Russian wedding traditions, or why the groom beat the bride.

One king, in search of a place for a new capital, wandered around the world for a long time and did not find a place. In anger, he threw gold coins into the river at night. After many years, he became poor and remembered these coins, and went to that place. He found the coins, and when he looked around, he realized that there would be a city here! With this money he built a palace. From here it comes that if you throw a coin into the water, you will definitely return to that place.

The sun can do everything, coins, as symbols of the sun, can also do something. Not everyone knows that coins are thrown into a pond not only to return to the place they like, but also for another purpose. It is known that after visiting a place where you want to return again, people throw coins into the reservoirs there. However, there are a few features that are worth knowing. Not everyone knows that coins are thrown for another purpose, to make some cherished wish come true.

1. Where the spring flows - for luck in your personal life.
2. Into the river - change your life for the better.
3. Into the stream - maintain a romantic relationship with a specific person.
4. At sea - improve your health or help heal a person whom you call by name at that moment.
5. In the park - get rid of depression.
6. At the crossroads - they pay off any negative program (in this case, you should say (you can mentally): “Paid!” or “Paid!”).
7. Throw over a ditch, fence, stream - return or invite good luck.
8. Into a ravine, gorge - for the purpose of healing from some kind of illness, usually of neurogenic or mental origin.
9. At the waterfall - a kind of mystical “agreement” with the element of Water - after these actions, water should treat you more favorably and provide assistance in resolving various problems.
10. Over the left shoulder - protect yourself from possible negativity that you expect from ill-wishers unknown to you; also prevention against envy and the evil eye.

It is widespread to throw coins into fountains, rivers, and seas to return here. In fact, this is also an element of the funeral rite of the Finno-Ugric tribes. For them, the coin meant a pass to the world of the dead. This tradition was partially adopted by the Slavs: in many burials there are coins from different countries and rulers.

According to A. N. Afanasyev, until the end of the 19th century, after a happy voyage, people thanked the river some kind of offering (the most odious example is Stenka Razin’s gift to the Volga of his mistress, a captive Persian princess) - cf. in this regard, modern traditions of throwing coins into bodies of water (mainly fountains).

The deities of lakes and springs, traditionally young and possessing the gift of prophecy and healing spirits, were often appeased by gifts - hence the custom of throwing coins into fountains and making a wish.

The older generation knows this tailoring tradition: the tailor put a silver ruble in the corner of the hem of a new coat, which served, on the one hand, as if for good luck, and on the other, to make the coat fit better, since the heavy ruble pulled down the hem...

Stepan has always been considered the patron saint of horses. Many peasants watered their horses with silver on this day. Having bathed the horses, they brought them to the students (springs in the forest), threw a small silver coin into the water and then watered the horses from the cap, where the coin also lay. As a result of this ritual, the horses become kinder, are not afraid of the dashing eye, and “come into favor” with the brownie. The silver coin is taken from the hat and placed, hidden from everyone, in the stable under the manger. In the old days, such a coin often passed from father to son and was irreplaceable even in the most difficult times.

The Polish writer Meyerberg describes an interesting custom that “required” that everyone bring some kind of gift to the mother in labor. As an example, he talks about gifts presented in Smolensk to the wife of Peter Dolgoruky, who had recently lost her child. Prince Odoevsky “with decent generosity gave her one gold coin, and his friend 30 silver kopecks, which do not weigh half a taler in our money,”

Traditionally in Rus', coins played a large role in wedding ceremonies. Academician N.P. Likhachev worked on this issue, who wrote an interesting article telling about the penalties of grand-ducal and royal weddings. In the “Wedding Ceremony of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich” on February 5, 1625, you can read about a curious custom: “... but on the cows there were three to ten silver pennies sewn on top, gilded: on one side gilded and chased, and on the other side white and smooth... and it was placed in a bowl on three corners of hops, and distant sables, and distant golden shawls, district ones, the length is five vershoks, and the width is half a larshine, and distant squirrels, and 18 gilded penyaz, and 9 golden Ugric ones.” This is what the betrothal of False Dmitry I to Marina Mnischek looked like on November 20, 1605, according to the descriptions of Hans Georg Paerle: “Before the ceremony, the Moscow ambassador presented the bride with 6 bundles of sables, several bundles of black fox, lynx and otter furs, 15 gold coins.” And on May 8, 1606, two ceremonies took place simultaneously: the wedding of False Dmitry and Marina and the coronation. Diaries allegedly written by Marina herself have survived to this day. She describes the ritual in great detail, but at the same time pays the main attention to outfits and jewelry like a true woman. But one Russian custom clearly shocked Marina; its detailed description can be found in her diary: “When leaving the church, they threw money to the people; the Russians fought for them with sticks... Approaching the Poles, Dmitry noticed a crowd of noble gentlemen and ordered several Portuguese ducats to be thrown between them, which, however, none of them touched; even when two ducats fell on one gentleman’s hat, he threw them off. The Russians rushed for money and created crowding; The king, seeing this, did not order any more coins to be thrown.”

This ritual appears more detailed in the description of Isaac Massa, a Dutch merchant who was present at the wedding of Marina and False Dmitry: “Secretary Bogdan Sutulov, Afanasy Vlasev and Shuisky many times threw handfuls of gold along the path along which the king walked, holding his wife’s hand... The gold was the best, from coins the size of a thaler to the smallest ones of a pfennig.”

The custom of bride price, widespread today, was very popular in some areas in pre-revolutionary times. According to this wedding ritual (this is how this ritual was carried out in ancient times), the groom’s groomsman “takes a few small money out of his pocket, puts it on a wooden plate and puts a glass of vodka on it,” thereby paying a ransom to the bride’s relatives. S. M. Soloviev explains this custom as an echo of the ancient tradition of buying a bride and the later payment for hatching and brood marten.

And another ancient rite - the rite of taking off shoes. According to one of the oldest traditions, the wife took off her husband’s boots before their wedding night. This symbolized her submission. A coin was hidden in one of the boots. If the wife took off the boot with the coin first, then her family life promised to be especially happy: her husband’s love and large offspring were promised to her by such a find.

Coins were presented not only during various rituals, decorating icons with coins, but also as if they were presented as a gift... to the saints depicted on the icons. This custom comes from ancient times. In Rus', such pendants to icons began to be called tsats. The word tsata just means “decoration”, “coin”. There are many examples of such use of coins and even legends and traditions associated with icons, coins and miracles (during a fire in a church, the icon of the Mother of God does not burn, only coins presented to her as a gift are fused into the image, etc.).

In pagan times, coins were offered to other deities. In particular, it is common knowledge that many treasures lie under stones. For example, a significant treasure found in 1868 in Murom, consisting of Kufic coins mainly from the 10th century, was hidden under a large limestone stone. There is a lot of information about the finds of coins under stones in the Vilna, Pskov, Kherson, Novgorod provinces, on the banks of the Dnieper, etc. Of course, it is quite likely that the stone was just a noticeable detail from which the treasure could be found in the future. But ethnographers say: the matter is completely different! The pagans simply worshiped stones in these provinces, sacrificing canvas, flax, wool and money to them.

The Eastern Slavs also worshiped lakes and springs. Therefore, initially, apparently, sacrifices were made to them, and later coins were thrown at them, treasures were given for storage (they were found in large quantities in the Dnieper, Svisloch, Polist, Volga rivers, in lakes and streams). This is precisely what Russian and Ukrainian legends, chronicles and ancient Russian writings of the 11th-12th centuries testify to.

Sometimes the ancient Slavs revered and made sacrifices, apparently also to trees, since coins were very often found under trees or the remains of trees. It was customary for the ancient Sami (Lapps, i.e. Laplanders) to make sacrifices to stones and lakes. Quite often in literature one can find references to the use of coins as a gift, a “wake,” and sometimes (quite often!) as a gift-bribe. For example, Princess Olga in Constantinople repeatedly received gifts of coins, as evidenced by the chronicles, which also lie on a “golden saucer”, and the “golden treasury” mentioned in the epic epic, which allows Prince Vladimir to make generous gifts to heroes, mostly consists of coins and bars. In the 70s XV century Ivan III was repeatedly gifted by the Novgorodians, receiving a huge number of “wake” messages from them. It is interesting that the gift was so great that there were at least 250 shipmen in it (as the English gold nobles and their imitations were called in Rus'). But the Pskovites surpassed their neighbors. Around the same time, they presented the sovereign with 800 shipmen.

Pskovites, however, also turn to the Poles with gifts. In 1480 they complained to the Polish king Casimir IV Jagiellonczyk about the attack of the Livonian knights. For help (which they expected) they send a “remembrance” from Pskov: “Five rubles to the king. Posadnik Vasily gave the king a ruble on his own behalf, Yuri gave half a ruble on his own behalf to the king. The princes were given half a ruble each by Vasily and Yuri, and in total there were 16 half rubles. The queen received a ruble from Pskov, and the mayor gave half a ruble, and Yurya received Ugric gold.”

In the middle of the 16th century. the Grand Duke of Moscow is again sent a “commemoration” from Novgorod, this time a significant amount of gold coins. It is interesting that such an exchange of gifts (“wake”) was a type of medieval trade and barter.
Captain Margeret thus saw the preparations for the celebration of Easter in Russia: gold coins “rise in price a few days before Easter, since at this time and the week after Easter they (Russians) customarily visit each other with red eggs and kiss, like us mentioned above, but when they go to visit nobles and those in need, they offer some precious thing along with the egg - pearls or several ducats.”

Johann Philipp Kielburger, who visited Moscow already in the 18th century. (i.e., 70 years after the previous author), also notes an increase in the price of ducats before Easter, “because then everyone who has any business at court and in the orders brings ducats to the nobles and the most important in the mentioned orders or box, or in a piece of paper along with an Easter egg and an Easter greeting...” It is clear that in Rus' in the 17th - 18th centuries. used any holiday, including Easter, as an excellent opportunity to give a bribe (under the guise of a holiday gift). In Rus', bribes were given, of course, not only on holidays, but in other cases there was no opportunity to “grease up the matter” so fearlessly and openly.

In Rus', as in other countries, special coins were often minted, which were needed specifically for coronation celebrations. This is evidenced by both written sources and similar coins themselves found by numismatists.
Sigmund Herberstein, who was present at the magnificent coronation celebrations (in February 1498) of the grandson of Ivan III Dmitry Ivanovich, described them in this way: after the coronation, “the Grand Duke grandfather retires to his home, and Dmitry in a princely cap and barms leaves the temple of the Blessed Virgin, accompanied by a large crowd of boyars and their children, to the Church of the Archangel Michael, where, in the vestibule on the platform, George, the son of Grand Duke John, showers him three times with gold money (by money you mean the type of coin).”
Margeret, already mentioned earlier, writes about the crowning of False Dmitry I in June 1605 as follows: during the transition from the Church of Our Lady to the Archangel Cathedral, “along the way they threw small gold coins worth half an ecus into an ecus and some worth two ecus, minted for this case..." Hans Georg Paerle drew attention to other moments of the same coronation: “When the Grand Duke stepped over the threshold, Mstislavsky threw to the people from a golden vessel standing next to him several gold coins, worth 1, 5, 10 and even 20 chervonets, they threw them Polish ambassadors and their retinue." The custom of showering everyone present at the coronation with special coins is confirmed by Jacob Reitenfels, who lived in Moscow in the early 1670s: during the ceremony of crowning the king, “many gold and silver coins, stamped in memory of this celebration,” are thrown into the crowd. Some of these coins enter circulation, such as the coronation rubles of 1883 and 1896.

In Rus', the custom of awarding coins, primarily for military exploits, is traditionally accepted. In ancient times, such a reward was most likely just a monetary reward, a monetary gift for a heroic deed or a fulfilled duty, and later a special reward system was developed. The most complete information about such awards of the 16th - 17th centuries. picked up by numismatist I. G. Spassky. This is what this custom looks like in the eyes of a foreigner, the Swedish historian Peter Petrey (he last visited Russia in 1611), who published his book about it in 1620: “... when they win, repulse, drive away or exterminate the enemy, the Grand Duke sends to each of them, especially the officers, gold money, oval in shape and cast from good gold, and to the lower ranks silver and gilded, as a sign and in memory of the fact that they behaved bravely and heroically with the enemy, and when they come home , they are given their due salary.”

Even foreigners were awarded in Rus'. For example, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich awarded the Englishman Arthur Aston, who distinguished himself during the defense of Kholmogory in 1613, by sending him “a gold chain with his image, sables, 25 gold money.”
Adam Olearius, who visited our country in the 1630s, was apparently also interested in this custom, since he noted in his notes the minting of gold to reward military exploits.

Yuri Krizhanich, another author of the 17th century. writes more definitely: “Here and in other countries, soldiers who have served in some kind of service are given fur coats, fabrics, gold, silver as gifts: a gold chain, a silver cup, gold kopecks and other granted money minted specifically for this purpose.”

Money helps protect a person from the evil eye, from the action of dark forces. Children, especially newborns, are especially vulnerable to all sorts of dangers. Therefore, the devils are distracted by offering them gold in return. Blood, hair and teeth have always been of interest to sorcerers and evil spirits; they can be used to influence a person’s life, so many everyday actions (for example, cutting a haircut or treating an illness) require the performance of magical averting rituals. People advise paying off the danger of negative influence with coins in advance. At the same time, you can try to buy luck with gold.

• During the “haircut” of a child during baptism, the godfather and mother take scissors and cut his hair in a cross shape, and money is placed on his plate.
• When visiting a woman in labor for the first time, guests give her and the newborn money and wish her happiness and health. The money is placed in a pot of grain or under pies, sent to the woman in labor on a platter.
• Money is placed in the child’s swaddling clothes when they take him to be baptized, and in his first font so that he will be healthy and rich.
• Money is given to a child for a tooth (when the first tooth appears) to ensure wealth and success.
• The midwife is rewarded with money. At christenings, the midwife cooks porridge and at the end of the christening dinner brings the pot out to the guests. Guests take turns putting money on the porridge (this is called selling the porridge). The one who gave more money breaks the pot. During the christening dinner, the woman in labor is also given money, wishing her good health.

Among many peoples who adhere to Islam, Sharia law prohibits placing any objects other than a shroud in the grave, but money is distributed - alms for the “redemption of sins.” The soul of the deceased is a formidable and mysterious force, so it must be appeased and provided with everything necessary for life in the other world. If you appease people at a wake, then their gratitude will serve as a petition to God to send the deceased to heaven. In Ancient Greece, a small coin was placed in the mouth of the deceased to pay for the passage of the soul of the deceased through the rivers of the underworld. In Romania, the coin for the deceased had a slightly different purpose: they paid off the deceased so that he would not return to earth as a werewolf.

In the 15th century In Europe, in connection with the issue of Christian coins of St. Peter, the custom arose of putting money in the hand of the deceased, “so that St. Peter would let him into his boat.”

In Germany, they believed that where the rainbow rests on the ground, there are old gold coins that protect against evil spirits. In the Austrian Alps and Tyrol, the best amulets are coins found during a thunderstorm. In Germany, they believed that a ship was protected from all misfortunes while sailing if an old silver coin was nailed to its mast.

In the Balkans, coins were worn on the head for protective purposes. In Bulgaria, a coin was attached to a girl’s headdress after baptism, which was supposed to protect against the evil eye. In Turkey, one or two gold coins are attached to a newborn's cap. Turkish women wore two, three or four coins on their heads. The coins also decorated the hairstyles of Greek women. Slavic women wore a monisto made of many coins.

In England, where coins have long been used as talismans, it was customary to carry a perforated sixpence in your pocket. The custom of carrying a drilled coin existed both in Alsace and in the south of Italy, where perforated medals were considered an equally sure cure for the evil eye. In the south of Europe they wore necklaces made of silver coins and inserted Venetian gold ducats into earrings.

Some experts on the evil eye believed that not just any coins, but only certain ones, protected from damage.

In the British Isles, sacramental money was the name given to donations made during Holy Communion. Everyone believed that this money acquired healing powers. The sick man would save small coins and bring them to the parish priest in exchange for a shilling from the communion fund. A hole was made in the coin and then worn on a ribbon around the neck.

Coins are also placed under the rug lying at the front door of the house to attract good luck in wealth. Several large department store and supermarket chains use similar methods. Coins are hidden under the floor on each of the trading floors.

In Apuleius' Metamorphoses, Psyche descends into the realm of the dead and receives such detailed instructions. As we can see, coins play an important role in the safety of her path: “...But you must not enter into this darkness empty-handed: in each one, hold a barley cake mixed with honey and wine, and carry two coins in your mouth. Having already walked a significant part of the deadly road, you will meet a lame donkey loaded with firewood, and with it a lame driver; he will turn to you with a request to pick up a few pieces of wood that have fallen from the bundle, but you do not say a single word and silently move on. Soon you will reach the river of the dead, over which Charon has been appointed chief, who immediately demands the toll and then transports travelers to the other side in a fragile canoe. This means that greed also flourishes among the dead: even a god like Charon, the tax collector of Ditus, does nothing for nothing, and a dying poor man must stock up on money for travel)”, because if he accidentally does not have copper in stock, no one will allow him to give up the ghost. You will give this dirty old man one of the coppers that you will have with you as payment for transportation, but so that he himself, with his own hand, will take it out of your mouth. That’s not all: when you As you cross the slow stream, a dead old man will float to the surface and, stretching out his rotten hand to you, will ask you to drag him into the boat, but do not succumb to illicit pity.

When, having crossed the river, you go a little further, you will see old weavers busy with weaving; they will ask you to have a hand in their work, but this should not concern you. After all, all this and much more will arise through the cunning of Venus, so that you let go of at least one cake. Don’t think that losing these barley cakes is an empty, insignificant matter: if you lose even one, you won’t see the white light again. An enormous dog with three large heads, huge and terrible, spewing a thunderous growl from its mouth and vainly frightening the dead, to whom it cannot harm, lies at the very threshold of the black palaces of Proserpina and constantly guards the vast dwelling of Dita. Having given him one of the two cakes as a prey to tame, you will easily pass by him and will soon reach Proserpina herself, who will receive you kindly and graciously, offer you a soft seat and ask you to taste a sumptuous meal. But you sit down on the ground and take only simple bread, then report why you came, and, having accepted what they will give you, go back; soften the dog’s rage with the remaining cake, pay the stingy boatman with the coin you saved, and, having crossed the river, you will again take the same road and again see the round dance of the heavenly bodies. But this is what I consider especially necessary to warn you about first of all: do not even think about opening the jar that is in your hands or looking into it, do not show curiosity about the treasures of divine beauty hidden in it.”

A magical ritual to increase wealth using a coin. In addition to the power of the coin, this ritual uses the ability of the mirror to double any object due to reflection. Take a small coin with a face value of 5 rubles, or even better, have a rather rare coin with a face value of 10 rubles for these purposes. Do not take foreign money. On the first day of the full moon, after midnight, place a mirror on the windowsill with the glass facing outward, put a coin in front of it so that it is reflected in the mirror, but so that the person performing the ritual does not see himself in the mirror. Standing behind the mirror, say money to the Moon - read three times: “Mother Moon, your money is in my wallet, your treasury is my treasury, money to money!” In the morning, pick up the charged coin from the windowsill and carry it with you at all times. The ritual is repeated on full moons.

Anna Ivanova

Russian wedding traditions, or why did the groom beat the bride?

In Rus', it was customary for young people to marry early “so as not to be spoiled.” It happened that the groom's age was from 12 to 13 years. When getting married early, it was completely natural that the bride and groom did not know each other before marriage. In general, the moral concepts of that time did not allow young people of both sexes to see each other and negotiate with each other. The groom did not even dare to say that he wanted to get married; everything was decided by his relatives.
Usually, the fathers and mothers of the groom personally chose the girl, informing their sons about this when the wedding was already being prepared.
But sometimes, the first step began on the part of the bride’s parents. Wanting to sell their daughter, the parents sent a person close to them to the groom as a matchmaker; if the groom's parents agreed, then they proceeded to matchmaking in the usual manner.
The groom’s parents looked to see if the bride was good-looking, smart, “not speechless and full of speech in everything.” There were cases that if the daughter was not beautiful, then another or even a maid was brought instead. The groom himself could not see the bride before the wedding. If the deception with the bride was subsequently discovered, the marriage could be dissolved, but this happened very rarely.
Sometimes the groom insisted on seeing the bride himself; if they valued the groom, they could allow it, but then it was almost impossible for him to get away with it.
After the review, a conspiracy took place - the first part of the marriage celebration or the introduction to the celebration. The arranged day was appointed by the bride's parents. The parents sat opposite each other and were silent for several minutes, as was customary. An agreement was drawn up, a series of notes were written, which indicated that at such and such a time the wedding would take place, and the bride would have such a dowry.
A dowry has always been an important condition of a Russian wedding; it included: bed, dresses, household utensils and jewelry, people, money, real estate. Nothing was required from the groom. This conspiracy had legal significance. If the bride was from a poor family and could not bring a dowry into the house, then the groom himself “made the dowry” or transferred a certain amount of money to the bride’s parents - an ancient custom did not allow taking a bride without a dowry.
On the morning of the celebration (sometimes the day before), the bride's matchmaker went to the groom's house to prepare the wedding bed. There was a belief that dashing sorcerers and witches could bring damage and drive evil spirits into the house where the wedding was being held. Various measures were taken against this. The hay barn, often unheated, was chosen as the wedding room. It was necessary that there be no earth on the ceiling, so that the wedding bedroom would not resemble a grave. Chests of grain and barrels were brought to the hay barn.
Before the wedding, guests and newlyweds were invited to the table, but even there, sitting next to them, the future husband did not see the bride’s face - she was wearing a thick veil - a prototype of today’s veil.
Usually, after 4-5 meals, the imprisoned father, turning to the bride’s own father, asked permission to lead the newlyweds “scratching and twisting,” that is, to get married.
After the wedding, a feast was held again, the bride was already unveiled, the girl’s crown was replaced with a “woman’s headdress” - a warrior, and she had to cry, and the women and girls sang sad songs. Before leaving the wedding feast, the husband, as a sign of his power, struck his future life partner on the back with a whip received from his father-in-law. This symbolized the transition of a young woman from one “master” to another.
After this, at the appointed time, the young husband took his betrothed to the hay barn. The newlyweds were accompanied by all the guests, and if someone accidentally crossed the path of the “wedding train,” they could end up under the saber of the manger leading the procession.
Left alone, the newlyweds had to perform another ancient custom: the ritual of taking off shoes took place between the bride and groom, a very ancient ritual that came down to the Russians from the times of paganism. It consisted in the fact that the wife, as a sign of submission, had to take off her husband’s boots. There was a coin in one of the boots. If she managed to take off the boot that had the coin in it first, it meant that she would be happy, otherwise it meant that she would have to please her husband and take off her shoes. Another extant version of the ritual of taking off a husband’s shoes, which existed in Siberia and beyond the Urals, is the wife washing her husband’s feet. When the newlyweds were in the hay barn and the guests were feasting in the room, the manger walked around the hay barn with his weapon drawn to protect against any recklessness. After some time, he inquired about the health of the groom, if he answered that he was in good health, this meant that a good deed had been accomplished, the manger told this to the guests and they went to feed the young people.
After the wedding, festivities continued for several days (sometimes up to a month, depending on the wealth of the families and local customs).

The origin of some wedding customs.

The custom of kidnapping girls
This custom existed among the Russian Slavs. For example, the Vyatichi and Northerners had games “between villages”: during games, songs and dances, men chose brides for themselves and took them to their house. The very expression PLAY THE WEDDING is reminiscent of the ancient games that began the “acquisition” of brides.

Buying girls
Girls who had reached adulthood converged, accompanied by their parents, to one place, and young people flocked there and bought brides. Hence the modern rite of ransoming the bride by the groom.

Greek and Roman rites.
Wreaths, wedding rings, bedspreads (veils and veils), joining hands, candles, wedding gifts, etc. - all this came to us from there.
Venus, as the patroness of marriages (unions of love), was called Suada and Babia (marriage and grandmother). “Svada” is a wedding, and in the word “grandmother” one can easily see the similarity with a woman.
Russian customs: even now young people are showered with hops, grain and even money. The meaning of this is clear: for young people to live happily, well-fed and richly. This custom also originated from the Greeks, Romans, and also from the ancient Prussians

Betrothed.
From the word “fate”, which sends the groom to the bride. The word “bride” means “unknown”, “unknown”, because. according to Russian custom, the groom could see the girl only after the wedding, as a newlywed. The young people got married not of their own free will, but of their parents’. That's why WEDDING in the old days was called the Judgment of God, because... They saw in this rite a combination of young people forever, until the grave, placing their hopes on God, who Himself AWARDS them the marriage crown.

Precautions and wedding signs.
Weddings most often took place either on Christmastide (12 days: from December 25 to January 6), or near Semik. This, at least, explains Krasnaya Gorka in the spring and the Christmas holidays (Kupala fortune-telling)

Bath, furs and straw of the wedding night.
Among the folk customs that existed even in royal and boyar houses were washing in a bathhouse on the eve of the wedding and after it, spreading rye sheaves instead of a bed, and sitting the newlyweds on furs. Washing in the bathhouse expressed the purity of the marriage bed and cleanliness in general, sleeping on sheaves signified income in the house, and sitting on furs signified wealth.

Bridal headdress.
It is known that in Russia, the newlyweds put a KOKOSHNIK, KOKUY or KIKU on their head, unraveled the braid in two, and sang songs while doing so. The custom was adopted from the Tatars.
Pagans had a habit of appearing to women covered. For Russians, a veil symbolizes shyness and modesty.

So, a wedding is always a lot of fun and it makes me happy that in our time there are at least some traditions and customs left to us that we inherited from our ancestors.

The wedding feast took place in accordance with all Russian traditions, customs and in compliance with mandatory rituals. Usually the first to meet the newlyweds was the mother of the groom, also dressed in an inverted sheepskin coat. She sprinkled the newlyweds with grains of wheat (a symbol of wealth and prosperity) and hops (so that the newlyweds would have many children).

Then usually the father of the groom joined her so that the two of them could bless the children with icons of Jesus Christ and the Mother of God. After this, the newlyweds were brought into the house and seated at the wedding table, in the red corner - “under the image.” According to customs, they had to sit facing the door, pressing closely together, “so that not a single cat could run between them.” And again, as in the bride’s house, they sat on a shaggy fur coat (for wealth). The guests shouted: “Bitter!”, and the newlyweds had to kiss in response. The cheerful feast with songs and dances lasted until midnight.

There should usually be so much food on the wedding table that even after the feast is over, there is food left over. I would like to describe in detail the wedding, or “princely” table. It certainly had to be rich. Usually it included cabbage soup, jellied meat, fish and chicken pies, and mead. There should be so many dishes on the wedding table that even after the feast is over, there will be food left. This is following a superstition, a custom, which in this case says that a young family will never go hungry. Any Russian housewife who respects traditions and customs believed that a wedding is not a wedding if there are not three fried dishes on the table, prepared from poultry (for example, chicken or duck) or from lamb.

The newlyweds usually had little to do with the abundance of the table: they sat sedately, ate and drank very little. Moreover, as a sign that from that day on they seemed to become one, they had to be content with one spoon for two and one bowl. About an hour after the start of the celebration, the newlyweds were taken to the bedroom (or some other room - to the bathhouse, to the hayloft, etc.). This room was called the “cold room”. The newlyweds were accompanied by the most honored guests and, of course, the matchmaker, the matchmaker and the groomsman, because, do not forget, the groomsman is the main specialist in wedding rituals.

A change in hairstyle and headdress usually meant a change in the social status of a young woman: the headscarf became a symbol of marriage. Usually, before leaving for the bedroom, the young wife was “twisted”: covering her from prying eyes, the matchmakers did a woman’s hairstyle (for example, they braided two braids - as a sign of respect for the two clans - and laid them around her head), after which they covered her with a scarf. A change in hairstyle and headdress meant a change in the social status of a young woman: the headscarf became a symbol of marriage.

A young man entering into marriage was called young. The girl was called young (young).Young man According to Russian tradition, the person entering into marriage was first called the groom, after the wedding and at the feast, the prince, and then the young man. girl Before the wedding, she was called the bride or the consort, at the wedding she became a princess, and then a young woman. The bedroom (or the room allocated for it, where the newlyweds spent their wedding night) was prepared and cleaned in a special way. There were arrows sticking out of the walls, animal skins lay in the corners, there were pots of honey on the benches, as well as rolls, fish pie or chicken. Wine was also provided. On the marriage bed lay 21 sheaves of straw, and sometimes a rolling pin was hidden in the straw.

Usually, according to ritual, a newly-made husband and wife always ate a piece of fish pie or chicken together. The matchmakers first lay on the bed, supposedly to check whether the bed was “soft.” They got out of bed, giving it up to the young, only after the young wife paid the ransom and presented them with a treat. And the newly-made husband and wife themselves, according to ritual, always ate a piece of fish pie or chicken together. And only then began preparations for the wedding night. The wife had to take off her husband's boots; this was done as a sign of her future submission to the will of her husband.

Usually it was considered a good omen if the young woman guessed in which boot the nickel was hidden and took it off first. A copper coin, a nickel, was certainly hidden in the top of one of the boots - the husband’s first and symbolic gift. This coin was like a promise to ensure family wealth. At the same time, it was considered a good omen if the young woman guessed in which boot the nickel was hidden and took it off first. They certainly believed that she would live in contentment all her life. When the boot was removed and the second boot was removed, the young husband took out (or the wife herself presented to him) the traditional “attribute” of the husband’s power - a whip. By the way, this whip was given to him by none other than the bride’s father. With a whip, the husband lightly hit his wife on the back three times, so that he would never hit her again.

After performing all these rituals, the guests left the bedchamber. Only the closest ones remained, the polite magician and the matchmaker, who put the young people to bed, sprinkling them with hops and grain. Friend with ritual spells. “My word is strong, God forbid conscience and love, and great happiness,” he walked around the newlyweds’ bed for the last time. Then the young people were left alone until the morning. Their room was locked, and the key was given to the thousand. The guests continued the wedding feast.

The second day of the wedding was usually called the "cake tables". On this day, the young wife had to show her culinary talents: cook pies. In general, many of her housekeeping skills were tested, for example, cleaning a house. Of course, this had to be done as carefully as possible, because the work was already closely monitored by the mother-in-law. It was on the second day that the ritual wedding loaf, which was baked in the bride’s house the day before the wedding, was finally cut and treated to the guests.

Usually, very often, in addition to the loaf, a layered chicken pie was prepared in the bride’s house, which was decorated with the head of a rooster or chicken feathers. And also on the second day, the young wife brought each guest a glass of vodka on a tray, and everyone kissed the newlywed and gave gifts or money.

It happened that the wedding feast continued on the third, fourth, fifth day. But the fun has now come to the homes of the couple’s relatives and friends. It was called " bends"- the young couple visited guests. By the way, on the fourth day after the wedding, the son-in-law and his young wife always came to his mother-in-law for pancakes... And then ordinary life began, with its joys and worries.

Usually, if a young couple gets caught in the rain or snow, this portends great happiness. In this case, they believed that in family life “they would never have to cry.” Pin from the bride's wedding dress brings her friends a quick wedding. If at a wedding dishes break, this is fortunate.

The wedding night- one of the most beautiful and important wedding rituals. In a wedding scenario, this is one of the most enchanting moments for the bride and groom. Our ancestors associated many things with this exciting moment. wedding signs and superstitions.
No one should enter the newlyweds’ bedroom until the third rooster crows and dawn comes - this can frighten away the happiness of the newlyweds.

Groom before his first wedding night they bathed them in a decoction of lovage, and the bride in a decoction of mint. This was supposed to awaken their passionate desire for each other. Since ancient times, in Ukraine, mothers bathed their babies in lovage infusion, saying: “The girls will love you all their lives.”

Wedding earrings and monists, before going into the marriage bed, the young wife always took off her clothes. If you lose an earring on your wedding night, legend says, you will lose your sweetheart.

On the first wedding night, According to a wedding superstition, you must make love. And not by counting the money that the guests gave. Otherwise, your entire married life will go down the drain.

To the marriage bed If the spirit has not moved in, wedding signs say, the mother of the bride or groom should sprinkle him with holy water three times. Also, you should not allow other people to lie down or sit on the marriage bed - they can take away the fate of the newlyweds.

On the wedding night the groom's benevolent friend would place a stick under his pillow so that the young man's manhood would be as hard and strong as she was.

Before the first wedding night the young husband put a high-denomination banknote in his shoe (boot). For our ancestors it was a gold or silver coin. This ritual was performed so that the young family always had money.

After the first wedding night wedding guests were sure to break dishes (especially glasses). This indicated that this night the bride had lost her innocence (integrity).

On the chastity of a young wife before the first wedding night they symbolically asked the young husband. To do this, he was offered two options: a glass of red wine and a glass of vodka. If the husband chose wine, he thus confirmed the innocence of his wife. If it was vodka, he denied her chastity. And at this time she was distributing generous gifts to the guests.

About, whether the bride was innocent or not before her wedding night, the colors also testified. Wise villagers came up with such a color language. On the morning after a night of love, the young husband was traveling to his mother-in-law in a horse-drawn cart. If he decorated the horse’s mane (or harness) with a blue ribbon, it means that the bride did not lose her honor before the wedding. If the color of the ribbon was bright scarlet, then there were no complaints against the young wife - she married innocent.

Among the ancient Slavs An arrow was inserted into the bride's braid. She was a talisman that preserved the love of the young. After the first wedding night, the bride's veil was removed with a sacred arrow. This meant that from now on the family was ready to conceive heirs and heiresses.

May your first wedding night be successful, our great-great-grandmothers put a mirror under the pillow. It helped a woman increase her strength and passion on the night of love.

So that family life is long and happy, The pillows in the young couple's bedroom were folded with their corners facing each other. The second version of this wedding custom is to attach the pillows to each other using the cuts of the pillowcases. So the young spouses clung to each other and did not let go.

Until the first wedding night the young people had to walk side by side, clasping their little fingers. No one was supposed to pass between them, so as not to sow discord in the family and separate husband and wife.