AND DON’T FORGET TO SPIT 3 TIMES!

Superstitions in Russia

What superstitious rituals you will see your Russian friends follow? Every culture has its own superstitions and beliefs and Russia of course is no exception. We do not even realize how superstitious we are. Some think that avoiding a black cat crossing your way is common for both Eastern and Western countries but we actually found out that our international friends have different reactions to some of Russian superstitions. To prepare yourself for Russian language course in Petrozavodsk read about these 5 most common superstitions.

5  most common Russian superstitions

1. Sitting down before going on a long trip. Russians usually sit for a while somewhere near the door inside their home before going to holidays or a business trip. Even if just one person is traveling from a family the whole group will sit down for couple minutes. It’s actually important to sit quietly! This is supposed to ensure the successful trip or rather prevent the disastrous trip.
2. Knocking on wood. When someone says something they hope will remain that way (for example “I’m healthy”) they will knock on wood. We perform knocking action and then spit 3 times over the left shoulder. However, we do not spit actually we just make the motion and the sound. It is supposed to symbolize spitting on the devil.
3. Stepping on someone’s foot. If a person accidentally steps on someone’s foot in Russia it is common for another person to “return step” and step slightly to first person’s foot. This is the way to prevent the fight between each other.
4. Don’t step over people! If someone staying somewhere on the ground you are not supposed to step over them or any part of their body. This is because they stop growing if someone stepped over them. But if this happened accidentally you should step backward over them to lift the “curse”.
5. Friends and couples should not go on different sides of the road. Otherwise, it means your relationship will soon be over!

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To find out more about Russian lifestyle and traditions check out other posts.  But it’s better to see once than to hear a thousand! So come to live with Russian host family and learn the language with us!

DON’T WHISTLE IN THE HOUSE!

Why you should not whistle in the house?

“Не свисти – денег не будет!” (Don’t whistle, otherwise you’ll not have any money!) – that’s what Russian people say when somebody is whistling in the house. Russians have lots of superstitions, but the ones that are related to money are the most important to follow;) If you whistle in a Russian house, the hosts won’t be happy, because you are whistling their money away. Outside – no problem, whistle as much as you like, but inside – never!

Where does this superstition come from?

Most of the Russian superstitions take their origin from paganism, believes that there are different gods and spirits of the house and wind, and earth… Speaking the truth, nowadays people don’t remember the reason why they do what they do, they just repeat some daily rituals the same way as their parents or grandparents did.

Speaking about whistling in the house, there are a few opinions of how this superstition has appeared.

1. Our ancestors believed that whistling is the language of evil spirits and by whistling we are calling them, and inviting them to our houses.
2. Whistling was a magical way to call the wind, which was used by sailors when the weather was too quite. And you can’t whistle in the house, because the wind will blow everything out, including the money.
3. Domovoy (house spirit) that usually protects the house doesn’t like whistling, that’s why he might leave the place and the house will stay unprotected and unhappy.
4. It’s just a bad behavior. Usually mothers don’t allow their children to whistle even outside, because it’s considered to be a bit rude, especially when you are trying to call someone by whistling. Mostly just hooligans and bullies do that.

Which explanation do you like the most?

Leave your comment and share your ideas with us!

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