Nativity. Christmas in Rus', history of the holiday, pictures, traditions of celebrating the Nativity of Christ in Rus'

How was Christmas celebrated in Rus'?

Our ancestors received the Christmas service in the 10th century almost ready-made from Constantinople. From about the end of the 12th century, the holiday began to be preceded by a forty-day fast, which is sometimes also called "Philip's Fast", because it begins on November 28 - immediately after the celebration of the memory of the Apostle Philip.

It was the custom of ancient Christians to strictly fast on the eve of great holidays in order to feel the greatness of the holiday, before which even the most natural human needs for food must recede. Such a strict one-day fast is preserved to this day on the eve of the holidays of Christmas and Epiphany and is called the Eve or Christmas Eve from the custom of eating juicy boiled wheat with honey in the evening of that day (after the first star).

Why exactly after the first star? There is no mystical meaning to be found here. It’s just that the first star appears in the sky with the onset of darkness, that is, Christians spend the whole day in strict fasting, and you can only taste juicy in the evening. But of course, on the eve of Christmas, I want even the smallest church establishments to remind us of the upcoming celebration. That's why they talk about the star.

From Christmas to Epiphany, special days of spiritual celebration follow, which in Rus' are called Christmastide. The pagan Slavs at this time also had sunny holiday. It began at the end of December and lasted until the first days of January. These were the days of the “salt turn”, when “the sun turns to summer, and winter to frost. The sun dresses up in a sunny sundress, a kokoshnik, gets into a cart and goes to warm countries, ”our distant ancestors said so. Winter is becoming fierce, but its end is already visible, so you need to have fun. Winter came "karachun" - this is the day of the solstice, that is, the shortest day. On the other hand, "Karachun" among the Slavs is an evil spirit that kills life.

Apparently, the ancient pagan Slavs reasoned like this: the sun had just been born, which means it is weak and winter can “set him a karachun”. Therefore, the sun appears to people not in its usual form, but in a mask, dressed up. This is where masquerades begin. You can have fun with all your heart, but put on a mask so that the evil spirit does not recognize you and harm you. In addition, these days among the pagans were associated with many rituals, games, signs, fortune-telling, basically having one desire - to start with the blessing of the gods. new life full of joy, happiness and contentment. Of course, young people had an advantage here - they have a future ahead of them. Therefore, young people were given the first place at Christmas time. The older generation could only be a "moral support group".

The common name for this fun is caroling. Nikolai Karamzin believed that Kolyada among the Slavs was the god of feasts and peace. Dahl's dictionary says that this word comes from the Latin calendae (January 1 - 6). Some researchers believe that the carol comes from the Sanskrit "Kala" - to convene.

In the tenth century Rus' was baptized.

How to deal with pagan holidays? In Western Europe, in this sense, it was simpler: the Church turned to state power, and that force suppressed the remnants of paganism. In Russia it was different. The church itself fought against paganism and by no means by force. In what way? She tried to fill the old form with new content.

Speaking about the difference between the worldview of the East and the West, Vasily Rozanov very accurately noted that in the West the means of salvation used by the Church in relation to people who, in her opinion, are mistaken, are causal in nature, driving away from error. In the East, however, it is an expedient character, attracting to the truth. That is why the Church has never put pressure on the consciousness of people with external force and has not canceled Christmas time. But on the basis of the old, new traditions appeared. For example, carols have become a rite of passage from house to house on holy days of the so-called “glorifiers or “christoslavs” with a nativity scene and a star. They sang songs dedicated to the Nativity of Christ.

Kolyada came
On the eve of Christmas.
We walked
we searched
Holy carol…
Found Kolyada
At Petrov's yard...


This was followed by the glorification of "Peter's Dvor", to which the glorifiers came. For this they received a generous treat from Peter. Of course, on the one hand, there is a very thin line between Christian and pagan carols, which you can imperceptibly cross and begin to glorify not Christ at all, but a different spiritual reality ... And the Russian Church paid attention to this. For example, there are corresponding warnings in the decisions of the Stoglavy Sobor of 1551 and in a special letter of tsar Alexei Mikhailovich of 1649: “it certainly happened”, as throughout Moscow “at Compline of the Nativity of Christ, many people call Kolyada and Usen, and the demonic players are buffoons with domras and trumpets, go with bears; the women bake every kind of animal, animal and bird ... Then they make dancing and singing. The king forbids all this, as "very sinful." Stoglav reproaches Christians that “in cities and villages they create Hellenic (that is, pagan. - R.M.) demons, games, dancing against the feast of the Nativity of Christ and at night, glorifying Kolyada ... ".

But on the other hand, if people do not cross this line, if they rejoice at the birth of Christ and glorify Him, how can the Church forbid this? On the contrary, following the words of the Apostle Paul, “always rejoice,” she will rejoice on holy days with those who have found Christ. Another thing is that there are different levels of joy and its expression. And the deeper the joy, the quieter it is, the more a person cares about not losing it.

As for divination, the Church has repeatedly spoken out against this pagan tradition, although there is a strong opinion that the Church blesses divination at Christmas time. Of course, on New Year's days, a person wants to look into his future, I want to know "what the coming day has in store for us." But it is no coincidence that Christians express their religious worldview not with the word "knowledge", but with the word "faith". It assumes that a person is always free in his spiritual life. And fortune-telling violates freedom, because people try to take the spiritual world by the collar and shake out the necessary information from it, to make it a subject of knowledge, not faith. A person becomes addicted to what he sees in the starry sky or in the coffee grounds. And there is no longer room for a free decision. But God is only where there is freedom. This was expressed in the fact that He was not born in the Roman imperial palace, not in the chambers of King Herod, and not even in the house of the Jewish High Priest. He was born in a cave where animals are hidden in bad weather. His Christmas was not accompanied by thunder and lightning. God has given the human heart freedom to believe.

Lasting forty days, thus the Christians prepared for the great event.

In everyday life, the peasants prepared for Christmas and on the eve of the holiday itself. The hostesses always cleaned the huts by Christmas Eve, washed and bleached everything, and finished preparing herbal and intoxicated beer for Christmas celebrations. Also at this time, all the women finished baking, which everyone would have to eat after the liturgy of the Nativity and when treating guests at the feast. On Christmas Eve, the old people rested, and everyone else tried to finish all the work before dinner, in order to have time to go to the bathhouse to wash themselves while it was light. In Siberia, this bath was called a princess, it was usually prepared by women. The holiday was usually celebrated in new clothes.

On Christmas Eve, until the first star appears in the sky, everything fasted especially old people. Before the sun went down, all family members had to gather at the table and pray. Sometimes the owner of the house put a candle in the bread, after which he went for straw, with which he covered the front corner of the house and the shop in it. The straw was covered with a clean tablecloth or towel, on which they put kutya and put rye next to it. After that, the whole family prayed again, and the candles were extinguished, after which everyone silently began to eat. In the provinces in western Russia, which were located closer to Belarus, straw was laid under the tablecloth on the table.

The main dish, as now, was kutya. There was no fast food on the table on Christmas Eve. Basically, they put bread, grated peas, cabbage with kvass, wort on the table. Since only fasting dishes were consumed, they called the Christmas Eve meal “hungry kutya”. And in the Kaluga province, it was impossible to drink water while eating. It was believed that those who drink water will get sick.

In some places in Russia, frost was called before a gala dinner. After everyone had eaten, the food was not cleared from the table. It was believed that dead relatives come at night and eat up everything. Spoons that family members ate on Christmas Eve were used in divination. On this day, it was customary to go to bed early. In the early morning, on January 7, bonfires were lit in the provinces in southern Russia, they called it "heating the dead." In the morning, children, and in some provinces, girls and young boys praised Christ: they went home and carried kutya, sang songs, for which they received various goodies and money.

On the eve of Christmas, the peasants drank enough to have fun from the heart. So it was established, therefore, any dark, sad clothes could not be worn on this day.

Any passer-by was allowed to enter the hut and eat, and none of the owners could refuse to eat y. As a result, at the end of the evening, all the men of the villages were already barely getting home, dragging their feet. Among these fun, the exception was, of course, only the praisers - children and youth, who simply sang songs. The youngest of the slavers, as a rule, was put on a fur coat, which was laid in the very front corner with the fur up. Thus, according to legend, they helped the hens to incubate eggs well in the future. Everyone else was given money and sweets. With the proceeds, a hut was rented, in which all non-drinkers went for conversations.

The most important thing at Christmas was participation in the liturgy. Upon returning home from the church, a festive dinner was arranged, during which everyone broke their fast.

Church ministers also went home in the morning to praise Christ. Throughout the day, children and young people caroled, and crib performances were organized in the south of Russia and Siberia, they were also called cribs. In the evening, everyone went to visit guests: relatives, godfathers and neighbors.

How did Rus' celebrate Christmas? Orthodox holiday, which is celebrated in all corners of our country.

Everyone good day and good mood, friends.

How did Rus' celebrate Christmas?

The Christmas festival stands out from other festivities. church calendar and the charter attaches great importance to this action, it is preceded by a long fast, which becomes the most strict on the eve of the holiday. Starting from the second of January (according to the new style), fasting people are not allowed to eat fish.

Finally, on the eve of the Nativity of Christ - Christmas Eve, the strictest post follows. It is customary not to eat food until dusk, to expect the rise of the first star, akin to the star of Bethlehem, which once led the Magi to the cradle of Jesus. The Nativity of Christ was always honored by Christians, although the celebration took place with the Baptism of the Lord on the nineteenth of January, and only with time began to be celebrated separately.

In our time, this holiday is celebrated by the Orthodox on January 7, according to the Julian calendar.
In Rus', Christmas began to be celebrated in the 10th century. They celebrated quite simply in the mansions of Russian tsars, and in ordinary huts. After dark, they went for water, which was considered life-giving: they drank, washed, and put dough for festive bread on it. Lent ended on January 7th.

They prepared 12 modest dishes, among them were uzvar - dried fruit compote and kutya - millet porridge. Ash from the Christmas hearth was used in various rituals. Kutya and uzvar were given to livestock, while the children portrayed the sounds of their voices so that nothing bad would happen to them this year.

Over a spoonful of kuti, a prayer was read for the deceased relatives, food was left for them. Meat, wine, sweets appeared on the table. The guests were treated to roasted suckling pig, jelly, pies, dumplings.

They gave edible gifts: cakes, jams, sweets. offered funny toys, mittens and mittens. There was a belief that at night it was necessary to dress up in something new, or at least a thing. white color. An important sign was considered a coin baked in a pie. The one who gets it will be the happiest and luck will not bypass him.
Christmas time, and with them a feast and revelry, started the next day. They sang songs, danced round dances, prepared terrible Christmas masks, dressed carnival costumes, dressed up as wolves, roosters, goats, any undead. They instilled fear in the girls and children.
Christmas time was met by all the people, with a wide scope. Booths and stalls with food were set up on the squares, they had fun until late. Richer people rode in troikas. The aristocrats threw feasts.

This is how they celebrated wonderful holiday in old times!

And how did you celebrate Christmas, friends? Write in the comments - very interesting.

I. N. Kramskoy. Holy divination. 1870s.

ancient greeting card to the holidays.

One of the main Christian holidays - Christmas - the Orthodox Church celebrates on January 7th. In Rus', Christmas began to be celebrated after the introduction of Christianity - in the 10th century. It fell at a time when the ancient Slavs celebrated their multi-day winter holiday - carols.

Christmas was preceded by a 40-day Philip fast. On the eve of the holiday, all the Orthodox celebrated Christmas Eve. Before the appearance of the first star in the sky, it was impossible to eat. The evening meal began with a ritual porridge - kutya. It was boiled from peeled barley, wheat, rice or other cereals and seasoned with honey, raisins and juice - poppy, hemp, almond or other seed juice, which was called milk. On Christmas Eve, such porridge was placed on a table covered with straw, and on top with a tablecloth. They took out a straw and guessed. It turns out to be long - a good flax crop will be born, and short - there will be a crop failure. That evening they tangled the legs of the table so that the cattle would not run. The girls gathered outside the outskirts and threw handfuls of snow against the wind. If the snow fell loudly, it foreshadowed a handsome young groom, if it was inaudible and crooked, it meant being behind a deaf or old man.

On Christmas Day itself, they usually baked krupichchatye kalachi, perepechi (small rye koloboks), dough figures depicting small cows, bulls, sheep and other animals, and sent them as a gift to relatives and friends. The main treats for holiday table there was pork meat and a Christmas goose with apples.

"Christmas time has come. What a joy!"

Between the holidays of the Nativity of Christ (January 7) and the Baptism of the Lord (January 19), Christmas time is celebrated - twelve holy days established by the Orthodox Church in memory of the birth of Christ and his baptism in the Jordan. To sanctify, that is, to keep holy, to keep holy for twelve days after Christmas, the church began from ancient times. These days it was forbidden to perform the sacrament of marriage, start games, dances, sing seductive songs along the streets, dress up in idol robes (from the word "idol" - an image, a statue of a pagan deity). It was also forbidden to work, especially after dark. In many places, however, the sanctity of these days was violated by divination, disguise and other customs preserved from the pagan holiday of carols, which sang the cult of nature. Carols, like Christmas time, were celebrated during the winter solstice. According to the ancient views of the Slavs, this is the time of new life, the renewal of nature, the boundary period between the old and new economic years, this is finally a turn to summer, to warmth, which brings fertility and fun. "On the carol of the day, it arrived on the chicken foot" - they said among the people.

There is a version that the word "carols" comes from the word "calends", which the Romans called the beginning of the new year. Kolyada is a Slavic mythological character associated with the beginning of the spring solar cycle, "the god of celebrations and peace," according to the historian N. M. Karamzin.

The rituals of carols were aimed at making bread grow and cattle multiplying, so that there would be prosperity in the house, happiness in the family, but above all, so that life would not stop. This was also sung in carol songs:

... And God forbid that

Who is in this house!

The rye is thick for him,

Dinner rye!

Him with an ear of octopus,

From the grain of his carpet,

From half-grain - a pie.

The Lord would give you

And living, and being,

And wealth...

Caroling began on Christmas Eve. The youth wore makeshift masks, linen beards, and playful costumes, consisting of the thinnest zipuns turned out with wool. Usually four guys carried a stuffed mare, tied from straw. A teenage boy, dressed in the costume of a hunchbacked old man with a long beard, was placed astride the "mare". Kolyada, as a rule, was depicted by a mummer in the form of a goat. They also dressed up as a horse, a cow and other animals that embodied fertility. In a noisy, cheerful gang, guys, girls and boys broke into houses, sang, danced, offered to tell fortunes. The hosts were supposed to not let guests go without gifts and treats. For which the mummers promised them complete well-being and happiness. The stingy, who gave nothing, could sing this:

Kolyada, molyada,

The carol has been born!

Who serves the pie -

Therefore, the yard of the abdomen,

More small cattle

You don't know the numbers!

Who doesn't give

pennies -

Let's close the loopholes

Who does not give cakes -

Let's close the windows

Who does not give a pie -

Let's take the cow by the horns

Who will not give bread -

Let's take grandfather

Who will not give ham -

Let's split the cast iron!

After unsuccessful attempts to eradicate the carol, the Christian church included it in the Christmas time, contrasting the games and rituals of the carol with the glorification of Christ, walking with a star, etc. In carol songs, the people began to sing Jesus Christ, the events of the holidays of Christmas and New Year. The clergy got involved in this kind of creativity, churchmen began to compose book carols - "kants".

So Christmas time became the embodiment of pagan and Christian beliefs, the most saturated holiday with various customs, rituals and signs. From pagan times, for example, the custom has been preserved to dress up at Christmas time in funny and formidable masks. According to the existing belief, from Christmas to Epiphany, all dark forces are activated, and the mummers, pretending to be demons, must drive away evil spirits. The filth of dressing was washed off on the feast of Epiphany with holy water.

Twelve holy days laid the foundation for the next year, so it was customary to spend Christmas time not only fun, but also in love and harmony with loved ones. We went to visit each other, congratulated on the holiday.

“At Christmas time, the most strict mother,” we read in S. V. Maksimov’s book “The Unclean, Unknown and Cross Power”, “will not force her daughter to spin and will not keep her with a needle on long winter evenings, when a cheerful song of guys pours in a wide wave on the street, when an accordion is poured in a “fat” hut, at gatherings, and crowds of girls, timidly clinging to each other, run to “listen” under the windows and guess in the field."

On "holy evenings," women wound tight balls of yarn so that tight cabbages were born. It was a sin to weave, otherwise misfortune would happen on the holiday. It was a sin to hunt animals and birds at Christmas time.

Girls usually dressed up in other people's sundresses and covered their faces with a scarf, the most lively dressed in a men's suit. The boys wore women's dresses. So they intrigued and fooled acquaintances from other villages when they came to visit them.

Two nights at Christmas time were devoted to fortune-telling: the first - on St. Basil's Day (from January 13 to 14), the second - on Epiphany (from January 18 to 19).

Christmas time is characterized by "cleansing" rites: fumigation and sprinkling of peasant buildings with water, throwing out garbage, church blessing of water in reservoirs for expulsion from there evil spirits and etc.

LITERATURE

Zabylin M. Russian people. His customs, rituals, traditions, superstitions and poetry. M., 1880.

Karamzin N. M. Traditions of the centuries. Tales, legends, stories from the "History of the Russian State". M., 1987.

Kostomarov N. I. Home life and customs of the Great Russian people. M., 1993.

All year round. Russian agricultural calendar. Compiled by A.F. Nekrylova. M., 1989.

Maksimov S.V. Unclean, unknown and cross power. Smolensk, 1995.

World of Russian culture. Encyclopedic reference book. M., 1997.

The onset of the New Year on the night of December 31 to January 1 was introduced by the Russian Emperor Peter I in 1699. Before that, according to historical chronicles, there was complete discord with the date of the celebration of the main winter holiday. The ancient Slavic farmers began work in the fields after the winter on March 1. And this day was considered the beginning of the new year. According to other sources, it was celebrated on March 22 - the day of the spring equinox. For many pagan ancestors who considered their deity to be the evil frosty grandfather Treskun (Karachun), New Year began in December at the "winter solstice" - the shortest day of the year and one of the coldest days of winter.

By the way, on New Year's Eve, Rus' celebrated Vasily's Day. In the 4th century, Archbishop Basil of Caesarea was revered as a great theologian. And in Rus' they began to call him Vasily the pigsty, without having anything bad under it. On New Year's Eve, it was customary to cook many dishes from pork. It was believed that thanks to this, Vasily, the patron saint of pigs, would certainly improve the number of these important animals in the economy. So they regaled the guests who went from house to house with pork pies, boiled pork legs ... And in order to get a good harvest, they performed the rite of "sowing" - scattered spring wheat around the house, read a special prayer, and then the hostess collected the grains and stored until spring - the time of sowing.

In 988, after the introduction of Christianity by Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, the Byzantine calendar came to Rus', the celebration of the New Year was postponed to September 1. The time when the crop is harvested, the work is completed, you can start a new life cycle. And for quite a long time there were two holidays in parallel: in the old way - in the spring and in the new way - in the fall. Disagreements continued until the 15th century, when by decree of Tsar Ivan III, the official date for celebrating the New Year in Rus' became September 1 for both the church and worldly people.

And so it was until December 20, 1700, when Peter I signed his decree, according to which the celebration of the New Year was postponed to January 1. The young tsar introduced European customs, so that on January 1, 1700, at his behest, the houses were decorated with pine, spruce and juniper branches according to the samples exhibited in the Gostiny Dvor - just as they had done in Holland since ancient times. The tsar considered 1700 the beginning of a new century.

Historical documents record that on the night of December 31, 1699 to January 1, 1700, a grandiose fireworks display, cannon and rifle salutes were arranged on Red Square, Muscovites were ordered to fire muskets and launch rockets near their homes. The boyars and servicemen were dressed in Hungarian caftans, and the women in elegant foreign dresses.

Noted new holiday, as they say, to the fullest. The celebrations continued until January 6 and ended with a procession to the Jordan. Contrary to the old custom, Peter I did not follow the clergy in rich attire, but stood on the banks of the Moscow River in uniform, surrounded by the Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments, dressed in green caftans and camisoles with gold buttons and braid.

Since then, the celebration of the New Year has been held constantly, from Germany the custom came to decorate the Christmas trees with toys in the houses. And by the 20th century, the New Year's wizard Santa Claus appeared in Russia, the prototype of which is considered to be several characters at once: the pagan sorcerer Karachun (Treskun), St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, the German wizard "old Ruprecht" and the fabulous Russian character Morozko.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Russia was going through very difficult times. In 1914, during the First World War, the authorities banned new year celebrations, so as not to repeat the traditions of the holiday, adopted from the Germans fighting on the other side. After 1917, the New Year was either returned or banned, in 1929 January 1 was made a working day. However, in the 1930s the chief winter holiday Nevertheless, he was rehabilitated in the USSR.

But the Old New Year in Russia was first celebrated on January 14, 1919. In 1918, by decision of the Council of People's Commissars, the "Decree on the introduction of the Western European calendar in the Russian Republic" was approved. This was due to the fact that European countries have long lived according to the Gregorian calendar, named after Pope Gregory XIII, and Russia - according to the Julian (on behalf of Julius Caesar). Since then, the Russian people have established a custom to celebrate the Old New Year on the night of January 13-14, and thus celebrate their favorite winter holiday again.

The Nativity of Christ originates from the very Baptism of Rus' by Prince Vladimir in 988. From time immemorial, Christmas has been considered a holiday of mercy and kindness, calling for taking care of the weak and needy. IN holidays, which began on January 7 according to the Gregorian calendar, charity auctions and balls were organized in Russian cities, festive tables were organized with "sovereign" pies, pretzels and decanters with "bitter" for the poor, gifts were given to the sick and orphans. And on frosty winter days from Christmas to Epiphany (January 19), called Christmas time, a festive meal alternated with wild fun. They arranged sleigh and ice-boat rides from the mountains, snowball fights, fistfights, carols. The name of this ancient Russian fun comes from the name of the pagan god of feasts and the world of Kolyada.

In ancient Rus', both young people and old people loved to carol. In the evenings, dressed in animal skins or funny outfits, the crowd went home for food and money. The most stingy hosts tried to get rid of obsessive visitors with a couple of bagels or sweets, for which they received unkind wishes from sharp-tongued merry fellows - in the new year to get "devils in the yard, and worms in the garden" or harvest wheat "completely with empty spikelets." And in order for the guests to take away the terrible words, they had to be generously presented.

On Christmas days, on the streets of cities, one could also see trained bears that walked on their hind legs, played the harp and danced, and after the performance went around the audience with a hat and stood for a long time near those who were stingy for a well-deserved reward.

A special place these days was occupied by Christmas divination. As now, the girls dreamed of getting an enviable groom. “I want a betrothed - a handsome hand-written and dandy, long curls, high morocco boots, a red shirt, a golden sash,” they said an old conspiracy.

On the days of Christmas time, young girls often guessed “for the betrothed”, spreading wheat grains on the floor near the stove. A black rooster was brought into the house. It was believed that if the cockerel pecked all the grains, then the groom would probably appear soon. And if the “prophetic” bird refuses to treat, then it’s not worth waiting for the betrothed in the New Year. Fortune-telling with wax was also very popular. Melted wax was poured into a basin of water, and then the resulting figures were examined. If a heart was seen, then this was considered a sign of the upcoming "amorous affairs." A pitchfork meant a quarrel, a medallion meant wealth, and a bagel meant lack of money.

The main dishes on the Christmas table in Rus' were pork delicacies: roasted pig, stuffed pig's head, fried meat in pieces, jelly, aspic. In addition to pork dishes, other dishes from poultry, game, lamb and fish were also served on the festive table. Finely chopped meat was boiled in pots along with traditional semi-liquid porridge. Also traditional treats were cheesecakes, kalachi, pies, koloboks, kulebyaks, kurniki, pies, etc. The choice of desserts was more modest: the Christmas table was usually decorated with fruits, marshmallows, gingerbread, brushwood, cookies and honey.

The persecution of the New Year at the beginning of the 20th century also affected Christmas. First, Christmas trees were banned, and then Santa Claus. In the late 1920s, a decree was issued stating: "On the day of the new year and the days of all religious holidays (former special days of rest), work is carried out on a general basis." Then January 1, 1929 became an ordinary working day, and the celebration of Christmas became outlawed.

Only six years later, in 1935, the course of domestic policy towards holidays was changed, the New Year was recognized as a secular holiday, and Christmas was left to the church, separated from the state. Christmas received the status of a day off only in 1991, after the collapse of the USSR.

The countdown date of the new year in Russia was postponed twice. Until the 15th century, it was celebrated in March, then in September, and in 1699 Peter I "appointed" the celebration on January 1. Russian New Year is a holiday that has absorbed the customs of paganism, Christianity and European enlightenment. On December 20, 1699, the decree of Emperor Peter I “On the celebration of the New Year” was issued, overnight throwing the whole country three months ahead - the Russians, accustomed to the September meeting of the new year, should have met the year 1700 on January 1.

Until the end of the 15th century, spring was considered the end of the annual cycle in Rus' (the same ideas still exist in some countries of Central Asia). Before the adoption of Orthodoxy, this holiday was associated exclusively with pagan beliefs. Slavic paganism, as you know, was closely intertwined with the cult of fertility, so the new year was celebrated when the earth awakens from its winter sleep - in March, with the first spring equinox.

During the winter solstice, it was preceded by 12-day "Kolyadas", from which the tradition of "mummers" to go from house to house and sing songs, scattering grain at the threshold, has survived to this day. And today, in many remote corners of Russia and the CIS, it is customary to give pancakes and kutya to “mummers”, and in ancient times these dishes were put on the windows to appease the spirits.

With the adoption of Orthodoxy, the ritual side of the meeting of the new year, of course, has changed. The Orthodox Church did not attach much importance to it for a long time, but in 1495 it got to this holiday - it was officially appointed on September 1. On this day, the Kremlin held the ceremonies "On the Beginning of a New Summer", "For the Summer" or "The Action of Long-term Health".

The celebration was opened by the patriarch and the tsar on the cathedral square of the Moscow Kremlin, their procession was accompanied by bell ringing. From the end of the 17th century, the king and retinue went out to the people in the most smart clothes, the boyars were ordered to do the same. The choice fell on September, because it was believed that it was in September that God created the world. With the exception of a solemn church service, the New Year was celebrated like any other holiday - with guests, songs, dances and refreshments. It was then called differently - "The first day of the year."

The tradition was preserved for almost 200 years, after which a whirlwind of changes by the name of Pyotr Alekseevich Romanov burst into the life of the Russian people. As you know, the young emperor, almost immediately after ascending the throne, began tough reforms aimed at eradicating old traditions. Having traveled around Europe, he was inspired by the Dutch way of celebrating the New Year. In addition, he did not want to pace in a gold-embroidered vestment along the cathedral square - he wanted the fun that he had seen abroad.

On December 20, 1699 (according to the old reckoning, it was 7208), on the threshold of a new century, the emperor issued a decree that read: our Orthodox faith is accepted, all those peoples, according to their years, count from the Nativity of Christ on the eighth day later, that is, from January 1, and not from the creation of the world, for many strife and counting in those years, and now 1699 comes from the Nativity of Christ year, and on the 1st of the next January, a new year 1700 begins, along with a new centennial century; and for that good and useful deed, he indicated that henceforth the years should be counted in orders, and in all deeds and fortresses to write from this January, from the 1st day of the Nativity of Christ, 1700.

The decree was long and very detailed. It stipulated that everyone should decorate their houses with spruce, pine and juniper branches these days and not remove decorations until January 7th. Noble and simply wealthy citizens were ordered to fire cannons in the yards at midnight, shoot into the air with rifles and muskets, and a grandiose fireworks display was arranged on Red Square.

On the streets, the emperor ordered to burn firewood, brushwood and resin fires and keep the fire going throughout the festive week. By 1700, almost all European countries had already switched to the Gregorian calendar, so Russia began to celebrate the New Year 11 days later than Europe.

September 1 left church holiday, but after the Peter's reform somehow faded into the background. The last time the rite of summer conduct was performed on September 1, 1699, in the presence of Peter, who sat on the throne in the Kremlin Cathedral Square in royal clothes, received a blessing from the patriarch and congratulated the people on the New Year, as his grandfather did. After that, the magnificent autumn celebration was over - by the will of Peter, the traditions of enlightened Europe merged with pagan nature, from which the rites of wild fun remained.

January 6, the first Russian history"Pro-Western" celebrations ended in Moscow with a procession to the Jordan. Contrary to the old custom, the tsar did not follow the clergy in rich attire, but stood on the banks of the Moscow River in uniform, surrounded by the Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments, dressed in green caftans and camisoles with gold buttons and braid.

The boyars and servants also did not escape the imperial attention - they were obliged to dress in Hungarian caftans and dress their wives in foreign dresses. For everyone, it was a real torment - the established way of life was collapsing for centuries, and the new rules looked uncomfortable and intimidating. This way of celebrating the New Year was repeated every winter, and gradually New Year trees, midnight cannon volleys, and masquerades took root.

On the eve of the old New Year, the Slavs celebrate folk holiday- Generous evening. In Russia, the evening before the old New Year is called Vasiliev, since on this day the church celebrates the memory of Basil the Great. Another name is a rich holy evening. On the evening of January 13, all housewives prepare a second or generous kutya, which, unlike lean kutya, is seasoned with meat and lard. By tradition, a bowl with kutya is placed in the corner where the icons stand.

For a generous evening, the hostesses prepared the best and most delicious dishes for the table. The main dish on the festive table was considered a roasted pig - a symbol of the fertility of livestock and the fertility of the land. In the people, this time is considered the time of rampant evil spirits. On this evening, after sunset and until midnight, teenage girls walk around and are generous, driving away all evil spirits with their songs and wishing the owners happiness, health and good luck in the new year.

At dawn on January 14, young guys went to sow grain to their godparents, close relatives, and acquaintances. According to popular beliefs, on the old New Year, a man was supposed to enter the house first - it was believed that this would bring happiness to the house for the whole next year. Sowers congratulated everyone on the New Year and wished wealth and abundance with special sayings. In response, the owners gave them pies, sweets and other sweets. It was believed that it was impossible to give money to sowers - with them you can give away well-being in the house.

In some villages, such a rite is still preserved: on the night of the old New Year, they burn their old clothes and immediately put on a new one. It symbolizes the beginning of a new a better life. In order to protect your house from all troubles in the new year, on January 14 you need to go around all the rooms clockwise with three lit candles and at the same time be baptized. Also on the morning of January 14, you need to take an ax and lightly knock it on the threshold, saying "life, health, bread."

IN folk beliefs Many signs are associated with the holiday of the old New Year.
. You should not pronounce the word “thirteen” on this day.
. January 14 cannot be considered a trifle, otherwise you will shed tears all year long.
. On the old New Year and on Vasiliev evening, you can’t lend anything, otherwise you will spend the whole year in debt.
. Also, signs say that if you take out the garbage on January 14, then you will take happiness out of the house.
. If the night of the Old New Year is quiet and clear, the year will be happy and successful.
. If the bright sun rises on January 14, the year will be rich and fruitful.
. If frost covers all the trees, there will be a good grain harvest.
. From which side the sky is covered with clouds on the Old New Year, happiness will come from there.
. If snow falls on the Old New Year, then next year will be happy.