Ritam Srbije / Rhythm of Serbia
Holographic mythical creatures Meet the dragons and fairies of Golubac
Tu drugu verziju zaštitnice priro- de, ali i dojilja i siročića, odliku- je haljina od lišća, rogozi, cveća, grančica... Međutim, tu se mašta naroda ne zaustavlja, pa Muma može da bude i životinja ako joj se prohte ili to zahtevaju okolnosti. Ta dva bića, Golubački zmaj i Majka Priroda, što je Muma Pa- duri u prevodu sa vlaškog jezi- ka, domaćini su gostima Muzeja koji ima još jednu neobičnu ka- rakteristiku. Naime, ovaj kutak je pokretan, te će moći da putu- je Srbijom, ali i u druge države. Na putovanja će krenuti i Rusal- ke, obavezan deo golubačkog ho- logramskog programa, kao i slo- venske mitologije. – Rusalke su vodene vile, zlo- česte, koje iz čiste zabave mame ljude i zadaju im zagonetke, a one koji netačno odgovore ubijaju gla- snim smehom. Uvek su prelepe i uvek riđokose. Običaj im je da no- ću igraju kolo na poljanama po- kraj reka i potoka – kaže Petković. One su korisne samo tokom Rusalne nedelje, koja pada posle hrišćanskog praznika Duhova. Ta- da, ukoliko je suša, znaju da iz oblaka izmame kišu, ali samo pod uslovom da tih dana zemljorad- nici i vinogradari ne rade ništa, već se odmaraju. U suprotnom, letina je u velikoj opasnosti od gneva Rusalki. Kutak golubačkih mitskih i fantastičnih bića zapravo je još jedna od atrakcija tog gradića na Dunavu, nastao zahvaljujući pro- jektu Turističke organizacije i Na- rodne biblioteke „Veljko Dugoše- vić“ iz Golupca. Podršku projektu je pružila Evropska unija zajed- no sa nemačkom vladom u okvi- ru projekta „EU za kulturno na- sleđe i turizam“. Da Golubački zmaj, Muma Pa- duri i vile Rusalke budu u skladu sa narodnom maštom, postarao se akademski slikar Igor Krstić, dok im je hologramsku dušu udah- nuo Nikola Silić, producent i 3D animator. A za autentičnost le- gendi, mitova i tradicije na pro- storu Golupca i okoline zadužen je etnolog Aleksandar Repedžić.
Provided the old Slavic god Veles permits, and he ensures everything is just right for the people, a section of “Mythical and fantastical creatures” will open at Golubac this November
Dragon and Mother of Nature, which is how Muma Paduri is translated from the Vlach/Aromanian language, serve as hosts to the guests of the Museum, which has one more pe- culiar characteristic. This section is transportable and will be able to travel throughout Serbia, but also to other countries. Heading on this journey will also be Rusalka, as an obligatory part of the Golubac hologram pro- gramme, but also of Slavic mythology. “The Rusalkas are demonic wa- ter fairies, who purely for amusement lure people and pose riddles for them to solve, and those who answer in- correctly are killed with loud laugh- ter. They are always extremely beau- tiful and red-haired. They have the custom of dancing kolo during the night, in meadows located beside riv- ers and streams,” explains Petković. They are only useful during Rusal Week, which falls after the Christian holiday of All Souls’ Day. If there is a dry spell at that time, they are capa- ble of enticing rain to fall from the clouds, but only on condition that farmers and winegrowers do noth- ing other than rest during those days. Failure to do so places the harvest in great danger from the wrath of the Rusalkas. The Golubac Mythical and Fan- tastical Creatures section is actual- ly another attraction of this small town on the Danube, which emerged thanks to a project of the Tourist Or- ganisation and the National Library in Golubac. The project received sup- port from the European Union and the German Federal Government. Ensuring that the look of the Gol- ubac dragon, Muma Paduri and the Rusalka demon fairies aligns with the way they are imagined by the people is artist Igor Krstić, while producer and 3D animator Nikola Silić was tasked with breathing life into their holo- graphic soul. Ensuring the authentic- ity of legends, myths and traditions on the territory of Golubac and the surrounding area was entrusted to ethnologist Aleksandar Repedžić.
This November, on the site of the unforgettable Golubac Fortress , a dragon and the fairies Muma Paduri and Rusalka will appear in front of the public, in a 3D animation format, presenting to the ordinary eye the light and dark sides of ordinarily in- visible spaces. These beings, long ago imagined as a way of bringing the phenomena of nature closer to the people, will become very conspicu- ous here – as holograms. The dragon is blue, as the protec- tor of the Danube, but also good-na- tured, ancient and wise, given that it has been watching over our capri- cious world since time immemorial. As a resident of the lands that used to be inhabited by the South Slavs, he is gifted with the power to transform himself, which only dragons from this region are able to do. “According to tradition, dragons sometimes turn into people – heroes, testifying to which are the legends of the medieval knight Miloš Obilić or prince Marko Kraljević. The bravery of Despot Vuk Branković earned him the nickname “Fiery Dragon”, while similar characteristics led to Stojan Čupić, one of the most important gen- erals of the First Serbian Uprising, being given the moniker the Dragon of Noćaj,” explains writer Miloš Pet- ković, author of the lines spoken by these beings of light, which are de- scribed as such because a hologram is actually an illusion created by the interference of infrared or some oth- er light beams. The Golubac dragon was a gigan- tic carp for the first 200 years of its fic- tional existence, living in whirlpools, as Petković adds. By transforming in- to a dragon, he gained wings instead of gills and thus ruled the skies. “Our ancestors believed that the dragon al-
so appeared as a shooting star, i.e., as a comet tail,” notes Petković. And yet, people today often don’t know the difference between a zmaj, an ala and an aždaja [mythical creatures of- ten all described as dragons], so that will all be cleared up for them by the Golubac hologram, by claiming that the dragon [zmaj] is essentially good, while the other mythical creatures are capable of being evil and doing vari- ous devilish deeds. The people also aren’t entire- ly certain when it comes to Muma Paduri [Mother of the Forest], with some confusing her with the Fairy Ravijojla, a supposed resident of the nearby mountain of Miroč. However, Ravijojla is a simple seductress, who likes bathing naked in the waves of the Danube, while, according to pop- ular belief, Muma Paduri is her po- lar opposite. Elderly and hideous, she is a protector of nature and doesn’t shy away from intimidating any man who intends to harm a plant or an- imal. However, she also helps peo- ple who have noble qualities, creat- ing healing potions when required. If some well-intentioned person los- es their way in the forest, Muma Pa- duri will help them get back on track, walking in front of them and always leaning on the staff that represents her trademark. Another section of the people be- lieve that Muma Paduri is a stunning- ly beautiful young girl, thus confusing her with Ravijoila. This second version of the protector of nature, but also of nursing mothers and orphans, is char- acterised by her dress made of leaves, rushes, flowers, twigs etc. However, the fantastical imaginings of the peo- ple don’t end there, as Muma can also appear as an animal if she wants to or is required to by the circumstances. These two creatures, the Golubac
Rusalke su vodene vile, zločeste, koje iz čiste zabave mame ljude i zadaju im zagonetke The Rusalkas are demonic water fairies, who purely for amusement lure people and pose riddles for them to solve
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