Ragana Baltic Goddess Of Witches
In Lithuanian and Latvian folklore, Ragana is the goddess of witches. Her name comes from the verb "regeti" which means to know, see and foresee. and the noun "ragas" meaning "horn" and "crescent". Her name implies that she "knows" and she "sees" and she is connected to the crescent moon, a common symbol of witches.
She can appear as a beautiful woman or as a nightmarish creature. She can transform herself into various different animals such as a toad, a hedgehog and a fish. She can also be a bird. Ragana does not fly with a broomstick. She flies with a tree stump which symbolizes the death of nature.
This is another important aspect of Ragana. It is possible that at the beginning of time, she was a goddess of nature who represented the dying nature and the passing of seasons. Summer turning into winter.
During winter solstice witches, raganas fly at night to their special meeting place on a hill. During winter raganas sit on trees and comb their long hairs. In Baltic folklore raganas, the witches are not mortal women with magic, they are more similar to fairies and spirits. In the winter time, they also bathe in holes they cut into the ice. Ragana reminds us that nature is mortal, and there is no life without death.