National traditions of our country. Customs and traditions: the harshest examples

Tradition, custom, ritual are a centuries-old connection, a kind of bridge between the past and the present. Some customs are rooted in the distant past; over time they have changed and lost their sacred meaning, but are still observed today, passed on from grandparents to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren as a memory of their ancestors. In rural areas, traditions are observed more widely than in cities, where people live separately from each other. But many rituals have become so firmly established in our lives that we perform them without even thinking about their meaning.

Traditions can be calendar, related to field work, family, pre-Christian, the most ancient, religious, which entered our lives with the adoption of Christianity, and some pagan rituals mixed with Orthodox beliefs and were somewhat modified.

Calendar rituals

The Slavs were cattle breeders and farmers. In the pre-Christian period the pantheon Slavic gods included several thousand idols. The supreme gods were Svarozhichi, the ancestors of all living things. One of them was Veles, the patron of cattle breeding and agriculture. The Slavs made sacrifices to him before sowing and harvesting. On the first day of sowing, all villagers went out to the field in new, clean shirts with flowers and wreaths. The oldest resident of the village and the smallest one started sowing, and they threw the first grain into the ground.

The harvest was also a holiday. All, even the old and sick, villagers gathered at the border of the field, a sacrifice was made to Veles, most often a large ram, then the strongest and most beautiful men and young guys stood in a row with scythes in their hands and at the same time walked through the first line. Then the girls and young women, always fast and healthy, tied the sheaves and placed the money. After successful cleaning, a rich table was set for all residents of the village; a large sheaf, decorated with ribbons and flowers, was placed at the head of the table, which was also considered a sacrifice to the god Veles.

Maslenitsa also refers to calendar rituals, although currently it is considered to be semi religious holiday. In ancient times, this ritual invoked Yarilo, the god of the sun and heat, on whom the harvest directly depended. That is why the custom arose on this day to bake pancakes, fatty, rosy, hot as the sun. All people danced in circles, which are also a symbol of the sun, sang songs praising the power and beauty of the sun, and burned an effigy of Maslenitsa.

Today Maslenitsa has abandoned its pagan meaning and is considered almost a religious holiday. Each day of Maslenitsa week has its own purpose. And the most important day is Forgiveness Sunday, when you should ask all your family and relatives for forgiveness for involuntary offenses. Sunday is the turn to Great Lent, the strictest and longest, when believers give up meat and dairy foods for seven weeks.

Yuletide rituals

When Christianity was firmly established in Rus', new church holidays. And some holidays that have a religious basis have become truly popular. This is precisely what should be included in the Christmas festivities, which take place from January 7 (Christmas) to January 19 (Epiphany).

On Christmastide, young people went from house to house with performances, other groups of boys and girls caroled, girls and young women told fortunes in the evenings. All village residents were required to participate in preparations for the holidays. They slaughtered livestock and prepared special dishes. On Christmas Eve, January 6, the evening before Christmas, they cooked uzvar, a sweet compote with rice, prepared cheesecakes and pies, sochevo, a special dish of cabbage with grain.

Young people sang special comic carol songs, asked for treats, and jokingly threatened:

“If you don’t give me some pie, we’ll take the cow by the horns.”

If they didn’t give treats, they could play a joke: close the chimney, destroy a woodpile of firewood, freeze the door. But this happened rarely. It was believed, and is still believed, that generous gifts, songs with wishes of happiness and prosperity, and grain brought into the house by guests bring happiness to the house for the entire New Year, and relieve illness and misfortune. Therefore, everyone tried to treat those who came and give them generous gifts.

Young girls most often wondered about their fate, about their suitors. The bravest ones told fortunes in a bathhouse with a mirror by candlelight, although this was considered very dangerous, because in the bathhouse they removed the cross from themselves. The girls brought armfuls of firewood into the house; by the number of logs, even or odd, one could tell whether or not she would get married this year. They fed the chicken with counting grain, melted the wax and looked at what it predicted for them.

Family rituals

Perhaps the most rituals and traditions are associated with family life. Matchmaking, weddings, christenings - all this required compliance with ancient rituals that came from grandmothers and great-grandmothers, and their strict observance promised a happy family life, healthy children and grandchildren.

The Slavs used to live in large families, where adult children, who already had their own families, lived with their parents. In such families three or four generations could be observed; families included up to twenty people. The elder of such a large family was usually the father or older brother, and his wife was the head of the women. Their orders were carried out unquestioningly, along with the laws of the government.

Weddings were usually celebrated after the harvest or after Epiphany. Later, the most successful time for weddings was “Red Hill” - the week after Easter. The wedding ceremony itself took a fairly long period of time and included several stages, and therefore a large number of rituals.

The groom's parents came to woo the bride together with their godparents, and less often other close relatives. The conversation should have started allegorically:

“You have goods, we have a merchant” or “Didn’t a heifer run into your yard, we came for her.”

If the bride's parents agreed, a viewing party should be held where the bride and groom would get to know each other. Then there will be collusion or handshaking. Here the new relatives agree on the wedding day, the dowry, and what gifts the groom will bring to the bride.

When everything was discussed, her girlfriends gathered at the bride’s house every evening and helped prepare the dowry: they wove, sewed, knitted lace, embroidered gifts for the groom. All girls' get-togethers were accompanied by sad songs, because no one knew what the girl's fate would be. In her husband's house, a woman expected hard work and complete submission to her husband's will. On the first day of the wedding, the songs sounded mainly lyrical, majestic, farewell laments. Upon arrival from church, the newlyweds were greeted on the porch by their parents with bread and salt, and the mother-in-law had to put a spoonful of honey in her new daughter-in-law’s mouth.

The second day is a completely different matter. On this day, according to custom, the son-in-law and his friends went “to their mother-in-law for pancakes.” After a good feast, the guests dressed up, covered their faces with bandages or canvas, and drove around the village, visiting all their new relatives. This custom is still preserved in many villages, where on the second day of the wedding, the costumed guests themselves harness themselves to the cart and drive the new matchmakers through the streets.

And, of course, speaking of customs, one cannot miss the rite of infant baptism. Children were baptized immediately after birth. To perform the ceremony, they consulted for a long time, choosing godparents. They will be second parents for the child and, equally with them, are responsible for the life, health and upbringing of the baby. Godparents become godfathers and maintain friendly relations with each other throughout their lives.

When the child turned one year old, godmother She sat him on an inside-out sheepskin coat and, using scissors, carefully cut a cross in his hair on the crown of his head. This was done so that evil spirits would not have access to his thoughts and further actions.

Every year, on Christmas Eve, the grown-up godson always brought the godfather kutya and other treats, and the godfather gave him some sweets in return.

Mixed rites

As we have already said, some rituals originated in the pre-Christian period, but continue to live to this day, slightly changing their appearance. It was the same with Maslenitsa. A widely known ritual is the celebration of the night of Ivan Kupala. It was believed that only on this single day of the year does the fern bloom. Whoever can find this flower that cannot be handed over will be able to see the treasures underground, and all the secrets will be revealed to him. But only a person who is pure in heart, sinless, can find it.

In the evening, huge fires were lit, over which young people jumped in pairs. It was believed that if the two of you, holding hands, jump over the fire, then love will not leave you throughout your life. They danced in circles and sang songs. The girls wove wreaths and floated them on the water. They believed that if the wreath floated to the shore, the girl would remain alone for another year, if she drowned, she would die this year, and if she floated with the flow, she would soon get married.

Traditions, customs, and rituals exist in every family, which are very valuable for raising kind, decent people. For example, in the morning, when relatives wake up, they wish each other good morning, and at night they wish each other good night.

The word family means a blood connection between relatives who are connected by everyday life, interconnection, and responsibility. They are always ready to help their relatives morally and financially, to come to the rescue, support, rejoice, be sad.

Family traditions are behavior patterns, principles established in the family, habits that the child will perform in further development and teach them to his children.

Family holidays and traditions in the family can allow:

1. They influence the child’s development, stability, and help children recognize friends in their parents with whom they can have fun.
2. They bring relatives closer together, allow them to spend time together and enjoy life.
3. They help you become a full-fledged family in society and gain cultural enrichment.

A person living in a family where traditions and customs are present will be surrounded by affection and attention.

Let's look at what there are family traditions in the family, examples:

Throughout their lives, people use established customs and rituals that are passed down from generation to generation. The rituals show the customs of the family, holidays, weddings, and various celebrations. With the help of rituals, national songs and dances appeared.

There are so many families in the world, so many traditions that can be fascinating and interesting:

1. Overnight fishing trip. Spending the night in a tent and boiling fish soup over a fire will bring children many new positive emotions.
2. Family cooking dinner. When preparing any dish, everyone is given a task. This will bring a lot of fun and joyful emotions.
3. Birthdays. Waking up in the morning, a family member is told a clue that he is looking for a gift.
4. Travel to the sea. Packing your bags together, going on vacation, sunbathing, swimming. This will unite, bring the family closer, and give wonderful impressions.
5. Make your own gifts without any reason, to confess your love.
6. Bake a pie with the whole family For kindergarten for any occasion, it will bring a lot of pleasure.
7. Bedtime story. Not only mom can read, but dad and dad can take turns reading. Then wish the children pleasant dreams, embrace them and kiss them. Even a small child will feel that he is surrounded by the care, attention, and love of his parents.
8. Make scenes at home, performances, singing songs, reciting poems. A friendly family will be pleased with these events, especially children.
9. Celebrate Christmas and New Year in new places so that the children will remember each year for a long time.

New traditions and customs

When new family, family traditions do not always coincide between spouses. For one, family holidays were celebrated in a wide family circle, where all relatives were present.

The bride, on the contrary, is in a close circle. Because of this, disagreements and quarrels may arise. To come to the right result, you can come up with new traditions and regulations in the family, if there is desire and consent.

To do this you need to follow the steps:

• come up with a new family tradition where all family members will participate;
• be the first to show interest in the undertaking;
• you should not invent too many customs every day;
• repeat the tradition several times to consolidate and remember.

Family traditions from different countries

Individual countries, as a rule, have their own statutes, orders, customs, and traditions. IN Great Britain It is customary to raise children in strictness and to restrain emotions.

Looking from the outside, one can testify that they do not love their children. On the contrary, it’s customary for them to give like this parental love, which is different from upbringing in Russia.

IN Japan the mother sits with the child on maternity leave until he reaches 6 years of age. She doesn’t yell at him, she indulges him, fulfills his whims. At school, on the contrary, children are brought up in strictness, taught to order. Several generations can live in a house.

IN Germany There is a custom to get married at a late age. It is customary to first make a career, after which by the age of 30 you are allowed to get married and have children.

IN Italy, all relatives, even distant ones, are considered one family. They often gather around a common table to discuss everyone's problems.

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 its dominant value orientations.

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 freshly graduated engineer who graduated from an elite university, in the very first days of his career in the company’s representative office in South America If he is given a broom 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 this enterprise What is valued first and foremost is not formal education, but personal involvement 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 is in ordinary life are negotiations on the conclusion of tariff agreements, especially when this was preceded by workers' 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 an enterprise, rituals occupy 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: “The Intercession is Holy Mother of God, 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, large or small in stature, you need to New Year go to the woodshed 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 on 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 They 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.

A main element Baptism - 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. Entering into Christian Church consecrating candles 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, heavy rains and hail, easily brought down by the permission of God, 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 planted

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. On Maslenitsa, every day in the old days had a special meaning, by which the character itself was usually determined. folk entertainment and entertainment. 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 held in the home 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 task at the Annunciation, but they believed that even an unreasonable creature honors 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. This is, for example, 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 cleansing 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 a very real shapes. 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 off their roost with a broom, then by Easter they can already carry fresh eggs for the celebration 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, 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 a gift of painted greatest art eggs. 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, which serve as decoration for Easter eggs, were created a long time ago and are passed down 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 magical powers naked human body, which can serve as a factor in soil fertility. 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 desecration 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 power, our people revered and 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 Vitrysky talks about some person who saw Holy Mary with many maidens 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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Most families have their own public or unspoken traditions. How important are they for raising happy people?

Traditions and rituals are inherent in every family. Even if you think that there is nothing like this in your family, most likely you are a little mistaken. After all, even the morning: “Hello!” and evening: “Good night!” - this is also a kind of tradition. What can we say about Sunday dinners with the whole family or the collective making of Christmas tree decorations.

First, let’s remember what the word “family,” so simple and familiar from childhood, means. Agree, there may be different variants on the topic: “mom, dad, me”, and “parents and grandparents”, and “sisters, brothers, uncles, aunts, etc.” One of the most popular definitions of this term says: “A family is an association of people based on marriage or consanguinity, connected by a common life, mutual moral responsibility and mutual assistance.” That is, these are not just blood relatives living under the same roof, but also people who help each other and are mutually responsible. Family members in the true sense of the word love each other, support each other, rejoice together on happy occasions and are sad on sad occasions. They seem to be all together, but at the same time they learn to respect each other’s opinions and personal space. And there is something that unites them into one whole, unique to them, in addition to the stamps in the passport.

This “something” is family traditions. Do you remember how you loved to come to your grandmother for the summer as a child? Or celebrate birthdays with a large crowd of relatives? Or decorate the Christmas tree with your mother? These memories are filled with warmth and light.

What are family traditions? Explanatory dictionaries say the following: “Family traditions are the usual norms, behavior patterns, customs and views accepted in the family that are passed on from generation to generation.” Most likely, these are the usual standards of behavior that the child will carry with him into his life. future family, and will pass it on to his children.

What do family traditions give to people? Firstly, they contribute to the harmonious development of the child. After all, traditions imply repeated repetition of some actions, and, therefore, stability. For a baby, such predictability is very important; thanks to it, over time he ceases to be afraid of this big, incomprehensible world. Why be afraid if everything is constant, stable, and your parents are nearby? In addition, traditions help children see in their parents not just strict educators, but also friends with whom it is interesting to spend time together.

Secondly, for adults, family traditions give a feeling of unity with their relatives, bring them closer, and strengthen feelings. After all, these are often moments of pleasant time spent together with those closest to you, when you can relax, be yourself and enjoy life.

Thirdly, this is the cultural enrichment of the family. It becomes not just a combination of individual “selves”, but a full-fledged unit of society, bearing and making its contribution to the cultural heritage of the country.

Of course, these are not all the “advantages” of family traditions. But even this is enough to make us think: how do our families live? Perhaps we should add some interesting traditions?

There is a huge variety of family traditions in the world. But still, in general, we can try to roughly divide them into two large groups: general and special.

Common traditions are traditions found in most families in one form or another. These include:

• Celebrating birthdays and family holidays. This tradition will certainly become one of the first significant events in the baby’s life. Thanks to such customs, both children and adults receive many “bonuses”: anticipation of the holiday, good mood, the joy of communicating with family, the feeling of being needed and important to loved ones. This tradition is one of the warmest and most cheerful.
• Household duties of all family members, cleaning, putting things in their places. When a child is accustomed to his household duties from an early age, he begins to feel included in the life of the family and learns to care.
• Joint games with children. Both adults and children take part in such games. By doing something together with their children, parents show them an example, teach them different skills, and show their feelings. Then, as the child grows up, it will be easier for him to maintain a trusting relationship with mom and dad.
• Family dinner. Many families honor the traditions of hospitality, which helps unite families by gathering them around the same table.
• Family council. This is a “meeting” of all family members at which decisions are made important questions, the situation is discussed, further plans are made, the family budget is considered, etc. It is very important to involve children in the council - this way the child will learn to be responsible, as well as better understand his family.
• Traditions of “carrot and stick”. Each family has its own rules for what you can (if possible) punish a child for, and how to encourage him. Some give you extra pocket money, while others give you a trip to the circus together. The main thing for parents is not to overdo it; excessive demands from adults can make the child uninitiated and lethargic or, conversely, envious and angry.
• Rituals of greeting and farewell. Wishes of good morning and sweet dreams, kisses, hugs, greetings when returning home - all these are signs of attention and care from loved ones.
• Days of remembrance of deceased relatives and friends.
• Walking together, going to the theater, cinema, exhibitions, traveling - these traditions enrich the life of the family, making it brighter and more eventful.

Special traditions are special traditions specific to one given family. Perhaps this is the habit of sleeping until lunch on Sundays, or going on a picnic on weekends. Or a home theater. Or hiking in the mountains. Or…

Also, all family traditions can be divided into those that developed on their own and those that were consciously introduced into the family. About how to create new tradition, we'll talk a little later. Now let’s look at some interesting examples of family traditions. Perhaps you will like some of them and want to introduce them into your family?

How many families - how many examples of traditions can be found in the world. But sometimes they are so interesting and unusual that you immediately begin to think: “Shouldn’t I come up with something like that?”

So, examples of interesting family traditions:

• Joint fishing until the morning. Dad, mom, children, night and mosquitoes - few people will dare to do this! But a lot of emotions and new impressions are also guaranteed!
• Family cooking. Mom kneads the dough, dad twists the minced meat, and the child makes dumplings. So what if it’s not quite straight and correct. The main thing is that everyone is cheerful, happy and covered in flour!
• Birthday quests. Each birthday person - be it a child or a grandfather - is given a card in the morning, using which he looks for clues leading him to the gift.
• Trips to the sea in winter. Packing your whole family's backpacks and going to the seaside, breathing in fresh air, having a picnic or spending the night in a winter tent - all this will give an unusual feeling and unite the family.
• Draw cards for each other. Just like that, without any reason or special artistic talent. Instead of being offended and pouting, write: “I love you! Although you are sometimes unbearable... But I’m not a gift either.”
• Together with the little ones, bake shortcakes for the feast of St. Nicholas for orphans. Joint selfless good deeds and trips to Orphanage will help children become kinder and more sympathetic, and grow up to be caring people.
• Bedtime story. No, it’s not easy when a mother reads to her baby. And when all the adults read in turn, and everyone listens. Light, kind, eternal.
• Celebrate the New Year in a new place every time. It doesn’t matter where it will be - in the square of a foreign city, on the top of a mountain or near the Egyptian pyramids, the main thing is not to repeat yourself!
• Evenings of poems and songs. When the family gets together, everyone sits in a circle, composes poems - each one a line - and immediately comes up with music for them, and sings with a guitar. Great! You can also organize home performances and puppet theaters.
• “Putting” gifts for neighbors. Remaining unnoticed, the family gives gifts to neighbors and friends. How nice it is to give!
• We say warm words. Every time before eating, everyone says nice words and compliments to each other. Inspiring, isn't it?
• Cooking with love. “Did you put down love?” “Yes, of course, I’ll put it in now. Please give it to me, it’s in the locker!”
• Holiday on the top shelf. It is a custom to celebrate all holidays on the train. Have fun and on the move!

In order to create a new family tradition, you only need two things: your desire and the fundamental consent of your household. The algorithm for creating a tradition can be summarized as follows:

1. Actually, come up with the tradition itself. Try to involve all family members as much as possible to create a friendly, cohesive atmosphere.
2. Take the first step. Try your "action". It is very important to saturate it with positive emotions - then everyone will look forward to the next time.
3. Be moderate in your desires. You shouldn’t immediately introduce many different traditions for every day of the week. It takes time for customs to take hold. And when everything in life is planned down to the smallest detail, it’s also not interesting. Leave room for surprises!
4. Strengthen the tradition. It is necessary to repeat it several times so that it is remembered and strictly observed. But don’t take the situation to the point of absurdity - if there’s a snowstorm or rainstorm outside, you might want to give up the walk. In other cases, it is better to observe tradition.

When a new family is created, it often happens that the spouses do not have the same ideas about traditions. For example, in the groom’s family it is customary to celebrate all holidays with numerous relatives, but the bride celebrated these events only with her mother and father, and some dates could not be celebrated at all. In this case, the newlyweds may immediately develop a conflict. What to do in case of disagreement? The advice is simple - just a compromise. Discuss the problem and find a solution that suits both of you. Come up with a new tradition - already common - and everything will work out!

In Russia, from time immemorial, family traditions have been honored and protected. They are a very important part of the country's historical and cultural heritage. What kind of family traditions were there in Russia?

Firstly, an important rule for every person was knowledge of his ancestry, and not at the level of “grandparents,” but much deeper. In each noble family, a family tree was compiled, a detailed pedigree, and stories about the lives of their ancestors were carefully preserved and passed on. Over time, when cameras appeared, family albums began to be maintained and stored, and passed on to younger generations. This tradition has reached our times - many families have old albums with photographs of loved ones and relatives, even those who are no longer with us. It’s always nice to review these “pictures of the past”, to be happy or, conversely, to be sad. Now, with the widespread use of digital photographic equipment, there are more and more frames, but most often they remain electronic files that have not “flowed” onto paper. On the one hand, storing photos this way is much easier and more convenient; they do not take up space on shelves, do not turn yellow over time, and do not get dirty. Yes, and you can shoot much more often. But the trepidation associated with the expectation of a miracle also became less. After all, at the very beginning of the photo era, a trip to family photo was a whole event - they carefully prepared for it, dressed smartly, everyone walked joyfully together - why isn’t it a separate beautiful tradition for you?

Secondly, the primordial Russian family tradition has been and remains to honor the memory of relatives, remember the departed, as well as care and constant care for elderly parents. In this, it is worth noting, the Russian people differ from European countries, where elderly citizens are mainly cared for by special institutions. Whether this is good or bad is not for us to judge, but the fact that such a tradition exists and is alive is a fact.

Thirdly, since ancient times in Russia it has been the custom to pass on family heirlooms from generation to generation - jewelry, dishes, some things of distant relatives. Often young girls got married in their mothers' wedding dresses, who had previously received them from their mothers, etc. Therefore, many families always had special “secrets” where grandfather’s watches, grandmother’s rings, family silver and other valuables were kept.

Fourthly, it was previously very popular to name a newborn child after one of the family members. This is how “family names” appeared, and families where, for example, grandfather Ivan, son Ivan and grandson Ivan.

Fifthly, an important family tradition of the Russian people was and is assigning a patronymic to a child. Thus, already at birth the baby receives part of the clan name. By calling someone by name or patronymic, we express our respect and politeness.

Sixth, previously very often a child was assigned church name in honor of the saint who is celebrated on the baby’s birthday. According to legend, such a name will protect the child from evil forces and help in life. Nowadays, such a tradition is observed infrequently, and mainly among deeply religious people.

Seventh, in Rus' there were professional dynasties - entire generations of bakers, shoemakers, doctors, military men, and priests. Growing up, the son continued his father’s work, then his son continued the same work, and so on. Unfortunately, now such dynasties are very, very rare in Russia.

Eighth, an important family tradition was, and is still being returned to more and more often, the mandatory wedding of newlyweds in church and the baptism of infants.

Yes, there were many interesting family traditions in Russia. Take, for example, a traditional feast. It’s not for nothing that they talk about the “broad Russian soul.” But it’s true that they carefully prepared for the reception of guests, cleaned the house and yard, set the tables with the best tablecloths and towels, served pickles in dishes stored specifically for special occasions. The hostess came out to the threshold with bread and salt, bowed at the waist to the guests, and they bowed to her in return. Then everyone went to the table, ate, sang songs, and talked. Oh, beauty!

Some of these traditions have hopelessly sunk into oblivion. But how interesting it is to notice that many of them are alive, and they are still passed down from generation to generation, from father to son, from mother to daughter... And that means the people have a future!

The cult of family traditions in different countries

In Great Britain important point In raising a child, the goal is to raise a true Englishman. Children are raised in strictness, taught to restrain their emotions. At first glance, it may seem that the British love their children less than parents in other countries. But this, of course, is a deceptive impression, because they are simply accustomed to showing their love in a different way, not the way, for example, in Russia or Italy.

In Japan, it is very rare to hear a child cry - all the wishes of children under 6 years old are immediately fulfilled. All these years, the mother has been engaged only in raising the baby. But then the child goes to school, where strict discipline and order await him. It is also curious that everyone usually lives under one roof. big family- both old people and babies.

In Germany, there is a tradition of late marriages - rarely does anyone start a family before the age of thirty. It is believed that before this time, future spouses can realize their potential at work, build a career, and are already able to provide for their family.

In Italy, the concept of “family” is comprehensive - it includes all relatives, including the most distant ones. An important family tradition is joint dinners, where everyone communicates, shares their news, and discusses pressing issues. Interestingly, the choice of a son-in-law or daughter-in-law is far from last role Italian mother plays.

In France, women prefer a career to raising children, so after a very short time after the birth of a child, the mother returns to work, and her child goes to kindergarten.

In America, an interesting family tradition is the habit of teaching children to live in society from early childhood, supposedly this will help their children in adulthood. Therefore, it is quite natural to see families with small children both in cafes and at parties.

In Mexico the cult of marriage is not so high. Families often live without official registration. But male friendship there is quite strong, the community of men supports each other, helps in solving problems.

As you can see, family traditions are interesting and great. Do not neglect them, because they unite the family and help it become one.

“Love your family, spend time with them and be happy!”
Anna Kutyavina for the website website

Our country has a rich history, full of many events and achievements. The main way to unite people in the state has always been the traditions and customs of the Russian people, which have been preserved for a long time.

Popular traditions

Feasts

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Feast

Noisy feasts are extremely popular. Since ancient times, any respected person considered it his duty to periodically organize feasts and invite a large number of guests to them. Such events were planned in advance and prepared for them on a large scale.

Currently, the tradition of noisy Russian feasts has not changed at all. Relatives, groups of friends, and colleagues can gather around a large table. Such events are always accompanied by the consumption of large quantities of food and alcoholic beverages.

The reason for the feast can be any significant event - a visit distant relative, farewell to the army, family celebrations, state or professional holidays, etc.

Christening

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Christening

The rite of baptism has existed in Rus' since ancient times. The child must be sprinkled with holy water in the temple, and a cross must be put on his neck. This ritual is designed to protect the baby from evil spirits.

Before the baptism ceremony, the child’s parents choose a godmother and godfather from their immediate circle. These people are henceforth responsible for the well-being and life of their ward. In accordance with the traditions of baptism, it is believed that every January 6, a grown-up child should bring a kutya to his godparents, and they present him with sweets in gratitude.

Wake

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wake

After burying the body, all relatives and friends of the deceased go to his house, to the house of someone close to him, or to a special hall for the funeral.

During the ceremony, everyone present at the table remembers the deceased with a kind word. It is customary to hold a funeral directly on the day of the funeral, on the ninth day, or on the fortieth day a year after death.

Holidays

Folk traditions and customs of the Russian people include not only certain rituals, but also rules for celebrating calendar and Orthodox holidays.

Kupala

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Kupala

The Kupala holiday was formed in those days when, in honor of the god of fertility, people sang songs in the evenings and jumped over the fire. This ritual eventually became a traditional annual celebration of the summer solstice. It mixes both pagan and Christian traditions.

God Kupala acquired the name Ivan after the baptism of Rus'. The reason is simple - the pagan deity was replaced by the image of John the Baptist created by the people.

Maslenitsa

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Maslenitsa

In ancient times, Maslenitsa was considered a day of remembrance for dead people. Therefore, the process of burning an effigy was considered a funeral, and eating pancakes was a wake.

Over time, the Russian people gradually transformed the perception of this holiday. Maslenitsa became a day of farewell to winter and anticipation of the coming of spring. On this day there were noisy festivities, entertainment was held for people - fist fights, fairs, horse-drawn sled rides, sledding down ice slides, various competitions and competitions.

And remained unchanged main tradition– bake pancakes in large quantities and invite guests to get-togethers with pancakes. Traditional pancakes are supplemented with all kinds of additives - sour cream, honey, red caviar, condensed milk, jams, etc.

Easter

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Easter

The Easter holiday in Rus' is considered a bright day of universal equality, forgiveness and kindness. On this day, it is customary to prepare standard treats for this holiday. Easter cakes and Easter cakes are traditionally baked by Russian women, housewives, and the eggs are painted by young family members (youth, children). Easter eggs symbolize drops of Christ's blood. Nowadays, they are not only painted in all sorts of colors, but also decorated with themed stickers and patterns.

On Easter Sunday itself, it is customary to say “Christ is Risen” when meeting with friends. Those who hear this greeting should answer it “Truly He is Risen.” After the exchange of traditional phrases, there is a three-time kiss and an exchange of holiday treats (Easter cakes, Easter eggs, eggs).

New Year's and Christmas

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Christmas and New Year

New Year in Russia is celebrated in all families; not everyone gathers for Christmas. But, in all churches, services are held on the occasion of the “Nativity of Christ”. Usually on New Year's Day, December 31, they give gifts, set the table, bid farewell to the old year, and then celebrate the New Year accompanied by the chimes and the Russian President's address to citizens. Christmas is Orthodox holiday, which closely entered into the life of the Russian people. This bright day is celebrated by all citizens of the country, regardless of their faith. Christmas is traditionally considered a family occasion, celebrated with loved ones.

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. New Year's and Christmas

The day before Christmas, which falls on January 6, is called “Christmas Eve.” Comes from the word “sochivo”, which means a special Christmas dish consisting of boiled cereals. The cereal is poured with honey on top and sprinkled with nuts and poppy seeds. It is believed that there should be a total of 12 dishes on the table.

They sit down at the table when the first race appears in the night sky. The next day, January 7, comes the family holiday itself, on which the family gets together and relatives give each other gifts.

The next 12 days after Christmas Day are called Christmastide. Previously, during Christmas time, young people unmarried girls gathered together to conduct various rituals and fortune telling, designed to attract suitors and determine their betrothed. Currently, the tradition has been preserved. Girls still get together on Christmastide and tell fortunes about their suitors.

Wedding customs

Wedding customs and traditions of the Russian people occupy a special place in everyday life. A wedding is the day of the formation of a new family, filled with many rituals and entertainment.

Matchmaking

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

After the young man has decided to choose a candidate for his life partner, the need arises for matchmaking. This custom involves the groom paying a visit with his proxies(usually the parents) to the bride's house. The groom and his accompanying relatives are met by the bride's parents at a laid table. During the feast, a joint decision is made on whether the wedding will take place between the young people. The decision is sealed by the handshake of the parties, marking the engagement.

Nowadays, standard matchmaking is not as popular as it used to be, but the tradition of the groom approaching the bride's parents to receive their blessing still persists.

Dowry

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

After making a positive decision regarding the marriage of the newlyweds, the question of preparing the bride's dowry arises. Usually the dowry is prepared by the girl's mother. It includes bed linen, dishes, furnishings, clothing, etc. Especially rich brides can receive a car, apartment or house from their parents.

The more dowry a girl has prepared, the more enviable a bride she is considered. In addition, its presence greatly facilitates the life of young people during the first time of their life together.

hen-party

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

Closer to the day of celebration, the bride schedules a bachelorette party. On this day, she gets together with her friends and relatives to finally have some fun as a free girl, unencumbered by family worries. The bachelorette party can take place anywhere - in a bathhouse, in the bride’s house, etc.

Ransom

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

The most fun and spontaneous stage of the wedding celebration. The groom, along with his relatives and friends, arrives at the bride’s doorstep, where all the other guests are waiting for him. At the threshold, the procession is met by representatives of the bride - girlfriends and relatives. Their task is to test the groom’s endurance, ingenuity and generosity. If a young man passes all the tests offered to him or is able to pay for the defeat with money, he gets the opportunity to get closer to the bride.

Competitions during the ransom can be very diverse - from very humorous and light riddles to real tests of physical strength and endurance. Often, to pass the tests, the groom has to resort to the help of his friends.

At the end of the ransom, the groom enters the room where his betrothed is.

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

Blessing

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

According to tradition, the mother of the bride approaches the newlyweds with a family icon and blesses them for a long and happy life. The icon must be covered with a towel, since touching it with bare hands is prohibited.

During the blessing, the newlyweds must kneel. The mother of the bride describes the cross with an icon three times over their heads, while delivering a parting speech. Usually this speech contains wishes to live in peace and quiet, not to quarrel or be offended over trifles, and to always be one.

Wedding feast

Photo: Traditions and customs of the Russian people. Wedding customs

The culmination of the celebration is the wedding feast, during which everyone makes speeches to the newlyweds. These speeches always contain many parting words, wishes, and good jokes.

The unchanging tradition of Russian wedding feast is shouting the word “Bitter!” Each time this word is mentioned, the newlyweds must stand up and exchange a kiss. There are different theories about the origin of this tradition. According to one version, the word “bitter” in this interpretation comes from the word “slides”, since earlier during weddings an ice slide was built for the celebration, with the bride standing on top of it. The groom had to climb this slide to receive a kiss.

Another version of the origin of the tradition has a rather sad meaning. Since ancient times, girls did not choose their own grooms, so getting married meant for the bride not only leaving her parents’ house and saying goodbye to her youth, but also the beginning family life with an unloved person. Now this meaning of the word is irrelevant, since girls have long chosen their own grooms, and marriages are concluded by mutual consent.

According to another version, during the feast, guests drink vodka, which has a bitter taste, to the health of the bride and groom. The newlyweds should kiss during toasts in order to dilute the bitterness of the alcoholic drink with a sweet kiss.