Laima

Laima ( lett Laima, Laima mate, lit. Laime ) is in the Baltic mythology, the personification of fate and of happiness and unhappiness. It is frequently mentioned in the Daina, but often took under the influence of Christianity Broad St Mary.

Nature

Laima appears as the goddess of fortune, from the 17th century, often in documents. The Rev. Paul unicorn first described in detail:

" But privately but fürnemblich vo glorified by the female Gechlecht pregnant and child Better indoor and angeruffen Laima, that is, the Fortuna or goddess of fortune, because the same geholffen the parturient in child - Nöthen ... "

Laima determined on the fate of man from birth and also works particularly well in marriage, and death. She sits at the birth of the resume, looking for an appropriate spouse and discusses with the sky god Dievs who should die, but is always a different view from Dievs. As Bestimmerin about the hour of death can also be referred to as " Culler of men." In great distress Laima is accused, even cursed:

"I saw my Laima up to half in the water. If she were completely drowned, because of my tears! "

But no one can escape the Laima Laima and sometimes even crying over the hard fate of the people. At Laima directed prayers ask them for help in hard times, to assist them in injustice and to protect against accidents. The misfortune we sometimes referred to as Nelaime:

" Laima sits on the mountains, Nelaime in the valley. Throw, Laima, the Nelaime a stone in the back! "

In addition, Laima shall in particular also on the honor and morals of the young women she assigns the appropriate suitor. Laima also promotes women's fertility and cows, but also by fields.

Laima, Karta and DEKLA

In the folklore of the Baltic Laima be attributed sometimes two sisters Karta and declarative. It saw the earlier research erroneously the Baltic variant of the Indo-European three Fates, comparable to the Nordic Norns, the Roman Fates or the Greek Fates. But behind DEKLA the Christian saints St. Thecla. After Harald's Biezais Karta is a relatively young hypostasis of Laima, in its function as the one that " imposed " life.

In the neo-pagan Dievturi these three goddesses are worshiped as the three Laimas to indicate that we are dealing with the same goddess in three different forms.