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What to do on New Year's Eve. New Year's signs and traditions: what you definitely need to do on New Year's Eve. New Year's money signs that are valid everywhere and always

There are many interesting and important traditions associated with the New Year, which must be observed. Do not lose sight of the signs that will help you avoid troubles and troubles next year.

It is difficult to argue with the fact that the New Year is a special holiday, because it is for this event that we begin to prepare in a few weeks. To make New Year's Eve unforgettable, you need to prepare for it in advance. Every year we decorate the Christmas tree, decorate the house and remember the recipes for New Year's dishes. These efforts do not cause us unnecessary discomfort, because for many years this has become a real tradition.

Do not forget that many miracles happen at this time, and some accidents can warn us of important events that will soon happen in life. The site site team will tell you about New Year's traditions and signs that it is important for everyone to know.

New Year traditions

The New Year has been celebrated since ancient times, but the date of the holiday was different. Only in 1700 Peter I issued a special decree, which stated that the holiday was officially postponed to January 1. Since then, many wonderful traditions associated with this magical event have appeared.

Despite the fact that in the modern world we often celebrate the New Year with friends, it is still customary to celebrate this holiday with family. Under the chiming clock, you need to congratulate your loved ones and thank them for everything they have done for you in the past year.

Think about your New Year's menu in advance, as there should be a wide variety of dishes on the table. Guests must definitely leave you full, otherwise poverty will not be avoided next year.

Every year there are more and more recipes for New Year's dishes, but do not forget the traditions: "Olivier", "Herring under a fur coat" and jellied fish must be present on your table.

If before the New Year you saw your enemy, then next year you will have a new enemy.

Sometimes we are so passionate about New Year's chores that we may even forget to congratulate our loved ones. If this happened to you, a traitor will appear in your circle of friends. To avoid this problem, call loved ones and congratulate them.

If on December 31 you met a blind man on the street, expect global changes. Perhaps you look at life differently and want to change jobs or move.

Even on New Year's Eve, small troubles can happen to us. For example, if a toy suddenly fell from your Christmas tree and broke, it means that in the new year you will have conflicts with your loved one.

Many people prefer to celebrate the New Year with friends. If next year you want to improve your personal life, then the first person you talk to after the chiming clock should be of the opposite sex.

A candle must burn on the New Year's table, and then harmony will always reign in your house in the future.

So that in the New Year you have a stable financial situation, hang a few bills on the Christmas tree and put coins under it.

On the morning of January 1, collect clean snow and bring it home. In the evening, wash your face with melt water. It is believed that after such a ritual, a person will definitely not be deprived of attention from the opposite sex.

A holiday that children and adults are looking forward to, because it cannot be more fun and magical. In Europe and America, on all continents of the Earth and in many countries and cities from ancient times, namely from the time of ancient Rome, there are traditions that are symbols of the New Year, according to which they meet the coming year in a certain way.

About signs and traditions

New Year's signs and superstitions - this is what wraps this holiday with romance. Everyone, even a very adult and serious person, on the eve of the celebration becomes a little child who believes in all signs. He begins to notice the most incredible of them, which will tell him how the next year will go. Those who strictly followed all the traditions can count on the fact that luck will soon accompany their affairs.

Our country has its own rules. The New Year traditions of Russia are very rich and varied, even though this holiday was borrowed. Today it is celebrated all over the world, so there are signs of different countries. Considering that people have been celebrating the New Year for many centuries in a row, they have gained considerable experience in celebrating it. Old New Year traditions have penetrated into every family and are carefully passed down from generation to generation. It is useful to join the experience of different cultures and peoples, so that this time all the bad things would really be left behind, and only pleasant surprises awaited ahead.

New Year's signs for December 31 and January 1

    destroy dishes - to a quarrel;

    quarrel at the table - to bad luck in all endeavors;

    to be inhospitable - there will be no money;

    leaving the table poor - to poverty;

    throwing food away from the New Year's table - there will be no luck.

New Year's signs will tell you that December 31 must be done to attract good luck for the whole year:

    buy a new broom, put up with a whisk in the corner of the kitchen, decorate with a red ribbon;

    hang a wreath over the front door;

    put a glass of wine and a salad for the brownie;

    before the guests arrive, light candles in the rooms;

    ask for forgiveness from everyone and forget your grievances.

Choose what you like

We consider the most common New Year signs and traditions. Therefore, before choosing what is interesting for you, you need to familiarize yourself with each ritual and master it - to become a little bit of a magician yourself. And only what will be to your liking, and there are those future New Year traditions that will suit a particular person or family. So, we begin to attract good luck and happiness to our home.

Many New Year's traditions from different countries prescribe that on a festive night a banknote must be in the right pocket of clothes. And the more dignity it will be, the more it will attract next year. After all, what is money? In material terms, it is just watermarked paper, but in metaphysical terms, it is energy. And the larger the denomination of the bill, the more energy it has. And, as in the case of any energy, the law of its attraction works. Money is drawn to money! The larger the banknote you keep in your pocket, the greater the likelihood of financial success in the coming year. Well, with the correct formulation of the question, a banknote saved in this way in the New Year will also become a serious help in celebrating Christmas.

To meet the holiday in new decoration is also New Year's signs. Buying yourself a dazzling outfit, having received great pleasure from acquiring it, is a kind of summing up the financial result of the year: "Yes, I was so successful (successful) that I can afford it!" The results of the New Year are summed up not only by people, but also by the Universe. She calculates income and prepares to distribute bonuses according to merit. A new outfit for everyone is a symbol of success last year and a promise for achievements in the coming year. And therefore do not spare money for outfits! The positive that is acquired with it will multiply hundreds of times next year. And it's worth it. And make, make wishes - they will certainly come true!

Strictly for money

And these are New Year's monetary signs - to pay off all debts before dark on December 31st. Pay off your debts - and sleep peacefully. Although in the modern world, probably, it should not sound so simple. It is necessary to analyze the financial situation at the end of the year. Take stock, remember all the debts that were not paid on time, and get rid of them. If we are talking about a long-term loan, and interest is regularly paid on it, then you can absolutely not worry about this. This is not a debt that must be repaid on New Year's Eve. You just need to equalize the family budget, and let it become an annual tradition for someone.

In order for the money to come into the house, it is necessary to take out some thing over the threshold on December 31. Let the day stand there - it's like paying tribute to the old year, and with the advent of the new one, you need to bring it back.

That which always comes true

There are signs that can be considered a guide to action, and their logic is quite understandable and acceptable. Many of them in different interpretations are used as New Year's traditions of different countries. They help to change life for the better in the new year, improve financial condition, attract good luck. Here they are, all six, in order:

    clean the house, throw away all the old rubbish and garbage;

    set a rich table;

    use a white tablecloth;

    put coins under it;

    light seven green candles;

    make wishes under the chiming clock.

Let's consider each of them in detail.

Over the past year, a huge amount of all sorts of unnecessary rubbish and garbage has accumulated in any house, no matter how carefully they clean it. This rubbish attracts the negative, destructive energy of stagnation. It makes people apathetic, deprives them of vitality and the ability to create. New Year's signs prescribe to get rid of it, so that a fresh breath of air in the form of vital energy Qi breaks into life and makes it complete. Therefore, a few days before the holiday, you need to start cleaning up the rubble, clean your house, that is, put it in order.

Promising happiness to the family hearth

A white tablecloth on the table is a symbol of purity and readiness for change, the arrival of good luck in the house. Coins under the tablecloth - cash flows throughout the year. Seven green candles are the hearth: green is the color of money luck, and fire is the activator of its energy.

And most importantly - make wishes under the chiming clock! You need to guess them differently. Real and incredible - it's the New Year! Whatever you want, everything will always happen! After all, at the same time as you, a great many people make wishes and send them into the Universe, and this is a very powerful energy of collective desire. Everything always comes true!

For family, happiness and love

And yet, not by bread alone... Many New Year's traditions in Russia are not associated with material well-being and money. Not only do Russians dream about this on New Year's Eve. Family happiness, love, health and well-being of relatives and friends are important for people.

And in this regard, there are New Year's signs and superstitions regarding the celebration of the holiday in the family circle. Only close and dear people. In no case do not invite ill-wishers or enemies. Only those who will wish happiness. Then you can continue walking with whoever you want, wherever you want. But under the chiming clock - only with people dear to your heart. And then, as signs of the New Year, the first kiss is given to each other by couples in love, while the spouses kiss the last. If a child woke up on New Year's Eve, let him stay at the festive table. This is how you stay in touch with him.

If a girl has a desire to get married in the new year, a good New Year's sign for her is to give gifts to seven kids. This activates the energy of the family.

Particularly good for health

There are also those New Year's signs and traditions, which are paid tribute in the old fashioned way. If you want to be healthy for a whole year, it is imperative and simply necessary to take a bath or shower just before the celebration in order to wash off the energy dirt of the past year and prepare the body and energy for the perception of the new in life.

It is very correct to observe the Christmas fast if a person is a believer and an Orthodox Christian. This is not only a spiritual need - the absence of noisy companies that contradict the very spirit of fasting, overexciting the nervous system during this period, but also a benefit for a person's physical health - the absence of excessive alcohol drinking and overeating.

New Year with a smile

There are New Year's rituals that must be done immediately before the chiming clock, and since there are several of them, the desire to do everything to attract good luck and money will turn into a very fun marathon. It might even be worth working out the night before. So, the funniest New Year's signs:

    have time to peel a tangerine or orange before the chiming clock and put it under the tree;

    have time to drink a glass before the chiming clock, and if you did it last - your luck this year;

    make a lot of money over a coin, throw it into a glass of champagne, drink it, and make a pendant out of a penny and wear it around your neck all year;

    write a wish on a piece of paper, burn it, throw the ashes into a glass of champagne, drink it all to the sound of chimes;

    if something unusual happens on New Year's Eve, it will happen to you all year;

    and in no case should you throw a Christmas tree out of a window or balcony, especially on New Year's Eve - family happiness will be destroyed.

If you approach the issue wisely and tell your guests about such "100%" effective methods in advance, then by 12 at night you can become a witness to funny puns.

And finally

This is why the New Year is valuable because with a smile and a slight sadness you can look back at the outgoing year, emerge from the whirlpool of fuss and, before crossing the threshold of the coming one, look back. Thank the Universe for what you have experienced, ask for forgiveness and forgive yourself, take stock and outline plans, and most importantly - do not forget to ask for blessings for the coming year. The expectation of a miracle and magic must appear on the threshold of the house with the last chime.

New Year's Eve is fraught with many mysteries and magic. For each person, it is associated with the hope for a happy future. No wonder there is so much pre-holiday turmoil and excitement around this holiday every year. New Year's Eve is an opportunity to make a secret and sincere wish. Our article will tell you how to have a fun holiday and not forget about New Year's rituals.

How to Prepare for the New Year

Even on the eve of the holiday, it is necessary to carry out special New Year's Eve rituals that will allow you to live in happiness and prosperity in the coming year. There are many such rituals, but there are proven by many years of experience and time.

1. You should not enter the new year with debts and unfinished planned business. This promises lack of money and a mess at work. We must also try not to borrow on New Year's Eve.

2. About a couple of days before the celebration, you need to do a general tidying up in the house. At the same time, you should pay attention to all glass and porcelain items that may contain chips. They need to be thrown away. To rid the house of dust and excess rubbish means to rid yourself of unnecessary quarrels, problems and misunderstandings in the coming year.

3. It is advisable to throw out the garbage after New Year's Eve, but not on the eve in the evening. Otherwise, the family will live in constant squabbles.

4. The Christmas tree needs to be put up and decorated alive, so that only living energy reigns in the house. In addition, the natural aroma of spruce, fir or Christmas tree creates an atmosphere of harmony and relaxation. It is advisable to decorate the home, including the Christmas tree after January 25th. It's simple: the tree will stand until the wires of the Old New Year, and earlier decoration can cause emotions to burn out on the very eve of New Year's Eve.

5. Clothing plays an important role on New Year's Eve. The holiday loves colorful and bright outfits in which a person feels relaxed and confident. It is better to purchase something special for a magical night. Then the whole year there will be purchases and new things in the wardrobe.

6. It is worth forgiving all your offenders before the holiday and ask for forgiveness yourself. If it is not possible to personally ask for forgiveness or tell a person that they do not hold evil against him, you can do this mentally. The main thing is that it should be from the heart.

What New Year's rituals should be performed

Of course, the most popular ritual is making a wish. Not a single New Year's Eve is complete without it. There are many ways to make your wish come true with the help of the new year. It is worth choosing the method that is closer in spirit and in which a person really believes.

In order to live a prosperous New Year, you need to put three copper coins at the very bottom of the refrigerator. They must be in a red bag and look up tails.

The Christmas tree should be decorated not only with store-bought toys, but also made independently from ordinary coins. Thus, luck and prosperity are attracted for the new year.

The festive New Year's table should be filled with a variety of dishes. It is good if there are both meat and fish dishes on it. It will also attract wealth to the house and abundance.

How to make a wish on New Year's Eve

Many are concerned about the question: how to make a wish on New Year's Eve so that it comes true. Moreover, there are many such rituals for the fulfillment of desires. Which one to choose is a difficult dilemma. But there are New Year's rituals for the fulfillment of desires, time-tested.

1. To correctly make a wish on New Year's Eve, you need to prepare a clean, white piece of paper. Think over your desire in advance and formulate it correctly.

Tip: the desire should not be in the future tense, but in the present. Many people make this very mistake. For example: not “I will get married and be happy”, but “I have found a husband and I am happily married”. You need to try, even though there will be little time, to paint your innermost desire in as much detail as possible. Example: "I married a decent and loving person and I am happily married to my beloved." The spirit of the New Year and the Universe must understand what exactly needs to be done. It's worth helping them.

2. When the chimes begin their movement, you need to write your wish on a piece of paper without unnecessary worries and worries. In this case, the whole body from toe to head should be imbued with it. You need to imagine that it has already come true. As they say, thoughts are material ...

3. As soon as the desire is described and meaningfully experienced, it is worth burning it and stirring it in a glass, drinking it to the bottom with a feeling of complete peace and happiness.

4. From now on, you need to let go of your desire. Everything that could be done has been done. Now the higher powers are at work.

Whatever New Year's ritual a person performs and no matter how hard they try to attract what they want into the house with their help, the result will depend on how the soul feels at that moment. If she is tormented by doubts or unsure of her abilities, then the desire will sink into the abyss. Therefore, before the holiday, it is worth talking with your heart and soul, are they ready to accept the new in their lives ...

From early childhood to old age, New Year and Christmas remain one of the most beloved and brightest holidays for many people. Ancient traditions, rituals and divination are associated with New Year's Eve. In Rus', on the eve of the New Year and after it, girls who were waiting for marriage gathered in a hut and told fortunes, performing various rituals, fortune-telling, calling luck, happiness, love and money into their homes.

New Year's Eve is saturated with magic and magic, do not miss the opportunity to know the future with the help of signs

For the arrival of the New Year, households prepared in advance, so all the pre-holiday days of December flew by unnoticed for them. Grandparents told their grandchildren old stories and shared signs that had to be done absolutely correctly in order to avoid trouble. Especially people believed in fortune-telling and conducted them according to ancient traditions.

In the house, a Christmas tree or a pine tree had to be magnificently dressed up. According to folk traditions, a Christmas tree or pine tree is decorated with multi-colored balls and a red star. All members of the family met at the solemn table that day.

Preparing for the New Year

In the days from December 29 to 31, members of the whole family actively indulged in folk festivals, celebrations and took up fortune-telling. During these three days, it was necessary to have time to observe all the old signs and rituals, so as not to offend Domovoy, provide yourself with happiness, attract money, good luck and find love. But to meet such a holiday on the road was not recommended. It is not recommended, and to delay the return of debts after the new year.

So, what superstitions before the new year must be observed:

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  • With great respect, people treated farewell to the Old Year, as it was equated with the meeting of a new period in life;
  • Until December 31, it was necessary to return all the money that was considered debt. According to popular beliefs, it is impossible to meet the first days of January with a return of money, as this promises big financial problems, and the absence of debts, on the contrary, is a way to attract money;
  • A general cleaning was carried out throughout the dwelling. Cleaning was considered a sign of purification;
  • This holiday was considered exclusively family. On this day, our great-grandfathers invited relatives to visit them or went to visit them themselves. They believed that in order for life to be joyful and the family complete, the last days of December must pass in peace and harmony;
  • December dreams were treated with caution. The dream that occurred this month could be prophetic;
  • In order for the girl to have a rich wardrobe, they sewed and knitted dresses for themselves. Be sure to wear clean clothes and new underwear. The girl's underwear was prepared in advance. New underwear foreshadowed change;
  • On December 31, the legs of the solemn table were wrapped with ropes, thus, the ancestors put protection from the evil eye for the whole next year; All old things were taken out of the house away;
  • The festive table was mostly covered with fruits and nuts, and millet was scattered throughout the house. This action was considered a symbol of prosperity;
  • Sleeping is not recommended;
  • On the night of December 31, all electric lighting in the apartment was turned off, and a candle was lit in the morning;
  • At the end of December and after the New Year, young people took up fortune-telling, and the older ones called for money in housing;
  • It is not recommended to celebrate the New Year and Christmas on the train and, in principle, on the road, since the meeting of the New on the train portends trips in the new year.

Menstruation was of great importance during the celebration of the New Year - they could serve as a sign of whether you were destined to become pregnant. For girls, menstruation that did not come for the new year is a good omen, she says that most likely she will be able to get pregnant. Those who want to get pregnant, especially carefully followed the signs. The girl who dreamed of getting pregnant at night was telling fortunes. If a woman was menstruating, then she was not allowed to enter the church, and cattle were not slaughtered at home. Menstruation was considered a symbol of purification of the whole organism.

Signs for the chimes

All the traditions before the New Year were observed by people from the very beginning to the very end. So, for example, for the call to the house of happiness, health and success on the festive night of January 1, there were rituals:

  • Before the chimes began to beat, a citrus skin was removed from a tangerine or an orange and placed under a pine or spruce;
  • At the first strike of the chimes, all members of the family, holding a coin in their fists, made secret wishes, and they were soon to be fulfilled;
  • Women had to put scarves on their heads and throw them over their shoulders to the sound of the clock, and take them off only at the last strokes or after. It was believed that such a New Year's sign drives away illness and sorrow;
  • Folk signs say that in no case should you oversleep this day. For girls, crying to the sound of the clock on this day was considered an unkind sign.

To meet New Year's days on the road, especially on the train, is not a very good omen, meaning that all next year you will be accompanied by constant traffic on the road, possibly frequent train trips. If the New Year is still held on the train, then it is of particular importance which way he travels: to or from home. Abroad, caught on the train, be sure to arrange a carnival.

Some old beliefs are no longer relevant and have become obsolete:

  • Do not lend fire and burning candles on this day, otherwise there will be no money;
  • The fire in the furnace should burn all New Year's Eve;
  • You can’t play card games on New Year’s Eve, otherwise you can spoil the crops and harvest.

Divination for the New Year

On New Year's Eve, girls who wanted to get married or get pregnant took up fortune-telling. They burned candles, poured wax, attracted love, luck and money to the house. Signs for marriage say that if a girl finds bread crumbs under the New Year's table, she will soon get married. If a girl who has not yet married accidentally cuts her finger with a knife, it means that the chosen one will soon call for marriage. While the adults were immersed in fortune-telling, the children went from house to house and caroled, it was by no means impossible to refuse them sweets. The girls were guessing both in the last days of December and in the first days of January.

It was believed that on New Year's Eve a barren woman could become pregnant, and happy newlyweds could conceive a healthy child. In general, this period was considered a good one to get pregnant.

To check their health and longevity, they divined on water frozen in a spoon. Superstitions said that if bubbles appeared in frozen water - fortunately, the arrival of money, pleasant meetings and long life, and if a deepening appeared - a bad omen for illness or even death.

New Year's Eve has long attracted young girls with the opportunity to find out the name of the betrothed

Predictions

In order to see who would call for marriage, the girls poured clean, clear water into a faceted glass, poured salt, stove ash into it and whispered conspiracies for marriage. If fate gets married next year, then the image of the chosen one will appear in a glass, if there is no marriage in the coming year, then no.

They wrote all their desires on a blank sheet of paper, and then burned it to the ground. The remaining ashes were blown into the wind through the window, and a people's slander was sentenced, which helped to fulfill all secret dreams.

Signs for January 1

It was not allowed to work in the first days of January.

The older members of the family did not stop watching signs either at the end of December or on New Year's Eve, but even after it. It was believed that on January 1 it was necessary to observe the change in the weather, she could predict the future sowing and harvest. This day determined the entire coming year.

On the night of January 1, the townspeople carefully listened to the fluctuations in the weather. They listened to the wind outside the windows, if it was strong, there would be a good harvest, if it was weak, it would be poor. The sky densely filled with stars and the pacification of the weather that night spoke of a good harvest of berries, and the trees covered with frost in the morning spoke of a grain-growing year.

In January, a Christmas tree or a pine tree was not thrown out of the dwelling; on a certain day, it had to be “shoved” into a snowdrift so that it would not fall, and make a wish. Pine could stand until February.

New Year gifts

Folk superstitions and traditions have been passed down for thousands of years. Some things had to be done on certain days, and some things were strictly forbidden.

Why you should not give slippers - the answer about slippers can be found in legends. And older people usually associate slippers with death, especially if these slippers are white. Of course, those who do not believe in various superstitions will take slippers easily and without prejudice, and those who believe can regard such a gift as slippers extremely negatively. In principle, it is better not to give slippers to people for the holidays, since slippers are home shoes, most likely, a person already has them. Tips on this occasion say that it is better to give nothing than slippers.

A sign of bad taste will be not only such a gift as slippers, but also such as underwear. Underwear was considered an individual accessory. But donating bed linen is allowed.

Giving slippers in the new year, or underwear in bad taste

Signs to make money

Many beliefs on this day were also monetary, and some rituals on this day were held specifically for money.

New Year's cleaning in the house next to it is a tradition that came to us from the Roman Empire. The Soviets said that if you do such rituals as cleaning and maintaining cleanliness on New Year's Eve, you can completely cleanse the room of evil energy.

In order to always have money in the house, folk superstitions on this day give advice to leave a certain amount of money on the night of January 1 under a Christmas tree or pine tree.

On January 1, all merchants gave away goods for less money than they cost, so that large sums of money would be found in the new year. According to signs, you can not borrow money on Christmas Eve.

Broom

Our ancestors used a broom for divination and love spells, by the way, a broom was also used for “sweeping” evil spirits. They also beat naughty children in the house, believing that the broom would smooth out their rough character.

Throughout the ages there have been beliefs that the broom is the protector of the house, and the broom standing in the corner served to attract good luck in business. People's councils said that the broom should be placed in the corner with the throwing side up, it was said that this was a way to attract a lot of money to the household's wallet.

When the cleaning was completed, the broom was washed and also placed in a corner with the throwing side up, to attract material well-being. Ancestors believed that a broom should have its place in the apartment.

When moving to a new apartment, many give advice to take a broom from the old apartment with you. Folk wisdom says that this is how you can call your brownie after you, and he, in turn, will be able to join you.

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The New Year is approaching and the long weekend following this holiday. Unfortunately, at this time the whole country drinks and eats without measure, and the only distraction from the feast for many is watching all kinds of vulgar shows and "blue lights" on TV. Life seems to freeze.

To understand why in modern Russia the celebration of the New Year is elevated to a cult, why for non-church people this holiday has become almost the most important holiday of the year, it is necessary to make a short historical digression.

Before Peter I, both the church and the civil calendar in Russia began on September 1. The Church even now begins the church annual circle in September. Peter decided to celebrate the New Year from January 1 - in the Western manner. The New Year was a secular holiday and fell on Christmas time - the days after the Nativity of Christ. And therefore, there was no sin in the series of holy days to celebrate the new year, tasting fast food and wine. After the revolution of 1917, another calendar reform was carried out: instead of the Julian, the Gregorian calendar (new style) was adopted, so that the celebration of the New Year began to fall at the end of Advent. Therefore, a problem arose for people who observe spiritual traditions: how to celebrate the New Year and whether to celebrate it at all?

The celebration of the New Year is now taking place with much O on a larger scale and is accompanied by b O more drunkenness and revelry than in Soviet times. It is understandable. First, the Soviet government took away church holidays from people and planted their own, proletarian-revolutionary ones, which the people, in the absence of others, celebrated. But with the fall of the Soviet system, the revolutionary dates became a thing of the past, and practically only New Year remained from the previous holidays. “And the soul,” as the hero V.M. Shukshina in the film "Kalina Krasnaya" - wants a holiday.

But a soul unfamiliar with the spiritual Russian traditions, unhappy, deprived of real holidays, thinks that celebration can only be celebrated by drunkenness and unrestrained fun.

Let me digress a little and tell a little story, also connected with the loss of spiritual traditions. A priest told her.

Once, while walking around the cemetery, he saw a postcard on one grave. There was a fresh bouquet of flowers in a vase. It was the grave of a woman who lived a little over 30 years. He bent down and read the postcard. On it was written: “Dear mother! Happy Birthday to You! We remember you and love you very much." And this father thought: “Poor Soviet children! Their faith was taken away, the Church was taken away. They do not know what our dead expect from us, how to properly relate to death.” This is the tragedy of our people - in the break with traditions, spiritual experience. All this was almost completely swept away by the bulldozer of more than 70 years of atheism.

But back to New Year's Eve. Of course, celebrating the New Year with booze and partying is a Soviet custom, and not a Russian Orthodox one. And we need to get rid of this harmful tradition and return to real, Christian holidays. Moreover, Christmas is now, thank God, always a day off, which means that no one interferes with celebrating it. There is no need to attach such paramount, sometimes simply mystical significance to the celebration of the New Year. The New Year in pre-revolutionary Russia has always been inextricably linked with Christmas, it's just that this holiday was in the series of Christmas days, and, of course, no one celebrated it so widely and solemnly.

By the way, an interesting fact: in the 1920s, the Bolsheviks fought against the tradition of putting up and decorating Christmas trees for the New Year. One woman I know, who was born before the revolution (now deceased), recalled how the Soviet government waged a struggle with Christmas trees as an indispensable attribute of the Christmas holiday. After all, before the revolution, the Christmas tree was decorated before Christmas, and on New Year's Eve, of course, it was already in the house. So, there was a period when the Christmas tree was banned in order to combat religion. And again they were allowed to put up Christmas trees already in 1935.

How should Orthodox people relate to the general unrestrained fun and drunkenness on New Year's days? No one should be condemned, but we should not participate in this ourselves. We are preparing for Christmas, we are looking forward to this Orthodox holiday, the second most important and solemn, and we will remember that the days of the Christmas fast are coming, which we bring as our modest gift to the manger of the born Savior of the world. Although, of course, the All-Russian New Year extravaganza distracts us from fasting, creates certain difficulties for us. For example, in the last days of December, people begin to sweep meat, other fast foods and booze from the shelves. It is better not to appear in shops and markets at this time: you will lose a lot of time and effort. Also, on New Year's Eve, it is almost impossible to fall asleep due to explosions and pops of firecrackers and screams of celebrating neighbors. And someone in the family has lovers to celebrate the arrival of the New Year with noise. But we know that it has always been difficult for Orthodox Christians and they have always been prevented from celebrating holidays and observing fasts. Let us recall the recent time, when on the very day of Christmas, not everyone who wished could go to the temple, unless the holiday fell on Saturday or Sunday. And so on January 7, according to the new style, it was an ordinary working day. So it's a sin to complain, because now we can fast, and pray, and go to the Christmas service at night.

Some Orthodox people take a very extreme, strict position: the New Year is a demonic holiday, ungodly. This position is quite understandable, because the New Year is always accompanied by telepresence and drunkenness - we have already talked about this. However, it is impossible to completely deny the New Year and see only one sin in its celebration. There is simply no need to replace Christmas with them and act outrageously with fasting. After all, we, Orthodox people, are citizens of our country. And whether we want it or not, we live according to the new, Gregorian, calendar, we build our lives and work according to the civil calendar. For example, we go on vacation, hand over reports on work at the end of the year in a new, and not in the old style. Therefore, it is not a sin to spend the old year, take stock, thank God and, of course, pray, entering the new year. “Bless the crown of the summer of Thy goodness!” (Ps. 64:12). Molebens are served in all the churches of the Russian Orthodox Church so that we all have the opportunity to ask the Lord for a blessing for the coming year. You know, a very hackneyed phrase - a New Year's wish: "How you celebrate the New Year - so you will spend it" - contains a considerable amount of truth. Someone on New Year's Eve goes to the temple with his whole family and prays for a New Year's prayer service in order to call for blessings and help for all his affairs, and then, at a modest meal, remember with gratitude the passing summer (this year, New Year's Eve falls on Saturday, when the Charter allows even fish). And someone will spend New Year's Eve (and the whole next week) in a TV-alcoholic frenzy. And it will turn out, as in one joke about the millennium: a man wakes up with a terrible hangover after New Year's Eve, barely opens his eyelids, goes to the mirror and, looking at his swollen, swollen, wrinkled face for a long time, says: “So that's what you are, man third millennium! I really do not want the face of a Russian person of the third millennium to be just like that. Poorly, having unsuccessfully started some business, we cannot enter into the correct rhythm, rut for a long time. And many, having started the year with booze and idleness, assimilate this style for all subsequent months. And vice versa, as the proverb says: “A good start is half the battle gone”: starting the year with a prayer, with a request for God's help, let's hope that the Lord will not leave us in the coming year and will bless our labors and deeds.

Let me tell you a little about how our family usually celebrates the New Year. On December 31, in the evening, I serve a New Year's prayer service in the church. The wife and children also, of course, go to church. And then we have a tradition: every year my friends and I ... no, we don’t go to the bathhouse, but we gather at their dacha in the Moscow region and celebrate the New Year there. My godfather and classmate at the seminary, Archdeacon Alexy, lives outside the city and invites us and the children to his place. He has a large family - four boys, and children have a lot of fun together. Outside the city, it is especially good to celebrate the New Year also because it is almost impossible to fall asleep in Moscow on New Year's Eve, and in a holiday village, although it is also noisy, it is much calmer. So. Usually, we all prepare a Lenten meal together and, before the prayer “Our Father”, we also sing “King of Heaven” and “Many Years”. After that, we sit down and share a modest friendly meal, talk, and remember the outgoing year. And on this night, the children and I go to the forest, where the guys make caves out of snow, put candles inside and see whose candle will burn longer.

Unfortunately, we are placed in such conditions that on New Year's Eve, whether you like it or not, you have to stay awake: you can fall asleep only with sleeping pills and already in the morning. Therefore, Orthodox people may well sit together at the table, talk, but at the same time, of course, remembering that the fast is not over yet.

There is nothing bad in a friendly feast, communication, and the New Year is also an occasion to get together, take stock, remember the past. After all, we celebrate church holidays with fasting. For example, the Transfiguration of the Lord, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem are always celebrated in Lent. But they are celebrated modestly, lenten and, of course, with prayer. They give us the opportunity to refresh ourselves before the next part of the fast. Of course, the New Year is not a church holiday at all, but it can be filled with spiritual meaning and celebrated in a completely Orthodox way. Although you can, of course, not celebrate the New Year at all, limit yourself to the New Year's prayer service. This is also allowed.

Another problem: the New Year's school holidays are traditionally the time for all kinds of children's Christmas trees, matinees and theatrical holidays. What about children, can they attend these events?

Usually, most Christmas trees in kindergartens and schools are held before the New Year, before the holidays. As a rule, children are involved in staging these holidays and therefore, willy-nilly, they participate in them. I do not see anything mentally harmful in a children's matinee with Santa Claus, the Snow Maiden and the distribution of gifts; besides, if all the children take part in the holiday, and we forbid our children to attend it, then they will feel deprived. Although I fully admit that modern children's holidays may contain some moments that are unacceptable for Orthodox children. This should be known in advance, and if so, it is better to avoid participation in the matinee. It is advisable to visit all children's events and holidays before January 2 (when the Advent fast intensifies).

Some "zealots of Orthodoxy" fundamentally do not celebrate the New Year on January 1, but celebrate the so-called "Old New Year" on January 14, that is, the New Year according to the old style. To be honest, I don't see any point in it. After all, our secular life, as well as the life of the country and the whole world, is built according to a new, civil calendar. And Christmas time already has many holidays: the Cathedral of the Most Holy Theotokos (December 26 / January 8), the memory of St. Seraphim of Sarov (January 2/15) and, of course, the Circumcision of the Lord and the memory of St. Basil the Great - on the very day of January 1/14.

It is interesting that in Greece the role of the Christmas and New Year elder, who distributes gifts to children, is traditionally assimilated not to St. Nicholas (Santa Claus), as in Western countries, and not to Santa Claus, as in Russia, but to St. Basil. Since his memory falls just in time for the New Year. There he is called Agios Vasilis. Like Santa Claus, he is depicted with a white beard and in a red and white robe.

Let me remind you that the Greek Church lives according to the new style. The church calendar in Greece coincides with the civil one, and they celebrate the New Year after Christmas.

Our cities and towns get numb during the New Year holidays, it is very difficult at this time to do some business outside the home, as many organizations stop working. For many, this general inaction is very tiring and annoying. But even this time can be put to good use. A modern family man has very little time to communicate with his family. Dads, and many mothers, work all day long, and in the evening there is only time and energy left to feed the children, check their lessons and put them to bed. And during the rather long winter holidays it is very good to devote to communicating with children and loved ones. You can also do fairly neglected household chores, put things in order in the house before Christmas.

I think that when the New Year in Rus' began on September 1, the people did not spend this time in idleness and idleness. After all, Russia was a country completely dependent on agriculture, and September is the time for harvesting and preparing for wintering. And the holiday, to which the end of the field work was timed, was the day of the celebration of the Intercession of the Virgin (October 1/14). No wonder traditionally this holiday accounted for many weddings. There came a time of calm in rural work until spring, and one could think about starting a family.

Somehow I was thinking about New Year's issues and came to the conclusion that for our country, of course, the September New Year was the most correct. By September, the annual natural cycle ends. The fruits ripen, they are harvested, and nature begins to prepare for winter rest in order to come to life again in the spring for new fruiting.

Often parishioners ask me what to do if there are unchurched relatives in the family (sometimes almost the entire family is unchurched) who like to celebrate the New Year with a magnificent feast and cannot imagine New Year's Eve without a TV? How not to offend them, but also not to harm the soul, not to disturb the calm course of fasting?

This requires considerable wisdom, prudence. You need to find a middle ground so as not to offend relatives, not to quarrel with them, but also not to hurt yourself.

Imagine that some person, an Orthodox Christian, lives with his closest relatives in the same apartment (and it often happens that in married couples one half is a believer and the other is not), and his non-church relatives want to celebrate the New Year, “in order to everything was like people's." With Olivier salad, jelly, fried chicken and, of course, plenty of booze. And, of course, the main decoration of the table in the New Year, as the postman Pechkin once noted, for them is a TV. Well, a believing person should hide in the farthest corner, defiantly turn away from the blue screen and, like a Pharisee from the Gospel parable, repeat to himself: “I am not like other people, robbers, offenders, adulterers…”? No, it won't be Christian. The apostle Paul has these words: “We who are strong must endure the infirmities of the weak and not please ourselves. Each of us must please our neighbor for good, for edification” (Rom. 15:1-2). Of course, all this is very difficult. A Christian who has non-church relatives is, as it were, at the forefront of a spiritual struggle. We must understand that we can bring them to God only by love and prayer for them. They are weak people, as the apostle says, “powerless”, which means that we need to bear their infirmities. We have already been given to know the joy of Orthodox holidays, but someone else is not. It remains only to sympathize with them. So what are we to do? I think that if we sit at the table for a while, observing the fast if possible (you can help relatives in advance in preparations for the holiday and make a couple of lenten salads), there will be no sin in this. Also, raising a glass of champagne, you can make a toast of gratitude to God for everything that happened in the outgoing year. After all, a Christian, sharing a feast with people who are far from spiritual issues, may well somehow spiritualize this celebration. To tell people about the real meaning of celebrating the New Year, to talk about the coming Nativity of Christ. After all, people now simply forgot how to celebrate, they don’t even know how to say normal wishes and toasts. Secular holidays are often sheer idle talk and "washing the bones" of others.

Of course, some Orthodox will consider drinking a glass of champagne on New Year's Eve a sin, but, for example, when I studied at the seminary, after the New Year's prayer service, the seminarians went to the dining room for dinner (of course, fasting), where the brethren were also offered "consolation" - a glass of champagne.

Celebrating the New Year with non-church relatives, of course, you need to observe the measure. It is not necessary to sit at the table all night and participate in noisy fun to the end. Having paid tribute to loved ones, you can retire under the pretext of fatigue to rest (if possible) or pray, read.

By the way, we find a similar prescription in the canonical rules for priests. When at the wedding the fun already passes a certain measure and all kinds of dances begin, in which it is unacceptable for a clergyman to take part, the canons order the priest to take his leave and leave the celebration. But at the same time, it is not said that the priest should rebuke the guests and call everyone to order.

If your relatives do not really mind your absence on New Year's Eve, this option is possible: go to visit Orthodox friends and celebrate the New Year with them.

There is another way out, but it is acceptable mainly for residents of Moscow. In our capital city for more than one year in several parishes there has been such a custom: on the night of December 31 to January 1, a night service is served. Liturgy is usually accompanied by litanies, prayers, the Apostle and the Gospel from the New Year's prayer service. I know at least three such places. This, of course, is the Sretensky Monastery, also the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Khokhly and the Nikolo-Perervinsky Monastery. In general, many Orthodox strive to meet the New Year with prayer.

Some priests specifically put themselves on the liturgical schedule on January 1st. It is very symbolic that January 1, according to the new style, is the memory of the holy martyr Boniface. And January 2 is the day of memory of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt. Both of these saints are prayed for those suffering from the disease of drunkenness. Let us also pray for those unfortunates who, not knowing the measure, get drunk on the New Year. And for many, such a “celebration” ends in a hospital or morgue. On New Year's Eve in Russia, thousands of drunk people freeze to death, and even more remain crippled, lose their health for life, lose their arms and legs due to frostbite.

I wish all visitors of the site to be always with God in the new year, and the Lord will not leave us! The worst thing happens when a person moves away from the Source of Life, from the Heavenly Father. And I also want to wish everyone not some earthly blessings, but the most important thing: peace and love in hearts and families. After all, only when people have peace and love, they are happy.

And it will not be superfluous to remind you: the fast is not over yet and after the New Year it will continue for another six days, and in the last five days, even on Sunday, it will become stricter - the eating of fish is not blessed.

The Orthodox know that the end of a fast is often accompanied by considerable temptations. This happens because the fallen spirits want to laugh at us and ruin the feat of fasting, drawing us into a quarrel or tempting us to indulge in sadness and despondency. In addition, the conditions for this are very favorable. By the end of the fast, a Christian may weaken or, conversely, having successfully completed almost the entire fast, fall into a kind of euphoria. This self-confidence is used by the demons. As the saying goes, "don't say 'hop!' until you jump." So let's be on the alert, and God give us all the strength to go the rest of the way without stumbling and joyfully celebrate the Nativity of Christ!