Also called Zmora, Mara, Můra, Morava, Nocnitsa (related).
Their story
Across the Slavic lands the mora or zmora is a being who comes at night and sits on a sleeper's chest, pressing the breath out of them. She was often thought to be the wandering soul of a living woman, who might pass through a keyhole as a moth, a straw or a hair. In South Slavic lore, if you told her to come back in the morning for salt, the person who knocked asking for salt next day was the mora. The same root lies behind the English word nightmare.
Best times to give to them
- bedtime
- Koliada nights
What they like being given
- to keep her away, not to invite her: shoes set pointing away from the bed
- a promise to "come tomorrow for salt"
- a calm, clean bedroom
How to honour them
- Keep a calm bedtime routine and a tidy bedroom.
- If you wake frightened and unable to move, breathe slowly; sleep paralysis passes and is common.
How they can help you
- understanding nightmares
- sleep hygiene
- facing night fears
Symbols
- a weight on the chest
- a moth or straw (forms she takes)
- a knife or key by the bed
Modern readers link her to sleep paralysis; the belief is widespread and varies by region.
Sources
- Aleksander Gieysztor, Mitologia Słowian
- Š. Kulišić, P. Ž. Petrović and N. Pantelić, Srpski mitološki rečnik (1970)
- Oskar Kolberg, Lud
More Slavic beings
- Div The crying omen in the tree-top
- Vodyanoy The old man of the millpond
- Polevik The spirit of the fields
- Poludnitsa Lady Midday of the harvest fields
- Mavka Hollow-backed maiden of the Ukrainian woods
- Zmey Gorynych Many-headed dragon of the byliny
- Firebird The glowing bird of the golden apples
- Alkonost The bird of joy