The Concept of the All-God in the Doctrine of Volkhv Bogumil (Gasanov): A Systematic Presentation and Orthodox Critique

Abstract

This article provides a systematic analysis of the doctrine of the All-God (Vsebog) as taught by the volkhv Bogumil (Gasanov), a key ideologue of contemporary Slavic Rodnovery. The aim of the paper is to reconstruct the concept of the All-God in Bogumil’s works and to present an Orthodox theological critique of it. The author demonstrates that, although the volkhv allows for several “candidates” for the role of the All-God (Veles, Marionna, Zhiva, Mokosh), the primary contender is Rod. The article examines in detail the cosmogony (“self-generation” in the Golden Egg), the anthropomorphic descriptions, and the pantheistic features of the All-God, who “became the world.” Internal contradictions within the doctrine are identified: the combination of the transcendence of will with the immanence of the “body of the world,” as well as inconsistencies between theogonic versions. Special attention is paid to the Orthodox critique. The analysis focuses on the incongruities between the concept of the All-God and the Christian understanding of God the Creator: Rod’s possession of a genesis, the absence of an ontological boundary between Creator and creation, the pantheistic identification of God and matter, contradictions in the doctrine of multiple divine wills, and the localization of “power” in an idol (chur). The conclusion is drawn that Bogumil’s teaching represents an eclectic syncretism of pantheism, polytheism, and magic, which yields to Orthodox theology in terms of coherence and dogmatic consistency.