Traditions in Russia
However the time of a holiday sooner or later comes to the end. The last day a holiday refers to Forgiven Sunday. This day it is accepted to beg pardon to teach other for all insults caused during the year and by that to be cleared of all sinful, to what the person got used during the pancake week. This "pardon" passes usually in such a way: first the most younger are sorry about grown-ups, in reply grown-ups are sorry about the younger.
The pardon between native and familiar occurs in the evening, upon termination of all the entertainments. People say to each other: «Forgive me if I did anything wrong to you». The tradition to be sorry is distributed and on dead when on Sunday many people are sent on a cemetery, leave on the tombs of their relatives and friends pancakes.
1.4 New traditions: the Twenty Third of February and the Eighth of March
In XX century such holidays, as on February 23 and on March 8, by tradition considered man's and female in the days became popular. But the history of these holidays now is almost forgotten by people.
The day of defenders of Fatherland started to be celebrated in 1918 as the birthday of Red Army in commemoration of a victory near Narva and Pskov in the war against the German conquerors. Here it is necessary to remember, that International’s authority in Russia has been connected to the change of a calendar, therefore the eighth of March according to the new style is the February, 23, the old style. When European International members marked celebrated the eighth of March ", in Russia this day referred to 23 of February. Therefore in pre-Revolutionary years the members of the party have got used to celebrate the holiday on February 23. Then the calendar had changed, but there was a reflex to celebrate something revolutionary on February 23. In some years the holiday that was called " Day of Red Army " was created.
But it is a myth because on February 23, 1918 was not Red Army yet, and there were no its victories. Newspapers of the end of February 1918 do not contain any victorious notes. And February newspapers of 1919 do not exult concerning first anniversary of " a great victory ". Only in 1922 on February 23 it has been declared “the Day of Red Army ". However, one year on February 23, 1918 "the Truth" writes that this day is a holiday: " Long before war proletarian International has appointed on February, 23 the international female holiday ".
However, to think up to celebrating on February 23 covering it was necessary also because " February revolution " on February 23, 1917 began. As Bolsheviks did not play the leading role, but nevertheless have accepted it, they were welcomed and brought to the calendar; it was necessary to give other name to the day of " overthrow of autocracy. It became " the day of Red army ", and in due course day on February 23 – nowadays the Day of the defender of Fatherland - became a holiday of all men of Russia.
The international women's day was primary a political holiday too. Everybody knows, that on March 8 the international women's day is, though it is celebrated only on the territory of the former USSR. The history of this holiday is traditionally connected to Clara Tsetkin who has created the revolutionary group consisting of women, so to say has decided to use uncontrollable energy of women on struggle against exploiters. And though its creation was business of not one day, it has been solved to choose a day which could be considered the Birthday of female proletariat. The choice of date belonged to Clara Tsetkin who has managed to link births of the new group struggling against injustice with the history of Jewish people. They have rescued from a tyrant a lot of centuries ago. The annual and most cheerful holiday of Jewish people is the holiday is devoted to it. It is celebrated on crisis from winter by the spring. Probably, that year when the decision to start to celebrate " the International women's day " was accepted, this Jewish holiday had fallen on March 8. And the date got accustomed. It was probably inconvenient to change date every year. In the Soviet state this holiday was transformed all over again to day of the revolutionary woman, and now it is celebrated simply as the beginning of spring, as day of worship the woman, her beauty, her wisdom and everything, that is identified with femininity.
The holidays existing in modern Russia not only emphasize one of the brightest features of Russian culture – the connection of pagan and Christian traditions, but also reflect the mentality of Russian people.
2. Representations about life cycle and the traditions connected to it
Ancient representations about a birth, death and the introduction into a marriage
The concept of life cycle includes the most important stages of human life, such as birth and childhood, marriage and death, and traditions of life cycle are understood as the traditions directly connected to these events. In a basis of the majority of traditions the idea of transition between the worlds that is made by the person being born, dying or marrying. The feature of these Russian traditions synthesis of pagan and Christian elements is a specific one.
The birth is represented as arrival of the child to the terrestrial world and is considered to be the beginning of a new life in another world.
Circumstances of a birth of the child allow defining his destiny, therefore frequently speaking, that the child was born under the lucky star, as stars were perceived as a receptacle of souls died, but at the same time and as a symbol of the female beginning, and also contacted a prediction of the future. But the most known are the representations, connected to unusual circumstances of coming of the baby into the world, for example, so called “birth in a shirt”.
There are some versions of an origin of these representations. The first is connected to the fact that sometimes children are born « in a shirt » - with the bubble that covers a body or a head of a newborn child. The Russian call this environment "a shirt". It is considered, that the person who has been born in "a shirt" will be very happy and successful all his life. It is connected to that that in an antiquity people saw magic links between the person and his clothes, and the word "clothes" is historically connected to such concepts, as hope and destiny.
Besides the social factor also takes place here, because 1) adult people wear clothes, therefore the child who has been given birth « in a shirt », is not a usual child, but one from the world of ancestors; 2) a newborn child will be successful, as he was born not naked, as all children, but already in clothes (as in poor families not all children had a clothes, "shirt" was considered a symbol of well-being).
There is also an explanation connected to ancient religious representations about the spirit-keeper. When the soul descends on the ground to take up human shape, it is followed by its spirit-keeper; in the beginning it stays in a shirt sometimes it happens that it is twisted around a head of a newborn child.
Mention of an essence assisting to the child to proceed in our world, have found reflection and in a traditional explanation of where children come from (the stork has brought).
The marriage was also considered to be a transition from one world into another, as a new birth of the girl for a life in the other world. Earlier pre-wedding traditions, such as the offer and engagement had great value. So, before the introduction into a marriage it was necessary to ask the parents of the bride for a hand of the daughter and sometimes the bride herself for her agreement.
Funeral traditions also reflect representations about transition of soul of the dead into another world and are connected to various aspects of this transition. For example, it is accepted to bear the dead from a house legs forward so that it could not find the way home, put a wineglass of vodka and bread because 40 more days the soul is on the ground.
2.2 Wedding traditions
It was accepted to marry to Russia quite early. It happened, that the age of the groom was from 12 till 13 years. In an early marriage it was perfect natural, that the groom and the bride did not know each other up to a marriage. The general moral concepts of that time did not allow young people of both sexes to see each other and talk. The relatives solved all this. Usually fathers and mothers of the groom personally chose a girl, informing the son about it when wedding was already prepared.
But sometimes parents of the bride did the first step. Wishing to marry the daughter, parents sent to the groom a person close to them, the matchmaker, if parents of the groom agreed started courtship by usual order.
First they looked, whether the bride is good, whether is clever. The groom could not see the bride before wedding. If subsequently the deceit with the bride opened, the marriage could be terminated, but it happened very seldom.
Sometimes the groom insisted on the right to see the bride himself but then it was already almost impossible to cancel the wedding.
After that there was an arrangement - the first part of a marriage holiday or the introduction to a celebration. The parents of the bride appointed a special day. Parents sat down against each other and kept silence for some minutes, so it was accepted. The arrangement was made, the special note where was written, that during such time wedding will take place, and for the bride will get a concrete sum of money.
The money or some useful things, such as a bed, a dress, domestic utensils and ornaments, people, money, the real estate were always the important condition of Russian wedding. Nothing was required from the groom. This arrangement had legal value. If the bride was from a poor family and could not bring anything to the new house the groom himself transferred parents the bride some sum of money - the ancient custom did not allow to take the bride without anything given.
On the day of a celebration (on the eve or in the morning) the matchmaker of the bride was sent in the house of the groom to prepare marriage to a box. There was a belief, those valiant sorcerers and witches can bring a spoil and to overtake malicious spirits in that house, where wedding is being prepared. Different things were done to prevent it. It was necessary, that on a ceiling of the room for the newly married there was no ground that, thus, the marriage bedroom did not resemble anything a tomb. In the room chests with grain, flanks were brought.
Before the wedding in the church visitors and a newly-married couple were invited to the table, but sitting next the future spouse the groom did not see the face of the bride as she was wearing a dense coverlet - a prototype of a today's veil.
After wedding a feast was arranged, the bride’s face was already open, and she should cry, and women and maidens sang sad songs. Before leaving a wedding feast the husband, as a token of the authority, struck the wife’s back. It symbolized that the young woman was given from one "owner" to another.
After that in due time the young husband withdrew the young wife. Having remained alone, the young should execute one more ancient custom: a ceremony of taking off the shoes. It is a very ancient ceremony, which has reached to Russian from pagan times. It was, that the wife, as a token of humility, should take off the husband boots. In one of a boot there was put a coin. If she managed first to take off that boot in which there was a coin, it meant, that there will be a happiness for the young family, otherwise it meant, that she should please the husband and obey him all her life.
After wedding during several days (sometimes about a month, depending on a solvency of families and local customs) celebrating took place.
In modern Russia church wedding has began popular again, but it is not an obligatory part of wedding. But modern wedding ceremony consists of a plenty of traditional actions, starting from old custom to transfer the bride through a threshold and finishing with different games and competitions. There are specific traditions in every city, too. So, in Petersburg there’s