Many still remember from school the lines of the Russian poet about how girls divined at Epiphany party. Vasily Zhukovsky even described the ways that the beauties of past eras used to find out fate.
Our contemporaries also often resort to Christmas fortune-telling. The snowy winter with its long nights, New Year's tales and the expectation of miracles soaring in the air as if invites you to believe in magic.
Girls gather on Christmas Eve in order to open the veil of secrecy with the help of certain rituals and find out what awaits them in the future. That unique, incomparable atmosphere, glare on the water surface in the dim light of candles, half-whispers and mysterious words - all this is no less important than the result of fortune-telling.
In adulthood, many venerable ladies who have long become loving mothers and wives probably recall those frightening and exciting Christmas eve evenings when they tried to look into the future together with their girlfriends. And then they teach simple household feminine magic and daughters.
Our article is useful for those who want to plunge into this atmosphere and ask the most important questions about maps, wax and water. But we warn: you can’t completely rely on the results of fortune telling! Each person makes decisions that determine his fate, independently, fortune-telling can only help, direct.
So, let's figure out how you can guess at Christmas, why it is customary to twist at this time and what else you need to know before divination.
Pagan roots of the Orthodox holiday
Our ancestors met the birth of a new sun at the end of December - on the night of the winter solstice. By the way, a similar tradition existed among many peoples of the world.
It was believed that this night was full of magic and mysticism. The line between the worlds of Navi, Reveal and Reign was thinned, magic penetrated the real world. That is why people tried to seize the moment. When will it still be possible to ask ancestors for advice, ask for the blessings of the gods, or seek the support of good spirits?
With the advent of Christianity in Russia, many ancient customs and traditions were carefully eradicated. But some rituals, especially revered by people (and dear to them), have undergone a certain transformation, merging with the traditions of the new faith. Until now, we meet Shrovetide with rosy pancakes, as our ancestors did. To this day, many believe in the healing power of Kupala bonfires. Like our ancestors, modern girls divine on the night before Christmas, considering it magical.
The best time for fortune telling
Esotericists believe that the middle of winter is a period when you can get answers to all questions from otherworldly forces. You can guess before the New Year, on Christmas Eve, and on any evening between Christmas and Baptism. But there is a time when not only ordinary girls of marriageable age, but also magicians, try to postpone all affairs and indulge in witchcraft - this is the night before Christmas.
How many people are guessing, wanting to get the most complete information about the future? Magic experts unanimously answer this question - on Holy Evening, that is, January 6th.
The evening on the eve of Baptism, called the Epiphany Eve (January 18), is also important. Another good fortune-telling evening is Vasily’s Day (January 13), that is, the Old New Year.
Fortune telling
If you do not believe in fortune telling, is it worth starting? This will only spoil the mood for yourself and others.
The correct attitude is important. Forget about problems at work or school, quarrels, misunderstandings and grievances. Money-related issues can and should be postponed.
It is important to create an atmosphere. Why not remember Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol? He perfectly described the life and customs of a farmstead lost in the wilderness, where evil spirits among people - it helps someone, but interferes with someone. The young men are working, brave and courageous, and the girls, although they are not averse to gossiping, dressing up and teasing the suitors, but dream of only one thing - true love. In those parts they believe in miracles, so miracles happen there.
If you also believe and are going to tell fortunes, take care of the situation. You can pre-review a wonderful old film or re-read the book “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka”. Choose clothes in folk style: a long skirt or ponev, an embroidered shirt, Pavlovo Posad shawl. Or maybe your family has antique jewelry or clothes? It's time to get the treasures from the chests.
Before guessing at Christmas, loose your hair, untie all the ties on the clothes, remove the belt. In past times, it was customary to remove pectoral crosses before fortunetelling. Is it worth it? The choice is for each of the participants.
If you plan to spend the evening in the company of friends, discuss in advance a sample scenario, agree on who will bring what for the ritual. Try to take into account the wishes of each participant. Discuss how you will guess. Do not rely on memory, it brings at the most inopportune moment. Better make a list on which write what needs to be prepared. It can be grain, candles (necessarily from natural wax), white linen, jewelry, threads. By the way, such a list can be saved so that you can use it next year.
You can decorate the room. An embroidered tablecloth in a folk style, clay and wooden dishes, beautiful candlesticks are suitable. Turn off the upper light, arrange the candles.
Cups
Fortunetellers will need cups. There should be as many as those present. In each put one object: a coin, a ring, a piece of bread, sugar, salt, onion. A little ordinary water is poured into one vessel. Closing their eyes, the girls make out the cups.
The content determines the future. It is believed that the ring prophesies a wedding, and bread promises a well-fed life. If you get sugar, get ready for fun and entertainment. Here, those who choose salt or onions will have to shed a lot of tears. Well, those who got water should not wait for life changes.
Fortune telling with candles
You will need a bowl of water, several halves of a nutshell, small flat candles or cinder. Insert the candles into the shells, light them and let them sail in a bowl. For each girl laid one shell with a candle.
The one whose candle burns before anyone else, the first of the fortuneteller will have the opportunity to marry. Accordingly, a girl whose candle lasts longer will marry the last in the company. A drowned shell is a bad sign promising loneliness.
But do not lose heart. Believe me, working on yourself, developing and improving yourself, learning new things, you will surely be able to overcome even the saddest forecasts. Do not give up, believe in the best, and your betrothed will certainly find you.
Dance of Paper Shadows
This method is suitable even for those who prefer to communicate with otherworldly forces alone. Crumple the paper sheet, put it on the bottom of the plate, set it on fire. After that, bring the plate to the light wall, look at the shadows. They will tell you what to expect in the coming year.
There are no strict interpretations here. It is believed that the questioner himself will see what gives him a hint. And how to evaluate the mysterious dance of shadows, you decide. The open-minded dragon can denote both the aggressor and the defender. A rose can symbolize the flowering of feelings, and the threat of pricking. Some perceive the snake as a warning against a cunning liar, and for some it is associated with a wise friend.
Proprietary wax
Many knowledgeable people guess at Christmas (from January 6 to 7) wax. Fortune-telling will require two candles. Light one of them, and put the other pieces in a spoon. By heating a spoon over the flame, melt the wax.
Quickly pour the wax into a glass of ice water, and then carefully examine the resulting figure. She will give answers to all questions.
Well no
This simple fortune-telling will help you find the answer to your innermost question. Focus on it and scoop a handful of cereals from the pot (you can use pearl barley).
Pour the grains onto the table and count. A positive answer promises an even number of grains, and a negative one - an odd one.
Number and gender of future children
Winter holidays are a great occasion to gather with family at the table, chat, taste delicious dishes. One of the most important posts, by the way, ends precisely at Christmas (January 7).
It is interesting for each girl to guess about the future family, because sooner or later she will also become a full-fledged mistress, who will prepare treats and wait for relatives to visit.
On Christmas Eve, you can tell how many children will be and what gender they will be. Immerse the ring in a glass of water and leave it in the cold. In the morning, count the hillocks on the icy surface to find out how many sons you will have. Pits will tell you the number of daughters.
Wise Book Hint
This is a very simple and, as many claim, a reliable way. You can use it on any day of the year, but many are so fortunate at Christmas.
On January 6, take any book off the shelf, ask her the cherished question, and ask her friends to name the page and line number. Read the offer and try to understand its essence. Perhaps it will help to make the right choice.
Narrowed in a dream
Do you know how to guess at Christmas for a betrothed? There is a sure way to look at the future darling.
Hide under the pillow of a tambourine king (in card fortune telling, the card symbolizes a young unmarried guy).
Make a question about who is destined. What dreams at night will come true. All dreams that were dreamed that night are considered prophetic.
Chain
And here is another simple fortune-telling that will allow you to get answers to love questions before Christmas.
Guessing from January 6 to 7. You need to wait until all the household members fall asleep, and then take the gold chain, shake it in the cam and throw it on the table.
Look at the resulting figure. The node warns of difficulties, a vicious circle promises trouble. If you see a triangle or a heart, then fate will be supportive and will soon give love. And when the chain falls in the shape of a bow, you can start planning a wedding.
Fortune telling with a mirror
Deciding on this Christmas fortune-telling is not easy. It is considered the most mystical and can seriously scare.
You need to turn off the whole world, sit in front of the mirror and light a candle at exactly midnight. There should not be anyone else except the fortuneteller in the room.
Next you need to carefully look in the mirror. They say its surface becomes cloudy after a few minutes.
Soon in the mirror you can see the narrowed. True, there is an opinion that this is the unclean person himself, who has taken on a human form. At this point, you need to start repeating: “Chur me!” This ancient spell calls for the help of ancestors (churs) to help protect oneself from evil spirits.
Church attitude
Before guessing before Christmas (January 6), you should think carefully about this moment. Many girls mistakenly believe that Christmas fortune-telling is a blessed tradition approved by the church. This is actually not the case. In Orthodoxy, any divination is condemned, fortune-telling is considered a sin. At a confession, priests often ask girls and women if they are wondering.
Priests advise instead of divination to pray. On the eve of one of the brightest holidays of the year, the power of sincere prayer is especially great. If you experience suffering and mental anguish, if you are tired of loneliness or your family is in a bad mood, turn to God. Thank you for all the good things in life, ask for what you dream about.
The church has a negative attitude to all pagan traditions. It is believed that all fortune-telling and predictions are from the evil one, and communication with evil spirits is unacceptable, especially on Holy Evening. The church does not approve of the desire to know the future.
In practice, we see a slightly different picture. In the world, even sincerely believing people often depart from church canons: they do not observe fasts and rarely attend temples. But any attentive father will explain that it is more important to remain a good person and do charitable deeds: to help those in need, to protect the weak, to thank and respond with good to good. Even in those days when faith occupied a much more important place in human life, young people were going to tell fortunes on Christmas Eve.
Can I guess at Christmas? You decide. It all depends on how you feel about religion. No wonder they say that faith is not in logs (in the church), but in ribs (in the soul).
And yet, if a woman made a vow in a church or received a blessing for a good deed (for example, embroidering a salary for an icon), it is better to refrain from divination.
We do not call to abandon the plan, but only argue that a person must know all aspects of the issue in order to make the right decision. If fortunetelling seems to you a tribute to the old tradition, does not scare you and does not cause negative emotions, you can completely try. And those whom it fears and provokes heavy thoughts about sin, it is better not to expose themselves to such a test.
The opinion of psychologists: why you should not get too carried away by fortune telling
He studies the influence of fortune-telling on the life and behavior of people and official science. Psychologists advise not to abuse it. Some people, having received the desired answers to questions, stop acting, believing that everything will be fine with them. This leads to the opposite result, degradation, stagnation. As a result, discontent and resentment are born, because cards, wax or mirrors promised that in the end it did not come true.
Dangerous and blind faith in poor predictions. A person can give up, give up, stop fighting, if fortunetelling predicts future failure. We must not forget that everything is in our hands.
On the other hand, sometimes a good response from otherworldly forces can really help a person. The desperate gains confidence and enters the battle with renewed vigor. The unsure decides on something that he could not decide, with the support of a deck of cards or runes. What is wrong with harmless ritual in such cases?
But psychologists advise not to lose a rational outlook on life and understand that if fortunetelling can help find answers, it should not blind. You always need to understand that the responsibility for our future, for our decisions and the paths we choose lies with us only.
So is it worth guessing at Christmas? When someone promises that fortune-telling will solve all your problems, it is better to abandon this dubious undertaking. But if the goal of such an action you see is a pleasant pastime with girlfriends, studying the traditions of past eras and getting small tips - feel free to act!