According to the folk calendar - Ivan Kupala

According to the folk calendar, Ivan Kupala is celebrated on July 7 (June 24, old style) On this date, the Orthodox Church celebrates the Nativity of John the Baptist, the prophet who informed the people about the future Savior John was born into the righteous family of the clergyman Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth Archangel Gabriel informed Zechariah of the appearance of his son - the future prophet Since the father was quite old, he doubted the news, for which the Lord punished the old man with muteness until the birth of John The Prophet lived for a long time in the desert, led an ascetic life, and years later he personally baptized Jesus Christ The people called John Ivan, and he was called Kupala because of the custom of bathing The holiday itself began to be celebrated the night before For the residents, it was considered one of the most important of the year; it was considered to be a celebration of the summer solstice, so it was celebrated on a grand scale: they decorated their homes with fresh grass, dressed up in new clothes, laid sumptuous tables, started dancing and singing The girls wove wreaths of herbs, held round dances, and told fortunes about their betrothed An important attribute of the holiday was lighting a fire near a pond A high pole with a circle symbolizing the sun was placed in the center of the fire The fire had to be kindled by rubbing dry wood, just as it was mined thousands of years ago They jumped over the fire in order to cleanse themselves of illnesses; they often burned a straw effigy and old things on it Women were required to appear at the fire, since those who did not appear were considered witches On the day of Ivan Kupala, mass swimming took place in reservoirs They believed that during this period all evil spirits left rivers and lakes, and the water itself had healing powers In addition to people, livestock were bathed in the water If it was not possible to swim in a pond, then be sure to visit the baths and use fresh herbal brooms It was believed that on Ivan Kupala, plants are in full bloom of their growth Residents believed that the herbs and roots collected at Kupala had increased healing powers, so they were collected and dried, or tinctures were prepared from them Some herbs were used to protect against evil spirits that ran rampant on the night of Ivan Kupala The Ivan da Marya flower was a particularly magical plant on this day; it was associated with the union of water and fire On this day, young people went in search of a fern flower They said that it bloomed once a year on Ivan Kupala The owner of the fern flower was expected to be able to understand animal speech and find hidden treasures, and the flower itself, when touching the treasure, unlocked all the locks If you noticed an abundance of stars in the sky on Ivan Kupala, you prepared for a generous harvest of vegetables and mushrooms A lot of morning dew foreshadowed large harvests of cucumbers The palpable smell of grass announced the approach of precipitation The falling rain on this day promised bad haymaking