22.03.2023

Traditions and customs of the Cossacks. Prayer after birth

Visiting the Cossacks

Leading. Hello, dear guys, dear guests. The Cossacks and Cossacks had a great night. Today we have a holiday.

Leading: Imagine that we found ourselves at village gatherings, where, according to custom, young Cossacks and Cossack women talk, sing, and dance. And like at any Cossack holiday, jokes, sayings, and jokes are heard here.

(To the music a rooster comes out with balls)

Rooster: Crow! Crow!

Well, here it is all assembled

The holiday can begin

Gather everyone into a circle of friends.

Hey guys, kids!

It's time to sing and dance

Let's get acquainted.

red comb,

Scarlet shirt

Guys, I'm a cock barker!

Come one at a time

I'll tell you what's what.

There's no secret here

I'll ask anyone:

After all, a holiday like this

Never happened to the Don!

(Dance music sounds, the rooster dances)

And now the time has come

To awaken people to creativity;

All traditions are forgotten -

It urgently needs to be revived.

Cossack couples come outwith the song “Hey, Don Cossacks”

Eh, Don Cossacks,

Cossacks, Cossacks,

We walked through the villages,

We walked, we walked,

We walked and walked.

They loved young people

Loved, loved,

Loved, loved.

Two people went to one,

We walked, we walked,

We walked and walked.

Two loved one,

Loved, loved,

Loved, loved.

They carried gifts

They carried gifts.

Wore, wore,

Wore, wore.

The gift is not simple,

Not simple, not simple,

From the pen there is a gold ring,

Golden, golden,

Golden, golden.

Silver cripple,

Cripple, cripple,

Cripple, cripple.

To beat my heart,

Heart, heart,

Heart, heart.

Pain in the heart and stomach,

And belly, and belly,

And belly, and belly.

My dear lives far away,

He lives, he lives

He lives, he lives.

Often gives news,

Gives, gives,

Serves, serves.

And I'm not afraid of him,

I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid

I'll show myself on the street

I'll show myself, I'll show myself

I'll show myself, I'll show myself.

Cheeky guys

Guys, guys,

Lovely Cossacks,

Cossacks, Cossacks,

Cossacks, Cossacks!

Leading. Such holidays on the Don were held after the fields had been harvested to the last grain. And only then did they bake loaves from the new harvest, play weddings, and organize gatherings. In a word, everyone could relax.

At the kuren, where young people gathered for gatherings, according to custom, guests were greeted by the owner and hostess.

(Master and hostess come out)

Master : Good afternoon, guests are invited and welcome.

Mistress: Dear guests! Thank God for many years to come!

Master: You are welcome to our kuren!

Mistress: A noble treat awaits you here and you will have a pleasant time. And according to the old Don custom, we greet our dear guests with bread and salt. And the main bread on the Don is, of course, the loaf.

(The loaf woman comes out with bread and salt)

Loaf girl: The Cossacks and Cossacks had a great night. You are welcome to our kuren.

Leading. The word “loaf” comes from the word “kara” - circle; because the loaf is round bread. And our ancestors put a lot of meaning into the concept of “circle” - a round red sun, a round annual cycle. Our ancestors also imagined the universe as closed in the form of a circle, and all life, as they believed, develops in a circle...

Leading. Therefore, after cleaning, the girls danced in circles.

(Round dancedance “Weave the fence” )

Leading. In ancient times, people gathered for holidays and held feasts. And for this day they baked special bread - it was called “pie”, from the word “feast”.

(Lyrical music sounds)

Leading: The most ancient pies are pies made from unleavened dough.

Leading: Yeast dough was prepared simple and rich - only on major holidays.

Leading. Puff pastry appeared much later. In the old days, pies had a wide variety of fillings.

Leading: They made pies with meat, mushrooms, apples, poppy seeds, fish and even sorrel.

Leading: The vegetable filling was also very varied, there were even borage - pies with pickled cucumbers.

Leading. There were also bread pies. The crust was cut off and the filling was eaten with spoons.

Leading: They prepared these pies-plates with fillings of onions, cabbage and carrots.

(Music fades out)

Leading. The shapes of the pies varied into long, round and three-shaped. The round pie, as mentioned earlier, had a lot of meaning.

Leading. In our region, in addition to Easter cakes, Voznesensky bagels, fashionistas, potato bakers, they baked urizniks and secheniki, i.e. socni with potatoes and cabbage, toptaniki made from pea flour and much more.

Leading. Oh, Cossacks and Cossack women, you and I are in full swing. Let's sing better.

Leading. Get ready, people.

Into our merry round dance.

Sing songs and dance,

To amuse everyone around.

Song "I will sow quinoa..."

I will sow quinoa on the shore,

My large seedling,

My big green one.

The quinoa burned without rain,

My big seedling

Mine is the big green one.

I'll send the Cossack across the water,

There is no water, no Cossack woman,

There is no water, no Cossack food.

If only I could have a horse, young one,

I would be a free Cossack woman,

I would be a free Cossack woman.

I would jump and dance through the meadows,

Along the green oak trees,

Along the green oak trees.

With the Don, with the young Cossack,

With a daring good fellow,

With a daring, kind fellow.

Girl. Oh guys, what did I see!

All. What!?

Girl.

The village drove past a Cossack,

Suddenly from the gateway

The gates are barking!

Boy.

The horse was eating porridge

And the Cossack is oats.

The horse got into the sleigh,

And the Cossack was lucky!

Girl.

Knocking - strumming along the street,

Foma rides a chicken.

And Timoshka is on a cat

Along the crooked path!

Boy.

Katya-Katyukha

Saddled a rooster.

The rooster crowed

I ran to the market!

Girl.

The blue sea is burning with fire,

White fish flies across the sky,

A ship is sailing across an open field,

There is a gray wolf on the ship.

Boy.

And the agile fox barks:

At least hold it to the right, at least hold it to the left,

And then turn wherever you want!

Girl.

Well, guys, you've lost your mind,

Almost scared me to death.

And where has this been seen?

And where have you heard this?

Boy.

You play, accordion player,

Play, don't be shy

Today you, accordion player,

Try your best for us.

Ditties

They say it's like little ditties

These days it is no longer in fashion.

Just how out of fashion they are

If people love them.

Hey, laughing girls,

Sing some ditties.

Sing quickly

To make it more fun!

Play more fun, accordion,

We will sing to you from our hearts.

We, girls from Donetsk,

How good!

Oh, my dear side,

Dear side!

Here we are met everywhere

Eh, the Don land.

We respect antiquity

We preserve the antiquity.

About our beloved land

We sing sonorous songs.

We are friends with a cheerful song,

We tell you honestly

We live well, don’t worry,

We eat bread with caviar.

We sang and danced for you,

They stomped on their heels,

And now we ask you,

So that we can be applauded

Leading. Either Cossacks or Cossack women, either.

Loaf girl: And I want to ask you guys. Tell me, how is the word “pie” interpreted in Russian?

Cossack woman: This is a woman who sells pies.

Cossack: No, this is a board on which pies are cooked.

Loaf girl: Good good. No need to argue. Both answers are correct because this word has two meanings.

Tell me, good people, why do they say: “While the pies are in the oven, don’t sit on the oven”?

Cossack: Yes, because if they spoil, the dough will shrink.

Loaf girl: Right. Also, to prevent the cake and bread from spoiling, you should not put the cake under the oven and cut the bread until all the bread is baked.

And why didn’t the Cossack start cutting new bread at dinner?

Cossack: But because there will be a dispute in the house and poverty will prevail.

Loaf girl: How then should a loaf of bread be started correctly?

Cossack: You need to cut from the head, from the edge that has protruded.

Loaf girl: Well, well done, Cossacks and Cossack women.

Dear Cossacks and Cossack women, I propose to go on a trip along the Don now, show yourself and look at people.

Master: Love! Honest loaf maker, we agree. But where will we go, who will show us the way?

Loaf girl: And especially for this, I baked a bun so that it would show us the way. You just need to say: “Roll the bun on the saucer. Show us the treasured corner."

Leading. Amazing. Just before the trip, I suggest gaining strength and resting a little.

All . Love, love!

Song "Across the field, field"

Along the field-field, across the field-field,

Across a wide field

Over a wide field

Flew and flew, flew and flew

Young blue darling,

Young blueberry.

Clicked, clicked, clicked, clicked

your blueberry,

Your blueberry.

You come here, you come here,

My little dove,

My little dove.

I love you I love you

For your walk,

For your walk.

You're walking through the yard,

You float like a peacock,

You swim like a spider.

Along the field-field, across the field-field,

Across a wide field

Over a wide field

Flew and flew, flew and flew

Young blue darling,

Young blueberry.

Along the field-field, across the field-field,

Across a wide field

Along the field-field, across the field-field,

Over a wide field.

Field.

Leading. Well, Cossacks and Cossack women, you can go on a trip. Roll on the saucer, little bun, show us the treasured corner.

(Kolobok song sounds)

Leading. The bun rolled and rolled and rolled into a wonderful country called “Childhood”. And how could he not roll there? After all, a person becomes familiar with the concept of “pie” at a very early age, and a round pie also served as a talisman, which is why this word is so often found in children’s nursery rhymes, jokes and lullabies.

Leading. Do you want to see and listen to how Cossack women put their babies to sleep, how they rocked them, what they sang to them?

(On stage, in the hut near the cradle, the hostess sings a lullaby)

Mistress:

Kitty, kitten, cat,

Kitty has a gray tail.

Come, Kotya, spend the night.

Rock our girl.

How am I for you, cat?

I'll pay for the work

I'll give you a piece of the pie

Yes, a jug of milk,

Eat, Kitty, don’t ask.

(Daughter comes out with a doll)

Daughter:

Oh, swing-rock-rock,

I'll bake you a loaf of bread,

Sleep, Tanechka, don’t cry.

Daughter. And my Tanechka needs to be planted under the sauerkraut and baked.

Mistress: Do you really know how this is done?

Daughter: Certainly. Just as bread is baked, you need to take the dough out of the dough and put the doll in there, just like grandma did with little Vanyushka. And you also need to put the doll on the shoulder blade and put it in the stove.

And here’s a question for you, Cossacks and Cossack women. Why were little children put under a kvass and shoved into the stove?

Leading. If a child speaks poorly and grows poorly, he is put under a squash. They moistened their hands with water, which was used to smear the prepared loaves, and said: “As my loaves are sour, so are you, my child, sour. As my bread sprang up, so do you.

Leading. And when the child was frail and sickly, they performed the ritual of over-baking - they put him on a shoulder blade and into the oven, like putting a pie.

Master: A beautiful country - Childhood, but we need to go further on our journey.

Mistress: Roll on the saucer, little bun, show us the treasured corner.

You and I found ourselves in a country called “Mystery”. A very mysterious country.

Loaf girl:

Don't sit on the stove

Fly into the rolls,

The one who gets the pies

Who can tell me the answer?

Master: Lyubo, Cossacks and Cossack women! On holidays in Rus', and here on the Don, they loved to organize competitions. They competed in dancing, singing, prowess, and strength.

- How about we arrange a competition in ingenuity, resourcefulness, and intelligence? Then listen carefully.

Quiz

The inhabitants of the Don were distinguished by a special dialect, and now we will conduct a quiz on the dictionary of the Don dialect.

Gorishche - attic

Gutarit - speak

Barn floor – place for grain storage

Kuren - house

Have dinner - have supper

Way - road

Ataman - leader

Cossacks - free people

Maidan - square

Stanitsa - big village

Khutor - small village

Kochet - rooster

Dudes - slippers

get sick - get sick

Tsibarka - bucket

Curtain - apron

Baz – barn

Let's go - let

But not - Today

Leading: Cossacks are free people, but they always observed a code of honor and had their own commandments that could not be broken. Which ones? Do you know?

(children in the hall list)

Cossack commandments:

- Honor and a good name for a Cossack are more valuable than life.

- All Cossacks are judged by you.

- Serve faithfully your people, not their leaders.

- Keep your word! A Cossack's word is precious.

- Honor your elders, respect old age.

- Perish yourself, and save your comrade.

- Put the Cossack’s will above all blessings and life itself, but remember – will is not self-will! Dashing is not robbery! And valor is not cruelty!

- Remember - the brave are always kind, because they are strong!

- Don't take revenge! Leave your enemy to God's judgment!

Loaf girl: Lyubo, Cossacks and Cossack women. We've started talking, it's time to know the honor.

Mistress: There are waves on the Don,
The scallops are foaming,
We know how to have fun
And we are not lazy in our work.

Master: Because of the Don I will write a song,
I'll lead you around Russia,
Vociferous, perky,
In harmony with the echoes.

Let's sing a song too

Sounds"Song about Russia"

Look how beautiful everything is

Look - what space there is.

Like a mother, the willow bowed down

Over the sleeping river.

The wind rushed at once,

The clouds have broken through the ring.

And daisy with a yellow eye

Looks the sun in the face.

Chorus:

The sun is shining over Russia,

And the rains rustle over it.

/In the whole world, in the whole world

There is no country like her relatives,

There is no country closer to her. -2 rub./

Look at the forests

And the gardens are noisy all around.

Our Motherland - Russia

Getting better every day.

You see - apple trees and plums

They lined up along the road.

About living and being happy

In Russian villages they say.

Chorus.

And a young birch tree,

And bushes and grass, -

I love everything selflessly

I call everything home.

Good campfire

Kindle in the clearing,

Good in the land of the free

I need to grow up with my friends.

Rooster: Well, dear guests, we once again heard about the Don loaf, about Cossack customs and traditions. And remember that there is nothing dearer and dearer than the place where you were born and raised.

On October 14, in the village of Medvedevo, with the blessing of the rector of the Church of St. Kirill Archpriest Peter, through the efforts of the Khutor Donuzlav Farm Cossack Society, according to the script of the director of the Medvedev Rural House of Culture, a holiday was held in honor of the Day of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Day of the Cossacks.
The celebration was attended by the chairman of the Medvedevsky village council - the head of the administration of the rural settlement I.V. Tkachenko, Cossacks of the village of Chernomorskoye, the villages of Krasnaya Polyana and Mezhvodnoye and participants in amateur performances of the Krasnaya Polyana rural House of Culture.
The event began with a water blessing service, which was served by Archpriest Peter, after which a festive concert took place, in which the groups of the Medvedev rural House of Culture took part - the vocal studio "Good mood" and the children's dance ensemble "Solnyshko" (director - O.V. Mikhailenko), children's vocal ensemble "Smileys" and vocal ensemble "Zoryushka" (leader - S.A. Ivanova), as well as guests of the holiday - vocal group "Singing Hearts" of the Krasnopolyansk rural House of Culture (director - T.A. Tertyshnaya).
During the holiday, guests enjoyed tasting the treats - Cossack porridge kulesh, sweet fluffy buns and aromatic uzvar.
An exhibition of Cossack weapons was also organized here, where swords, daggers, machine guns, axes and other weapons were presented.
The event took place in a friendly, festive atmosphere. The audience warmly welcomed all the performing amateur artists, danced together and sang Cossack songs.
At the end of the holiday, the ataman of the Khutor Donuzlav Farm Cossack Society V.V. Kultyshev warmly thanked all the participants of the festival, guests and spectators for their support in holding Cossack Day.

O. Mikhailenko,
Director of Medvedevsky SDK

Traditions are something generally accepted, familiar, worthy. Traditions are then accepted by law when they become a way of life and are passed on from generation to generation. “It’s hard to imagine what life would be like without holidays. Undoubtedly, something very dull, monotonous... But the soul cannot stand depressing monotony: it requires bright, flowery spots, a burning sun, a laughing sky, the song of a lark, the joy of life. All this gives a holiday,” said St. Basil (1878-1945), Bishop of Kineshma, canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 2000.

The basis of all folk traditional (spiritual) culture is rituals. A ritual is a set of customs and rituals in which any ideas or everyday traditions are embodied. A ritual is a traditional order of performing any actions - New Year's Eve, wedding, funeral. Ritualism united people and formed a single and inviolable way of life. It reflected the centuries-old experience of the people, its unique ethics and aesthetics.

It is customary to divide rituals into calendar ones, associated with certain days of the year - driving cattle to the field, harvesting - and everyday ones - weddings, christenings, funerals, housewarmings 1. Compliance by the Cossacks with their religious faith was a prerequisite for acceptance into the Cossack brotherhood 2 .

A holiday is a day especially celebrated by custom or church. Calendar holidays and rituals are identified that are fixed in time and associated with special, turning-point events in the life of nature and society. A special group consists of life cycle rituals, or family (household) rituals associated with the life of an individual. Military holidays are also typical for the Cossacks. All these holidays and rituals developed over the centuries, accumulating the most important events in human life.

Calendar holidays, marking the change of seasons, were concentrated around the winter (Nativity of Christ) and summer (Ivan Kupala) solstices, spring (Maslenitsa) and autumn (Nativity of the Virgin Mary) equinoxes. All great holidays (Christmas, Easter, Trinity) were accompanied by a special ritual and lasted several days. The traditional calendar rituals of the Don Cossacks were formed during the 18th-19th centuries 3. During the period of early history, when the Cossacks were paramilitary male communities, there were practically no agrarian rituals on the Don, since the economic sphere of life itself was absent, there was a strict ban on arable land, and livelihoods were obtained exclusively from war.

As the Cossacks transitioned to a sedentary lifestyle and farming, along with the formation of a patriarchal family and a rural land community, a complex of traditional calendar rituals took shape, complementing the previously existing military rituals.

In the gradually emerging cycle of calendar holidays, ancient pagan and Christian views were closely intertwined; rituals associated with the period of male paramilitary communities and later ones - brought to the Don by new waves of settlers. Closely intertwined and complementing each other, these customs and rituals reflected folk ideas about the relationship between the world of people and nature, living and dead, and performed the most important functions of socialization of youth and solidarity of the entire Cossack community.

The calendar holidays of the Don Cossacks have many features, since in the 18th-19th centuries. the Cossack remained both a professional warrior and a plowman-farmer. In almost every calendar holiday on the Don, the main organizing role was given to men's groups.

The role of the Orthodox Church was very significant in the Cossack tradition. Orthodox priests took part in Maslenitsa memorial services in old towns, in the so-called. “royal holidays”, in rituals of praying for rain, in seeing off and welcoming Cossacks from service. Priests walked around the courtyards at Christmas, Epiphany and Easter. Patronal (temple) holidays played a major role in the life of Cossack villages and farms, which were celebrated very solemnly and magnificently. It was the Orthodox (primarily the Twelfth) holidays that structured the national calendar year and either crushed with their power many elements of the former pagan tradition, or were closely intertwined with them, enriching the holidays with new elements and meanings.

The very concept of “folk holiday” absorbed both ancient (pre-Christian) ideas and the experience of the Orthodox Church. Moreover, over time, Christian traditions on the Don increasingly replaced pagan ones, highlighting and elevating the concept of the holiday.

The Orthodox Church calls holidays days dedicated to the remembrance of some sacred event or sacred person in the history of the Church in order to encourage believers to understand the meaning of the remembered event, or to imitate the lives of saints.

family traditions and foundations

Until the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. The existence of a large family is typical, says A.P. Kashkarov 4. Its long-term preservation was facilitated by the special social position of the Cossacks and their specific way of life: the need to cultivate large plots of land, the impossibility of separating a young family during service or before it began, and the relative isolation of family life. The Cossacks of the Don, Ural, Terek, Kuban troops had 3-4 generation families, the number reached 25-30 people. Along with large ones, small families were known, consisting of parents and unmarried children. The head of the family (grandfather, father or older brother) was the sovereign leader of the entire family and had sole power. This position was occupied by the mother in the absence of the owner.

The everyday life of the Cossacks is characterized by traditions of spending leisure time together: meals after finishing fishing work, seeing off and meeting Cossacks from service. Almost all holidays were accompanied by competitions in cutting, shooting, and horse riding. A characteristic feature were “gulebnye” games, which staged military battles or Cossack “freedom”. Games and competitions were held on the initiative of the military Cossack foreman (the leadership of the farm, village).

Among the Don Cossacks there was a custom of “walking with a banner” at Maslenitsa, when the chosen “vatazhny ataman” walked around the houses of the village residents with a banner, accepting treats from them. At the christening, the boy was “initiated as a Cossack”: they put a saber on him and put him on a horse. Guests brought arrows, cartridges, and a gun as gifts for the newborn (to eat) and hung them on the wall. Just as today, the most significant Orthodox holidays were Christmas and Easter. Patronal holidays were widely celebrated. The day of the patron saint of the army was considered a general military holiday.

And among the Ural Cossacks in the 19th century. The festive fun included an entertainment known among the Turkic peoples: without using your hands, you were supposed to get a coin from the bottom of a cauldron with flour stew (oalamyk).

The authorities encouraged the Cossacks' passion for choral singing, creating choirs, organizing the collection of ancient songs and publishing texts with notes. Musical literacy was taught in village schools; the basis of the song repertoire was ancient historical and heroic songs associated with specific historical events, as well as those that reflected military life. Ritual songs accompanied calendar and family holidays; love and humorous songs were popular.

birth of a Cossack. initiation into the Cossacks

Each newborn Cossack or Cossack woman, in addition to his blood father and mother, had a godfather and a godmother 5. The blood parents took care of the choice of godparents in advance. These did not have to be relatives (as is customary now). The godfather was selected by the father - he must be a reliable person (kunak, one-sum, brother-in-law, etc.) from whom there was something to learn. It was he who primarily shaped the spirit of the Cossack. And an important factor is that both the godfather and godmother must be able to participate in raising the child - living close to the godson (goddaughter). The godmother was looked for by the blood mother from among her friends (preferably at least a little older than her age).

If a Cossack was born into a family, then the main burden fell on the godfather - he made a warrior out of the Cossack. The main task of the godmother in this case was to form in the Cossack an attitude towards the Cossack girl as a wife, mother and mistress. If a Cossack girl was born, then the main role was played by the godmother. She molded the girl into a Cossack woman, as a wife who knew how to wait, a patient mother and a kind housewife. In this case, the godfather formed in the Cossack woman an attitude towards the Cossack as a warrior-defender, as a husband, father and head of the family.

After the birth of the child, there was no particular rush to undress the baby. Teaching him to move his arms and legs quickly was not an end in itself. The child must first see and understand an unknown object, and only then touch it, “take it by heart.” Subsequently, the “saw-realized-did” process accelerated. This is exactly what a Cossack does in a critical situation. And there is no panic and unnecessary movements, because first I appreciated it, and then I did it.

After the christening, a checker (dagger) or a bullet (formerly an arrow) was placed on the Cossack girl, which is called “on the tooth.” And they watched his reaction: if he starts playing with her, he will be a kind Cossack, but if he bursts into tears, there is something to think about. Further, they always tried to surround the boy with exactly those things that were indispensable attributes of the life of the Cossacks.

When the Cossack girl turned one year old, he was led to his first communion. This year the Cossack boy experienced many things for the first time. For the first time, he was put on a horse alone, his father’s saber was put on him, his father took the horse by the bridle and led him around the yard. And another ritual was performed in the year from birth. All the men of the clan gathered and took the boy to the sacred place of their village (or farm). Among the Donets it was called a “tract”, among the Black Sea people it was called a “round”. Actions were taken there that made it possible to transfer the power and knowledge of the family to a new generation on a spiritual level.

The first steps in training and education were taken in the family. The entire system, if you can call it that, was built precisely on the tribal and comradely principles of existence. Until the age of 7-8 years, the Cossack boy lived in the female half of the kuren.

War games outside the city and target shooting were favorite pastimes for young people in their free time. These exercises developed accuracy in shooting; many of the Cossacks could knock out a coin held between their fingers with a bullet at a considerable distance. Three-year-old children were already freely riding a horse around the yard, and at the age of 5 they were galloping across the steppe

At this moment, education came from both the female part of the family and the male part. It was based on visibility. And the main thing here is the personal example of the elders and the immersion of the boy in the appropriate environment. And what exactly did the Cossack habitat include for a Cossack girl? On the wall in the kuren is my father's (or grandfather's) saber. Whips are at the door and in the hands of the Cossacks. Stripes, hats, caps on people close to the boy. Crosses and medals on the chest of a grandfather, father, uncle or godfather. Horses. Horses are everywhere, at home, on the street, with neighbors, in the steppe outside the village. During this period, men watched how the Cossack woman was formed. Women were less and less allowed to coo with him: “Don’t spoil the Cossack, women!” If I hurt myself somewhere and cried, they taught me: “Don’t cry, you’re a Cossack, and a Cossack doesn’t cry!” And then the Cossack girl gradually developed the conviction that what the elders sing about and what the elders say, that’s what they do, and commit the same actions. And it's all real. And he himself will do the same. Well, and, on top of everything else, playing outside with peers. The games have been established for centuries, and are naturally aimed at the development of Cossacks. Almost all of them took place under the supervision of village (farm) elders, who strictly monitored the behavior of each of the Cossack children. And in the event that someone behaved unworthily, the old people inspiredly instructed and corrected the negligent person.

There were many exercise games for the development of Cossacks. Exercises are naturally not in the form in which we understand them. These are more like test exercises. They identified the presence of one or another quality or skill among Cossacks. And the Cossacks did these test games, competing with each other (playing). And the Cossacks played these games almost their entire lives. From the age of 12, Cossack girls began to be taken to circles (gatherings) and other socially significant events. Its main task is to watch and remember. And at the age of 16, when the Cossack was ready, a more serious test awaited him - mainly it was a hunt for a predator (wolf, wild boar, etc.). In addition, the Cossacks were trained under the guidance of experienced Cossacks. They gathered at a specially designated place on their horse and with weapons. Here they improved combat techniques, shot at a target at full gallop, chopped down a vine with a saber, overcame obstacle courses on horseback, picked up objects from the ground while galloping, rode while standing on a horse, learned to jump off a horse while running and fly into the saddle again, chop a candle flame on stand. They learned to swim across rivers with a horse, crawl on their bellies, and hide sentries. With pikes at the ready, the Cossacks on horseback charged with lava, hitting the enemy's reed effigies with their pikes, and with the pike on the move they learned to hit the enemy on the move, throwing the pike like a spear. And when the day of passing the exams came, they were received by the ataman himself and the esauls in the presence of the elderly. The chieftain presented the most distinguished ones with rich weapons, decorated saddles, and elegant bridles. And the Cossacks valued these first awards very much and kept them all their lives.

And after such upbringing and training, the result was a “seasoned Cossack”. True, there is one clarification: the “seasoned” Cossack appeared in the third generation. Naturally, if the first and second generations were carefully prepared and survived battles and battles. Before serving in the army, a Cossack youth had to master at least: horse riding with elements of horseback riding, cutting vines with a saber, rifle shooting (lying, standing, kneeling, from a horse, including at a gallop), wield a pike. All young and adult Cossacks demonstrated their military skills at the general Cossack military festival. The holiday went something like this. First, military formation (by fifty and hundreds). Then the removal from the temple of the banner, icons, centenary flags and liturgy - a church service. After this: speed racing and overcoming an obstacle course on horseback, horse riding, demonstration of weapon possession - saber, dagger, lance. And at the end - a public feast for groups and families, mass celebrations.

You can get acquainted with the Siberian traditions associated with the birth of a Cossack and his initiation into the Cossacks in the “Combat sheet of the Yenisei Cossacks” 6. When a boy was born into a family in the Cossack regions, it was always a great joy. Great hopes were placed on him. He is a warrior, a hard worker, and most importantly, a successor of the family. Therefore, they began to raise the baby according to Cossack traditions almost from the cradle. When the child was nine months old, they checked whether he was really a Cossack. This custom was performed in the presence of the ataman. Various toys were laid out around the boy: girls' and boys'. Cossack objects, such as a bullet, were also placed among them. It was joyful if a child chose a toy for boys or a combat item for the Cossacks.

The second initiation took place when the boy turned three years old. On this day, after communion in the temple, his godfather and mother put the child on a horse and, with the blessing of the priest, led him around the temple. And they said that it was yours, son. This is what you must protect. Then they handed the baby into the arms of his father. As if to draw the line: once he was a mama’s boy, he became a daddy’s boy. Thus, the boy was initiated into the Cossacks. Later, in order to be considered a Cossack, it became necessary to take an oath. The single Cossacks (who had taken a vow of celibacy) nursed the newborn baby, and when his first tooth appeared, everyone certainly came to see him and there was no end to the delight of these battle-hardened warriors.

A Cossack was born a warrior, and with the birth of a baby his military school began. All the father's relatives and friends brought a gun, cartridges, gunpowder, bullets, a bow and arrows as a gift to the newborn. These gifts were hung on the wall where the mother and baby lay. At the end of forty days after the mother, having taken a cleansing prayer, returned home, the father put a sword belt on the child, holding the sword in his hand, put him on a horse and then returned the son to his mother, congratulating her on becoming a Cossack. When the newborn's teeth were cutting through, his father and mother put him back on the horse and took him to church to serve a prayer service to Ivan the Warrior. The baby’s first words were “but” and “poo” - to urge the horse and shoot. War games outside the city and target shooting were favorite pastimes for young people in their free time. These exercises developed accuracy in shooting; many of the Cossacks could knock out a coin held between their fingers with a bullet at a considerable distance. Three-year-old children could already freely ride a horse around the yard, and at the age of 5 they galloped across the steppe.

The process of initiation into the Cossacks is usually described as follows: “This ritual, which exists today, consists in the fact that, having waited for the son’s first tooth to appear, the father, putting a saber on him, puts him on his saddled horse and at that moment for the first time trims his forelock." Then he returns it to his mother with the words: “Here’s a Cossack for you!” All the father’s friends and acquaintances brought something for the newborn’s teeth. This gift was certainly military: a cartridge of gunpowder, an arrow, a bow, a bullet; the grandfather gave a saber or a gun. With this ritual, the boy was initiated into the Cossacks, his belonging to the community of free sons of the Quiet Don was recognized: a warrior by birth and upbringing, a Cossack from childhood was accustomed to think and feel like a soldier. The son, grandson and great-grandson of a serving Cossack, he was already a Cossack as a child.

In class culture, infant initiation was transformed into a rite of passage into the Cossacks. Officials, as a rule, participated in the ceremony. Initiation into the Cossacks took place at the age of six. Cossacks gathered in a circle on the Maidan. The boys were put on horses. Each of them had to ride a horse in a circle. Whoever could not stay in the saddle was initiated into the Cossacks after a year. For those boys who rode around the circle and did not fall off the horse, initiation into the Cossacks began. The ceremony took place in a solemn atmosphere on the Maidan. The ataman put on each of them a ribbon of red material with the inscription: “Cossack of the Astakhov family.” But before the ribbon was put on, the boys were mounted on horses by senior Cossacks from their Cossack family. After putting on the ribbon, the ataman walked around everyone with importance, congratulated those initiated into the Cossack, and greeted the old Cossack warriors.

Adolescent initiation occurs at thirteen to fifteen years of age. [...] The three-year-olds themselves drove around the yard, and the five-year-olds fearlessly galloped down the street, shot with a bow, played knucklebones, and went to war. The horse occupied a special place in the life of a Cossack; it was an indispensable companion of the Cossack on all paths of his life - both peaceful and non-peaceful. The very life of a Cossack sometimes depended on knowledge of the habits of horses and skills in handling them. The horse was a kind of intermediary between the Cossack and the Don - i.e. native land, native home, native family. In the Don Army Region, a real cult of the horse developed, associated not only with the traditions of ancient Russian warriors, but also with the way of life of the steppe nomads, from whom the Cossacks adopted many ways of handling horses, who themselves often became Cossacks. Gradually, the scope of boys' education expanded to include elements of tracking, skills in handling weapons, hand-to-hand combat, overcoming water obstacles, etc. As a boy, the Cossack played aidanchiki on the stanitsa street, aiming his eyes, or, jumping and running, chasing the head of his head. As soon as he had enough strength, he would already take a arquebus and go shoot sensitive bustards, or gallop across the steppe, driving a herd that had escaped in a snowstorm. He crawled on his stomach, sneaking up on the beast, he swam across the Don, escaping from the Tatars, he knew that a miss from a gun for him often meant death or captivity. He himself did everything that we now teach a Cossack in case of war, his teacher was cruel, mortal danger, and this is a harsh teacher!...

The finale of teenage initiation can be considered “funny battles” between groups of teenagers in a village or farm. Thus, in the book “Donets” 7 we read: “At times, the entire childish population of Cherkassk spoke out for the city, where, divided into two parties, they built reed towns. In paper hats and boats, with paper banners and firecrackers, riding on sticks, the opponents converged, sent out archers or bully riders and, attacking, fought with such passion that they did not spare their noses; they chopped with popular sabers, stabbed themselves with reed lances, beat back banners, and captured prisoners. The winners, to the music of pipes and combs, with rattles or basins, returned solemnly to the city; the prisoners walked behind, bursting into tears, heads hanging in shame.”

On level ground, near a river, a large camp was set up, where, for a month, young children were trained in military affairs under the guidance of old men, in the presence of the ataman. Some were taught to shoot at full speed; others rushed at full speed, standing on the saddle and waving their sabers, others managed to pick up a coin or a whip from a spread cloak. Fighters go there; here a crowd of horsemen gallops towards a steep bank, suddenly disappears and appears again, but on the other bank

Youthful initiations were intended for seventeen to nineteen-year-old boys, called minors, which corresponds in meaning to the modern word “pre-conscription.” Two main events determine the nature of this initiation: training in summer military camps and a public competition of young Cossacks. The atmosphere of the summer camp of Cossack youths is vividly presented in the following description: “when the census of “youngsters” was introduced, everyone who had reached the age of 19 gathered in a pre-designated place, on the best horses and in full armor. On level ground, near a river, a large camp was set up, where, for a month, young children were trained in military affairs under the guidance of old men, in the presence of the ataman. Some were taught to shoot at full speed; others rushed at full speed, standing on the saddle and waving their sabers, others managed to pick up a coin or a whip from a spread cloak. Fighters go there; here a crowd of horsemen gallops towards a steep bank, suddenly disappears and appears again, but on the other bank.” The atmosphere of public competition is conveyed by the author of “Pictures of the Past Quiet Don”: “from many villages, young Cossacks gather in one place for a review. What to watch? - when no one taught them anything. And so the racing began, shooting at the target, shooting at full gallop, chopping and flanking. Inflamed with courage, entire villages of youngsters rushed into the river at full speed and swam to the other side with horses, ammunition and lances. They crumbled into lava, galloped against each other, embraced each other and fought on horseback.” The ataman summed up the results of the competition: “The ataman gave elegant bridles, decorated saddles, and weapons to the most accurate shooters, the most dashing riders.” Young children in many villages took part in fist fights as instigators at their initial stage. They watched the subsequent course of the battle from the sidelines. This was also a kind of school, because The kulaks developed courage, the courage to march on foot into the enemy’s chest, and the Cossack’s quick ingenuity to figure out who to rescue, who to crush in a dump.”

Among the Orenburg Cossacks, it was customary to announce the birth of a son with a shot from a gun, as a reminder from the first minutes of life of the newborn’s appointment to be a warrior, a defender of the Fatherland. When small children appear in a Cossack family, all Orthodox Christians strive to immediately baptize the child, protecting him from the influence of evil spirits. Before baptism, the child was considered “unclean” and, as it were, “not quite human,” according to the saying: “A kitten, a puppy, a hare, and a Cossack will be born into the light of God.” There was a belief that an unbaptized baby faced various dangers. And if the newborn was very weak, then he was not taken to the priest to be baptized; the ceremony was performed by the midwife, pronouncing the same words as the priest during immersion. According to the canons of the Russian Orthodox Church, Baptism is performed after the 40th day, when the mother is already physically strong and has the right to enter the Orthodox church after the priest reads a cleansing prayer over her. The Sacrament of Baptism is an event for which the Cossacks carefully prepare. The first step is to collect everything necessary for Baptism: a cross and a cord on which the cross will hang. The white baptismal shirt, of course, is new, which the priest himself will put on the baby during the Sacrament of Baptism and which will be kept in the Cossack’s house as a shrine. In addition, every Orthodox Cossack knows that for Baptism a large diaper or towel is needed, in which the child will be wrapped after baptism and given to the Godparents.

One of the essential conditions of the Sacrament of Baptism is godparents, or successors. According to the rules of the Orthodox Church, a person being baptized requires one successor: for a girl - a woman, for a boy - a man. However, according to the old Russian custom, there are two successors: a godmother and a godfather. Because the successors from the Font must necessarily be Orthodox people, believers who take upon themselves the responsibility not only to raise and educate their godson, but to raise him as a good Orthodox Christian. They had a huge responsibility, because the Russian people knew that godparents would have to answer in court before God for their godchildren. The godparents tried to raise their godson in Orthodoxy, making sure to visit the temple, taking their godsons and daughters with them, patiently explaining to them how to behave in church during services on various days. Thus, the boundaries and differences between classes and peoples were erased. This is how friendship between peoples was nurtured from childhood.

Since the Cossack class included many peoples and nationalities that converted to Orthodoxy, it sometimes happened that one of the godparents became a representative of a different ethnic group, and the other a Russian. They became spiritual relatives. They called each other godfathers. “We had sex.” “Godfather and godfather are one Satan.”

It was peculiar family life Don Cossacks in the 18th century. If in the seventeenth century a large number of Cossack marriages were concluded without the mediation of the church, then at the beginning of the eighteenth century Peter I forbade marriage and divorce according to Cossack customs and ordered marriages to be performed according to church statutes, and strictly prohibited concubinage.

At the beginning of the 18th century, Peter's orders began to penetrate the Don: a woman hostess was no longer forbidden to show herself to guests. However, the Cossacks continued to marry and divorce several times, and then Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, with a letter dated September 20, 1745, prohibited the Cossacks from “marrying from living wives and in fourth marriages.” How did the ceremony of matchmaking and marriage take place among the Don people? Usually, first there were bridesmaids, when the groom with two or three relatives, under a plausible pretext, appeared at the bride’s house. They sat and talked about different things, slowly looking at the bride. If the elders liked her, then, when leaving, they said meaningfully: “God willing, she will love us!” A few days after the viewing, matchmakers were sent to the bride’s parents, who, having received their consent, shook hands, exclaiming: “Good hour!” Then, before the wedding, a “conspiracy” took place, during which they had fun, drank wine and danced the “Cossack” and “crane” dances. The day before the wedding, they looked at the dowry, celebrating, as the Cossacks said, pillows. And on the eve there was a “bachelorette party”.

The wedding was celebrated on Sunday. The bride was dressed in a rich brocade jacket and a brocade shirt. A tall hat made of black smokka with a red velvet top, decorated with flowers and feathers, was put on the head. The best jewelry made of gold and silver shone on her. The groom, also dressed in his best, having received his parents' blessing, together with his groomsmen and matchmakers headed to the bride's kuren, who was already modestly sitting under the icons, waiting for her betrothed. From here the young people went to the temple. In its vestibule, the bride was prepared for the crown: after taking off her hat, they unbraided the girl’s braid in two, as married Cossack women usually wore.

After the wedding, the newlyweds' parents met them on the porch of the groom's house. Over their heads they held bread and salt, under which the newlyweds passed, showered with wheat mixed with hops, nuts and small money. The parents, having treated the retinue of the newlyweds, sent the newlyweds themselves to the wedding room, from which they emerged only before serving the roast.

In the second half of the eighteenth century, the position of Cossack women changed: from now on they could freely appear in society not only during major holidays, but also on ordinary days, although it was not approved if they interfered in men’s conversation. Girls could only be in the company of men at weddings; the rest of the time they had to be with friends or alone at home, doing sewing, working in the kitchen, playing flapjacks, blind man's buff, and rounders.

wedding ceremony 9

A wedding is a complex and lengthy ceremony, with its own strict rules. At different times, the Cossacks conducted them in different ways. In the old days, a wedding was never a show of the material wealth of the parents of the bride and groom. Three centuries ago, weddings took place in a simplified manner. The Cossack covered the woman with a hollow outer garment, and then they said publicly one by one: “You, Fedosya, be my wife,” “You, Ivan Semyonovich, be my husband.” After which they became newlyweds and received congratulations from the chieftain and the Cossacks.

A Cossack wedding at the beginning of the 19th century consisted of several separate parts: matchmaking, bridesmaids, vaults, party, wedding. The age of 18-20 years was considered favorable for marriage. Weddings were held, as a rule, after the harvest (after the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos - October 14 or Easter holidays - on Krasnaya Gorka). Usually the young Cossack started a conversation with his parents about how he wanted to get married and asked for their consent. His parents were interested in who his bride was, and if they liked her, they began preparations for matchmaking. First of all, order was restored in the household, house, and yard so that there would be no shame in front of the matchmakers. After this, the mother and father dressed for the holiday, dressed their son and went to the future matchmakers. Each Cossack army had slightly different, but generally similar matchmaking rituals.

The Terts had this custom: in front of the girl he liked, a Cossack would throw his hat out the window or into the yard, and if the girl did not immediately throw her hat out into the street, in the evening he could come with his father and mother to get married. Guests said:

- Good people, don’t be angry, my guy lost his hat. Didn’t you find it in an hour?

“They found, they found...” answers the bride’s father,

- They hanged him, let him take it and never lose it again.

This meant that the matchmaking did not take place - the bride's parents were against it. To this the matchmaker could object: “ The thing is not ours, we will look for ours" And this meant that there was a conspiracy between the girl and the guy, and the groom would try to steal her. Somewhat frightened by this turn of events, the girl’s father shouted: “ Hey Mariana! Come on, give me the hat, whose is it with us!“If a girl brought a hat and put it bottom down (later it became a “Mortgage” in which money for the wedding was put), this meant that she agreed to marry the guy, and the parents risked disgrace, losing their daughter and offending their future son-in-law. If the hat lay on the table upside down with the cross facing up, this meant that the issue of marriage with the girl had not been agreed upon. These are the unlucky groom's own fantasies.

-Come on, think about it!- the father strictly ordered his son.

- Here you go!- The father of the bride said joyfully.

- Your hat! Wear it, stay healthy and don’t lose it again! The Cossacks are so scattered these days, we’ve lost almost half of our yard to these dads!

In a good situation, guests were asked to undress, snacks and alcohol were placed on the table. During the meal, a conversation took place in which they agreed on the bride's party, but this time in the groom's kuren.

After about a week, the bride's mother and father go to the groom's parents, where they inspect the household, rooms, and meet the family of the future son-in-law. If the guests are happy, they are invited to call themselves matchmakers, to which they respond that it is still early. The father-in-law invites them with the words: “ Well, matchmakers are not matchmakers, good people, welcome to the table" The guests sit down at the table. They drink one glass, then another. " Well, now we can call ourselves matchmakers", says the bride's father. Here they decide when to do the vaults.

Usually the young Cossack started a conversation with his parents about how he wanted to get married and asked for their consent. His parents were interested in who his bride was, and if they liked her, they began preparations for matchmaking. First of all, order was restored in the household, house, and yard so that there would be no shame in front of the matchmakers. After this, the mother and father dressed for the holiday, dressed their son and went to the future matchmakers. Each Cossack army had broadly similar matchmaking rituals.

During the wedding ceremony, the bride's friends go into a separate room, and in the upper room (large room) they remain and sit on chairs: her grandfather, grandmother, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters and invited relatives. The godfather and mother sit in a place of honor under the holy images. On the table are two rolls of bread and a salt shaker. The arriving groom (with friends) is invited into the house alone, the bride is hidden in another room among her friends. They invite the groom with the words: “ Can you guess who and where to look?" The groom goes to the room where a girl’s laughter is heard and there he finds his chosen one, takes her hand and stands with her in the upper room in the middle of the room. Parents ask children for consent to marriage. The answers follow: “ We do not leave the will of our parents. We agree" Then the fathers of the bride and groom hit each other's hands. Everyone sits down at the table, eats and agrees on the wedding day. From this time on, the girl is considered a “drunk bride.”

After drinking until the wedding day, “Parties” or “sleepovers” begin in the bride’s house, where the groom, his friends and her girlfriends gather. At parties, various games are played throughout the night. At “sleepovers,” guys and girls vigilantly made sure that no one could fall asleep during the parties. Those who fell asleep were punished different ways. Often, sleeping people had an old rag sewn onto the back of their outer clothing, and in the morning they were dressed “carefully” so that they would not notice this trick. Walking through the village with the “goods” sewn on, the young Cossack did not imagine that everyone in the village already knew where he was and why he was punished.

In the evening before the wedding day, the bride's dowry (made and colorfully decorated towels and bedspreads by the bride herself) is delivered to the groom's house.

On the wedding day, the bride got up early in the morning before sunrise, walked around her entire yard, and mentally said goodbye to everything that was dear to her. The arriving groom is seated at the table next to the bride. The bride's parents bless and give instructions to the newlyweds. Then the young people go to church on three horses. After the wedding, the bride and groom go to the house of the bride’s parents, where they are congratulated by her father and mother, followed by her godparents, and then, according to the degree of relationship, the rest of those present. Then the matchmaker begins curling - “cutting the braid.” When the matchmaker unravels the braid, the bride's brother takes a knife and cuts the braid with a blunt edge. At this moment my friend says: “ Wait, wait, don’t cut it, we’ll buy this braid" And he gives a few kopecks. " No, that's not enough", says the brother. The bargaining continues until the brother is satisfied. Then the matchmaker braids two braids and the guests again congratulate the newlyweds. In a number of villages of the Caucasian line, young people were given gifts, and they were congratulated with jokes and jokes. One could often hear parting words: “ I give you silver so that there is goodness in the house" At this time, the young people stood and listened carefully to the instructions.

At the end of the gifts, the young people were taken out of the room into the courtyard. The bride's mother handed over the icon (usually the one with which she herself got married) and her parental blessing. Then the whole procession headed to the groom's house. On the threshold of the groom's house, the newlyweds were met by his father and mother, and behind him by his grandfather, grandmother, and godparents. The father usually held the icon, and the mother the bread and salt. The young people crossed themselves three times to the icon, kissed it, and then treated themselves to bread. The mother showered the young with hops, silver coins, sweets, and nuts, wishing the young abundance and happiness. Then the newlyweds enter the house so as not to step on the threshold, so as not to lose their betrothed, and stand on a sheepskin coat, which they first spread with the wool facing up. Hops and a sheepskin coat were a symbol of contentment and prosperity. After this, the newlyweds and guests sat down. The newlyweds began to be congratulated and presented with gifts. Everyone spoke good words and gave from the heart what they could, depending on their financial situation. During the gifts, each of the congratulators asked to sweeten the alcohol with a kiss. This was a hint for a long kiss.

Guests could sit and have fun until the morning, and late in the evening the newlyweds were sent to their room, where the newlyweds were to spend their wedding night. An icon, a glass of honey, a cup of grain were placed in it, where candles were placed without lighting them.

The second day of the wedding began with breakfast: the young wife invited all the guests to the table. Those guests who were late for breakfast were taken off their shoes, doused with water, and given a ride in a wheelbarrow. To avoid this, latecomers paid off with money, alcohol, candy, etc. After breakfast, the parents of the young husband were dressed up as the groom and the bride was put on a wheelbarrow and driven around. Then all the guests went to the wife's parents.

Participants in the wedding procession often changed clothes: women in men's clothes, and men in women's clothing. Among them there were quite a few “gypsies” who pestered passers-by with offers to “tell fortunes” and often came into courtyards to “steal” chickens. In the old days, weddings lasted at least a week, 250-300 rubles were spent on them (late 19th century), which was burdensome for Cossack families, but they had been preparing for them for many years, from the very birth of their children.

Wedding traditions in Kuban 10 had their own characteristics. The main form of marriage was contractual, but in the 18th and even the beginning of the 20th centuries, kidnapping (snatching) and marriage by elopement occurred, despite the fact that young people were given a certain freedom in choosing a marriage partner (on the “streets”, “gatherings”, during holidays). festivities and summer night meetings of boys and girls during field work in the steppe), the determining factor was the will of the parents.

Matchmaking could consist of one or three visits of matchmakers, and could also include or continue meetings of parents and relatives on both sides: Various kinds of bridesmaids are associated with them: “to look at the stove,” the groom’s household, etc. By the end of the 19th century. the number of shares following matchmaking is reduced to a minimum, including due to their combination. Then came gatherings, evenings or parties. Including the “hot evening” (on the eve of the wedding), “loaf rituals” - the preparation of ritual bread and other object symbols. This part of the wedding also includes the gathering of the bride's retinue (bridegroom, senior groomsman, girlfriend) and the groom's retinue (senior groomsman, boyars, senior boyar).

The forms of invitation also varied. The bride could only invite accompanied by an older groomsman, or she could invite her in the company of her girlfriends and perform street wedding songs. The groom is accompanied by a senior groom (on horseback or on a ruler/cart) or accompanied by horsemen (boyars).

The wedding itself, which usually took place on Sunday, sometimes on Saturday or Wednesday, began with the dressing of the bride and groom. The formation and decoration (“painting the train”) of the wedding “train” took place at the groom’s place. This was followed by separate blessings in their homes by the parents of the bride and groom and the departure of the “train.” Following the arrival of the groom and the “goers” to the bride’s house, a series of ransoms followed: gates, places near the bride, “sale of the braid.” The groom's stay in the bride's house could be accompanied by gifts, the parental blessing of the bride and groom ("prince and princess"), dinner, gifts and the actual farewell to the crown.

For the wedding, the bride and groom rode either together, in the same “carriage”, as a typical fact, but they could also travel separately - the bride in front, and then, sometimes on horseback, the groom. After the crown, the newlyweds went to the groom's house, where they were greeted and blessed by his parents with an icon, bread, and “sprinkling” (hops, candy, money, nuts, and sometimes wheat).

After the arrival of the bride and groom to his parents and the corresponding blessing rituals, a feast began, as a rule, without the participation of the bride, and the young people were sent to the marriage bed.

During the feast, gifts could also be given to the newlyweds, although the “gifts” traditionally took place on the second day of the wedding, after the “examination of the honesty” of the bride, mutual guest visits of the groom’s guests to the relatives of the bride and her relatives in the newlyweds’ house.

The Kuban wedding was given its special flavor by the inclusion of Cossack symbols and paraphernalia in the ritual: a whip, a saber, horsemen when inviting guests and accompanying the groom (sometimes with sabers drawn), a train, shooting at various stages of the wedding: while the “train” was moving ", ransoms, when the bride and groom cross the fire placed in the gate, during the first wedding night, etc.

The second, or in other versions - the third day - is the time of “whims” and the completion of the wedding, although the end could drag on for a week due to the fact that the wedding participants, some “ranks”, could alternately invite guests to their place. The second and third days consisted of the mummers walking in procession (“groom”, “bride”, “bear”, “Turk”, “gypsy”, “crane”, etc.), “gathering chickens”, riding, swimming, hiding , “burning” of parents whom the young ransomed, as well as gifts, as an option, and some other ritual actions.

An orphan’s wedding is also unique: additional (“orphan”) songs, the bride’s voting in some linear villages, visits to her parents’ graves, features in her hairstyle: “unbraided” or half-braided.

The Kuban wedding was given its special flavor by the inclusion of Cossack symbols and paraphernalia in the ritual: a whip, a saber, horsemen when inviting guests and accompanying the groom (sometimes with sabers drawn), a train, shooting at various stages of the wedding: during the movement of the “train”, ransoms, when the bride and groom pass through the fire placed in the gate, during the first wedding night, etc.

The wedding ceremony of those villages that only in the second half of the 19th century had the greatest number of features. were transformed into villages, and the population was assigned to the Cossack class. In them one can find traces of such rituals as the burning of a girl’s “bed” (bride and bridesmaids), the remains of a bathing ritual, “driving a crane,” etc. In general, by the end of the 19th century, the wedding rituals of the Kuban Cossacks were significantly unified.

Marriages of Siberian Cossacks 11 took place mainly within the same village, or they took a bride from neighboring villages located on their line. They were reluctant to become related to representatives of other classes (they rarely married peasant women, and even more rarely were cases when a Cossack woman married a peasant).

Marriage at the will of the parents (“consensual wedding”) was common, but the mutual inclination of the young people was also taken into account. As a rule, the father gathered a council of relatives in the house, where they selected a bride suitable “by breed”. Moreover, the Siberian Cossacks were assessed not only for their health, thriftiness, and external appearance, but also for their ability to ride horses, courage, and “lively disposition.” Sometimes parents agreed among themselves to marry their future children (lullaby agreement). The Siberian Cossacks also encountered secret marriages (kidnapping the bride without her knowledge) and “runaway” marriages (a joint agreement between young people to run away, since the parents were against it).

The pre-wedding ritual cycle began with matchmaking. The groom's relatives and godparents were usually chosen as matchmakers. Entering the house, the matchmakers crossed themselves in the image and sat under the mat, which showed the purpose of their visit and was considered a good omen for successful matchmaking. The matchmakers brought wine and a loaf of bread with them, put the loaf on the table and said: “We will put the loaf on the table for you, and you give us a beautiful girl.” If the girl agreed, then she cut the bread and invited everyone to the table. Cutting bread brought by matchmakers as a sign of consent to marriage also existed in Little Russia, among the Kuban Cossacks and among the Siberian Ukrainians. As a sign of refusal, they could give the matchmakers a watermelon or pumpkin. Pumpkin (“garmelon”) as a symbol of refusal is widely known in Ukraine and among the Kuban Cossacks.

The time remaining before the wedding was called the “bachelorette party.” The bride was considered a guest in her parents' house and was excluded from all work except preparing the dowry. Among the Siberian Cossacks there was a custom of “beating off the dawns”, when the bride was taken out of the gate “to cry at dawn” (the orphan was taken to the lake or to the cemetery).

Back in the first third of the 20th century. Among the Siberian Cossacks there were widespread beliefs about sorcerers who “spoiled the wedding.” It was considered necessary to invite as a friend not only a cheerful, eloquent person who knew the entire course of the wedding, but also someone who could ward off “damage” from the young couple and resist the sorcerer.

The main events of the first day of the wedding were the preparation of the bride to the crown with lamentations, the arrival of the “goers” and redemption ceremonies, the wedding, the transportation of the dowry to the groom’s house, the meeting of the newlyweds from the church, the “wrapping of the newlywed”, and gifts. The young people were usually taken to bed by 12 o'clock at night. In some villages there was a custom of “warming the bed.”

On the second day of the wedding, rituals associated with testing the bride’s virginity (demonstration of a sheet, nightgown) were widely practiced. On this day, the young woman herself looked after the guests, demonstrating her thriftiness. For the same purpose, they forced her to “sweep away the rubbish” into which gifts and small money were thrown. At many Cossack weddings there were mummers (gypsies, Kyrgyz, animals, devils, etc., as well as men dressed as women and vice versa). They smeared their faces with soot, stole chickens from the houses of wedding guests, and cooked them into noodles.

Every day of the wedding they rode horses, sang songs of praise, and scattered candy and gingerbread throughout the streets. From the groom's house, the wedding moved to the bride's house, then they took turns walking with all the relatives. Thus, the wedding could last for two weeks or more. On the last day of the festivities, they heated the bathhouse, “put out the barn” - they made a fire out of straw and forced the young people to jump over it. In some villages of the Siberian Cossacks they made a “wedding record” and burned it.

Farewell to service 12

Among the Kuban Cossacks, a special place among the rituals of the life cycle was occupied by the ritual of seeing off for service, which included several stages:

Preparation for the send-off - preparation of equipment, coordination of regulations with the village administration, material support for the send-off.
The actual farewell was an evening meal, in which relatives took part - necessarily godparents, sometimes young people. The “dinner” could last until the morning, accompanied by parting words from respected Cossacks who had served their time.
This was followed by breakfast, the main rituals of which were the parental blessing with an icon and bread, tying a towel crosswise and dressing the Cossack as a groom: a flower, handkerchiefs that were pinned to his clothes by the girls, and first of all, the bride.

Then followed a farewell and ritual departure from the parental yard: through the gate, on horseback, which could be led out by the bridle by the mother, the bride, or on foot, accompanied by parents and guests. This could be supplemented by “zavorot” rituals: returning to the house for a short time, returning and biting off a pie, bread, the remainder of which was returned to the holy corner, giving bread outside the gate to the first person you met, throwing a towel or two towels on the road, etc., symbolizing Have a safe journey and return home.

After the formation on the village church square, a parting word from the ataman and, as an option, the Cossacks - the Knights of St. George, a prayer service, the Cossacks, accompanied by relatives and village residents, went to their destination with a farewell stop in some remarkable, familiar, “border” place of the village yurt - river, mound, tree. Here, with the offering of the obligatory glass, the final farewell took place.

The farewell, from dinner to the departure of the Cossacks, was accompanied by the performance of historical, military, dance and special “farewell” songs: “Farewell, Umansk Stanytsia”, “The last day of today”, “A tree is blooming in the garden”, “You are Cossacks” , Cossacks”, etc.

During blessings and farewells, grandfather’s and parents’ weapons could be handed over, protective prayers and amulets were used, incl. “native land”, etc.

The second and subsequent farewells, including those to war, had their own characteristics, which were inevitable due to the long Cossack service. But in any version of this ritual, the idea of duty, readiness for death and hope for a safe return to the parental home is clearly visible.

The return itself also had a ritualized character: a meeting of the village “servicemen” at the farewell place, a word of thanks from the village ataman and the elderly, gifts from the village church and a prayer service, long guest visits from relatives, to relatives and colleagues.

Funeral

A Cossack girl who died in her maiden years was carried to the cemetery only by girls, not women, and especially not men. This was a way to pay tribute to chastity and purity. The deceased was carried to the cemetery on a stretcher, the coffin was covered with a dark blanket, and the girls with a white one. The graves were dug deep. A niche was dug (equipped) on the side of the grave. Two or even three Cossacks placed the coffin there.

Not all Cossacks' military campaigns and searches ended successfully. The return home of fallen soldiers was a tragedy for many families. I. I. Zheleznov in his 1910 book “The Urals, Sketches of the Life of the Ural Cossacks” describes the return of the Cossacks from the campaign as follows 13. The mother, who does not know about the death of her son, asks the passing Cossacks: “ Podgornov, my dears, where is Markian?"To this, hundreds after hundreds of people passing by answer: " Behind, mother, behind!“And further: “... when the convoy passed, the Cossacks, nodding their heads, said: “ There, behind me dear!“It was only then that the old woman realized that she was orphaned forever...”

According to legend, the Ural Cossacks had such a custom. Before the Novgorod ushkuinik Gugni came to Yaik, when going on a campaign, the Cossacks left their wives and brought new ones from the campaign. Ataman Gugnya saved his wife, but did not bring a new one, and from this very Gugnya permanent wives appeared. The Cossacks call her great-grandmother Gugnikha and, on occasion, raise a glass to her 14.

In this regard, the custom of the Don Cossacks, which is called the “white scarf,” is interesting. Returning to the village from a campaign or after the war, not all Don Cossacks were sure that their wives behaved impeccably in the absence of their husbands, so they stocked up on white scarves. When the Cossacks approached the village, some wives came out from the people meeting them and fell prostrate before them. "From female breast a cry broke out: forgive me, my lord! And the Cossack guessed what was the matter. He shudders and sobs. Jealousy has already crept into the heart... A firm, tanned hand, which has destroyed more than one enemy’s life, places a white scarf on the head of the culprit. The Cossack lightly touched his wife’s head with his foot. No, he says, there is no mention of the past. The shame is covered by my forgiveness! Someone dare remind her of her old sins! - the husband will stand up for his wife, defend her honor, as the valiant Cossacks know how to defend 15.

Funeral rituals in Cossack culture underwent a number of changes: from the burial mound to the gravestone and cross. In folklore, a warrior’s grave is dug with a weapon; perhaps the cause of death and the role of the weapon as an intermediary with the other world are indicated here. In funeral rites, there are no particular differences between male and female burials. Except that a man could have a weapon placed in his coffin if he was a hunter. The departure of a warrior from the world of the living to the world of the dead was accompanied by a funeral feast, military competitions, and a prayer service. The grave in an allegorical image of expression is represented by the wife or bride of the buried person. There is an extremely common different types a song where a Cossack sends a horse to his parents to convey to them the news about the fate of his son and orders him not to say that he was killed, but orders him to say that he got married and took a grave for himself in the field - a red maiden.

The symbolism of transition from one world to another is associated with weapons, a river, often the Danube, and a bridge. The departure of a warrior requires the destruction of the invisible barrier between worlds. He is carried to the bridge, or more often to the crossing, by a faithful horse, which the Cossack at the crossing gives for crossing to the other side.

In Zaporozhye, when a Cossack reveler died, a bottle of vodka was placed in his coffin, with which he was lowered into the grave, and a white flag was displayed over the grave of a sober comrade, an emblem of the impeccable purity of the outlived knight. In the Starocherkassk Museum-Reserve, the fund contains funeral vials that were placed in the graves of the Cossacks. It is known that weapons were placed in a Cossack’s coffin; during funerals among the Kuban Cossacks, a hat, a dagger and a saber were placed on the deceased, on top of the banner that covered the coffin. Among the Don people, a saber crossed with a scabbard was nailed onto the lid of the coffins.

Weapons, a horse, and a life-giving cross (sprouted cross) were traditional components of military funeral rites. Installing a flag, or a town hall with a flag on a Cossack’s grave, is typical for both the Zaporozhye and Don Cossacks. Similar rituals are also found among the mountaineers of the Caucasus.

In Kuban, the Kuban Cossacks have their own rituals of funeral events 16. Making a coffin, laying and carrying the deceased to the courtyard, accompanying rituals: candles, bread, water, wheat, honey. Ritual sitting of relatives at the coffin. Leaving the yard and tying the gates, wickets/windows. Bandaging and order of movement in the cemetery; ritual of dressing: men - with towels, women - with handkerchiefs. The sequence of movement of the funeral procession: a cross tied with a towel or scarf, a coffin lid with bread on it, a coffin with the deceased, relatives and those taking part in the funeral. Stopping and rituals associated with spreading and folding a towel at thresholds, gates, intersections, etc. Farewell actions at the cemetery.

The memorial part included funeral services (on the first, ninth, fortieth day and on the anniversary), distribution of the deceased’s belongings and visits to “graves on parental days,” incl. to see you off, the first Sunday after Easter.

The funeral and memorial rituals were distinguished by their peculiarities: dead unbaptized children - they could be buried under the threshold, under a fruit tree in the courtyard, without a cross; those who died “not by their own death” were buried outside the cemetery or in the cemetery, but in a special place with commemoration only on Trinity Sunday; special “wedding funerals” - those who died before marriage, etc.

The natural death of a Cossack warrior at home implied burial in a Cossack costume and with a dagger, the hat was placed on the right side near the shoulder. During the war, burial most often took place at the place of death. And in such cases, the horse and belongings of the deceased were returned to the widow. If it was possible to bring the body of a murdered Cossack, then during the funeral his horse, covered with a cloak, was led after the coffin.

Orthodox traditions 17

Cossacks always united around the church, creating their own village parish. The Cossacks have a special attitude towards Orthodoxy; they are distinguished by their special religiosity; it is not for nothing that the Cossacks are called “soldiers of Christ.” In the hour of mortal danger, the understanding that life is given by God, and only God can take it away, makes the Cossack, who prayed fervently to his patron saint, not only a sincere believer, but also fearless. A true saying: “There are no atheists in battle.” The basis of the Cossack worldview, philosophy of life, even if it was a “philosophy of war,” was Orthodoxy. But Orthodoxy is not in the absolutely canonical sense, but in the direct, personal relationship between the human soul and the Creator, with an admixture of pagan worldview associated with the Higher forces of nature emanating from water and the steppe. Faith was considered as a perfect spiritual state, standing above consciousness, without comparing it with anything, only saying: “Either there is faith, or there is not!”

The main holidays celebrated by the Don Cossacks are calendar church holidays.

Christmastide began with the celebration of the Nativity of Christ (January 7) and lasted for almost two days until the Epiphany (January 19). Believers prepared for the celebration of the Nativity of Christ by fasting for forty days. The eve of the holiday was spent in a particularly strict fast. The Day of the Nativity of Christ was also called Christmas Eve, because... According to the church charter, on this day it was supposed to eat sochivo (wheat with honey, or sweetened with sugar - “kutia”). Throughout Russia, people did not eat on Christmas Eve until the first star, but preparations for this holiday were slightly different from each other, according to the customs that existed in the area. In the North Caucasus, on the eve of a great holiday, in the red corner, under the icons, on a clean tablecloth, on a bunch of hay or straw, there was a bowl of boiled grains of wheat, poured with honey and sprinkled with raisins (also kutia). With the appearance of the first star in the sky, after prayer they ate kutya, followed by the most modest dinner.

Maslenitsa. Maslenitsa is one of the moving holidays associated with Easter. Maslenitsa is celebrated in the last week before Lent, which lasts 7 weeks and ends with Easter. The name “Maslenitsa” arose because this week, according to Orthodox custom, meat is already excluded from food, and dairy products can still be consumed - so they bake butter pancakes. The celebration of Maslenitsa coincides with the day of the spring equinox. The rituals that were performed at that time were aimed at driving away winter and welcoming spring. “Maslenitsa”, made of hay or straw, elegantly decorated, dressed in Russian woman suit, were burned on the main square accompanied by songs and dances of the village residents. The main celebrations held by the Cossacks during Maslenaya Week took place from Thursday to Sunday. The Cossacks dressed smartly and took part in festive festivities: ice slides and fist fights. Residents near the lying villages, opposite ends of the large village, could fight with each other. They prepared seriously for battle: they steamed in baths, ate bread and meat - in violation of the pre-Lenten prohibition, because they believed that they gave strength and courage.

Easter. Preparations for Easter begin with Lent. After all, this is precisely the period of spiritual and physical cleansing. Lent lasted seven weeks, with each week having its own name. The last two were especially important: Verbnaya and Passionate. After them came Easter - a bright and solemn holiday of renewal. On this day we tried to wear everything new. Even the sun, we noticed, rejoices, changes, plays with new colors. The table was also updated, ritual food was prepared in advance. We painted eggs, baked paska, roasted a pig. The eggs were painted in different colors: red - blood; yellow - sun; blue - sky, water; green - grass, vegetation. In some villages, a geometric pattern was applied to the eggs - “pysanka”. The paska ritual bread was a real work of art. They tried to make it tall; the “head” was decorated with cones, flowers, bird figures, crosses, smeared with egg white, and sprinkled with colored millet. According to the legend of our ancestors: the paska is the tree of life, the pig is a symbol of fertility, the egg is the beginning of life, vital energy. Returning from church after the blessing of ritual food, they washed themselves with water containing red dye in order to be beautiful and healthy. We broke our fast with eggs and paska. They were also given to the poor and exchanged with relatives and neighbors.

The playful and entertaining side of the holiday was very intense: round dances, games with paints, swings and carousels were arranged in every village. Riding on a swing had a ritual significance - it was supposed to stimulate the growth of all living things.

Easter is a bright and solemn holiday of renewal. On this day they tried to put on everything new. Even the sun, we noticed, rejoices, changes, plays with new colors. The table was also updated, ritual food was prepared in advance. They painted eggs, baked paska, roasted a pig. The paska ritual bread was a real work of art. They tried to make it tall; the “head” was decorated with pine cones, flowers, bird figures, crosses, smeared with egg white, sprinkled with colored millet

Easter ended with Krasnaya Gorka, or Farewell, a week after Easter Sunday. This is “parents' day”, the remembrance of the dead. Attitude towards ancestors is an indicator of the moral state of society, the conscience of people. Cossacks always treated their ancestors with deep respect. On this day, the whole village went to the cemetery, knitted scarves and towels on crosses, held a funeral feast, and distributed food and sweets at the memorial.

In mid-June the sun reaches its highest point in the sky. This time is called the summer solstice. The sun turns towards winter and the days begin to grow shorter. This day comes on June 24, and it is called Midsummer's Day. The very word “kupala” is consonant with the word “bathe” - immerse in water. According to tradition, this holiday is associated with the ritual of mass bathing in the river and dewy grass. The Cossacks believed that on the night of St. Ivan, the shortest of the year, the main miracles were performed. At this time, horses were not allowed into the field. Burning herbs were placed on the windows to prevent evil spirits from entering the hut. According to legends, you can’t sleep on this night, because the evil spirits are completely unleashed. That night the Cossacks lit a fire and swam in rivers and springs. It was believed that water on this night has the same power as fire, getting rid of everything evil, harmful, unclean. Cossack youth in festive attire gathered near the river, lit bonfires, and held round dances. And then, holding hands, they jumped over the fire in pairs. It was on this day that they had to stock up on medicinal plants. Plants should be picked at the dawn of Midsummer - before the dew dries. On this day, many were looking for the treasured fern flower, which, according to legend, blooms only once a year - precisely on this summer night on the eve of Ivan Kupala. It was believed that if you see him, any wish will come true.

Cossack holidays 18

The book by V.F. helps to see and understand in more detail how Cossack holidays were traditionally held in the Kuban. Nikitin "Traditions of the Cossacks". Cossack songs were sung in almost every house. On patronal feasts, according to ancient custom, a common dinner was held in the village hut after the prayer service. They brought everything that was most delicious to him. The Cossacks loved “varena” - a mixture of vodka, honey, dried fruits, raisins, grapes, pears, apples, boiled with ginger and other spices. In addition to this, vodka, beer, honey, liqueur, and mash went with a bang.

According to one version, they were accepted into the Cossacks only after an initiation ritual: the candidate must drink a glass of vodka (1.23 liters) in one gulp and walk along a long log. They drank from Mikhailiks with a capacity of 3-5 of our glasses. After the meal, the Cossacks started dancing, played cards, smoked nose-warming pipes, bawled songs, fired cannons and, of course, had fun with fist fights.

After another military campaign, the Cossacks walked around the Sich, talking about their exploits. Behind them were carried buckets of “drunk drinks”, which the good fellows treated those they met. Cossacks were prohibited from drinking alcohol during campaigns. Those who violated this law were punished with death. After a common dinner, the Cossacks split into groups and celebrated at home for three days. There was also a custom of inviting old people (from among the most honored) to the house for refreshments.

For Christmas they slaughtered wild boar, lamb, geese, and turkeys. They prepared sausages, jellied meat, pies and pies with meat and fruit filling. The Christmas table was supposed to reflect the idea of prosperity, abundance, and well-being. The main ritual food was kutya / kutya, which was prepared from barley, wheat, later - from rice, and in some villages of Karachay-Cherkessia - from corn, as well as uzvar from dried fruits.

During supper, dinner on the eve of the Nativity of Christ, with the appearance of the first evening star, they broke their fast with kutya. In some villages and families, children were forced to crawl under the table and imitate the cries of domestic animals: clucking, crowing, mecking, scurrying, etc. Supper is a family dinner. Married sons with their children came to their parents' house. Lonely neighbors were invited.

A device for deceased ancestors was placed on the table. In some villages they opened the door and called them to the table. The owner, and if he was not there, the hostess invited Frost, and sometimes the brownie, to the table. The ritual of inviting Moroz is quite variable in form, but the content is the same throughout the entire space of the former Kuban region. The text of the invitation asked not to freeze people, animals, or plants.

Wearing supper (kutya, pies) was carried out by children, teenagers of both sexes, and young married couples on the evening before Christmas. In some villages the supper was brought to grandfathers, grandmothers, parents, incl. godparents. In others, not only to relatives, but to almost all residents in their region. The important point was that, having tasted the brought kutia and pies, the owners added their own in return. This was done in every family, which contributed to renewal and strengthening of social ties cemented by ritual food.

On Christmas Day, January 7, at dawn, alone and in groups, mostly boys, men went from house to house to “glorify Christ.” The ritual could consist only of verbal text (“Your Nativity, Christ our God...”, “Christ was born...”, etc.) or included theatrical biblical scenes associated with the birth of Jesus Christ.

On the evening of January 7, caroling was performed. At first the children walked, and later adults, mostly girls and married women, joined this action. This idea was fully manifested in the decoration of the New Year's table. It had to be abundant and varied so that “the year would be complete.” “Everything was on the table. Be sure to bake special “bread”. In some families they tried to fill the table with food and tall bread so that the owner could not be seen. Or the owner would deliberately sit on a low bench and bend down. In a number of villages they laid straw or hay from under the Christmas kutya under the tablecloth - “so that they could live richly.” Frost could also be invited to the New Year's meal.

Seeing off old year, shot, burned fires, told fortunes. IN New Year's Eve could “scare” non-bearing fruit trees with an ax. Associated with New Year's morning is the ritual of arrival, welcoming the first visitor in the new year, and one of the key New Year's rituals - sowing/sprinkling. Most often they were combined, because the walk of sowers, boys, youths, men, began early in the morning, and it was they who turned out to be the first visitors to other people's houses. According to traditional beliefs, a man was supposed to be the first to come to someone else’s house in the coming year, which promised the owners good luck, prosperity, and health.

Sowing could be preceded by the rituals of “pulling the forelock” of the sower, “seating the sower on the threshold on a fur coat”, “sitting the sowers on the bed”, “clucking” so that the chickens would lay eggs, so that matchmakers would come to the house, so that everything would be carried out on the farm. They sown mostly in the holy corner, but they could scatter the grain around the room, on the owners. Cereals or legumes were used: wheat, corn, peas. The winter holidays conclude with Epiphany (January 19).

On the eve of Epiphany, a strict one-day fast was observed, which ended either with the appearance of the evening star, or, in other families, after the first blessing of water, which took place at approximately two o'clock in the morning in the church. The second blessing of water, Jordan/Ordan/Yordan, took place on the river at dawn.

They returned home with the blessed water and first of all they sprinkled, baptized, marking crosses with chalk, the courtyard, the house, family members, the entire household. In some villages, at the same time, the outside of the house was surrounded by a solid chalk line - so that the hemp would grow tall, so that nothing would run away from the house, so that the chickens would lay eggs well, etc. Before the blessing of the water in the river, if it was frosty, a cross or several crosses were cut out of ice and a throne was made. Crosses could be painted, incl. beet red kvass. As a rule, at the moment the priest lowered the cross into the water, those present released doves, shooting was carried out, and those who wished, in some villages only the sick, swam.

The Epiphany table was not inferior in abundance to the New Year's table. The obligatory dishes were kutia and uzvar, the preparation and transfer of which to the holy corner and then to the table were accompanied by the same actions and words as at Christmas. Hay, straw, and bread from the baptism table were placed in the nests of poultry and fed to domestic animals, mainly cows. The remains of the kutya could be given to the bird.

The spring period of the calendar, compared to the winter holidays, demonstrates an “inverted” model. If the winter cycle began with fasting and ended with strict fasting on the eve of Epiphany, then the central part of the spring block was represented by Great Lent, and the beginning (Maslenitsa) and ending (Easter) were “non-lenten”, “fast”. The term "meat eater" is not used in this case for two reasons. Firstly, it is uncharacteristic for Kuban, excluding a purely church tradition. Secondly, Maslenitsa, while not strictly speaking related to fasting, due to the predominance of dairy foods in it, did not apply to meat-eaters either.

The basis of Maslenitsa was the obligatory ritual food (dumplings and pancakes or, in some villages, only pancakes or only dumplings), knitting pads, mutual guest visits, playful, entertaining moments (including dressing up) and, perhaps most importantly, the rite of “universal forgiveness”, which occurs on the last day of Maslenitsa. The playful, entertaining side of this holiday occupied a significant place, an integral part of which was sliding downhill, on horseback, if the weather permitted, and even “driving a Mare”, “Goat”, with the performance of timed songs. In some villages of Kuban, the settler tradition of burning effigy was preserved.

The most significant socially and spiritually was the final rite before Lent - forgiveness of sins, “forgiven day”, “forgiveness Sunday”: they asked each other for forgiveness for all the obvious and implicit offenses caused to others in the past year.

Lent predetermined strict restrictions on food, and the Cossacks who were in service and even being treated in hospitals sought to observe these restrictions. “Strictness” was also manifested in bans on ordinary youth meetings and celebrations. Moreover, fasting implied not only food and entertainment, but also sexual prohibitions in relations between spouses.

The most significant dates included Palm Week/Palm Sunday. Whipping willow on people, especially relatives, and domestic animals with wishes for life and health was the main motive of this ritual.

During the period of Lent there was a Meeting/Meeting. According to the popular worldview, this was the meeting of Winter and Summer. When meeting on this day, one of the girls was called Winter, and the other - Spring. A comic fight began between them. Depending on who won, they decided whether there would be a long winter or an early spring.

The Lenten complex also included such a holiday as the Forty Saints / Forty Martyrs / Magpies. On this day, special cookies were baked, as a rule. In some villages, at the same time, crosses were baked from dough. A coin was baked into one of these ritual products, and the one who received it was considered lucky.

The basis of Maslenitsa was the obligatory ritual food, knitting lasts, mutual guest visits, playful, entertaining moments and, perhaps most importantly, the ritual of “universal forgiveness”, which falls on the last day of Maslenitsa. The playful, entertaining side of this holiday occupied a significant place, an integral part of which was downhill and horseback riding, if the weather permitted.

The final week of Lent was called passionate and terrible. It singled out Maundy Thursday, the day when it was necessary to bathe and tidy up, “clean out” the home before dawn, “until the raven bathed its children,” and Good, Terrible Friday. On the passionate day associated with the torment of Christ, his crucifixion, they went to church for the all-night vigil. They came home with a lit candle. Some with a burning candle climbed “to the hill” to look at the ceiling of the house to see the owner of the house. On Friday and Saturday of Holy Week they were preparing for Easter: they baked Easter cakes and painted eggs. The fast could also include one of the most significant holidays in terms of meaning and severity of prohibitions - the Annunciation. On this day, a strict ban was introduced on any work and, especially, on the slaughter of livestock and “shedding of blood.”

The main ideas and rituals were associated with the sun (“the sun is playing”), water (from this day on you could swim, in some villages they blessed the water in the springs, they walked through the fields: “They watered the fields, they watered themselves so that there would be a harvest, so that it would rain "), a cuckoo (begins to crow), a chicken and an egg ("before the sun" hens were removed from the roost with a poker so that they would sit down and "cluck"; an egg laid by a hen on that day could not be placed under the hen - a cripple would be born); with witches (they become active on this holiday and “milk the cows”) and cows, which were especially carefully protected, were closed on this day.

The largest and brightest holiday of the calendar circle is Easter. Easter ended Lent and opened a new period of time. Therefore, a rich table was prepared for this holiday: they slaughtered pigs, made sausages, and baked large holiday pies. However, the central place on the table and in ritual practice was occupied by paska, tall, round, decorated ritual bread, and “krashanki” and “pysanka”. They broke their fast with them, as well as with blessed lard. There are a large number of prohibitions associated with them. They, incl. pieces, Easter crumbs, egg shells, were used in agricultural rituals, folk medicine, etc.

During Easter, there were fist fights, batting and egg rolling, and various games were played. In a number of villages, special Easter round dances were held and swings were installed. The ringing of Easter bells also created a festive mood. A significant part of Easter time was devoted to guest visits. In these days, right up to the Ascension, they greeted each other with the words, “Christ is Risen!” Truly risen!

Easter is also a time of communication between the living and the dead. For the latter, during the breaking of the fast, an Easter cake, an egg, and a special device were placed on the table, and they were invited (by name) to break the fast. In some villages, on the first day of Easter, they practiced visiting graves, “sharing Christ” with the dead, riding on the grave or burying them in it. easter eggs. In other villages, on the contrary, a ban on visiting cemeteries was observed, because it was believed that “the parents are at home at this time,” among the living.

In the mid-19th - early 20th centuries, there was also a military form of celebrating Easter. On the second day of the holiday, the clergy of Yekaterinodar and the Cossacks walked around the military cathedral “with the saints.” The officers carried the banners of all regiments, and the officers carried smoking maces. All military regalia were displayed on the church square.

A significant date in the calendar was Farewell / Farewell - a collective visit to cemeteries and commemoration of parents. In some villages in the past they were performed on Krasnaya Gorka (the first Sunday after Easter). In most - on Monday or, less often, Tuesday after Easter week. The central link of the Farewell is the commemoration of the dead, leaving food at the graves, memories and “conversations” about the dead, with the dead, distribution of food, sweets “for the wake,” a collective meal. Farewell is considered both as a farewell to Easter, and as a farewell to the dead, who return “to themselves” on this day. After returning from the cemetery, in the old villages in the past there were horse races, horse riding, and festivities.

The spring period of the calendar also includes the beginnings of important agricultural activities that had a ritual and ritual design: plowing, sowing, the first drive of livestock into the herd.

Before the first trip to the field, some families held a collective prayer at home. Grain from the previous harvest or those seeds that were used by the “sowers” could be mixed into the seed material. New Year. Only men went into the field. They could also attract girls, but not women, as chasers.

Plowing and sowing began at dawn with a prayer or its short form: “Lord, bless!” In some villages, after the first furrow, they sat down here in the field to have breakfast.

Trinity is full of rites and rituals. Plant symbolism occupies a key place in Trinity rituals. Herbs were also used: thyme, oregano, wheatgrass, “variegated flowers”, which were sprinkled on the floor, paths greased with clay in the yard, and decorated with window sills. Village churches were also decorated with greenery. Vegetation, as a rule, was kept in the house for three days, and then collected and burned, or one branch was saved (from a thunderstorm, for pasturing livestock), fed to thin animals, placed in chickens’ nests, and used in folk medicine and magic. By the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries, the obligatory food for Trinity was scrambled eggs, eggs (in some villages they were painted green), and sweet drinks.

On Ivan Kupala, celebrations were limited to church services, work bans, and some beliefs. When going in search of a fern flower, we observed the appropriate norms: do not talk, do not turn around, we walked while reading special prayers, at midnight, etc. In some villages, even in the 20th century, a branch decorated with flowers, wreaths, and ribbons was used as a symbol on Ivan Kupala. The guys made a fire and tried to take the bathing tub from the girls. Having taken the tree, they threw it into the river.

In most villages there was a simpler form of Kupala: weaving wreaths with subsequent fortune telling about marriage, life and death, lighting fires and jumping over them. At the end of the holiday, Kupala wreaths were most often placed on cabbage, so that the heads would be large. They could also be used for other purposes. On this day, the ritual of rolling through the beds with onions or trampling onions could also be performed - so that a large one would be born. In this case, the participants, often children, had to hold their heads with their hands. In many villages, the water in the river was blessed on this day, and from this day until Ilya, swimming was officially allowed.

At the end of summer and autumn there were also so-called thunderstorm/formidable/strict holidays. These include St. Day. Ilya. In addition to the prohibitions on work, it was believed that from this day on it was forbidden to swim in water sources.

There were few particularly revered autumn holidays and they had almost no folk ritual expression. During the first Savior, poppy seeds, honey, and salt were blessed. In some villages, on this holiday they blessed water in natural springs, threw flowers into it and bathed. “Apple Savior” was the main one, during which flowers, apples, and honey were also blessed. From that day on, everyone was allowed to eat apples, incl. women whose newborn children died unbaptized. In everyday Orthodoxy, both Saviors were associated with the commemoration of dead, lost ancestors. The owners of apiaries on the honey Spas, displaying treats - honey and rolls, invited the villagers “to the wake”. Formally, “Spasy” was considered as the boundary between autumn and winter.

One of the most significant autumn holidays was Pokrov (Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary). By this day they tried to complete the main tasks - to clean everything up and get their daughters married.

Among the calendar ones, of course, were and are the so-called patronal / temple holidays, dedicated to the Lord and the Virgin Mary or the saints whose name the temple bore. Their fundamentally important feature was the massive participation of residents of the villages both in divine services and in “sharing” - collective participation in the preparation and holding of the altar meal, which took place in the church fence with the gathering of a large number of people, both locals and strangers, including h. "wanderers" and "poor".

As a general Cossack holiday, the day of the “Azov Sitting” was celebrated on the day of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On this day, races and competitions were held, and a memorial dinner was always organized with drinks and chants in memory of all the fallen Cossacks. Bowls with lit candles were placed on the tent of the bell tower of the military cathedral in Cherkassk.

But each army had its own holidays, dedicated to some important event or dedicated to a particularly revered saint. In the past, due to various events, the dates of military holidays in some troops changed. Thus, during the reign of Alexander III, the Don Army celebrated its holiday on October 17, old style, in memory of the miraculous rescue of the sovereign and his family during the crash of the royal train at Borki station. Under Emperor Nicholas II, after the birth of the heir-cresarevich (1904), the Military Holiday was moved to October 5, the name day of the August Ataman of all Cossack Troops, which, according to established tradition, was the heir. Among the Caucasian Cossacks, the day of the Military Holiday fell on August 26, but then in the Kuban Army it was moved to October 5, and in Tersky to March 1. In the Astrakhan Army, the Military Holiday was the day of August 19 - the day of the patronal holiday of the military cathedral named after the Don Mother of God, built in the village of Kazachebugrovskaya. The people of the Urals celebrate November 8, the day of St. Michael the Archangel, in whose honor a military cathedral was erected in Uralsk. The patron saint of the Orenburg Cossacks was the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George, in whose memory there was the old St. George Cathedral in Orenburg, on the banks of the Urals, St. George's Day - April 23 and was a military holiday of the Orenburg army. The Siberian Cossacks celebrated the day of their patron Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker - December 6th. The Far Eastern Cossack Troops - Transbaikal, Amur, Ussuri - celebrated their military holidays on March 17 - the day of Saint Alexei the Man of God, and the Semirechensk Cossack Army - April 23, the day of St. George.

The Cossacks mostly did household chores before noon, and then in the evening they gathered on the Maidan to the camp hut to play guitar. Sitting in a men's circle, they knitted snares to catch birds and animals and listened to the stories of elderly veterans about past campaigns and exploits. There was also entertainment and fun here, the elders played chess and checkers. Young people and teenagers played dice and dice. Grandmothers (aidanchiki) were placed at a distance and the bits were knocked down - the one who knocked down the aidanchik took it for himself. This fun developed such accuracy that Cossack children and adult Cossacks killed birds and hares with a stone throw.

Kapitsa F.S. Slavic traditional beliefs, holidays and rituals: Directory. 3rd ed. M.: Flint; Science, 2001. P.9.
Bondar N.I. Traditional spiritual culture of the Kuban Cossacks (late XIX - first half of the XX centuries) // Traditional culture and children. - Krasnodar: Experimental Center for Educational Development, 1994. - 271 p.
Based on materials from the official website of the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in the village of S. Log. hramlog.cerkov.ru
Kashkarov A.P. Cossacks: traditions, customs, culture (a short guide to a real Cossack). Rostov n/d.: Phoenix, 2015. P.35-36.
Combat leaflet of the Yenisei Cossacks. The last outpost. [Electronic resource]. URL: lastforpost.rf
Author of the book “Don People” M.Kh.Senyutkin (1825-1879) - journalist, editor of “Don Military Gazette”
Kuznetsov V.M. - dissertation on family and marriage relations of the peoples of the Southern Urals, 1998. P. 152; Lorgus Andrey, Dudko Mikhail. A book about the Church. M.: Pilgrim, 1997.
Abstract open class: Holidays and rituals of the Cossacks. [Electronic resource]. URL: nsportal.ru
Bondar N.I. Traditional culture of the Kuban Cossacks in the 18th - early 20th centuries. [Electronic resource]. URL: gipanis.ru
[Electronic resource]. URL: ruszizn.ru
Bondar N.I. Decree. Op.
As presented by Bakhmet Yu.T. Funeral rite in the Cossack tradition (structural and semantic characteristics) // Problems of the study and development of Cossack culture. Maykop, 2000. P.89. Quote via electronic resource. URL: dikoepole.com
Right there.
Right there.
Bondar N.I. Decree. Op.
Based on materials from the website of the Cossack Information and Analytical Center kazak-center.ru
Based on the book by V.F. Nikitin "Traditions of the Cossacks".

The Cossacks didn’t say, as they do now, just “hello.” The greeting sounded in several versions. After lunch, towards evening, the Cossacks said “Have a great day!”, in the morning, before lunch - “Have a great night!”, and “Have a great life!” - Anytime.

At the same time, the Cossacks’ addresses to each other and to the people around them have always been and remain special. A Cossack addresses an unfamiliar Cossack woman (the eldest in age) as “mama,” to an equal, “sister,” and to a younger woman, “daughter” or “granddaughter.” The Cossack addresses his wife (if both spouses are elderly) as “mother” or calls her by her first name and patronymic. When greeting each other, the Cossacks slightly raise their headdress and, after shaking hands, inquire about the health of the family and the state of affairs.

Among the Cossacks, the wife always addressed her husband only by name and patronymic. This paid tribute to his parents. The husband addressed his wife in the same way. Father-in-law and mother-in-law, mother-in-law and father-in-law were God-given parents for the spouses.

A Cossack woman, addressing an unfamiliar Cossack, called him “man.” “Man” was considered an offensive word.

The Cossack women responded to the man’s greeting with a slight bow. It was customary for Cossack women to hug, kiss and talk among themselves.

When meeting, after a long separation, and also when saying goodbye, the Cossacks hug and touch their cheeks. They greeted each other with kisses on Easter, and either only men or only women kissed each other.

When approaching a group of people standing and sitting, the Cossack took off his hat, bowed and inquired about his health - “Great, Cossacks!”, “Great, Cossacks!” or “Great fellow Cossacks!” The Cossacks answered: “Thank God.” In the ranks, at reviews, parades of regimental and hundred formations, the Cossacks responded to greetings according to the military regulations: “I wish you good health, sir...!”

When performing the Anthem of the Don Army or Russia, the Cossacks were required to remove their hats, which was required by the regulations.

Among Cossacks, and even among adults, it was customary to say hello, to greet even a stranger who appeared in a farm or village. Children and younger Cossacks addressed themselves as relatives, acquaintances, and strangers by calling them “uncle,” “aunt,” “aunt,” and “uncle.” An elderly Cossack or Cossack woman was addressed as “father,” “father,” “didu,” “baba,” “grandmother,” “grandmother.”

At the entrance to the hut (kuren) they were baptized in the image, the men first took off their hats, and did the same when leaving.

Apologies for the mistake were made with the words: “Forgive for God’s sake,” “Forgive for Christ’s sake.” They gave thanks, also remembering the Lord: “God bless you,” “Christ save you.” In response to thanksgiving they answered: “You’re welcome,” “You’re welcome,” “You’re welcome.”

On October 24, students from school No. 2 and evening school in Izluchinsk had the opportunity to visit the Cossacks. The meeting was held in the Central District Library with representatives of the local rural Cossack society of the village. Izluchinsk
Ataman of the farm Cossack society of the town. Izluchinsk Lukyanchenko Vladimir Vladimirovich spoke about the culture, life and history of the Cossacks, introduced them to their morals, traditions and customs. He expressed the main idea of the event: “To convey to young people a sense of patriotism, a feeling of love for the Motherland, family values" The ataman answered various questions from schoolchildren - what does wearing an earring mean for Cossacks, for how long was the title “Cossack” awarded, what military Cossack ranks exist, whether a woman can be an ataman, etc.
Cossacks know how to fight and relax, but most importantly, they honor traditions and respect their ancestors, they are true sons of their Fatherland. They participated in all the wars that Russia waged and made an invaluable contribution to the glorification of Russian weapons; they wrote many glorious pages in the history of the Great Patriotic War.
A humane and caring attitude towards children is one of the distinctive features of the Cossack family and community. In upbringing, parents have always strived to maintain an individual approach to children, creating conditions for individual self-expression. The elders sought to teach children to benefit not only the family, but also those around them. Joint organized work was joyful and taught the child to see beauty in any activity.
The Cossacks rightly considered kindness and generosity to be the main wealth of a person.
The cult of the horse among the Cossacks prevailed in many ways over other traditions and beliefs. A horse for a Cossack, a friend, comrade and brother. They understood the voice, controlled without a reason, and never abandoned their master. There are confirmed historical facts about how horses carried wounded Cossacks from the battlefield, grabbed their clothes or arms with their teeth and dragged them out of the heat of battle. There is no Cossack without a horse. The Cossacks are the best cavalry in the world, knowing neither fear nor defeat.
Harmonious and sonorous songs are passed down from mouth to mouth in Cossack families. Cossacks have long attached special importance to their songwriting. Songs not only entertain, but teach to rejoice in goodness, sympathize with the misfortune of others, cultivate a sensitive attitude towards all living things and enrich a person’s spiritual world.
Participants of the event heard how diverse Cossack songs and their genres are performed by the Cossack song ensemble “Druzhina” from Nizhnevartovsk (director Dmitry Vereshchagin). Incendiary, sparkling Cossack songs, which were liked by their uncontrollability and high artistry.
The exhibition “Cossack Circle” complemented the vibrant meeting with the Cossacks. On it, everyone could see Cossack costumes, a whip, and a saber. Books revealing the life and history of the Cossacks, fiction about the Cossacks.
At the conclusion of the meeting, all participants came to the consensus that we must protect our homeland, nature, respect our elders, provide them with all possible assistance, love school, our friends, acquaintances and strangers, grow up to be true patriots of our homeland, worthy of our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers, observing their customs and traditions.

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