Page:The Mythology of All Races Vol 3 (Celtic and Slavic).djvu/352

230 cottage in the shape of a fly, sitting down, from time to time, upon the stove and witnessing the lamentations of the mourners as well as the preparations for the funeral; and in the courtyard it hovers around as a bird. That the soul of the dead might suffer neither hunger nor thirst, various kinds of food or drink were put into the coffin or the grave; and besides other presents, small coins were given to the deceased, thus enabling him to buy a place of his own beyond the tomb. At the banquet celebrated after the burial a part of the meal was put aside for the soul, which, though invisible, was partaking of the feast; and during the first night after the funeral the soul returned to the house to see it once more and to refresh itself. Accordingly a jug of water was placed under the icons, and on the following day it was inspected to ascertain whether the soul had drunk or not, this practice sometimes being continued for six weeks. In Bulgaria the head of the grave is sprinkled with wine the day after the funeral, in order that the soul may not feel thirsty; while in Russia and in other Slav countries wheat is strewn or food is put upon the place of burial.

For forty days the soul dwells on earth, seeking for places which the deceased used to frequent when alive; it enters his own house or those of other persons, causing all sorts of trouble to those who had been enemies to the departed, and it is either invisible or else appears in the form of an animal. Bulgarian tradition speaks of the soul as approaching the body on the fortieth day, trying to enter it and to live anew; but being frightened by the disfigured and decaying corpse, it flies away into the world beyond the grave. The belief that the soul remains for forty days in the places where it had lived and worked is universal among the Slavs. According to Russian tradition it then flies upward to the sun, or the moon, or the stars, or else it wanders away into forests, or waters, or mountains, or clouds, or seas, etc.

The souls of the deceased often appear as jack-o'-lanterns