A Slavic Native Faith Eco-Activism Ritual Honoring the Goddesses Velika Šumska Majka (“Great Forest Mother”) and Devana with Circle of Rodu

 No matter where we live, whether the environment we inhabit is urban, rural, or somewhere in between, and regardless of whether or not we directly partake in agricultural production to feed ourselves and our communities, we have a duty, a sacred charge, to act as stewards of the land. As Starhawk reminds us, “The environment is not an afterthought: it’s the ground of economy, security and survival. Environmental protection, environmental justice and regeneration must be our top priorities, because they are the only sound foundation for every other endeavor.” 1

 

The climate crisis is a call to rebirth. We cry out in pain and fear and it is our Mother Who does hear us.

 

This ritual in the Slavic Native Faith tradition, hosted by the Illinois-based inclusive Rodnovery group known as the Circle of Rodu, asks that the human participants compose an oath or agreement, in writing, declaring service to the earth in the names and under the holy tutelage of the Slavic Powers Velika Šumska Majka—the Great Forest Mother—and the wild Devana, Goddess of the Hunt and Mistress of Beasts.

 

The Great Forest Mother, in Serbian folk belief, is aware of us humans and of our
ongoing encroachment into Her realm. Yet despite our hubristic notion and our eco-
cidal actions as a species that we are apart from Nature, Velika Šumska Majka reminds
us that we are, in fact, a part of it: The totality of the Slavic cosmology shows us that All
That Is IS Nature. Nothing is beyond Nature. We are not. The multi-verses are not. This
reminder is a powerful lesson Velika Šumska Majka teaches us.

This ecstatic Slavic Native Faith ritual will utilize chanting, drumming, singing,
and circle dance (kolo) to raise energy with the results bearing fruit in loving devotion to
these Goddesses as well as in deep personal and communal transformation.

The oath or written covenant will require careful thought by each celebrant well
in advance of the ritual. Meditate on the concept of environmental activism and the level
of involvement you know you can and will realistically commit yourself to. Truly, there’s
no shortage of vital work that needs to be done by each and every one of us! Thank the
Gods because we have the skills, we have the will: what remains is for us to call upon
our Holy Powers connected to us in the intricately woven tapestry of Rodu to aid,
inspire, empower us and hold us accountable for our actions! Slava Rodu!

Please bring a food item or libation to share in the potluck feasting afterwards.
Suggested donation of $10 – $20 per person but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

1 Starhawk. “Meltdown Strategies: A Few Short Lists.” October 9, 2008.
https://starhawk.org/permaculture/meltdown-strategies/. Accessed August 26, 2024.

About Circle of Rodu:
Founded in 2024 by Chicago native and first-generation Serbian American Anna
Urošević Applegate, the Circle of Rodu is an inclusive fellowship of Slavic Native Faith and Dual-Faith believers, whether they’re of Slavic heritage or not. It is a Slavic Reconstructionist religious tradition for folks committed to resurrecting, reinterpreting, reviving and modifying Polytheistic, animistic, and syncretic traditions that are indigenously Slavic and that can be respectfully adapted by believers in the Slavic
Powers—throughout the Diaspora and beyond.

About Anna Urošević Applegate:
Anna is a proud Queer daughter of Serbian immigrant parents and a native of
Chicago. She is legally ordained Pagan clergy in the Fellowship of Isis. She holds an M.A.
in English from Loyola University Chicago and is the author of Slava! Slavic Paganism
and Dual-Faith Folk Ways (Llewellyn Publishing, 2026). She is the founder of The
Circle of Rodu.