Just like in other cultures, the belief in three worlds – the lower, our, and upper worlds – is prevalent among the memory of the Macedonian people.
According to folk beliefs, the lower world is located in the water, and various animals, similar to those on Earth, inhabit it. In Udovo, they say, “Whatever animals exist on land also exist in the water!” In Nezhilovo, it is claimed that “there are water people with hair all over their bodies and tails,” while in Pobozhje, they say, “The Earth stands on water, and people live there.” In Gorna Boshava, a story is told that in the village of Izvor, some people managed to capture a water person. They tricked the water person into leaving the river with the help of a pair of shoes left on the shore. However, when they caught him, the water person said nothing, only cried, and they had to let him go back.
Similarly, people from our world can descend into the lower world. In Mlado Nagorichane, there is a story about a boy who managed to descend into the lower world and then return to our world.
Source: “The Sky above Macedonia,” Gjore Cenev, MKC Skopje 2004
