According to the folk calendar - Flor and Laurel, Horse Festival

All Orthodox believers know for sure that on August 31 they honor the memory of the Christian martyrs Florus and Laurus, who suffered unjustly in time immemorial in Illyricum According to the folk calendar, this date is marked by the following names: Flor and Laurel horseman, Dosevki, Horse holiday According to popular legends, these martyrs were blood brothers From early childhood they believed in the true savior - Christ Laurus and Flor were excellent masons, whose services were in unprecedented demand at that time Having learned about their exceptional skills, the sovereign of Illyricum commissioned them to build a new pagan temple in the neighboring territories As soon as the amazing structure was erected, the brothers rightfully received their well-deserved (quite generous for those times) payment But they did not go to great lengths and did not spend this money on excesses, but simply distributed it to the poor and needy people They also tried to preach the teachings of Christ everywhere There were many soul-bewitching legends about Flora and Lavra According to one of them, the brothers were able to heal one teenager, who was the son of an adherent of pagan gods And not just a simple follower, but a priest of the very temple that the brothers built Laurus and Florus were able to convince the pagan mentor to destroy all the idols, which were subsequently going to be placed in the holy place As soon as the local ruler found out about what had been done, he ordered that all those responsible be burned and the stonemason brothers buried nearby, in an abandoned well Subsequently, the relics of the brothers were declared incorruptible and they were delivered to Constantinople with all the usual pomp According to legends, it became known that as soon as the relics of these holy brothers were found, the widespread death of cattle immediately stopped Therefore, many Orthodox believe that Florus and Laurus are the true protectors and patrons of four-legged animals, including horses Peasants and townspeople began to pray to them for the well-being and health of their livestock Icons of these saints began to be hung everywhere, not only in churches, but also in peasant huts and stables (most often over the places where foals were given birth) The brothers rightfully earned the title of true patrons of horses Therefore, it has long been customary to pay special attention to horses on August 31st First of all, they are bathed, then carefully combed and their tail and mane are decorated with various ribbons Afterwards, the clergy sprinkle the horses with holy water and, sparing no delicacies, feed their four-legged friends and helpers Also, on this bright day, horses are under no circumstances used in any work Otherwise, you can bring disaster to your farm On this day, fairs are held and baked goods in the shape of horses or lucky horseshoes are baked It is on this holiday that peasants pay attention to the following signs:• Whoever wants to sow on this day (or later) will not harvest anything except a harmful weed in the future• If the root of ordinary wormwood is slightly thick, the coming year will be truly fruitful• If the horse began to snore - this means bad weather, and constantly shakes its mane - you need to wait for rain All Orthodox Christians know and believe that on this particular day attention should be paid to horses After all, for thousands of years they bore all the hardships of peasant life on their backs