In ancient times, when Christianity in Russia was just in its infancy, one of the ways to encourage people to come to church was to impose bans on what should not be done on church holidays and on weekends. One of the beliefs is connected with the fact whether it is possible to swim on the days of the Great Orthodox holidays, including the most important holiday after Easter - the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos.
After Prince Vladimir officially introduced Christianity to Russia, the calendar of church holidays was established, and Sunday was recognized as a universal day of rest. The rules of conduct for Orthodox Christians on divine holidays and weekends have been determined. This was done so that people would have the time and opportunity, putting all business aside, to visit the church, attend the divine service, and pray not at home, but in the church. These days were supposed to be completely devoted to serving God, and not to work or rest. Therefore, many of the activities were recognized as not pleasing. The popular belief has grown that those who violate the existing prohibitions will be punished by God. Of course, this is not so, but certain behavioral canons in Orthodoxy exist and should be adhered to.
Traditions of the Cover
The church holiday of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos was introduced in the 12th century by Andrey Bogolyubsky. In rituals, Christian traditions were intertwined with more ancient pagan ones. This is the day of the triumph of the patronage of the Mother of God, who appeared in the temple and spread the veil removed from her head over the people offering prayers, covering and protecting them from troubles and misfortunes. On the Intercession, it is customary to say a prayer for protection, to ask the Mother of God to grant love and family happiness. Before the holiday, one should confess and receive absolution.
In the old days, they used to say: "Sinners repent on the Cover, autumn and winter meet." Calendar day 1 (14) October marks the transition from autumn to winter - "on Pokrov until lunchtime autumn, and after lunch winter is winter". In another way, the holiday is called the First Winter Winter, Pokrov-Father, Svadnik, Zasidki.
On this day, it was customary to ask the saints to protect the home and family, to appease the brownie with pancakes. For the first time, the stove was melted and a log of a fruit-bearing fruit tree was added to the firewood for good luck and good luck. The house was fumigated with branches of cherries and apple trees, dried mushrooms were laid out in secret places, attracting prosperity and wealth. The dwelling was decorated with clusters of viburnum, and flowers were placed in the center of the table. From the generous autumn harvests with which the storerooms and bins were filled, a plentiful table was gathered and guests were invited.
On the day of the Intercession, it was customary to feed the birds and forest dwellers in order to calm the goblin and send him to winter in a den. And domestic animals, which were driven from the fields to the barns until spring, were given water through a sieve to protect them from the evil eye and spoilage. Despite the cold, children were poured through a sieve with water, for the sake of preserving the health of the kids. They burned old summer clothes, worn-out sandals and straw mattresses, believing that this would give a person strength and renewal. They dressed up in everything new and went to church.
On this day, it is customary to show generosity, giving gifts to those who need help. The more a person gives to the Pokrov, the more will come to him as well - life will be prosperous and happy.
It is customary to celebrate the Feast of the Intercession in a fun, noisy, bright way. But it is necessary to spend this day so as not to incur the wrath of the saints, which means that only good deeds should be performed, not doing things that are not pleasing to God.
- He gets back to do hard work, build, dig the ground. And also to do housework that is considered dirty (cleaning the house, washing or ironing linen, sewing, etc.) If you cannot avoid work in any way, then it should be done with special diligence.
- It is unacceptable to use foul language, utter swear words and curses, quarrel, scandalize, offend anyone.
- The great feast is not meant for cooking, everything must be done in advance or delayed at least until the evening. It is better to postpone the preparation of complex and heavy dishes to the next day.
- Drinking alcohol is prohibited on a holiday.
- To communicate with God, a believer must come to the temple not only with pure thoughts, but also with a clean body. Therefore, on the eve of the festive service, they must go to the bathhouse, put themselves in order, and put on clean clothes.
The belief that you cannot wash on Sundays and holidays originated in ancient times, when in order to take a steam bath, it was necessary to do a lot of hard physical work. It took not only effort, but also time to chop wood, wash the bath and melt it. It was impossible to have time to do everything in the morning before the beginning of the Liturgy. In order not to succeed that it was necessary to postpone the trip to the temple, they steamed not on the day off, but the day before. Now the situation is different - there are many opportunities for carrying out hygiene procedures, and they do not take much time. Therefore, you can wash and swim no matter what day it is.
Today, of all the ancient traditions of the Great Feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, only a few remain unshakable:
- This day is conducive to any manifestation of the generosity of the soul.
- You must not allow quarrels and abuse, offend each other and use foul language.
- Do not borrow or borrow money.
- The morning hours should be devoted to prayers, during the day to visit the temple, and in the evening to hold family-friendly gatherings with a small feast.
Other traditions regarding the prohibition of physical labor, cleaning the house, cooking, etc. are nothing more than a tribute to the times. All this can be done in Pokrov. Bathing and washing in the sauna is also permissible.
Date 14 October and day of the week
Since the holiday of the Intercession is tied to a specific date, it does not fall on a weekend in the calendar every year. It is necessary to take into account what day of the week falls on October 14th.
For those who observe the fast, one should refrain from the plentiful feast taken on that day. If the holiday falls on fast days (Wednesday and Friday), then salads, various dishes of honey, mushrooms, herbs, cereals are desirable for eating. On any other day, fish dishes will be banned.
For those who adhere to the general rules of visiting the bathhouse, the best days to wash are Saturday and Thursday (and Tuesday is also added for adherents of cleanliness). If the Pokrov falls not on these, but on other days (especially Monday), then it is better to refrain from visiting the bathhouse.
The opinion of the clergy
The attitude to the observance of church rules largely depends on the degree of spirituality of the believer. Each person independently determines in what form and when he will pray or carry out the service. The priests believe that all work matters, physical labor, some urgent work on church holidays can be done. But the performance of any deeds should not be carried out instead of (or before) reading the prayer and visiting the temple. The day of the Great Feast is reserved for serving God.
Arriving home after the liturgy, you can go about your business. That is, after visiting the temple, it is quite possible to do your job, work physically, bother around the house, cook food, wash, bathe, wash your hair, take a shower, go to the bathhouse. But it is unacceptable for a true Christian to consider them a reason to cancel prayer or attendance at the temple.
And yet another aspect of behavior is reminded by the clergy. It is unacceptable to justify your laziness and, hiding behind a church holiday, not to do what on this day, for one reason or another, is absolutely necessary to fulfill.
