Chapter 5

The Udmurt Vos Answer

Udmurt Vos, which means “Udmurt Faith”, is the revived pagan religion of the Udmurts, an ethnic group residing in the Udmurt Republic of Central Russia. The Udmurts, who were once divided into clans of semi-nomads that roamed the forests of Udmurtia, now inhabit towns. Many members of this ethnic group have red hair, which is why an annual redhead festival is held in the Udmurt capital of Izhevsk.

Tzar Ivan the Terrible began the process of Christianizing the Udmurts in the 16th century by rewarding Udmurts who chose to be baptized with various privileges. But two centuries later, this policy of incentivizing conversion was replaced with forced Christianization, which included the destruction of sacred pagan sites while missionaries founded schools and churches throughout Udmurtia. The advent of Udmurt ethno-nationalism and the creation of the Udmurt Republic in the early 20th century led to a revival of Udmurt Vos. Sadly, the religion suffered yet another setback in the 1930s, with the Soviet authorities forbidding the practice of Udmurt Vos, persecuting its priests, and destroying its sacred sites once again. During this dark period, the oppressed Udmurts suffered from high alcoholism and suicide rates, while birth rates plummeted. Things only improved in the late 1980s, when a renewed surge of Udmurt ethno-nationalism brought about the re-revival of Udmurt Vos. The mass association of Udmurt Vos, founded in 1994, enabled believers to openly participate in national services for the first time in history.

According to Udmurt Vos theology, there are three levels of existence. Humans inhabit the first, terrestrial level. The second, aerial level lies above us. And the third level is the cosmic level that encompasses the entirety of the universe. Note that unlike many other religions, there is no “good place” or “bad place” where souls go after death. Instead, Udmurt Vos posits that the souls of the dead reside in a parallel world, which mirrors our world down to a T. This of course means that it is impossible to determine whether you are really reading this book, given that your soul may be reading it posthumously in a parallel world!