On March 25, Christians who follow the Gregorian calendar celebrate the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin. This is one of the most important holidays for believers, the third most important after Christmas and Easter..

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The meaning of the holiday.

The very word " On the holiday, believers remember the events when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary, who informed her that she would soon become the mother of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world..

The name of the holiday appeared only in the 7th century, before that it was called "

The holiday is not only religious, but also folk, therefore, many traditions, signs and prohibitions are associated with it, which our ancestors tried to follow.. Many of them have been known since antiquity and have survived to our times in folk memory..

Celebration traditions.

It is believed that any work on this day is a sin..

On the holiday it was customary to release birds, especially pigeons.. It was believed that they could bring news of the good deeds of people to their guardian angels..

On a holiday, it was not customary to sew or knit something. The people believed that a person's life is a thread that only angels and God can manage.. It was believed that on a holiday the probability of tangling the threads is very high..

It is believed that on a holiday you can not wear new clothes.

The people tried not to visit the Annunciation, to spend the day in the family circle. If a girl or woman knocks on the door, she may be a witch..

It was also customary to prepare Annunciation salt. Each of the family members threw a pinch of salt into a special bag, after which the hostess ignited it and took care of it for special occasions.. It is believed that such salt can cure even the hopelessly ill.. If the salt is not useful within a year, it must be burned at the stake..

What not to do on the Annunciation.

It is believed that on a holiday it is impossible to engage in physical labor. In addition, you can not work at home, sew, knit and embroider.

It is also believed that one should not swear, quarrel, conflict and wish others harm.. The people believed that on a holiday you can’t even think about the bad.

The holiday falls during the period of Great Lent, so it is necessary to observe the restrictions of this time: do not consume meat, dairy products, eggs and alcohol. But the restrictions are softened a bit: on a holiday you can eat fish and seafood.

It is believed that on a holiday you can’t lend money to someone.

Signs of the Annunciation.

Based on the weather on the Annunciation, they tried to predict what the harvest and summer months would be like..

If the day was windy, with morning fog and hoarfrost, a fruitful summer was expected..

The rain that day promised a harvest of mushrooms and bread.

To a good collection of spring, cucumbers, milk mushrooms was frost; to warm summer days and to an abundance of nuts - a thunderstorm.

On the day of the Annunciation there are no swallows - by the cold protracted spring.

The Annunciation sky is dark, starless - chickens will lay few eggs.

Annunciation snow on the roofs will not melt until May 6 (Egoria), and severe frost by forty frosty matinees.