The Baptism of the Lord is an Orthodox holiday that is celebrated annually on January 19. In Russia, on this great day, believers go to church, collect blessed water, and some even plunge into an ice hole - Jordan. It is believed that baptismal water gives spiritual and physical healing, therefore, recently, there are more and more people who want to swim in Jordan.
While swimming in the ice baptismal font, a person experiences about the same stress as during a parachute jump. To prevent such a test from turning into a subsequent decrease in immunity, it is necessary to prepare in advance for the dive, gain a positive attitude and overcome the fear of icy water. If you do everything right and take care of warm clothes, a soft towel and hot tea in advance, Epiphany will become one of the most joyful and unforgettable days of your life.
What you need to know
Only healthy and seasoned people can swim in the ice hole. People with obesity, diseases of the cardiovascular system, arterial hypertension, respiratory diseases, chronic skin diseases and inflammations of the genitourinary system should not dive into Jordan. Swimming in ice cold water will not benefit individuals with insomnia or those with mental distress. Such categories of citizens can conduct the ritual at home by simply taking a contrast shower.
Before heading out to a river or lake, find out what kind of weather Mother Nature has in store for you. The ideal temperature for beginners ranges from 2 to 5 degrees Celsius, you can dive on a colder day, but minus 10 degrees Celsius is too dangerous a temperature threshold for a person who decided to dive into Jordan for the first time.
Preparation for bathing
It is best to prepare a long shirt for swimming in advance, since plunging into an ice hole is not a feast of nudity in the middle of winter, but a sacred rite. These shirts are the same for men and women. It is believed that when worshipers show off their bodies by wearing swimsuits and swimming trunks, they bring dissonance to traditional Christian decency. Therefore, you should not turn the ceremony into a demonstration of your charms or age-related flaws.
If you do not have a suitable shirt and decide to do the ice-hole diving ritual in a bathing suit, it is best to wear it at home. You should also wear thermal underwear, woolen socks, a warm sweater, mittens, a hat and loose shoes. Clothes and shoes should be easy to put on and take off, ideally there should be no fasteners on the clothes, in extreme cases - a zipper, since it will be very problematic to tie laces in the cold and fasten buttons on clothes. You should take a bag with slippers, a rug, a towel and a set of linen. You also need to prepare a small thermos of hot tea and several bottles of hot water to pour over after bathing.
You need to undress before bathing from the bottom up: first you should take off your outerwear, then shoes, trousers, a sweater, and a shirt. The last thing you need to do is take off your socks, put on slippers on your feet and go to Jordan. If you feel that your fingers or toes are frozen, it is better to first move, run, warm up, and only then plunge into the water.
Immersion in water
There are no clear rules for immersion in water. Rescuers advise: do not jump into icy water from the shore, especially upside down. It is best to quickly and decisively go down the stairs to the hole, find a suitable depth, perform the diving ritual and carefully climb the stairs to the shore.
There is no need to swim in the hole. Going down the stairs or going from the shore approximately up to your chest, you need to cross yourself, say: "In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit!", Hold your breath and plunge into the water three times with your head. After that, you should immediately get out of the water. In total, it is advisable to stay in the hole for no more than 20-30 seconds, then there will be no inflammation of the appendages, no prostatitis, no inflammation of the kidneys and lungs.
How to act after swimming
Get out of the hole carefully, try not to slip on the stairs or injure your body on the sharp ice floes on the edge of the Jordan. Immediately after the ice hole, pour a couple of bottles of hot water brought from home over yourself. If you do not have such bottles, take off your wet bathing suit or shirt, take a soft terry towel and rub it vigorously, starting from the crown of your head and ending with your heels. After that, start dressing in reverse order: first put on your socks, then a shirt, pants, sweater, outerwear, hat, scarf, mittens and shoes.
Experts advise not to walk long distances after swimming in the ice-hole, but to sit in a warm vehicle and drink a cup of hot tea with honey or herbs. The Church does not welcome the drinking of alcoholic beverages during Epiphany.
