CrimeaPRESS reports:
The people believed that this day could bring any kind of weather surprise. Bad, usually. And it often rained on July 20. The peasants believed: the omen is not good! Literally means that showers can last as long as you like. For harvesting hay, this was a big hindrance — wet and rotten, it was not suitable for livestock feed, which foreshadowed a difficult winter. That is why the day was called «Avdotya-hay worm».
If the weather was good, the peasants went to the fields that day. The first harvest has begun. In the old days, they were reaped by hand, with sharply ground sickles. The harvested ears were collected in sheaves. The first sheaf enjoyed special honor. They called him birthday. Immediately from the field, such a sheaf was carried to the church to be consecrated, then placed in the red corner of the house. And then they fed it to livestock on the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos.
And even after the first harvest, all family members wondered about the future. Each threw his sickle on the floor of the hut. If the sickle stuck into the floor, it means that a person will die this year. He lay down on the floor — fortunately.
On July 20, the Church honors the memory of St. Euphrosyne, known to the world as Avdotya or Evdokia. She was born in the family of the Suzdal prince Dmitry Konstantinovich, later becoming the wife of the Moscow prince Dmitry Donskoy. During her reign, Avdotya built several churches, the most famous of which was the Ascension Convent on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin. Few knew that Avdotya observed a strict fast and wore chains under princely clothes. Avdotya had 5 sons, and they were very surprised when Avdotya decided to take monastic vows, after which she received the name Euphrosyne. It is known that before that there was a rumor that the princess wears so many clothes and jewelry to please her lovers, and her sons were very upset by this. However, Avdotya threw off her clothes, and under them was an emaciated and thin body, by which she proved that she believed in Christ, and it is impossible to reproach her for sin. In the last years of her life, Euphrosinia (Avdotya) prayed a lot and did good deeds.
Signs for July 20:
- It started to rain that day — it will drag on for seven weeks.
- It has been raining since morning — to a crop failure.
- Oak brooms made on this day have a special healing power. If there is no bath, you can just sit under an oak tree, and you will notice how your strength is restored.
- You can’t swim on July 20 — the water one will drag you away.
- If you fumigate a house with the smoke of oak leaves, there will be no fire in it.
- If a beautiful butterfly sits on your hand, and you have time to read “Our Father” 40 times before it flies away, any illness will go away.
- If July 20 falls on a Friday, then washing on this day is to poverty.
- The one who was born on July 20 will be lazy, but rich.
Name days are celebrated today by: Alexander, Herman, Nikon, Ostap, Polycarp, Sergey, Evdokia and Euphrosyne.
News of the Crimea | CrimeaPRESS
Comments are closed.