Ancient proverbs and their meaning. Ancient Russian sayings
“The genius, spirit and character of a people is manifested in its proverbs” (F. Bacon)
Folk proverbs and sayings are part of the spiritual heritage that we inherited from our ancestors. This is truly a gold mine of folk wisdom accumulated over many centuries. They cover almost all aspects of our lives, so it is very useful to introduce your child to proverbs and sayings from early childhood, to memorize them , explain their meaning, where and in what cases they are used, teach them to resort to them at every opportunity.
RUSSIAN FOLK PROVERBS AND SAYINGS.
Living life is not a field to cross.
There is a saying for every Yegorka.
Flower proverb, berry proverb.
If you don't know the ford, don't go into the water.
Life is given for good deeds.
Speech is beautiful as a proverb.
Trust in God, and don’t make a mistake yourself.
A house cannot be built without corners; speech cannot be said without a proverb.
Wet rain is not afraid.
Small, but remote.
On someone else's side, I'm happy with my little crow.
He who burns himself on milk blows on water.
A wolf is a stump for a cowardly bunny.
It would be lunch, but the spoon would be found.
From time immemorial, a book has raised a person.
Your own land is sweet even in a handful.
Aahs and aahs will not give help.
What you have gained through untruth will not be used for future use.
Once you lie, you become a liar forever.
The mother swings high, but only slightly hits, the stepmother swings low, but hits hard.
On my native side, the pebble is also familiar.
It is better to forgive ten guilty people than to execute one innocent one.
Where the pine tree is mature, there it is red.
It is bad for him who does no good to anyone.
Without roots, wormwood does not grow.
The sting is sharp, and the tongue is sharper.
Without a friend there is a blizzard in the heart.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
If you don't have a friend, look for him, but if you have one, take care of him.
A liar is always an unfaithful friend, he will lie to you around.
The native side is the mother, the alien side is the stepmother.
Where to live, there to be known.
You are greeted by your clothes, but seen off by your mind.
Being a guest is good, but being at home is better.
The bird that doesn't like its nest is stupid.
If you go on a visit, you should also take them to your home.
Trouble is trouble, and food is food.
On the other side, even spring is not beautiful.
Every man is the smith of his own happiness.
On the other side, even a falcon is called a crow.
God will soak you, God will dry you.
Teach children without people.
A thunderstorm hits a tall tree.
Altyn of silver doesn't hurt your ribs.
You won't get rich by deception, but you will get poorer.
You go for a day, take bread for a week.
If you love to ride, you also love to carry a sled.
As is the spinner, so is the shirt she wears.
He who does not love others destroys himself.
It is better to remain silent than to lie.
If you don't know how to sew with gold, hit it with a hammer.
The hand of the giver will not fail.
If only he knew where he fell, he’d spread some straw here.
The eyes are afraid, but the hands are doing.
Summer works for winter, and winter works for summer.
Whoever indulges children sheds a tear later.
For a scientist they give three non-scientists, and even then they don’t take it.
In crowded but not mad.
What goes around comes around.
Prepare a sleigh in the summer and a cart in the winter.
He who knows a lot, asks a lot.
Get up early, think wisely, do it diligently.
Perhaps somehow they won’t bring it to any good.
The master's work is afraid.
Play, play, but know the deal.
Finished the job - go for a walk safely.
You can’t even pull a fish out of a pond without difficulty.
The envious eye sees far.
You can't buy health - your mind gives it.
Time for business, time for fun.
It's a long day until the evening if there's nothing to do.
Who does not work shall not eat.
If you walk around in the summer, you'll get hungry in the winter.
Skillful hands do not know boredom.
Patience and a little effort.
If you love to ride, you also love to carry sleds.
There will be day - there will be food.
Labor feeds a person, but laziness spoils him.
Take it together, it won't be too heavy.
Beware of troubles while they're gone.
The craft does not ask to drink and eat, but feeds itself.
The snow is white, but they trample underfoot, the poppy is black, but people eat.
The child, although crooked, is sweet to his father and mother.
It is not the ax that amuses, but the carpenter.
Don't sit idly by, you won't get bored.
The day until the evening is boring if there is nothing to do. 
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
To live without anything is just to smoke the sky.
Put off idleness, but don’t put off doing things.
Don't rush with your tongue, hurry with your deeds.
Handle every task skillfully.
If there was a desire, the work would go well.
They meet you by their dress, they see you off by their intelligence.
Learning to read and write is always useful.
And strength gives way to the mind.
If you're smart, say one word, if you're a fool, say three, and go after him yourself.
A smart head has a hundred hands.
A mind is good, but two are better.
You can’t live without the sun, you can’t live without your sweetheart.
As is the mind, so are the speeches.
In a smart conversation you gain your intelligence, in a stupid conversation you lose yours.
Know more and say less.
A fool turns sour, but a wise man sees through everything.
A bird is beautiful in its singing, and a man is beautiful in his learning.
An unscientific person is like an unsharpened axe.
Dunno lies, but know-it-all runs far.
If you want to eat rolls, don’t sit on the stove.
You can't see the whole world from the window. 
Learning is light and ignorance is darkness.
The ABC is science, and the kids are learning.
An old friend is better than two new ones.
A friend argues, but an enemy agrees.
Don't recognize a friend in three days, recognize a friend in three years.
A friend and brother is a great thing: you won’t get it soon.
I was with a friend, I drank water - sweeter than honey.
If you don’t have a friend, so look for it, but if you find it, take care of it.
Make new friends, but don’t lose old ones.
For a friend, seven miles is not a suburb.
An orphan without a friend, a family man with a friend.
Seven do not wait for one.
A horse is known in grief, and a friend in trouble.
It's warm in the sun, good in mother's presence.
There is no friend like your own mother.
What is the treasure for, if there is harmony in the family?
Brotherly love is better than stone walls.
The bird is happy about spring, and the baby is happy about the mother.
The hut is fun for children.
The whole family is together, and the soul is in place.
Mother's affection knows no end.
Maternal anger is like spring snow: a lot of it falls, but it will soon melt.
The sweet child has many names.
Grandmother - only grandfather is not a grandson.
Annushka is a good daughter if her mother and grandmother praise her
From the same oven, but the rolls are not the same.
And from a good father a mad sheep will be born.
The bird is in the nest until autumn, and the children are in the house until they are old enough.
You can't expect a good breed from a bad seed.
Capricious in childhood, ugly in age.
All children are equal - both boys and girls.
The hut is fun for children.
Painting by artist Pieter Bruegel entitled “Sayings”.
Painting by artist Pieter Bruegel (1525/30–1569) entitled “Sayings”. The name speaks for itself; the painting depicts more than two dozen different instructive sayings. Here are some of them: banging your head against the wall, leading each other by the nose, pouring pearls before swine, putting spokes in wheels, sitting between two chairs, looking through your fingers, and others. Where in the picture is depicted, look for what proverb yourself.
Now we move on to Russian proverbs, which it would also be nice for each of us to know.
Russian proverbs and sayings, as everyone knows, this is folk wisdom that came to us from life experience. Now let's look at the most frequently used among them among the people, as well as their interpretations, among other things. For convenience, Russian proverbs and sayings are presented alphabetically.
Russian proverbs and sayings and their meaning
Appetite comes with eating.
The deeper you delve into something, the more you understand and recognize it.
A woman with a cart makes it easier for a mare.
About the departure of an unnecessary person who is not so useful to anything.
Trouble doesn’t walk through the forest, but through people.
Misfortunes with people are the real trouble, and not with what surrounds them.
Misfortunes never come alone.
She will definitely take at least one more with her.
Poverty is not a vice.
You should not judge people for poverty, since it is not their negative quality.
You can’t even catch a fish from a pond without difficulty.
Nothing can be achieved without persistence and effort.
Take care of your dress again, and take care of your honor from a young age.
About norms of behavior in society, etc. And if something is lost or torn, it will no longer be possible to restore it.
God saves man, who save himself.
It is easier for a person who is prudent and careful in his decisions and actions to avoid dangers and unjustified risks.
Free cheese only comes in a mousetrap.
Rarely is anything free given to us without pitfalls, without a catch.
God marks the rogue.
Evil deeds and other negative qualities do not go unpunished.
A chatterbox is a godsend for a spy.
If you tell people about elevating your deeds, but implement them less, then there will be envious people who will try to drag you back down. Like a proverb What you boast about, you will be left without.
For a big ship, a long voyage.
A person with great abilities gets great opportunities.
If you suffer for a long time, something will work out.
If you really try in a difficult matter, you can achieve at least something.
Paper will endure anything.
Paper, unlike people, will tolerate any lie, any mistake written on it.
Being a guest is good, but being at home is better.
Home comfort, created with your own hands or the hands of a loved one, cannot be replaced by any visit.
In a healthy body healthy mind.
By keeping the body healthy, a person also maintains mental well-being.
Every family has its black sheep.
In any family or team there will always be a person with negative qualities.
In the dark all cats are gray.
Appearance has a neutral appearance, in contrast to spiritual qualities.
In crowded but not mad.
A little inconvenience for everyone is better than a more serious problem for just one.
Still waters run deep.
Quiet and calm-looking people often hide a complex nature.
They don’t go to someone else’s monastery with their own rules.
In someone else's team, you should not behave only according to your own rules and procedures.
We see the speck in someone else's eye, but we don't notice the log in our own.
The mistakes and shortcomings of the people around you are more noticeable than your own.
Live forever, learn forever, but you will die a fool.
About the impossibility of knowing everything, even with a constant and persistent acquisition of knowledge.
I picked up the tug - don’t say it’s not strong.
Once you take up a task, bring it to the end, despite the difficulties.
The bird is visible in flight.
About people who, through their deeds and their appearance, show others their nature.
Water wears away stones.
Even minor work, manifested long and persistently, gives good results.
Pound water in a mortar and there will be water.
About doing a stupid thing that does not bring anything useful.
The wolf's legs feed him.
To earn a living, you need to move, be active, and not sit still.
If you are afraid of wolves, do not go into the forest.
If you are afraid of difficulties or dangerous consequences, then you should not start any business.
All diseases are caused by nerves.
Anger, resentment and resentment weaken the immune system, which leads to the formation of diseases. Avoid anything that makes you nervous. Be patient.
Everything will be ground - there will be flour.
Any problem sooner or later turns into a good result.
All is well that ends well.
If the ending of something is good, then there is nothing to worry about.
Everything has its time.
Everything happens at the appointed time, not earlier and not later.
Everyone goes crazy in their own way.
Each person has their own advantages and disadvantages.
Every cricket knows its nest.
Everyone should know their place and not interfere with someone else’s.
Every bast in line.
Everything can be useful, everything can be used, any mistake is blamed.
Where there is anger, there is mercy.
Not everything can be done with just anger; over time, mercy comes.
Where wood is cut, chips fly.
In any business there are always losses, costs...
Needed where was born.
About a place of birth that would not be worth leaving forever.
Where it's thin, that's where it breaks.
What is strong always remains strong, and the weakest link always cracks.
The eyes are afraid, but the hands are doing.
It's scary to take on a task until you finally take it on.
The need for invention is cunning.
The need and poverty of a person make him more intelligent and inventive.
Mountain does not converge with mountain, but man does not converge with man.
About people, despite the mountains, who are capable by nature of understanding and meeting halfway.
One grave will correct a hunchback, but a club will correct a stubborn one.
It is difficult and sometimes impossible for a person to get rid of his bad habits.
Prepare a sleigh in the summer and a cart in the winter.
Before you start anything, you must first prepare.
They do not look at a given horse's teeth.
For any gift you are supposed to thank and rejoice at it, they say, take what you give.
Two bears do not live in the same den.
About two rivals vying for leadership. There is no room for two owners in one house.
The master's work is afraid.
The work carried out by the master is completed efficiently and quickly.
Time for business, time for fun.
Most of your time should be spent on study and work, and only partly on entertainment.
For a dear friend and an earring.
For a good friend or loved one, you don’t feel sorry for even the most valuable.
Debt good turn deserves another.
A good attitude towards people will definitely return in kind.
Expensive egg for Easter day.
It's always nice to get what you expect at the right time, in the right place.
Friendship is friendship, and service is service.
Friendly relationships should not affect work relationships, however, and vice versa.
A friend in need is a friend indeed.
Only a friend will do everything possible for you to save you in a difficult situation.
There is no law for fools.
Only an intelligent person gives in to the rules; fools have no time for them anyway.
A bad example is contagious.
About imitation of a bad example, a bad deed of another person.
Living life is not a field to cross.
Life is a complicated thing, living it is not so easy.
If you chase two hares, you won’t catch either.
It is impossible to achieve two goals at the same time; everything must be done sequentially.
You can't see the forest for the trees.
By focusing on little things or on the same thing, it is impossible to see the main thing.
The Forbidden fruit is sweet.
Taking someone else’s or forbidden things is much more pleasant than taking your own.
Make a fool pray to God, and he’ll bruise his forehead.
An overly zealous person can harm the business.
It is not worth it.
The money spent on something is not justified by the results obtained.
You can't erase a word from a song.
It is impossible to change or hide something with words without distorting reality.
If only I knew where to fall, I would have laid out straws.
About caution, forethought, so that there is no trouble.
Each sandpiper praises its swamp.
Every person praises the place in which he lives, but everything else is foreign and unusual.
Everyone judges for himself.
The way a person is, that’s how those around him seem to be.
As it comes back, so will it respond.
Any actions towards people around you, good or bad, eventually turn out to be the same.
Whatever you name the ship, that’s how it will sail.
What you set your mind to is what you will get.
You can't spoil porridge with oil.
What is useful and pleasant cannot cause harm, even if there is too much of it.
Fight fire with fire.
To eliminate the results of an action, therefore, by the same means that caused this action.
The end is the crown of the whole thing.
It is important to complete any task.
Finished the job - go for a walk safely.
Once you finish your work, you can rest peacefully without thinking about it.
The horse has four legs and even then stumbles.
Even the most intelligent, dexterous and skillful people can sometimes make mistakes.
A penny saves the ruble.
To accumulate a lot, you must not neglect the little.
The hut is red not in its corners, but in its pies.
The owner of the house is valued not by wealth, but by hospitality.
Who seeks will always find.
When a person really tries to search, he really finds.
Whoever gets up early, God gives him.
Whoever is not lazy to get up early will have a longer day and a more luxuriant harvest.
Where the needle goes, so goes the thread.
About a person dependent on someone or about close attachment to each other.
Strike while the iron is hot.
While the opportunity allows, it is better to act, otherwise it may not exist later.
The chicken pecks one grain at a time, but is full.
By doing something regularly, even if only a little at a time, you can achieve results.
You can't break through walls with your forehead.
It is useless to achieve something without having enough strength for it.
They don't hit someone who is lying down.
It is not customary to finish off someone who is injured or in trouble.
A fly in the ointment.
When everything is good, any, even minor, dirty trick can ruin everything.
Better the bitter truth than a sweet lie.
You won't get far with a lie, unlike the truth, no matter what it is.
Better to see once than hear a hundred times.
You should not believe words, you should only look at actions.
Better late than never.
It is better to do something at least someday than not to do it at all.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
It is better to have something small and quite accessible than something large and difficult to achieve.
Love for all ages.
A person has the ability to fall in love at absolutely any age.
If you like to ride, you also like to carry a sled.
To achieve something in your life, make an effort.
The less you know the better you sleep.
The more you know, the more excitement and worry there is.
The world is not without good people.
There will always be generous people with a desire to help in someone else's troubles.
Young is green.
Young people, unlike adults, are not mature enough in their knowledge.
Silent means consent.
Silence is like an assumption of an affirmative answer.
Moscow was not built in a day.
Everything complex and perfect is never given at once, only with a gain of experience.
In the absence of fish, cancer is a fish.
In the absence of something better, something worse may come in handy.
Trust in God, and don’t make a mistake yourself.
You should not rely solely on God when doing anything. Do everything yourself, and God only supports.
Every man to his own taste.
Tastes and preferences of different people may differ from each other.
You can't please everyone.
You can't please everyone, no matter what you do. Even if you are an angel, someone may not like the rustling of your wings.
Simplicity is enough for every wise man.
No matter how wise and perspicacious a person is, he can be deceived.
The animal runs towards the catcher.
It is easier for those who are brave, persistent, and stubborn to achieve anything they want.
There is no trial.
About the humble acceptance of the absence of something or the refusal of a request.
They carry water to the offended.
A person is forced to be able to forgive. And an offended person looks of no interest to anyone.
Hope dies last.
Even with disappointment or complete failure, there is still hope for the best.
Gruzdev called himself get in the body.
If you boast or promise to do something, do it.
You won't be nice by force.
No one can be forced to love against their will.
It is not God who burns the pots.
Each person is doomed to cope with his tasks himself, and not rely only on God alone.
Don't sit in your own sleigh.
Equivalent to the expression “Mind your own business.”
Not everything is Maslenitsa, there is also Lent.
Life is not always a holiday. It comes in changeable stripes.
All that glitters is not gold.
Any thing or entity, no matter how beautiful it looks, is not determined only by external signs. The internal signs are more important.
If you don't know the ford, don't go into the water.
Before you do anything, you should know how it is done.
Don't have a hundred rubles, but have a hundred friends.
Money disappears the first time you go to the store, but friends remain forever.
It is not the place that makes the person, but the person the place.
A person with a bad position can be an excellent worker, but with a good position - vice versa.
Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today.
While there is an opportunity, it is better to carry out your plans right away, in order to avoid acquiring laziness and regret.
Don't spit in the well - you'll need some water to drink.
You should not spoil your relationship with a person, no matter what he is. But in the future it can turn out to be very useful, and even save a life.
Not caught - not a thief, not caught - not cheated.
A person is not guilty of an offense until proven guilty.
Don't dig a hole for someone else - you yourself will fall into it.
A person who does bad things to another person suffers himself, having encountered the consequences of his own actions.
Don't cut the branch you're sitting on.
Don’t do stupid things and evil, because you yourself can choke on the same thing.
The devil is not as scary as he is painted.
An indication of exaggeration of the significance of any negative phenomenon.
Man does not live by bread alone.
A person has not only material qualities, but also spiritual ones.
There is no smoke without fire.
Nothing happens just like that, for example, there is no gossip without reason.
Every cloud has a silver lining.
In any difficult situation, you can always extract something pleasant and useful.
Burnt on milk - blows on the water.
Having made a mistake once, in the future you become more careful and prudent.
There is safety in numbers.
It is more difficult to withstand something alone, to win a fight, than with someone else.
One head is good, but two are even better.
Two people will be able to solve any problem better and faster, unlike one.
One swallow does not make spring.
The very first and only sign of a phenomenon is not the phenomenon itself.
From love to hate one step.
It won't be difficult to anger a person and make him hate you.
No one is immune from the event.
No matter how hard you try to prevent trouble, it can still happen.
It's a double-edged sword.
For every desired action there is a reaction.
The first pancake is lumpy.
Anything doesn't always work out really well the first time.
Stretch your legs along the clothes.
About living according to your means, income, in accordance with your capabilities.
They meet you by their clothes, they see them off by their intelligence.
A meeting with a person is valued according to external signs, and parting is valued according to internal, mental ones.
Even a sword does not cut a guilty head.
Those who voluntarily admit their guilt should not be seriously punished.
Repetition is the mother of learning.
The more you repeat, the better you know.
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
If you do nothing, nothing will come of it.
Until the thunder strikes, the man will not cross himself.
A person will drag out his illness or other problem until the last moment, until it resolves completely.
Trying is not torture, and demand is not a problem.
There is nothing stopping you from at least trying to do something rather than not doing it at all.
After a fight they don’t wave their fists.
It is unacceptable to change anything when it is too late.
If you hurry, you will make people laugh.
Any task should be done calmly, slowly, in order to avoid a funny situation.
Forewarned is forearmed.
What you are warned about, you are ready for.
When trouble comes, open the gate.
Misfortune never comes alone. Therefore, you need to be more careful and prepared for anything.
The frightened crow is afraid of the bush.
If a person is truly scared, he will be afraid of everything that surrounds him.
For a drunk, the sea is knee-deep, and the puddle is up to his ears.
A drunk person is drawn to actions that he would never dare to do if he were sober.
Once a year the stick shoots.
Very rarely, but still the impossible may well become possible.
One born to crawl cannot fly.
If a person is born a fool, then he will die a fool.
Fish looks for where it is deeper, and man looks for where it is better.
About people who want better devices for their lives.
The fish rots from the head.
If the government is bad, so will its subordinates.
Birds of a feather flock together.
Close people easily find a common language.
To live with wolves is to howl like a wolf.
When joining any community, life according to their principles is not excluded.
Out of sight, out of mind.
The human principle is to forget someone with whom you do not see or communicate.
Whoever you hang out with, that's how you'll gain.
Whom you communicate with, make friends with, you adopt his views, habits, etc.
With your loved one and in the hut is paradise.
It’s good to be with your loved one anywhere and under any conditions.
The light did not converge like a wedge.
If everything is good at a certain facility, you shouldn’t make do with it alone.
Our people - we will be numbered.
Close people are doomed to help each other without asking for anything in return.
I can't bear my own burden.
What you personally receive is easier to bear, unlike the tolerability of someone else’s.
Your shirt is closer to your body.
Your own interests are more important than the interests of other people.
A holy place is never empty.
If a person leaves a good place, someone else immediately takes it.
Seven do not wait for one.
They won’t wait for one latecomer when everyone is already gathered and ready for business.
Seven times measure cut once.
Before you do anything, you must first think carefully, provide for everything, in order to avoid an accident.
Lawless Heart.
About the inability to control your feelings.
No matter how much you feed the wolf, he still looks into the forest.
It is impossible to change the natural instincts and inclinations of another person.
Soon the fairy tale is told, but not soon the deed is done.
About foreshadowing something, like in a fairy tale, it’s quick and easy, but in reality it’s more complicated.
Miser pays twice.
Unlike buying a cheap thing and then buying an expensive one because the cheap one breaks down soon, it is better to immediately buy an expensive and high-quality thing for a long time.
Tears of sorrow will not help.
Don't be discouraged if you can get rid of grief. And if the problem is inevitable, there is no point in shedding tears.
The word is not a sparrow; if it flies out, you won’t catch it.
Once you find yourself in an awkward situation and say a bad word, it is impossible to go back.
The word is silver, silence is gold.
It is a matter of honor to say something useful, but it is better to remain silent about useless and empty chatter.
The earth is full of rumors.
A person knows secret information thanks to rumors.
A dog can be a biter from a dog's life.
An unkind, aggressive person often becomes like this due to the conditions of his life: from a lack of love, care from people around him, frequent misfortunes, etc.
He ate the dog and choked on his tail.
It is impossible to do anything big without tripping over a small thing.
There are no boundaries for perfection.
No matter how hard you try to improve the situation, you can always do better.
Nightingales are not fed fables.
Talking cannot feed those who are hungry. He should be offered food.
An old bird is not caught with chaff.
It is difficult to outwit an experienced person with anything, to lead him into a dead end.
An old friend is better than two new ones.
Old, proven, long-familiar, predictable is much more reliable, as opposed to new, unfamiliar, not yet tested by everyday situations.
The well-fed cannot understand the hungry.
The difficulty of one is incomprehensible to another until he stoops to this difficulty himself.
Patience and a little effort.
Patience and perseverance in work will overcome all obstacles.
Be patient, Cossack - you will become an ataman!
Encouragement to become a patient person when any difficulty is nothing.
Three doctors are no better than one.
Similar to the proverb Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Too many cooks spoil the broth.
The more people take on one task, the less attention is paid to it.
Fear has big eyes.
About fearful people who perceive everything small and insignificant as large and terrible.
An agreement (agreement) is more valuable than money.
A respectful contract, unlike money, can be lost forever. Its terms and conditions must be strictly adhered to.
A drowning man clutches at a straw.
A person in trouble is ready to do anything to save himself. Even if the method does not give much results.
The morning is wiser than the evening.
In the morning, decisions are made more effectively, as opposed to a tired evening.
Learning is light and ignorance is darkness.
Learning is the path to knowledge, achievements, success. And lack of learning is the cause of developmental retardation and lack of culture.
Well, where we do not.
Often a person underestimates where he is now and overestimates the features of the place where he has not yet been.
The bad (bad) grass is out of the field.
You should get rid of anything harmful or unnecessary so that things go faster.
Do not count your chickens before they are hatched.
The success of any business can only be said if it has a visible result.
Man is the architect of his own happiness.
To be happy, you need to do something, and not wait until it comes on its own.
Man proposes, but God disposes.
You should not be one hundred percent sure of the success of an action or enterprise that has not yet taken place.
Whatever you boast about, you will be left without.
A person who talks a lot about his happiness remains without it.
What the hell is not joking (while God sleeps).
Anything can happen, anything can happen.
What we have, we don’t keep, and when we lose it, we cry.
The true value of something or someone is noticed when we are deprived of it.
What is written with a pen cannot be cut down with an axe.
What is written, once it has become known, cannot be changed.
What goes around comes around.
Good or evil done by someone returns over time.
To get to know a person, you have to eat a ton of salt with him.
To get to know a person well, you need to live with him for a long time, overcoming various difficulties in life with him.
Someone else's soul is darkness.
No matter how well we know a person, his thoughts will always be a mystery. And a person’s external appearance is not always a reflection of his soul.
I’ll take away someone else’s trouble with my hands, but I won’t apply my mind to mine.
Other people's troubles seem more solvable, easier, unlike your own.
Murder will out.
The secret always becomes clear. And the lie will definitely come out over time.
Cabbage soup and porridge are our food.
About the habit of eating simple food.
The apple never falls far from the tree.
What parents are like, their children have the same mentality.
The language will take you to Kyiv.
By asking people you can get anywhere.
Teach your grandmother to suck eggs.
An inexperienced person can teach little to an experienced one.
1. Appetite comes with eating, and greed - during appetite.
2. Grandmother I was wondering, said in two, Either it’s raining or it’s snowing, or it’s going to happen, or it’s not going to happen.
3. Poverty is not a vice, and misfortune.
4. A healthy mind in a healthy body - rare luck.
5. Every family has its black sheep, and because of the freak, everything is not pleasing.
6. How lucky Saturday to the drowned man - there is no need to heat the bathhouse.
7. The raven will not peck out the crow's eyes, and he’ll peck it out, but won’t pull it out.
8. Everyone seeks the truth, not everyone does it.
9. Where it’s thin, that’s where it breaks, where it’s thick, it’s layered there.
10. It was smooth on paper, Yes, they forgot about the ravines, and walk along them.
11. Goal like a falcon, and as sharp as an ax.
12. Hunger is not a thing, won't bring you a pie.
13. The grave will correct the hunchback, and the stubborn one is a cudgel.
14. The lip is not a fool, the tongue is not a shovel: they know what is bitter and what is sweet.
15. Two boots in a pair, yes both left.
16. Two are waiting for the third, and seven do not wait for one.
17. Girlish shame - to the threshold, stepped over and forgot.
18. The master’s work is afraid, and another master of the matter.
19. The road is a spoon for dinner, and there at least under the bench.
20. No law is written for fools, if it is written, then it is not read, if it is read, then it is not understood, if it is understood, then it is not so.
21. We live, we chew bread, and sometimes we add salt.
22. For a beaten person they give two unbeaten ones, it doesn't hurt to take it.
23. If you chase two hares, you won’t get any wild boar you won't catch it.
24. There is fun overseas, but alien, and we have both grief and our own.
25. The hare's legs are carried, The wolf's teeth are fed, the fox's tail is protected.
26. AND it's time, And fun time.
27. And the blind horse carries when a sighted person sits on a cart.
28. A mosquito won’t knock down a horse, until the bear helps.
29. Whoever remembers the old is out of sight, and whoever forgets - both.
30. The hen pecks at the grain, and the whole yard is covered in droppings.
31. Dashing trouble has begun, and the end is near.
32. Dashing trouble initiative - there is a hole, there will be a gap.
33. Young people scold and amuse themselves, and the old people scold and rage.
34. They carry water to (offended) angry people, and they ride the good ones themselves.
35. Don’t open your mouth to someone else’s loaf, get up early and get started.
36. Not everything is Maslenitsa for the cat, there will be a post.
37. The woodpecker is not sad that he cannot sing, the whole forest can already hear him.
38. Neither fish nor meat, neither caftan nor cassock.
39. A new broom sweeps in a new way, and when it breaks, it’s lying under the bench.
40. One in the field is not a warrior, and the traveler.
41. The horses are dying from work, and people are getting stronger.
42. Oats don't make horses roam, but they do not seek good from good.
43. Double-edged sword hits here and there.
44. Repetition is the mother of learning, consolation for fools.
45. Repetition is the mother of learning and a refuge for lazy people.
46. Water does not flow under a lying stone, but under the rolling one - he doesn’t have time.
47. The drunken sea is knee-deep, and the puddle is head over heels.
48. Dust in a column, smoke in a rocker, but the hut is not heated, not swept.
49. Work is not a wolf, it won’t run into the forest, That’s why it’s necessary to do it, damn it.
50. Grow big, but don’t be a noodle, stretch a mile, don't be simple.
51. A fisherman sees a fisherman from afar, that's why he avoids it.
52. A hand washes a hand, yes they both itch.
53. If you get along with a bee, you’ll get some honey, If you get in touch with a beetle, you'll end up in manure.
54. Your eye is a diamond, and the stranger is glass.
55. Seven troubles - one answer, eighth problem - nowhere at all.
56. The bullet is afraid of the brave, and he’ll find a coward in the bushes.
57. Dog in the manger lies there, doesn’t eat on her own and doesn’t give it to the cattle.
58. The dog was eaten choked on their tail.
59. Old age is not a joy, If you sit down, you won’t get up; if you run, you won’t stop..
60. An old horse will not spoil the furrow, and it won’t plow deep.
62. Fear has big eyes, they don't see anything.
63. If you hit one cheek, turn the other one, but don't let yourself get hit.
64. Uma chamber, yes the key is lost.
65. Bread on the table - and the table is a throne, and not a piece of bread - and the table is board.
The collection includes ancient Russian proverbs, sayings, and riddles. For middle school age.
- Wisdom and poetry
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by liters company.
© Anikin V.P., introductory article, compilation, notes, 2004
© Valeryanova E. G., illustrations, 2004
© Yakovleva T. A., illustrations, 2004
© Design of the series. Publishing house "Children's Literature", 2004
Wisdom and poetry
In everyday speech, to convince our interlocutor, we refer to proverbs. They seem to evaluate people’s behavior, teach: “Out of boredom, take matters into your own hands,” “When you are young, a hole is a hole when you are old,” they warn: “Take care of your dress again, but take care of your honor when you are young,” they sympathize with those in trouble: “The wind will not dispel the grief.” ", they make fun of stupidity: "The godfather was going to God knows where." Every proverb is a new thought.
Proverbs are similar to aphorisms - wise sayings of famous people. And the difference can be understood by comparing how the thought is expressed in an aphorism and in a proverb. The legendary poet of Ancient Greece Homer said: “Whatever word you say is what you will hear in response.” The proverb says the same thing, but in a different way: “As it comes around, so it will respond.” But the difference is also noticeable. A proverb differs from an aphorism in that, in addition to the direct meaning, it contains an allegorical, figurative, more significant meaning. Homer meant only speech, but the proverb speaks generally about human relationships. “The early bird clears its nose, the late bird opens its eyes” - the proverb speaks not only about birds, but also about people. They remember it when they want to say: the one who gets up early manages to do more in a day; he has already eaten and got down to business, and the lazy man is just getting out of bed.
The saying is similar to a proverb. For this reason they are often not differentiated, but they are different. “After the rain on Thursday,” we say about something that is unknown whether it happened or will happen. What different circumstances can this expression be applied to?! However, unlike a proverb, a saying is not a complete judgment. People say: a saying is a flower, an expression, and a proverb is a berry, a complete sentence. A saying is part of a judgment, and a proverb is a complete independent judgment. A proverb replaces only a single word or part of a sentence. So, instead of “He is cunning” they say: “He is a fox’s tail.” Comparing a cunning man with a fox is a saying.
Proverbs express the speaker's attitude to the subject of speech. After all, it’s one thing to say: such and such an event is unknown whether it will happen or not; and it’s a completely different matter when they say that it will happen “after the rain on Thursday.” Here, in addition to doubt, there is also ridicule. In the same way, calling a cunning person a “fox tail” means condemning him and laughing at him.
Polysemy makes it difficult to divide proverbs and sayings into thematic and semantic groups. In our collection, each of the sections is named after a proverb, which contains a common meaning for the section. For example, the title contains the proverb: “The bee is small, but even the bee works.” All proverbs in this section represent judgments about work.
The first section of the collection is titled: “An old proverb never goes unnoticed.” Here are collected popular sayings about the proverbs and sayings themselves. According to the people, a proverb is “not every speech”, just as not every pillar is an outskirts. The outskirts are the fence around the village. It separates the village from the surrounding fields or, in general, the surrounding area from the village. The outskirts indicate the border, fence, protect. The proverb also set a limit, teaching and warning.
The section “Everyone has his own side” is made up of proverbs about the homeland and foreign lands, about the meaning of the homeland for a person, about its protection: “Die from your native land, do not leave.” Unable to imagine their existence without their homeland, the Russian people stood against their enemies to the death. The proverbs of this section are wisdom carried through centuries that should not be forgotten.
The section, named after the proverb “Stand boldly for a just cause,” is adjacent to the previous one, but is associated with the transmission of thoughts about honor:
“For conscience, for honor, at least take your head off.” From all the trials, people came away with the firm belief that truth invariably triumphs over falsehood and lies: “Truth does not burn in fire and does not drown in water.”
The idea of the indestructibility of truth is continued in the proverbs of the section “Living life is not a field to cross.” It talks about life's obstacles, the vicissitudes of fate, even the seemingly hopeless fate of someone in trouble. “Wherever you throw it, it’s all a wedge.” The fate of a free man is enviable: “Flower in the field - a man in freedom.” Proverbs taught not to be afraid of difficulties, to be prudent, persistent: “Spark the carcass before the fire, avert trouble before the blow.” From here follow everyday rules, addressed primarily to young people: “It’s hard to find, it’s easy to lose,” “The young man is young, he couldn’t stand the cold.” Here are proverbs about the difference between the habits of young and old, about the need to respect old age: “Don’t laugh at the old: you’ll be old yourself.” Another of the proverbs is combined with irony: “You can’t fool an old sparrow with chaff.” The section contains judgments about the change of generations, about the eternal desire of people for well-being.
The section “The bee is small, but it also works” includes proverbs that indicate the source of a person’s victories: this is work, the ability to do business. There is no need to be afraid of big work: “The hardest part is the beginning,” where mistakes are inevitable: “The first pancake is always lumpy.” They are compensated by success in the future, if only there was diligence: “Patience and work will grind everything down,” “Pick one berry at a time and you’ll get a whole bunch,” “Know how to start, know how to finish.”
Proverbial folklore rises to the formulation of the principle: “He who does not work, neither does he eat.” In the section there are many proverbs about the correct organization of work and skill: “The master is afraid of every work”, “Bend so that it bends, and not so that it bursts”, “A hut is not cut down by shouting, the work is not ruined by noise”, “After the job, seek advice they don’t go.”
Condemnation of bad work and lazy people is contained in the section “Maybe, maybe, at least give it up.” There are many observations here from a worker who sees and notices everything: “A long thread is a lazy seamstress” (he is too lazy to thread the needle one more time), “A fast horse is quicker” (about wasted energy). The ridicule is caustic at the incompetent Shark who began to sew, but not like this: “And I, mother, will still flog you,” at the woman for whom the bag is the enemy: she does not walk!
Often a proverb turns into a whole scene: “The dog invited the dog to visit. “No, you can’t, I don’t have time.” - "And what?" - “Yes, tomorrow the owner is going to get hay, so we need to run ahead and bark.” This is a proverbial fable. And here is a fable that recreates the simple-minded speech of an incompetent hasty person: “Knocked down, knocked together - that’s the wheel! I sat down and drove off - oh, good! I looked back - only the knitting needles were lying there.”
A person who knows how to laugh well firmly believes that he will achieve happiness. From such proverbs a section was formed: “The sun will come to our windows.” Just as sunlight comes to every window, so luck comes to the person who knows how to wait. People believe that tears cannot help grief, that to be afraid of misfortune means that happiness will not be seen, and that any grief can be tied up with a string: “Not everything is bad weather, the red sun will shine through.”
The hope of finding prosperity was not mere consolation. People express a lot of sensible thoughts: “Don’t promise a pie in the sky, give a bird in your hands.” From the circle of such concepts came proverbs condemning the ever-hesitating people who do not know how to stop at anything: “Grandma said in two: either it rains or snows, either it will happen or it won’t,” “Either the bough or the black grouse.”
The sage people saw strength in working together, in living “in peace”, as a team. In the section, named after the proverb “Get together, it won’t be too heavy,” just this judgment is made: “Even a wolf doesn’t take a willing herd.” The idea of the need for unification is also presented in the proverb “Two brands smoke in the field, but one goes out in the oven.” Such proverbs with a broad generalization are accompanied by the everyday rule: “An old friend is better than two new ones” and other similar ones.
Affects proverbs and entertainment. The people are convinced that it is especially fun for those who have worked: “When you finish your work, go for a walk.” The title of the section itself fully corresponds to the meaning of the proverbs included in it.
Folk wisdom easily connects different areas of life. The proverb “You can’t erase a word from a song” is about the need to follow rules and order, and not make exceptions. This is also the proverb about buffoon horns - that each musician has his own: this means, of course, not only the game and the buffoon musicians.
The house, order in it, peace and harmony among the household were considered the key to everyday well-being. Proverbs delve into all the little things: here is the idea of how a girl should behave, how to style her hair (“A braid is a girl’s beauty”), how to babysit a child, how to amuse him, how to greet a son-in-law as a mother-in-law, how to keep yourself clean and tidy How to treat yourself - a whole dozen instructions and rules. The entire section can be united by the proverb “Without an owner, a house is an orphan.” It conveys the idea of order in the family, its structure, and the proper management of the house.
The proverb “Bread is the head of everything” opens a section with popular opinions about food and drink. But this is only an external, conspicuous characteristic of such proverbs. Essentially, they deeply reveal the difference between the lives of the well-fed and the hungry, and capture the despair of those suffering from cold and hunger: “A hungry man has bread on his mind,” “Bread and water is a peasant’s food.” Proverbs condemn drunkenness: “He who drinks to the bottom lives madly.”
A cheerful feast, a warm welcome of guests are the companions of abundance and prosperity. The section “The Magpie Chirps – Prophesies Guests” complements the previous one. No feast was complete without a cheerful speech or joke. Both sections talk about Russian cuisine: cabbage soup, porridge, pancakes, oatmeal, kalachi, horseradish, radish and fish are mentioned here - ruff, bream in a pie, pike, whitefish, etc.
In the section “As is the mind, so are speech” there are proverbs about speech in general, and about the value of common sense, about the uselessness of empty words. If there is no intelligence, so is speech; if a person is smart, so is speech. Some of these proverbs are worth a long discussion, for example: “An empty barrel makes more noise.”
The section “Learning is light, and ignorance is darkness” talks about the value of learning and enlightenment: “He who is good at reading and writing will not perish,” “For a scientist they give two unlearned people.” There are many proverbs about ancient teaching with its custom of teaching the alphabet to the whole class - shouting the letters loudly: “When they teach the alphabet, they shout at the top of their voices.” The teaching was accompanied by punishment - those who were lazy or could not remember the tricky rules of reading were flogged with rods: letters were called outlandishly in the old days: “az” - “A”, “buki” - “B”, “vedi” - “B” and so on way. This is where the proverb “Az, beeches, and bears are afraid” comes from. If I don’t remember, wait for a beating. And with all this, the people were able to appreciate the ultimate benefit of learning: knowledge is not a burden to anyone, and learning to read and write will always come in handy. Proverbs about the benefits of literacy did an extremely useful job - they prepared the people for the perception of education and culture.
The section “It’s not like that - don’t start over” consists of proverbs and sayings about life’s incongruities: “The calf managed to catch a wolf”, “It would have been bad weather, but the rain got in the way.” The jokes are akin to mocking fairy tales: “Falalei walks from corner to corner, but cannot find a door in the hut,” “We’ll see,” said the blind man. “We’ll hear,” said the deaf man,” “Grandfather dies, but the woman laughs,” “You, earth, shake, but we hold on to the stakes.” Whatever the proverb, it is some special move of comic thought. “The gun hits well: it fell from a shelf and broke seven pots” - how cleverly the ambiguity of the word “hits” is played out here. “The hut went through the upper room, the hallway through the chambers”; “Our beetle has grown larger than a bear” - proverbs turn concepts inside out, they are filled with absurdities. Such proverbs also relate to social topics: “In the wilderness, Thomas is a nobleman,” “Before Kuzma dug vegetable gardens, but now Kuzma has become a governor.” No one will benefit from such a lucky career!
The proverbs collected under the heading “Though the eye sees, the tooth numbs” are very close to the previous section, but they have their own theme: these are proverbs about greed, envy, and greed. Such proverbs threaten self-interested people: “If you chase someone else’s, you’ll lose what’s yours.”
The incorrigibility of vices, the old age and inertia of the general life order in the old days were noted by proverbs in the section “The wolf always has one song.” They talked with particular pleasure about the punishment of thieves, cunning people, and the miscalculations of dodgers: “Although it’s early, there will be an overnight stay,” the fox allegedly said, having fallen into a trap.
No one has ever respected cowards. The proverbs of the section “A cowardly bunny and a stump of a wolf” give vent to ridicule of the timid, who are often frightened by the imagination: “A frightened crow is afraid of a bush,” “The eyes are like bowls, but they don’t see a crumb.” Proverbs about real danger and involuntary fear are also placed here: “It is good for him to laugh who is on a dry shore.”
In the small section “As you are, so are the sleighs”, proverbs are collected about the need to take a place that corresponds to your capabilities, and in general about the advisability of reasonable restrictions. The proverb “Don’t sit in someone else’s sleigh” speaks about this. Such proverbs easily turn into judgments about natural limits: “A falcon does not fly higher than the sun,” “Ears do not grow higher than the forehead.” Whoever does not take into account reasonable restrictions is worthy of regret: “When you take off your head, you don’t cry over your hair.” Proverbs note the connection between phenomena and the dependence of effects on causes: “There is no smoke without fire,” “It won’t catch fire where there is no fire.”
The proverb “One with a fry, and seven with a spoon” notes that the plowman-peasant fed many with his labor: the priest, the master, the official, the judge, the policeman, the servant, the tsar himself. Proverbs defended the honor and dignity of the poor: “Poverty is not a vice.”
“Don’t beat Thomas for Eryomina’s guilt” - such proverbs are given a special section. It notes that there must always be justice in everything.
Thoughts about crime, guilt and punishment wandered in people’s minds and were expressed in proverbs: “A mouse’s tears will flow to a cat,” “No matter how much you twist a rope, there will be an end.” From here it was not far to rebellious thoughts: “Every song has its end.”
These are the proverbs in the section “A man on foot is not a friend to a horse”: “A pot is not a friend to a cauldron”, “A wolf is not a friend to a horse” and the like. The irreconcilability of different concepts appears in the proverb “Darkness does not like light, evil does not tolerate good.”
Thinking about the differences between things and phenomena is associated with the thought of their similarity, often in an ironic presentation: “The same cabbage soup, but on a different plate,” “What’s in the forehead, what’s in the forehead.”
The collection ends with the section “Flies high, but lands somewhere.” These are proverbs about arrogance, pride, panache, stinginess, pugnacity, petty passions, evil secret thoughts. Before us is a small encyclopedia of those vicious phenomena from which people suffer.
Proverbs and sayings, proverbial fables contain a wealth of meaning, demonstrate the amazing brevity of the language with the vastness of meaning, and the liveliness of conversational intonations. They have long gained universal fame and love.
Riddles are the intricate poetry of the people.
There is an old riddle:
Fortress-city,
yes Bel-gorod,
and in Bel-gorod
Wax brother.
What is it about? It turns out it's about a chicken egg. The riddles cannot be solved if you do not know how cities were built in Ancient Rus'. They were surrounded by rows of walls - “cities”. So, in medieval Moscow there was an earthen city, a white stone city - Kitai-gorod and, finally, the Kremlin wall. The egg is compared to city fortifications, which are placed one inside the other. Krep-gorod is an eggshell, Bel-gorod is the white, and what is called the brother of wax is the yolk.
But the riddle is quite tricky:
Tour-potutur
sits with his head down,
is waiting for guests from Nova Gorod.
Who is this mysterious tour and what guests does it expect? A real tour is a wild bull, a bison, a mighty, strong animal. If he was attacked, he became very dangerous. Bison were once found in many places in Europe and Asia. Now they have survived only in nature reserves - in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, in Transcaucasia. These tours are often mentioned in ancient manuscripts. Thus, they said about one prince that he was brave, “like a tour.” Who did the riddle jokingly call a tour? Kota: he clung to the floor, alert, ready to jump, “hunched down”, waiting for the mice. But why are mice “guests”, especially from Novgorod?
The northern land, covered with forests, mosses and swamps, could not feed itself with meager harvests. Novgorodians bought bread in the Volga region and transported it on ships from afar. This has long been done by merchants, or, as they were called in the old days, “guests.” Merchants exchanged goods for bread, and traded it profitably at home. In those days, traveling to neighboring lands was dangerous. No wonder there was a proverb: “Take one thing - either fight or trade.” The proverb equated trade with war. Novgorod merchants were often robbed when their ships sailed past other people's possessions. So the riddle jokingly talks about the prince-tour, who was preparing to attack those traveling for bread. After all, mice also come into the house for food. To solve a riddle with a whole set of funny, made-up words - “potutur”, “potuturiv”, it turns out that you need to know the history, nature of the country and the ancient language.
Our land is vast and diverse. The southern outskirts of Russia are surrounded by mountains. The further north you go, the rarer the elevated areas are. Wide rivers flow across the plain. And in the north there is the tundra. She is washed by the waves of the ocean. The riddles did not fail to highlight the diversity of Russian regions.
The riddle about the firmament, stars and month was composed by those who compared the vast steppe with the herds grazing on it, with the night sky.
The field is not measured
the sheep are not counted
the shepherd is horned.
The more you become acquainted with the riddles, the wider the expanse of earth and heaven opens up. The stars, their sparkle, the month and the rising sun, darkness and light are poeticized in riddles.
The slow flow of water in lowland rivers is also noted in riddles, which even with rhythm convey the slowness of movement.
Flows, flows -
won't leak
runs, runs -
Ancient life is reflected in the riddles in a varied and colorful way. Not far from the city of Torzhok there was a riddle about hot porridge:
In the city of Torzhok
they sell a woman in a pot.
And beyond the Urals there was a widespread riddle about dumplings - about how they are cooked:
Sheep ran
along the Kalinov bridge,
we saw the dawn,
jumped into the water.
From the riddle about the barrel we learn what materials are used to make it:
The oak itself
elm belt,
and the nose is fake.
An interesting riddle about how the sieve works:
In the forest: tyap, tyap;
at home: blunder, blunder;
around the edges: you little bastards!
in the middle: but!
The sieve has a bast-sewn shell, that is, a shingle rim, a bent splint, sides of the sieve and a cloth - part of the sieve woven from horsehair. The riddle talks about how in the forest they tear the basts from the linden tree, remove the bast that goes to the rim - “in the forest: tyap, tyap.” Along the edges of the sieve there are bast straps, “trusenki”. They were named so because they stopped the horse with tugs (also made of bast), reins. In the middle of the sieve there is a “but!” The exclamation hints at the horsehair from which the fabric is woven. “At home: blunder, blunder” is a sieve in the dexterous hands of the housewife.
You can learn a lot from riddles. Riddles about the hut, its corners, the matrix - the cross beam - and the log beam on it, about the hinges and the door, introduce you to the structure of the home. To solve the riddle, you need to know what kind of wood the floorboards are made of, what kind of wood is used to make the frames so that they do not get wet from moisture, in which corner the stove is placed so that as much heat as possible goes into the house. The riddles talk about a stove brow, a pole, a bend, a pipe, a barrier, a poker, a grip, a broom, a bench, a table, a pot, a cast iron pot, a whorl, a tub, a tub, a samovar, a sheet - in a word, the creators of the riddles recreated the furnishings, interior decoration, utensils and dishes from an old house.
End of introductory fragment.
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The given introductory fragment of the book Magic box. Ancient Russian proverbs, sayings, riddles (Collection, 2014) provided by our book partner -
