Slavic Holiday Kupala (Kupailo, Kupalo) - the day of the summer solstice. The longest day and shortest night of the year. This is one of the four main holidays of the ancient Slavs, dedicated to the positions of the Sun (, Kupala,). The last day of Rusal Week or Rusalia. Kupala is one of the oldest holidays, which has kept many traditions and customs of our ancestors unchanged to this day, for example: seeing off Yarila, who is replaced by the God of the summer sun Kupala, collecting medicinal herbs, searching for fern flowers, etc. Kupala is also a great holiday, which is now replaced by the church on the birthday of John the Baptist.
Let's try to unbiasedly figure out what kind of day this is, bearing the name Kupala, which was revered and celebrated by the ancestors of the Rus strictly at the same time of the year, long before our times, the main customs and traditions of which, which suit the Soul even now (precisely according to Soul, and not according to some canons), have reached us from the depths of centuries.
On what day is Kupala celebrated?
The date of the celebration itself is not accidental and is associated with an astronomical event, like many other celebrated days, which may indicate the advanced knowledge of the Rus' ancestors in matters of astronomy. Kupala Day marks an astronomical event called the summer solstice. Now it is absolutely known that the trajectory of our planet around Yarila the Sun is far from an ideal circle. During one revolution of our planet around Yarila-Sun, the distance between them changes from minimally close to maximally distant, which is repeated from year to year and from century to century. On the day of the summer solstice, our planet occupies the farthest position from Yarila the Sun, and in our hemisphere at this time there is the longest day and the shortest night of the year - the triumph of light over darkness. This astronomical event does not depend on any religions, faiths, political views and, in general, people. The sun shines equally for everyone, and this event occurs at the same time from year to year, regardless of any calendars and their styles, and it cannot be canceled or postponed to please anyone, but it is quite possible to replace concepts.
In 2020, the Slavic Holiday of Kupala falls on June 21
Thus, the summer solstice, according to the widely used calendar today, falls from June 19 to June 25.
Where did the names of the holiday Kupala, Kupailo, Kupala or Ivan Kupala come from?
We've sorted out the date, now let's try to understand what meaning was put into the name of the Kupala Day holiday. If in the case of the date everything is clear, where the conditions are determined by an astronomical event, then with the name we will have to leave the question open, since we do not have reliable information today, and the Heritage of the Ancestors, passed on from mouth to mouth, has reached us very distorted. There are many versions of the origin of this name, but not all are accepted by the Soul unambiguously enough to be perceived as truth. At the end of the article there is a legend dedicated to the origin of the name of the summer solstice festival. Take courage and, after reading it, form your own opinion whether your Soul accepts such an interpretation, whether this is a version close to reality, and do not blindly follow any beliefs.
Today, the Holiday is better known as Ivan Kupala or Midsummer's Day, named after the Christian Saint John the Baptist. Ivan Kupala, unlike the real Feast of Kupala or Kupala, is not timed to coincide with the solstice, but is celebrated on the date of birth of John the Baptist on July 7. Celebrating Kupala on July 7 according to pagan traditions with bonfires, wreaths, and searching for ferns makes no sense, since the solstice is long behind us. In fact, this holiday does not belong to John the Baptist or some incomprehensible Ivan Kupala, but to the pagan God Kupala (Kupailo).
This holiday was once celebrated not only in Rus', but throughout Europe. Hills, fields, meadows, and valleys were covered with the lights of Kupala bonfires. Nowadays, of course, you won’t find this anymore, but many people, pagan communities continue to support the tradition, and anyone can visit the Kupala Festival as it really is. It is believed that at the dawn of Kupala Day the sun rejoices, shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, dances and bathes. The solstice day itself is always hot, this is explained by the fact that the sun on its last day roasts the earth with all its might, but, defeated, goes away for the winter. On Kupala, the sun reaches its climax, heats with incredible force and, according to tradition, people must ask it to moderate its ardor.
Folk rituals and traditions for the Kupala holiday
The day of the summer solstice is still widely celebrated in different parts of our planet, and in many places on its true astronomical date. This holiday is common among peoples whose roots are closely connected with the roots of the Rus. Having different names among different nationalities, its essence is the same: all rituals are associated with fire, which usually appears in two forms - earthly and heavenly (Sun), and water.
The celebration of Kupala Day was preceded by Rusal Week. These days are dedicated to the Goddesses of rivers, lakes and reservoirs. During Rusal Week they did not swim unless absolutely necessary, so as not to disturb the water deities preparing for the summer festival, and from that day on they began to swim in the rivers every day. It was customary to watch the meeting of the month with the sun on the night of the solstice, stay up and watch the Sun play. Kupala night is a time when the magical power of fire, water, earth, and plants reaches its highest strength, and the water in rivers and lakes acquires special life-giving and cleansing properties. The belief about the color of the fern blooming with fiery color on the Kupala night exists in all Slavic peoples, in search of which the most courageous went.
The idea of the holiday is cleansing, affecting the three bodies of the human essence - the three-dimensional shell, soul and spirit. Fundamental natural elements - water and fire - are used as cleansing elements. That is why the famous bathing fires are always made on the banks of rivers.
The celebration begins with a round dance. The round dance is built from three circles of people holding hands and moving in different directions. The outer circle is made up of people of mature and old age, the middle circle is young and full of strength boys and girls, and the smallest circle, which is closest to the fire, is made up of small children .
During the celebration, our Ancestors jumped over bonfires and then ran into the arms of the river. The important point is that it should be a river with moving water, when an analogy can be drawn with the river of time, the flow of which everything is washed away one day, changes are constantly occurring. And if water cleanses the body, then fire cleanses the Soul.
It is believed that the bonfires lit for the Kupala Festival have a unique, cleansing power. On bathing night, according to the beliefs of our Ancestors, these bonfires burned in three worlds at once - in Reveal, Navi and Prav. Therefore, any fire on this night is a conductor, powerful and irresistible. A guide to the human and the divine, the dark and the light, the earthly and the heavenly.
Walking on coals is the next part of the holiday. This is a moment of purification or, rather, even hardening of the spirit. Through heat, a powerful thermal energy flow and small painful sparks, a person leaves false thoughts, unfair aspirations, demons and larvae, pushing him towards a dark path.
Also Slavic Holiday Kupala Day includes weaving wreaths and fireweed. As for wreaths, traditionally wreaths are woven by girls for boys. Of course, if we're talking about about an established couple, then the girl weaves a wreath for her man or husband, another option is simply unacceptable. In all other cases, single girls give their wreaths to those guys who arouse their greatest sympathy. Wreaths are woven from field herbs and flowers. Ognevitsa are small “boats”, most often made from wooden planks. A candle is placed in the center of such a boat, and a “fence” is made of grass and leaves around it so that the wind does not accidentally extinguish the flame. Fire makers with lit candles are launched into the river. If a person does not have a mate, he can launch the fireball on his own, but more often this is not the case individual character. After all, a harmonious state is achieved only in the unity of opposites, therefore, ideally, the fire should be launched by a couple - the bride and groom or husband and wife. At the moment when the guy and the girl put the fireweed on the water, they make wishes.
One of the biggest misconceptions about the Kupala Festival, which Christians gave us, is that during the festival fornication and all sorts of outrages happen. Our Slavic ancestors were the purest, both spiritually and materially.
Preachers and missionaries who came to our country from afar saw an incomprehensible celebration with fun, games, and dancing. They thought it was simply disgusting, and instead of sitting on their knees and begging for eternal forgiveness, people rejoice in life.
The fact is that Kupala, as a holiday of maximum sun, when the unusually powerful magical powers of heaven and earth are activated, was considered good sign- to conceive a child. According to legend, those conceived on the day of the sun on Kupala absorbed all its energy and became either the best warriors or wise women. It was also considered unlikely that a child conceived on Kupala would have supernatural abilities.
The Baptists probably witnessed how, on a holiday when the forces of nature were at their peak, many young people, secluded in quiet groves and meadows, tried to conceive new offspring. As a result, in order to try to take away one of the most significant holidays from the Slavs, a fast was imposed on him (Petrov's fast). In pre-Christian times, naturally, there was no fasting, and the festivities were not a celebration of the belly and spirit before long abstinence, but a celebration of Kupala Sun Day and the end of Rusal Week.
The legend of how the Kupala Holiday appeared
How the twins Kupala and Kostroma were born to the Goddess Bathing Suit
Meanwhile, in the kingdom of Rule, everything moved on as usual. Everything moved in its own way in our earthly kingdom of Reveal. In the Irian Garden, the fire god Semargl was about to go again to protect the world from dark forces. Sharpened his fiery sword, turned around winged dog and rushed across the night sky to disperse Chernobog’s great-grandchildren.
That night turned out to be difficult - time was the reason for this. The time has come for the summer solstice, the time of celebration of many dark forces, when the sun turns to winter. Khors is still shining brightly, full of strength, but Veles’ hands are already lying on the great Svarog wheel, on the great wheel of time.
Very soon the sun will decline - little by little, minute by minute, and then it will not shine as it does now: then the cold Morena will become the mistress of the forests and fields. Even Khorsa will be covered with cold: on the day of the autumn equinox, when day and night become equal, he will extinguish his life-giving rays.
That is why the dark forces rejoice, but they still cannot defeat the sun. These days, Khors shines in full force, and Dazhbog brings bright light to the whole earth, but at night Semargl guards the world - he taught people to light fires, and now on the night of the summer solstice they burn like eyes of light, driving away the darkness of the night. And then the earth, like a mirror, reflects the starry sky.
At this time, the wonderful Bathing-Night, a helper of fertile forces, shines with such amazing beauty that the fire god Semargl finally decided - he came up, flew up to the Bathing-suit and spoke about his ardent love. He told me how he yearns for her in heaven. And then the beautiful Goddess responded to Semargl’s love, and their love was hotter than a flame and more tender than the night air.
And, as it was destined by fate, intertwined as it was by the wise Makosh, as Nedoleya and Dolya were tied, twins were born to Semargl and Bathing Suit - two, a boy and a girl.
The boy was given the name Kupala, he was bright and white, his gaze, like water, was transparent and gentle. They began to call the girl Kostroma, and she was bright, like fire, with a hot soul and heart. The brother and sister were inseparable; they ran through the fields and meadows together and marveled at the earthly world, and the fields, and meadows, and groves. Together they marveled at the beasts of the earth and watched the flight of the birds of heaven.
Kupala and Kostroma were equal in their beauty and skills, the only difference between them was that Kostroma loved to look at the fire, she had fun jumping over the fire, and Kupala loved lake water more, he loved river waves and swam every day.
Kostroma once said to Kupala:
Light-winged birds told me yesterday that far, far away, by the Smorodina River, magical songs, the world’s wonderful birds, are singing. Tomorrow morning, you and I will go to that cherished place to hear unprecedented songs.
Kupala immediately agreed to this; he also liked the birdsong.
They did not say anything to their father and mother, and the next morning they went to the Smorodina River, to the huge World Oak, where the bird Alkonost sat on the right and sang about life and joy, and on the left the sweet-voiced Sirin sat and sang songs about the kingdom of the dead.
And Kupala listened to the sad songs of the Sirin bird, which flowed like the murmuring of a stream. Kupala forgot about everything in the world, closed his eyes, and then the bird Sirin took him to the dark, dead kingdom, and hid him there for many years. And Kostroma Alkonost listened to the bird, as if the flashes of a bright flame were her enchanting songs. Kostroma didn’t notice how brother Kupala disappeared, and when she looked around, no one was around anymore. She began to call her dear brother, but Kupala did not answer her; he was in a dark, distant place under the wing of the Sirin bird.
Many years have passed since then, and more than once white, fierce blizzards covered the pure pole with snow, and more than once then lush grasses grew through the anger of winter. Many times since then the red sun has passed its annual circle. Troubles gave way to joy many times.
Since then, Kostroma has grown up and become a beautiful girl. Suitors often wooed Kostroma, even Veles, the wisest God, often looked at her, but none of them loved Kostroma.
“There is none of them to match me,” she often said to her mother, “among them there is no equal for me.” I am a maiden, born of the Gods, not immortal, but beautiful. Who can compare with me in skills? I will not marry just anyone for God! Hairy old men are no match for me. Hairy and married...
And Night Swimsuit sighed in response. "Quiet!" - I told my daughter. Be afraid, they say, of trouble, they say, your beauty is equal to pride, no matter how angry the Gods are. But the lively Kostroma mother did not listen, she kept laughing, braiding her red curls. Together with other girls she wove wreaths, but one day the carminative Stribog suddenly tore the wreath from her head. He blew harder, threw it into the water, and the wreath floated downstream. And then proud Kostroma wished that she would find a wreath for a groom equal to her. Let the wreath float, looking for a betrothed, so that he will be exactly like her in everything!
And June, the month of Cherven, ended on earth, and was replaced by July, the month of Lipen. And the day of the solstice was getting closer: until sunset the sun shines for a long time, brighter than bright, and then the short night comes - a strange, bad time.
At this time, the world freezes in anticipation: something will happen ahead, how will everything work out? Water spirits and mermaids, subjects of the mistress Mokosh, loudly celebrate their wild holiday a week before the solstice. Mavkas, waterworts, ragworts and other aquatic inhabitants put wreaths of water lilies on their heads, and then get out of the lakes and rivers and start having fun along the banks. Unbelted, in white shirts, Slavic mermaids frolic, sing, laugh, swing in the trees, or even just sit on the grass and comb their long hair.
Slavic mermaids never had tails, but they have playful legs, and therefore they like to dance in circles, but not salted, from left to right, towards the Right, as living guys and girls do in honor of the Round Horse, and salted, against the arrow sentry, from right to left, from world to world Navi.
Water is an amazing element, it gives life to the whole world, but water can also destroy. Through rivers and lakes there is a path to the underground kingdom, and therefore many spirits of the waters listen, except for Mokosh, the many-wise Veles, especially those who came from the dead, from drowned people. Water spirits, moist, can help the crop grow, or they can drown everything at the root, and if a person has offended them with something or met them at an unkind hour, they will tickle them to death and drag them to their underwater world.
More than others, ragworts love to tickle everyone they meet, and in order to protect themselves from them in Rusalia - the holiday of all mermaids, people alone in the coastal forests and water meadows tried not to appear, and if they went, they took garlic and wormwood with them - scare away the rags.
The ragworts used to run away from the wormwood, but the Mavkas didn’t care. They are not even afraid to step through a circle, through an iron protective chain! The main thing is not to anger the mavoks, to laugh them off, that’s all the living have hope for. If they ask for a comb to comb their hair, give it to them, otherwise it will get worse. True, then you will have to throw away the comb, otherwise you will go bald yourself, but if you don’t give it, you become greedy, and the Mavkas will torture you to death.
In appearance they are such beauties as the world has never seen before: a sweet face, slender legs - everything is like those of the living. Only beauty is not alive among mavoks, it is dead. From the back you can see an unbeatable heart, lungs turned green without air, and entrails soaked in water. They received facial beauty as a reward for unrequited love on earth. After all, drowned women usually become mavkas, ugly, offended by life, because they threw themselves into the water out of unhappy love.
The most evil among the mermaids are lobastes; they like to hide in the coastal reeds. Older than the young maks, cunning, stronger, more experienced. They crawl out of the water like undead, with scary, old woman faces. On whomever the lobasts attack, death will be a deliverance.
And Vodyana rules over all the mermaids - on the days of the summer solstice he even feels like a birthday boy. He is the master of the waters, grazing his herds of fish in silence at the bottom of rivers and lakes - carp, catfish, bream - like a shepherd of cows in a field. He himself is entangled in mud, with a big belly and a tail. Instead of hands - goose paws, goggle-eyed, like a fish, with a thick beard and a green mustache. All the girls are water-like, transparent, and obey him strictly. Only his daughters, water girls, play pranks on the sly from their father: they confuse fishing gear and invite fishermen under the water with sweet songs.
During the day the Vodyanoy sleeps in the silence of deep pools or under a water mill, and at night he commands the drowned. In general, Vodyanoy is a kind grandfather, but if he gets angry or agitated, he can break the nets, flood houses, or even destroy the dam completely. Most of all, he loves to indulge himself out of boredom - he will drag some unwary boy from the shore to the bottom and let him live with him so that he can entertain him in the underwater silence.
And the most cheerful and nimble merman live in springs with clean spring water - “rattling springs” that arose on earth from lightning strikes of the Perunovs.
It was in such an unkind time, when Light and Darkness were measuring their strength, that a wreath fell into the water of Kostroma and floated out to look for her betrothed - with beauty and skills like her. Exactly the same. A wreath of blue flowers, like water, and red flowers, like fire, swayed on the waves.
Whichever fellow catches him will be the groom of Kostroma. Only no one is given a wreath; it floats down the river, down the river, into unknown lands.
The mermaids follow him along the water, the Mavkas and the waterworts whisper quietly. Like, our Water Master should have told about that wreath, and Lord Veles himself should have known about the maiden’s wreath. But in vain do the water maidens worry; Veles the Lord learned about everything long ago. For a girl’s whim, for pride, for words that were offensive to the Gods, he decided to punish the maiden Kostroma.
By order of the underground Veles, in the dark kingdom, the bird Sirin released Kupapa from under her wing, put Kupapa in a boat and sent him sailing along a river-lake. He was carried out of the underground kingdom by water, carried along the rivers to his native side, and then carried by an unprecedented current up the Volga River - straight towards his fate.
While the bird Sirin was Kupala, he grew up, matured, became a fine fellow, a handsome man - with blue eyes, like two lakes, and blond, boiling hair.
He began to look around Kupala, standing in the boat, and suddenly saw a girl’s wreath floating towards him, sparkling on the water with bright colors - blue and light blue, yellow and scarlet. “Apparently, the clever beauty wove that wreath,” Kupala thinks, “and sent it along the river to quickly find her betrothed. If the girl is as beautiful as these flowers, I would like to marry her right away!”
Kupala bent down and picked up the wreath - those flowers smelled of an unearthly smell, they smelled of forest, fire and mermaids. And water lilies and herbs.
At that same moment, the boat carried Kupapa straight to the one who had thrown the wonderful wreath. Here Kupala floats, floats in a boat, looks and recognizes her native places - those fields and meadows, groves and forests where she and Kostroma ran together. And then Kupala looks, the girl is standing on the shore, looking at him with all her eyes joyfully.
The boat carried him straight to that girl, and he went out onto the shore of Kupala, holding a wreath in his hands.
Is this your wreath, dear beauty?
“Mine,” Kostroma answered quietly.
So they stood, looking at each other. And they fell madly in love with each other, fell in love as soon as they saw each other. They were a match for each other, like fire and water, which cannot be without each other, but which cannot be together forever...
Kupala and Kostroma did not recognize each other - to know, Veles had a secret idea. That same night, without asking anyone about anything, Kupala and Kostroma got married, and the Water Mavkas were witnesses to that unprecedented wedding. They had fun, rejoicing in the happiness of the newlyweds, and swam with them. They swam with Kostroma, and then on the shore they jumped over a bright fire.
Only the next morning did the Bathing Lady learn that a great misfortune had happened to her beloved children. After all, it is impossible for twins, siblings, to love each other in a married way! This is what Svarogov’s Law tells people, and this is what human law says.
The Bathing Lady came to the children with tears and told them the bitter truth. And, as soon as the truth was revealed, in that terrible moment their happiness ended. Now there was no more place for them on earth. They couldn’t live in marriage, but they couldn’t live apart either.
Out of grief, Kupala jumped into the dying fire and disappeared, as if it had never existed, and Kostroma threw herself into the forest lake, and the blue-green waters closed over her head. Cheerful Kostroma has become a sad Mavka.
And Bathing-Night has since become even blacker and since then she has been dropping her bitter tears-dew on the grass in the morning. He doesn’t want to see anyone anymore, even Semargl won’t let his beloved on the doorstep anymore. Since then, Night-Bather has been walking around the world alone, always yearning, sad and sad.
The Irian Gods also became sad, and Veles’ revenge was cruel. And Veles himself was spinning; he did not feel any joy from revenge. But it is no longer possible to correct what was done, it is impossible to reverse the circle of Svarog. And then the cunning Veles decided with his wisdom to breathe life into past suffering: he decided to turn the twins into a flower, so that they would be inseparable forever. So that they are born again, grow together, so that they become intertwined in a single flower. So that both shine in a single flower with blue and yellow-orange.
And by the will of Veles, a wonderful miracle happened in a forest clearing: yellow-blue flowers grew, bright and mysterious flowers. “Kupala-da-mavka” - people began to call them. And since then, those flowers have grown in the meadows and forests with red flames and blue water. To this day they grow in forests.
Of course you've seen them dear girls and the boys call them Ivan-da-Marya now - according to Orthodox customs. But the flowers are the same, ancient flowers, born by Veles - in memory of the twins. And people began to reverence Kupapa himself as the God of summer, wild flowers and forest fruits, the God of purification and redemption.
You, of course, have heard about the night on Kupapa - a magical, incomprehensible night on the day of the summer solstice. She has not yet been forgotten. Since the misfortune happened to the twins, since they died and were reborn in a flower, our distant ancestors began to celebrate a holiday in honor of Kupapa and the immortal Gods of Iria - a holiday of life and death, dying and rebirth. Since then, people and Gods began to celebrate the holiday of the sun, water and fire. Since then, the Slavs began to call this night of the summer solstice Kupala.
Strange things happen on Kupala night! Even the trees move from place to place, rustle their leaves, and talk to each other. Animals, birds and even grass talk to each other this night, and forest flowers are filled with unprecedented power - miraculous, magical power. On this night, people collect treasured herbs, which help in divination, heal, become love spells, and protect from misfortunes and misfortunes.
Only on this night of timelessness does a fern flower bloom in the forests, a plant dedicated to the thunderer Perun - “Perun’s color”. The sorcerers told our ancestors that if you go into the forest that night, take with you a white tablecloth, canvas and a knife. Draw a circle around the fern bush with a knife or a burnt splinter, spread a tablecloth and sit in the circle, not taking your eyes off the fern bush. They say that various monsters and spirits, subjects of Morena, will instill horror and sleep in you, and if you get scared and step out of the circle, they will tear you apart at that very moment.
Exactly at midnight, a flower bud will appear on the fern, burst with a bang, and an unusually bright, fiery red flower will open. We must pick it quickly, before someone else’s invisible hand grabs the flower. Evil spirits will scream in a terrible voice, the earth will shake, thunder will rumble and lightning will flash, the wind will rustle, and a terrible roar will be heard, covering you with flames and a suffocating smell. But if you are lucky and take possession of the flower, cover yourself with the tablecloth and run to the village without looking back. If you look back, the flower will disappear, and if not, if you pass all the tests, then the flower will reveal to you the past, present and future, teach you to look for treasures, introduce you to the secrets of the Gods, teach people's thoughts to guess and understand the language of birds, animals and plants.
However, people also said that it was all a fiction, an obsession of evil spirits who want to destroy people, that in fact ferns never bloom in the forest, which means there is no point in going after them...
On Kupapa, boys and girls doused each other with water mixed with mud, and then they bathed together and sang songs to wash away everything unclean from their souls and bodies; they organized baths. In the morning they collected life-giving dew and washed themselves with that dew in order to be healthy. The Slavs believed that at this time the heavens could open up for a short moment, and then every wish made would come true.
On this night, after sunset, the sun also bathes in the waters to bring fertility to the earth, and therefore in honor of the mighty sun - in honor of the round Horse, and the bright Dazhbog, and the ardent Yarila - they lit straw-tied wheels on Kupala night, an ancient solar symbol, with a dot -a hub in the center and spokes. And then they launched these burning wheels down the hills so that they would roll, scattering fire, towards the river all the way to the water. To this day, some villages still celebrate the Kupala holiday this way.
They also played burners - a fun game in honor of the sun with songs and catch-up games. It was from the burners that modern tag, which you still play with pleasure, came into being, dear girls and boys.
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One of the most romantic, mysterious national holidays- this is undoubtedly Ivana Kupala. Whose holiday, traditions and customs of this day are - this will be discussed further.
They began to celebrate it back in hoary pagan antiquity. Among the Eastern Slavs it fell on June 24. But after the introduction of the Gregorian calendar, the date shifted to July 7. Celebrations and rituals of Midsummer necessarily include three main components: fire, water and herbs.
Ivan Kupala and Christianity
The history of the origin of the holiday of Ivan Kupala tells that after the baptism of Rus', the celebration coincided with the church holiday of the Birth of John the Baptist (Ivan the Baptist). The first part is associated with him modern name Ivana Kupala. The second part, according to some researchers, bears the name of the pagan deity of fruits and flowers, Kupala. But others argue that there was no such god in the Slavic pantheon, and the name “Kupala” is associated with the rituals performed on this day.
The history of the Ivan Kupala holiday contains information that such a double name arose during the period when the church tried to completely replace pagan holiday to Christian. The priests had an extremely negative attitude towards the festivities and fortune telling that took place on this day. They constantly tried to ban them, considering such amusements disgusting, demonic and connecting them with the worship of the unclean.
When is Ivan Kupala celebrated?
The history of the holiday of Ivan Kupala brought to us information that inAll major celebrations begin on the evening of July 6 (June 23) at sunset and continue all night until dawn. The night of Ivan Kupala is considered magical. At this time, all evil spirits are walking around and causing mischief: witches, mermaids, Mavkas, etc., and herbs, water and fire acquire magical and healing properties.
How Ivan Kupala is celebrated
What to do on Ivan Kupala?Already after lunch on July 6 (June 23), the girls began to collect flowers, herbs and weave wreaths. The youth also made stuffed images of Madder and Kupala, the main characters of the holiday. In different regions they were made in different ways: from straw, branches, a whole tree, etc. They were decorated with flowers, ribbons, berries and fruits. Madder symbolized winter withering, the dying of nature, while Kupala was a symbol of rebirth and abundance. Around the stuffed animals, boys and girls danced in circles and sang special ritual songs, thus glorifying the eternal natural cycle. Then the stuffed animals were usually drowned in water or burned at the stake, and the celebrations continued around the large Kupala fire.
Kupala bonfire
It was believed that On the night of Ivan Kupala, fire acquires a special cleansing power. Therefore, a ritual fire was a mandatory attribute of this holiday. They made it very large and tall so that it would blaze like the sun. A high pillar was installed in the center of the fire pit, on which the skull of a horse or cow was often placed - a “vidma”. Everyone, young and old, gathered around the fire, danced in circles, sang and danced. When the fire burned out a little, young boys and girls began to jump over the fire to cleanse themselves, be cured of illnesses, and protect themselves from the evil eye and evil spirits. If a girl could not jump over the fire, then she was considered a witch. They could pour water on them, whip them with nettles, or sprinkle them with feathers. Young couples jumped holding hands, and if the hands did not separate during the jump, they could hope for a strong union.
What else to do on Ivan Kupala? There was also a custom of burning old and unnecessary things on this day, getting rid of old grievances and troubles with them. Even at the Kupala bonfire, mothers burned the shirt of a sick child so that the illness that tormented their child would also burn with it. And sometimes even livestock was driven over the Kupala fire to save it from pestilence and disease.
Healing water
The history of the Ivan Kupala holiday tells that inOde on this day acquires special healing powers. Swimming in reservoirs was treated differently on this day. In some regions, ablutions were considered a mandatory ritual, as it cleansed the body from diseases and the soul from bad thoughts. In addition, all evil spirits (mermaids, mermen) left the reservoirs, gathering for their Sabbaths.
And in others, on the contrary, they were afraid of mass bathing precisely because of the evil spirits that ran rampant that day. But they certainly tried to walk barefoot, wash, and even roll in the morning dew. This promised boys strength and health, and girls beauty. Also on Midsummer's Day they liked to take a steam bath with brooms from 12 medicinal herbs collected the day before, on Kupala night. And the water collected from the springs had miraculous powers.
Magic herbs
The history of the Ivan Kupala holiday contains information that on the magical Kupala night, all herbs and plants acquire special powers. At dawn, herbalists and healers went to collect miraculous medicinal herbs covered with healing Kupala dew. When gathering, a special prayer-conspiracy was required to be read. And in Belarus, for example, it was believed that the properties of herbs would be further enhanced if they were collected by “old and young,” that is, children and old people. After all, they have pure and innocent souls.
The Slavs believed that Ivan Kupala (date - July 7) medicinal plants They grow forest spirits - Mavkas and take care of them, providing them with healing properties.
Symbols of the sun in Kupala rituals
Since the holiday of Ivan Kupala (July 7) was celebrated on the day of the summer solstice, many of its attributes symbolize our luminary. For example, the guys launched fire wheels or set fire to tarred barrels from the hills, which was supposed to symbolize the solar cycle. And one of the indispensable accessories of Kupala Christmastide is a wreath. In Slavic mythology, a maiden's wreath has always symbolized the sun, as well as youth and purity. The worship of the sun was associated with round dances around fireplaces and effigies and special ritual songs.
Signs for Ivan Kupala for girls regarding wreaths
Every young girl certainly wove a wreath from flowers, herbs, twigs and berries, which adorned her head during dances and festivities. The maiden wreath on this magical night had a special magical meaning. For example, girls dipped a wreath into a river or spring, scooped up water through it and washed their faces, believing that this would make their skin white, their cheeks rosy, and their eyes shiny. But the main ritual action began a little later, when the girls ran away from the guys and, attaching lighted candles to their wreaths, sent them sailing along the river. Each girl carefully watched her wreath. If he sailed far, then his owner would certainly get married this year. If he was spinning on the spot, then marriage had to be postponed until next year. But the worst thing is if the wreath sank. Then it was believed that the unlucky woman did not have a partner and would have to while away her life alone.
However, the guys did not ignore this action. Observing the ceremony on the sly, they then tried to catch their chosen one’s wreath from the river and demand a kiss from her in return.
Fern color
The most famous Kupala legend is about a fern flower. It has long been believed that once a year a fern flower blooms on a magical night. It blooms only for a moment and is guarded by evil spirits, but whoever finds it will gain extraordinary abilities. He will be able to understand the language of animals, birds and plants, see buried treasures through the earth's surface, open any locks, control the earth, water and unclean spirits, become invisible, and so on.
Beliefs and signs on Ivan Kupala
It was believed that on this magical night trees could move and talk to each other, just like birds and animals. And in the dark forest between the trees you can see many fireflies fluttering. These are the souls of ancestors who returned to earth for only one night.
Also on the night of Kupala all kinds of evil spirits become active: mermaids, Mavkas, goblins, brownies and other spirits. They arrange their own carnivals, having fun with all sorts of tricks.
But the most harm could have been caused by witches who committed various dirty tricks that night and gathered for sabbaths. That is why a woman who did not come to the fire on Kupala night could be considered a witch.
To protect themselves from otherworldly forces, they used a wide variety of amulets: branches of sacred willow, aspen pegs, hemp flower, nettle and wormwood. And even torn men's trousers, which were hung on the ceiling of the barn so that the witch could not enter and take milk from the cow or take the horse away for a trip to Bald Mountain to the site of the witch's Sabbath.
Kupala night was the only opportunity for young people to have fun and dance until dawn, without causing condemnation from adults. Only their countless pranks and some liberties caused a smile. Perhaps that is why the people have so carefully preserved and protected this life-affirming and magical holiday, its traditions and rituals for many centuries.
What date is Ivan Kupala celebrated? With the onset of summer, this question worries more and more girls who want not to miss the magical Kupala night - best time for fortune telling and love magic.
1:866 1:871People have long attached special significance to this holiday, and considered it mystical - filled with magic. What is special about Midsummer's Day? (this is another name for the holiday of Ivan Kupala)
1:1260 1:1265We invite you to familiarize yourself with the history, traditions, customs, rituals and signs of this holiday.
1:1458History of the holiday of Ivan Kupala
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Ivan Kupala Day is originally a pagan holiday dedicated to the Sun and the Slavic deity Kupala. In pre-revolutionary Russia, this day was one of the most revered and important holidays of the year, the entire population took part in it, and tradition required the active inclusion of each participant in the celebration in all rituals and the mandatory implementation of a number of rules, prohibitions and customs. Even before Russia adopted Christianity, this holiday was celebrated June 22, the day of the summer solstice.
2:1408 2:1413However, already in Christian Rus' The holiday was timed to coincide with the birthday of John the Baptist, and it began to be celebrated on June 24. In many villages, the holiday of Ivan Kupala began to be called Midsummer Day.
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After the transition from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, the day of Ivan Kupala moved even further and Today it is celebrated on July 7th.
3:757 3:762Therefore, as we see, the initial meaning of the holiday has already lost all meaning, since it no longer falls on the day of the summer solstice. However, in a number of European countries, Ivan Kupala Day is still celebrated from June 20 to June 24.
3:1178 3:1183Traditions on Ivan Kupala
3:1240Midsummer's Day, as it was also called in the old days, is quite rich in traditions, rites and rituals. Moreover, despite the specificity of customs, many of them can still be found today.
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On this holiday, special attention was devoted to the forces of nature. So, The symbol of Ivan Kupala was the Sun. As the peasants argued, this is the period of the highest level of solar activity, after which it moved towards winter. After the adoption of Christianity by Russia, the sun began to symbolize John, and the holiday acquired its second name - The day of Ivan.
4:1142 4:1147Even Simeon of Polotsk in the 17th century. wrote about the people’s belief that the sun jumps and plays on the days of Kupala. Ethnographers have recorded many beliefs that on Ivan Kupala and Peter’s Day “the sun plays at sunrise, shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, jumps, plunges into the water and appears again.”
4:1669 4:4The Kupala songs express the same ideas: “The sun played on Ivan early...”; "The sun is setting...".
4:206 4:211Observations of the “playing” sun continued until Peter’s Day, which should obviously be considered as the day of farewell to the sun, which gradually waned after the summer solstice.
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There was a custom of “watching the sun.” In the evening, taking food, young people, and in the first half of the 19th century. and elderly peasants went to the hill, where they walked all night, lit fires and waited for the sunrise to see the sun play.
5:1477 5:1482From the very early morning all the people could be found on rivers and lakes. It was believed that this cleanses a person both physically, driving away all diseases, and spiritually.
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And on Ivan Kupala they were sure to take a steam bath, at the same time, they used brooms and water infused with Ivanovo herbs (Ivanovo herbs were called Ivanovo herbs consecrated in churches for John the Baptist). They believed that the bathhouse on the day of Ivan Kupala contributed to the strengthening and restoration of health.
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In the morning, at dawn, it was customary to wash with dew, for this they used a clean tablecloth, with which they had to go to the meadow early in the morning. In the meadow the tablecloth was dragged around wet grass, and then they squeezed it into a prepared container, and washed their face and hands with dew to drive away any illness, and so that there would be no acne or pimples on the face. The dew cleansed the skin, made it smooth and soft, preserved feminine beauty.
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Dew serves not only for health, but also for cleanliness in the house: They sprinkled their homes with Kupala dew to ward off all sorts of evil spirits, sprinkled the beds and walls of the house to prevent bedbugs and cockroaches.
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The fire also had a special magic on this day, so the whole village lit fires and jumped over them.
7:1072The fire was necessarily lit near bodies of water. They were believed to have magical powers that could cleanse and bring good luck for the whole year.
7:1348Therefore, a belief arose that the one who jumps over and does not touch the flames all year will be lucky and perhaps he will be able to find true happiness.
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The tradition of jumping over a fire has survived to this day; today you can also find villages where this tradition is observed on this day.
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In Rus', the day of Ivan Kupala has always been considered the main day for collecting herbs, when they have special healing and even magical powers. Medicinal plants prepared at dawn. After swimming, everyone went to get herbs, walked barefoot through the healing dew away from settlements and roads, always with good mood and prayer.
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The herbs were then blessed in the church, sick people were fumigated with them and used as amulets. Many women saved this magical piece in case of illness or trouble.
10:819 10:824Particular importance was attached to ferns on this holiday. It was believed that if you come across a fern flower, it will good sign, such a person has special kindness and with him you can find any treasure.
10:1208The peculiarity of this plant was considered to be that it blooms for a few seconds that night and then disappears, so it is not so easy to find.
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Long before the holiday, the whole village they chose the so-called constable, who was in charge of the celebration. His main task was to prepare for the holiday and hold it. Of course, he had to know all the traditions and customs.
11:446 11:451On this day, people sang songs and cast spells.
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While the women were collecting herbs, the men needed to cut down a tree, the height of which should have been about one and a half or two times the height of an average person. Then it is installed where it is agreed to hold the festivities. When the tree was in place, the girls decorated it with flowers and ribbons. People called such a tree “madder” or “kupala”.
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The whole celebration took place only around the fire. There they held a feast, played burners, the young people chose a mate, and many rituals were performed.
12:270 12:275With the advent Orthodox Church, all these rituals were condemned, since they are associated with paganism. However, the people could not refuse them and still continued to follow them. Thus, everything got mixed up - folk beliefs with religion.
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Also on this day it was It is customary to tell stories and tales that describe the special magic associated with plants. So, thanks to plants, it was possible to find treasures, money, be healed, and so on.
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According to an ancient legend, on the night of Ivan Kupala, a fern blooms and whoever finds this magical flower will be able to see treasures hidden underground and learn to understand the language of animals.
14:870 14:875Rituals and rituals on Ivan Kupala
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In addition to the traditions that were observed on this day, Ivan Kupala is also literally imbued with various pagan rituals.
15:1679 15:4Many people did not go to bed on the night of Ivan Kupala. All this in order to be the very first to wash your face with the morning dew. It was believed that she could give health and beauty.
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If on this day someone was doused with dirty water, then no one was angry, but on the contrary, they were happy. After all, the more often you swim on this day, the better. The person will live happily for the next year, and thereby become more cleansed.
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During the festivities, young people She created a doll from hay, which was a symbol of the god Kupala.
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When they danced in a circle and sang songs according to the script one of the participants had to hook the doll so that it fell.
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After which everyone came running to see if “Kupala” had died. When it was announced that he was not breathing, the girls began to mourn him through songs.
19:1682While the girls sing, the boys take the doll and carry it to a previously prepared funeral pyre, where they burn it. After this ritual, the real feast began.
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To literally burn away all the illnesses and misfortunes of your children, women collected the things of their sons and daughters, in which they had been ill, and threw them into the fire. So, according to their beliefs, the children will be healthy and strong.
20:1208 20:1213On Ivan Kupala, young people looked closely at each other and looked for a mate. When the choice was made, the girl and the guy jumped over the fire together, holding hands.
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In this way they tried to test their feelings and look into the future. If a couple jumped over without unclenching their hands, then their marriage will be strong and happy, but if on the contrary, then it is better for them not to get together.
21:876 21:881Young people and children, jumping over the fires, staged noisy fun games and races. We definitely played burners.
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Also on this holiday, housewives used to lay nettles on the threshold. In their opinion, in this way it was possible to escape from evil spirits and witches.
22:250On this night when the girls danced around the felled tree, the guys raided, thereby trying to steal Marena.
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The lucky one who succeeded ran away to the river, followed by everyone else. Everyone plucked one branch, which was believed to bring fertility. Then the tree was floated down the river.
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To protect livestock from diseases, the owners walked the animals between the Kupala fires.
24:169 24:174Signs on Ivan Kupala
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Our ancestors, as on any other holiday, carefully monitored the weather on this day.
25:899 25:904If it rains on Midsummer, the whole summer will be hot and the weather will be dry.
25:1059 25:1064But if at night the sky is generously dotted with stars, and in the morning nature gives abundant dew, then there will be a good harvest of cucumbers, mushrooms, and indeed all vegetables.
25:1347 25:1352On this day, they tried to avoid meeting snakes, because if you see one on this holiday, then trouble cannot be avoided and heavy losses are expected soon.
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After collecting the herbs, all the women carefully counted them. If there are twelve types of plants, then the family will definitely have a wedding in the coming year.
25:291 25:296Many believed that horses were especially dangerous, and could be used by evil spirits for their own purposes. In this case, they will not get out alive. Therefore, they tried to lock them up securely.
25:652 25:657Ivan Kupala (Midsummer's Day) - the ancient holiday of the summer solstice among the Eastern Slavs is celebrated on the night of July 6-7 (June 24, old style). This night is considered magical: the herbs come into effect, and the time for fortune telling begins. The history of the holiday of Ivan Kupala goes back thousands of years. So Kupala is perhaps one of the most ancient holidays.
Look, Petro, you arrived just in time: tomorrow is Ivan Kupala. Only this night a year does the fern bloom. Don't miss it!
N. V. Gogol “The Evening on the Eve of Ivan Kupala”
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According to legend, Kupala, who was carried away from his sister Kostroma by the bird Sirin in early childhood, raised his sister’s wreath as he sailed past on a boat, and according to custom they were supposed to get married. Kostroma did not recognize her brother. And only after the wedding the bride and groom realized that they were brother and sister. Then they decided to commit suicide and drowned themselves in the river. Kostroma turned into a mermaid (Mavka), and the sky god Vyshen took pity on Kupala and turned him into the flower Kupala da Mavka, which later became known as Ivan da Marya.
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Pavlovich-Flyorchuk Oksana.
The night of Ivan Kupala is a summer holiday, when they weave wreaths and float them down the river, tell fortunes and jump over the fire. On Kupala everyone is at ease and happy; evil spirits are expelled and burned, opening the way for carefree joy, games and round dances. Kupala is celebrated in the forest, and all its inhabitants, including goblin, also join in the general dancing and fortune-telling. Kupala night is simultaneously shrouded in mystery, uncertainty and the presence of another world, and at the same time it is one of the noisiest and most life-loving days of the pagan calendar.
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Tomashevsky V.
In the old days, mothers burned the clothes of sick children at Kupala bonfires in order to burn the diseases themselves. The dew that fell on Midsummer's Day was considered healing. They washed themselves with it to get rid of diseases. Popular belief says that on the night of Ivan Kupala, magical grass and ferns bloom, capable of indicating buried treasures.
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Svetlana Glebova. "On the night of Ivan Kupala." Batik.
It has long been customary to tell fortunes about Ivan Kupala using a variety of objects or plants. On a warm magical night, fortune telling on Ivan Kupala and love spells are especially successful.
Fortune telling by wreath
Having let the wreath flow along the river, they observe how it behaves. The sinking wreath was a bad omen: “The wreath drowned - the darling deceived.” If the wreath unravels, stretches out into a chain, or breaks into separate flowers, it means that the girl is not destined to get married this year. If he washed ashore, don’t expect a wedding anytime soon. The further and longer the wreath floats, the faster the girl will get married.
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Vyshinsky Vadim. "Morning, Ivan Kupala Day."
Fortune telling by the fire
On the festive night of Ivan Kupala, they make a big fire and jump over it. If the flame does not touch the person who jumped, it is a favorable sign, foreshadowing for girls a quick and happy marriage, and for guys good luck in business and love.
Fortune telling with chamomile
Pour water into a wide, shallow container. Place two chamomile flowers without stems in it. If the flowers float in different directions - away from each other - the lovers will separate. If they continue to swim side by side, you will be together for the rest of your life.
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Lyashko Ekaterina Vladimirovna.
Fortune telling by circles on the water
Pour water into a wide and deep bowl. At sunset, they whisper their wish to the water and throw a small pebble. If the number of circles on the water is even, the wish will come true; if it is odd, the wish will not come true.
Fortune telling by birch branches
Pick seven small birch branches (about the same length). Mix them together. Without looking, choose one. Whichever branch you pull out, this will be your future - even and smooth or curved and with bumpy obstacles.
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E. Kurbala. "On the night of Ivan Kupala." Triptych.
From Agrafena to Ivan he collected grass at night.
Tomorrow you will go swimming.
Weave a wreath for me...
The strawberries are ripening and calling the red girls into the forest.
Tomorrow you will go swimming.
Will you come to the fire tomorrow?
"Heat-bloom" bloomed, playing with lights in the dark.
Tomorrow you will go swimming.
Tomorrow I will come to the river!
Sergey Sofer.
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Boris Olshansky. Night on Ivan Kupala.
The ancient pagan holiday Kupalo is a great day of purification by water and fire that occurs on the summer solstice. The word “kupala” means a hot, furious, boiling creature, which means the sun. This day of the pagan deity coincided with the Christian holiday - the Nativity of John the Baptist - St. John the Baptist. This coincidence and merging of holidays led to a change in the name of the holiday - Ivan Kupala.
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Nikolai Speransky. Kupala round dance 1992
A love legend is associated with the image of the deity.
Separated in childhood from his sister, Kupalo, not knowing that this was his own blood, subsequently married her. And it ended tragically: the brother and sister committed suicide by drowning. Hence the erotic nature of the holiday. It was believed that after going through all this, a person was purified. To bring themselves into the right state, the pagan Slavs drank special herbal decoctions. On this day, the day of harvest, a fire of sacrificial herbs was lit, and everyone, without exception, regardless of gender and age, danced around this fire with songs. It is interesting that a kind of sacrifice was offered to the god Kupala: bathing.
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Semyon Kozhin. Fortune telling with wreaths.
There is an opinion that witches celebrate their holiday on Ivan Kupala. It consists of intensified infliction of evil on people. It was believed that witches kept water boiled with the ashes of the Kupala fire; after sprinkling it on Ivan Kupala, the witch could easily fly wherever she pleased. According to peasant beliefs, on Kupala, the shortest night, one cannot sleep, as all evil spirits come to life and become especially active - witches, werewolves, mermaids, snakes, sorcerers, brownies, water creatures, goblins.
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Kupala Night: customs
From the Carpathians to the north of Rus', on the night of July 6-7, everyone celebrated this mystical, mysterious,
but at the same time, the wild and cheerful day of Ivan Kupala. Ivan's day is filled with rituals associated with water. Swimming on Midsummer's Day is a national custom, but in some areas peasants considered such swimming dangerous, since on this day the birthday boy is a merman himself, who cannot stand it when people interfere in his kingdom, and takes revenge on them by drowning anyone unwary.
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V. Korolkov.
The main feature of the Kupala night is the cleansing bonfires. They danced around them, jumped over them: whoever is luckier and taller will be happier. In some places, livestock was driven through the Kupala fire to protect it from pestilence. In the Kupala bonfires, mothers burned the shirts taken from their sick children, so that illnesses would be burned along with this linen. Young people and children, jumping over the fires, staged noisy fun games and races. We definitely played burners.
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Vsevolod Ivanov. The night before the Kupala holiday.
On this day, they throw a birch wreath into the river: if it sinks - death, floats - get married, washes to the shore - be unmarried. There is also a custom of steaming in a bathhouse with brooms of Ivan da Marya flowers and eating kutya, which was cooked from barley and seasoned with oil. In pre-revolutionary Russia, Ivan Kupala was one of the most revered and important holidays of the year, the entire population took part in it, and tradition required the active inclusion of each participant in the celebration in all rituals and the mandatory implementation of a number of rules, prohibitions and customs.
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Henryk Semiradsky. Night on Ivan Kupala.
Even Simeon of Polotsk in the 17th century. wrote about the people’s belief that the sun jumps and plays on the days of Kupala. Ethnographers have recorded many beliefs that on Ivan Kupala and Peter’s Day “the sun plays at sunrise, shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, jumps, plunges into the water and appears again.” The Kupala songs express the same ideas: “The sun played on Ivan early...”; “The sun is setting...”
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I. I. Sokolov. Night on Ivan Kupala. 1856.
Observations of the “playing” sun continued until Peter’s Day (Kupala), which should obviously be considered as the day of farewell to the sun, which gradually waned after the summer solstice. There was a custom of “watching the sun.” In the evening, taking food, young people, and in the first half of the 19th century. and elderly peasants went to the hill, where they walked all night, lit fires and waited for the sunrise to see the play of the sun.
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Vsevolod Ivanov. Senich. June.
And in other countries...
The holiday of Ivan Kupala is characteristic of many Slavic peoples. In Poland it is known as Sobotki, in Ukraine - Kupalo or Kupailo, in Lithuania - as Lado. Some peoples celebrate the so-called Dew Festival, others dress up willow trees and dance round dances around it, others climb a high mountain and organize a grandiose witch gathering there.
In Lithuania, Midsummer's Day is considered the summer solstice and falls on June 24. There is a belief that on this shortest night of the year, plants and water acquire the miraculous ability to cure all diseases and increase the fertility of the earth. People light bonfires, float wreaths along the river and go into the forest in search of a fern flower.
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Vera Donskaya - Khilko. Night of Ivan Kupala. 2005
The Japanese believe that the sky flows around the Great River (Milky Way), on different banks of which they stand loving man and a woman. They strive for each other, but only once a year, on July 7, when the Great River becomes shallow, can they wade across it and meet. The Japanese honor this day as a big holiday - the Star Holiday.
The end of June for the Spaniards is the time of the fight against witches. The night of sacred bonfires, magic and omens comes in Spain from June 23 to 24. All over Spain, bonfires are lit, housewives bake a festive coca cake and cava champagne flows like a river.
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Peder Severin Krøyer. Bonfire of St. John on the beach of Skagen.1903.
An unforgettable celebration takes place in the mountain village of Isil. On the night of San Juan, almost half of Spain and France come there (the rest of the time, 30 people live in the village of Isil). The men make a fire on a large mountain, dance around it, and then go down, where they have fun until the morning: they drink, sing songs, dance and play.
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By the way, there are also mermaids in foreign waters, but their names are somewhat different. In Greece these are sirens, in Serbia - pitchforks (winged beauties capable of killing with a glance), in Germany - undines, in Ireland - merrows, sometimes coming ashore in the form of small horses.
Ivan Kupala: signs
Beauty recipe.
You need a clean tablecloth, with which you need to go to the meadow early in the morning. In the meadow, the tablecloth is dragged along the wet grass, and then squeezed into a prepared container, the face and hands are washed with dew to drive away any illness and so that there are no acne or pimples on the face. Dew serves not only for health, but also for cleanliness in the house: Kupala dew is sprinkled on the beds and walls of the house to prevent bedbugs and cockroaches.
Checking your betrothed.
On the night before Ivan Kupala, girls lower wreaths with lighted splinters or candles onto the river waves, curl wreaths of Ivan da Marya, burdock, Virgin Mary grass and bear's ear. If the wreath sinks immediately, it means that the betrothed has fallen out of love and cannot marry him. The one whose wreath floats the longest will be the happiest, and the one whose wreath burns out the longest will live a long, long life!
Protection from attack.
On Midsummer night, witches become more dangerous, and therefore you should put nettles on the threshold and on the windowsills to protect yourself from their attacks.
Burglary protection.
If you pick an Ivan da Marya flower that night and put it in the corners of the hut, the thief will not approach the house: brother and sister (yellow and purple flowers of the plant) will talk to each other, and the thief will think that the owners are talking in the house.
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Ivan Kupala is celebrated on a grand scale. On this day, people organize mass celebrations, which are held outdoors. The festivities are accompanied by songs, dances, fun, and feasts. Similar events continue from the night of July 6 until the evening of the 7th. This holiday is integrally connected with the forces of nature.
Its main symbols were not only the sun, but also water, fire, and herbs. In the morning people swam in rivers and lakes. Water cleansed both physically and spiritually. Some people avoided swimming, believing that evil spirits were hidden in the water. One of the holiday traditions was jumping over a fire that was lit near ponds. It has survived to this day. The herbs on the night of Kupala had magical powers.
Kupala rituals, performed on the eve of the holiday (“the night before Ivan Kupala”), constitute a complex ritual complex, including: collecting herbs and flowers, weaving wreaths, decorating buildings with greenery, lighting fires, destroying scarecrows, jumping over a fire or over bouquets of greenery, dousing water, fortune telling, tracking down the witch, night riots.
