According to the folk calendar - Vasiliev's evening (Vasilev's carol)

On January 13, according to the folk calendar, the holiday is celebrated - Vasilyev's evening, also called Vasilyeva's carol or Generous evening According to the old style, this is December 31 - New Year's Eve The name of the holiday comes from the church date of the next day of honoring the memory of St Basil the Great, who served as a saint in Caesarea in the 4th century Vasiliev's day began with the tradition of preparing porridge in the morning Before sunrise, the housewife prepared the cereal, poured boiling water over it, added cracklings and put it in the oven to simmer When the porridge arrived, the whole family gathered to see the result It was believed that if the porridge was burnt or the pot cracked, trouble awaited the family, but successful porridge promised happiness The peasants devoted the evening to visiting people The housewives set a generous table, displaying all the best that was in the house: sausages, baked meat and fish, rolls, pancakes, beer For this reason the holiday received the name Generous Evening Kutya (juice) was prepared from grains, honey, butter, poppy seeds and raisins Roasted pig was the main dish of the feast Pork symbolized fertility, wealth and prosperity Before the feast, a prayer was read for the health and well-being of the family People believed that the richer the table on Vasiliev's evening, the better they would eat throughout the year They put on new clothes for the holiday so that they could dress well in the coming year The rooms were decorated with didukh - a sheaf of straw with ears of corn, hung with ribbons and bells Vasiliev's evening should have been celebrated with fun, so as not to be bored all year Guys and girls dressed up as mummers and went to carol with their neighbors The generous people sang songs, wishing health and an excellent harvest to the owners, who in return thanked them with treats and small change The more the owners thank, the richer their life will be in the new year Vasiliev’s evening was one of the best for fortune telling and conspiracies Unmarried girls performed rituals aimed at finding out the name of their betrothed They used wax, mirrors, cereals, bread, water, rings, etc Looking at the bright stars, they predicted a rich forest harvest in the summer The blowing wind from the south determined a hot and successful year, from the east - a large harvest of fruits, and from the west - an abundance of milk and good fishing Warming temperatures on Vasiliev's Day foreshadowed a rainy summer