The ancient Slavs believed that any mirror surface is not just a reflection of the real world, but a real door - or portal - to the other world. From here came the superstition that if you stare at the mirror-like surface of a lake or river for a long time, mermaids can drag you to the bottom. By their own reflection of a person in the surface of the water, they seem to lure his soul and open the way for her to another world.
Why curtain mirrors
The Slavs in ancient times believed that after death, the soul of the deceased does not immediately go to the world that was prepared for it: heaven or hell. Exactly 40 days after leaving the body, she wanders the earth. That is why on the 40th day, a commemoration is held, already forever saying goodbye to the deceased person. After that, his soul leaves the earth and passes into another reality.
If, during these forty days, the portals to the other world - mirrors - are left open, the soul of a deceased person will forever settle in them. The Slavs, who believed in spirits, sacredly revered the tradition of curtains of mirrors, because they were afraid of the presence in their home of any entities from the world of the dead.
As soon as a person died and an invisible thread broke off, connecting his soul with a perishable shell, all the mirrors in the house were immediately covered with a dense cloth. So the living protected themselves from the presence of rushing spirits in the dwelling. It was believed that a restless soul negatively affects the people living in the house and can bring evil. You should definitely say goodbye to her by all the rules and “let go”.
So as not to take with you
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Not only the fear of seeing the spirit of the deceased in the mirror forced the Slavs to carefully curtain all the reflecting surfaces in the house, but also the fear of following the deceased. The soul of a deceased person, like a mermaid, could carry along the soul of a living person into the other world. Our ancestors believed that non-compliance with the tradition with mirrors would lead to another funeral.
Also, it is strictly forbidden to look in a mirror (even a cosmetic one) in a house where there is a deceased. According to Slavic beliefs, the soul of the deceased will definitely take the one who has broken the custom with it. The Slavs never dared to open a portal to another world, while the spirits of their deceased freely roamed the earth. This tradition has survived to this day.