Slavic holidays - Semik, Syatki, Rusal, Tulpa, Trinity Saturday. Trinity and Semik. history of the holiday

Today, June 1, is also the Day of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Navy and folk holiday Semik.

June 1 is traditionally celebrated as International Children's Day. The purpose of the holiday is to protect the rights of the child and draw people's attention to the problems of minors, their role and place in society.

Children's Day was established in November 1949 in Paris by the Congress of the International Democratic Federation of Women. The holiday was first held on June 1, 1950 in 51 countries. The United Nations (UN) supported the idea of ​​celebration.

On this day intkbbee parents congratulate their kids on the holiday and give them gifts. Conferences, lectures and seminars are held where participants discuss child protection issues. Actions are organized to protect the rights of minors, rallies and flash mobs are organized. There are culinary, creative, sports master classes for children and much more.

Northern Fleet Day of the Russian Navy

June 1, 2017 marks the Day of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Navy. This year the date is officially celebrated for the 21st time.

The events are attended by Northern Fleet personnel, support personnel from home bases, military-patriotic organizations, public figures, and officials of the Ministry of Defense.

The event was established by the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Russian Federation F. Gromov Order No. 253 of July 15, 1996 “On the introduction of annual holidays and professional days by specialty". The date has symbolic meaning. It is dedicated to the day of the creation of the Northern Military Flotilla on June 1, 1933

Today people celebrate Semik or Rusalchin Great Day. In 2017 it falls on June 1st. This holiday represents the invisible line between spring and summer. Before Christianity, Semik was considered one of the main days of the year.

On this day, grown-up girls are received in the company of girls, a rite of worship is held - women's gatherings, the choice of intimate friends, and learning fortune-telling for the betrothed.

Also on this day, people come to the graveyard, where they decorate the graves of their ancestors with birch branches and arrange a funeral feast.

It was believed that if you sow barley on this day, it will give good harvest. Also, on Semik you cannot wash, wash, rinse, or swim on this day and it is better to stay away from the water so as not to risk drowning. It’s better not to sew or do a lot of work; you shouldn’t go into the forest alone.

Semik- the seventh Thursday after Easter was considered very big holiday. It marked a farewell to spring and a welcome to summer, a green earth with a central character - a birch tree.
The main components of the Semik-Trinity festivities were rituals associated with the cult of vegetation, maiden festivities, and commemoration of the dead.
The main object of worship these days was the birch tree, which has long been revered by Russian people. In the beliefs of the Russian people, she acted as a lucky tree, bringing good, protecting from evil, evil spirits, expelling diseases. Birch symbolized feminine, was considered the patroness of girls and young women. At the same time, the birch was perceived as a tree associated with the souls of the dead. On the days of Semik-Trinity, in some areas of Russia the main holiday trees were considered oak, maple or rowan. In addition to tree branches, the rituals of these days used various herbs and flowers: “Semik is on the branches, and Trinity is on the flowers.”

In Semik-Trinity, village and city streets, houses outside and inside were decorated with felled birch trees or birch branches, the floors in the houses were covered with a dense carpet of herbs, and bouquets of flowers were placed on the shrine. This custom, widespread throughout Russia, also entered church practice. On Trinity Day, felled birch trees were placed inside the church and the floor was covered with fragrant herbs, believers stood during the festive service with birch branches and bouquets of dawn flowers. The Church viewed flowers and greenery as a sign of life, and the very custom of bringing them to the temple as an expression of joy and gratitude to God.

The holiday of Semik - Trinity, perceived as a celebration of nature reborn after winter, fields with ears of corn, and gardens blooming, was also interpreted as a holiday of girls and women.
In many villages on the days of Semik-Trinity, purely maiden rites were performed, which scientists consider as remnants of ancient initiation rites, that is, rites signifying the readiness of girls for marriage.
Over the centuries, the ancient rituals of the Semitic week were gradually transferred to Trinity. The Trinity absorbed all the rituals of Semik. In others, ritual actions were divided into Semik and Trinity.
During this short period, villages and towns were literally transformed: houses and streets were decorated with cut birch trees, branches, and flowers. On Trinity Sunday, parishioners come to church for mass with bouquets of wild flowers, and the floor of the church is covered with fresh grass.
Those who stuck ancient customs, in the morning we visited cemeteries, where we met the semik.
The fun began after lunch. Youth celebrations, games, round dances took place either in the forest, around a birch tree, or in the village, where a cut down and decorated tree was brought in with songs.
To celebrate Semik, a special house was chosen, where they brought various supplies for the feast, without slaughtering malt and hops; mash is boiled, mashed, fermented and drained during singing funny songs. At the very same sevenk, at noon, the celebration begins. In the middle of the yard there is a tree cut down with branches and leaves, under which there is a pot of water. The girls walk around the yard or sit, and the boys hold prepared food in their hands, others hold a bucket of beer on a stick. A more cheerful, lively girl approaches the tree, knocks over a pot of water, pulls the tree out of the ground and begins to sing. With singing:
Io, io, seven-three,
The cloud conspired with thunder:
Let's go, thunder, let's take a walk with you,
To that settlement, to Radyshevchyna,
Io, io, seven-three! -
they go to the forest where the feast is taking place.”

On the vast Russian territory, the Trinity rite with a young tree was, of course, performed differently; each province and even village had its own set and sequence of actions, its own obligatory song repertoire, despite the fact that the main elements of the rite were preserved. Such elements include: choosing and decorating a tree, eating together under it, weaving wreaths, and worshiping. cutting down a tree and then destroying it, round dance songs and games under it, fortune telling with wreaths thrown into the water.

The main object of worship these days was the birch tree, which has long been revered by Russian people. In the beliefs of the Russian people, she acted as a lucky tree, bringing goodness, protecting from evil, evil spirits, and driving away diseases. Birch symbolized the feminine principle and was considered the patroness of girls and young women. At the same time, the birch was perceived as a tree associated with the souls of the dead.
Trinity festivities included, as mentioned above, the commemoration of the dead. They were held on Trinity Saturday, preceding St. Trinity and considered by Russians the main spring memorial day, and on Spiritual Day. Remembering their ancestors in the days of the revival of nature, people hoped for their help, protection, and proved that there is no oblivion for the dead.

Semik ( green Christmastide) - Slavic folk holiday complex of the spring-summer calendar period, so called after the main day. Celebrated from Thursday (in other places from Tuesday) of the seventh week after Easter to Tuesday of the eighth week after Easter (in other places on Trinity Day). The holiday marks the end of spring and the beginning of summer. It was the main spring-summer holiday, with an extensive cycle of games, round dances and songs. It’s the same here as in winter holidays, youth rituals, pre-marital in nature, burst into calendar rituals. The week of green Christmastide was otherwise called Semitic (since it was the seventh week after Easter). Green Christmastide was associated with the idea of ​​blossoming vegetation coming into force. People celebrated trees and flowers.

Also Semik is the seventh Thursday after Easter, hence the name. It was considered a great holiday and opened a complex of rituals of the Trinity-Semitic festival, marking farewell to spring and welcoming summer, glorifying green vegetation. It is also a day of remembrance for the “hosted” dead, that is, those who died an unnatural or premature death (in some places the commemoration was held on Tuesday - “Asphyxiated Commemoration”).

Green Christmastide (Semitskaya Week) 2013

SEMIK

Semik - the seventh Thursday after Easter was considered a big holiday, it opened a set of rituals marking farewell to spring and welcoming summer, glorifying green vegetation with the central character - birch tree.

Why did people choose birch? This is explained by the fact that the birch is the first tree to dress in bright greenery that shines in the sun, while other trees are just beginning to open their buds. This gives rise to the idea that it is birch trees that have special growth power. The tops and branches are considered the focus of this power: they grow and, therefore, the power of the trees is located here. This power must be used. Birch branches or young birch trees were brought from the forest and placed in houses during the Semitic week. Houses were also decorated with flowers. Before the holiday, they washed and cleaned the huts, bringing cleanliness everywhere. The courtyards and gates were also decorated with birch trees, which gave the whole village an elegant look.

Usually the fun in Semik began after lunch. Youth celebrations, games, and round dances took place either in the forest, around a birch tree, or in the village, where a cut down and decorated tree was brought in with songs. Sang:

Birch ordered the girls:

“Come, girls.

Come on, you red ones!

I myself, birch tree,

I'll dress myself:

I'll put on a dress all green,

Everything green is all silk;

When the wind blows, I’ll make all the noise,

The rain will pass - I’ll babble,

When the sun shines, I’ll turn green.”

IN different places The ritual with a young tree was not the same; each village had its own set of actions and, in its own sequence, its own obligatory song repertoire, while the main elements of the ritual were preserved. Such elements include: selecting and decorating a tree, eating together under it, curling wreaths, ritual rituals, round dance songs and games under a birch tree, cutting down a tree and then destroying it, fortune telling on wreaths thrown into the water. Most of the rituals were performed by girls.

On Wednesday, during “green week,” the girls went to choose and “break” birch trees. The next day (Semik) or on Saturday they went to curl the birch tree - they braided its branches. Each one carried a treat with her - scrambled eggs, pies, flatbreads. They walked to the birch trees with the song “Don’t rejoice, oak trees...”.

Don't rejoice, oak trees,

Don't rejoice, green ones,

Girls don't come to you

Reds are not for you,

They are not bringing pies to you,

Flatbread, scrambled eggs.

Io, io, seven and three!

Rejoice, birch trees,

Rejoice, green ones!

The girls are coming to you

Reds to you,

They bring pies to you,

Flatbread, scrambled eggs.

Io, io, seven and three!

Everyone brought a scrambled egg with them. After the birch trees were curled, the girls, sitting around one of them, laid out the eyes of fried eggs on a towel (tablecloth). The result was an amazing carpet, like a solar mosaic. Then the girls danced in a circle and sang a song:

Birch, birch,

Curl, curly

The girls have come to you

The pies were brought

With scrambled eggs.

There was also such a custom: special “roes” were baked - a kind of round flatbread, which was covered with boiled eggs like a wreath. With these roes, the girls went into the forest, where they curled ribbons, pieces of paper, and threads on a birch tree with songs. In a number of places, two birch trees standing next to each other were selected, their tops were tied together, so that an arch was formed, under which they then “celebrated” or danced in a circle and treated themselves to food. In Siberia, the tops of birch trees were bent to the grass and “braids” were made, connecting these tops with the grass.

The meaning of the ritual will become clear from the following song - “And the leaves are thick and thick on the birch tree...”:

And the leaves on the birch tree are thick and thick,

Oh, oh, lyuli, there are leaves on the birch tree!

There is nothing thicker than that in rye, wheat,

Oh, oh, lyuli, in rye, wheat!

Gentlemen boyars, peasant peasants!

Oh, oh, oh, peasant peasants!

I can’t stand, I can’t hold the ears,

Oh, oh, Lyuli, hold on to the ears!

The ear is growing wild, the ear is growing wild,

Oh, oh, Lyuli, the ear is going wild!

That is, the honors given to the birch were considered as a manifestation of such respect for it, for which it would repay with good - it would convey its violent strength and growth grain field. Wheat is presented with heavy grain already filled.

Women themselves seem to absorb this power:

Oh, where the girls went, there the rye is thick,

Oh, where the widows walked, there the grass grew,

That the grass grew tall and green;

Where the young women went, there flowers bloom,

Well, flowers are blooming all over the street,

All along the street and along the bank,

What's along the bank under the bushes.

They used the braided and “curled” birch branches to tell fortunes about the future: it was believed that if the curled branches withered, then this was a bad omen, and if they remained fresh, then it was a good omen. In addition, they also made a wreath for their relatives, trying to determine their fate. Sang:

I look, I look at the ring on my father,

Another ring is for mother,

The third ring is on itself,

The fourth ring is for your old man.

In Semik there was ritual of ritual. It is mainly girls and women who worship, although there is rare evidence of the former existence of this custom between boys and girls or only between boys.

Nepotism in Semik goes back to the rituals of tribal society. This was acceptance into the clan, recognition by them as full members of girls who had reached marriageable age. These rituals were performed at the beginning of summer, nature began to flourish, and fruits were already expected from it. A girl who reached puberty was also expected to become a woman. This was also emphasized by the dropping of a wreath - a symbol of girlhood (later it became a fortune-telling - whether the girl would get married). But this does not exclude another type of nepotism - between men and women, which among many nations occurred on Midsummer's Day: it could be a relic of the marriages concluded at that time.

The custom of worship is associated with the birch tree - they worshiped in the forest by bending young branches with newly appeared leaves into a circle, so that wreaths were formed. Ritual songs were sung as invitations to make wreaths:

Let's go, girls, curl your wreaths!

Let's curl wreaths, curl green ones.

Wait, my wreath, it’s been green all week,

Aya, young girl, she’s been cheerful all year!

The girls kissed in pairs through the branches of birch trees twisted into a wreath because they hoped for their magical power: they had to strengthen the strength of the good ones, friendly relations between the female half of the village. They were conjured to maintain friendship between girls and women, when for life, when until the next wedding in a year with another girl, when until the end of the holiday:

Let's kiss, godfather, let's kiss,

We won't argue with you,

Always be friends.

Come on, gossip, we'll kiss each other,

Ay Lyuli, ay Lyuli, we will kiss each other!

We will kiss, we will kiss,

Ay Lyuli, Lyuli, let's kiss!

Come, godfather, slurp some jelly,

Ay Lyuli, slurp some jelly!

All the girls worshiped while singing such songs. The girls also tied their crosses to the wreaths; after kissing, they exchanged crosses. During the celebration, teenage girls were usually greeted like this: “you still need to grow up and blossom more”; and to the girl who was undecided they said: “before the attack (i.e. next year) unbraid your braid in two, so that matchmakers and matchmakers do not leave the hut, so that you do not sit on the bench” (i.e. in the girls); They wished for the women: “I’ll give birth to a son this summer, and that year you’ll be the third.” The friends whispered their wishes into each other's ears.

In many localities, a senior godfather was elected. Having gathered, they threw up the handkerchiefs: whose one flew up the highest, she became the eldest godfather. Those who really wanted to be her would secretly put some weight into the handkerchief - a pebble, a stick.

Scientists believe that the rite of cumulation prepared girls for future motherhood. Women, kissing each other not just, but through living wreaths of birch trees, joined in with the plant power of the earth. At this solemn moment of communion with the birthing power of the earth, men should not be present. They appeared later. After the feast, a feast was held under the birch trees, to which boys were also allowed. “Guys are allowed to have scrambled eggs and must bring vodka, honey and sweet treats. When the scrambled eggs are eaten, each girl chooses a guy for herself and, hugging him, walks around in front of everyone.” Then they returned to the village in a cheerful round dance so that on Trinity Day they would again come to the grove to develop their wreaths.

TRINITY

The Feast of the Holy Trinity, celebrated seven weeks after Easter, is dedicated to the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. This happened on the 50th day after the Resurrection of Christ, which is why the day of the Holy Trinity is also called Pentecost. It was the descent of the Holy Spirit that revealed all the Faces of the Triune God: God the Father creates the world, God the Son redeems people from enslavement to the devil, God the Holy Spirit sanctifies the world through the founding of the Church and the worldwide preaching of the faith.

On Trinity (Sunday) houses were decorated both inside and out with birch trees, they walked around the village with birch trees, birch trees (especially in the meadows) were decorated with maiden ribbons and wreaths. The inside of the temples was also decorated with flowers and greenery (usually small birch trees), and the floor was covered with fresh grass. Parishioners came to church for mass with bouquets of wildflowers and birch branches.

Many rituals, as already mentioned, smoothly flowed from one day of the Semitic week to another, starting on Semik, they ended on Saturday or Sunday. As a rule, if the wreaths were curled on Thursday, then they went to develop them on Trinity or the day following Semik. If a birch tree was cut down and decorated on Semik, then it was “ruffled” and drowned on Trinity. If wreaths were curled on a birch tree on Thursday, then wreaths of herbs and flowers were woven on Sunday, and then they told fortunes by throwing them into the water.

In the evening of Trinity Day, they removed the decorations from the birch tree, broke off one twig at a time, tore the tree itself out of the ground and dragged it to the river - “whoever will grab which twig”; Arriving at the river bank, they threw the birch tree into the water. Dressed up, covered, fed, glorified for several days, the birch tree was considered as a kind of container of plant forces. Thrown or placed in a grain field, it had to give all its strength, energy of growth and fertility to the green field, contribute to the harvest and, accordingly, the well-being of people. The drowning of a birch tree was also perceived as a holiday, because thrown into the water, according to the peasants, it provided a sufficient amount of moisture for the whole summer. Over time, this original meaning was forgotten, and then, when the tree was drowned, the participants in the ritual could shout out something completely far from its original purpose, for example: “Tony, Semik, drown angry husbands!”

Yes, you are my dear girls,

Yes, you are my friends!

Why are you undressing me?

But what, what did you look at?

Yes, I am curly, yes, I was smart,

And now, birch tree, I stand naked.

All the outfits are mine and donated,

All the leaves are mine, but they’re all curled up!

You are my friends, take me away

Throw me into the fast river,

And cry over me and over the birch tree.

In the vicinity of Uglich, there was a custom to place a decorated birch tree in rye, and scatter pieces of scrambled eggs and whole eggs across the field so that the “nurse rye” would grow better.

Trinity greenery was credited with special powers. Branches from the Trinity birch tree were not thrown away, and after the holiday they were stuck in the yard to protect livestock or placed in a sap to protect grain, flour, and cereals from mice. Later, these same branches were placed under sheaves of bread, under hay, and in potato holes.

Residents of Vyatka villages, tucking under the eaves in the attic of the house birch branches, broken on Trinity Day, said three times: “Trinity of God, protect from the storm, from the strong wind!”

Another Trinity ritual and entertainment was fortune telling by wreaths, thrown into the water. In the evening, girls with wreaths, who wove from different herbs and flowers, went to the river and threw wreaths into the water. There were rules here: for fortune telling to be correct, you cannot throw wreaths with your hands, you need to stand with your back to the river and, swaying, throwing your head back, throw the wreath into the water. If the wreath did not fall into the water, the fortune telling did not take place. By the way the wreath “behaved” in the water, one judged the upcoming marriage, the fate. If the wreath floated, then this meant constant happiness. If the wreath turns in one place, then this foreshadows the disruption of the wedding, family quarrels. If the wreath sank, it threatened great misfortune, the death of relatives or betrothed. If the wreath stopped in one place, then it was concluded that the girl would not be married that year. Wherever the water carries the wreath, in that direction the girl will be married.

Girlfriends, and sometimes brothers and sisters, threw their wreaths together. It often happened that lovers, as if by accident, threw their wreaths together. Clever people often guessed that a wedding was imminent by bringing such wreaths together on the water. There were examples that mothers never gave their daughters to such betrothed men, whose crowns sank in the water in front of everyone. According to the old women's comments, such betrothed people either soon die or “drink themselves into drunkenness.” The ribbons with which the girls intertwined the Semitic wreaths were preserved throughout their lives. If they got married in the same year, they tied wedding candles.

PARENTS SATURDAY

An ancient Trinity custom, whose roots go back to pre-Christian times, was to visit cemeteries on Saturday.

In the Valdai district of the Novgorod province it was customary to parent's day knit small fresh brooms and with them, after mass, go to the graves of your relatives in order, as they said, to “sweat your parents.” A similar ritual, called “clearing the parents’ eyes,” existed in the Tula and Pskov provinces: “after Vespers, old men and women go to the cemeteries to sweep the graves of their parents with Trinity flowers.” The belief that the dead have some kind of special vision, in comparison with which those living in this world are blind, is also the basis for the widespread prohibition on shoveling ashes from the stove on parental Saturdays, so as not to fill the eyes of the dead with ashes and cinders, and deprive them of the ability to see. relatives they left behind on earth and help them.

SPIRITS DAY AND RUSAL WEEK

WITH Spiritual day(celebrated immediately after Trinity, on Monday) beliefs and rituals were often associated around mermaids, and the entire period from Monday in Trinity week to Monday next week was called “mermaid week”, and was considered the time when mermaids come out of the water. According to Russian beliefs, mermaids are the souls of drowned women or children who died unbaptized. They were usually seen sitting on a stone near the water and combing their hair with a golden comb.

The attitude towards mermaids was ambivalent. On the one hand, mermaids could benefit a person, give him wealth and good luck. On the other hand, it was believed that mermaids were dangerous to the living, especially during the mermaid week, when it cost them nothing to tickle a traveler to death or drag him to their bottom. They are especially dangerous on Thursday - Mermaid's Great Day.

It was believed that mermaids lived in the waters until Spiritual Day; On Spiritual Day they come out of their homes and splash on the surface of the water. Sometimes mermaids can go far from their habitat, into forests and groves. Clinging to branches and trunks with their hair, if these trees are bent by a storm, they swing as if on a swing, shouting “reli-reli!” or “gootinki, gootenki!” For this reason, people were careful not to swim on Trinity and Spiritual Day; it was also considered dangerous at this time to travel alone through a field sown with rye: mermaids could attack and torture, and in general it was better not to go beyond the outskirts at dusk. And if they went out, they made sure to take with them a bunch of wormwood, the smell of which mermaids allegedly cannot stand. There was another way to get rid of mermaids: you had to draw a cross on the ground, draw a line around it and stand in this circle. The mermaids walk and walk around the line that they are afraid to cross, and then they leave.

According to legend, on Thursday during Mermaid Week, the water maidens hold their holiday - “Rusal’s Great Day”. At night, under the moon, which shines brighter than usual for them, they swing on the branches of trees, call to each other and lead cheerful round dances with songs, games and dances. forest glades. Where they ran and frolicked, there the grass grows thicker and greener, and there the bread is born more abundantly.

The “Seeing Off the Mermaid” ritual took place on the ritual (last day) before Peter’s Fast, that is, a week after Trinity. The farewell of the mermaids was also understood as a farewell to spring.

In the Nizhny Novgorod province, young people gathered on the square in the center of the village: “here someone is dressed up as a horse, a bell is hung from his neck, a boy is put on horseback, and two men lead him by the bridle into the field, and behind him the whole round dance with loud farewell songs sees him off, and when he arrives in the field, ruining a dressed up horse with various games.”

In the Zaraisky district of the Moscow province, the farewell took place differently. A girl depicting a mermaid, in one shirt, with her hair down, riding on a poker, holding a log over her shoulder in her hands, rides in front, and girls and women follow her, hitting the barrier. The kids run ahead, every now and then flirting with the “mermaid”, grabbing her, some by the hand, some by the shirt, some clinging to the poker, saying: “Mermaid, mermaid, tickle me!” This whole crowd with the “mermaid” in front heads towards the rye field. There the “mermaid” tries to grab and tickle someone, others rush to his rescue, and someone tries to protect the “mermaid” herself. In the end, a real dump begins, and "The mermaid" meanwhile breaks out and hides in the rye. Then everyone shouts in unison: “We saw off the mermaid, you can safely walk everywhere!” After this, the ritual participants disperse to their homes. The girl who portrayed the mermaid, after sitting in the rye for a while, sneaks home through the gardens and backyards. The people walk along the streets of the village until dawn.

MEMORIAL RITES

A distinctive feature of Semik was the commemoration of the “hostage” dead, that is, those who died not by their own death (“who have not outlived their age”). Funerals were usually held on Thursday of Semitskaya Week, in some places on Tuesday (“Soulful Funerals”). It was believed that the souls of the hostage dead returned to the world of the living and continued their existence on earth as mythological creatures. They were forbidden to have funeral services in church, and they were commemorated separately. According to popular belief, the dead bad death the earth does not accept them, so they remain restless and can annoy the living, are often in the service of evil spirits, and sometimes even have demonic properties. Commemoration of the hostage-laden dead was allowed only on Semik, so this day was considered a “delight” for their souls. In the city tradition, until the end of the 18th century, in Semik they buried the hostage dead who had accumulated over the winter in the “skudelnitsa”, and who were forbidden to be buried at any other time. Funerals in Semik were held at home, in cemeteries, in chapels, at battle sites and mass graves. A funeral meal with ritual food (pancakes, pies, jelly, etc.) and beer (later wine and vodka) was obligatory. The commemoration often took on a riotous character, accompanied by cheerful festivities and even fist fights. Thus, much attention was paid to the commemoration of the hostage dead. great attention. This is due to the fact that, in the absence of due respect, they could well cause drought or crop failure, disturb with their visits or openly harm people.

Today, almost everywhere, funeral rituals have moved from Semik proper to Trinity Parental Saturday.

Compiled by: S. Smychkova, librarian of the library named after L.A. Gladina

Semik, Thursday. Thursday in the seventh week after Easter, three days before Trinity. The week in which it fell was called Semitskaya (Semikova) week and ended with Trinity. Semik opens the Trinity-Semitic festive ritual cycle. In the popular consciousness it signified transition period from spring to summer, characterized in nature by the greening of plants. Semik marked farewell to spring and welcome to summer. In some areas, barley sowing was associated with Semik.

Semitic agrarian rites and ritual actions - walking around the fields, walking and eating girls and young women in the field, glorifying rye, “driving a spikelet”, swinging young people on swings, playing circular games with motifs of sowing, growing, ripening poppy, flax, millet - were aimed at stimulating crop growth. Girls and young women who did not have children held a ritual of cumulation in Semik, aimed at obtaining the productive power necessary for childbearing. The participation of teenage girls in Semitsk girls’ festivities, rituals, and round dances secured their status as having reached marriageable age.
On this day village girls Having gathered in a crowd, they went to groves, forests or to the banks of lakes and rivers and organized games, dances, sang songs, and curled wreaths. Then they were thrown into the water and, based on what happened to the wreath in the water, they guessed about their fate.

Another important integral part Semitic rituals were the veneration of the dead, their commemoration and celebration. It was believed that economic and personal well-being depended on the goodwill of the spirits of ancestors: harvest, livestock offspring, health and life of people. They visited the graves of the dead, covered them with greenery, and decorated them with birch branches and flowers.
Semik was the only day of the year to commemorate the dead - suicides, drunks, those who died without repentance, those cursed by their parents, executed criminals, sorcerers. Ecumenical requiem services were held in cemeteries and places of mass burials. Ritual food was brought to the graves of the hostage dead: painted eggs, wine, pancakes and rolls baked from flour collected “according to the covenant” from all the houses of the village. Right at the cemetery after the memorial, alms were also distributed to the needy.

Semik was considered one of the best, funniest summer holidays: Each hut was decorated with birch trees, the floor was strewn with freshly cut grass. Young girls cut down a young birch tree in the forest, decorated it with ribbons and flowers, brought it to the place of festivities and, under the Semitskaya birch tree, had a cheerful feast, sang ritual songs, and danced in circles. The girls also decorated themselves with birch (or maple) branches and flowers. This was called breaking or curling the birch tree.
In these rituals, an echo of pre-Christian beliefs is clearly visible. Semitic rites, with traditional birch and greenery in the center, apparently aimed to praise the spirits of vegetation and appease them.
With the adoption of Christianity, the functions of Semik were largely transferred to the Trinity, the ritual of which absorbed many pagan rituals.

Other popular Orthodox holidays:

The Slavs have always had many holidays related to nature. The holiday called Semik represents the symbiosis of Christianity, folk signs, and ancient traditions.

In 2016, this holiday will be celebrated on June 16. It always falls on Thursday, which is why it is sometimes called Maundy Thursday. This holiday is part of the so-called Green Christmastide, a holiday complex that begins at the end of May and ends at the end of June.

history of the holiday

Semik is a national holiday that is not mentioned in church calendars. Despite this, it is inextricably linked by the will of the people with the history of Jesus Christ. To determine the day to celebrate Semik, you need to remember the entire Easter cycle of celebrations. On Easter the Resurrection of the Savior is celebrated. Next comes the ascension, when Jesus left the world of the living. The final holiday in this series is Trinity, when all believers bow before the power of the trinity of our God.

In accordance with church tradition, on the Saturday before Trinity, all Christians who have ever lived, died, or are living are commemorated. This is the greatest parent's Saturday in the year, called universal due to the fact that everything is remembered at once.

In ancient times, when Christianity was not yet fully formed on the territory of our great country, the people invented the holiday of Semik, which in the times of paganism was called Rusal Day. As a sign of respect for the new religion, people timed the celebration of Semik to Thursday before every Trinity. On this day, everyone who died an unnatural death is remembered. This includes suicides, unbaptized children, those who died from drunkenness, drowning, and sorcerers. The rulers of such dead were mermaids. That's why Semik was called a mermaid day.

This day was and is still used to remember loved ones who died in unbelief and sins. Previously, when execution was popular in Rus', this day was very important for those people whose relatives were violently deprived of their lives.

Traditions of Semik June 16

The Semik traditions are very different from the Trinity traditions, which we wrote about earlier. Check them out to know how to properly celebrate one of the greatest holidays for all Christians.

• The main ritual tradition is visiting the cemetery and remembering the dead. Some experts believe that Semik was originally created to commemorate drowned people.
• On this day, it is customary to curl wreaths and leave them at home so that they ward off evil spirits.
• It is believed that in accordance with traditions, June 16th will be favorable time for sowing barley.
• According to tradition, they watched the weather - if there is no rain, hot and windy before Saturday, this means that the dead are unhappy.
• On this day they usually watch their children more than usual, because some ancient beliefs claim that a child can be kidnapped by mermaids. They ask a riddle. Usually the child does not guess it, and he is taken away forever. That is why mermaids were scared away with loud songs and festivities.
• On this day they usually do not retire - on modern interpretation women meet with friends to go shopping, and men go fishing with friends, for example.
• Semik, according to tradition, is considered the day when the summer period. There is nothing left of spring, because it is finally leaving us.
• Usually, around the time of Semik, the swimming season opens, although scientific justification there is no such tradition. This was the case in Rus', namely in its northern latitudes.

These traditions are partly pagan and are not recognized by the church. Previously, in the Middle Ages, a compromise was found, but now the holiday is perceived negatively by clergy. It contradicts the canons of the church, but many people still commemorate those who did not die a natural death, lost faith before death, or lived in unbelief all their lives. There are restless souls that no one remembers, so the Semik traditions tell us to remember these people. Each of us deserves a bright memory, and this holiday is the only way to calm the souls of the dead wandering on earth.

May this day bring you only happiness and make you think that our life is too short to refuse God and his mercy. And the national holiday Semik will lead you to righteous thoughts.

Semik precedes the memorial ecumenical Saturday and Trinity, one of the 12 main Orthodox holidays. The will of God is infinite, and his essence is merciful, so pray for everyone who is not near us this Thursday, so that their souls find peace and light. Good luck and don't forget to press the buttons and

15.06.2016 06:12

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