Forest Prayers With Russia's Polytheistic Mari
The Mari people of central Russia speak a distinct language and practice a separate religion from their Christian neighbors. Photographer Sergei Poteryaev and reporter Regina Khisamova attended a traditional prayer ceremony in one of the sacred forest groves of the Mari El Republic.
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The Mari visit sacred forest groves on holidays and days of prayer.
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Every five years, Mari from the whole region gather in one village for a fall prayer. In November 2016, the gathering took place in the Shurnoto grove, near the village of Tumyumuchash.
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There are thought to be about 400 sacred groves where the Mari people worship. This one is marked by a sign pointing the way to the grove, or Kusoto.
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Believers set out gifts for the gods: bread, pancakes, poultry, grain, and money. Some of the food is kept as an offering, and the rest is eaten by the worshipers.
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Five bonfires are dedicated to specific gods and set in fire pits by sacred trees.
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Food is prepared in cauldrons over the bonfires. Cooks carve up ducks and geese, throw their bones in the fire, and add the meat to the cauldrons.
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Tum Jumo is the primary god in the Mari religion. He is depicted as a white-bearded old man.
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The Mari priests, known as Karts, wear white hats as they oversee the rituals.
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Large cauldrons are suspended over the fire pits.
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Most of the Mari who come to pray are middle-aged or older. Some members of the community say that young people are not interested in practicing their traditions.
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Cooks prepare dumplings from the blood of sacrificed animals mixed with grain.
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Women carve the meat and cook the dumplings while men tend the fires. It's forbidden to chop down the trees in the sacred grove, so firewood is brought from elsewhere.
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After preparing the food, Mari pray to the gods, moving from one fire to another to speak to different deities.
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Trees are believed to connect the world of people with the cosmos, and to host the gods while the Mari pray.
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Offerings of food and coins
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Karts, the Mari priests, lead the prayers.
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People pray by the bonfire of the primary god, Tum Jumo.
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After about an hour of prayers, the feast begins.
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Mari walk around the grove and eat the dishes prepared in the cauldrons.
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Only those people who speak the Mari language are allowed to participate in the prayers. The language, part of the Finno-Ugric group, is spoken by some 400,000 people in the Mari El Republic.
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After the prayer and the feast, the Mari return to their villages. The next large prayer gathering will take place in the summer.