To begin with, let's figure out what is usually invested in this concept. A rite is a certain sequence of actions that are established by custom or ritual. As a rule, each rite represents some kind of everyday tradition or religious beliefs of the people. At the same time, there are no restrictions on social groups; the entire population can take part in such actions without exception.
The rite is what has been accompanied since ancient times by important moments of human life. For example, those associated with the birth of a baby (baptism, naming by name), a wedding ceremony (matchmaking, traditional bride redemption, engagement), the beginning of activity in a new field (initiation into pioneers, students or workers, oath in the army, etc. ), the transition to a new age stage (initiation), as well as death (burial, funeral, funeral services).
There are also festive rites and traditions. And we will tell you about the most interesting of them.
Veil Day (October 14)
On this day, young girls woke up no light or dawn and immediately ran to church to light a candle. It was believed that the one who lit a candle earlier than anyone else would be the first to marry. In the XII century, an Arab traveler described a no less interesting custom: if a guy threw a veil over a girl who placed a candle in front of the icon of the Protection of the Virgin and said a special prayer, she became his wife unquestioningly.
Christmas and New Year fortune telling
Since time immemorial, the period of winter festivities was considered among our ancestors the best for fortune telling and attempts to look into the future. For example, if a girl injured or pricked her finger before the blood on New Year's Eve, she could safely count on marriage in the coming year. Also, for the New Year, water was often frozen in a spoon. If the ice turned out to be convex, there were bubbles in it, this indicated the longevity and good health of the fortuneteller. But the hole in the ice foreshadowed untimely death. A whole series of fortune-telling on the narrowed or narrowed allowed you to find out where to look for your happiness, how long it remains to wait for it. Many people also wondered about the weather or the crop, wondering if they would starve in the coming year.
Christmas
There was one interesting Christmas rite. It is a custom to make figures of sheep and cows from wheat dough. These figures should be kept until Baptism. And after the blessing of Baptism, the mistress of the house needed to soften these figures in holy water, and then feed the livestock to improve milk yield and offspring.
Maslenitsa
Everyone knows funny Pancake week ceremonies with baking delicious pancakes and ritual burning of a scarecrow of winter, which was believed to help spring to take over faster.
Easter
One of the most important holidays in Christianity has always been accompanied by coloring eggs in different colors, baking special bread - Easter cake. The girls tried to wash themselves with red egg water in order to maintain a healthy glow and a beautiful complexion.
In fact, there are thousands of rites and traditions, and it is almost impossible to list them in one article. Each rite is a centuries-old story that is passed down from generation to generation and allows us to get closer to our ancestors.