photo: Plamen Petkov / Bulgarian
The Thracian religion is entirely organized around the worship of the Sun. The main source for the worship of the Thracians is the ancient Roman writer Ambrose Theodosius Macrobius (XNUMXth century AD) with his work "Saturnalia". It is clear that the Thracians worshiped the Sun during the day as Apollo, and at night as Dionysus. Apollo (the rising sun) is the light, and Dionysus (the setting sun) is the darkness. The main Thracian deity has a dual character, it is two-faced: Apollo - Dionysus, light - darkness, youth - old age.
The largest known sanctuary of the Thracians from the Bulgarian lands is located near the town of Malko Tarnovo. Macrobius reports that this is the sanctuary of the Ligrians (a Thracian tribe), where the Thracians received the predictions of their priests. The predictions are made during the cult rites, bacchanalia, in which the interpreters (priests) drink a large amount of wine. During the festive nights, the bacchanalia, celebrated every two years, put on sheepskins and danced with sawdust (long sticks with cones on top) in honor of Dionysus. The Thracians also called their god Sabazios (Apollo and Dionysus in one) and celebrated him "with great religiosity." This happens on the mountain peak Zalmisos, located in the vicinity of today's town of Malko Tarnovo.
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There rises a sanctuary with a round shape and a roof with an opening in the middle. The goal is to reveal the universe to interpreters through this opening so that they can make their divinations. The sanctuary is both a round temple of fire and a heroine (sanctuary of a mythical hero - forerunner). It extends over a sacred space (temenos) with a diameter of 30 - 33 m, limited by a high fence (crepe). It is believed that whatever animal enters it will die immediately. In this sacred enclosed space rises the great and beautiful sanctuary of the supreme Thracian god. It is celebrated on the day of its feast, when sacrifices are made.
The priests of the Thracian god predict according to the blood of a previously torn sacrificial animal. Probably the ritual was accompanied by human sacrifice. The rift recreates the myth of Orpheus (Dionysus Zagreus), who is torn to pieces by the Titans while in the form of a bull. As Alexander Fol suggests, the role of a priestess-prophetess is played by a virgin, the bearer of pure will, who "merged the sun with the earthly beginning." This priestess is based on the idea of the Great Mother Goddess, the king's sister - Orphic. "The Orthodox hypostasis of this image is Saint Marina, patron of the cult of fire."
The sanctuary foretells the annual fertility. If the year is going to be fertile - the god sends a great light to illuminate everything around. If it will be infertile - darkness is spreading around the temple.
Petar Delev believes that in the area of Mishkova Niva in Antiquity there was an ancient mining and metallurgical settlement, with an adjacent mound necropolis. The inscriptions dedicated to Apollo Avlarioc, Heracles and the tablets with images of a Thracian horseman found in the same area should belong to this settlement. Undoubtedly, in the region of Malko Tarnovo and during the Roman era there is a sanctuary of Dionysus with a priestly association organized for him (Dionysus Society). This is evidenced by the currently initiated initiations (the epitaph of the Cross and the inscription of Aurelius Dionysius Themis).
photo: Plamen Petkov / Bulgarian
Experts point out that the cult facility in Mishkova Niva has undergone evolution, passing through the first construction period, in which it is a megalithic monument (dolmen), in order to acquire a fence to its sacred space during the second construction period. The dating of the dolmen is the middle of the second millennium BC, and the temple, also used as a heroine, is from the XNUMXth - XNUMXth century BC. The entrance of the temple is decorated with a marble pediment depicting human palms, a shield and an arrow - all symbols of the Thracian cult of the sun.
photo: Plamen Petkov / Bulgarian
It should be clear that the sanctuary in question functioned even after the incorporation of the province of Thrace into the Roman Empire in the first century AD. Before its Christianization, the Roman Empire was known for its tolerance of the religions of its subordinate peoples. That is why the Thracian sanctuary in Mishkova niva not only survived, but developed and flourished during the Roman rule in Thrace.
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The cult complex in the area of Mishkova Niva near Malko Tarnovo is a monument of national importance. As Valeria Fol notes, this monument can become a business card of Bulgaria, because it is the first thing that every traveler coming from Istanbul or Edirne can see.
photo: Plamen Petkov / Bulgarian
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