Evil Eye

Hello! Regarding your post about opening asks, I was wondering if you have any advice about searching for Ukrainian sources about folklore/magic/superstition etc that are actually specific to Ukrainian beliefs? Every time I try to do research I find things that *say* Ukrainian, but all the sources are Russian. For example when I try to read about Mokosh, who is said to be an earth goddess for "all slavic people" (already a red flag statement) I can only find Russian sources and stories. People tend to lump us into one group, an issue Im sure you're familiar with. Either way, thank you for your time!! <3

That is a simple one - you would have to be more specific in your research. Do not look up Ukrainian beliefs about Mokosh, Ukraine nor Ukrainians (or Russians, for that matter) did not exist when this deity was worshiped. Research the history itself, or any particular region, subject, or group, and make your own conclusions.

With Mokosh, however, the trick is that the one reliable primary source in existence, the Tale of Bygone Years, also known as the Primary Chronicle, only states the name itself, without a hint towards gender or patronage. The rest, academically, is conjecture derived from romantic pet theories and the images of the Virgin Mary and St. Friday in folk imagination. This is not to say there is no earth goddess making herself known through this name, or through the saints mentioned, for that matter, but it has to be acknowledged there is no way of knowing who this being was at the time of writing.

Is Slavic polytheism closed or open to anyone? Does it depend on the branch so to speak? I know Slavic polytheism is a broad term.

Thank you for the question @newbiepagancat ! I’ll give you a direct answer and a broader view answer.

Direct answer: The general theme of the myth was reconstructed by slavists on the basis of folk songs, folktales and comparative mythology, there is no one concrete historical source. The names of gods and the storyline connecting multiple myths are an educated speculation by slavists of yore. The minute details are typically added by neopagans as they’re almost impossible to reconstruct.

The Russian philologists Ivanov and Toporov found (mainly on the tradition about Zeleni Jurij) traces of the principal myth of Perun and Veles, linking Jurij/Jarylo with the Balto-Slavic Jarovit, a deity of fertility, who was initially worshipped on April 15. Furthermore, Radoslav Katičić wrote extensively on Jurij’s myth among the Slavs and on the duel between the Thunder God with a dragon. Both Radoslav Katičić and Vitomir Belaj share the opinion that Jurij/Jarylo is the son of Perun and thus central to the pre-Slavic vegetation and fertility myth. Jurij was taken by envoys of Veles to the land of the dead from which he returned to the world of the living in spring. As a harbinger of spring, Zeleni Jurij is also connected with the circular flow of time and with renewal. According to Katičić’s reconstruction of the myth of Zeleni Jurij, the mythic story recounts how young Jurij rides his horse from afar, from the land of eternal spring and the land of the dead – from Veles’ land – across a blood-stained sea, through a mountain to a green field. (…) At the end of his journey, Jurij arrives at the door of Perun’s court to marry Perun’s daughter, (his own sister) Mara. Together with the sacrifice of the horse, the hieros gamos ensures the growth and fertility of plants. Some Slovene folktales and songs also mention an incestuous relationship between a brother and a sister, which is the reminiscence of the sacred marriage already mentioned in the myth of Kresnik. The sacred marriage is therefore also connected with Zeleni Jurij.

- Supernatural beings from Slovenian myth and folktales by Monika Kropej

Mikhailov summarized Ivanov’s and Toporov’s reconstruction of the basic myth by describing that the thunder god Perun, who dwells in the sky on the top of a mountain, persecutes his enemy, who has the form of a snake and lives below on earth. The reason for their conflict is that Veles stole cattle and people, as well as the Thunderer’s wife in some versions of the story.

- René Girard’s Scapegoating and Stereotypes of Persecution in the Divine Battle between Veles and Perun by Mirjana Borenović

Broader worldview answer: There are some common mythological themes that exist in one form or another among countless different cultures and peoples, adjusted to fit the local gods and their broader stories.

The God of Thunder fights The Serpent of the Waters. They have to fight - be it as Perun and Veles, as Thor and Jörmungandr, as Zeus and Typhon or as Marduk and Tiamat. The detailed reasons will vary but will make sense locally. The older and simpler reason is likely that we need a good justification for the changing of the seasons.

The Death will always take away someone’s Loved One, sometimes that Loved One will be a child, since that makes coping with the situation particularly difficult. That’s just what death does - be it as Veles and Yarilo or as Hades and Persephone. Bonus points for explaining the seasons changing too.

So let’s say you’re a slavist or a neopagan desperate for a coherent body of Slavic myths but lacking one. All you have to work with are some fleshless skeletons of myths, painstakingly glued together from random bones that you found here and there. Truth be told you only managed to get this far because they’re real classics of the genre and other cultures tend to have similar ones too. Let’s introduce the skeleton gallery in play here:

The Thunderer and the Serpent are fighting (described more in depth here),

The God of Death/Underworld abducts a child (described in the quotes above),

The Spirit of Vegetation has to die - creative sacrifice/murder (explained shortly here),

The Fire and Water need to marry at Midsummer - magical incest temporarily allowed (explained in this post, if it’s too long just read the last quote and the tldr).

(You might notice pretty much all those myths are centered around vegetation, what makes plants grow, and people needing to have food. Two first skeletons do a decent job of explaining change of seasons and the reason for seasonal coming of rains, that are needed for the fields to grow; two last ones are related to rituals that are supposed to ensure that land stays fertile/there’s enough sun and water so that grain grows and we can avoid starving.)

Ok, so let’s say you’re a slavist or a neopagan desperate for a coherent body of Slavic myths. What is the optimal way to connect the dots here?

Perun and Veles fight. Why are they fighting? Multiple reasons but the biggest one is Veles stealing something that rightfully belonged to Perun. What did he steal? Well the myth works perfectly if it’s a) a child and b) a spirit of vegetation. This fits both Morana and Yarilo and I saw fans of both versions, but let’s go with Yarilo here. Because of a flower, a folk song and an old chronicle Yarilo/Yarovit, the spirit believed to be one of vegetation, life, spring, sun etc. has to marry the spirit of vegetation, water and death, that miiiiiight also be his sister. How the fuck do you marry your own sister? Well you got abducted and separated at young age, but as The Spring, The Embodiment of Sprouting Seeds and maybe also The Sun Child, Yarilo (born at Midwinter) will come out from the Underworld uscathed as a young adult and meet a girl who he fails to recognize as his sister and marries at Midsummer (part of fertility ritual for good harvest). Anyway tragedy follows, could be murder, could be suicide, either way it has to be death.

Why? Because that’s what makes sense, the most optimal way to put together the puzzle pieces that we currently have. Does that mean that’s exactly what Ancient Slavs believed? No, but a) we don’t know for sure what they believed and will likely never find out for sure, b) they probably believed bunch of different, conflicting stories depending on the region.

Obviosuly speculating slavists are much more light-handed than speculating neopagans. The slavists will usually let you know which parts they added, why they hold this particular belief, what purpose this story may serve, what other authorities support their hypothesis, and of course, that nothing is for sure and this is merely a hypothesis. Neopagans are rarely this kind and forthcoming.

Have a lovely day!

Zarya

Perun - Żmija’s guide to Slavic Gods

art by Maxim Aleksandrowicz Kuleshov

part one of my guide to slavic faith - basic problems

part two of my guide to slavic faith - main gods

Perun - God of Thunder and Lighting, Ruler of Sky, Giver of Rain and Punisher of Evil - is possibly the most popular and important Old God from the Slavic pantheon; he unifies the beliefs of many Slavic - and Baltic - tribes.

As I am aware than reliable sources in English are not this easy to find, I decided to translate some notes on him I have from the “Mythology of Slavic People” by Aleksander Gieysztor - a book which is crucial for anyone who wants to really delve into the Slavic faith. It is quite academic and focuses greatly on linguistics, archeology, and folklore. Split in parts to avoid being too long and exhausting (as if it is not already? oh my.) Includes info from Strzelczyk’s Mity, podania i wierzenia dawnych Słowian as well.

- the mentions of Perun and his worship are widely present in texts from both ancient times and Middle Ages; however, they are truly visible in folk oral history, language, and archeological finds.

- Perun as a higher deity is present in nearly all of Slavic tribes’ beliefs as well as in the Baltic ones.

- his name is created from the core “per” and the suffix “un” – such a way of creating a name denotes a role and activity described by the core (nomen agentis); through this, in Polish we have a word “piorun” (lighting) coming from the action of Perun and his role. Both Lithuanian and Latvian have one word for the deity and the lighting.

- his role fluctuated throughout the years between the deity of sky and thunder to the deity of authority and action: both aspects are equally important and present in sources and tradition. a similar process took place in the Roman polytheism.

- the main role of Perun is connected with hitting – he is the one who hits, punishes, sends lightning bolts – this is present in language in certain ways: in Polish “prać” coming from the “per” core meant to wash clothes with the beating stick (kijanka) and is nowadays still present in colloquial Polish meaning “to hit, to beat someone up” (prać kogoś, sprać na kwaśne jabłko itd.)

- Balts have yet another similar core denoting the deity Perku-nas (widely accepted to be the same as Perun) and through the cores “perk” or “perg” apparent in Indoeuropean languages, we can observe connotations with “lighting”, “rock”, “forest”, and “oak tree.”

- there are many documented practices of tribes worshipping oak trees as Perun’s trees – although it is important to note that Slavs did not worship the tree itself but “what [the tree] encompassed, what it meant” (quote from Mircea Eliade, Romanian historian of religion)

- Serbian (but also Macedonian and Bulgarian)  practices of “zapis” also highlighted the importance of worship connected to oak trees.

- also places hit by lighting were considered sacred – whether it was a hill, a tree, or earth/sand which created the Perun’s arrows/arrowheads (Fulgurite)

- fulgurites or belemnites were considered the sacred weapon of Perun – Perun’s arrows, God’s arrows (Polish strzałka piorunowa, Ukrainian hromowa strilka/strila boża, Serbian strijela, Slovene strela); if found, they were considered a great luck: put in the child’s cradle for protection and health, rubbed on cows’ udders if they were not giving milk, or put under the thatch to protect the household from being hit by lighting.

- the other weapon of Perun was the Axe – through this axes were considered a sacred symbol and put beside the bed of a woman giving birth, near the threshold of a barn, on the field during sowing, or outside to protect animals and crops from hail.

- from the belief in the magical powers of Perun’s weapons came the practice of hitting oneself on the head with a rock or iron after hearing the first thunder of spring.

- the name of Perun was considered sacred and not to be taken lightly: Marija Gimbutas, a Lithuanian-American archeologist documented that, in Latvia and Lithuania, up until the XX century, only the elders were allowed to utter his name – and even they would use a diminutive form Perkunelis or Perkonitis as a way of omitting his “true name” and not angering him or bringing thunder upon themselves. (this is a widely present in linguistic analysis phenomenon of “magical taboo” and it often causes crucial cores and forms of words to be changed)

- the name of Perun and its various forms are very noticeable in toponymy (the naming of places) such as Lithuanian Perkūnai, the river Perkūnija or the mountain Perkūnkalnis; Bulgarian and Yugoslav Perunac, Perunićka Glava, Peruna Dubrava and dozens more; Polish Piorunowy Dział by the river Poprad; however, the Perun Hill in Istria (peninsula now shared by Croatia, Slovenia and Italy) with the part of it slope called Trebišča is most interesting – the term “treba” in Slavic languages and customs meant “sacrifice, offering”

- his name is also present in other parts of language other than toponymy or words meaning “thunder/lighting bolt/to hit” – most noticeably in curses/swear words such as “may the lighting hit you, may Perun punish you” in various Slavic languages such “niech cię piorun strzeli/trzaśnie” in Polish (there are many other languages using this, but Gieysztor doesn’t quote them – I do not know Serbian or Ukrainian well enough to post outside information here, please check Lug Velesa’s video on Perun where they quote more)

part 2 will include, among others: Perun’s role in Slavic dichotomy (his fight with Veles), the role of Perperuna, more customs, and specific archeologically-confirmed practices in his name.

observe the tag “gods guide” for upcoming updates.

slava,

Żmija

Forgotten Galicia

Forgotten Galicia - A Protection Symbol for the Home: The Six-Petal Rosette оn the Crossbeams of Galicia

The Six-Petal Rosette The six-petal rosette, the flower-like symbol created by overlapping seven circles, as well as the expanded variants w

The Six-Petal Rosette

The six-petal rosette, the flower-like symbol created by overlapping seven circles, as well as the expanded variants with 7 interlocking rosettes and 19 interlocking rosettes (the latter is called the “Flower of Life” in the New Age movement), is an ancient symbol that has been used across cultures and religions for millennia.

The rosette is a solar symbol in many cultures and many peoples believed it to be magical. It was commonly used as a decorative motif to adorn doors, ceiling beams, crosses, cornices, coats of arms, everyday objects, furniture, musical instruments, ritual items, graves.

In ancient Slavic tradition, the rosette was associated with the chief pagan god Perun, the god of thunder and lightning, and was supposed to protect against lightning and generally ensure the favor of the Thunderer. Appropriately, the symbol is also called the “symbol of Perun” and a “thunder mark” in Ukrainian.

The Rosette on Crossbeams

Supporting a ceiling with large wooden crossbeams (“svolok” in Ukrainian and “sosręb” in Polish) was once a common construction practice, found in noble residences as well as in burgher homes, and through the early twentieth century in regional construction, especially in the Carpathians.

The crossbeam was not only an important structural element of the home, but also a symbolic and decorative one: it was in the center of this beam that the rosette was engraved to protect the house against misfortune and especially against fire. Additionally, the date of construction, decorative motifs, the name of the owner, the name of the carpenter, mottos, or religious symbols could be engraved on the beam, turning the crossbeam into a vital record of the house.

Detailed information about the use of crossbeams and the rosette in the architecture of the peoples of Galicia can be found in excellent works of research from the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries by Władysław Matlakowski and Kazimierz Mokłowski. Władysław Matlakowski, a surgeon, ethnographer, and researcher of Podhale architecture and folk art, published Budownictwo ludowe na podhalu (Folk Buildings in Podhale) in 1892 and Zdobienie i sprzęt ludu polskiego na Podhalu (Decoration and Domestic Utensils of the Polish People in Podhale) in 1901, while Kazimierz Mokłowski, a Polish architect and art historian, who later lived and worked in Lviv, published Sztuka Ludowa w Polsce (Folk Art in Poland) in 1903. These three works include thorough descriptions as well as a plenty of illustrations of various elements of the architecture and applied art of the region.

Crossbeams in the Folk Architecture of Galician Highlanders

Though historically used across much of Ukraine and Poland, today the rosette is most associated with and best preserved in the culture of the Carpathian highlanders of Galicia, in particular in Hutsul, Boyko, Lemko, and Goral folk architecture, woodwork, and household objects. Accordingly, in Ukrainian it also has such names as “hutsulska rozetka” (Hutsul rosette), “boykivska rozetka” (Boyko rosette) and in Polish “rozeta karpacka” (Carpathian rosette), “rozeta podhalańska” (Podhale rosette), “rozeta góralska” (Goral rosette).

Goral Cottages

Podhale is a region in the Polish Tatra Mountains inhabited by highlanders known as Gorals. Władysław Matlakowski writes in his book Zdobienie i sprzęt ludu polskiego na Podhalu that the “gwiazda” (meaning “star”—another name for the rosette in Polish) is “the most common and the most characteristic ornament in Podhale: it is found everywhere, but mostly on every crossbeam.” Indeed, throughout this book as well as his other book Budownictwo Ludowe na Podhalu, the gwiazda appears in illustrations of such items as spoon racks, chairs, distaffs, and lintels, but most notably on crossbeams.

Examples of old crossbeams with rosettes from the Podhale region can still be found in Poland, especially in open air museums which have preserved the local folk architecture.

Hutsul, Boyko &  Lemko Cottages

The Hutsuls, Boykos and Lemkos inhabit what is today the Ukrainian and eastern Polish Carpathian Mountains. Just as among the Gorals, the rosette is found in the architecture and folk crafts of these highlanders.

A testament to the ubiquity of the rosette in the folk architecture of the Carpathian highlanders is Lviv’s Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Life, which features examples of the architecture of the Hutsuls, Boykos, and Lemkos. The rosette can be seen all over the open air museum, including on several crossbeams inside the homes. It is no wonder the museum uses the rosette as its logo.

Crossbeams in Renaissance Buildings in Lviv

In addition to examples from the Carpathian Mountains, Kazimierz Mokłowski’s book Sztuka Ludowa w Polsce includes illustrations of crossbeams from buildings in Lviv which include the rosette, as well as other solar symbols, often along with the year of construction and religious symbols.

Fortunately, not only do these original engraved Renaissance-era crossbeams, as documented by Kazimierz Mokłowski, still support the ceilings of the buildings in Lviv’s historic center, but many of them are open to public viewing as they are generally located in shops, restaurants, and museums.

Crossbeams in Zakopane Style Villas

A widespread symbol among the Gorals, the rosette was a popular symbol in the architecture and interior decor of Zakopane Style villas. Zakopane Style architecture emerged at the end of the nineteenth century when architect Stanislaw Witkiewicz, rejecting foreign building styles that had started to appear in the booming ski resort of Zakopane, chose to embrace traditional Podhale-style architecture, enriching it with elements of Art Nouveau. The new Zakopane Style villas included large intricately engraved crossbeams prominently featuring the rosette, such as can be found in Villa Oksza (built in 1894 by Witkiewicz, today an art gallery) and in the guest house Villa Orla (built 1901). Though by this time the symbol likely lost its meaning as a “thunder mark” and was used purely as a decorative element cherishing the local culture.

A Sign from the Past

Today, the rosette has found new places to thrive across Galicia—for example, it is used as logos for museums and a microbrewery, and found on folk-inspired accessories. Although its history, meaning, and usage may have been forgotten, the “Carpathian” rosette is in fact still alive and well today.

So don’t forget—next time you enter a Carpathian highlander’s cottage, a Renaissance building in Lviv, or a Zakopane Style villa, look up! If you are lucky, you will find an authentic example of this ancient and mystic symbol.

Written by Areta Kovalska

(Wonderful photos on the page)

“Years of My Youth, Come Visit Me” - Maria Prymachenko (1909 - 1997), Ukrainian artist. Prymachenko is well-known, frequently posted and much loved. Her art was like a fountain, coming out with great force, never losing its magical quality and representing the best in Ukrainian fork art.  

“In 1936 Maria Ovksentiyivna was invited to experimental workshops. Folk talents were gathered here, Pryimachenko was among them.

In 1936, at the First Republican Exhibition of Folk Art, Pryimachenko’s paintings were given a whole hall. This exhibition was seen by Moscow, Leningrad, and Warsaw. Maria Prymachenko was awarded a first-degree diploma for participating in an exhibition of folk art in 1936. Since then, her works have been exhibited with constant success at exhibitions in Paris, Warsaw, Sofia, Montreal, and Prague. In 1937 the artist’s works were exhibited in Paris. She became famous.

Mysterious and emotionally charged, the works of Maria Pryimachenko, a folk master of Ukrainian decorative painting, seem to absorb the age-old traditions of many generations of Ukrainian master-craftsmen who, from the depths of the centuries, have brought forth their understanding of good and evil, of ugliness and beauty.

Images often had арреаred to the artist in dreams and later materialized in her compositions. Maria Pryimachenko’s art works depict fabulous mythological beasts and take their roots in folk legends and fairy-tales, nourished by real life and culture of the Ukrainian реорlе.”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Prymachenko

A Welcomed Place

As our Lord entered the holy city, the Hebrew children professed the resurrection of life. Holding palm branches, they cried out, “Hosanna in the highest!” – Antiphon 1: Procession for Palm Sunday

My ancestors’ holy days are my holy days. I reinterpret and redefine to create personal meaning, so my connection to them is genuine yet reflective of my own beliefs. Even though Jesus Christ isn’t my savior, he has a welcome place at the table of resurrective gods I waitress.

see also: #altar, #palm sunday

When Fern Blooms (Hope Floats): Elusive

Kupala Night, also called Ivanа-Kupala, is a traditional eastern Slavic holiday which is celebrated in Ukraine, Poland, Belarus and Russia during the night from 6 to 7 July (on the Gregorian calendar). (This corresponds to 23-24 June on these countries’ traditional Julian calendar.) Calendar-wise, it is opposite to the winter holiday Koliada. The celebration relates to the summer solstice when nights are the shortest and includes a number of Slavic rituals.

The name of the holiday was originally Kupala; a pagan fertility rite later adapted into the Orthodox Christian calendar by connecting it with St. John’s Day which is celebrated on 24 June.

The Ukrainian, Belarusian and Russian name of this holiday combines “Ivan” (John, in this case John the Baptist) and Kupala which was thought to be derived from the Slavic word for bathing, which is cognate. However, it likely stems from the proto-Slavic kump, a gathering. The two feasts could be connected by reinterpreting John’s baptizing people through full immersion in water. However, the tradition of Kupala predates Christianity. The pagan celebration was adapted and reestablished as one of the native Christian traditions intertwined with local folklore.

The holiday is still enthusiastically celebrated by the younger people of Eastern Europe. The night preceding the holiday (Tvorila night) is considered the night for “good humour” mischiefs (which sometimes would raise the concern of law enforcement agencies). On Ivan Kupala day itself, children engage in water fights and perform pranks, mostly involving pouring water over people.

Many of the rites related to this holiday are connected with the role of water in fertility and ritual purification. This is due to the ancient Kupala rites. On Kupala day, young people jump over the flames of bonfires in a ritual test of bravery and faith. The failure of a couple in love to complete the jump, while holding hands, is a sign of their destined separation.

Girls may float wreaths of flowers (often lit with candles) on rivers, and attempt to gain foresight into their romantic relationship fortune from the flow patterns of the flowers on the river. Men may attempt to capture the wreaths, in the hope of capturing the interest of the woman who floated it.

There is an ancient Kupala belief that the eve of Ivan Kupala is the only time of the year when ferns bloom. Prosperity, luck, discernment, and power befall whom ever finds a fern flower (Chervona ruta). Therefore, on that night, village folk roam through the forests in search of magical herbs, and especially, the elusive fern flower (Chervona ruta).

Traditionally, unmarried women, signified by the garlands in their hair, are the first to enter the forest. They are followed by young men. Therefore, the quest to find herbs and the fern flower (Chervona ruta) may lead to the blooming of relationships between pairs within the forest.

According to folklore, the flower is Chervona ruta. The flower is yellow, but according to legend, it turns red on the eve of Ivan Kupala Day. Ferns are not angiosperms (flowering plants), and instead reproduce by spores.

In Gogol’s story The Eve of Ivan Kupala, a young man finds the fantastical fern-flower, but is cursed by it. Gogol’s tale may have been the stimulus for Modest Mussorgsky to compose his tone poem Night on Bald Mountain, adapted by Yuri Ilyenko into a film of the same name.

SOURCES: Image #1: Wikimedia Commons: License: Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Source Photographer: Simon Kozhin/С.Л.Кожин Title: Kupala Night, Divination on the Wreaths Artist: Simon Kozhin/С.Л.Кожин Image #2: Wikimedia Commons:   Title: Night on the Eve of Ivan Kupala Artist: Henryk Hector Siemiradzki License: Public Domain Image #3: Wikimedia Commons: Title: Івана Купала (Ivanа-Kupala). Stamp of Ukraine (1998) License: Public Domain Text:  Wikipedia: Kupala Night:  Fern Flower: Chervona ruta. License:  Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License

Hello, do you know anything on black salt in Ukrainian folk magic? I'm asking because i found this supposedly traditional Ukrainian recipe for black salt, but i never heard about black salt in folk magic, always thought about it as a kind of new age thing. This recipe says to mix salt, ashes from herbs, rye flour and water and make dough, and then burn it on charcoals, and specifically make it on Holy Thursday. What do you think?

Variations on Thursday salt, as it tends to be known here, are quite well-known, indeed. Burned on charcoal, or in a cast iron vessel should only a stove be available, with herbs, or flour, depending on the region and availability - one traditional manner would be to attach it to a wall of a wood oven and allow the concoction to burn through.

Perhaps the simplest recipe involves cooking it on a dry cast iron skillet with a bit of rye flour and prayer till it blackens.

Altar placement by Ukrainian tradition

The information I will share in the post is mainly about the Christian home altar, but it may provide some ideas for individuals interested in Slavic paganism, as well.

The altar is called “червоний кут”, which translated to “red corner” (here is another post on red colour in the Slavic tradition that I made). It used to be the most important part of the house that usually contained items valuable from cultural and religious point of view: icons, the Bible, books of prayers, candles, pictures of deceased relatives, all decorated with beautifully embroidered cloths. The table was placed in that corner, too. As a general rule, it was across the room from the oven, well-lit, which would make it South or East.

The person to sit in that corner was the master of the house or the most important guest; in times of death, forty days after, the person who passed away - they also get a plate and a cup of their own, of course. Due to the importance associated with the red corner, it was said that if you hear cracking in the walls on that side, the master may soon die.

Ukrainians say, “у своїй хаті й кути помагають” - “at home even corners help”, which was true in the more literal sense for women giving birth back when doing it at home was the usual practice for most. People believed that, should the process be especially difficult, the woman should be led around that very table every now and then.