Tradition / Region: Ukrainian Mythology
Alternate Names: Petrikov Mara
Category: Plant, Forest dweller
The Myth
The Petrykivka Mara is a strange and grotesque figure from the folklore of Eastern Polesia. Unlike many beings called mara in Slavic traditions—where the name usually refers to a dangerous or demonic entity—this mara is considered harmless, though deeply unsettling in appearance and presence.
She is described as resembling a thick, upright log or resinous stump, standing vertically on very short legs shaped like badger paws. Her body is massive and heavy-looking, while her legs are disproportionately small. She is always described as black in color. Though frightening to look at, she does not attack or harm people. At most, she startles children or causes confusion and fear, sometimes even becoming a hazard simply by standing in the way.
When the mara moves, she emits metallic sounds, compared to distant blows on a cast-iron cauldron. These noises announce her presence before she is fully seen. Despite her intimidating size, she is said to be terrified of children, reacting to them with fear rather than aggression.
In later times, the mara came to be represented as a straw scare figure, dressed in rags. In this form, she appears suddenly, stands motionless, or slowly follows people who are walking. She never commits any harmful act, but her presence is described as oppressive, filling those who encounter her with a heavy sadness, as if their heart were being clawed at and their soul weighed down.
One well-known story comes from the town of Petrikov, where during the summer months, at dawn each day, a mara appeared at the entrance to the town. She took the form of a log twice the height of a man, standing on short badger-like legs. She would remain motionless, moaning with a human voice, and vanish again at dawn. How the people eventually rid themselves of her is unknown.
The memory of this being lived on not only in stories but also in speech. A saying arose that later became a proverb. When someone is annoying or persistently clinging, people say:
“I’m tired of you like the Petrikov mara. Why are you clinging to me like the Petrikov mara? Get off me, Petrikov mara.”
In this way, the Petrykivka Mara remains in folklore as a figure of silent oppression and strange persistence, frightening not through violence, but through her unsettling presence alone.
Gallery
Sources
Bestiary.us contributors. (n.d.). Mara Petrikovskaya. In Bestiary.us, from https://www.bestiary.us/mara-petrikovskaya
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
- Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
- Jungian Deep Dive
Esoteric Deep Dive
- Hermetic Deep Dive
Political / Social Readings
- Marxist Deep Dive
Other
- How to Invite The Petrykivka Mara