How often do you receive guests, gather a table, have dinner parties or dinners? Does this require a special holiday occasion, or is it just enough to have a good mood to receive? The Russian people have always been famous for their hospitality, desire and ability to host other people in their home. Such kindliness has become not just a national character trait, but part of our self-awareness, mentality. Hospitality is otherwise called by the people hospitality. This word came from the fact that from ancient times it was customary to meet guests in Russia with bread and salt. But where this tradition came from and what these food products symbolize, read the article.
Bread is the head of everything
How many proverbs and sayings do you know about bread? Surely difficult to calculate. In Russian folklore, bread is one of the most significant symbols. It’s precisely symbols, because over several centuries it has turned from a simple food product, consisting of flour and water, into the consciousness of the people into a sign of the foundation of something. Without bread, they did not start dinner, it should always be on the table, and each housewife knew how to bake a delicious loaf, the recipe of which was passed on from generation to generation, from grandmother to granddaughter, from mother to daughter.
Bread - Special Respect
As already mentioned, bread was not considered a common, ordinary product in Russia, and therefore it was always treated especially. So, bread crumbs from the table were never thrown out, but gathered in the palm of your hand and burned in the oven, or they had to be given to the birds for food. A loaf of bread, placed under the images, was considered a symbol of the unity of God with people - they believed that so special grace would come to the house.
Do not oversalt!
And why exactly bread with salt, and for example, not bread with sugar or some other product? Firstly, salt appeared in Russia much earlier than other spices than the same sugar, for example. But it’s not so early that it was considered a completely ordinary product that is used everywhere (well, as we have now). Salt in ancient times was a rather rare and expensive product, so they were used sparingly. As a rule, on the table there was always some dishes filled with salt, however, they took it from there infrequently. Such a salt shaker was more used as a talisman. Bitter, she was called to scare away misfortunes and troubles.
House is a full bowl
If bread and salt were found in the family of the ancient Slav, then his house was considered prosperous. And how important it is to show your prosperity, to demonstrate that I am ready to share this wealth with others. The bread and salt in this case speak for themselves: "In this house it will be satisfying and warm, here you will be well received."
Best wishes
Among other things, to meet a dear guest with bread and salt means to wish him all the best: good, prosperity, wealth. In this case, the loaf was served on a white, clean linen towel, as a rule, with a symbolic ornament embroidered at the edges. This linen flap meant the road by which a person reached the owners' house.
Refusing an invitation with bread and salt was strictly forbidden. This meant not only an insult to the owners. People believed that so much trouble could be incurred.
Hospitable Blessing
Bread and salt are important in the ritual of blessing - for example, parental. If a father and mother wish their child to fulfill their plans, fulfill their dreams, they give their blessing - that is, a wish for good luck in their endeavors. This custom of blessing children was often reinforced by certain actions: sometimes the mother gave her son a shirt embroidered with her own hand, in other cases, the father gave the child his personal thing (for example, a weapon). One of the ceremonial actions was the offering of bread and salt. In some regions, the loaf was immediately broken so that the crumbs that fell from it would pick up birds (good fellow travelers on a long journey), in other areas, on the contrary, they would bring bread with them so that there was something to eat on the way.
Instead of a notary
In addition, with the help of bread and salt it was possible to make a deal. The agreement, backed by a hospitable meal, was considered indestructible - it was impossible to terminate it, and violating the condition meant greatly sinning before God. Take, for example, the contract between the parents of the bride and groom. If the matchmakers agreed to marry their children and reinforced the agreement, each eating a piece of one loaf, then the marriage between the young should take place under any conditions.
The oath on the loaf was a variation of the “bread” transaction — then each of the parties to the agreement made his oath promise, assuring him that he had his right hand on the bread. Does it not, reminiscent of a modern oath on the Bible or the Constitution (as the president does).
To each piece
Finally it's time to eat the loaf! It was decided to divide it into everyone - everyone should get a piece of "happy bread". At the same time, it was impossible to cut it - sharp objects “kill” all the miraculous power of bread, you need to eat it only with the help of hands - well washed and dry. And always after prayer.
By the way, dividing into all means not just breaking off a piece for each member of the family. Each time there was also a little edge for the brownie. Superstitions played a big role in the families of the ancient Slavs, so many housewives all the time put black bread and salt behind the stove - in order to appease the brownie who lives in this corner.
And enjoy your meal ....
If someone at dinner suddenly shouted loudly to you, “Bread and Salt,” don't be alarmed. It was he who simply reincarnated as a medieval resident of Russia. Indeed, it was such words that it was customary to pronounce when you want to wish you bon appetit. Jacob Reitenfels, a seventeenth-century Courland travel historian, wrote about how Muscovites drive away evil forces. The magic meaning of the expression "bread and salt" was believed for a very long time. It was also considered good form to pronounce this phrase after a meal - in gratitude and again so that the unkind spirits could not harm a person.
Ah, this wedding, wedding, wedding sang and danced ....
Do you often go to weddings? For regular visitors to this celebration, for sure, the tradition of serving the newlyweds a large festive loaf is familiar. But it’s not just that it’s customary to meet the bride and groom with bread and salt. The significance of this custom is that the parents of the future husband (and it was originally at the doorstep of their house that they had to greet the couple) willingly accept the daughter-in-law in their family, wish to see her in their house as a new member of the family.
In addition, the parents of the groom meet the newlyweds with a loaf, which, incidentally, should be baked by the future mother-in-law, the mistress of the house. Both the bride and groom bite off a piece of bread without resorting to hands. Then all those present are watching which of the spouses has bitten off the loaf more. The one whose bite turned out to be bigger, the one according to the belief, and will host the house, will become the head of the family. Of course, usually, due to physiological characteristics, a man bites off more bread, he recognizes his head at home, while a woman gets the modest role of the neck.
Loaf, loaf, whom you love choose!
Bread can be very different: rye or wheat, with cereals or raisins, malt, poppy seeds, sweet, salty, soft, callous ... One is always the same: it is not just a bakery product made according to a specific recipe. Real bread is baked by a mistress with a soul, she always puts a special message in her work, in order to then transmit it to those who will try this bread.