Baba Vanga, the blind Bulgarian mystic, has become a global internet sensation, with social media and tabloids attributing to her predictions of events like 9/11, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine. However, experts and her foundation warn that many of these so-called prophecies are fabricated.
Ivan Dramov of the Baba Vanga Foundation in Bulgaria stated that 'absolute lies have been told about this holy woman.' He explained that Vanga primarily dealt with people's health problems, not global catastrophes. The foundation was launched by her followers and chaired by Vanga herself before her death in 1996.
Born in 1911 in the Ottoman Empire, Vanga lost her sight as a teenager after being thrown into a field by a tornado. She gained local fame during World War II, helping people find out about loved ones at the front. By the 1960s, she was a regional phenomenon in Petrich, Bulgaria, attracting visitors from Russia, Romania, and Greece.
Vanga's pronouncements were tightly focused on individuals' lives, according to Dramov. 'She told people which doctor to go to, what actions to take, but nothing more.' Her fame spread internationally through TV series, books, and talk shows.
In Russia, Vanga became a cultural icon, inspiring the verb 'vangovat' (to predict) and the phrase 'Do I look like Baba Vanga to you?' Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin noted her role as a 'medium of truth' in Russian imagination. However, many predictions attributed to her, such as the fall of the Soviet Union, are traced to Russian writer Valentin Sidorov, who claimed to have met her in the 1970s but left no recordings.
A 2024 report by BIRN Albania found that Vanga's predictions are 'often used by conspiracy and disinformation media to reinforce certain narratives against Nato and the EU.' The foundation and researchers urge caution, noting that the mystic's legacy has been hijacked for sensationalism and propaganda.
