Book of Veles


The Book of Veles is a literary forgery purporting to be a text of ancient Slavic religion and history supposedly written on wooden planks.
It contains what purport to be historical accounts interspersed with religious passages - some of a didactic, moralising character. The book refers to supposed events, the earliest of which would, if real, be datable to around the 7th century BC while the latest would have occurred around the 9th century AD.
The book was allegedly discovered in 1919 and lost in 1941. It is widely believed by scholars to be a forgery made in the 1940s–1950s, or less likely, in the early 19th century. The most decisive evidence for this is the language of the text, which is a mixture of different modern Slavic languages, with erroneous and invented linguistic forms and no regular grammar. Moreover, different modern editions of the book have different versions of the text. Regardless, some Slavic neopagans use it as a sacred text.

Authenticity

Most of the scholars that specialize in the field of mythological studies and Slavic linguistics consider it a forgery. According to these scholars the thorough analysis of the book shows that it was written sometime in the 20th century. The history of the book can be reliably traced only as far as the mid-1950s, when the transcribed book and the photograph of one of the planks first appeared in a San Francisco-based, Russian émigré newspaper. Several scholars believe that the entire book is a product of collaboration of the editors of this newspaper and Yuriy Mirolyubov, who later claimed to have found the book. Others believe that either the entire book or the only plank available, were forged in the early 19th century by the Russian collector and forger Alexander Sulakadzev.
The book is written in a language using for the most part Slavic roots and different affixes found also in old East Slavic. Consequently, a large part of the book's text, once transcribed into a modern alphabet, is readable by modern speakers of Slavic languages. However, professional linguists and historians, particularly the specialists in ancient Slavic, question many features of its language — vocabulary, spelling, phonetics, grammar, etc. These features seem to indicate that the text was artificially "aged" by someone with superficial knowledge of ancient Slavic, and cannot be adequately translated because of lack of any consistent grammar system. In the words of the philologist O.V. Tvorogov:
In Ukraine, whereas scholars agree that the book is a hoax, it became very popular among politicians who consider it genuine and believe it describes real historical facts relevant for establishing Ukrainian ethnicity. In particular, Levko Lukyanenko cited the Book of Veles as historical. In 1999, the book was included in the high school program in Ukraine as a genuine literary and historical piece. Whereas the inclusion was considered controversial in academic circles, the book remained on the program as of 2008.

Purported description

History of the book's discovery according to Mirolyubov

In 1919, a lieutenant of the White Russian Army, Fedor Arturovich Izenbek, found a bunch of wooden planks written in strange script in a looted mansion of Kurakins near Kharkiv. After the defeat of the Army, Isenbeck emigrated to Belgrade, where in 1923 he unsuccessfully tried to sell the planks to the Belgrade library and museum. In 1925 he settled in Brussels, where he gave the planks to Yuriy Mirolyubov, who was the first to study them seriously. Izenbek treated the planks very carefully, did not allow them to be taken out of his house and refused a suggestion by a professor of University of Brussels to hand them over for studying. Later this refusal to permit others to study these texts would lead people to suspect them as forgeries.
For fifteen years Mirolyubov restored, photographed, transcribed and finally translated the text. He managed to transcribe most of the planks.
In August 1941 Nazi Germany occupied Brussels, Izenbek died and the planks were lost. Mirolyubov emigrated to the United States and passed the materials in 1953 to professor A. A. Kurenkov who then published them in the magazine Zhar-Ptitsa from March 1957 until May 1959. Later the text was studied by Sergey Paramonov.

Planks

The planks were alleged to be 38 cm wide, 22 cm in height and about 0.5 cm thick. The edges and surfaces of the planks are uneven and near the top there are two holes for joining the planks. The text is carved into the planks and later covered with some coloring. Text alignment lines are drawn across the planks and the tops of letters are aligned with these lines. The text is written below the lines, rather than above. The size and shape of the letters are different, suggesting that more than one person wrote the text. Some planks were partially or mostly rotten.

Contents

According to the Book of Veles, in the 10th century BC, pre-Slavic tribes lived in the "land of seven rivers beyond the sea". The book describes the migration of the Slavs through Syria and eventually into the Carpathian mountains, during the course of which they were briefly enslaved by the king "Nabsur". They settled in the Carpathian Mountains in the 5th century BC. Several centuries appear to pass without much commotion. The 4th century is described in some detail: during this time the Slavs fought a number of wars with the Goths, Huns, Greeks, and Romans. Many references to Ermanaric and his relatives are present. The Slavs eventually emerged victorious. The period of the 5th to 9th centuries is described briefly; Khazars and Bulgars are mentioned.
The book ends with the Slavic lands descending into disarray and falling under Norman rule.

Excerpts

Plank 2/B

We were forced to retreat to woods and live as hunters and fishermen. So we could

get away from danger. We survived one darkness and started to build cities

and houses everywhere. After the second darkness there was great frost and we moved

to south for many places there were grassy... and then Romei were taking our cattle

at a good price and were true to their word. We went

''to southern... greengrassland and had a lot of cattle...''

From Plank 7/A

''Enemies are not as numerous as we are, for we are Rus' and they are not.''

Plank 11/A

We pray and bow to the first Triglav and to him we sing a great glory.

We praise Svarog, grandfather of gods who is to whole gods' kin forefather

and creator of everything living, eternal spring that flows in the summer

and everywhere and in winter and never it freezes. And with that living water he nourishes

and life gives to us until we reach the blessed fields of paradise. And to god Perun, the thunderer, god of battle and fight we say:

"You hold us in life by neverending turning of the circle and lead to path

of Prav through battles to Great Trizna". And all who got killed in the battle -

may they live forever in the Perun's regiment. To god Svetovid glory we

are exalting for he is the god of Prav and Jav and to him we sing the song for he is the light

with which we see the world. We are looking and in Jav we are, and he from Nav

guards us and therefore praise we sing him. We sing and dance to him and call

god of ours to Earth, Sun and stars constantly in light keeps.

And glory all to Svetovid, god of ours that

hearts ours opens for us to admit bad deeds ours

and to good we turn. May he hug us like children for this has been said:

what is created with half of the mind could not be seen,

for it is a great secret how can Svarog be at the same time both Perun and Svetovid.

Two beings in skies Belobog and Crnobog are

And both of them Svarog holds and commands them.

''After them come Hors, Veles and Stribog and then Visenj, Lelj and Letic.''

From Plank 26/B

...As time passes, we come to the blue river as time ours

is not endless. There we meet

forefathers our and mothers that in Svarga herds are grazing and trusses

fastening. Their life is just as ours, only there are no Huns nor

''Greeks...''

From Plank 16 (sample text)

First two lines, literal text:
влескнигусіуптщемокіуншемоукіекоестепрібезищасіла

воноіврмѣноібяменжякоібяблгадблѣіжерщенбящотцврсі
Probable spacing :
влескнигу сіу птщемо кіу ншемо у кіе ко есте прібезища сіла.

во ноі врмѣноі бя менж якоі бя блга дблѣ іже рщен бящ отц врсі.

'
Modern Russian interpretation:
Велесову книгу эту посвящаем богу нашему, который есть наше прибежище и сила.

В оные времена был муж, который был благ и доблестен, и назван был отцом тиверцев.

'
Translation into English:
''This book of Veles we dedicate to our god, in whom is refuge and strength. In those years there was a man, who was good and valiant, and was called the father of Tiverians.''

Influence

Soviet era

The Book of Veles is used as a source for various pseudo-historical ideas; a large number of fake publications are based on it - works in which the fake is considered by the authors of these works as a reliable source. Large-scale production and active dissemination of counterfeits and their propaganda and advertising in the media introduce scientifically designed false information into the public consciousness. Such pseudo-historical ideas also influence the educational and research process through secondary, secondary specialized, and higher educational institutions and the scientific environment by issuing educational and methodological literature, which includes the Book of Veles without scientific commentary or recommends it for study as a historical monument. Secondary education is most susceptible to the expansion of this falsified information due to the lack of a unified school curriculum. In particular, there is a replacement of textbooks and teaching aids for fake publications.
The Book of Veles is mentioned in the 1971 program article Vityazi by the Soviet poet Igor Kobzev, who was fond of Russian paganism and contrasted it with Christianity, which allegedly caused irreparable harm to the original Russian culture. The article was directed against the distortions of the Russian language and Russian history by some ill-wishers, while, according to Kobzev, "the Russian people, like the Russian language, have infinitely deep roots that go back to the foggiest distances of millennia." In 1977, Kobzev demanded the publication of the texts of the Book of Veles and, in 1982, published poetic "translations" of its passages.
The controversy in the USSR around the Book of Veles began with an article by neo-pagan authors Valery Skurlatov and N. Nikolayev, published in 1976 in the popular weekly newspaper Nedelya. These authors argued that the work allegedly represents a "mysterious chronicle," allowing a fresh look at the time of the emergence of Slavic writing, revising scientific ideas about ethnogenesis, the level of social development, and the mythology of the Slavs. Also in 1976, Nedelya published rave reviews about the Book, including accusations against persons who allegedly sought to "dismiss" readers and writers from an outstanding work by silence.
Ideas from the Book, such as Prav-Yav-Nav, were used by one of the founders of Russian neo-paganism, Valery Yemelyanov. In 1967, Emelyanov defended his Ph.D. thesis at the Higher Party School. A good knowledge of the Arabic language and the peculiarities of the service allowed him to get extensive contacts in the Arab world, including the most senior officials. From these sources, he drew his understanding of "Zionism." In the 1970s, Yemelyanov wrote the book Dezionization, first published in 1979 in Arabic in Syria in the Al-Baʽath newspaper at the behest of Syrian President Hafez al-Assad. Dezionization tells of the ancient civilization of the "Aryans-Veneti," the only autochthons of Europe, who lived in harmony with nature and created the first alphabet but were defeated by the Jews-"Zionists", hybrids of criminals of different races, created by Egyptian and Mesopotamian priests. Since then, the world has been doomed to the eternal struggle of two forces - nationalist patriots and "Talmudic Zionists".
According to Yemelyanov, a powerful tool in the hands of "Zionism" is Christianity, allegedly created by the Jews specifically to enslave other peoples. Many of Yemelyanov's ideas have become widespread in Slavic neo-paganism and the Russian far-right environment. Some of Yemelyanov's ideas from Dezionization were directly borrowed by the writer Yuri Sergeev. Under the influence of Yemelyanov, several marker terms entered the fantastic and parascientific literature about the ancient Slavs, the mention of which indicates to those in the know that they are talking about a specific ideology but allows them to avoid accusations of antisemitism or racism: "Scorched camp" ; "Siyan Mountain" ; "Rusa Salem" ; steppe ancestors who traveled throughout Eurasia in ancient times; Khazaria as a parasitic state, etc.
The writer Yuri Sergeyev proposed publishing the Book of Veles in the USSR, which caused a public discussion about this text in the autumn-winter of 1987-1988 on the pages of the weekly journal Book Review. In response, the philologist Nikolai Bogomolov explained the reasons for the inappropriateness of promoting a fake text and showed the complexity of studying Slavic mythology and the need for its critical scientific analysis. An interview was published with the linguist Lidiya Zhukovskaya, who, in a popular form, outlined the arguments for the falseness of the Book of Veles.