Until now, the patterns made on clothes, tablecloths, towels by unknown craftswomen of past centuries are sparkling brightly, shimmer with rainbow colors. These symbolic images were supposed, according to our great-grandfathers, to bring good luck and prosperity to their owners, to save them "from gladness and pestilence", to ward off the influence of evil forces, to protect the warrior from wounds on the battlefield, to contribute to the procreation.
Until the middle of the 19th century, the "decorations" were not changed, so as not to violate and not distort the ancient sacred meaning, passed from generation to generation, carefully observing the "canons". Ornaments are akin to ancient writings and, like them, can tell a lot about the outlook of man in those distant eras. For a long time, people remembered the purpose of ornaments. Back in the 20-30s of the XX century, residents of some northern Russian villages demonstrated their knowledge of the meaning of the depicted pattern in front of the oldest craftswoman of the village on special “readings”: young girls brought ready-made works to gatherings and told about them in front of the “whole world”. In some places in the outback, you can still hear the ancient names of patterns: "vodnik", "Perun", although the master is often unable to explain their meaning. And yet, ancient patterns live on. They live and delight with their beauty. Sometimes they live contrary to the convictions of society or its individual groups, contrary to the guidelines of a particular state regime.
Once working in the archives of the Ryazan Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve, I laughed a lot, reading the correspondence of the Ryazan mayor and the Skopino bishop (XIX century): both correspondents subtly scolded the "depraved" Russian women, who, despite the great church holidays, stubbornly walked around the city in "obscene" embroidered "underwear" - in a dolt. The custom demanded that embroideries be displayed, and the craftswomen depicted on them either a woman giving birth, or even "patterns of the first night."
But it was not at all funny to recall the stories of old people heard on expeditions about how hundreds of folk “adornments” with the image of one of the most beloved Slavic ornaments were barbarously destroyed during the Great Patriotic War, and sometimes - and quite recently. And the advanced technologies of the XXI century threaten to completely wipe out Russian folk crafts with their low productivity and primitive technologies from the face of the Earth.
And yet, in spite of everything, the ornament lives on. To this day, there are people who know how to decorate and want to wear traditional ones. On long winter evenings, Slavic girls and women embroidered and weaved patterns with a torch - one more intricate than the other, decorating their "row" with them, so that later, on a holiday, they could flaunt before the "society". Did they only feel beauty? Was it only the desire for creative expression that drove them? Or was there and continues to exist today in ancient symbols something very important - unknown to us today?
For the first time I had to deal with the unusual properties of folk ornament in my youth, when I worked in the Ryazan Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve. It was necessary to take a picture in an old folk dress. In the cathedral, where the shooting took place, because of the cold, I had to wear a fur coat, but ... as soon as I put on embroidered linen clothes, it suddenly became warm: the thin fabric was warming! In an incomprehensible way! Later, while expecting the birth of a child, I realized that the folk patterns that Russian women performed, in addition to beauty, gave the expectant mother also calmness and patience. When I drew ornaments for the planned works, my health miraculously improved, the edema subsided. Later, having mastered the craft of hand weaving, I began to notice how my mood changes in the process of making variously ornamented items.
Surprisingly, the ornament of folk "adornments" is the same all over the world: the graphics are slightly different, the colors and shades change, but the look, rhythm, and meaning are quite recognizable. There is a known case when a Mexican weaver recognized the pattern of a zero of a woman's shirt of the Arkhangelsk province as her national one. What's this? Accident? Or are different folk traditions based on the same deep knowledge, sometimes inaccessible to us, because they are presented in an unusual language of harmony, beauty and love, and before you can understand them, you need to master the language itself?
This book is the result of my striving to raise questions related to the meaning of folk textile ornament and the peculiarities of its effect on the "wearer" of the clothes decorated by them or the person looking at the patterns. It uses information from many, sometimes non-traditional sources: history, ethnography, mythology, bioenergy, modern alternative medicine, etc. Perhaps this is not entirely correct: is it possible to grasp the immensity? But Russian folk culture has always seemed to me so all-embracing and multifaceted that, in my opinion, it is only necessary to study it comprehensively, having felt the very way of thinking of our ancestors.
I believe that the process of drawing folk textile patterns is best illustrated. At first, I spent a month to complete such a drawing while maintaining all the design features (and this in the presence of lined paper, a pencil, corrective funds). And each time the question arose: what about without them? On a loom? And not from the middle, from where the pattern clearly unfolds, but from the edge? And instead of a drawing, at best, a diagram, scratched with a nail on a plank. What kind of spatial imagination, what coordinated interhemispheric connections of the brain do you need to have in order to do this? You must see! But after all, this was an ordinary weaver who knew how ...
And further. I really want the ancient art of ornament to be preserved, not to disappear, so that the skills, traditions and beauty of folk culture continue to live, please and benefit people. After all, this beauty has incredible kind energy (I just want to say the soul), capable of helping people. I would like to believe that the topics touched upon in my story will interest new researchers, and then such an amazing phenomenon as Russian folk textile ornament can really be comprehended from different angles. In the meantime, the ancient images-writing continue to await their full reading. Well, shall I try to start?
Folk textile ornament: a history of study
The study of folk "adornments" began in the 19th century. The first descriptions of textile patterns and attempts to find the meaning hidden in them were made by famous people: members of the Imperial Archaeological Society and numerous scholars of archival commissions Russian Empire... They managed to record invaluable material, now - alas! - Irretrievably lost: the original folk names of individual elements of the ornament, more or less not yet distorted by the disappearance of the patriarchal peasant life.
In the 1920s, their work was continued by the regional societies of local historians. Relatively systematic materials were published in regional publications or settled in the archives. Of the available, the most interesting were the works of the Smolensk ethnographer E.N. Kletnova, Ryazan ethnographer I.I. Lebedeva, the famous archaeologist V.A. Gorodtsov (I.001) and materials of a unique study of the Sanozhkovsky local historians P. and S. Stakhanov.
A lot of literature on the description of the patterns of folk embroidery and weaving throughout the USSR was published in the 1950s and 1970s. A number of art albums and catalogs are published folk costume... Studying the ornaments of the peoples of Siberia, S. Ivanov developed schemes for the formation of ornamental forms, depending on the type of symmetry used. The interest of historians, archaeologists, art historians in the meaning of images is growing: special studies are undertaken by G.P. Durasov, G.S. Maslova, B.A. Rybakov, A. Ambroz.
In the 90s of the last century, materials for the study of local traditions reappeared. New researchers of museum funds and amateur collectors drew attention to the previously missed details of the adornments of folk clothing, which made it possible to trace the reflection and socio-generic information about the owner in the folk costume. It became possible to study the history of the ancient and common among the Slavs, the swastika symbol.
Numerous attempts at practical reconstruction of the application and meaning of folk ornament were undertaken by supporters of the reviving paganism. A. Golan, in his major work, traced a single mythological basis for the symbols of ornament among the peoples of the world, and the works of M.F. Parmona exhaustively highlighted the features of the cut and form of folk clothing.
Studies are being published that raise questions of the perception of symbols by human consciousness, as well as the effect of the sign on our physical state, from this point of view, V.I. Loshilov. Psychologists and representatives of alternative medicine have accumulated considerable experience in assessing the impact of certain non-material factors on the human body, and our ideas about the properties of consciousness are constantly expanding. But no one has yet tried to consider folk ornament from this point of view.
Images and worlds of women's clothing
The prototype of the girl's costume, in our opinion. Heavenly deity-Spinner, mistress of destinies, mistress of life and death. Her historical roots go back to the appearance of the Supreme Female Goddess of the Stone Age. According to popular beliefs, the girl still had to prove her feminine essence, her ability to bear children. Until that moment, she showed a potential danger, could turn out to be a conductor of the forces of sterility and death. Therefore, under no guise, a “girl” could be allowed to a woman in labor, to harvest (to “give birth” to Mother Earth) and to cook food in an oven, which in ritual tradition was another “image-substitute” for the Earth and the act of childbirth.
She got to knit sheaves in haymaking, take care of cattle and - the main thing! - to spin and weave, above all to prepare your own dowry. At the same time, the girl seemed to "spin" her share. "Nepyakha, netkaha" is the most offensive word for a teenage girl who began to be taught the wisdom of textile work from about six years old. At the same time, the process of spinning and weaving itself was associated with the act of creation of the Universe: according to some ideas, the world was entwined, twisted like a thread.
The peculiarities of the cut of the shirt were determined by the tribal affiliation of the woman. For Russian women's (and girls') shirts, it is characteristic to hem the shirt (body) to the sleeves, which accounted for the main decorative and semantic load. The upper part of the sleeve - polik - could be straight (rectangular), reflecting an earlier form of clothing, or oblique (with triangular inserts that play the role of modern darts). These are the most ornamented and informative parts of the shirt. The stance could be sewn from one (the so-called "healing" shirt), two or three or four pieces of linen, the average width of which was 35 cm. The length of the shirt reached, on average, the middle of the calf or ankle; the hem was usually embroidered by God. In the northern regions, at the bottom, the image of the Heavenly Goddess in a boat or in the image of a bird, the World Tree, as well as related mythological scenes (a lion, a woman in labor, etc.) were often placed. Also known are short shirts worn under outerwear. In the shirts of the Finno-Ugric peoples, on the contrary, the sleeves were hemmed to the waist of the shirt.
The apron disguising the figure of a woman, in addition to its practical utilitarian purpose, also performed a symbolic protective function, covering an implied pregnancy from a possible evil eye, the timing of which was tried in every possible way to hide.
There is almost no information about how the ornament of women's clothing changed, depending on the age and social status of the owner. It seems that the "Water" sign belongs to the special "sacred" patterns. According to the observations of P.I. Kutenkova, somewhere from the age of 40 of the owner, four swastikas were worn on the edging of the chest of the shirt, inscribed in a rhombus so that one of them rotated in the opposite direction with respect to three sides. According to our observations, the clothes of a young woman are characterized by patterns of "oreney", "lattice", "horned", figure eight, and especially "glass" ("sown field"), and alternating cross and rhombus ("young woman's pattern"). It is worth dwelling on this last in more detail.
Of the many women's "order", the so-called "young woman's costume" is the most elegant set of clothes that a woman wore during the first year of marriage (I. 014-015), that is, in fact, while expecting her first child. After the expiration of the specified period (as a rule, after childbirth), an initiation ceremony was performed over her, which included her among the full representatives of the female society of the settlement and was accompanied by a change of costume. The first child in a peasant family is always a parent. Even in a later era, he retained a number of priestly functions: the eldest in the family, in the absence of the priest, could baptize a child, marry the young, and conduct rituals of remembrance of the dead. I would dare to suggest that from a magical point of view, these abilities were "provided" by the mother's suit of the "young woman", representing something like a system of modern intrauterine upbringing of the fetus.
In addition to information about the owner, the ornament of women's clothing performed, first of all, a protective function, with the greatest number of "adornments" being on the front side of the suit. Spin in female suit rarely ornamented. Perhaps this is due to the fact that on the back there was a pattern of the back of a woman's headdress (shading) or adornments (braids) in a girl's costume, and in more late period drawing of a scarf or shawl.
The social status, it seems, was indicated by the number of repetitions of one or another element or rows of elements in the ornamental composition. At the same time, as it is clear from our observations, the main determinant of family and clan affiliation was color and its combinations, as well as the species choice of specific symbols of animals / charioteers of divine chariots (the “hooks” element), which will be discussed later.
It should be noted that in cases where it is possible to trace specific generic symbols of individual peasant families, it usually turns out that they have the form of primitive figures or consist of a certain number of repetitions of notch lines, but have nothing in common with developed ornamental symbols of patterns of folk clothing.
We observe a similar picture when peasants use boundary marks and meths (at least on the territory of the Ryazan Territory)
Male look: reverse order
The original patterns of men's clothing are based on the image of an ancient male deity of storm and water. Initially, it was associated with the Earth and the underworld and had, perhaps, the appearance of a shaggy and "hairy" den dweller, combining the features of the future Thunderer (Perun?) And the ruler of the Lower World (Veles?).
Later, the male image in the Russian tradition began to be perceived as heavenly, but the most ancient representations have partially come down to us in the structure of the costume and in the details of the ornament.
Unfortunately, the men's costume as a complex has been preserved much worse than the women's one. It included: a shirt, ports, a belt, a headdress (hat) and, apparently, a sleeveless jacket or a cloak.
The central role in it is again played by the belt, symbolically associated with the family and the world of the living. The function and meaning of the belt are completely similar to those in a woman's suit. But the ornament was applied to men's belts more often than to women's. Even very early belts confirm this. The men's belt of the same Boot, for example, was a woven ribbon 20-25 cm wide, completely covered with alternating multi-colored stripes. In another region of the Ryazan region - Chuchkov, these stripes formed a more complex pattern of combs. According to some reports, the width of such a male belt was associated with the age of its owner and annually increased by the width of a finger.
The cut of the man's shirt was also different from the cut of the woman's. The body of the shirt was made of four strips of fabric, with a standard width of 30-35 cm (this size was due to the design of the horizontal loom used in Russia). The seams were made in the front and back so that the whole fabric fell on the side line. At the seam of the fabric, embroidery or stitching with red thread was usually applied. The gusset (a square insert under the sleeve that facilitates freedom of movement) of a festive shirt was usually red. The sleeves were sewn to the central panel as on the women's ruba-kha of the Finno-Ugric peoples.
Early shirts had no collars. The neckline was made square, round or triangular without a cut. Somewhere from the XIV century. shirt blouses with a side slit of the collar began to spread, both on the right and on the left. From the inside of a men's shirt, a backing of a square of fabric was usually hemmed, folded in a triangle in the center of the collar and shoulder. The backing absorbed sweat and retained the fabric of the shirt. The edges of the backing, along which it was hemmed to the shirt, could stand out like the lines of the seam of the fabric. In some places, a casual shirt was often made of checkered fabric. The length of the shirt indicated the social status of the man: young guys wore shirts about mid-thigh length, fathers of the family knee-deep, old men (as well as the boyar-princely word of Ancient Rus) - even longer.
The ornament was usually applied to the edges of the hem, sleeves, collar, as well as at the joints of beggars. The chest was richly embroidered in festive shirts. The upper (shoulder) part of the sleeves and the upper part of the back were often ornamented.
Pants (ports) were made loose, resembling narrow ball-vars. They could also be decorated with ornaments or made of striped fabric with vertical stripes.
The symbolic division of the male costume, in the author's opinion, was opposite to that which we meet in women's clothing: the upper world in it should have been associated with the hem, and the world of the Earth with the head, shoulders and upper chest. Indirectly, a male wedding suit from Semipalatinsk (I.016), which depicts the Heavenly World (deer and the World Tree) on the pants, as well as the image of the symbols of heavenly waters on Russian ports from Tver and heavenly symbols, indicate the possibility of such a "polar" division of the suit zones on the hems of Belarusian men's shirts. This is not contradicted by the tradition of applying marks of sprouting grain on men's wedding shirts of the central zone of Russia to the chest area.
At the same time, it is very likely that the ornaments woven on the front plane (in front) did not have the character of amulets, but were intended to magically influence a potential partner (woman) or an opponent.
It seems that only such logic can explain quite numerous cases of wearing on the chest of men's shirts (especially wedding) "traditionally female" symbols. On the other hand, in the men's Hutsul costume, a rich ornationalization of the back of men's outerwear (keptar) was widespread (and still lives), and in Ancient Greece and Western Europe, numerous facts of protective ornamentation of the back of combat armor are known. In front, the warrior had to defend himself ...
The most ancient patterns
Both in feminine and in men's suit there are groups of symbols that are used regardless of the zonal division of clothing into the Heavenly, Earthly and Underground worlds. These are the most ancient elements of geometric ornament, usually they were performed in compliance with the rule of equal size of the background area and pattern, which is typical for the techniques of weaving and patterned knitting.
With this method of execution, the area of the symbol was equal to the size of the compositional background. Historically, embroidery of folk clothing as an imitation of patterned weaving appears much later. The first embroideries by the "set" method, imitating weaving, also preserve the principle of equal area of the background and the pattern. At the same time, the gaps between the individual elements of the ornament look complete and, obviously, are not devoid of meaning as symbols. In the Ryazan land, for example, the name of the pattern was given according to the elements of the background white in the color of the canvas, in the Russian North - according to the main pattern made with red or black thread. The tradition of applying the same symbols in the zones of the costume corresponding to different worlds suggests that individual signs did not have, in contrast to letters, a narrow, unambiguously understood meaning, but embodied an expanded mythological image, a complex of representations, the content of which, in depending on the zone of location, gender and age of the owner, it acquired one or another semantic connotation.
Over time, when the clarity of the former ideas was broken and only the general idea that the depicted bring good luck was preserved, the combination of elements, often different in origin and meaning, into general semantic groups began: "ram (deer) horns" in the northern tradition; “Signs of Yumis”, “signs of the Cross-month” in Latvian; “Burdocks” in Central Russia, depending on the image, with which in the national culture the general welfare or magical protection was associated.
Heroes of the very first myths
The multifaceted universal mythological images include the World Mountain and the World Tree, the Great Mother Goddess, the World Serpent (dragon), etc., which are widespread in Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian folklore and ornament. The history of their appearance dates back to the end of the Stone Age, when in the Northern Hemisphere, in general terms, two main mythological areas were formed, due to the peculiarities of the climate and the nature of the visible annual movement Suns in the celestial sphere: polar and equatorial.
The northern, almost circumpolar region with a characteristic division of the year into warm and cold seasons, into light and dark halves, with the absence (or great rarity) at the polar circle of solar eclipses, is inherent in the idea of the Sun as a good beginning, bringing light and heat, a source and the guarantor of life, protection from the cold and darkness of Winter.
Here, in the zone of vital activity of the tribes of ancient hunters (and possibly in the region of the polar continent), cosmogonic myths about the Heavenly Deer (Deer) and the Thunderer-Bear, the owner of the Earth, waters and fire, which combined the features of the future Water King, the deity of the afterlife Veles and the Thunderer itself. In general terms, their content is as follows. The lord of earth and waters slept underground in the guise of a bear in an ingeniously arranged labyrinth palace with an underwater entrance inside the World Mountain, resting alone among the waters, throughout the dark, cold part of the year. He guarded there a beautiful fiery necklace (or, according to a Russian tale, a cauldron of molten gold). In the darkest and coldest days of the year, the Heavenly Deer entered the labyrinth, took the treasure and ascended into the sky with it. As she got out of the lower world, it got warmer; the snows that covered the ground melted and the raging waters awakened the Bear. Waking up, he threw off his bearskin, unfurled his wings (P.020) and, in a whirlwind of wind and the blaze of lightning, rushed in pursuit of the kidnapper. Having overtaken the Deer, the Thunderer entered into marriage with her, which was accompanied by a thunderstorm and the outpouring of streams of life-giving waters onto the Earth. As a result, the stolen fire (the Sun) returned to the owner and after a while hid again in the depths of water. Deprived of warmth and light, the Earth, cooling down, was covered with snow, and the Thunderer himself fell asleep in the maze, gradually overgrowing with bear fur, until the next arrival of the Heavenly Deer. Over time, the image of a fiery necklace or molten gold was transformed into the image of the goddess-daughter of Deer Solntsedeva (or Ognedeva), giving rise to a separate series of mythological plots, including the famous ancient greek myth about Demeter and Persephone-Kore.
Myths World Mountain is often located in the middle of the World Egg. Her image is well known in the culture. different nations, but the most detailed it was developed by the Indo-Europeans. The World Mountain rising among the World's waters is the place where the World Tree grows, connecting the eight worlds of the Middle World. At its roots is a well, an entrance to the seven lower worlds and the seat of their guardian: an underground labyrinth or cave. The five heavenly worlds are associated with the crown. Having passed the water filling the well, the beings of the lower world are able to rise from under the Earth into Heaven, and also descend from Heaven into the labyrinth. On the four sides of the World Mountain there are spirits (or souls, gods, etc.) - the guardians of the cardinal points, characteristic feature which in most cases should be considered three-toed (or four-toed). A similar picture is drawn to us not only by the "Elder Edda" and "Classical Yoga" of Patanjali, but also by a number of images on archaeological finds (for example, "The Golden Man"). There is a stable complex of representations of the archetype of the center of the Universe, a certain primordiality, the basis of the existing Universe and the source of life for the characters of myths.
A different picture is reconstructed for hot equatorial zone where solar eclipses are frequent. Here a cult of another master of the Earth, the lunar Serpent (Lizard, Dragon), arises, periodically swallowing or killing the Sun, which here appears in the form of a furious Goddess, racing across the firmament in a staircase harnessed by a pair of winged twin horses. These horses can sometimes act as a certain hypostasis of the Thunderer. In this ancient agricultural region, the hot, scorching Sun, destroying crops, is a destructive beginning. Creative, constructive functions are transferred to the Serpent, which represents the nocturnal, lunar principle, giving relief from the heat of the day.
Mutual contacts between the carriers of these two mutually opposite worldview concepts during the migrations of the demographic explosion of the Neolithic and Bronze Age may have led to the formation in the "buffer" zone temperate latitudes the myth of the Heavenly Deer. She was torn to pieces by the dragon (lizard or lion) who attacked and stole the fire (Sun) during her sleep or the absence of her spouse, the Thunderer. The famous plot of the Deer (Doe) being tormented by a dragon (a winged lion, a griffin, and other predators), as well as images of a sprouting antler, are known over a vast territory from the Middle Sea to Altai. It was they who gave rise to the specific name "animal style". The Deer Horns later transformed into the World Tree with the Sun, Moon and stars on the branches. Even later, when the leading social role in society finally belonged to a man, the image of the Deer was transformed into the Heavenly Deer Golden Horns, the enemy of the Thunderer of the cultural hero who made fire to people. Images of a hero sprouting with a tree with horns or sometimes, as in the petroglyphs of ancient Altai, with sexual organs, were widespread among the Indo-European peoples.
The motive of the death and subsequent revival of one of the heroes, combined with a snake-fighting plot and rethought as a motive for the confrontation and subsequent marriage of two representatives of the opposite sex, took a firm place in the Russian folk tale. Remember the hero rescuing the heroine from the snake captivity (falling into which also often happens as a result of his own oversight) or by the cunning of taking away the wise daughter of the Water King or the story of the hero's fight with the beautiful meadow, the result of which is marriage, their the subsequent separation and the birth of twin sons, who save the mother or father at the appointed time. The story of the sprouting of a tree from the remains of a slain heroine or a cow equivalent to the Heavenly Deer is also familiar to the Russian fairy tale.
Bury also knows the story of a girl finding fire (a golden finger, a chip, etc.) in a bear den. The heroine of a children's fairy tale, having lost her way in the forest, finds herself in a den. Sometimes the bear himself steals it. In some versions, the girl (girl) has her sister's predecessors, who had previously fallen to the bear and eaten by him for trying to penetrate the secret of the locked room, where the cauldron of molten gold is located.
Using a magic assistant (a cat, a hare or a mouse, figurative symbols of the Thunderer's antagonist), the girl by cunning manages to return to the people, taking with her a thing painted with gold (a sliver, a twig) or a part of her own body (finger, hand). The events of the fairy tale awaken in our memory the image of the World Mountain and the underground fire acquired by people at the beginning of time ...
No less widespread are ideas that go back to ancient times about the beginning of the world from an egg laid on a mountain rising among the world's waters by a white goose bird of the Water King. The lizard dragon broke it into two halves, Heaven and Earth, which were often portrayed as twins.
According to a number of researchers, the general nature of these ideas is rooted in the prenatal memories of our psyche about the conception and development of the human fetus. He was identified with the Universe, which arose from the "copulation of the female and male halves of the universe" in the form of "a bird that perched on an island in the middle of the Praocean." From this point of view, the idea of the growth of the World Tree is nothing more than a figurative description of the process of formation of the human spine.
"Burrows", "circles" and "mountains", or the meaning of individual elements of textile ornament
Characters of ancient cosmogony are ubiquitous in the ornament of folk clothing of the mid-late 19th century. Ornamental compositions of peasant embroidery with the image of a "pea bird" in the form of a horned goose or other waterfowl, on the body of which sometimes a pair of birds surrounded a frog lizard is depicted, can still be seen today.
On the hem of women's shirts, details of valances, tablecloths and towels, they often depicted an alternating two-headed eagle with a female figure embroidered on its chest and a virgin goddess with arms raised to the sky. In some patterns, the image of a female figure on the chest of an eagle is replaced with a drawing of a horse or deer. Earlier images of a bird of an eagle or a falcon with a human face on the chest are also found on jewelry in the Kama region [13] (II.027). In the first centuries of our era, in the area of the Urals and Western Siberia and especially the middle Ob region, such figurines of a winged bear (I.020) of the most ancient thunderer, carrying a precious fire necklace (in a later interpretation to Solntsedev), were widespread. As it was said, the two-headed appearance of the bear-eagle correlates with the southern tradition of representing the thunderer in the hypostasis of his two twin sons, carrying the fiery solar chariot of Firedeva (Aryan Surya) across the sky, (11.028). The spread of this motif at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries. probably a lot was promoted by the adoption of the state emblem of the Russian Empire in the form of a two-headed eagle.
Let us turn to more ancient, in comparison with anthropomorphic, symbolic images. They have been preserved on the shoulders of women's shirts in Kargopolye and on the headdress of women's headwear, forty of a number of northern and central regions of Russia. We see the same thunderbolt, this time made in the form of a two-headed slingshot. Perhaps such two-headedness is associated with two phases of the horn of that month, which in ancient times was considered one of the hypostases of the Thunderer. A slingshot is a bird with arrow-like wings (which makes it possible to perceive it as a symbol of the masculine principle) and a five-partite in the center of the tuft. The connection of this image with the cult of the Moon is confirmed by the female adornments of the ancient Vyatichi found in the Moscow burial mounds: small ones, between the horns of which there is the same five-partite.
In most similar textile compositions, a two-headed thunderbird is placed inside a comb-shaped rhombus known in the Ryazan Territory under popular name"Nut" or "arepey" (aka "re-peynik", "oak", "well" in other places) (I.029.), In the sound of which the ancient prakoren * ar is clearly present, present in the words " arius "," Arata "," Arkona ". And prayazy-ke it means, according to some variants, "sown land, filled with moisture", according to others "water", "water", the sovereign and giver of which was the ancient Thunderer; on the third "shining, shining". The same consonance is characteristic of art (ard) - "genus, order, growth, rhythm" [142, pp. 79-92].
In the 20s of the XX century, local historians from Sapozh-k P. and S. Stakhanov undertook a unique research: having collected all the available embedded boards of weaving mills, they identified the main forms of weaving ornament and isolated the original ones. the most ancient variants of its elements. Researchers have recognized the original form of "arepea" / "orepea" as a composition of four arrows directed towards the center. Later, it developed into crested rhombuses of various configurations (I.029). This four-part spatial structure is associated by other researchers with the image of the thunderer of the inhabitant of the underground-water world of the Earth with these four cardinal points. The same image, apparently, is reproduced in the four-faced idol of Svetovid from Arkona and in the Zbruch idol. The Latvian tradition associates symbols similar to those of the "boar" with the thunderer Perkons (Perkuns) and his four sons. In folk embroidery of the 18th-19th centuries, the “orepei” pattern was often performed in blue, blue, blue-green, brown and black colors, which can also be associated with the male deity of the Earth and its waters.
In modern versions of the traditional embroidery of the Carpathian region, the original four-part composition of arrows is reinforced by an oblique red cross "fireman". which since ancient times acts as a symbol of the thunderer [23]. The idea of the four cardinal points of the entrances and exits of the underground-water world was present in the images of the labyrinth, which for half a corner served as the seat of fire and a thunder bear. That is why the author interprets the element of the Russian ornament "orepei" as a "labyrinth", "World Mountain and its bowels", "a window to the underground world." It contains the ancient deity of thunder, earth and fire, possibly associated with the Month.
Developed in the form of complex comb rhombuses, "walnut" takes on the meaning of "Mother-Raw Earth", in the depths of which a labyrinth is hidden, and the Sun or the Moon (depending on the cult), resting on the branches of the World Tree. In some cases, it may take on the meaning of a solar or lunar chariot. Such, in our opinion, are the motives of the "Great Sun" in the Belarusian and "cross-month" in the Latvian traditions. For Estonians, this is a "colo-dec" passage to the other world of their ancestors, to its ruler. Sometimes it is the lord himself (cf. "Perkunas's Cross" in the Latvian tradition), as well as an ancestor or forefather. Enclosed in a double circle, this symbol in Belarus is interpreted as "volot ancestor". The thunderer depicted inside the "gingerbread" in a number of cases acquires the features of an even more archaic Water goose that laid an egg on the top of the World Mountain, or is identified with the image of the "fiery necklace" that he holds, that is, with a non-demonic or underground fire By the sun. This is how a multi-layered composition is formed, symbolizing the Origin, the source of the Universe.
The above reasoning is a sought-after example of how to “read” traditional ornamental compositions. Their meaning, in our opinion, is not rigid and specific, like letter-sound writing. The ornament carries the image of a psychological concept, a kind of archetype of a deity, the elements, or a manifestation of a certain complex of mythological ideas. Depending on the place where the image was placed, the gender, age and social affiliation of the owner, the thing itself, in each particular case, acquired a greater importance one or another side or detail of the image.
In ornamental compositions, the "nut" is often accompanied by a "lattice" pattern, sometimes similar in shape to the "nut" (I.030). The rhombus, as well as the circle with the triangle, has long been associated with a gay man with a feminine principle and virginity, and an arrow with a masculine beginning. Tied into a single triple composition, they acquired the meaning of a virgin goddess surrounded by the so-called "gods". This image is just as widespread in Russian folk embroidery and reminds us of Ognedev. Personifying the Sun necklace, she rushes across the sky in a fiery chariot harnessed by a pair of Gemini, swans or horses.
On the Olonets embroidery of the female front, the heads of the virgin goddesses with their hands raised to the sky look like one of the "lattice" forms, and birds at the edges act as gods.
The fiery rage of the Virgin Goddess, the bearer of life and death, the thunderbolt, characteristic of the mythology of the southern latitudes, is often emphasized by the signs of fiery nature applied inside the "lattice" with an oblique cross or a swastika. In the northern and middle latitudes, the image of the Virgin Warrior, dominating death, is more consistent with lunar cults associated with love magic. Perhaps they include the developed horned "lattice" (aka "frog"), which in Kupala symbolism means "female" image of the month and water. Sometimes she was depicted accompanied by a double circle of the sign of conception and love. The ancient mythological connection between the feminine principle and the image of a tree has led to the fact that the "lattice" sometimes acquires this meaning, expressing the idea of fate, characteristic in terms of the time and events of life for the maiden archetype of the Heavenly Spinner.
The next characteristic element of many ornamental compositions is the “horned” pattern (I.031). It is also usually present in the environment of the "nutlet" or the diamond that replaces it in the sense of the word. Nearby, there is a common oblique cross with four points of sprouting, the symbol of the Deity of the Earth and the underworld, which was placed in the center of the "horned" rhombus, and in ancient times, on female clay figurines of the Trypillian culture to commemorate their sacred marriage with the god of the underworld, the giver of - fertility. In modern Carpathian embroidery, similar motifs of the image of a horned six-part with a symbol of germinating seedlings placed in the center have been preserved, and among the embroideries of the Russian North there are images of a goddess whose seedlings germinate directly from the head.
These images date back to the horns of the Heavenly Deer that grew into the World Tree, torn to pieces by a dragon lion. As an echo of the ancient agricultural cult of the Heavenly Deer and the Lizard-Lion in Russia, until the beginning of the 20th century, there was a custom to bury intact bones from a festive Easter meal on the border. The Easter holiday was combined with the cult of the Golden-Horned Deer (Deer), and the custom, by analogy with his / her sprouting antlers, contributing to the acceleration of crop growth and increased harvest, was intended to ensure abundance. The legend about the sprouted horns may have influenced the name of the element "horned", which we associate with the female archetype of the Mother Goddess, mistress of the harvest, fertility and share, and in this sense - fate.
The ancient image of the Lizard was brought to us by the embroidery of the female shoulder cape of the Latgall villaine from the burial of the Ainava burial ground (XII century) on the sides of a lattice square with hooked ends (Lizard), two oppositely directed swastikas. indicating the turning point of the annual movement of the Sun; on the Serpent, swallowing and throwing out the Sun on its way under the Earth. A similar composition on the territory of the Ryazan Territory at the beginning of the 20th century was called the "sun path".
The image of the Lizard-Cat (who replaced Leo or Bars, more and more distant and unknown to the peasants) took the place of an underground (pekelny) deity in Russian folk embroidery flora, while the image of her opponent-snake-fighter Thunder God, once the Water King and master of the Earth, was increasingly associated with the Thunderstorm itself, fire and sky. A hint of this distinction was preserved at Cargonolier in the form of two groups of ornamental compositions framing the mantles of women's shirts. At the heart of one was the symbol of a sown field and sprouting grain, a "nut tree", the World Tree and a female horned deity: the other group consisted of images of a female deity with hands raised to the sky in the form of an independent motive. The swastika and the oblique cross, as well as the "orepei" were always present there.
Apparently, they corresponded to two types of images of the ancient Great Mother Goddess, united by a characteristic three-member composition: Goddess - gods. The first, widespread, type is most clearly represented by a pattern of gold embroidery on a 17th century women's headdress and a bronze plate similar to it from Permian antiquity. The latter depicts a female figure sitting on a crocodile-like Lizard with hands supporting the firmament formed by two elk snouts and a tiny sprout on the head (I.032). Compositions close to them from the Goddess in the form of the World Tree with figures of deer, birds, cats, lions as gods is a favorite motif of embroidery of towels and hemlines of women's shirts. The second is actually the classic images of the goddess, on the sides of which horse riders sit on horses (P.033).
Images of the World Tree are generally a favorite subject of folk tradition, often combining all relic mythological subjects. So, a tree that grew from the remains of the Heavenly Deer often has a lizard-like lower part. On top of it is placed the solar symbolism of the Fire-Deva-Sun of the "fiery necklace" of the Heavenly Goddess. The appendages on both sides of the Tree are in the form of birds, lions, or other animals. Sometimes this whole complex drawing or central part tree - was replaced by one downtime with an eight-leaf rosette, which in turn was also sometimes placed on the branches of a tree. The people called it "the star of Bogoroditsa", and modern pagans called it "Perun's cross". It is possible that the origins of this symbol are the amulets of the ancient Trypillians of the 4th millennium BC: pieces of a deer horn crossed out with an oblique cross of the Thunderer are found at archaeological excavations in the southern steppes. Apparently, this sign of the union of the female and male principles is associated with the symbol of the five-partite, dissected by an oblique cross or signs-attributes of a thunderbolt.
A dot (rhombus) or a cross in its center indicates the emergence of a new life. The five-part image of Heaven as a feminine principle can go back to the understanding of the Universe with these five dimensions (heaven, earth, afterworld, underground water world, lateral space) by matriarch tribes of the Neolithic and recorded among many Indo-European peoples, including the Scythians. Such a five-partite consists of 8-9 rhombuses, which could be associated with 8 parts of the body of the Universe-man, which form the universe; the number 9 is associated with birth. With the transition to patriarchy, this symbol, like many others, began to be perceived as one of the signs of the male Deity, retaining its connection with the Universe (sky) and, possibly, the Moon (Month).
During historical development the idea of humanity about the five-part division of space was gradually lost, due to which the straight equilateral cross became the equivalent of the rhombic five-partite. An image of an equilateral eight-pointed cross (flower), a symbol of the union of two opposite principles and its fetus, appeared. Placed in the upper part of the World Tree, which, according to the ideas of many peoples, grows with its roots up, the embryo turns out to be its source, the first cause and conveys the idea of movement, development. This symbol, in our opinion, is more perfect than the oriental composition (Yin-Yang), which is widespread now in Russia and has the same meaning. It also reminds of the Sun that lit up on the branches of the World Tree as a result of the first confrontation.
It is curious that researchers find a structure similar in form to the polarization of the energy-information flow at the so-called upper energy center of a person (better known in the literature as the “chakra sahasrara”). Such an eight-part division of space, perceived as living, spiritualized and human-like, is also characteristic of ancient Russian cosmogonic texts-monuments of “rejected literature” and “Dove Book”. According to them, the world arises from 8 parts of the body of Christ, replacing the ancient God (Deer?).
The use in patterns with the World Tree or with the goddess and the gods of the threefold composition with mirror symmetry relative to the center is possibly associated with the idea of chariots harnessed by pairs of fiery winged horses, birds and other animals, on which the ancient deities mixed across the Earth and Heaven. Companions of the deity acted as its peculiar attributes, and sometimes as substitutes. The mentioned solar chariot or boat, the details of which also preserved many anthropomorphic embroideries, is a special case of the sign of such divine belonging. In the symbolic or-nation, the divine character of the “characters” is indicated by the threefold composition of the symbol of the Divine (“nutlet”, “lattice”, oblique cross, etc.) and “hooks” on the sides (charioteers or horses of the implied carriage ). Depending on the appearance of such charioteers (birds, horses, animals), apparently, they chose one form or another of the pattern. Folk tradition sometimes completely identifies "hooks" with the verses of a deity associated with them (I.034).
The traditional interpretation of the swastika as a solar sign is closely related to the divine chariot of the Sun. Its local explanations in Meshchera vary from “koniks” to “burmassu” (“whirling water”), which, in our opinion, makes it possible to clarify the origins of this image. In the most ancient mythological concepts, the Sun is an underground fire, belonging to the lower world, the path to which runs through the waters. In the process of transition between the worlds, the appearance of the solar chariot (as well as the carriage of any other deity), and finally, the appearance of the charioteer horses are preceded by eddies on the surface. Thus, the symbol of the swastika reflects not the image of the Sun as an underground fire, but the actual appearing or disappearing chariot and those carrying it, determines the process of its movement in time. This corresponds to the Baltic tradition of using the swastika as an image of the "year", "day" and other periods of time measured by the movement of the Sun. In the Russian interpretation, such a meaning will most likely correspond to the archetype of the morning or evening (depending on the direction of rotation) of the Dawn, which leads the horses of the solar chariot. which is consonant with the popular interpretation of the swastika as the legs of a running horse: "bunks", "horse shanks". In addition, being present in the neighborhood or on the symbol of another character, the swastika can have the meaning of movement as such, out of connection with the Sun at all. The origin of such a meaning is still to come. But, in our opinion, the four-part configuration of the swastika with all the variety of options can be associated with a rotation in the horizontal plane of space, and the three-part in the vertical one.
The relationship of meaning, shape and location of symbols
The technique of performing symbolic ornament in weaving determined not only the strict geometry and certain proportions of its forms, but also high density pattern. In abusive weaving, the spaces between the signs also take part in the “figurative recording” of the mythological plot, acting as independent elements. The very shape of some symbols could also depend on the ratio between the area occupied by the ornament itself and the area of the background, which surprisingly turned into an independent symbol. This was reflected in the sequence of creating ornamental motifs based on the symmetry of different orders. Such a "technological" component of the meaning of symbols should include the customs of placing them horizontally: in abusive weaving, fixing a patterned throat with a bar with loops made it possible to perform several patterns according to one filling scheme. Naturally, in this case, the values of the gaps had to be consistent with each other. So. on (P.035) figure A is read by us as water and women in labor (female breast), and figure B as sprouting crops and "lattice" the supreme female deity.
At the same time, to highlight the leading semantic element of the image with the initial equal size of the background area and the pattern, for example, in the Ryazan region, the names of ornamental compositions ("orepei", "lattice", "indigenous hussars", etc.) were given according to the element of the ornament made white. And on the territory of the Smolensk province, the colored background of the pattern was called "Earth" and in the "original", correct composition had to represent the same independent figures as the pattern itself.
As already mentioned, the choice of a specific interpretation from many possible options, in turn, is influenced by the position of the composition in the ornamental complex of the costume relative to its mythological zones. For example, the ornament of women's clothing located in the area of the head, neck, shoulder (top of the sleeve) will always have a cosmogonic character (the world of Heaven); in the elbow-waist zone and the lower part of the chest, the same symbol is likely to be associated with the genus and life of the owner of the clothes (Middle World, the intermediate world of the living); and the ornament on the hem will be associated with otherworldly underworlds and ancestors, which is a good illustration of the use of the symbol “orepei” in the Belarusian tradition (meaning from “Great Sun” to “ancestor”).
At the same time, the social status of the owner of the costume (at least in women's clothing) was indicated by the number of repetitions of one or another element or rows of elements in the ornamental-mental composition. The poverty of the forms of generic symbolism in comparison with the developed mythological images confirms that the reason for the depiction of the elements themselves is different. Or maybe the ornament is writing?
Forgotten letters
There is probably no such researcher of folk art who would not try to compare ornament and writing. “People should learn to read the signs they have forgotten,” the outstanding Russian poet S. Yesenin said about the ornament in his esoteric essay “The Keys of Mary”. Indeed, the ornament is akin to writing, and sometimes not only in a figurative sense.
It is no secret that some of the symbols of the ancient non-Russian ornament are similar to the outline. An exact copy of one of the variants, identical to the textile symbol "lattice", is the rune "inti", a symbol of fertility. Often there is a symbol identical to the "othal" division rune. With some stretch, you can see signs similar to the runes "ansas" (message), "urns" (bull), "gida" (gift), "kapi" (flame), "sauil" (power of the sun). It is believed that the combination of the four runes "algis" gave rise to the form of the image of the twelve-pointed cross. The same rune is found on the blades of the Vyatka female temporal rings. The presence of runic symbols in folk textile ornament is noted by Belarusian researchers. As well as textile ornament, runes form calendar records and are used in healing practice. Ancient runes were written in a circle, and a textile ornament surrounds the edges of the garment.
But unlike the ornament, the runes still have a more specific meaning. Textile “ornamental” signs are always an image ready to turn into a zoo- or anthropo-morphic pattern and, if necessary, slightly change their appearance or proportions; its value fluctuates, changes depending on the place and environment, something like a volumetric space, capable of turning the necessary sides, at the same time maintaining its ancient essence... Spaces capable of being different and unified, specific and holistic. In addition, a prerequisite for the existence of an ornament is the rhythm of the alternation of its elements, which is not typical for the practice of using runes. And how the images of the runes that came from Scandinavia, if it is, of course, the runes themselves, could appear not only in textile ornament, but also in the ornamental compositions of Ancient Egypt, the Aegean world, the "primitive" ornament of African countries, and also become part of symbols of the Cretan mono-numental script that existed for millennia earlier? Get on the ancient Cretan coins, Tepsei petro-glyphs, in the form of a painted square on painted ceramics Central Asia? So, in our opinion, runes and elements of textile ornament similar to them are different things. Rather, it may be that they are parts that go back to one common more ancient source. In our understanding, the matrix, which forms the graphic form of many runes, coincides with the matrix "Egg of the Sort", which forms the outlines of the elements of the ornament (see below). Are there any known cases in Russia of using patterns as writing in the literal sense of the word? Yes.
In 1914, the Russian Historical Museum acquired half of a hemp carpet from the Northern or Siberian work of the early 19th century with a pattern illustrating the myths of the World Tree. On the photograph taken at the same time, a pattern-inscription (11.036) is clearly visible along the lower edge of the carpet. The outlines of the symbols are made in a geometric style and resemble both runes and ... well-known images of a female Deity with different hand positions at different times of the year. The first eight characters are separated from the rest by a special sign, the outline drawing of a tree begins their series. It can be seen that the signs themselves are made in several colors at the same time, one can even distinguish the outlines of the same runes in this color division. Maybe each of them represents several layers of meaning, superimposed on one another, like a nesting doll? After all, it is this technique of inscribing one symbol into another that is characteristic of textile ornament. And all together they are the names of some calendar dates? Unfortunately, further destiny the carpet is not known to us.
Another, even more striking, example of pattern writing is a part of the 18th century tablecloth (I. 037-038), found in the 80s and Zaonezhie among Russian settlers from the Novgorod region, by a joint expedition of the weaving factory in Medvezhyegorsk and the Karelian Regional Museum of Local Lore under the leadership of N.H. Alekhina and T.L. Mishina (the author thanks N.N. Alekhina for the kind permission to publish this information).
The cloth, about one and a half meters long and seventy centimeters wide, is completely covered with staggered signs embroidered with a chain stitch: only 156 signs out of 95 differently repeated non-runic symbols. Their outlines are built on the basis of the simplest geometric shapes of a cross, a circle, a square, as well as a swastika and "resin" - a six-pointed cross. The difference between them is achieved by applying small details (loops, notches) and filling in the middle. Two groups of signs are clearly distinguished: picture signs (World (?) Tree; Deer (Elk?)) And signs differing in the filling of the center (I.039). The latter contains various independent symbols of the cross, trefoil, multidirectional volute, etc. (I.039). Some symbols have analogues in the textile ornament of Lithuania, Belarus and Central Russia(Ryazan region), which indicates their significant distribution in this capacity (11.040 -041). I dare to suggest that we are dealing here with some ancient mythological text or conspiracy, "fixed by the method of syllabic writing with elements of writing with signs. It is not known whether this text is Slavic, but, in any case, this is the only genuine and preserved fragment of that - some kind of letter.
The tradition of symbolic "reading" of textile ornament has survived to this day in individual genera, even with the loss of traditional forms of signs. In the 50s of the century, this baby towel was embroidered by the granddaughter - now the folk healer Maria Kushakovskaya - by the grandmother - Pomorian woman Ekaterina Glazycheva, a well-known healer of Veliky Ustyug. The number of antennae at the spikelet on the left and right indicated the lunar day, the date and number of the month of birth in the year, the sign of the Zodiac is inscribed in the Sun. Special symbols were supposed to correct the fate of the girl (P.042). The same information is already woven into the "adult" family towel with the image of a tree (I.043).
The practice of applying inscriptions in Cyrillic on woven belts and towels, as well as the tradition of embroidering the text of prayers in the church practice of Orthodoxy (I.044), is widely known.
All this makes us assume the existence of the fact of textile writing, some signs with which could coincide with elements of textile ornament and be semantically related to it, originating from a common source, although writing and ornament are still not the same.
Since ancient times in Russia, on every utensil, on every clothes, as well as houses, various elements and symbols were depicted, which formed patterns. Each detail had its own meaning and place. This is how the Russian folk pattern was formed.
Historical information about the Russian folk pattern
It should be understood that there are two terms - pattern and ornament. And it was not originally the same thing. Even now, not every pattern can be called an ornament. For example, if it is a constantly repeating pattern (rapport).
In Russia, it was believed that the pattern is much deeper, it means more. The word ornament is borrowed from Latin, and it appeared much later and denotes decoration. In Russia, he had an analogue - "adornments". It was believed that it was intended for decoration of decorative stylization. However, in the future, these two concepts were intertwined and began to complement each other.
The Russian folk pattern is a collection of various lines, symbols, and other elements that can either be repeated or be in a single version. Patterns may vary from location to location. So, in the eastern regions of Russia in the pattern you can find such an element as "Indian cucumber", which is still popular today.
Also, each area had its own color scheme of patterns and ornaments.
Signs and symbols in the Russian pattern
If we consider the Russian folk pattern from the point of view of symbolism, then we can say that not a single element is depicted there for no reason. Each has its own meaning and is in its place.
The most popular symbols in the pattern are:
- Star Alatyr, or, as it is also called, the cross of Svarog. It has eight petals and symbolizes the Universe, its folding and unfolding cycles.
- The symbol of Beregini (Rozhanitsa) is also very popular. This is a schematic representation of a woman who protects.
- A very significant symbol is which is sometimes also called the World Tree. It unites in itself the world axis, the universe and the genus.
- Everyone knows During the time of Hitler, the swastika became a symbol of war and fascism, but initially this was not at all the case.
- Also popular is the Orepey symbol, which is a comb-shaped rhombus. This symbol brings happiness, balance and peace of mind.
- In addition, flowers, stars, spirals and other symbols are used in patterns and ornaments, each of which carries a certain meaning, enhancing the positive and protective energy of a person.
In addition to the above elements, there are many others. In addition, almost all patterns of the scheme are quite diverse. One and the same symbol can be depicted in different ways, while retaining, however, common features and lines. This is how whole protective phrases arise, as well as small stories or conspiracies.
The sacred meaning of the pattern
You should be aware that the same symbol, but depicted in different parts of clothing, could have different meanings. For example, the Orepei sign, depicted in the elbow zone on women's clothing, denoted an ancestor. If he was depicted on the hem, then he was the entrance to the other world.
The ancient gods who moved in chariots were also symbolically depicted. They were harnessed to various animals that personified a particular deity.
Some Russian patterns (photo below) carried a certain code in their numerical repetition. So, the following numbers were important:
- three (Absolute, Trinity, time, space);
- four (cardinal points, seasons);
- seven (symbol of harmony);
- twelve.
In such patterns and ornaments, the attitude towards the mother nature of our ancestors is also manifested. With their images, they seemed to ask her for protection and patronage from various evils, troubles and misfortunes.
Where are Russian folk patterns used?
The use of patterns is quite varied. They are used in towels, napkins, for painting utensils, houses, for wood carving, metal. In the old days, not a single object was left without a drawing.
Russian patterns (there is a photo of them in our review) is not only the beauty of the object, but also the protection, the amulet of its owner. It is known that even before the advent of writing, people already depicted various symbols (diamonds, lines, dots) on utensils.
The difference in patterns in different regions
Each region of Russia has its own history of painting, embroidery, patterns and ornaments. Consider the Russian folk pattern (pictures of some will be presented below) for some types and areas:
- Gzhel painting - blue and white colors are characteristic in drawings that are made on ceramic, porcelain items;
- painting, which the village of Zhostovo is famous for, on metal trays;
- Khokhloma painting with various patterns is very interesting, it is characterized by a golden color (there are also red, yellow and orange);
- in addition, in many regions they made their own, special Kargopol, Stary Oskol), each of which had its own, unique pattern in the painting;
- also very famous are Pavlovo Posad shawls, which are made in red and black colors, with floral patterns.
And this is not even all the famous crafts where the Russian folk pattern is used.
The most ancient patterns
The most ancient patterns include a set of various signs, which in the old days had a special meaning and were not simply applied to any product. Each family had its own set of embroideries, paintings, which were passed down from generation to generation. They even have a special meaning for the family, be its own symbol. Of course, knowledge was lost over time.
Ancient Russian patterns breathe on us with mystery, the power of amulets, the meaning of each curl or sign.
Now many people collect similar images that make sense.
How to start drawing Russian folk patterns
Now people are increasingly turning to our heritage of ancestors, wishing to revive the lost traditions. For example, many people are wondering how to draw a Russian pattern. Where do you start?
First, you should understand that in Russia there are many painting techniques, embroidery, which have their own characteristics. For beginners, patterns should be taken that are not very complex, having a repeating pattern. This will make it easier to grasp its very essence.
Before drawing itself, you need to practice with its simple components: dots, lines, strokes, droplets, loops, etc. In fact, the most difficult pattern consists of the above details. From these simple forms, after some time of training, it will be possible to create more complex ones.
In order to understand how to draw a Russian pattern, one should not rush. Some of the shapes can seem really complicated, but remember that they are all made up of simple ones. First lay out the repeating pattern into the details, start depicting it from the lightest and most basic, for example, a point. Gradually draw other shapes around it, and so at the very end you can get your finished pattern. Take a look at the photo below, which shows all the stages of drawing. And make sure that the process is not so difficult. 
Thus, you can learn how to create ornaments and patterns yourself. In principle, you can take ready-made schemes, and then transfer them to the surface.
Using patterns on household items
Also, patterns and ornaments in antiquity were performed on household items, household utensils... For example, in Russia, a six-petal rosette was depicted on salt shakers. It had symbolic meaning... This rosette denoted the sun, and salt was considered associated with it. Also, her image was often found on spinning wheels, as a symbol of endless time.
In addition to the symbolic painting of utensils, there was also a simple decoration product. Of course, it did not appear immediately, and the technique has been developed over the years.
It should be noted that some patterns, the schemes of which are quite complex, are still made by craftsmen. This, for example, is the Khokhloma painting, which looks very beautiful and rich. However, its manufacture is rather complicated and multi-stage. 
Using patterns in embroidery
Russian embroidery in Russia traditionally not only decorates clothes, towels, bedspreads and other linen products, but is also a talisman. The interweaving of patterns is by no means accidental. All symbols are in place.
In addition, the color of the thread that is used matters in the embroidery. Let's consider some points:
- to protect the baby, an embroidered rooster or horse in red or black colors is suitable;
- for successful activity, embroidery should be done in blue or golden-green colors;
- woolen embroidery is suitable if there are already some energy holes, it is done in the area of a person's chakras;
- flax is used to pacify, they embroider trees, birds, stars or the sun;
- for women in embroidery, you need to use black to protect yourself from infertility;
- for men - green (protects from wounds), blue (protects from the elements).
In addition, symbols are also used in embroidery - a cross (barrier and protection from evil), a star (heavenly fire), a circle (signifies fertility, abundance and motherhood) and others.
Thus, Russian embroidery is a whole set of knowledge that our ancestors used in ancient times, protecting themselves, relatives and their kin.
The use of patterns on clothes in the old days
Probably the most famous application of pattern and ornamentation is even the most ignorant person in this matter will recognize this embroidery. However, the colors and patterns again differ by region.
For example, the farther south the area, the brighter the clothes people had. This was due to the fact that earlier the paint was of natural origin, and the warmer it was, the greater the variety in the possibilities of producing it.
If we talk about men's and women's clothing, then the first had almost no differences in the regions, except perhaps preferences in color and pattern. But women's clothing was quite varied and varied considerably.
Also, embroidery of various animal figurines was very popular in the northern part of Russia. But the southern ones had more colored embroidery (often red).
The use of Russian folk patterns in modern clothing
The Russian folk pattern on clothes periodically returns to fashion. Famous fashion designers release collections with folk motifs (for example, in 1976, the Russian Collection from Yves Saint Laurent).
In our time, Russian patterns have long been a priority for true connoisseurs. In addition to colorful traditional ones, they use bright floral (or other folk) prints. I remember the old patterns that the craftswomen embroider on clothes for their family and friends. You can also, if you wish, order similar clothes for yourself.
Also popular are products that have long earned recognition both in quality and in style (for example, Pavlovo Posad shawls).
Thus, the Russian pattern simply cannot disappear into oblivion. His influence on the people is undeniable, this is his legacy, and one day he will rightfully take his rightful place in the hearts of people. After all, old Russian patterns truly carry the harmony and beauty that was known to our ancestors. It is also our story, which should not be forgotten.
Russian women did not have the European abundance of fabrics for making clothes. All that was available to them was linen, cotton and wool. But all the same, the Russians managed to create out of small outfits of amazing beauty. And this was achieved thanks to the ornaments of the Russian folk costume. The ornament at that time acted not only as a decoration, but also as a talisman. Thus, elements of the folk costume were enriched with preservation embroidery and patterned weaving. Amulets of this kind were embroidered on the edges of clothing, namely on the hem, cuffs and collar. These were embroidered letters-ideograms protecting a person from harm. The ornaments were made in certain colors, which also have a special meaning. The most popular color is considered to be red, which symbolizes fire, life and blood.
And in more detail ...
The main element of the Russian folk costume was a shirt with a richly embroidered collar. The shirt sleeves had to be wide and long, but at the wrist they were wrapped in a braid. Women wore shirts over them. It had the shape of a high skirt with straps and was made of linen, wool and cotton fabric. Ribbons, fringes, braid and colored stripes of chintz were used as decoration. The third essential element of the outfit was the skirt. It is worth noting that married women wore a ponevue, which differed from the usual skirt in a swing style with an unsewn slit on the side.
Don't forget about the apron. Women wore it over a shirt or sundress. The apron, as an element of the Russian costume, was also equipped with a rich symbolic ornament, personifying ancient Russian traditions and amulets associated with nature.
Towels (festive, wedding, funeral, deaf) in traditional peasant culture played a more important role in rituals compared to other household utensils, therefore, their ornamentation was treated with passion and towels were passed from generation to generation.
There are very old examples of embroidered and woven towels in museums. Towels were made using the technique of abusive, openwork, multi-thread, embedded weaving; they were embroidered with a set, counted satin stitch, a cross, a Bulgarian cross, a vestibule, a stalk stitch, and a stitch. One of the earliest and most labor-consuming techniques is rewinding embroidery (embroidery on a canvas stretched in the form of a grid).
For a ritual towel, the middle of the cloth was left white, embroidery was done on the edges, and lace (crocheted, woven on bobbins or factory) or laced stripes or brushes were sewn to the ends of the cloth - thus the most common variant of the three-part division of space arose. There is also a more complex order of arrangement of ornaments: embroidery, lace (stitching), embroidery (possibly on red paper), lace or tassels. In ethnography, there is a hypothesis that until the middle of the 19th century, the ends of towels were decorated not with crocheted lace, but with embroidery on interweaving, the ornaments of which often imitate crocheted lace. Traditional motifs for embroidery for ritual towels were pea birds at the tree of life, birds following each other, rhombuses and others. Depending on the motifs of embroidery and lace ornaments, towels were used in wedding, funeral or calendar rites. Richly decorated a towel for the icon in the red corner. Before embroidering such a towel, the two ends of the fabric were often sewn along one side to the same height as the embroidery. Then, without interrupting the rapport at the seam, they embroidered from one edge to the other of the resulting fabric and sewed lace on the full width of the double ends. Such a towel was called deaf. It was hung on a mirror or on a frame with photographs.
V late XIX- At the beginning of the 20th century, naturalistic embroidery of large flowers, bouquets, flowerpots, subject embroidery spread. These motifs were found on the wrappers of soap, colognes and other perfumes, which were developed by a whole staff of artists at the factory of the industrialist Brocard. The craftswoman brought her own motives into the plot, which were found in old products.
Everyday towels - for wiping hands (hands), for covering kvashnyi (nakashniki), for covering buckets of milk (barns) - were also decorated, but less importance was attached to the symbolism of their ornaments. Such towels were variegated - in a cage, in stripes - they could have been sewn with a strip of kumach with embroidery, small laces, or made narrow embroidery with red and black threads on unpainted linen.
The towel is a nakashnik. Talitsky district of the Sverdlovsk region.
End of the towel. From the funds of the Nizhnaya Salda Museum of Local Lore, Nizhnaya Salda, Sverdlovsk Region
From the private collection of T.I. Shvalevoy, Yekaterinburg
The city of Perm (from a church parish). From the private collection of T.I. Shvalevoy, Yekaterinburg
Alapaevsky district of the Sverdlovsk region. From SODF expedition materials
Sverdlovsk region. From the funds of the Center for extracurricular activities of the Chkalovsky district of Yekaterinburg
Towels. Irbitsky district of the Sverdlovsk region. From SODF expedition materials
The village of Pryadeino, Kharlovsky s / s, Irbit district, Sverdlovsk region. From SODF expedition materials
Towels. Alapaevsky district of the Sverdlovsk region. From SODF expedition materials
This is a quote from the post by Valery_Gongbin Original post
Gunbin V.V., Folklore and Ethnographic Studio "Matitsa".
Symbols of Russian ornament.
“Among the peoples of the ancient world, the ornament never included a single idle line:
every dash here has its own meaning, is a word, phrase,
the expression of well-known concepts, ideas ”.
V.V. Stasov Russian folk ornament: Sewing, fabrics, lace. Issue I SPb, 1872
Weaving, embroidery, lace-making are traditional female occupations in the Russian countryside. From generation to generation, the secrets of craftsmanship were passed on from mother to daughter, from grandmother to granddaughter. To this day, on towels, tablecloths, clothes, headdresses have survived "patterns", "ornamental" from the gray antiquity.
They were not just decorative elements of household items, but carried a certain semantic meaning, had their own energy.
In the Vologda region of the Kaduysky district of the Velikoselsky village council, I asked the local residents about one of the natural phenomena I saw. At the end of July-August several times in different time, more often in the evening, at dusk, I observed flashes of heavenly fire over the grain fields. These flashes of fire were like flashing lightning, flashing now in one part of the sky, now in another, but without thunder, silently illuminating the fields. The splendor is simply amazing. In the village of Velikoye, in the village of Stupolokhta (Stupolovka), the old people called this phenomenon "bakery", "bread dawns" when the heavenly fire feeds the bread with its power. Primitive magic in action, and nothing more. This is the phenomenon of transmission heavenly power for growth and maturation, and its acceptance by grain fields can be transferred to the energy of ornaments.
Patterns, ornamentation, “at the dawn”, “zoritsya” is a description of force through the fabric of the ornament, where the signs are symbols, according to the folk “patterns” (for comparison: “sparks” - energy meaning, “letters” - semantic load), in depending on their location, they conveyed the power of the desire for fertility to the earth, offspring of livestock and fertility to a woman through solar images. It is somewhat similar to the signs for the landing of aircraft / helicopters, not where they hit, but in certain places... Moreover, solar "patterns" - to attract the radiance of the sun, lunar - to attract the power of the moon, thus asking for the blessings of the sky and showing the luminaries that they are accepted and desired by people. Women put on the most elegant shirts during labor holidays, when they asked for and praised natural forces at the same time. For example, the first pasture of cattle in May on the pasture, from Midsummer day at haymaking, during the hard time for the harvest. At this time, the wishes of the symbols, embedded in the ornaments of clothes, touching the herbs and the earth, like the "breeders", reveal their content, the female and vegetable forces mutually nourish each other.
And now, from the energetic filling of the symbols, let's move on to the semantic content.
"Patterns", "ornamental" come from two words: "ties" ("ties, knot" - connection, interlacing; for example, bonds of brotherhood, family ties) and "op" (to speak, tell, pronounce) - "talking interweaving »Threads.
What do the patterns tell about? What images do they carry? To whom are they addressed? What desires of the heart and dictates of the mind are put into them by a woman?
To answer these questions, let's speculate about the peasant family. What basic functions does it perform?
1. Continue the race. "The day is not red without the sun, life is not sweet without small children," says the proverb.
2. Feed yourself. And "whoever loves the earth to the mother of cheese will not be hungry."
To continue the race means "to increase the number of eaters." To feed is to provide food for the whole family. What is the danger here? Hunger. What contributes to it? Lack of able-bodied relatives, loss of livestock, crop failure in the field, failure in hunting / fishing, lack of demand in the craft. Depending on what brings prosperity to the family. This is the prose of life.
All other functions of the family follow from these and become priority ones: protective, social, moral and educational, informational and practical. What are they?
Family protective function: preserve and increase from accidental hardships that little that you have. Need, illness, sterility, plunder, drunkenness, natural disasters, loss of a breadwinner, war are the main misfortunes of the family. They are protected from this.
Social function of the family: today you feed your children - tomorrow they feed you (however, this is not a fact), support for the weak and lonely relatives, support for the younger generation. Proverbs say: "debt is red in payment", "good children - a crown for the father-mother, thin - the end of the father-mother", "the bird rejoices in the spring, and the baby is happy with the mother", "it is warm in the sun, good in the presence of mother."
Moral educational function: the system of relations between people (their own, theirs / strangers, strangers), between the elders and the younger in the family, between the person and the world, the attitude to work / rest. Proverbs say: "where there is love and advice, there is no grief," and parents, in a foreign land you will not find "," where the pine tree has grown, there it is red "," the bird is red with a feather, and a person is skill "," love of work is in sight of people "," put off idleness, but do not put off things ", "The one who is well brought up who is tested by work", "live with your mind, and the honor to grow by work", "the sun paints the earth, and labor paints a person", "good fame is more valuable than wealth", "work and happiness live in the same house."
Informational and practical function of the family: transfer of experience and knowledge from the older generation to the younger - traditions and craftsmanship, work skills and celebrating holidays. Proverbs say: “look for good on the side, and love the house in the old days”, “not that expensive, that red gold, but that is expensive that of good skill,” “metal is tempered in fire, and a person is at work”, “the craft of drinking - it does not ask to eat, but feeds itself "," what the spinner is, such is the shirt on it "," the feast is not so beautiful that the trumpets are blown, but because people love people. "
Based on the needs of the family, and should begin the countdown of the search for the meaning of the patterns.
The power of ornamental images captured in weaving, embroidery and lace is akin to the power of images of a conspiracy word and prayer. This is an appeal to the higher forces and elements of nature about the immutability of the circulation of life and the inclusion in this movement of each individual member of the family, as a particle of this world.
The cyclical nature of the space-time continuum has 3 constants (constant components) - place, action and variational return to the initial point of reference. The scene begins at the point where you are, and spreads to the cardinal points: east-south-west-north. And the action is manifested in the constant change / recurrence of both the time of day (morning-day-evening-night), and the season (spring-summer-autumn-winter), and the circle of a person's life (birth-maturation-aging-death). And the inclusion of people in these processes helps the "rite" - "inclusion in the series", it will be more understandable "inclusion in the rhythm" of current events. As soon as the rhythm is interrupted, it stops - hunger, disease, sterility, death approach.
"Order" - "in a row", "in a row" - inclusion in the natural rhythm of events. "Disorder" - "not in a row", "out of a row" - falling out of the rhythm of events. It is similar to how a newcomer wedges in in a stream of heavy traffic and with his vanity breaks the whole rhythm of a well-functioning traffic flow, creating a dangerous situation on the road for himself and for other drivers. And just as an instructor helps a student gain experience in driving a car, so mentoring in rituals allows you not to get out of natural rhythms, to maintain stability in difficult life situations. For example, the death of a loved one and his funeral. Or, more distant for the understanding of a city dweller, such an expression as "went to ritual cattle." That is, set feed, milk, for example, a cow. Such is the power of the ceremony - to remove vanity from consciousness and direct thinking into a practical channel of concrete actions, free from stupor and creatively solve seemingly dead-end problems. But "this is a saying, not a fairy tale, a fairy tale will be ahead."
The ornament was called "the art of rhythm", since it had its own cyclical nature, like the repetition of the circular rhythms of nature. This is not just a decoration of the fabric, but a system of allegories, the disclosure through the symbols-keys of a kind of harmonizing source that supports the well-being of the family. What does the ornament carry in itself? What functions does it perform?
Creates a positive attitude towards health, happiness, prosperity;
Promotes the fertility of the land and the fertility of women;
Prescribes a person's intentions through patterns;
Is a talisman against external damaging influences;
Conveys knowledge about the image of the world and ways of interacting with it;
Informs about belonging to the clan-tribe, since the patterns were inherited;
Speaks about the continuity of the relationship of generations between ancestors and descendants.
I would like to tell you about how an ornament carrying symbols in weaving, embroidery, lace and knitting affects the human mind, and what meaning it brings to everyday life. And also about how, by means of ornamental clothing and household items (towels, tablecloths, valances, etc.), a woman conveyed her message to the world about procreation, maintaining health and prosperity in the family.
Symbols of geometric ornament.
Location. On the fabric, patterns are arranged in a strip, rectangle, square in accordance with the shape of the decorated item.
About color. The main color of the fabric is white, and the compositions were drawn either over white with white or over white with red. The color symbolism is as follows. White is the color of purity, innocence, death, or rather a transitional state from one sphere of life to another, a symbol of the transition itself, and besides, it is the light of the heavenly world, White light. Protective patterns were painted invisibly - white on white, and read in the light in the rays of the sun or fire. The main color for drawing the ornament was red. Red is the color of life, fertility, the radiance of heavenly fire, a symbol of the clan, as a large family of people. In ancient times, he was dedicated to the Family - the only god of nature and life, the giver of heavenly goods, the producer of all living things, the creator of the Universe and man. The energy of "illumination" is associated with red. White and red colors made up the whole variety of ornamentation, and many colors appeared much later. Now let's move on from color to drawing up ornamental chains and paintings.
Patterns are composed in 3 types of compositions:
1. Longitudinal ornament (in the form of a strip, rectangle) adorns belts, tablecloths, shirts, valances, towels. It consists of signs-symbols, rhythmically repeating, in a certain order. If you look at the picture of the sun presented here, as if from above, then it can be combined with the hem of a shirt, a sundress - the same sun illuminating the fabric, but on clothes. And all types of longitudinal ornament, based on this position, can be considered circular, derived from the purpose and design of the weaver.
Consider five options for a longitudinal ornament:
"One by one" ("one by one", "one by one") - rhythmic repetition of one sign-symbol.
"Paired" - alternating repetition of two character-symbols.
"Round dance" is a rhythmic / alternating combination of one / two signs-symbols.
"Circular" - alternation of inverted / straight signs-symbols of the longitudinal composition after the top / bottom of the circle is combined.
"Snake" - a zigzag line that changes the direction of signs-symbols along the oblique axis up and down.
Mixed options.
2. A mesh ornament (in the form of a visible / invisible mesh unfolded in space) decorates the sleeves of women's shirts, aprons-curtains, where signs-symbols are superimposed on the knots from the intersecting threads of the mesh.
3. The longitudinal-mesh ornament is a grid spread over the entire space of the canvas, where signs-symbols are located both along the knees and along the cells of the grid, covering the fabric with a continuous pattern.
For example, at the tablecloth. Often this type of composition can be interpreted as a longitudinal ornament after highlighting a strip (one row of the "grid" is presented in full, and the rest are fragmentary) or a rectangle (presented for viewing from two or more rows of the "grid"). 
All ornaments are made up of signs-symbols, just as a sentence is made of words and words are made of letters. Through them, the compiled pattern carries its message to the world. Let's consider the root meaning of some symbols.
Cross.
The equilateral cross is a symbol of the sun in the sky and fire on the earth. It is depicted as four rays. "The sun is shining all over the world, on all four sides." Moreover straight cross means being in highest point blossoming, at the top. For example, in a day it is noon when the sun is at the zenith of its power. A oblique cross ("Fire") denotes movement, is a symbol of the transition from one state to another, and there is a transformation of one quality into a completely different one, previously, perhaps, not known to man. Let's say in the circle of life - this is the birth of a person, a wedding, the adoption of faith. So the cross of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called - "St. Andrew's Cross" was oblique.
A word about the swastika.
Swastika is a cross with bent ends to the right or left. Translated from Sanskrit, "suasti" means "happiness." "Suasti Asta!" - "May it be blessing to all!", So you can translate the power of the wishes of this sign. Synonyms: bow-legged, bow-legged, yarga, Kolovrat.
How is the swastika born?
The swastika is a fire sign and is born with the rotation of the cross. When the cross rotates from left to right, clockwise, in the sun, saline, the flame is deflected by air to the left - this is a right-sided (straight) swastika. When the cross rotates from right to left, counterclockwise, the flame deviates to the left - this is a left-sided (reverse) swastika. Thus, a right-handed swastika is called a cross, the ends of which are bent to the left, and a left-handed swastika is a cross, with the ends bent to the right.
If the swastika is complex, then the middle and marginal parts of the symbol can move both in the same stream and in mutually opposite directions. Here you should be guided by the knees in the middle of the symbol, which carry the main charge of energy.
The swastika denotes the state of currents of power, both in man and in nature as a whole, along certain lines. The main milestones in nature are the winter and summer solstice. So the winter solstice, when the sun turns from winter to summer, passes under the sign of the right-sided swastika, which symbolizes male activity, the intense power of the sky, the rising / rising / spring sun, the increase in daylight hours, day until noon. And the summer solstice, when the sun turns from summer to winter, passes under the sign of the left-sided swastika, which symbolizes feminine activity, the fruitful power of the earth, the waning / setting / autumn sun, the waning of daylight, the afternoon.
Bowleg / bowleg - here it is clear without translation. It is not clear yet whose legs are these? It is known that in ancient times the movement of the sun was marked by a deer, and later - by a horse. Simple yarga was called "horse shanks", and more complicated - "horses", "horses with riders".
Yarga ("Yar" is the force that awakens life, "ha" is the movement, walking) - the movement of the fertilizing force, the awakening of the currents of life under the rays of the spring sun. Yar / yarina / yaritsa / yarovina - the plant power of the soil, which rises in juices from the roots along the trunks of trees, along the stems of herbs, opening up with flowers-inflorescences. Yaryn is the spring state of the earth, when fields turn green, gardens and forests bloom. This is the time of Spring and the Sun, Lelya and Yarila. Lelya is the daughter of Lada, the goddess of the reviving nature, the first shoots, youth and the ardent / ardent / hot / impetuous god of the spring sun Yarila come to us with melting snows, with lush bloom. Yarila breathes life into the grain, into the seed, and excites plant power in herbs and trees. The earth and all living things rage from him. Whoever he meets - he is "drunk without beer, without hops," he will cast a hot gaze on the beautiful girl - in an instant, young blood will seethe at her, throw him into a fever, his face will blush like a red poppy. On the way, its flowers bloom and every day they become more perfume, brighter, more flowery. This is the first half of the year - from winter to summer solstice.
Kolovrat ("Kolo" - a circle, the image of the sun, "gate" - rotation, return, gate) - means the movement of the sun from east to west in a circle during the day and the results of the year as a whole, in the broadest sense of the word. In a narrower sense: this is the designation of harvesting, when the land is cleared of the burden of fruits, this is the time of Lada, the second half of the year - from the summer to the winter solstice.
In the direction of force:
Yarga is the right-hand movement of the swastika (in the sun), and Kolovorot is the left-hand movement of the swastika (against the direction of the sun).
Rhombus, square.
They were popularly called "circles", which denoted the state of the fertile power of heaven / earth, according to the recurrence of the annual course of the sun. The rhombus as a symbol of fertility had many varieties: with rays, curls, women in labor, it carried the image of the sun, and with branches, curls, an oblique mesh of ornament, it carried the image of the earth. The well-being of the peasant family came from the land as a breadwinner, from the harvest, and the result of the invested labor, knowledge and experience depended on weather conditions, "the state of the sky." "The earth will not give birth to bread, but the sky." "Summer will give birth, not the field." That is, the radiance of the sun awakened the currents of life on the earth, entered into each creature, gave growth to seedlings of plants and nourished the fruits. Therefore, the symbols of the sun, the source of all life on earth, were revered as symbols of life, wealth, happiness, health and surrounded the everyday life of people.
If you look at the drawing of Kolovrat, then in the signs behind the circle there is a description of the state of the sun, and inside the circle there is a description of the state of the earth.
Rhombuses, presented from the vernal equinox to the summer solstice, are radiant. This is the main period of the peasant agricultural calendar. Radiant rhombus weavers were depicted by the oblique intersection of two pairs of parallel rays. Its other name "Burr"("Re", "ra" - the sun; drink) - drink the sun, drink the sun's rays and be filled with the life-giving power of growth. "Burr" looks like a rhombus, from each vertex of which 2 pairs of diverging straight rays emerge. This is the masculine energy of the state of brightness, impetuosity, ardor and productive power of the spring sun. The sun covers the ground. Thawed patches appear in the snow, primroses emerge from the soil. The day is rapidly increasing, warmth is coming, the time for the beginning of field work and the revitalization of nature is approaching. In a radiant rhombus, thawed patches are indicated by a circle, a cross, a square, showing the penetration of the sun's rays to the soil. Next comes the concentration of the power of the sun and its transfer to the earth, the exit from the seed of the sprouts, from the swollen buds - the foliage, from the buds - the flowers. And the next milestone is the flowering and ovary of fruits, the zenith of "radiance", when strength has fruitful and fruitful power. The sun at this time is depicted as a 4-petal flower with a dot in its middle - a symbol of an ovary, a symbol of fruiting. Then, reaching the "crown", there is a turn, the state of forces changes. On the one hand, plants are still growing, and on the other, nature begins to bear fruit, to be relieved of the burden.
Rhombuses, presented from the summer solstice to the autumn equinox, are curly. "Rhombus with hooks" , "Curly circle" , "Mint" (ax) weavers were depicted in the form of a rhombus, in which the upper and lower rays are bent in pairs towards each other. It looks like a grain in ears of corn bends the stem to the ground. The power of the sun feeds with its power the ripening of fruits. Therefore, "curly circles" personified maturity, fertility, fertile sun. Daylight hours begin to gradually decrease. The time comes for the harvest, the time for summing up the result of the peasant's work on the earth and the sun in the sky. “Not the harvest that is in the fields, but the harvest that is in the bins” was said by the people, and they thought about the satiety of the family for the long winter.
Touching the circle of a person's life, the rhombus symbolized the female nature and the reproductive power of a woman, and more frankly, her external genitals. At the same time, a "clean" rhombus denoted virginity, with a dot in the middle - its loss, and with four or more dots - maturity, motherhood. Therefore, often his image is located in the lower abdomen on the embroidery of female anthropomorphic figures, on ancient figurines. The transition of a girl-bride after marriage to the status of a woman-wife, from marriage to the birth of her first child, is similar to the period from the vernal equinox to the “crown of summer”. At this time, a woman attracts the currents of life into her body and the patterns on her clothes are the most generous. With the birth of a child, the formation of a woman-mother occurs, which corresponds to the period from the summer solstice to the autumn equinox in nature. The connection between the rhombo-dot pattern and fertility is most clearly manifested in the wedding rituals and life of a young woman. There is a combination of the concepts of the birth of children and the yield of the field, which ensure family happiness.
Thus, the entire variation series of rhombic symbols from the spring to the autumn equinox contains a single motive, a wish-appeal: "Be fruitful and multiply!"
Women in labor.
These are Lada and Lelya, mother and daughter, heavenly patron goddesses of both fertility and productivity. In Kolovrat's drawing, women in labor symbolize productive force sun from fruit set to harvest, from conception to the end of childbearing.
Their image consists of a rhombus / square - "head" and 2 open half-bombs - "legs". When the "legs" are turned towards the middle in the solar "circles", and the "heads" outward, this symbolizes the concentration of plant and fruitful power in someone. And when, on the contrary, the “heads” inside, the “legs” outside are the fertile power of the sun, the exodus of the ripe outside, the “cornucopia”. That is, in one case, the strength goes into growth, and in the other - into the flesh. This is the content of this sign.
Guski.
Displaying a right-sided or left-sided vortex that unites the heavenly and earthly elements, connecting them with each other when the symbol is displayed vertically. In a horizontal position, it indicates continuity, the unification of the past and the future, the maintenance of the repetition of order. Moreover, in the right-handed twist, like in the swastika, the force goes into growth, concentrates, and in the left-handed twist - on maturation and recoil. Consistently connected, they give a rhythmic series that calls for well-being in the family.
Triangles.
Triangles with a base at the bottom and apex at the top denote the masculine principle and the sun's rays, if we take into account such an arrangement, as if a person himself is the sun, the light comes from himself. And the triangles with the base at the top and the top at the bottom are the feminine principle, like the earth, which is illuminated by the sun (see the picture of the sun above). It should be borne in mind that the meaning of the location of the triangles can vary. For example, in a sundress, a woman can become like the earth, and an ornament carrying the image of the sun will collect strength inside the body. So in the interpretation of the ornament, many components should be taken into account in order to reveal the content of the pattern, both energetic and semantic.
You can stop at this and summarize the deciphering of the geometric ornament. As the light of the sun removes frosts, drowns snow, pushes the darkness apart, in the same way its images in patterns protect their owner from troubles and misfortunes. And through the centuries, the ornament from generation to generation carries the behests of our ancestors - to grow crops and raise children for the continuation and prosperity of the family, while the sun is shining and the earth bears a person.
