In Russia, the stove was considered healing. Therefore, she was assigned an important role in the village way of life. She fed, healed and even washed. On it at night they went to sleep. Often the place on it went to the most revered member of the family or the oldest. Premature babies were also nursed here.
The FURNACE is the most symbolically significant household item and is one of the sacred centers of the house.
Since communication with the outside world is carried out through the chimney, the FURNACE is comparable to the door and windows. The chimney is a specific exit from the house, intended mainly for supernatural beings and for contact with them: through it, a fiery serpent and devil penetrate into the house, and from it the soul of the deceased, illness, share, a call addressed to the evil spirits fly out. etc.
When someone left the house, the FURNACE was closed with a damper so that he was lucky on the way and he was not remembered dashingly by those who remained at home. In the Novgorod province, they closed the FURNACE, sitting down to weave, so that the work would go well. In Polesie, the hostess, taking bread out of the FURNACE, closed it with a flap, otherwise, according to legend, when she dies, her mouth will be “open”. When a thunderstorm approached, they obscured the pipe so that the devil or other evil spirits could not hide there and the thunder did not hit the hut.
In the Novgorod province, the cattle that disappeared in the forest were also called through the pipe in the hope that they would come back. In the Rivne region they whisper a conspiracy from a snake bite in the FURNACE, "the stove went off." In the Zhytomyr region, they talk about a case when a mother called her son, who served in the army, through a pipe, after which mortal melancholy attacked him.
In Ukraine, Belarus and Poland, it was accepted that after taking out bread from the FURNACE, you need to throw a log there so that the bread would not come out, "so that the FURNACE would not yawn", i.e. there was no hunger in the hut. At night, they put a log in the OVEN and put a pot of water so that the OVEN or the fire had something to eat and drink.
In the Vologda region, they also steamed in the oven.
The Russian stove could easily accommodate two adults. They will bring a sheaf of rye straw, put it in the oven and cover it all under so that it does not burn anywhere. They put a clean rug on the pole, and then "get sick and crawl!" From the mouth it glows with heat, and at first it is scary to climb there. The whole mouth is black and soot on it, like velvet. But it turns out that there is quite enough space, and you drag yourself into the oven, never touching the soot, and sit down, touching the straw. Dry heat immediately enters. Hot pink-white bricks create a kind of mother-of-pearl shine in the oven. Fans of hot stuff take a ladle and splash on them. But enough, having wet a broom, shake it behind your back. Withstand - worry, but no - lie down with your head to the mouth. Soft air comes from the mouth, it is easy to breathe. Men are the first to soar in the family, the mother and children are the last.
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The Russian stove can rightfully be considered the pride of the Russian people. Its main feature is a vaulted chamber - a crucible that heats up to 500 °. This is exactly the temperature required to bake bread. A preheated crucible keeps heat for hours, you can simmer milk in it, cook crumbly cereals, cook roasts. The taste of food cooked in a Russian oven is amazing and cannot be compared with anything, here the Russian oven is beyond competition.
The magic of the Russian oven
Folk healers treated colds and radiculitis on the stove with the help of the so-called "Puposhniks" - small clay pots.
After the steam bath, the patient was placed on the stove with his stomach down. Then they cut a few potatoes in half and stuck three matches or small birch sticks into each half. The specks were set on fire and the potato was put on the sore spot. The top of the potato was covered with "Puposhnik", which stuck to the skin like glass medical jars.
All other pots were placed in the same way. When a few minutes later the "Puposhniki" fell off, the potatoes were removed, the patient was given a raspberry boil to drink, covered with a warm blanket and left to sleep on the stove until morning. In other places, before climbing the stove, the patient took a bath of snow water. Snow collected in gardens was previously melted in a furnace in large cast iron. At the same time, one or several sand stones were heated in the firebox. The snow water was poured into a large barrel placed near the stove. Following this, a stone heated on fire was thrown into the barrel. When the water from the stone warmed up, the patient dropped into the barrel and sat in the water until sweat broke through. After that, the patient was wiped off, given a raspberry boil to drink and sent to a hot-heated stove.
Thus, if the stove bench was something like a huge heating pad that warms the whole body, then an ordinary stove brick served to warm its individual parts. The brick was preheated in an oven, then wrapped in cloth and applied to a sore spot. The brick heating pad remained warm until morning. Modern doctors often advise (if, of course, there is an opportunity) instead of a rubber heating pad to use a heated brick, exuding even dry heat. For such a heating pad, a dense brick that does not have cracks is more suitable. And of course, it is preferable to adapt an old brick, which has a larger size and a higher density, for a heating pad. The medicinal value of the Russian stove bed increased due to the skillful selection of wood for the beds, which served as its continuation. Whenever possible, they tried to make them from oak and birch. It was believedthat the wood of these trees emits positive energy and has a beneficial effect on human health. Of course, there is another, more prosaic reason: their hard and dense wood can withstand quite high temperatures and, moreover, there is no resin in it. This means that the wooden parts of the stove will not char, and the heat of the stove will not melt the sticky, turpentine-smelling resin from it.
Treatment in front of the furnace mouth
According to one old belief, stove fire helps to heal bleeding wounds and cuts. For example, a person inadvertently cut his finger, and the blood continues to ooze through a rag or bandage. In the event that at this time the stove is heated in the house, it was not considered such a difficult matter to help the grief. It was enough to hang a piece of bloody rag at a respectful distance from the fire, somewhere above the pole so that there was no strong heat and at the same time felt warmth. It was believed that as soon as the rag dries up, the blood will stop and the wound will heal. However, if someone, inadvertently, pushes the rag too close to the fire, then not only will he not stop the bleeding, but he will also incur trouble. This, in the opinion of our ancestors, is the power of the miraculous connection of the human body with the fire of the home.
Toothache
The remedy for toothache was prepared while burning the stove over an open fire. When it became necessary to prepare such a remedy, they went into the forest and cut down an aspen there, about the thickness of an arm. Then they sawed off a small round from the trunk and drilled with a brace along the core or hollowed with a chisel, about half, a blind hole. Table salt was poured into the resulting cavity and the hole was filled with an aspen wood plug. Prepared in this way, a cut of an aspen trunk was thrown into the fire so that it was convenient to observe its combustion. When the aspen trunk caught fire, they were careful to ensure that only the top layer of wood was burnt. As soon as it was evenly charred, the firebrand was taken out of the fire and, putting it in cast iron or in a pot, covered with a tight lid on top and taken out of the hut. The aspen firewood, deprived of air access, gradually extinguished and cooled down. Then it was carefully split in half, and the salt soaked in bitter aspen juice was taken out of the middle. The finished potion was placed in a glass vial with a wide neck or in a clay makhot covered with glaze inside. Depending on the nature of the disease, the drug was either put on a sore tooth, or diluted with water and the teeth were rinsed with this solution.
Preparation of ointment for rheumatism
Of course, the bed of the Russian stove perfectly relieves many pains. Including rheumatic ones. But the treatment of rheumatism goes much faster if you additionally use a special ointment prepared in a Russian oven. During rheumatic attacks, they rubbed the sore spots with ointment and climbed onto the stove.
A layer of butter about a finger thick was placed in a small clay pot, and a layer of dried birch buds was poured on top. The layers of oil and buds were alternated until the pot was almost full. Then it was closed and the gap between it and the lid was coated around with thick rye dough. The pot was put into the oven only after the firebox was finished. In it, he had to stand for exactly one day (by the way, a good stove keeps heat for about two days. A day later the pot was opened, birch buds were taken out of it, put them in a bag of gauze or a row and squeezed the remaining oil into the pot. into the contents of the pot of camphor, slightly ground into powder (about 1 g of camphor was required per 100 g of ointment. The finished ointment was thoroughly stirred,closed tightly with a lid and stored in a cool place.
Ear pain remedy
Sometimes the cold autumn wind blows into the ears so much that the pain prevents a person from falling asleep. In the old days, Siberian peasants got rid of such pain in a rather graceful way. In the event that it was in the summer or autumn, they picked one or two fresh chamomile flowers. In winter and early spring, such flowers were taken from a dried bouquet of Kupala herbs. Then the onion was cut in half and the center removed. Chamomile flowers were put into the grooves that formed and, connecting the halves of the onion, they were tightly wrapped with harsh threads. The onion prepared in this way was placed in a mahotka, that is, in a small earthen pot, which was placed on the floor of the stove at such a distance from the fire that its contents would not burn. When the onion was baked, it was taken out of the flywheel, the flowers were removed from its middle and, while they were still warm, they were inserted into the sore ear.
Furnace ash treatment
In folk medicine, stove ash has been used since ancient times as a remedy. The medieval physician amirdovlat amasnatsi in his medical treatise "Unnecessary for the Ignorant" wrote about wood ash as follows: "its strength is similar to the strength of those substances from which it was formed. The best is oak ash … it stops the blood. And if you sift through the tulle and drink 2 drams with apple syrup daily in the morning, it will help with stomach pains….
In that case, if you make a lotion with grapevine ash, it will help with headaches. Thus, if you wash your hair with it, it will make it red.
Cane ash helps with eye rashes….
The ash of the vine helps with intestinal ulcers. And if you put it on the spleen mixed with vinegar, it will also help ….
The ash of the hearth stops the blood, and if you apply it with olive oil and black tar to the tumor, it will open it.
Oak ash kills lice….
Fig tree ash is useful for sciatic nerve disease.
Widely used in the medieval pharmacopoeia and lye brewed from ash, called in the treatise "Ash Water". Amirdovlat writes about using it for medicinal purposes the following: “if you wash out malignant ulcers with it, it will cleanse them of old meat and help new ones grow. And if you give it an enema, it will help with old intestinal ulcers and reduce wet discharge. In that case, if 8 drams are mixed with a small amount of olive oil and drunk, it will remove the blood clotted in the stomach. And it will help when you fall from a height. Thus, if you drink 18 drams, it will stop old diarrhea and help with intestinal ulcers. In the event that, if mixed with olive oil and lubricated the body, it will help with sweating, nerve disease and paralysis. And if you drink it, it will help with animal bites."
Treatment with stove ash was also widely practiced in Russia, since it was always at hand in every hut. For example, in ancient clinics it was recommended to treat a fracture with ashes or ashes: "If a Man has a Kink, Spruce Ash Mixes with Egg Yolk Apply to a Kink …" But ash is not the same, if you had to treat eye diseases, then it was preferable to get it from thorns: "Always throw a thorn on the thorn, fill thorns from the forest, sprinkle with ashes, then a delicacy …".
For village healers, stove ash was a favorite remedy in the treatment of childhood diseases. However, they were not satisfied with the ash from any one tree or one stove. In the event that the child was often capricious and cried, he was doused with water infused with ash, which was collected from three stoves: a hut, a maid and a bathhouse. For the treatment of a more complex disease, the so-called stiena (children's decrepitude), the ash had to be collected from seven ovens. Of course, in one courtyard there were not so many stoves, so they went to the neighbors for ash. Apparently, ash was collected from several furnaces, not only for the sake of one or another magic number, but also for a reason that has a certain practical significance for enhancing the therapeutic effect. Indeed, in some houses, stoves were heated only with birch firewood, in others they were combined with aspen, alder, pine and spruce. Those who are poorer, almost all winter burned willow with a windbreak, brushwood and everything that was needed, sometimes straw, flax and hemp fires. Therefore, the ash in each furnace had its own unique composition. By mixing together ashes from many furnaces, healers received a powder containing a whole bunch of mineral salts. Herbalists acted in the same way, who, wishing to increase the healing effect of plants, made medicinal preparations from several herbs. The collected ash was thoroughly mixed in a pot or pot and left on the pole for the time being. Then the child was bathed, but not in plain water, but collected from nine rivers. But since so many rivers were not always recruited in the immediate vicinity, it was allowed to take water from nine wells. When the bathing ended, the child was not wiped off, as usual, with a towel, but, sprinkled with ashes,swaddled in a blank canvas and put to bed on a warm stove. As a medicine, ash was often used in combination with salt. For example, in case of a sore throat, they took a pinch of ash and mixed it with a pinch of salt and rubbed it thoroughly. Then, moistening a finger in water, dipped it into powder, and adhered particles of salty ash were applied to the inflamed glands. This procedure was repeated at regular intervals until relief came.until there was relief.until there was relief.
Charcoal treatment
Sometimes peasant children loved to chew and even eat charcoal. The cooled coal is taken out of the stove or iron - and by the cheek. It seemed to be not very tasty, but nevertheless they ate, getting some kind of incomprehensible pleasure from this. Apparently, peasant children intuitively felt the usefulness of this substance, and, perhaps, craving for it arose most often in case of digestive disorders. They were unaware that charcoal had long been used in medicine as an effective remedy. It not only has a beneficial effect on digestion, but also cleans the teeth, eliminating bad breath. No wonder charcoal was used in the production of excellent tooth powder, as well as special pills and tablets. Coal obtained from linden wood was considered especially valuable for medical purposes. No wonder lime coal was included in the 1st - 7th editions of the Russian pharmacopoeia. It was prescribed for belching, flatulence, dysentery, diarrhea (diarrhea), pulmonary and throat tuberculosis. Of course, charcoal found the same use in folk medicine. In addition, experienced housewives always kept crushed coal next to the stove, just in case. If it suddenly happened that she or someone from the household burns, say, an arm or a leg, then the burned place was moistened with water and sprinkled with crushed coal. An hour later, another redness subsided, and the pain gradually subsided. More effective was a compress made of coal powder mixed with grated potatoes. If it suddenly happened that she or someone from the household burns, say, an arm or a leg, then the burned place was moistened with water and sprinkled with crushed coal. An hour later, another redness subsided, and the pain gradually subsided. More effective was a compress made of coal powder mixed with grated potatoes. If it suddenly happened that she or someone from the household burns, say, an arm or a leg, then the burned place was moistened with water and sprinkled with crushed coal. An hour later, another redness subsided, and the pain gradually subsided. More effective was a compress made of coal powder mixed with grated potatoes.
Guardianship treatment
Not only coal and ash, but even a guardian, or a stove (burnt clay, which was in the oven masonry between bricks) was used in folk medical practice. The opechina was ground into a fine powder, poured into an earthen jug, tightly closed and stored for the time being. Before use, it was brewed with boiling water and allowed to drink in case of fever. In the event that diaper rash appeared in an infant, they were immediately sprinkled with sifted guardianship, and the painful skin irritation quickly disappeared.
Smoke therapy
The fact that the smoke of burned plants can have a therapeutic effect not only when fumigating a room, but also when inhaling (inhalation) was well known to the healers of ancient Russia.
The simplest ancient inhaler, with the help of which smoke with certain medicinal properties was obtained, was an ordinary stove brick.
Back in the 19th century in the Russian north, smoke was used to treat goiter (Graves' disease. It was possible to use a brick - an inhaler, attention, only at the time when the stove was heated. It differed from other bricks in that it had a small hole in the middle, into which crushed medicinal herbs were poured in. The bricks were placed on under the burning stove and heated almost red-hot. Then they were carefully removed and laid on two cold bricks, placed on a table or on a bench. thick fragrant smoke. The patient bent over the brick and sucked in the smoke rising from the grass. To prevent the smoke from scattering longer, dense tissue was thrown over the patient's head. Treatment of serious diseases was most often carried out under the supervision of a healer - herbal. But such diseases,like runny nose and sore throat, usually treated on their own. At the same time, ordinary onion husks were poured into the hole of the red-hot brick. In some places, even now, inhalation is readily used in combination with other therapeutic agents.