Sochevnik (Christmas Eve) according to the folk calendar

On January 6 (December 24, old style), according to the folk calendar, Christmas Eve is celebrated, sometimes called Nomad or Holy Evening This holiday refers to Christmas Eve - the day before the birth of Jesus Christ The main event on Christmas Eve was family gatherings around the common table Adult children came to celebrate the holiday with their parents, then went to their godparents Just in time for the evening of Christmas Eve, the Great Advent Lent ended In the morning, people went to church for a prayer service and lit a candle for health In the evening, when the first star appeared in the sky, a festive table was set It consisted of 12 different dishes, symbolizing the 12 months of the year Along with them they were served compote of dried fruits and the main dish - sochivo (kutia), consisting of cereals, honey, nuts and poppy seeds Eating richly, people paid tribute to the holy martyrs, who refused the dishes of the pagans and ate the gifts of the earth Since the summer, we have been preparing a decoration for the house - didukh - for Christmas Eve It was a sheaf of straw on which dried flowers, ribbons, and bells were tied The composition symbolized fertility and the manger of the newborn son of the Lord 2 weeks of caroling began on Christmas Eve The youth changed into costumes prepared in advance and went to all the houses singing cheerful songs and carols They wished well-being and happiness to the owners, and in return they had to thank the carolers with sweets and small change Walking past someone's house was considered ignorance, and if someone kicked carolers out of the yard, trouble awaited them It was important to have time to finish all household chores so as not to work on the holy evening Then take a steam bath and cleanse yourself of dirt It was worth dressing as smartly as possible, avoiding black clothes, so that the year would pass in celebration It was forbidden to quarrel with each other, and forgive and forget all insults The night before Christmas I had prophetic dreams It was also the best time for fortune telling, since at Christmas time their reliability was greatest Unmarried girls gathered in groups and told fortunes using mirrors, wax, coffee grounds, and the behavior of animals According to signs on Christmas Eve, people predicted the year's harvest So a strong frost meant a rich harvest in the summer The starry sky at night foreshadowed abundance of forest harvests and a good offspring of livestock The blizzard promised a large swarm of bees in the apiary A decent harvest of buckwheat was expected if the paths on the street were trampled to blackness The barley harvest was checked by boiled kutia at the table - the more swollen it was, the more abundant it was harvested in the summer The Christmas Eve weather predicted similar weather for the following December