Most believers consider the holiday of the Nativity of Christ to be one of the most significant events of the year. Long-term fasting ends on this day. That is why it is customary to set the table and have fun at Christmas. However, not everything is allowed on this holiday.
Christmas bans
Surely, some remember the common expression that one should not eat "before the first star". This phrase was relevant in the old days, when Christmas Vespers began in the afternoon, passed into the liturgy of Basil the Great, which really ended in the evening. Previously, the sentence "to the first star" was perceived as "until the end of the liturgy."
On Christmas Eve, our ancestors used to cook 12 different dishes. During the gala dinner, none of these dishes were to remain intact. In addition, the table could not be removed until Christmas.
They never sat around the table too tightly to each other, it was impossible to get up or sit down abruptly. The fact is that in those days people believed that on Christmas night, deceased relatives visit their homes and sit at the table next to the living.
The Russians never worked on Christmas. They even left the chores about household chores for later or did everything in advance. Women were prohibited from sewing, washing, ironing, spinning, embroidering, cleaning, combing and braiding their hair, and men that day did not go hunting and fishing, did not slaughter cattle. In addition, it was impossible to wash and perform marital duties.
On the eve of Christmas, and even more so at the festive table, it was impossible to swear, use obscene language and generally enter into any conflicts. And also one should not pass by the poor and homeless. All passers-by that day invariably handed them coins or presented them with gifts.
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About fortune telling
Despite the fact that, according to historians, Christmas fortune-telling is an integral tradition of the Russian people, the ministers of the church say: fortune-telling on Christmas (however, as on any other day) is by no means allowed. According to the priests, wanting to know your future is sinful in nature. The fact is that in the process of fortune telling, a person succumbs to temptation in the same way as Adam and Eve, who were deceived by the serpent: “And you will be like gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3: 5). It is not for nothing that the Old Testament says: “Do not leave the sorcerers alive” (Ex.22: 18). That is why pious people used to try to adhere to the scriptures and abandon traditional fortune-telling. Those who, despite the prohibitions, turned to divination, did so exclusively in the interval between the 12th day of Christmas and the feast of Epiphany.
Folk signs
Many folk signs have survived to this day, prohibiting the performance of this or that action on this holiday. For example, Christmas could not be celebrated in old clothes. Otherwise, the coming year threatened to become a bad harvest. Working on the holiday promised no rest until next Christmas. And sewing was forbidden because the hostess risked going blind. In addition, it was not customary to drink during the feast, because, according to legends, one who drinks water will be tormented by thirst throughout the year. Also, on Christmas, they never borrowed money, as they believed that in this case the whole year would be in debt.
Yulia Popova