To our delight we have had information that the Gods of Lithuania are alive and well, and being worshipped under the mantle of Romuva. Furthermore the habit has now spread to America. If you pore over ancient maps and peer into history books you will find Lithuania has always done its own thing. The last country in Europe to accept Christianity, Lithuania managed to keep its own language, not get pole-axed by the Poles, or be pushed out by Prussia. It still retained its own customs and identity, even as a republic of Russia. The boundaries once spread from the Baltic to the Black Sea, including the Ukraine and large chunks of Western Russia. So now you know.

CHERNOBOG: The Black God of Darkness. His opposite number is BYELOBOG, the White God of Goodness. The two of them are in eternal conflict.

BYELOBOG: White Good God of Light, Luck and Happiness. His opposite number is CHERNOBOG, the Black God of Evil. The two of them are in eternal conflict.

BOGATYRI: A band of Russian Superheroes who took on demons and monsters. Their number included ILYA-MUROMETS and MIKULA. Although mortal, they had various special powers such as super-strength, swiftness of foot, and bucketfuls of heroic pluck. Possibly also X-ray vision. Like a somewhat down-to-earth version of the Knights of the Round Table, they were a motley collection of farmers who were elevated to hero rank and starred in many celebrated dragon-busting tales. They were squeezed out by the Christians and now only the legends remain. You can read all about it in 'Why There Are No More Bogatyri In Holy Russia' — if you are into ancient Russian poetry and can find a copy.

BABA-YAGA: The Slavic Goddess of Death. She's a horror thriller killer diller — forget Godzilla. Check her out. She lives in a house built of human bones, complete with bone fence with inset skulls whose eye sockets light up in the dark. And it's a mobile home — it runs around supported on gigantic chicken legs. If this doesn't make you chicken out, her own eyes turn humans to stone, and her mighty mouth has knives for teeth. She can also pole herself around in a giant pestle and mortar which she also uses to grind up and unpetrify her victims. Coming soon to a forest near you.

YARILO: The handsome youthful God of Passion, Sex and Lust. He arrives on a white horse. Never mind the shining armour — it would only get in the way. Shining amour is more like it.

PERKUNAS: This is the Big P God. The Major All-encompassing Top Thunder God of all Slavic countries. He is the one in charge. He weilds an axe in a similar way to THOR, and it always returns when he throws it at demons. He is the King of the Skies even if his chariot is drawn by a billygoat. It is the Billy Goat Gruff of Goats, monumental and magnificent. We also have him listed under PERUN. A God like this can always be run past you again.

VODNIK: Water Demon from Russia. When a man or boy falls into a lake or pond and drowns, their spirit becomes a VODNIK. He's green, bloated, scary and very unfriendly. Unable to come to terms with his drowning, VODNIK takes it out on the rest of humanity. Don't go swimming in his pond — he'll grab your legs and pull you under to keep him company for the rest of eternity. We are told by those in the know that VODNIK can be appeased taking your cap off as you pass his pond. Say hello in a cheery respectful voice. If you don't have a cap, offer him a fish. If you don't have a fish, you may be in trouble as he will tear your fishing net to pieces.

VELES: God of Sheep and God of the Underworld. Now there's a strange combination. He started his career as a mix-and-match Warrior and Shepherd God. Did he fight sheep? Lead lambs to the slaughter? No, he protected flocks — and was liable to get quite assertive about it. As time went on, people began to depict him with the horns of a ram. This seemed to sum up his demeanor quite nicely. Meanwhile, it seems his down-to-earth nature had made him the ideal candidate for Underworld Management. Now this is the purest speculation, but we wonder if he shared the same fate as PAN when Christianity came along. You can just imagine the missionaries thinking: "hmm.. horns... associating with animals... lots of fighting... the Underworld... It's SATAN trying to disguise himself as a shepherd again."

ALKLHA: Enormous Dragon Monster who causes eclipses. He's so large that his outstretched wings can cover the entire sky. Luckily he appears to live at the other end of the Solar System and doesn't come by too often. He often chases after the sun and moon, swallowing them as a tasty treat. Which invariably leads to hiccups when he has to regurgitate. If you're ever worried about eclipses, the best thing to do is throw stones at the sky and try to scare him away.

DIEVAS: Lithuania Top Creator God. He is the source of all good things, including peace, friendship, flowers and cute little birdies. He also created humans — accidentally — from the little flecks of dirt that fell while washing his face. His brother VELNIAS is not nearly so clever, and tends to stomp around being evil instead. DIEVAS is almost identical to the Latvian DIEVS but not quite.

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