From ancient times, during Christmas time until Epiphany, girls gathered for fortune-telling. The usual gatherings for winter evenings with needlework were exchanged for predicting the future, fortune telling for love, for the betrothed and his signs.
Fortune-telling concealed the mysterious presence of dark forces that accompanied the process. Therefore, they usually used to guess in the late evening by candlelight. Animals, as a rule, were removed from the hut, since cats and dogs drove away unclean spirits, and he was supposed to help fortune-tellers find out their fate.
One of the most terrible fortune-telling was to go to the bathhouse at night, light 2 candles, undress to the nakedness, put 2 mirrors opposite each other, forming a mirrored corridor, and call the betrothed. After a certain time, the face of the betrothed should have appeared in the mirror, but in fact it was a demon who took on a human form. And if you do not turn the mirror over in time with the special words: "Chur, unclean, get out!" - the demon could break out of the mirror and take the soul of the fortune-telling girl. We will not cite such terrible fortune-telling here, but will tell you about the most common and uncomplicated ones - simple fortune-telling for the future, for relationships and about their interpretation.
Most of the Christmas divination is designed for a group of unmarried girlfriends - fortune-tellers, since it is not very interesting to guess alone. Since today fortune-telling on Christmastide has turned more into entertainment, the more girlfriends gather, the better and more fun.
Christmas divination on the water - who will be the first to marry
It is necessary to take a sick wide basin and pour water into it to the brim. Then each girl must make a boat from a half of a walnut shell, stuffing it with bread crumb and, in the form of a flag on a match, attach a piece of paper with her name or her specific color. At the same time, all friends must put their boat in the center of a basin of water and remove their hand. The girl whose boat is the first to swim to the edge of the pelvis and touches it - the first of all friends will marry, and accordingly the second, third, etc. are determined in this way. the bride. You cannot blow on boats and help them.
Fortune telling on cups and objects on a loved one and his signs
For fortune-telling on the signs of the future beloved husband, mugs and objects are needed - a ring, a coin, white and black threads, grain, a needle, a crouton, and peas. All these objects are placed under the mugs and moved so that the fortuneteller does not see what is where. Then the girl chooses one or more mugs and determines the signs of the betrothed. Decoding of meanings: white thread - blond, black brunette, needle - thin, grain - well-fed, ring - handsome, crouton - will be old or much older than the bride, peas - will be green, that is, young, coin - will be rich. You can also come up with the meaning of different objects yourself and put them under the mugs.
Christmas fortune telling on the boot
Usually the boot was thrown over the fence, standing in the yard, with his back to the gate. Having thrown in, they went out to look where the toe of the boot points - in that region the betrothed lives. Today you can face the front door and throw your boot over your shoulder, making sure in advance that you will not hit any passer-by.
By the way, you can also guess at a passer-by. You need to go out into the street in the evening, go up to the first passer-by and ask him for the name of your betrothed. Fate in the person of a passer-by must accurately notify the fortuneteller about the name of the future husband.
Fortune telling on matches
This is simple fortune telling. Two girls, holding a match in their hands, make a wish and with the third match simultaneously set fire to the first two. Whose match burns faster - and that one will fulfill the desire faster. A match has gone out - it will not be fulfilled at all, if it burns out in half - it will come true partially.
Fortune telling on wax or paraffin
A well-known form of fortune telling, in which you need a candle made of wax or paraffin and a wide plate of water. A piece of wax is placed in a spoon and melted over a fire, then poured into cold water (sometimes through the fortuneteller's ring - for fidelity). According to the resulting image, future events are predicted. Or they ask a question in advance and their answer is interpreted according to a wax image
Fortune telling on a cat or dog
The girl makes a wish or a question (with the answer "yes" or "no") and calls her favorite animal from the next room. If the right leg appears faster from around the corner, then the answer is "yes" or the desire will come true and vice versa the left leg is "no".
Fortune telling on burnt paper
Fortune telling in the dark with a lit candle. On an iron or other non-burning tray or dish, the girl puts a crumpled sheet of paper, asking a question or simply asking about the future. The tray is placed against the wall so that the shadow of the paper can be seen on it, the paper is set on fire. When the paper burns out, you need to look at the outlines of the shadow of the burned sheet. Of course, such fortune-telling presupposes the presence of a developed imagination among fortune-tellers. Here are some interpretations of possible symbols: house - moving is possible, flowers - to joy, rocker - to gossip, dove, heart - to new love or a wedding.
Christmas fortune telling on dumplings for the future
To do this, fortune-telling girls must be able to cook. In the evening, the girls sculpt dumplings, adding additional ingredients to some of them - salt, pepper, peas, sugar, wheat, bay leaves, onions and others. Then the dumplings are boiled and by what kind of dumpling you come across you can determine what will happen in the near future. Salt - to a quarrel, pepper - grief, peas - to replenishment, sugar - fortunately, wheat - to wealth, bay leaf - to luck and luck, onions - to tears. You can come up with meanings for other spices and additives yourself - cinnamon, beans, cloves, etc.
Fortune telling on the book
This is a fortune-telling to get an answer to a question. Take a book - preferably art or church, but not technical or poetry. Books of fairy tales are also well suited. Make a question, and then at random say the page and line number. Find this line - this will be the answer to the question. It is better for girls who are too suspicious and superstitious not to ask vital questions, as the answer can upset.
Fortune telling on a loved one - determining the name
Going to bed, the girl puts pieces of paper with male names under the pillow. In the morning he takes out the first piece of paper that comes across and learns from it the name of the betrothed. You can put a comb under the pillow and say the words before going to bed: "My betrothed mummer, come to me, comb my braids." This night, the future husband should dream of a fortune-telling girl.
