. On the day of the Summer Solstice, after 9 months, and Semargl Globeflowers children are born - Kostroma and Kupalo.
Согласно преданиям, после того, как Сварог ударил магическим молотом о камень Алатырь, высеклись искры, из разгоревшегося пламени которых предстал огненный бог Семаргл. Новоявленное божество восседало на златогривом коне серебристой масти. Где бы ни появлялся, где бы ни проезжал бог огня, везде оставался выжженный след. Символ божества — священный крылатый пес, в облике которого также мог появляться сам Семаргл.
Бог является посредником между мирами, людьми и богами, он способен быстро путешествовать от Яви к Прави и обратно. Семаргл защищает мир смертных, не пуская в него зло. Каждую ночь бог стоит на страже с огненным мечом в руках, готовый отразить любую атаку сил тьмы. Лишь один раз в году бог огня может покинуть свой пост: в день Осеннего равноденствия Семаргл откликается на зов Купальницы, призывающей на любовные игры. А спустя девять месяцев, в день Летнего солнцестояния, у богов рождаются дети – Кострома и Купало.
Post by whitewolfstark on Dec 23, 2015 21:13:13 GMT
Traditional renderings of Semargl/Simargl:
SEMARGL – Симаргал, Симаргл, Семаргл, Симург, Simargl, Semargl, Симаргл, Сімаргл, Simargł, Siemargł, Semurgl, Semargl, Simargl, Semargl-Pereplut is a mythical creature in Slavic mythology. In the Book of Veles he is the father of Skif - the founder of Skifia (Scythia). It is often portrayed as a large dog with wings. It is the equivalent of Simurgh in Persian mythology who is also represented like a griffin with a dog body.
And another traditional rendering:
A Persian Simurgh:
Found this quote on another website... apparently simargl = slavic equivalent of a dragon.
Simargl - Dragon [Persian Simurgh - Roc] - flying monster, sometimes with dog's head.
Another place attributes more Persian influence:
Simargl: A winged wolf or dog of Persian mythology.
Considering GRRM took an interest in ancient Zoroastrian Persia for informing his Asshai, I'd say digging more into Slavic and Persian mythologies are definitely worth the time.
but it appears that they can have both bird-like wings and bat-like wings.
Random association time, LOL, but this strongly reminds me of Lyanna's flight after Harrenhal, and Bran's batlike/birdlike fingers after his flight from the window.
And here's a third one I found with an artist translating some Cyrillic text talking more about it, though the name apparently is attached in the Ukraine to a fire god--with whom a winged wolf is associated, but not the same thing.
There is mention of the appearance Semargl the light from the flames.
A Game of Thrones - Bran III And then there was movement beside the bed, and something landed lightly on his legs. He felt nothing. A pair of yellow eyes looked into his own, shining like the sun. The window was open and it was cold in the room, but the warmth that came off the wolf enfolded him like a hot bath. His pup, Bran realized … or was it? He was so big now. He reached out to pet him, his hand trembling like a leaf. When his brother Robb burst into the room, breathless from his dash up the tower steps, the direwolf was licking Bran's face. Bran looked up calmly. "His name is Summer," he said.
It is said that once he heavenly blacksmith Svarog, magical hammer hitting a rock Alatyr carved stone divine spark.
It just so happens Bran's mother's religion speaks of a heavenly Smith. And, his father's people are immortalized in carved stone by smiths in the crypts, with a direwolf at their feet.
Sparks flared brightly, and their flame appeared Semargl fiery god, seated on a horse Goldrinn silver suit. But it seemed quiet and peaceful character, Semargl left scorched trail wherever no one had gone before his horse.
This could pertain to a lot of different things, but if we replace the silver with bronze, the fiery god a-horse reminds me of Dothraki beliefs. Of course, Dany herself replaced the bronze riders at the head of he column with her Silver. And, it just so happens, she treads where none have gone before - finding each grassland verdant and untouched, before the horde in her wake (and eventually, dragons) destroy it.
While seemingly unrelated to Bran, there are a few bits of information that should make us connect the First Men with the Dothraki. First and foremost, is this:
A Dance with Dragons - Bran III
Then, as he watched, a bearded man forced a captive down onto his knees before the heart tree. A white-haired woman stepped toward them through a drift of dark red leaves, a bronze sickle in her hand. "No," said Bran, "no, don't," but they could not hear him, no more than his father had. The woman grabbed the captive by the hair, hooked the sickle round his throat, and slashed. And through the mist of centuries the broken boy could only watch as the man's feet drummed against the earth … but as his life flowed out of him in a red tide, Brandon Stark could taste the blood.
A Dance with Dragons - Daenerys IX
Dany could hear her handmaids arguing behind her, debating who was going to win the day's final match. Jhiqui favored the gigantic Goghor, who looked more bull than man, even to the bronze ring in his nose. Irri insisted that Belaquo Bonebreaker's flail would prove the giant's undoing. My handmaids are Dothraki, she told herself. Death rides with every khalasar. The day she wed Khal Drogo, the arakhs had flashed at her wedding feast, and men had died whilst others drank and mated. Life and death went hand in hand amongst the horselords, and a sprinkling of blood was thought to bless a marriage. Her new marriage would soon be drenched in blood. How blessed it would be.
While an arakh is not the same thing as a sickle, I find it interesting that as Bran weds the trees he finds a man killed by a white-haired woman using a curved blade made of bronze, and that Dany's wedding also contains men killed with curved blades - as a silver haired woman weds a bronze man. In Bran's weirwood vision, the scene feels troubling. In Dany's, she too feels troubled, but comes to learn that in Dothraki society, live and death go hand in hand, and blood blesses a marriage.
Bran now finds himself on the edge of an-Other sort of khalasar - one that rides dead mounts and eventually, hopefully, ice spiders. This unnatural horde seems to hate the very things the Dothraki cherish, and hunt those with hot blood in their veins. Rather than drench the earth with their blood to make way for life, they freeze-dry it, and create undead meat puppets.
One more thing about Semargl the fiery god, seated on a horse Goldrinn silver suit... this could be Bloodraven. He's fire, he's seated, and he scorched the Redgrass Field.
It is not known the name of the god of fire, probably because his name is very sacred. Sanctity attributed to the fact that this God dwells not somewhere in heaven, and directly to the people of the earth! Try to say his name out loud rarely, usually replacing the allegory.
Slavs have long been associated with the appearance of fire people.
Slavs are also the origin of the word slave, and in ASOIAF, it just so happens we have slaves that are associated with the appearance of fire people: the faceless men.
According to some legends, the gods created man and woman out of two sticks between which the fire broke out - the first flame of love.
This too reminds me of Bran.
A Dance with Dragons - Bran III
… but then somehow he was back at Winterfell again, in the godswood looking down upon his father. Lord Eddard seemed much younger this time. His hair was brown, with no hint of grey in it, his head bowed. "… let them grow up close as brothers, with only love between them," he prayed, "and let my lady wife find it in her heart to forgive …"
"Love" between them. And who can create love between two boys who might not otherwise love one another?
A Game of Thrones - Catelyn II
Sansa would shine in the south, Catelyn thought to herself, and the gods knew that Arya needed refinement. Reluctantly, she let go of them in her heart. But not Bran. Never Bran. "Yes," she said, "but please, Ned, for the love you bear me, let Bran remain here at Winterfell. He is only seven." "I was eight when my father sent me to foster at the Eyrie," Ned said. "Ser Rodrik tells me there is bad feeling between Robb and Prince Joffrey. That is not healthy. Bran can bridge that distance. He is a sweet boy, quick to laugh, easy to love. Let him grow up with the young princes, let him become their friend as Robert became mine. Our House will be the safer for it."
Can't help but think of RLJ with those last two sentences, but anyway Bran=Love. Love is sweet, Lyanna tells us. And Old Nan calls Bran her "sweet summer child". Sweet (Love) Summer (Fire) Child (Winged Wolf).
Also, this:
A Game of Thrones - Bran I
The breath of man and horse mingled, steaming, in the cold morning air as his lord father had the man cut down from the wall and dragged before them. Robb and Jon sat tall and still on their horses, with Bran between them on his pony, trying to seem older than seven, trying to pretend that he'd seen all this before. A faint wind blew through the holdfast gate. Over their heads flapped the banner of the Starks of Winterfell: a grey direwolf racing across an ice-white field.
Robb and Jon, close as brothers, with only Bran (love) between them.
Semargl night stands guard with a flaming sword, and only one day a year he comes down from his post, in response to the call Globeflowers that calls him to love the game in the autumnal equinox.
Okay, this just screams Night's Watch, lightbringer, AA... and, ties them to flowers. Interesting. We have that blue flower filling the air with sweetness (love) from a chink in the Wall. We have Lyanna, who might have tempted a man to come down from his post and pluck her flower. And, we have a Game of Seasons - gotta love that.
Considering GRRM took an interest in ancient Zoroastrian Persia for informing his Asshai, I'd say digging more into Slavic and Persian mythologies are definitely worth the time.
Very much so, thank you again for digging this stuff up!
"I can see it. You have more of the north in you than your brothers."
Kupalo - God of Bathing (comes from the point in time when Slavic Mythology and Christianity were mixing together), essentially the Slavic version of John the Baptist
Kupalo
Anyone who even superficially searched the sites on Slavic mythology had a chance to find a deity named Kupalo in numerous glossaries and dictionaries. Brief explanations and descriptions of this god's roles will induce the reader to conclude that this is simply a god of bathing (kupati se = to bathe) whose main feature became an integral part of his name. The problem of Kupalo's tradition and, in general, his status as a god, is hardly ever the target of such perfunctory research which will withhold many useful and valuable pieces of information from the reader.
Before we proceed to examine the origin of Kupalo in Slavic mythology, we will give a brief explanation why we have enlisted him among the non-traditional Slavic deities. Firstly, none of the traditional sources on Slavic mythology mentions this god, his temples, statues, or the members of his cult. Although the same is true of many Slavic gods, and even more of goddesses, authors like Vasiljev, Srejovic and Legé do not even mention Kupalo and think that he was not worshipped by the Slavs before conversion to Christianity. If we however turn to the Christian sources, that is the authors who describe Slavic customs and myths of the late Middle Ages, we will see that the situation is quite the opposite. The period following the conversion of the Slavs is very important for the research on Slavic mythology, since at that time many new myths were established while some old ones were modified. The period of the so-called religious duality was characterized by interpenetration of the traditional Slavic religion and the new, Christian, ideology. That was the time when the myths about Rod and world creation emerged, as well as many links of kinship between gods unmentioned in the myths related to the pre-Christian period. Regardless of what the customs related to Kupalo were like before Christianization, we cannot find any information on them in the traditional sources dealing with Slavic mythology. The only thing we know is that the customs were connected with the celebration of the summer solstice (21st June), and that this festival was, upon conversion, substituted by St. John's Day, or the day of Russian Ivan Kupala. We will therefore start our analysis with the Christian holiday, and end our article with a final conclusion about Kupalo's nature.
John the Baptist, or Ivan Kupalo, appeared, according to legend, on the Volga River in the fifteenth century AD. After that, the holiday dedicated to this saint was celebrated in Russia, and its main characteristic was ritual bathing. The Christian saint himself was always connected with the act of bathing since St. John was the one who baptised Jesus Christ in the waters of the Jordan River. In the Christian world, ritual bathing was therefore related to spiritual and physical purification and to some sort of initiation. On the other hand, even before St. John's holiday was established in Russia, there was the tradition of ritual bathing already existing among the Old Slavs. What's more, Alexander Asov thinks the introduction of St. John's holiday was just an incentive for the renewal of the Slavic tradition he refers to as "kupalenjska". Consequently, even before the Slavs adopted the customs related to the festival of the so-called Ivan Kupalo, they had evidently followed some similar custom. Some sources inform us that the Slavs used to celebrate the summer solstice, called Kupalo, of which ritual bathing was a compulsory part. We can conclude beyond doubt that in this way a Christian holiday was purposefully established in the Middle Ages Russia in order to render Christianity more acceptable to the Slavs. Insignificant difference between the dates of pagan and Christian holiday supports our claim since, as we know, St. John's day is celebrated on 7th July. Now we can draw a conclusion about Kupalo's nature – he was connected to the period of the summer solstice celebrations the custom of ritual bathing.
What else can we learn from the sources on Slavic customs? During this holiday, ritual cleansing was not preformed only by bathing – holy fires were also used for the same purpose. These holy fires were most frequently jumped over, since the Slavs believed that in that way they could free themselves from the influence of negative, that is demon, forces. They used to lead cattle over the holy fire for the same reason. Apart from that, there was a custom of searching for and cooking magic herbs. There was one more interesting custom, with which we will deal in more detail, since it is related to a myth featuring Kupalo. The myth is connected to the custom of throwing wreaths down the river, the purpose of which was to help young Slavic girls find their future husband. Once upon a time, the myth says, there were twin brother and sister – Kostroma and Kupalo. Separated at birth from each other, they grew until they were at a marrying age. As she was walking by the river one day, Kostroma's wreath fell from her head into the river and was accidentally picked up by her long-lost brother – Kupalo. Ignorant of being relatives, Kostroma and Kupalo got married, since a boy who picked up a girl's wreath was bound by custom to become her husband. Learning however that they were related, Kostroma and Kupalo drowned, and the gods, feeling pity for them, turned them into flowers.
Can we, from everything mentioned above, conclude that the Slavs worshipped a god of male gender named Kupalo? Not at all. Description of a "kupalenjski" ritual (the term used by Asov) supports the theory that Kupalo's holiday was actually dedicated to a goddess. Namely, on the day of the summer solstice the Old Slavs would make a doll from straw, having female genitals, and then ritually destroy it. Most frequently they would "drown" Kupala doll in the water or burn it ritually, and similar practice was common to the former neighbours of the Slavs – the Celts. Kupalo could therefore have been of female gender as well, that is, this deity could have had the name Kupala. Was it really a deity or just the spirit of the solstice is the question we still have no answer to. Slavic custom of ritual bathing is described in The Book of Veles, the authenticity of which is still a matter of dispute. On the plate number 14 of The Book of Veles one of the authors says: "We wash our bodies and our spirit in the pure living water". Text on the plate number 25 says something similar: "And Kupalo sends us the message that we have to be an army of pure bodies and souls. And so we follow the footsteps of he who is our protector in a righteous fight". We can see from all this how much attention the Slavs were devoting to the purity of body and soul, and how much their behaviour was influenced by a strict moral code. This kind of attitude is closely connected with the Slavs' Aryan origin, since the old Vedans had a similar view of the world and performed similar cleansing rituals.
We hope that Kupalo's role in Slavic spiritual world is now somewhat better explained. Slavic system of spiritual values cannot be fully understood if we do not take into consideration the significance the Slavs attached to spiritual and bodily purification. Due to that, we can think of Kupalo primarily as a symbol of the Slavs' striving for spiritual and moral purity, which makes the problem his divine status, his gender or his traditional origin less significant for the research into and analysis of Slavic religious feeling.
The bolded is very interesting considering how everyone loves to pair Dany and Jon together. Kostroma and Kupalo--twin brother and sister separated at birth who are forced to marry one another due to a ritual custom, learn that they are indeed siblings and are therefore cursed by the gods to die.
Kostroma - Goddess of Bonfires (she dies and is burned in a bonfire to bring life and fertility to the ground every year)
Kostroma (Russian: Кострома́) is an East Slavic fertility goddess. Her name is derived from костёр (kosteor), Russian word for bonfire.
The rites of Semik were devoted to her. During this festival a disguised girl or a straw figure portrayed Kostroma. First, a scarecrow was honored and revered. Then, participants of the rite mourned the death of Kostroma, and burned or tore the scarecrow. Rituals with Kostroma were aimed at improving soil fertility.
The scarecrow of Kostroma is part of East Slavic folklore.
Kostroma is definitely Dany and her role since the end of AGOT.
Thinking on this more, this sounds like part of the inspiration more for Jaime & Cersei (especially as I do more research) than for Jon & Dany. After all, Jaime's most important scene (and the truth) comes out during a Bath, and Cersei's most likely going to burn down King's Landing.
Also, the kind of stuff Kostroma is depicted as wearing as ceremonial garb for her funeral, is quite close to what Cersei is wearing when she meets Jaime in the White Sword Tower at the end of ASOS.
From Persian Mythology, Simurgh - Simurgh was a flying creature that had the head of a dog and the claws of a lion. And was the foster mother to an albino Persian hero.
In Persian mythology the Simurgh, or Simorgh, was the name given to a benevolent, mythical avian creature which today can be found in all periods of Greater Iranian art and literature as well as the iconography of medieval Armenia, Byzantium and other regions that were within the sphere of Iranian cultural influence. In Iranian art the Simurgh is depicted as a winged creature in the shape of a bird, gigantic enough to carry off an elephant and even a whale. It usually appears in the form of a peacock with copper colored feathers, the head of a dog and the claws of a lion; however it is sometimes depicted with a more human face.
Almost also depicted as female, Iranian legend considers the Simurgh so old that it has seen the destruction of the world three times over and has learned so much in its long life that it is thought to possess the knowledge of all the ages. In one legend the Simurgh was said to live 1700 years before plunging itself into flames, similar to the legend of the phoenix. The Simurgh was said to purify the land and waters and bestow fertility, it represented the union between earth and sky, serving as mediator between the two.
The Simurgh is thought to have originally roosted in Gaokerena, the Tree of Life, which stood in the middle of the world sea, Vounukhasa. The tree was said to house the seeds of all plant life on earth and when the Simorgh took flight from its branches its leaves shook causing the seeds of these plant to fall out. These seeds were then said to have floated around the world on the winds of Vayu-Vata and the rains of Tishtrya, eventually taking root to become the many forms of plant life we know today.
The mythical Simurgh made one of its most famous appearances in Ferdowo�s epic Shahname, the Book of Kings, where its involvement with Prince Zal was described. According to Shahname, Prince Zal, the son of mythical Persian hero Saam, was born as an albino. When Saam first laid eyes upon his son he thought the child a spawn of devils and abandoned the infant on the mountain Alborz. The cries of the child carried to the ears of the Simurgh, who lived on the mountain�s peak, the mighty bird then retrieved the child and raised him as her own.
Zal was taught much wisdom from the all knowing Simurgh, but the time soon came when the young Zal would grow into a man and wish to rejoin the human race. Though Simurgh was deeply saddened by the departure of Zal she gifted him with a single golden feather which he was to burn if he ever needed her assistance. Upon returning to his kingdom, Zal fell in love and married the beautiful Rudaba. When it came time for their first child to be born Rudaba�s labor was prolonged and terrible, Zal was convinced that his wife would die in labor, as she neared death Zal decided to summon Simurgh. Simurgh appeared upon the burning of the golden feather and instructed Zal how to perform a cesarean section, thus saving Rudaba�s life and the life of their son, who became one of the greatest Persian heroes, Rostam.
Perhaps Leaf had a hand in looking after Bloodraven? Especially after Melissa Blackwood was supplanted by the second Bracken mistress.
Also, a depiction of Belobog (opposite of Chernobog) has a winged wolf as well as a companion:
Belobog is the Slavic god of light and the sun, he is the polar opposite of Chernobog, the black god. He is often depicted as an old man dressed in white, with a white beard and staff. He is known only to appear during the daytime.
Chernobog is a Slavic deity, whose name means black god, about whom much has been speculated but little can be said definitively. The only historical sources, which are Christian ones, interpret him as a dark, accursed god, but it is questionable how important (or evil) he was really considered to be by ancient Slavs.
Chernobog (as interpreted by Disney in their Night on Bald Mountain portion of Fantasia):
An artist's rendition of Chernobog & Belobog - who do battle with one another.
And yet another artist's rendition of the two figures above:
And because I can't help but be amazed at the talented artists. This one has a subtitle of them being gods of light and dark:
Svarog is a Slavic deity known primarily from the Hypatian Codex, a Slavic translation of the Chronicle of John Malalas. Svarog is there identified with the Greek God Hephaestus, and as the father of Dažbog, a Slavic solar deity. On the basis of this text, some researchers conclude that Svarog is the Slavic god of celestial fire and of blacksmithing.