For the Slavic peoples, June 23 from ancient times marked the beginning of the bathing season. During the day, the peasants met Agrafena Kupalnitsa and performed ritual ablutions in reservoirs or steamed in a bath, and in the evening they met Ivan Kupala.
Agrafena Swimsuit
Agrafena Kupalnitsa is an ancient Slavic holiday celebrated in the afternoon of June 23 and is a kind of preparation for the night meeting of Kupala. It got its name after the adoption of Christianity in Russia, as a result of which pagan traditions were mixed with the veneration of Saint Agrippina (Agrafena) by Orthodox believers.
On Agrafena Kupalnitsa, it was customary to take a steam bath, and at the same time special ritual brooms were used, which were prepared long before the significant event. They were woven from various medicinal herbs: ivan-da-marya, fern, odorous mint, chamomile and wormwood. Less commonly, brooms were knitted from the branches of deciduous trees, such as birch, alder, willow, mountain ash, linden, etc. Some were used in the bath, others were used to decorate recently calved cows.
People used to guess at Agrafena, throwing a fresh broom over their heads onto the roof of the bathhouse: if they fall on top of the churchyard, then the fortuneteller will soon die.
Different regions and provinces had their own interesting traditions of celebrating Agrafena. In the Vologda province in the vicinity of Kirillov, young girls - future brides - put on their best outfits, went from house to house and said to the owners: "Wash!" This meant - give some decoration.
And in the Kostroma province, girls gathered at the house of one of their friends and cooked barley porridge. In the evening, they solemnly ate it, then went into the yard, removed the front axle with wheels from the cart and rolled each other with noise and songs until dawn.
Ivan Kupala
Ivan Kupala is the East Slavic name of an ancient pagan holiday celebrated by all the peoples of Europe on the night of June 23-24. In Norway it is called Jonsok, in Poland - Sobotki, in Latvia - Līgo. The celebration precedes Midsummer's Day, a church holiday celebrated in many countries on the 24th and dedicated to the memory of John the Baptist.
The pre-Christian name of the holiday of Ivan Kupala is not known for certain.
Since ancient times, the people believed that on the night of Midsummer's Day one should not go to bed. The festivities began in the evening and ended in the morning with the meeting of the rising sun. Kupala's key tradition is bonfires. People believed that fire is a cleansing element that can protect one from evil forces. On the occasion of the holiday, they tried to kindle a bigger and higher fire so that the flame would reach the heavens, as if welcoming the new sun. Usually several yards or farmsteads all together participated in the preparation of one large fireplace. A high pole, crowned with wreaths, leaves or a wheel, was erected and burned over it. She symbolized everything old and obsolete.
The custom of jumping over bonfires was extremely widespread - it was a kind of purification rite. And, of course, the indispensable attributes of the holiday were songs, dances, round dances and libations.
