Folk traditions of the Russian people. Abstract: Traditional Russian customs and rituals

The synthetic form of culture are rites, customs, traditions and rituals, i.e. what are called patterns of behavior. Rituals are standard and repeated team activities held at a set time and on a special occasion to influence the behavior and understanding of employees of the organizational environment. The power of the ritual lies in its emotional and psychological impact on people. In a ritual, not only the rational assimilation of certain norms, values ​​and ideals occurs, but also empathy for them by the participants in the ritual action.

Rituals are a system of rituals. Even certain management decisions can become organizational rituals that employees interpret as part of the organizational culture. Such rituals act as organized and planned actions that have important “cultural” significance.

In the everyday life of an enterprise, rituals perform a double function: they can strengthen the structure of the enterprise, and on the other hand, by obscuring the true meaning of the actions performed, they can weaken it. In positive cases, rituals are stage performances of works of fundamental importance. Rituals symbolize beliefs that play a significant role in the enterprise. In combination with outstanding events, rituals directly and indirectly highlight the image of the enterprise and the value orientations that dominate it.

Rituals of recognition, such as anniversaries, celebrations of success in foreign service, public recognition, participation in incentive trips - all these events should demonstrate what the enterprise is interested in, what is rewarded and what is celebrated.

A similar function is performed by the so-called initiation rituals, which are usually performed when joining a team. They must clearly demonstrate to the new member what the company really values. If a newly minted engineer who graduated from an elite university is given a broom in the first days of his career at a company's representative office in South America and asked to start sweeping the room, this can cause disappointment and confusion in the young man. At the same time, they immediately make it clear to him that in this enterprise, what is primarily valued is not formal education, but personal participation in business. A parallel can be drawn with enterprises specializing in the production of high-quality products, where almost everyone, regardless of education, starts in the sales field.

In the negative case, the relationship between rituals and value orientations is lost. In this case, rituals turn into an unnecessary, prim and ultimately ridiculous formality, with the help of which they try to kill time, avoid making decisions, and avoid conflicts and confrontations.

The most typical example of this in everyday life is the negotiation of tariff agreements, especially when this was preceded by worker protests. Drama prohibits coming to an agreement during the working day. No, we must fight all night, and the new tariff agreement must be signed, if possible, shortly before dawn, so that the union representatives and employers, completely exhausted, can appear in front of the television cameras at first light.

And in enterprises one can often observe how rituals turn into an end in themselves, how they become ballast in the process of implementing the main active goals.

Within the culture of a company, rituals occupy an important place. At the same time, it is necessary to check whether, with their help, value orientations that are also relevant for everyday life are actually conveyed.

Custom is a form of social regulation of people’s activities and attitudes adopted from the past, which is reproduced in a certain society or social group and is familiar to its members. Custom consists of strict adherence to the instructions received from the past. Various rituals, holidays, production skills, etc. can act as customs. Custom is an unwritten rule of behavior.

Traditions are elements of social and cultural heritage that are passed down from generation to generation and preserved in a particular community for a long time. Traditions function in all social systems and are a necessary condition for their life. A disdainful attitude towards tradition leads to a disruption of continuity in the development of society and culture, to the loss of the valuable achievements of mankind. Blind worship of tradition gives rise to conservatism and stagnation in public life.

Ancient wedding rituals

Wedding rituals in Russia developed around the 15th century. The main components of wedding ceremonies are as follows:

Matchmaking- a wedding ceremony in which the preliminary consent of the bride’s relatives for the wedding was obtained.

Bride– a wedding ceremony in which the matchmaker/(matchmaker), the groom, and the groom’s parents could see the future bride and evaluate her strengths and weaknesses. Bridesmaids were held after the matchmaking, before the handshake.

Handcraft(conspiracy, drinking, zaruchiny, betrothal, vaults) - part of the wedding ceremony, during which a final agreement on the wedding was reached.

Vytie- wedding ceremony, ritual crying. Happens on half of the bride. Its purpose is to show that the girl lived well in her parents’ house, but now she has to leave. The bride said goodbye to her parents, friends, and freedom.

hen-party– wedding ceremony, the day before the wedding, or the days from the hand-waving to the wedding.

Ransom, scolding- a wedding ceremony in which the groom took the bride from home.

Sacrament of wedding

A church wedding or wedding is a Christian sacrament of blessing the bride and groom who have expressed a desire to live together as husband and wife during their subsequent lives.

wedding feast- a wedding ceremony in which the wedding was celebrated over food and drink with jokes and toasts.

Holiday rituals

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IN Pokrov Day (October 14) The girls ran to church early in the morning and lit a candle for the holiday. There was a belief: whoever lights a candle first will get married sooner.

Soon, girls, Pokrov,

We'll have a party soon,

Will play soon

Dear little girl.

If you have fun during the Intercession, you will find a friend.

In some areas, it is customary to put coins in the glasses of the bride and groom. Newlyweds should keep these coins on their table under the tablecloth, which will always ensure prosperity in the house.

If a girl spills a drink on the tablecloth at dinner, this portends a drunkard husband.

In other parts, newlyweds were forced to sleep on sheaves of rye. And these sheaves should be an odd number, say, 21. If this condition was met, it meant that they would not need anything.

On the holiday, girls go to church and put candles in front of the icon of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary and say: “Protection - Most Holy Theotokos, cover my poor head with a pearl kokoshnik, a golden headband.” And if at such a moment the confused guy threw a blanket over the head of the girl he liked, then she unquestioningly became his wife, noted one Arab writer who visited Rus' in the 12th century.

Christmastide

Yuletide fortune telling

Young people of both sexes gather for the evening, take rings, rings, cufflinks, earrings and other small things and place them under a dish along with pieces of bread, and cover everything with a clean towel, napkin or fly (piece of cloth). After that, those participating in fortune-telling sing a song dedicated to bread and salt and then other sub-course (Yuletide, fortune-telling) songs. At the end of each, turning away, from under the closed dish they take out one object that came to hand first. This is something like a home lottery. A song was used for this ritual, from the content of which a foreshadowing was derived. But since the things taken out from under the dish are not always found by those to whom they belong, a ransom of the things is awarded on this occasion. To the last one, who has already taken the last thing out from under the dish, they usually sing a wedding song, as if foreshadowing an imminent marriage. Then they roll the ring along the floor, observing which direction it will roll: if towards the door, then for a girl - the proximity of marriage; for a guy - departure.

New Year's fortune telling

In order to find out what the bride or groom will be like, tall or small, you need to go to the woodshed on New Year’s Eve and immediately take a log. If it’s big, then it’s big, and vice versa.

If a girl cuts or pricks her finger until it bleeds on New Year's Eve, she will definitely get married next year.

They freeze water in a spoon for the New Year: if the ice is convex and with bubbles, it means long life, if there is a hole in the ice, it means death.

And here’s how Bulgarian girls used to tell fortunes on New Year’s Eve: they gathered together somewhere near a spring, near a well, and in complete silence scooped up a bucket of water, which was attributed with special magical powers. Each girl threw a handful of oats, a ring or a bouquet with her mark into this bucket. The little girl took out these objects one by one, while singing special ritual songs: the words of the songs referred to the future husband of the girl, whose ring was taken out. Then the girls took a little oats from the bucket and put them under their pillows in the hope that they would dream about their betrothed.

Not all fortune-telling was only of a love nature; it happened that girls fortune-telled the weather in the coming year, and through this they made forecasts for the future harvest.

Christmas

Before Christmas was coming 40-day Filippov fast. They did not eat meat, they made do with fish. The whole house is fasting, and the old people are celebrating Christmas Eve. The first pancake on Christmas Eve is for the sheep (from pestilence)

IN Christmas Eve(on the night of December 24-25) do not eat until the first star. On the first day of Christmas, figurines of cows and sheep are always baked from wheat dough. They are kept until Epiphany, but on Epiphany, after the blessing of water, the hostess soaks these figurines in holy water and gives them to the cattle (for offspring, for milk yield).

At Christmas time, during the second half of the war, when the two-week “terrible evenings” between the New Year and Epiphany began, the girls wondered especially a lot.

Baptism

“The Christian procedure of Baptism,” writes A.Yu. Grigorenko, is a magical ceremony. Immersing the body in water three times, dressing the baby in a clean white shirt in order to preserve the purity of his soul, etc. - all this comes from homeopathic magic, based on the belief that “like produces like”, “the effect is like its cause.”

The custom of blowing on a baby, water, oil in order to give them grace and at the same time ward off Satan, spitting on Satan during Baptism also came from an ancient faith - the belief that human breath and saliva have special witchcraft powers. Primitive people believed that blowing and spitting were ways to both convey holiness and ward off evil. The same primitive rite is “tonsuring the hair.” Cutting the hair of a child (or an adult) at Baptism and throwing it into the font is a rudiment of the ancient belief that by laying an animate part of one’s body at the feet of a deity, which has the miraculous property of growth, a person establishes a strong relationship with him. In ancient times, many peoples had a custom of donating hair to the gods. Thus, in the Phoenician temples of Astrata there was even a special position - galab-elim - God's barber. Statues depicting gods in ancient temples were often covered from top to bottom with male and female hair.

And the main element of Baptism is water? Christian theologians explain Baptism by water by the fact that Jesus Christ sanctified the waters of the Jordan, having received his first Baptism from John the Baptist. However, the magical ritual of washing with water is actually much older than Christ and Christianity. Many centuries before the rise of Christianity and the birth of the Messiah himself, the ancient Egyptians dipped babies in water, the Zoroastrians (fire worshipers) of Iran carried newborns to the temple, where the priests bought them in special vessels with water, the Romans bathed the boy on the ninth day after his birth, and the girls are on the eighth level. The rituals of bathing a newborn in water and sprinkling it with water are known among the peoples of Ancient Mexico, China, Japan, Tibet, New Zealand, Africa, etc. In almost all pre-Christian religions there were rites of ritual washing of a newborn, whose purpose was to cleanse him of evil spirits. The central role in all these rituals was played by water, to which people have long attributed magical qualities. And this is understandable. Water, without which life on Earth is impossible, quite naturally seemed to people as a beneficial force.”

At Candlemas, winter and summer met. In northwestern Rus', writes I.P. Kalinsky, - this holiday is known as gromnitsy, since there is a custom here to carry candles to church on this day for blessing, which are called gromnitsy. Introducing the blessing of candles into the Christian Church instead of pagan torches, the Romans tried to give them a special meaning in the eyes of the people and called them tombstones. The clergy claimed that “these candles destroy the power of demons, so that they do not harm with thunder and lightning, torrential rains and hail, which are easily brought down by God’s permission by sorcerers or wizards; and therefore the faithful (believers) light these candles during a thunderstorm in order to experience the fruits of prayer; They also give a thunderbolt into the hands of the dying to defeat and drive away Satan, the prince of darkness.

Maslenitsa

And we took Maslenitsa for a drive,

But we didn’t even see it in our eyes,

We thought: Maslenitsa is seven weeks,

It's already seven days after Maslenitsa,

Maslenitsa beckoned,

Lent has begun,

And to hell with the radishes,

For white cabbage.

It is known, writes R.N. Sakharov, - that since ancient times in Rus', Maslenitsa has served as the most cheerful and freeing national holiday. In the old days, on Maslenitsa, every day had a special meaning, according to which the very nature of folk fun and entertainment was usually determined. Monday, for example, is called meeting, because then the beginning of Maslenitsa was celebrated; Tuesday - flirting, since from this day all sorts of entertainment, dressing up, and skating began; Wednesday is a delicious day, since then everyone was treated to pancakes and other similar dishes; Thursday - wide, because it began Maslenitsa revelry; Friday - mother-in-law's party, when sons-in-law treated their mothers-in-law; Saturday - sister-in-law's gatherings, as on this day young brides invited their relatives to their feast. Saturday was also the day of farewell to Maslenitsa, since the next day was the day of forgiveness.

“Our Maslenitsa,” we read from I.P. Kalinsky, - could not do without commemorating the dead. Our Church usually devotes the Saturday before Maslenaya Week to the commemoration of departed forefathers, fathers and brothers, and this Saturday is popularly known as Parental or Grandfather Saturday. On the day of forgiveness, there is a tender farewell to each other, which is a kind of request for the forgiveness of each other’s sins. And this forgiveness is accompanied by kisses and the sentence: “let not the sun set on our anger.”

The kids were sledding down the mountains. There was a sign: whoever slides further down the mountain, those in the family will have longer flax.

“Winter entertainment for men and women,” writes historian N.I. Kostomarov, - it was skating on the ice: they made wooden horseshoes with narrow iron strips, which were bent upward in front, so that the iron could conveniently cut the ice. The Russians skated with amazing ease and agility.

Winter holiday evenings were spent in the family circle and with friends: songs were sung, khabars (storytellers) told fairy tales, interlocutors asked riddles, dressed up, made each other laugh, girls told fortunes.”

The first pancake was dedicated to the memory of the souls of our parents “our honest parents, here is a pancake for your darling!” – with these words the pancake is placed on the dormer window of the house.

Our ancestors said that the Annunciation is God’s greatest holiday. On this day, as on Easter, Ivan Kupala, the Nativity of Christ, Peter's Day, the sun plays as it rises. Our ancestors not only considered it a grave sin to take on any work at the Annunciation, but they believed that even an unreasonable creature would honor this great holiday. They said that if a bird sleeps through the Annunciation Matins and makes a nest on that day, then as punishment for this, its wings are taken away for a while, and it cannot fly, but instead walks on the ground. According to ancient popular belief, on the day of the Annunciation, God himself blesses the earth and opens it for sowing. This is where the custom began on the eve of this holiday or on the holiday itself to consecrate prosphora or seeds: both are then kept by our rural owners until the first spring sowings, as a sign of God’s visible blessing for good growth and fertility of the fields. The Day of the Annunciation is associated with many signs and observations by which our common people guess about the weather and the future harvest. Among the rituals and beliefs associated with the Annunciation, some have been preserved from pagan antiquity. Such, for example, is the custom of burning straw beds and old shoes, jumping over fires (whoever jumps higher, his flax will grow taller), fumigation as a preventive remedy against all kinds of diseases. These rituals are close in nature to the Kupala rituals. They expressed faith in the cleansing and healing power of fire, characteristic of all ancient pagan religions and in particular the ancient Russian one.

Among the Greeks and Romans, during solemn public cleansings, as well as when performing cleansing rites by private individuals, the fire on the altar apparently played an intermediate role between the means of burning the sacrifice and the cleansing agent. Belief in the cleansing power of fire transferred to its derivatives - smoke, coals, brands, ash. We have seen many examples where people explained jumping over ritual fires specifically for medicinal purposes. For the same purpose, cattle were driven through the smoke near the fires. This also includes the fumigation of houses, barns, livestock, etc. with smoke (incense). Often, magical purification rites dealt not with one element of fire, but with various combinations: fire was combined with water, iron, garlic and other amulets. The neutralizing properties of fire and smoke, noticed in practice, are transferred to the realm of the supernatural. This is where the idea comes from that fire can destroy all evil, protect from witchcraft, from witches, from evil spirits. Sometimes defense against evil spirits takes very real forms. For example, in some regions of Finland on Thursday of Holy Week (3 days before Holy Easter) they drove out evil spirits from the yard: “... they lit a fire in a tar box or in a tar barrel, put it on a sleigh and drove it around the yard. They threw old shoes, pieces of leather, and rags into the fire.”

Many ritual actions associated with fire belong to the complex of fertility magic. It is known to fertilize soil with ash. Scattering firebrands or scattering sparks across fields and gardens is already a magical technique. The Poles tried to put straw with long stems in ritual fires so that the flax would grow tall. The joint jumping of a guy and a girl through the flames of a ritual fire was supposed to cement their future marriage. In some areas of Switzerland, in ancient times, bread baked on the coals of Ivan the Fire (Ivan Kupala) served as a sacrifice to the elements; later it became one of the elements of the daily meal.

Since pagan times, rather rude and ignorant signs have been preserved on the day of the Annunciation: thieves on this day try to steal something in the hope that if they fail to do this now, then they can be confident in the success of their enterprises for the whole year.

To be lucky, you need to burn a pinch or two of salt in the stove: burnt salt is also useful in treating fever or fever.

Whoever happily played toss on the Annunciation will win money in this game all year.

If the housewife on this day, between matins and mass, drives the chickens from their roost with a broom, then by Easter they can already lay fresh eggs for the Rebirth of Christ.

If the day on Annunciation is rainy, then in the summer and autumn there will be a lot of mushrooms, and fishermen can count on good catches.

If swallows did not arrive at the Annunciation, then spring is expected to be cold.

As you spend the Annunciation, so will the whole year.

Easter

“During Holy Day, all over Rus' were preparing to celebrate Easter. Everywhere they did Easter, baked Easter cakes, painted eggs, washed, cleaned, cleaned. Young people and children tried to prepare the best and most beautifully painted eggs for the Great Day.

Painted eggs are an inevitable part of the Easter breaking of the fast. There are many legends about the origin of Easter eggs and, in particular, about the origin of Easter eggs. According to one of them, drops of the blood of the Crucified Christ, falling to the ground, took the form of chicken eggs and became hard as stone. The hot tears of the Mother of God, sobbing at the foot of the Cross, fell on these blood-red eggs and left marks on them in the form of beautiful patterns and colored specks. When Christ was taken down from the Cross and laid in the tomb, believers collected His tears and divided them among themselves. And when the joyful news of the Resurrection spread among them, they greeted the tears of Christ from hand to hand. After the Resurrection, this custom was strictly observed among the first Christians, and the sign of the greatest miracle - tear-eggs - were strictly kept by them and served as the subject of a joyful gift on the day of the Bright Resurrection. Later, when people began to sin more, Christ’s tears melted and were carried away along with streams and rivers into the sea, turning the sea waves bloody... But the most common custom of Easter eggs was preserved even after that..."

Another legend goes as follows:

“Jesus Christ, as a child, loved chickens, willingly played with them and fed them. And the Mother of God, in order to please Him, painted chicken eggs and gave them to Him as toys. When the trial of Christ began, the Mother of God went to Pilate and, in order to appease him, brought him as a gift eggs painted with the greatest art. She put them in her apron and, when she fell on her face before Pilate, begging for the Son, the eggs rolled out of the apron and rolled all over the world... Since then, they have served for us as a memory of the suffering of Christ and of His subsequent resurrection.”

“The images and patterns reproduced on Easter eggs are very diverse and arose in ancient times. Both simple arabesques and stylized images of various sacred and simple objects that serve as decoration for Easter eggs were created a long time ago and are passed on from generation to generation by inheritance and tradition. The technique of making Easter eggs and the art of their tradition. The technique of making Easter eggs and the art of painting them are at a very high level among Little Russian and South Slavic women. A special brass handle with horsehair is made, natural colors are selected (yellow, red, green and, less often, black). Paints must be diluted with “clean” water, that is, brought from a well or source that has not yet been contaminated by anyone, especially an “unclean” woman or animal. The Easter egg craftswoman is very wary of any witchcraft and the evil eye. Therefore, anyone who enters the house while painting eggs considers it their duty to spit in the artist’s direction for a long time and say: “Cheers, mind you, don’t jinx it!” And she, in turn, takes a pinch of salt, sprinkles it on paints, eggs, a writing pen and wax and says: “Salt in your eyes.” The culmination of egg painting occurs on Holy Thursday. This is where egg yolk, wax, and both brushes come into play. The artist heats the eggs on the stove and begins to paint them with wax. Wax applied to a warm egg does not allow the paint to soak into the shell in this area. A white pattern will remain under the wax, and paint (say, purple, obtained from sunflower seed husks) will cover the entire egg with a purple tint. The wax will be erased, but the pattern will remain. The process then continues with other colors – in a word, a whole art.”

On Easter days, girls do not take salt in their hands so that their palms do not sweat.

They also wash their faces with water from a red Easter egg to make themselves ruddy...

“The entire Easter week is one day; for when Christ was resurrected, then the sun did not set all that week.”

“On Easter,” writes N.I. Kostomarov, “some game organizers made a profit out of this: they set up swings and let them swing, collecting silver money (half a penny) from each person.”

The Germans of the Rhineland held an “auction of girls”, first timed to coincide with Maslenitsa, later on May 1 or Easter. The girls were played like at a real auction: whichever guy offered the highest price for the girl got her as a dance partner for a month or the whole year. The girl for whom the highest price was paid was considered the “May Queen”, and the guy the “May King”. The guy had to protect and protect the girl in every possible way. Sometimes such comic grooming turned into real. (Spring holidays)

Trinity

When the Magi (also magicians and astrologers) who lived east of Palestine saw the appearance of a wonderful star, they realized that the Messiah, the “King of the Jews,” was born. They head to Jerusalem to inform the Jewish king Herod about this, and at the same time ask for help in finding this baby. Herod was frightened and called his wise scribes, who reported that, according to ancient predictions, such a messiah should be born in Bethlehem. Herod sends the aliens there so that they find out the name of his future rival, the contender for his throne.

The star accurately indicates to the Magi the place where the baby Christ could be located. The Magi bow before him as a future king, offering him gifts of gold, incense and fragrant resin - myrrh.

A prophetic dream predicts that it is dangerous for them to return to Jerusalem, and the Magi set off for their homeland. Based on the number of gifts presented by the Magi, it was established that there were three of them. This correlated with the three faces of the Trinity, with the three ages of man and the triplicity of the human race, with the Three-Handed Lady - one of the revealed icons of the Mother of God.

The Trinity of fingers makes a cross.

Trinity is Trinity, but three candles are not placed on the table.

But it rains on Trinity Sunday - there are a lot of mushrooms.

Trinity Day is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter. Since ancient times, “Pentecost” has been accompanied by many rituals, such as weaving wreaths, fortune telling, swing rides, boat rides, decorating the house with flowers and birch branches inserted behind the images.

The holiday was associated with the ancient Slavic cult of commemoration and veneration of ancestors, as well as the glorification of blossoming nature. Its symbol was a young birch tree. On Trinity Saturday, families went to the cemetery. The graves were carefully decorated with wreaths and birch branches.

People have long believed in the magical powers of the naked human body, which can serve as a factor in the fertility of the earth. The Lusatians (a Slavic tribe in Germany) had a custom: a girl who was weeding flax had to, after finishing weeding, run around the field three times, stripping naked and uttering a spell.

On the night of Trinity, it was customary in Rus' to “plow the village” so that the livestock would not die. Girls dressed all in white are harnessed to the plow, and the guy with whips is accompanied in complete silence. They plow the cross with a plow and place incense, bread, juniper or birch branches in the middle. The procession goes around the entire village and returns to this cross. After this, the girls begin to guess.

- They spin around, and whoever falls in which direction, wait for the groom from there.

“They scatter the fragments of an old plow: in which direction the fragment fell, that’s where the betrothed one will come from.”

– They burn old men’s trousers – then there are more brides.

Whit Monday

Every evil spirit fears the spirit of the day. People said: “Since Spiritual Day, not only from the sky, but from under the ground, warmth comes.”

Before the sun rises on Spirits day, the mother of cheese, the earth, reveals her secrets. That is why on this day, after praying to the Holy Spirit, treasure hunters go to “listen for treasures.”

Meeting a wedding on the road means the day will be unprofitable, but a funeral will do the opposite.

Your lip itches - you have to kiss your sweetheart.

Eyebrows itch - for a meeting. If the right eyebrow itches, it means a date with your loved one; if the left eyebrow itches, it means a meeting with a deceitful and hypocritical person.

This is how Abbot Pamphilus, who lived in the 16th century in the Pskov region, describes this festival, which has come down from pagan times: “When the holiday comes, on that holy night not all of the city will be in turmoil, and in the villages they will go wild with tambourines and sniffles and the hum of strings, splashing and dancing; wives and girls are nodding their heads, and their lips are hostile to shouting, all nasty songs, and wobbling with their spines, and jumping and stamping with their feet; that is, the great fall of man and boy, the whispering of men, women and girls, their fornication, the defilement of married women, and the corruption of virgins.”

“Of these rituals of the Kupala holiday,” writes I.P. Kalinsky, - one cannot help but see that for our ancestors it was some kind of great day of purification by fire and water and at the same time served as the holiday of the summer solstice, when nature acts with a special all-revitalizing and all-exciting force. To prove that it was the ancient Russian Kupala that was a cleansing holiday, it is enough to remember that in general among many peoples of antiquity (we have already talked about this above) fire was considered the highest cleansing element. It is known, for example, that our princes could appear before the Tatar khans only after first passing through fiery bonfires. In the same way, washing with water was constantly recognized by almost all ancient peoples as an action of purification.

In the Rumyantsev collection of 1754 we read: “On Midsummer night they guard treasures, and steam in baths on herbs, and tear herbs, and dig roots, and also tie up birch trees, weave branches, so that the man will live that summer.” In Little Russia, the holiday of the Nativity of John the Baptist is simply called Ivan the Walking, as can be seen from the fact that this day has been celebrated since ancient times with various kinds of folk pleasures, amusements, and entertainments.”

Grass Nechui-wind

Along with fern and other herbs endowed with magical powers, our people also reverence immortelle. It is called so because it does not wither for a long time, but dries out and retains its color and shape well. Ancient people endowed it with supernatural properties, believing that the soul of the deceased moved into this flower so that through it it could communicate with friends and relatives. It is also popularly called by a special name - I can't feel the wind. This intangible wind, according to legends and traditions, helps the blind open treasures. On the night of Ivan Kupala, with a wind, a columbine and a blooming fern in your hands, you had to pick a flower-grass and walk along the lawn until the pain in your eyes appeared. And as soon as it appears, take a spade in your hands and quickly tear up the ground: the sworn treasure must be under your feet.

This grass, according to the legend of sorcerers, grows in winter along the banks of rivers and lakes. Common people think that those who possess this herb can always stop the wind on the water, save themselves and their ships from drowning, and finally, catch fish without nets. The unfeeling wind should be collected on January 1st, on Vasiliev's evening, in the dead of midnight. The villagers think that at this time evil spirits, walking along lakes and rivers, throw the grass Nechui-wind to destroy the storm. Only blind people can find it, and even then they must take it not with their hands, but with their mouths. Then they begin to possess its power.

Adam's head grass is highly respected by the villagers. Sorcerers, like ferns, collect it on Midsummer Day and store it secretly until Maundy Thursday. According to popular belief, the magical power of Adam's head extends only to wild ducks. Hunters who received this herb from the hands of a registered sorcerer fumigate all the shells they use when catching ducks on Maundy Thursday, no less.

It's a starry night on Midsummer - there will be a lot of mushrooms!

Midsummer Day came, I went to collect grass.

On Midsummer's Day, as on the eve of it, bonfires are laid out, lit, jumped over them, and also bathed in water and dew, and danced around the tree. On this day, brownies, mermen, mermaids and goblins commit mischief. The fern blooms at midnight on Ivan Kupala, and with its help treasures are discovered. Kupala dew is sprinkled on the walls of the house, beds and furniture to ward off bedbugs and cockroaches.

On this day, everyone pours water on each other, laughs, and has fun. In the evening the bathhouse is heated. The girls from the roofs of the baths throw a broom and find out which side to wait for the groom.

The night of Ivan Kupala or Kupala night is the time of the highest power of nature: herbs collected on this night were considered the best medicine, just like the dew of this night. In European countries, girls tell fortunes by floating wreaths on water on Midsummer night. That night the girls roll around naked in the dew. It is customary to do everything silently. Silence is a sign of belonging to the world of the dead. They silently collect and bring water for magical actions, and it is called “silent water.”

The girl silently picks and brings flowers home to put them under her pillow and see her betrothed in a dream.

Polish girls used flowers to tell fortunes on Ivan Kupala: they pour water taken from a spring or a fast-flowing stream into a basin and throw two flowers without stems into it, say, two daisies; if they go their separate ways, then the lovers will separate; if, while floating, the flowers come together, then they will get married this year.

To bewitch the groom, you need to feed the rooster from the stove damper, saying: “As if this damper would stick to its mouth, so would the rooster stick to its home.”

“Fun and laughter,” writes A.Ya. Gurevich, - are not ordered for a Christian, we see that the preachers themselves often strive to make their listeners smile. But excessive laughter is sinful. Jacques of Vitry tells about a person who saw the Most Holy Mary with many virgins and wished to be with them. The Mother of God told her: “Don’t laugh for thirty days, and you will be with us.” She did just that, did not laugh for a whole month, after which she died and found the promised glory. Undoubtedly, Jacques de Vitry concludes, that if she had not refrained from laughter, songs and round dances, the Virgin would never have accepted her into her host.

Wet Honey saved

On the first day of the Savior, holy the wells.

On the First Spas the last bathing of horses and other livestock.

Bees stop carrying honey bribes.

Beekeepers break (cut) the honeycombs.

Picking raspberries, bird cherry, stocking medicinal herbs.

If, when raspberries ripen, the first berries are large, then winter rye should be sown earlier.

Poppies are collected in Macabea.

The poppy is not born, we will stay like this.

Wild poppies were also collected as a remedy for witches. It was taken for granted that all you had to do was sprinkle the house with this poppy, and all the intrigues would disappear.

From this day on you are allowed to eat honey.

On the first Spas, peas are pinched.

In the Urals and Siberia, the coning of cedars began.

Cold dew since the first Savior.

In August, the sickles are warm and the water is cold.

The month of August is rich - there is plenty of everything.

It’s August and it’s a good time for fish.

During the harvest, the reapers tried to find the largest number of grains on one stem. Such a spike is called a “wheat uterus” or “ergot”. They are preserved all year until the new sowing; sowing begins with these grains, with the hope of receiving a large harvest from them.

These days you should stock up weeping grass, which protects from all misfortune and human malice. “The grass is a crybaby,” writes I.P. Sakharov - grows like an arrow; the color of her crimson, the horned root. It is good to make a cross from such a root and wear it on yourself - then do not be afraid of the enemy and adversary. God will protect you from every calamity.”

“Healers,” writes Zabylin, “use the root of Plakun to expel brownies, witches and evil spirits guarding treasures. This herb is credited with making unclean spirits cry, which is why it got its name.”

Apple saved

The Second Savior – everything is an hour (the fruits are ripening).

On the second Savior, fruits and honey are blessed, apples are eaten (and before that, only cucumbers).

And there is an increase in hay. Otava - autumn hay, summer hay will be saved.

love apples

“These are the apples through which you can gain the attention and love of the desired person. This is done very simply: you just have to cut the apple in half, put a note in the middle with the name of your loved one and put it out in the sun. As if, as the apple dries, your beloved person will also suffer for you.”

The first farewell to summer and the meeting of autumn, autumn; people walked into the field singing to see off the sunset.

Nativity of the Virgin Mary

On this day, women welcome autumn by the water. Autumn, the second meeting of autumn. Relatives come to visit the newlyweds. And three days later Fedora - wet your tails. It is believed that on this day autumn rides a bay mare. “Autumn Fedoras tuck up the hem,” says the proverb. And I remember the summer, when girls, while hanging out and playing with guys, didn’t really hold their hems up, flying on rope swings over the heads of amazed men. A.M. Gorky wrote about how guys loved to “reveal the girls’ hems, pulling them right up to their heads...” The girls perceived this quite peacefully, and were not even in a hurry to hide their naked body, but deliberately fiddled with the hem pulled over their heads for a long time. “Not every Indian summer can live up to Fedora.” Rowan ripens. It is collected directly with tassels and hung under the roof. Rowan is used for rowan kvass or strong tincture. Mature viburnum is also displayed. The frost makes the berries sweet. These days, the peasant house is filled with all kinds of vegetables: mountains of carrots, turnips and rutabaga, from which “parenki” are prepared (boiled and dried in a Russian oven). The onions are tied and hung on the walls. Cabbage is chopped and fermented in tubs. Sunflowers are peeling, biting seeds, the whole house has gathered. There is a thick layer of husk on the floor - this is done on purpose to make the day of the harvest celebration memorable. The house smells of apples and vegetables, currant leaves, oak, and dill.

September smells like apples, October smells like cabbage.

In October (in muddy conditions) neither on wheels nor on a sleigh.

“Kapustin’s parties begin these days,” writes I.P. Kalinsky - for two weeks. On Vozdvizhene the grain moved from the field (the last shock from the field), the birds began to fly away, the snakes and grass snakes hid. “The road is by wheel!” - they shout to the cranes to turn them away. IN Astafiev day They use the winds to tell the weather: northern means cold, southern means warm, western means bad weather, and eastern means bucket. Among the steppe people, the southern winds are called “sweet” and promise fertility.

Bread is dried in barns by lighting a fire in it. The boys bake potatoes over the fire, tell different stories related to the barn or bean barn - the owner of the barn, who can shove you in the side so that you will take your breath away if you do not please him in some way. It may throw fire onto the sheaves and burn the crop. So you can’t sleep, but you have to guard the fire day and night.”

The owner gets a shovel of bread, and the threshers a pot of porridge.

You cannot thresh a sheaf with folded hands.

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The Russian people are distinguished by a rich culture, multiple customs and colorful folklore. , like a memory, distinguishes the Russian people from others, allows you to feel a genuine connection between times and generations, makes it possible to receive vital support and spiritual support.

Basically, they are connected with the calendar, and with church sacraments, holidays and difficult rituals. The calendar in Rus' was called a monthly calendar, which covered and described absolutely the entire year of life of the peasants. In it, each day corresponded to certain or everyday events, folk signs, all kinds of weather phenomena, customs, and superstitions.

The folk calendar was agricultural, which was significantly reflected in the names of the months, and was a kind of encyclopedia that included and continues to include agricultural experience, norms of social life, and rituals.

The folk calendar of the Russian people is a fusion of Christian and pagan principles with the help of folk Orthodoxy. Rituals, which from time immemorial have been dedicated to fairly large events, included a huge number of songs, round dances, games, sentences, dances, masks, dramatic scenes, folk costumes and peculiar props. Russian traditions are undeniably rich in imagination and works of art.

They are interesting at Maslenitsa. They are related to the theme of family and marriage relations, since at Maslenitsa those newlyweds who got married the previous year were honored. But the customs associated with are characterized by the Holy Scripture - the Bible, as well as the decoration of tables with blessed Easter cakes made from cottage cheese, painted eggs and Easter cakes.

Christmas is traditionally a symbol of return and rebirth; its customs are filled with genuine kindness, humanity, and high moral ideals. At Christmas they give suppers, gathered and gather dear relatives and guests, and young girls on the night before this holiday were fond of folk fortune-telling.

But the Russian people personified the day of the summer solstice with the holiday of Ivan Kupala. On warm evenings, songs were sung and young people jumped over the fire. This action mixed pagan and Christian tradition.

In everyday life they are associated with such events as the expectation and birth of a baby, christenings, weddings and funerals. A new addition to the family has always been good news and is associated with many signs that many expectant mothers observe to this day. After the birth of a child, it was not customary to show it to strangers for 40 days.

The rite of christening was personified by washing the child in holy water and naming it, that is, the child was given a name. Weddings were held with bride price, various competitions and the kidnapping of the young wife. But the funerals were carried out only according to church rites.
Despite the similarity of customs with other nations, Russian folk rituals are the most colorful, musical and eloquent.

National traditions are the national memory of a people, what distinguishes a given people from others, protects a person from depersonalization, allows him to feel the connection of times and generations, receive spiritual support and support in life.

Both the calendar and human life are associated with folk customs, as well as church sacraments, rituals and holidays. In Rus', the calendar was called a monthly calendar. The month book covered the entire year of peasant life, “describing” day by day, month after month, where each day had its own holidays or weekdays, customs and superstitions, traditions and rituals, natural signs and phenomena.

The folk calendar was an agricultural calendar, which was reflected in the names of the months, folk signs, rituals and customs. Even the determination of the timing and duration of the seasons is associated with real climatic conditions. Hence the discrepancy in the names of the months in different areas. For example, both October and November can be called leaf fall. The folk calendar is a kind of encyclopedia of peasant life with its holidays and everyday life. It includes knowledge of nature, agricultural experience, rituals, and norms of social life.

The folk calendar is a fusion of pagan and Christian principles, folk Orthodoxy. With the establishment of Christianity, pagan holidays were prohibited, received a new interpretation, or were moved from their time. In addition to those assigned to certain dates in the calendar, movable holidays of the Easter cycle appeared.
Rituals dedicated to major holidays included a large number of different works of folk art: songs, sentences, round dances, games, dances, dramatic scenes, masks, folk costumes, and unique props.

Calendar and ritual holidays of Russians

Russian people knew how to work, and they knew how to relax. Following the principle: “Time for work, time for fun,” the peasants rested mainly on holidays. What is a holiday? The Russian word “holiday” comes from the ancient Slavic “prazd”, meaning “rest, idleness.” What holidays were revered in Rus'? For a long time, villages lived by three calendars. The first is natural, agricultural, associated with the change of seasons. The second - pagan, pre-Christian times, just like agricultural, was correlated with natural phenomena. The third, latest calendar is the Christian, Orthodox, in which there are only twelve great holidays, not counting Easter.

In ancient times, Christmas was considered the main winter holiday. The holiday of Christmas came to Rus' along with Christianity in the 10th century. and merged with the ancient Slavic winter holiday - Christmastide, or carol.

Maslenitsa

Easter Christian

What did you do on Maslenitsa? A significant part of the customs for Maslenitsa, one way or another, was connected with the theme of family and marriage relations: newlyweds who got married during the past year were honored at Maslenitsa. The young people were given a kind of viewing party in the village: they were placed at the gate posts and forced to kiss in front of everyone, they were “buried” in the snow or they were showered with snow on Maslenitsa. They were also subjected to other tests: when the young people were riding in a sleigh through the village, they were stopped and thrown with old bast shoes or straw, and sometimes they were given a “kissing party” or “kissing party” - when fellow villagers could come to the house of the young people and kiss the young woman. The newlyweds were driven around the village, but if they received
bad treat, they could have given the newlyweds a ride not in a sleigh, but on a harrow.
Maslenitsa week also took place in mutual visits of two recently intermarried families.

Nativity

Christmas is not only a bright holiday of Orthodoxy. Christmas is a holiday returned, reborn. The traditions of this holiday, full of genuine humanity and kindness, high moral ideals, are being discovered and comprehended again these days.

Agraphens Bathing suit and Ivan Kupala

The summer solstice is one of the significant turning points of the year. Since ancient times, all the peoples of the Earth celebrated the peak of summer at the end of June. In our country, such a holiday is Ivan Kupala. However, this holiday was inherent not only to the Russian people. In Lithuania it is known as Lado, in Poland - as Sobotki, in Ukraine - Kupalo or Kupaylo. Our ancient ancestors had a deity named Kupala, personifying summer fertility. In his honor, in the evenings they sang songs and jumped over the fire. This ritual action turned into an annual celebration of the summer solstice, mixing pagan and Christian traditions. The deity Kupala began to be called Ivan after the baptism of Rus', when he was replaced by none other than John the Baptist (more precisely, his popular image), whose Christmas was celebrated on June 24.

Wedding

In the life of all peoples wedding- this is one of the most important and colorful events. Every person should have his own family and children. And so that it doesn’t happen that someone stays “in the girls” or “in the grooms” for a long time, matchmakers came to the rescue. The matchmakers were lively, talkative women who knew wedding traditions. When the matchmaker came to match the bride, she, after praying, sat down or stood in a place that, it was believed, could bring good luck in matchmaking. She began the conversation with the allegorical phrases customary in this case, by which the bride’s parents immediately guessed what kind of guests had come to them. For example, the matchmaker said: “You have a product (bride), and we have a merchant (groom)” or “You have a bright woman (bride), and we have a shepherd (groom).” If both parties were satisfied with the conditions of marriage, then they agreed on a wedding.

In area, but twice as small in population. A country with an incredibly rich culture, history and traditions. Many peoples, religions, and customs are intertwined here. But now I would like to talk about the largest ethnic group in Russia – the Russian people.

Russians are perhaps the most controversial people in the world. The Russian person has always been a mystery to any foreigner. They are loved and hated, admired and feared. The people are paradoxical to the core. You may ask, what is the paradox? Yes, in almost everything. Completely illogical actions - this strange tendency to daring recklessness, ostentatious, inexplicable generosity, reaching the point of wastefulness, love for luxurious expensive things, even for one day, even without a penny in your pocket, as if this is the last day - no, this is impossible to understand. Terrible, brutal crime, total corruption and thieves' laws that are respected better than the criminal code - what kind of people live in this country?

Russians are very proud of the military power of the country and their powerful army, but no one wants to join the army, and excuses themselves from it under any pretext. Russians madly want to be rich, but no one wants to do anything or somehow earn their wealth. Russians are proud of their rich culture and huge country - but every second person dreams of going abroad in search of a better life. Russians scold the government of the country among themselves and call them corrupt, but, given not the most prosperous life, no one will ever seriously even organize a demonstration - and they will find an excellent excuse - supposedly they lived even worse before. Russians make excellent military equipment and weapons - some of the best in the world, but when they get to the domestic automobile industry, it’s simply hard to imagine worse cars. And finally, tell me, how is it that the most beautiful women on the planet ended up with some of the scariest men in the world (as assessed by international fashion publications)?

Who are the Russians and how to understand them, what is the problem of the whole people, and is it so scary to be Russian - let's figure it out.

Russian mentality

Russian people are amazing. They always hope for the best, and always prepare for the worst. In general, the average Russian person is melancholic. Russians are always dissatisfied with something, but humbly bear their burden, only occasionally snorting at life. They will definitely complain about life and say that they are the most unhappy and unlucky people in the world, that before, under the communists, everything was much better, before the revolution it was even better than under the communists, and even during the times of Kievan Rus it was absolutely great . That Russia is not needed by anyone in the world, that it is the stupidest and most backward country, the outskirts of the civilized world! And how Russians scold the authorities! This people's government cannot be good by definition, no matter what it does. And “they” (the leadership at any level) is the enemy of the people, the eternal enemy, whom one must fear and avoid meeting in every possible way.

Russians don't like many people. All their foreign neighbors, without exception, are treacherous, vile, greedy and vicious, and they all owe their well-being to the ruthless exploitation of poor Russians, their brains and their resources. Russians do not hesitate to show dislike for people from other countries, and even, on the contrary, in every possible way emphasize their superiority over other nations in conversations. It is customary to point fingers at African Americans on the street and call them blacks, residents from Uzbekistan , Tajikistan , Kyrgyzstan - chocks, people from Georgia , Armenia , Azerbaijan - Khachami, people of any nationality with slightly narrowed eyes - Chinese. And the Russians don’t understand much - that the “Chinese” can be Kazakhs or Buryats (citizens of Russia, by the way), in principle, it doesn’t matter to them. There can be no talk of any political correctness; Russians are not familiar with this word! At the same time, the Russians themselves thoroughly believe that they are the most benevolent, most hospitable and most friendly people in the world!

Since Soviet times, Russians have been told that America is Russia's No. 1 enemy. This was encouraged in every possible way by the government, supposedly, if not for America, all Russians would now live like people. After all, everyone knows that America is fabulously rich, people live in large private houses and drive good foreign cars. This is already a good reason to hate the country. Oh, if only it were possible to work like the Russians and live like the Americans! Unfortunately, in the mentality of the Russian people it was originally laid down that Russia is always right, everyone offends its poor people, and in general, these poor long-suffering Russian people who help everyone, but no one loves them. All foreign neighbors, without exception, are insidious, vile, greedy and vicious; they all owe their well-being to the ruthless exploitation of poor Russians, their brains and their resources. The media and the press are actively adding fuel to the fire - various fables are written about how barbaric everyone is, but in Russia there are supposedly still decent people left.

Everyone who is richer and more successful is a potential enemy for Russians; they simply don’t understand how someone can be better than them? Take, for example, the Japanese. They are an eastern people, and, therefore, their quality of life should be like that of the Indians or the Chinese, or at least like the Russians. The fact that they have reached the level of European prosperity is confusing, annoying and downright infuriating! Well, how is this possible? Something is clearly wrong with the Japanese! There is some kind of mistake of nature here. What about the Turks, who are massively hired as builders in Russian cities? It turned out that they work better and faster than Russians, and often cost employers less (!) than slow Russian builders. But how can this be? They are Turks! – absolutely any average Russian would say. The fact that someone does something better than them often hurts and offends.

The Russians have their own “whipping boy” - the Chukchi. It is not clear what this small people of the Far North has done to annoy them. Moreover, Russians practically don’t really know anything about the Chukchi, and in general, very few Russians have seen a living Chukchi at least once in their lives. But the very name “chuk-cha” sounds sonorous and funny, and isn’t this a reason to laugh and make fun of them? How often, in response to some request, we hear: “Why me? Am I a Chukchi?” . And how many jokes the Russians have written about the Chukchi! Moreover, no matter what the joke is, the Chukchi are always described as gullible, simple-minded and incredibly stupid people. Oh yes, and also Americans! They are rather the first in popularity in Russian jokes. No matter what the jokes are about, and no matter what nationalities are present, the outcome always ends with the same thing - it was the Russians who killed everyone! They are incredibly pleased to rise in this way - even if only in their own eyes, and even if only in jokes...

Many Russians, regardless of the year, believe that they live in difficult times, and their fate is not easy. Completely melancholic people with a deep sigh will submit to their difficult fate and say: “You can’t escape fate” and reach for a bottle, and then turn into a pathetic, whiny figure, sobbing over a glass and tormented by questions about the meaning of life. Mourning their fate helps them remember that they are living in difficult times, that times have always been difficult and that they can only get harder.

At the same time, Russians are incredibly patient people. Truly, Russian patience is inexhaustible: they are able to wait and hope for the best in conditions that would seem intolerable to almost any other nation. “Oh, did you increase our working hours?” - the French shout, organizing rallies in the streets and destroying everything in their path. “It’s time for us to pay more, we demand an increase in wages,” the prim Germans are indignant and cancel all flights of German airlines. “Do you want to cut our pensions?” - the Greeks are indignant, refusing to go to their workplaces. And only Russians endure all the sorrows and hardships in silence for years. “Are rents and public transport getting more expensive? Well, it’s bad, but it doesn’t matter, it’s not fatal.” “Was there a new tax for small businesses? Well, sometimes the country doesn’t have enough money, it’s a crisis.” “Education will no longer be free? Well, yes, in fact, everything was heading towards this. Well, we’ll get through it, we’ll save more.” “Inflation for the year was 6%? These bastards are stealing and stealing.” That's all. That's all! The Russians continue to live as if nothing had happened and nothing had happened, patiently bearing their burden, while any other people, in Europe, for example, would have rebelled long ago. One can only guess where such obedience and humility come from among a people who have won more than one war.

Another interesting feature of this people is superstition. Russians are very superstitious people. A black cat crossing your path cannot be ignored, under no circumstances should you spill salt, much less break mirrors, from a grandmother coming towards you with empty buckets, it is better to run away, and if you are going to an exam, do not forget put a nickel under your heel...And that's not all. Russians have a lot of superstitions, some of them quite ridiculous, there is no point or space to list them all - one fact remains: Russians are a superstitious people. They also believe in horoscopes. Even a completely reasonable lady can seriously declare that since she was born in the year of the Rat, she cannot marry this man, because his year of birth is incompatible with hers.

Russian character

The main features of the Russian character include breadth of soul, perseverance, compassion, humility, the desire for justice, community spirit, the ability to achieve heroism, the ability not to give up, and painful self-criticism is very common.

Russians, as a rule, often experience emotional ups and downs (this is facilitated by the change of seasons). Most of the time, Russians save or save energy, try not to stress too much, show low interest in what is happening, and are prone to mild depression, searching for the meaning of life, and reasoning. However, there come periods when Russians go into “feat mode.” The reason for active action can be war, revolution, industrialization, the construction of communism, the development of new territories, and so on. The reason for a small “feat” can be a holiday: birthday, New Year, wedding. During such periods, Russians show their best traits: mass heroism, self-sacrifice, sense of community, hard work, incredible perseverance, leadership qualities. Russians often create difficulties for themselves and then heroically overcome them, for example, by completing a monthly plan in the last week. There is even a proverb: “Russians take a long time to harness, but they drive fast.”

In many European countries, and in America too, people are always friendly and often smile, even if you simply ask them: “How are you?” Among peoples for whom a smile is a kind of protective wall, Russians are considered gloomy and stern people, or insensitive and boring, because they do not smile as often as they do. Walking along Russian streets or riding in the subway or bus, you will quickly notice that no one, absolutely no one, smiles, and there is no hint of it. And in fact, Russians smile extremely rarely, which is something specific Europeans simply cannot understand. And all only because Russians are sure that “laughter for no reason is a sign of foolishness.” Why pretend to be happy if you're not having fun?!

Russians generally have no European manners at all. A quiet voice, calm gestures and European “indifference” are not for Russians. They will not hesitate to express their feelings in a public place. If a Russian person doesn’t like how he is served in a store or restaurant, he can easily tell the seller or waiter everything he thinks about him, about his relatives, close and distant, about his habits and sexual preferences. The average European would never do this (for mercy, they are cultured people), he would remain dissatisfied, but he would culturally restrain all his emotions, and next time he would simply culturally walk around this store and restaurant 10 km away. The Russian, after a thrashing, will definitely come in after a while, so to speak, to check whether the service personnel have internalized his dissatisfaction and whether something has changed for the better.

Instead of “You,” Russians most often use “you.” They “poke” at a lot of people: parents, close relatives, good friends (and sometimes enemies - to show how much they are despised). There are no addresses like “sir” or “madam” in Russia, which causes a lot of inconvenience for Russians. Before the October Revolution of 1917, the normal form of address was “sir” or “madam.” These words sounded very “bourgeois” and were rejected by the Bolsheviks, who suggested “citizen” or “comrade”. But now, more and more often, the word “citizen” is associated with a trial or being brought to the police station. Desperate to find anything suitable, Russians use simple “Man!” and “Woman!” The rather unceremonious-sounding “Grandfather!” is becoming increasingly common. to a person with a beard of any age. But “Old Man!”, as an address to a young peer, sounds quite friendly. The ways of the Russian language are inscrutable!

Russians love to talk, and they can talk endlessly about anything: about politics, about family matters, about the health of your second cousin's youngest daughter, or about the concept of the Holy Trinity. However, there is one topic they try to avoid. They are very embarrassed to talk about sexual problems - even in the doctor's office, and even more so with friends, in front of their children or parents. Of course, with the advent of erotic films, magazines and even sex shops, the attitude towards sex is becoming more relaxed, but the topic of sex is still very sensitive for Russians. Now you can hear such previously taboo words as condom, intercourse or group sex. But, for example, homosexual relations are still considered vile and shameful, although they are no longer criminally punished. No one is engaged in sex education for children - neither schools, nor parents - it remains a complete taboo.

At the same time, most Russian curses are related to sex - this is where Russians really excel! They are also proud that their swearing is known to residents of other countries. Among the most common curse words are profanity related to the topic of sex and family relationships, as well as relatively harmless words such as “whore” and “son of a bitch.” Also, a very harsh word is popular - “goat”.

Yes, Russians drink. And they drink a lot. In Russia, it is customary to drink for any reason, be it a happy occasion or a sad one: you can drink about birth and death, wedding and divorce, joining and returning from the army, graduating from school and university, getting rid of an illness and defending a dissertation. Drinking without a reason is not good, but finding a good reason for a Russian is not difficult.

Russian language

The “great and powerful” Russian language has all the advantages of other languages ​​and none of their disadvantages. The Russian language is melodic, commanding, precise and... well, very difficult to study. There are various variations and an infinite number of suffixes. For example, a “horse” is a horse, while a “horse” is a small, cheerful, charming creature, and a “little horse” is a tired workhorse, very old and bent under the burden of work. Affectionately “horse”, and if you designate a large and clumsy animal, it will be “horse”. And Russians can perform such tricks with most words. Of course, it is incredibly difficult for a foreigner to understand all this, because there are no similar analogies in other languages ​​of the world.

Russian language is very difficult to learn. Nobody knows how to speak it correctly, including the Russians themselves. It's even more difficult to write on it. But the whole point is that in the Russian language there are more exceptions than rules, and every exception has to be learned by heart by all the unfortunate people who are involved in the educational process. For example, the word “fried(n)y” should be written with one “n” if it is an adjective, and with two if it is a passive participle and in addition accompanied by an adverb, but, in this case, we also need to add the prefix -za and we get: "well-roasted goose."

There is no logic at all in Russian punctuation. You just need to remember that there must be a comma before the subordinate clause. Whether there is a pause or not, the comma must not be forgotten. Scientists have long been trying to reform and update the rules of spelling and punctuation. However, most of the country's population has a negative attitude towards this idea, because people have spent years learning to write correctly, why will others be allowed to escape this torture?

In addition, every year there is an “infusion” of new foreign words into the Russian language. Here the leader is the English language - Russians grab many words from it and transfer them to life. Taking into account the creativity of Russian people, they remake any English word in their own way, so much so that the British themselves are then at a loss. For example, a young fashionista may say: “I bought myself new shoes.”He means boots, but not just any boots. A distorted English word means luxury shoes, most often imported.

Russian attitude towards money

Russians are an extraordinary people. Everyone dreams that they will soon suddenly become rich. At the same time, you don’t actually need to do anything – you just need to wait and believe. And what do we want from the people who read such fairy tales to their children as, for example, “Emelya the Fool?” This tale is about how Emelya the fool lived and he didn’t do anything in his life, he just lay on the stove, and then he accidentally caught a pike, which fulfilled all his wishes. “At the behest of the pike, at my will!” - Emelya shouts, and, without even lifting a finger, he gets everything he wants: from buckets that go into the house on their own, to marriage to a princess and a self-assembled tablecloth that ladens itself with dishes. Russians raise their children on such tales, therefore, it is not surprising that entire generations of Russians grow up to be quitters who do not want to do anything, but really want to have big money.

How to be? How can you get a lot of “money” without actually even getting up from the stove? And this is where the Russian people become extremely popular among scammers. All kinds of lotteries that invite you to try your luck, get rich in a couple of minutes and suddenly become a “new Russian”, numerous financial pyramids that promise sky-high incomes, and much, much more. The older generation probably still remembers the financial pyramid of the 90s – MMM and the famous Lenya Golubky. Perhaps only the lazy did not invest money in MMM at that time. Millions of people have already been fooled, pyramid after pyramid is collapsing, scammers are being arrested and sent to prison, and new crowds of Russians are enthusiastically lining up for the next bright dream. And no one will be able to bring them to their senses, because the favorite Russian word is “freebie”...

But money is not the greatest value for Russians. Of course, when you have money, it’s good; when you don’t, it’s not scary. Why? Because the policy of absolutely all Russian people is this: honest people cannot have a lot of money - at least if they are not pop stars or tennis champions. If you are neither one nor the other, it means you have stolen, or earned money dishonestly. If you have enough finances and you don’t borrow salt from your neighbor, never, hear, never tell the Russians about it. They will misunderstand, and sometimes they will sympathize (like, the poor guy stole, he doesn’t have much time left, he’ll soon go to prison). But if you pretend to be poor and tell how hard your life is, that you are up to your ears in loans, and your ex-wife snatched away the car, you will become a favorite and a favorite. Russians are ready to help their neighbor, even if they know for certain that the one they are helping is capable of taking care of himself.

If you earn little, there is nothing wrong with that. By complaining that you are underpaid, you are showing that your employer underestimates you and does not understand you. Earning little is not humiliating - the shame falls on the one who exploits you. And Russians will definitely support you, and not the employer. And it doesn’t matter that you are late for your work every day, don’t have time to submit reports, and in general, you don’t work very well. In fact, no one will understand this. The main thing here is to unite, to unite against a common enemy - and the enemy here is the leadership, and the enemy for two reasons at once: because it is just the leadership, and because the leadership simply lives better and more prosperously. Aren't there enough reasons to hate management already?

To put it mildly, the rich are not liked in Russia. This goes back to the 90s, when there was complete chaos on the streets, and those who “robbed and squeezed out” lived just fine. Since then, the so-called “new Russians” have come - people to whom wealth fell like a flower pot from a balcony. It is probably impossible to count how many ridicule the new Russians have been subjected to, how many jokes have been written about them as people of short-sightedness, even the Chukchi are “resting.”

And to this day, all politicians, businessmen, leaders, all rich or well-off people are not in favor with the Russians. Partly the reason for this is the very corrupt officials of Russia, partly the Russian mentality and character itself - Russians simply need to dislike someone. Indeed, in this dislike for anyone, Russians unite in the best possible way; the unity of this people is manifested. They even have this saying: “Who are we fighting against today?”

To achieve success in Russia as a politician or businessman, you need to find the right person who can help you. Ideally, this is your relative or someone whom you helped at one time. After such a person is found, everything becomes simpler - after all, he also has friends whom he once helped and who can now help him (that is, you). Thus, such a chain can be very long and often consist of more than a dozen people. With this scheme, you can achieve very impressive results in life. The scheme works like a clock, at all times and generations. And it’s called – blat!

Blat - the most powerful weapon that Russia has ever owned, it is a master key that opens any door. In no case should you confuse cronyism with bribes - there is no talk of money here, not a single ruble moves from pocket to pocket. They will help you simply, with the expectation that one day your help may be needed. For example: “I’ll bring you a car of building materials to your dacha, and you’ll make sure that next Wednesday my idiot passes the entrance exam to your university.” Blat is everywhere in Russia and permeates all layers of society, and at the same time, it always works flawlessly. Through connections they get the best plots of land, get good jobs, enter prestigious universities, and so on. And those people who have achieved any success through cronyism are called “criminals.”

Those who have managed to achieve something in life usually clearly demonstrate this. In Russia it is customary to show off wealth and luxury - to show off a new A-class car, a chic expensive suit, or a Rolex watch for $35,000. Well, if you earn good money, then know how to spend it well, they say in Russia. Here it is not customary for wealthy people to save money in their accounts, dress discreetly and ride the subway. In general, being well dressed in Russia is very prestigious, and a young person of any gender is judged primarily by his clothes. Since you earn good money, show everyone around you that you have succeeded in this life. Let them envy... And they envy... ordinary people of small or average income, who are less fortunate in life. They look and envy...and hate. And every year the gap between rich and poor widens. Although, in this regard, Russia is still very far from India.

Russian house

As a rule, Russians live in small, cramped apartments. It’s a paradox, but in the largest country in the world, some of the smallest apartments are being built. Take, for example, these houses built under Khrushchev - “Khrushchev buildings”, which are not large in size or have a competent layout. Such Khrushchev buildings were erected all over the country. They still live in them to this day. Perhaps this is the reason for good relations with neighbors - a Russian wants to get out of his tiny apartment and communicate with someone. Most often, these will be flatmates. However, this tradition is fading into oblivion in large cities - there very often neighbors do not know each other at all.

There are still many villages and towns left in Russia where people live in their own houses. A traditional Russian house is a wooden hut, usually with a real stove inside. In such a house, perhaps, apart from electricity and often gas, there are no other communications. Toilet outside, water from a well. In a word, it would not be easy for the average European, accustomed to the benefits of civilization, to spend the winter in such a house. And again a paradox - it lies in the fact that despite global urbanization and the relocation of numerous villages and hamlets into apartments where there are all communications - and hot water at any time of the day, and a toilet nearby, the majority of Russians categorically do not want to leave their homes . They, you see, are used to them, they like it that way. Well, and the benefits of civilization... yes, simple pampering...

This is some kind of national desire to have your own home. Those who live in apartments dream of buying a dacha. So that, at least in the summer, on weekends, you can live in your own home. Those who have a dacha stuff it with all sorts of benefits of civilization. They install gas and electricity, remove sewerage, install a shower and toilet in the house. As a rule, they fence their dacha with a solid fence so that no one can see what is happening behind it. This is supposedly private property, and the Russians are free to do whatever they want on it. The attitude towards fencing is paradoxical - it is customary to fence off everything that belongs to you. This extends to many aspects - they fence off anything: their own plot, a piece of land where a car is parked, the graves of relatives in a cemetery. The last tradition still remains a mystery. Dead people do not escape from their graves. Who is the fence for? For the living - you say. But these fences are purely symbolic, they are not high and they will not stop people, and anyone can easily get to the grave and do whatever they want there. Russians, who are you putting up these fences for?

Religion of Russia

There are a lot of holy places in Russia. In pre-revolutionary times, Russia was a God-fearing country, and crowds of thousands of pilgrims marched from one monastery to another in a kind of endless tourist trek.

Now the situation has changed. There are not so many true believers anymore. There are not many people who fast, not many who regularly attend church. Basically, this is the older generation - young people do not have such a craving for religion. At the same time, everyone you ask believes in God. A very strange approach.

The fact is that the Russian Orthodox Church, with its thousand-year history, stands in opposition to all other branches of Christianity, but, above all, to Catholicism and Protestantism. Orthodox Christians are confident that they are the only true believers, and that no one except them has a chance of salvation. Oddly enough, with all the religious differences towards the Tatars and Mongols (who, as they teach in school, once brutally oppressed the Russians), the attitude is rather friendly or indifferent, while Western Christians are looked at with distrust and suspicion.

In many Orthodox churches, there are ancient frescoes depicting the Last Judgment, where sinners in oriental turbans and hats like those worn by the American Pilgrim Fathers are obediently sent to suffer torment in the fires of hell, and the righteous, dressed in Russian national clothes, are graciously welcomed in heaven. Such frescoes clearly show Christian believers that everyone except Orthodox Christians is destined to burn in hell.

But a new generation is growing up in Russia, which sees and understands perhaps much more. Now young people travel freely to other countries of the world, experiencing new traditions and religions, and pictures and comparisons involuntarily appear in their heads. Comparisons, for example, of the traditional Catholic Church with the Orthodox. Why is she worse? And why should Orthodoxy be better (traditionally, like everything else among Russians)? More and more young people do not accept the orders and demands of the Russian Orthodox Church, considering many of them a simple whim. Russian Orthodoxy is rapidly losing believers. And what will happen next? And here the famous quote can be said to the point: “A bad slave. I've seen too much of the world."

Russian wedding

Just a few hundred years ago, a Russian wedding was a set of rituals that were performed in strict sequence according to a script defined by tradition. The most important wedding rituals in Rus' were matchmaking, collusion, bachelorette party, wedding, wedding night, and wedding feast. Each of them had a certain semantic meaning. Matchmaking, for example, was expressed in negotiations between two families about the possibility of marriage between a young man and a girl. The bride's farewell to girlhood was a mandatory stage characterizing the transition of a young girl into the category of married women. The wedding acted as a religious and legal formalization of the marriage, and the wedding night acted as its physical consolidation. Well, the wedding feast expressed public approval of the marriage.

Today, many Russian wedding traditions have turned out to be irretrievably lost, and the few remaining exist in a very modified version. Rituals such as matchmaking and collusion are no longer used today, as young people themselves meet and decide to get married, also on their own. Nowadays only a few girls marry as virgins, and many even live together even before the wedding. Before the wedding, it is customary to organize a bachelorette party for the bride, and a bachelor party for the groom. The bride's friends gather at the bachelorette party; men are not allowed. As a rule, girls drink, party and have fun until the morning; this can happen both at home and in any entertainment establishment. The same thing happens with the groom - and only men are present at the bachelor party. Very often, friends order a striptease for the groom - supposedly to say goodbye to his bachelor life. There are other more frank forms of farewell. One fact remains - at hen and stag parties it is customary to drink, party, have fun, misbehave and say goodbye to a free life. Some people prefer to abandon these events altogether in order to save the family budget.

The wedding day begins with the bride's hair, makeup and dressing in her home, or her parents' home. The bride's wedding dress is traditionally white. The white dress of the bride, which now symbolizes purity and purity, came from the Ancient Greece – there he was a symbol of joy and prosperity. Until the time of Catherine II, the bride's outfit in Russia was red. Catherine got married in a white dress and thereby changed Russian tradition forever.

The groom needs significantly less time and effort to prepare. But sometimes other challenges fall on him (decorating a car, getting a wedding bouquet, and so on). Once everyone is ready, the groom and his close friends get ready and go to the bride's house. Next, the first ancient Russian ritual takes place - ransom. The procedure takes place in the entrance of the bride's house. The bridesmaids need to torture the groom as cheerfully as possible, ask him a bunch of stupid tasks and riddles and, at the same time, receive a ransom from him - it could be money or some goodies that he doesn’t mind giving for the bride. In the end, the groom gives the ransom and is allowed into the house, where he still needs to find a bride. Because even here they are trying to deceive him. When the groom finds the bride, everyone drinks champagne on this occasion and goes to the registry office.

The ceremonial part takes place in the registry office, the bride and groom officially agree in front of the official aunties (the registry office workers) that they “get married” of their own free will, exchange rings, kiss, and leave the registry office as husband and wife! This is followed by a walk somewhere beautiful, usually with your closest friends and with a professional photographer who tries to capture every moment of this important day.

In the end, the tired newlyweds and their friends go to a cafe (some are celebrating at home), where relatives and friends who did not participate in the walk are already waiting for them. The newlyweds are greeted in a cafe and sprinkled with cereals and coins, which symbolizes wealth and prosperity. The parents of the young people present them with a loaf of bread. This is also an old Russian tradition - the newly-made husband and wife take a piece of a loaf of bread at the same time - whoever has the larger piece will supposedly dominate their life together. After this, the feast begins.

The wedding table traditionally contains a lot of food and pickles, but even more alcohol. From time to time, guests shout to the newlyweds “Bitter!” and they must put down their spoons and forks, stand up and kiss. Practically, a wedding is always led by a toastmaster. This is the kind of person who monitors the observance of all rituals and maintains fun among the guests. He also organizes various competitions in which the bride and groom and all invited guests participate. The toastmaster clearly distributes the time for raising toasts and shouting “Bitter” - most often, this happens once every 5 - 10 minutes. Between toasts, there is also a strictly distributed giving of gifts by the toastmaster, interspersed with the reading of wishes, written, most often, in poetic form on postcards specially purchased for this purpose.

The fun lasts until the night, after which the tired newlyweds go home (sometimes to a hotel), where their first wedding night awaits them. Previously, this was really exciting, but now, when many people live a full sex life even before marriage, the sacrament of the wedding night has ceased to be relevant.

Previously, a Russian wedding lasted three days. The second day took place at the parents' house, and on the third the guests came to the newlyweds' house. Nowadays, most Russian weddings are celebrated for one day, some celebrate the wedding for 2 days. This is largely due to issues of economy, since such a celebration costs a pretty penny. On the second day of the wedding, the bride puts on some beautiful outfit (but not a wedding dress), and the fun and revelry continues. All guests drink, walk, have fun and organize competitions!

Some couples, in addition to getting married in the registry office, also get married in a church. The wedding can take place either the next day or after some time - often several months or even years. But, in our time, very few couples get married; for many, the wedding is limited only to a trip to the registry office.

Russian family

In Russia, many areas are still dominated by men, but among teachers, doctors, engineers, not to mention service personnel, as well as in the family, women reign supreme. It is no coincidence that according to the laws of Russian grammar, “Russia” is feminine. “Mother Russia” - and no one would think of calling Russia “father”.

In the average Russian family, the husband is the head of the family, and the wife is its neck, dictating where the head should turn. Defeated men obediently, and sometimes, it seems, even almost willingly bow down to the “weaker” sex. Russian women did not even need to declare war on men, because men voluntarily surrendered to the more educated, more cultured, more intelligent, more hard-working and less drinking sex.

In the past, Russians had fairly large families, they had many children, and maintained close relationships with all their relatives. Since ancient times, Russians have had an extensive system of names for family relationships: brother-in-law, brother-in-law, matchmaker, son-in-law, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, and so on. But now, Russians’ large families, consisting of several generations of relatives, have disappeared forever.

By European standards, Russians have children quite early. Most girls give birth to their first child a child under the age of 25, and if, God forbid, you decide to give birth after 25, you will contemptuously bear the title “old-born.” Moreover, not so long ago, Americans, according to their research, proved that it is generally better for women to give birth after 30 years of age, supposedly psychologically, morally and financially, a woman is more prepared for the birth of a child after 30 years of age. And it is at this time that she is able to give a quality education to the child. Well, these are Americans, what can we take from them? Russians stubbornly refuse to see or hear any scientific facts from their “enemies.” Therefore, all generations of women in the family, from young to old, frighten the young girl - “they say, give birth, otherwise it will be too late.” It is under the fear of “too late” that most children in Russia are born, to very young girls who often do not yet have a profession, education, money, in fact, to put the child on his feet, or brains. - to raise a child normally. And in general, the young spouse was drafted into the army, or even worse, he didn’t have enough time and left the family. As a result of such early marriages, the number of divorces increases, because young people who were forced to tie the knot with each other “on the fly” are simply not ready to be with each other for the rest of their lives.

Nowadays, a family with one child, or no children at all, is more typical than a family with two or three children. A family of three children is already classified as having many children and even has the right to some tiny benefits. Children have become too expensive, because your child cannot be worse dressed than his friends, and giving him an education is a sheer ruin: after all, even a public school is engaged in constant collections (for repairs, for security, for textbooks).

In Russia, it is customary to treat old people with respect, especially if they are relatives. Every generation is taught that elders must be respected, and every child knows that older people are supposed to give up their seats on the bus (there are special seats for the disabled and passengers with children). The most shameful thing a Russian can do is send a helpless father or mother to a nursing home. In Russia, the relevant institutions enjoy the worst reputation, and this reputation is well deserved.

Russian women

Russian women are amazing. She will “stop a galloping horse and enter a burning hut.” Perhaps it is this catchphrase of Nekrasov that best describes Russian women. The Russian woman is so independent, she has such a strong spirit that she can easily get out of any troubles in life. Raise one child - please! Work two jobs – please! Nothing scares such a woman.
And also, after work, you need to feed your husband and children and clean the house. There is no peace for a Russian woman - and everything is on her shoulders. Perhaps this is how most Russian women live. Being a woman in Russia is a great responsibility, they demand much more from her than from a man, they do not forgive her mistakes, and society condemns any mistake of a woman.

With all her independence, it seems that she doesn’t need a man either: well, why does she need this fat, lazy, often drinking and low-earning man on the couch? She can do everything herself, and no one will get on her nerves. But it is not so. Russian women, due to their traditional upbringing, all want to have a family. Many are very unhappy in marriage, but continue to support their dream, they say, if you have a husband, you have a family. Often they take on all the household chores and problems, and even begin to earn more than their husband. A man, seeing his wife’s success, stops doing anything altogether and becomes a lazy couch potato.

The stronger sex turns into the weaker, against the backdrop of strong women. The men themselves began to lose leadership positions for which they had fought for centuries. You can’t blame only men for this – women too are largely to blame for the current situation. Perhaps such a trick would not have worked in civilized European countries, where women have long ceased to be a workhorse. But in Russia it still flourishes. Russian women are not feminists, no, so their conscience or feeling of pity does not allow them to get up and leave their pathetic poor husband. After all, if a woman gets divorced (even if she is unhappy in her marriage, her husband is a drunk, he beats her or cheats on her), she will immediately be assigned the status of “divorcee,” and the older generation will sarcastically discuss behind her back, saying that she was not successful as a woman, The husband left, probably the housewife is a bad housewife, lazy. And all because not so long ago, divorce was considered a shameful act in Russia; divorces were extremely rare and only for special reasons; no one else would marry a divorced woman, especially with children. Now the situation, of course, is changing, but echoes of the past are still haunting.

Russian women are rightly considered one of the most beautiful in the world. Typical Slavic appearance, blond or brown hair, regular facial features, fair skin, huge blue eyes, full of love and some kind of distant sadness - they have long driven millions of men around the globe crazy. There is no emancipation or feminism in them - these diseases of the 21st century that are shaking the world and causing the hair to stand on end for most men. They are not infected with this plague. Russian women are instilled with respect for men from a young age. And if you add to these qualities thriftiness, care and understanding, then foreigners simply begin to shake, and many thousands of foreign suitors, humiliated and insulted by emancipated women, go to Russia in the hope of finding a caring wife and a worthy housewife here. And many Russian beauties agree to connect their lives with an overseas prince. Moreover, Russian women, to put it mildly, with "domestic producers" not very lucky.

But, a Russian woman is not only the one who always stands in the kitchen and wipes the snot of children. The modern Russian woman also has business qualities. In big cities, many women try to build a career first and then get married. And they are not bad at it. Oddly enough, the weaker sex has more advantages over the stronger: ladies are more diligent and responsible when making decisions, they act effectively and at the same time diplomatically. Now women are hired for many leadership positions. After all, even in the ability to wear trousers, a woman has far surpassed a man...

Russian men

Unlike Russian women, Russian men are among the three most ugliest on the entire globe (with them the British and Poles). The source is not very authoritative - this is the dating site Beautiful People, which is also called the Club of Beautiful People. They have their own assessment and selection system, according to which Russian men are practically not popular and are not liked by foreign ladies.

You will ask why? But the answer is obvious. Take a look at the average Russian man, about 30 - 45 years old. What do you see? Yes, of course, people are different, but most of them will look something like this: a gloomy, plump man who looks 50 - 55 years old, with a huge protruding belly, with a bad hairstyle (if it even exists), casually dressed, and he will be demanding, arrogant, difficult even in primitive everyday communication. But the main characteristic of a Russian man as an international “product” is neglect. And inhospitability.

Moreover, if you look at everyone carefully and imagine what will happen if he loses 10 kilograms, takes care of his appearance and clothes, then you will get completely normal men. Almost all Europeans run, jump, swim, go to the gym, and steam in the sauna. And the Russians are probably very busy - they don’t have time for all this nonsense. Well, who will do this? All these pomaded, perfumed boys with inflated bodies, in the same Europe, are completely gay! A Russian man is neither a metrosexual nor a hipster. Thinking about the beauty of nails and jackets is shameful. Yes, and even if at the age of 35 he gained 20 kilograms of excess weight, and forgot to change his wardrobe, and now his shirts are bursting at the seams... so what? Is he really appreciated for this?

The worst thing is that a Russian man is sure that anyone in Russia will agree to be with him, even if he looks bad. The main thing is that he perform certain functions - for example, provide financial support. Therefore, the idea that they should also be liked, and should be sexy, and somehow keep in shape - it shocks them. “Here, in Russia, there are more women than men, and among the men there are more drunks and all sorts of trash than adequate men - so it will do, without any of these tricks, and there will be a woman who will love me just like that.” But no one likes men who are soft, shaggy, with leaking jowls, or with puffy bellies. Even those women who still sleep with them.

After alcoholism, unemployment, and a tendency to domestic violence, we can safely add categorical nonsexuality to the list of Russian male shortcomings. The vast majority of Russian men do not understand that taking care of themselves, caring for their face and body is normal. That the prehistoric concept of “man” (that is, a certain shaggy creature in wrinkled clothes) is no longer in this world, it is, after all, just an anthropological object, but not at all sexual.

Unfriendly Russian men have another not very pleasant trait. Even the most charming and sweet Russian men are very uptight. Now, if a person comes up to you and just like that, without any sexual connotation, says that you have a very beautiful dress, he will most likely be a foreigner. In addition to being uptight, Russian men are reputed to be quite cold (some compare them to herrings). These are not those who will whisper all sorts of sexy words into a woman’s ear, compliment her endlessly while looking at her stunning dress, or sing serenades under the window. No, leave all these passionate romantic things to others, for example, to the Italians, with the Russians everything is calm, and without words, as they say, “no noise, no dust.” After all, why tell a woman something, waste your imagination and energy on it, if she was already chosen, and she should already be infinitely happy that she was chosen, because in Russia there are fewer men than women, and she might not have remained at all allotment Moreover, even if Russian men drink a little (for courage, to loosen up), inside they will still be restrained. It’s hard to imagine how they still manage to have sex sometimes.

Russian women see all this and understand it perfectly. Many Russian men do not arouse any interest among Russian women (and even more so among foreign women!). They don't want those dense barbarians that even dating sites reject - they want cool, sweet, stylish and modern men who care what a woman thinks of them and who don't just treat her like a corrupt whore who will agree to anything, if you offer her guardianship and this mythological “male shoulder.” Gone are the days when women grabbed what they gave. Nowadays there are not many people who are ready to tolerate any man just because he is a man.

Yes, and this is the harsh truth - in Russia there are very beautiful women, about whom Karl Lagerfeld said that it would be better if they were lesbians (with such and such men).

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Old Russian rituals originate in pagan times. Even Christianity could not destroy their power. Many traditions have survived to our times.

How did Old Russian rituals appear?

The most important Old Russian rituals are associated with elemental forces, or rather with their natural mystical side. The basis of the life of every peasant was hard labor on the land, so most traditions were associated with appeasing rain, sun and harvest.

During the seasons, a certain amount was used to improve the crop and protect livestock. Among the most important sacraments, baptism and communion are in first place.

Caroling is a ritual of the Christmas holidays, during which ritual participants receive treats for singing special songs in the homes of relatives and friends. It was believed that during Christmas time, the sun receives a huge amount of energy to awaken the earth and nature.

Now caroling has remained a tradition associated with Slavic history, both in Ukraine and Belarus. Fortune telling is considered one of the components of the ritual. Many experts in the mystical sphere claim that during this period the most accurate predictions can be obtained.

The end of March is considered the equinox period, during which Maslenitsa rituals are held. As the personification of the pagan god Yarilo, pancakes are considered a traditional dish of this holiday.

Not a single Maslenitsa will be considered complete without burning an effigy on the last day of the celebration. The doll symbolizes the end of severe cold weather and the arrival of spring. At the end of the burning, Maslenitsa transfers its energy to the fields, giving them fertility.

In mythology, he is considered a powerful deity associated with the worship of the power of the Sun. In early times it was held on the day of the summer solstice, but over time it was associated with the birthday of John the Baptist. All ritual activities take place at night.

The symbol of the ritual is considered to be flower wreaths, which are used for fortune telling. On this day, unmarried girls throw their wreath down the river to find their betrothed.

There is a belief that on this night a rare fern flower blooms, indicating ancient treasures and treasures. However, it is almost impossible for an ordinary person to find it. An invariable part of the holiday was chants, round dances around the fire and jumping over the fire. This helps clear away negativity and improve health. In addition, separate events are held.

Among all kinds of ancient customs, you can stumble upon quite strange and incomprehensible rituals:

• Daughtership

This was the name of the intimate relationship between the father-in-law and his son’s wife. Officially this was not approved and was considered a minor sin. Fathers tried to send their sons away under any pretext for a long time, so that their daughter-in-law would not have the opportunity to refuse. Nowadays, law enforcement agencies deal with such things, but in those days there was no one to complain to.

• Sin of the dump

Nowadays this sin can be observed in special films produced in Germany, and many years ago it was staged in Russian villages. After the traditional activities, the couples left to look for fern flowers. But this was just an excuse to retire and indulge in carnal pleasures.

• Gasky

The custom is known from the words of the traveler Roccolini. All the young people of the village gathered in one house, sang songs and danced to the fire. When the light went out, everyone began to indulge in carnal pleasures with the first one that came to hand. It is unknown whether the traveler himself participated in such a ritual.

• Overbaking

The ritual was used in cases of the birth of a premature baby in the family. If the mother’s body could not provide the necessary strength to the baby, then it should have been baked. The newborn was wrapped in unleavened dough, leaving only one nose, and baked, pronouncing special words. Of course, the oven had to be warm, then the bundle was laid out on the table. It was believed that this cleanses the baby from diseases.

• Scarier than pregnant women

Our ancestors were very sensitive to childbirth. They believed that during pregnancy, the child crosses a difficult path to the world of the living. The birth process itself is very difficult, and the midwives made it even harder. Near the woman in labor they rattled loudly and shot, so that when the mother was frightened it would be easier for the child to come out into the world.

• Salting

In addition to Rus', such a ritual was performed in France and England. It involved adding strength to children from salt. The child was completely rubbed with salt and wrapped in cloth; wealthier people buried him completely in it. All the skin could peel off from the child, but at the same time he became healthier.

• Dead Man's Rite

Otherwise, this ritual is called a wedding. In ancient times, a white dress and veil were considered funeral clothing. Marriage is associated with the new birth of a woman, but for a new birth one must die. This is where the belief comes from that the bride should be mourned as if she were dead. When handing over the ransom, the groom seemed to be looking for her in the world of the dead and bringing her to the light. The bride's friends acted as guardians of the afterlife.