The Rusalka by A_Sunbeam

Poser • Mythology • posted on Jul 28, 2013

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Description

In Slavic folklore, a Rusalka is a water spirit or water nymph, the soul of a murdered girl or woman. Rusalki appear as beautiful young women who try to lure men into the water, where they will drown them. Whenever people bathed in the lake they put fern in their hair so that the rusalka would not pull them under and drown them. The rusalka could also be found sitting in a tree, singing songs, or on a rock combing her hair. She could be seen with other rusalki in dancing in the fields. Though in some versions of the myth her eyes shine like green fire, others describe them as extremely pale, with no visible pupils, such as in the famous Ivan Bilibin drawing. Her hair is sometimes depicted as green, and often perpetually wet. Rusalki like to entice men with their singing and drown them. In some versions hearing her laugh can kill you.