Stars in Slavic worldview
Deep conviction that fate of humans and fate of stars are entwined together was firmly in place among most if not all Slavic peoples. All the way until 20th century Slavic villagers from various regions would tell you that every person has their own star. It appears in the sky on the day of their birth and falls from heavens when they die. If a person moved or travelled far away from home their star would follow them in the skies, dwelling among strange foreign constellations. Heroes, rulers and people of great influence have big and bright stars, while the stars of unproductive and weak people tend to be small and flickering. „Takava mu je zvezdata” („So is his star”) goes Bulgarian saying which means „that’s what is fated to him”. You could also hear „silna mu je zvezdata” („his star is strong”) or perhaps, about a sickly child „to je slabó zvezdo!” („that’s a weak star!”). In many Slavic languages people who do particularly well for themselves are said to be „born under a lucky star”.
Meteor rains were sometimes considered souls of warriors, that fell in some bloody battle playing out on Earth in that very moment. In many regions of Poland, Belarus and Ukraine a single falling star was believed to be a soul of unbaptized child, and women of those lands could be caught naming them and bidding them warm farewell to ensure the peace of their soul in the afterlife.
This profound connection between human souls and stars could be used by malevolent witches wishing to cause harm to someone. To kill a person witch would seek out their star, take it off the sky and throw it into a well to extinguish it.
On the other hand in some parts of Western Russia, Belarus, Serbia, Croatia and Bulgaria falling stars were viewed as zmeys (Slavic dragons), flying by to visit their human lover or bring new riches back to a hidden home. A particular Belarusian belief has it that falling stars are actually charts flying to bring their witch wives gold and grain. If you find the place where the star lands you can also find the witch and her hoard.
Sources:
„Kultura Ludowa Słowian, Zeszyt Drugi, Kultura Duchowa” by K. Moszyński
„Religia Słowian” by Andrzej Szyjewski
„Balkan Traditional Witchcraft” by Radomir Ristic
art: V. Korolkov “Noc”
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