The tradition of collecting healing and magical herbs for the Kupala holiday has existed for a very long time. A certain abbot of the Pskov Eleazar Monastery, Panfil, wrote to Dmitry Vladimirovich of Rostov around 1505 that on the eve of John the Baptist (which coincides with Kupala or the summer solstice), men and women walk through meadows, fields, forests and swamps in search of “mortal flowers”, “on destruction by man and cattle,” “here and there they dig up divia rooting for the indulgence of their husbands: and all this they do with the action of the devil on the day of the Forerunners with the sentences of Sotanin.” That there is a description of the collection of medicinal herbs by herbalists and ordinary people.

Slavic traditions

Herbs that have magical properties include: thorn grass, fern, or kochedednik, tirlich-lichomannik, weeping grass, Adam's head dope, swamp cabbage roll, rhubarb, overpowering grass, strawberry, transfer, na-sleep, gap-grass, flight -grass, Ivan-da-Marya, rosewort, thistle, plantain, burdock, bathhouse, bear's ear, rich, Chernobyl, buttercup, archilin, ant oil, copperhead, or chicken blindness and Peter's cross. According to legends, medicinal herbs are grown by mermaids and Mavkas, who know them all medicinal properties. According to Belarusian belief, Kupala herbs are most healing if they are collected by “old and young”, that is, old people and children - as the most pure (not sexually active, not having monthly cleanses, etc.). Ukrainian girls always picked wormwood, because they believed that witches and mermaids were afraid of it. Wormwood was worn on a belt, woven into wreaths, and stuck into the walls of houses and gates to block the path of witches.

Greens were used as a universal amulet: it was believed that it protected against diseases and epidemics, the evil eye and damage; from sorcerers and witches, evil spirits, “walking” dead; from natural lightning, hurricane, fire; from snakes and predatory animals, insect pests, worms. Along with this, contact with fresh herbs was also interpreted as a magical remedy that ensures fertility and successful breeding of livestock, poultry, productivity of cereals and garden crops.

They tried to collect herbs early in the morning on Midsummer's Day before sunrise, since, according to legend, only those plants that the sun does not have time to illuminate retain their healing properties (Bulgarian, Bel., Ukrainian). It is at this time that “every grass asks to be picked and reveals its own healing power" They collected not only healing herbs, but also amulets plants (nettle, wormwood, branches of thorny bushes), as well as herbs and flowers intended for fortune telling, for ritual wreaths and bouquets, plants for making brooms, brooms, baskets.

The “Discharge Books” contain records of a number of ancient legal cases involving such herbalists. It was enough to find an unknown root or a bunch of unknown grass on someone for it to be given the meaning of malicious intent. The “witches” caught on the eve of Midsummer were tortured and beaten with batogs, so that “it would not be common practice to carry and collect herbs and roots.”

General information about the plant Ivan da Marya

Mariannik Dubravny (Melampyrum nemorosum L.) – annual herbaceous plant with pubescent stem. Leaves are opposite, ovate-lanceolate. The flowers are light yellow, two-lipped, collected in spike-shaped inflorescences. The fruit is an ovoid capsule. The seeds are large, oblong, brown or almost black. Plant height – 15-60 cm.

The plant stands out for its particularly striking contrast of blue bracts and bright yellow corollas. It is very decorative, which is why it often attracted the attention of painters and poets, but when picked into bouquets it quickly fades. The flowers of Ivan da Marya produce nectar abundantly and are rightfully considered a good honey plant.

Name Ivan da Marya in different areas can be given to several (different) herbaceous plants, the flowers of which (or the upper parts of the entire plant) are distinguished by the presence of two sharply different colors, most often yellow and blue or purple. Most often, the word Ivan-da-Marya is used to refer specifically to oak grove, and less often to tricolor violet. Even less commonly, this name is given to meadow sage and periwinkle - they also have two distinctly different colors.

Oakwood maryannik is found in the northern, middle and southwestern zones of the European part of Russia. It grows in forest clearings (sometimes in large areas), forest edges, hills, in thickets of bushes, swampy meadows and chalk slopes. The most common plant in our meadows, glades and edges of deciduous forests, where it blooms from late spring to early autumn (May-September).

Magic properties

Among the Eastern Slavs, the Ivan-da-Marya flower was a symbol of Kupala celebrations. In many places among Russians it is also known under the names “Kupala flower”, “kupavka”, “swimsuit”, “Ivankovsky flower”. Belarusians call it “brother and sister” and “crying flower,” and Ukrainians call it “brothers.”

The origin of this flower among the Eastern Slavs and some peoples neighboring them - Poles, Lithuanians - is associated with the folklore motive of punishing a brother and sister for incest - incestuous marriage. Thus, the Russians have a popular belief about the transformation of a brother and sister who entered into a forbidden relationship into a flower, which, according to their names - Ivan and Marya, became known as Ivan-da-Marya. Ukrainians and Poles have widespread legends with a similar plot: a brother and sister, separated in childhood, walked around the world for a long time, and when they met, they did not recognize each other, got married and only later learned that they were brother and sister. Out of shame and grief they turned into grass, the flowers of which are blue and yellow. In the folklore of all Eastern Slavs there are ballads and songs that tell how a brother and sister almost got married or were already married, but before the wedding night they learned about their relationship:

And on Sunday they got married,

On Monday they went to bed.

He began to torture the kid,

What kind of girl is she?

“I’m Voitovna from Kyiv, Father Karpovna!”

The girl began to torture

What kind of kid is this:

“I’m from Kyiv, Voitovich, According to Father Karpovich!”

“Oh, where was that guy?

For a sister to marry her brother?

A sister will not marry her brother,

But brother doesn’t take sister!

We'll go to the field

We'll throw off the grass

What about brother and sister!”

These ballads were most often used as Kupala songs. The involuntary violation of the marriage ban, found in ritual songs on this subject, correlates with popular stories that on Kupala night in ancient times the bans on marriage were lifted. love relationship between all men and women. This custom also explains the fact that incestuous motifs are most common in Kupala songs. For example, the Kupala song plot about a brother who wants to kill his seductress sister was widespread. Another song emphasizes that the initiative in suggesting incest belongs to the sister:

Konik is walking

Voronenky.

On that horse<…>

Ivan is sitting

Marya is behind him<…>

He runs after:

"Wait, Ivan<…>

I'll say something!<…>

Love you<…>

I'll go with you!

I'll make a wish<…>

Three riddles.

And what grows<…>

Without root?

What's burning?<…>

Without a flame?

What's running?<…>

With no reason?"

This song contains an archaic motive for solving riddles of a cosmogonic nature (in this case, the solution is stone, soot, water), which in mythopoetic texts is related to the theme of testing for knowledge indicating readiness for marriage.

Having compared the folklore and ritual material of the Eastern Slavs with the mythologies of other peoples, the researchers came to the conclusion that the basis of legends, beliefs, Kupala songs about incest, including texts about the origin of the Ivan da Marya flower, is the archaic myth of twins, one of which - Ivan - is associated with life and fire, and the other - Marya - with death and water. Their relationship in ritual songs correlates with the ancient motif of the marriage duel of fire and water, that is, precisely those opposing natural elements that were of paramount importance in the Kupala ritual.

Songs about the origin of the Ivan da Marya flower, associated with the violation of the marriage ban between brother and sister, were sung on Kupala night until the wheel burned out and the ritual fire died out.

In Ukrainian beliefs, this flower is a symbol of salvation from the love of people close by blood. The Russians used ivan-da-marya, along with some other herbs, to make wreaths - maiden headdresses for the Kupala holiday. Throwing these wreaths into the water, the girls wondered about their fate: if the wreath washed back to the shore, it would mean they would remain girls this year; will sail to the other shore - to marriage; Well, if the wreath sinks, the fortuneteller will die. In the St. Petersburg province, girls, performing a ritual ablution on the day of Ivan Kupala, entered the water with Ivan da Marya flowers and released them: if the flower sank, it foreshadowed death.

Like other herbs, the Ivan-da-Marya flower on the day of the summer solstice, when nature reached its greatest flowering, had, according to popular beliefs, magical power, which the peasants tried to take advantage of. Everywhere on the day of Agrafena Bathing and Ivan Kupala, herbs and flowers were collected in forests and fields. As a rule, girls and young women who married in this year. In the Pskov province, they walked across the field in a “row” - holding hands, five or six people - and, collecting plants, they always sang:

Let's go, girls, to the meadow,

Let's stand around, girls,

Let's pick a flower,

Let's put on a wreath,

Where should we take them?

We'll dress the brides.

In some places, boys also went shopping for herbs with the girls. Plants, among which the Ivan-da-Marya flower was the most common, were brought to the village in large armfuls. They were scattered on the floor in churches, dwellings and on the ground in courtyards, placed near windows and near icons. These plants were considered the best remedy from various troubles. During a thunderstorm, the preserved grass was thrown into the oven to protect the house from lightning strikes, that is, from the elements of fire. The Ivan da Marya flower, picked on Kupala night, was placed in the corners of the hut: according to legend, this helps to avoid theft. A thief will not enter a house where there is Ivan da Marya, because “brother and sister will talk; the thief will imagine that the master is talking to the mistress.” In the Belarusian tradition, this flower - “brother-sister” - was used as a healing agent: on Kupala morning it was given to cows so that they would be prosperous. Here they believed that it helps with cough. In Polesie, until the second half of the 20th century, children were bathed with the same herb, called here “brothers”, so that they could sleep well.

Fern flower

Description

First the facts. Ferns are a department of very ancient plants, rich in their diversity (more than 10 thousand species). Ferns reproduce by spores and

by vegetative means (shoots). The controversy is on back side leaves and are quite inconspicuous. Some types of ferns produce an arrow with spores, which resembles an inflorescence, but not a single flower. Ferns are also poisonous. In hot summer weather, the air in the forest is saturated with vapors. Perhaps they cause various auditory and visual hallucinations.

Legends about the fern flower

Ferns have always attracted interest and even caused some fear among people. They were considered special, mysterious and hidden plants, unlike all the others. He was always hiding something, grew up in dim, damp, scary places and, apparently, kept some kind of secret knowledge within himself.

People were attracted by the mystery of these plants, the mystery of their reproduction in the absence of flowers. All plants bloom, but this one does not - that means it is special, marked with mystery. So legends about ferns, tales, and fairy tales begin to arise around. In them - a modest inhabitant of forests and endows with those properties that a person has not observed in reality - the fern blooms, but not simply, but magically.

The legend about the fern is well known, in which a magical flower blooms once a year on the night of Ivan Kupala. In the ancient Slavic tradition, the fern became known as magical plant. According to legend, it was at Kupala midnight that the fern bloomed briefly and the earth opened up, making visible the treasures and treasures hidden in it.

After midnight, those who were lucky enough to find a fern flower ran in their mother's clothes through the dewy grass and bathed in the river to receive fertility from the earth.

According to the legend about the fern, at midnight before Midsummer, the fern blooms for a few moments with a bright fiery flower with magical properties. Around midnight, a bud suddenly appears from the leaves of the fern, which, rising higher and higher, then sways, then stops - and suddenly staggers, turns over and jumps. Exactly at midnight, a ripened bud bursts with a bang, and a bright fiery flower is presented to the eyes, so bright that it is impossible to look at it; an invisible hand tears it off, and a person almost never manages to do this. Whoever finds a blossoming fern and manages to take possession of it acquires the power to command everyone.

In the story “Evenings on the Eve of Ivan Kupala” N.V. Gogol talked about an old folk legend, according to which once a year a fern flower blooms, and whoever picks it will get a treasure and get rich. N.V. Gogol in “Evenings on the Eve of Ivan Kupala” describes the flowering of fern as follows: “Look, a small flower bud turns red and, as if alive, moves. Really wonderful! It moves and gets bigger and bigger and turns red like a hot coal. A star flashed, something quietly crackled, and the flower unfolded before his eyes like a flame, illuminating others around it.” "Now it's time!" - Petro thought and extended his hand... Closing his eyes, he pulled the stem, and the flower remained in his hands. Everything has calmed down..."

He picked a fern flower and threw it up, adding special slander. The flower floated in the air and landed just above the place where the fabulous treasure was kept.

In Rus', fern was called gap-grass. It was believed that one touch of a fern flower was enough to open any lock. According to legend, picking a fern flower is very difficult and dangerous. It was believed that a fern flower, immediately after blooming, is plucked by the hand of an invisible spirit. And if someone dares to go pick a fern flower, the spirits will bring horrors and fears upon him, and may take him away with them.

In Russia there was such a legend about fern:“The shepherd was grazing bulls near the forest and fell asleep. Waking up at night and seeing that there were no bulls near him, he ran into the forest to look for them. While running through the forest, I accidentally ran into some growth that had just blossomed. The shepherd, not noticing this grass, ran straight across it. At this time, he accidentally knocked down a flower with his foot, which fell into his shoe. Then he became happy and immediately found the bulls. Not knowing what was in his shoe and without taking off his shoes for several days, the shepherd in this short time saved money and learned about the future. Meanwhile, earth was poured into the shoe during this time. The shepherd, taking off his shoes, began to shake the earth out of his shoe and, along with the earth, shook out the flower of the fern. From that time on, he lost his happiness, lost his money and did not recognize the future.”

Beautiful legends are associated with this plant. According to one of them, in the place where a beautiful girl fell from a cliff, a clean spring arose, and her hair turned into fern. Other legends about the fern connect its origin with the goddess of love and beauty Venus: a wonderful plant grew from a hair she dropped. One of its types is called adiantum - Venus hair.

The widespread legend about the fiery flower of the fern, which had to be found on the night of Ivan Kupala, is associated with the male shield fern, but the female shield fern also received its share in this ancient ritual. Since tribal primitive times, female nomad was considered a “reliable” and powerful “witch’s root”.

The peasants of the Vologda region have long had a belief that if on the night of Ivan Kupala you find a large female fern, sit patiently near it, without moving and covered with a thick cloth, you can learn all the secrets of forest herbs and medicinal plants. Allegedly, after some time one will be able to see in the twilight of a not very dark northern night how all the medicinal herbs will run past the female fern one after another, each one will identify itself and say what disease it helps against.

When to look for a fern flower?

Everything looks simple here. It blooms on the night of Ivan Kupala. This means you should look for it on the night of July 6-7. Not so! Some argue that Kupala is celebrated on July 7, and you need to look for it on the night of the holiday, therefore, the right night is from July 7 to 8. In addition, according to the old style, this holiday fell on June 23-24, which corresponds to the legend about Perun’s color. Around this period, from June 20 to June 26, the summer solstice falls, and it is on these days that Ivan Kupala is celebrated in other countries. With the transition to a new style the holiday shifted by 2 weeks, and apparently they forgot to warn the sun, so

The summer solstice is considered to be June 22. Moreover, it must be taken into account that the holiday of Ivan Kupala arose as a result of the combination of the pagan holiday of Kupala and the Christian celebration of the birthday of John the Baptist (July 22). So you have to decide for yourself when to look.

Where to look?

It's clear. Where the fern grows. But it is unlikely that a fern in a flowerpot from your windowsill or from summer cottage. Need a wild fern. Its appearance is quite characteristic, so you are unlikely to confuse it with some other plant. Ferns are quite unpretentious; they just need to be warm and damp. That's why they grow in forests, swamps, and near rivers. But you still have to go into the forest, and into the most remote part of it.

How to look for a fern flower?

The answer suggests itself - thoroughly. Although some versions of the legend claim that you need to draw a magic circle near the fern with a knife, which will protect you from evil spirits, sit in it and patiently wait for the flower to appear. It will bloom exactly at midnight and will bloom... for some time. According to various sources - from one moment to the whole night. It is not clear what this flower looks like. Some say that it is a large red, “fiery” flower, others say it is silver, and others say it is a small white flower. Everyone agrees on only one thing - this flower glows. This is where its other names came from: luminous color, adonis, heat-color, color-light. This means that it will not be so difficult to see it at night. They just say it will be scary. The evil spirits will try in every possible way to scare you with visions, various sounds, and may even call you by name. The ideas of our ancestors about this are described by Gogol in “May Night”. They also claim that this flower has some kind of special guardian, whose purpose is to prevent you from picking the treasured flower.

What to do next?

The flower must be picked quickly. Suddenly it still blooms only for an instant. Then, by various sources, hide and run, or carefully carry in your palms. The main thing is not to look back. Or, according to other sources, sit in a outlined circle, waiting for the morning. It is unclear what to do with him next. Apparently, dry it and store it in a home herbarium. One of the legends says that you need to throw a flower into the river and make a wish.

Why is it even needed?

The owner of a fern flower gains a lot of superpowers. He will be able to do virtually everything: understand the language of animals, see treasures through the thickness of the earth, become invisible, instantly be transported from place to place (teleport), be invulnerable, command spirits, in addition, all his wishes will come true. All this will last as long as the fern flower is in your hands. And there will be enough people willing to take this flower from you, both among people and among representatives of evil spirits.

It just so happens that many have heard about the Ivan da Marya flower, but few have any idea about it. But the contrasting beauty of this plant can become a highlight in any garden. And besides, the flower will be at hand if the need arises to take advantage of its medicinal properties. The article will help you understand the features of the medicinal plant, and the attached photos will allow you to enjoy the beauty of the flower.

Ivan da Marya: legends and traditions

Knowledge about the Ivan da Marya flower goes back centuries. In pagan times, the Slavic ancestors called the flower Kupala da Mavka. Only with the advent of Christianity did it acquire a new name, which has survived to this day.

According to East Slavic myths, a brother and sister lived in this world - Kupala and Kostroma, separated by chance and parental disobedience in childhood. Many years later, an unfortunate incident brought them together again, but they did not know about their relationship and fell in love with each other. And only after the wedding they learned that their hearts were connected by forbidden love. The bitter truth forced the brother and sister to choose between death and shame. They chose death - Kostroma drowned herself in the depths of a forest lake, and became the first Mavka mermaid, and Kupala threw herself into the heat of the fire.

The gods, looking at such a tragedy, took pity and turned the brother and sister into beautiful flower- partly blue, like water, partly yellow, like fire. With the advent of Christianity, Kupala was renamed Ivan (in honor of John the Baptist), and Mavka, his unfortunate sister, was named Maria, in honor of the Mother of God.

Medicinal plant in natural conditions

Rumor imparts magic to a two-faced flower, picked on the day of the summer solstice (on the holiday of Kupala):

• helps the person carrying it with him to escape persecution;
• the owner of a marvelous plant will be able to move quickly, even if there is an old nag under him (in modern interpretation will provide assistance to the racer on any car);
• freshly squeezed plant juice was given to drink to people who had lost their memory or reason;
• keeping a mystical plant in the house helps protect the home from evil intentions and spirits;
• acts as the keeper of peace between husband and wife.

Botanical features of the Ivan-da-Marya flower

An annual herbaceous plant from the extensive Norichinaceae family, preferring partial shade in forests and groves. From this family to middle lane There are two species that grow in Russia: oak grove Maryannik and meadow Maryannik.

1. It grows in height from 10 to 50 cm. Moreover, the height of the maryannik directly depends on which plant it is “joined” to.
2. The pointed lanceolate leaves of Ivan da Marya are located opposite each other on an erect stem. Inner side leaves are equipped with short hairs.
3. The two-lipped flowers are yellow, and the upper woolly-toothed stipules (they are not flowers) are colored blue.
4. Flowering lasts from June to September.
5. Ivan-da-Marya intensively produces nectar, being an excellent honey plant.
6. It propagates mainly by seed. The spread of the plant is facilitated by ants, who love to feast on juicy seeds and take them away.

Attention! Cows cannot be grazed in the areas where Ivan da Marya grows, because The plant is poisonous and is rich in glycosides. Milk from cows that have eaten maryannik will be bitter and unpleasant in taste.

Preparation and pharmacological properties

In official medicine, preparations containing the Ivan da Marya flower are not used. However, folk healers use maryannik in their medicinal potions, using recipes that have come down to this day from time immemorial.

For the preparation of medicinal raw materials, all aboveground part Ivan da Marya, including its fruits. During the flowering period, the plant is either pulled out with the root or cut off. Then the medicinal raw materials are dried in the shade or in any room with access fresh air, expanding thin layer on a dry surface, or hanging in bunches. Dried flowers of Ivan da Marya are stored in a dry room with good ventilation for 2 years in cloth bags.

The Ivan da Marya flower is rich in flavonoids and organic acids.

Attention! Marianberry seeds contain the glycoside rhinanthin (aucuban), which is toxic.

The medicinal plant has the following effects:

• sedative (acts like tranquilizers);
• anticonvulsant;
• hypotensive;
• wound healing;
• anti-inflammatory;
• has a positive effect on the cardiovascular and nervous systems.

Ivan-da-Marya: indications for use

IN folk medicine maryannik is widely used to treat scrofula (in the modern interpretation, a type of atopic dermatitis in children). The long-standing use of the plant for the treatment of this disease is evidenced by one of the popular names of the flower - Scrofulus. For this skin lesion, Ivan-da-Marya is used externally - the child is washed in a decoction or lotions are made.

Healers use dry, crushed marianberry grass as a wound-healing and antiseptic agent, preventing putrefactive processes. In the form of an infusion, Ivan-da-Marya is used internally for hypertension and heart disease. Herbal tea provides relief from neuralgia and epilepsy.

However, you should not begin treatment without consulting an experienced herbalist. In case of violation of the dosage and regimen of taking Ivan-da-Marya, the following manifestations are possible:

• discomfort or pain in the stomach;
• nausea, vomiting;
• irritability;
• drowsiness;
• slow heart rate;
• decreased heart rate;
• weakness.

If one or more of the above symptoms appear, you must stop using Ivan da Marya, rinse your stomach and seek medical advice. medical care. It would not be superfluous to recall that Ivan da Marya belongs to poisonous plants, and oral use by pregnant women and children is strictly contraindicated.

Program content:

Introduce children to the flower (name, appearance, places and characteristics of growth).
Teach children to understand the figurative meaning of the legend (from the book “August in Crimea” by L. Zgurovskaya).
Dictionary: Ivan da Marya, honey plant.
Develop imaginative perception, the ability to see the beauty of nature.
Foster interest and respect for nature.

Equipment:

Pictures of a flower.

Ivan da Marya

Progress of the lesson:

There are many legends about the origin of flowers. Today you will hear the legend of a flower with an amazing name - Ivan da Marya.

Reading the legend.

The Legend of Ivan da Marya

“A long time ago, Leshy lived in a dense forest. Bowlegged, with hooves, eared and very curly tousled. That's what people thought. The goblin himself said that he was shaggy because his hairdressers had all sorts of tree thorns through which he was constantly wading through in the forest. Well, this is how Leshy lived. He lived in his own way, grieved in his own way and rejoiced in his own way too. He was not afraid of loneliness, had no friends, did not know what love was, fought with his rivals, drove them out of the forest. It would have gone on like this from now on, but suddenly Leshy fell in love. One day in the spring I saw under a bush a little yellow violet with eyes - Maryushka - and the little man with all his unkempt curls and hooves disappeared. He sat down next to him, stared and sighed, sighed, just like a sick person. It was he who gained courage. The violet stands, blooms, shows off, and doesn’t even look at Leshy. The Leshy was upset, just blurt out: “I’m fascinated by you, life without you is not lifeable, marry me.” Violet looked at Leshy and turned away. The goblin thinks: how to surprise her, and let’s brag: “I can do this, I can do that, do you want me to collect all the stars in a hat?”

Violet Maryushka again looked at the disheveled admirer and said: “Why do I need stars in my hat? Let them live in the sky, let me and my betrothed shine on the forest paths. I love Ivan, I will live with him, not with you.” This is what she said to purple Ivan, who was blooming nearby.

The time has come, two violets, yellow and purple, got married, and lived together as one house, one flower. In that flower, the yellow petals are Maryushka, and the purple petals are Ivanushka. And in the forest there were neither Maryushka nor Ivanushka separately, but there was a single forest flower, Ivan da Marya. And Leshy is still wandering around in the forest, grieving and complaining to everyone.”

Ivan da Marya is a forest flower. What does it mean? This flower grows in the forest.

The flowers of Ivan da Marya produce nectar abundantly and are rightfully considered a good honey plant. Do you know what plants are called honey plants? Listen to this word - “honey plant”, what does it mean? Carries honey.

The Ivan da Marya flower has adapted very interestingly to spreading seeds - ants help it with this. The fact is that the seeds, similar to wheat grains, have a sac with aromatic oils. For ants, these oils are a delicacy, which is why they drag the seeds. And that’s all the flower needs.

This flower is also interesting because it has suckers on its roots that attach to the roots of other plants. This is how the flower is fed with the juice of foreign plants.

This flower is poisonous! It also has healing properties: heals wounds, heals the heart, and skin.

Just think about it, small flower, and how many people need it: seeds for ants, pollen for bees, tinctures from leaves for medicines for people. And it’s nice to just look at a flower and admire it. Children, take care of the beauty, do not pick flowers. Forest flowers do not live when picked in a vase, but immediately wither and die.

If I pick a flower...

If I pick a flower,
If you pick a flower...
If everything: both me and you -
If we pick flowers,
They will be empty
And trees and bushes...
And there will be no beauty.
And there will be no kindness.
If only you and me -
If we pick flowers...
(T. Sobakin)

Questions:

1. Why did the flower get this name?
2. what color is it?
3. Where does Ivan da Marya grow?
4. Why is this flower called “honey plant”?
5. Why do ants love the ego?
6. How is it fed with the juice of other plants?
7. Can Ivan da Marya be called a medicinal plant? Why?
8. Why can’t you pick this flower?

Legends and myths about plants [Legends of the Ancient East, pagan myths, ancient legends, bible stories] Martyanova Lyudmila Mikhailovna

Ivan-da-Marya

Ivan-da-Marya

The widespread and well-known plant Ivan-da-Marya (melampyrum nemorosum) has received its popular name for its contrasting (contrast Ivan-Marya, man-woman) and very attractive coloring: golden-yellow flowers look good against the background of blue-violet covering leaves. The flower tube is red-brown. The lip of the flowers also turns red over time.

From a distance, it seems that Ivan-da-Marya (Oakberry) is blooming both yellow and blue flowers. But if you come closer, you will see that the flowers of this plant are yellow, and above them there are beautiful blue leaves, which seem to cover these yellow flowers. The yellow flowers and blue leaves above them make Ivan-da-Marya a very elegant grass.

But the main hypostasis of the symbol lies in the sacred union of fire and water, earthly and heavenly.

The combination of yellow and blue reflects the Kupala meanings of fire and water, widely used during the holiday. In this capacity, the flower was represented as a link connecting people with the gods and with each other. It is no coincidence that alliances concluded on Kupala were considered inviolable, even if they were made without the knowledge of parents and relatives. The newlyweds, holding hands, jumped over the fire, and then performed a ritual ablution before the act of physical love. This was the ritual of concluding a sacred marriage, and its symbol was a flower, in which yellow (fire) was associated with the groom, and blue (water) with the bride. The same meaning was carried out in the ritual of lowering (rolling) a set fire to a cart wheel into the water, as well as burning a doll dressed in a blue dress in a fire.

Ivan da Marya is one of the most common strong herbs in Russia. It has virtually no effect on a person’s thoughts, so it is used only in infusions. This herb allows the body to achieve harmony between yin and yang energy, helps a person achieve happiness in life, and attracts to him what he lacks. She removes evil spirits by eliminating, with the help of the reserves of the body itself, energy holes into which evil penetrates. Calms nervous system, at constant use This herb makes a person noticeably prettier.

But this herb does not retain its strength for very long. Having collected it near the day of Kupala (when it ripens), you will be able to fully use it for no more than a full lunar month. In dried form it is with everyone lunar month loses about 10% of its healing properties, although chemical composition her remains the same. But even more so, try not to miss the opportunity to wash yourself with a broom from Ivan da Marya on the evening of July 7 (Kupala Day) in order to wash away those essences that, clinging to you, devour beauty and well-being.

People, admiring this flower, composed a beautiful legend. In dry, sunny weather, Ivan da Marya went into the forest to pick mushrooms. But before they had time to reach the forest, the wind blew, clouds rolled in, lightning flashed, and a thunderstorm began. There was nowhere to hide, and brave Ivan shielded the beautiful Marya. As soon as the bad weather subsided, Ivan and Marya returned home, and in the place where he saved the girl, grass rose with beautiful purple leaves, which, like Ivan Marya, were protected by yellow flowers from the weather. This is where the name Ivan-da-Marya comes from.

Another legend tells that a bandy-legged, hoofed, very curly, disheveled Leshy lived in the forest.

He lived in his own way, grieved in his own way and rejoiced in his own way too. He was not afraid of loneliness, had no friends, and did not know what love was. It would have gone on like this from now on, but suddenly Leshy fell in love. One day in the spring I saw under a bush a small-eyed yellow violet - Maryushka - and disappeared completely. The violet stands, blooms, shows off, and doesn’t even look at Leshy. And Leshy, trying to attract attention, let’s boast that he can do everything, knows everything. But the violet does not look at him. Leshy decided to propose to her, saying marry me. And the violet answered: “I love Ivan, I’ll marry him.” She said so for purple Ivan, who was blooming nearby. The time has come, two violets, yellow and purple, got married, and lived together as one house, one flower. In that flower, the yellow petals are Maryushka, and the purple petals are Ivanushka. And neither Maryushka nor Ivanushka individually disappeared in the forest, but there was a single forest flower, Ivan-da-Marya. And Leshy is still wandering around in the forest, grieving and complaining to everyone. Ivana da Marya flowers produce nectar abundantly and are rightfully considered a good honey plant. The Ivan-da-Marya flower has adapted very interestingly to spreading seeds - ants help it with this. The fact is that the seeds, similar to wheat grains, have a sac with aromatic oils. For ants, these oils are a delicacy, which is why they drag the seeds. And that’s all the flower needs. This flower is also interesting because it has suckers on its roots that attach to the roots of other plants. This is how the flower is fed with the juice of foreign plants. This flower is poisonous! It also has healing properties: heals wounds, heals the heart, and skin. Just think, a small flower, and how many people need it: seeds for ants, pollen for bees, tinctures from the leaves for medicine for people. And it’s nice to just look at a flower and admire it.

Other legends associated with Ivan and Marya tell of forbidden love.

According to one version, the brother and sister did not know about their blood relationship and entered into marriage; for violating the custom, they were turned by God into a flower. According to another, the transformation took place with the consent of the lovers, who could not cope with their passion and did not want to part. The harshest version of the legend says that the sister wanted to seduce her brother, and he killed her for this. As a dying wish, the girl asked to plant this flower on the grave.

Ivan da Marya is sometimes called the tricolor violet, and sometimes the Geneva violet, meadow sage and periwinkle. Why? They also have two distinctly different colors (for the violet, the third, white, is not taken into account).

According to another legend, brother Ivan and sister Marya lived in a hut on the shore of a lake.

The lake is quiet, but has a bad reputation. There was a Vodyanoy in this lake.

As night falls, the Vodyanoy begins to disturb the water and lift mud from the bottom. On such moonlit nights, mermaids come out of the water and hide from the Vodyanoy in the trees. And then they are called tree dwellers.

And brother Ivan ordered sister Marya, in case of his absence, not to leave the hut, lest anything bad happen. He told her to sit quietly and not sing songs. Ivan went into the forest to hunt. Marya finished her housework and became bored. She sat by the window and sang a song. Suddenly she hears a thin voice calling her to go outside. Marya looked out the door and gasped. There mermaids dance in circles. They saw Marya and called her over. They put a wreath on her head and recognized her as their queen.

Suddenly the terrible head of Vodyanoy looked out from the bushes and his gnarled hands reached out to Maryushka.

Ivan returned from hunting, but Maryushka was not at home. He looked for her everywhere, but did not find her. Kupala week has arrived.

And Ivan decided to weave himself new bast shoes and go look for his sister.

I found a sticky patch across the lake, peeled it off, wove bast shoes and went to look for Marya.

He walked and walked and saw that there was a naked sticky tree with which he had torn the bast. I went on searching. But wherever he goes he finds this sticky thing. Ivan got angry and decided to cut off the sticky tree he had torn off. He swung an ax, and the sticky man said in a human voice: “Don’t cut me down Ivan, I’m your sister Marya. The king of the water took me as his wife, now I am a tree woman, and in the spring I will be a mermaid again. For me to become Marya again, you need to find wormwood grass and throw it in my face.” As soon as she said this, the bast shoes carried Ivan far into the forest. He found wormwood grass. And Ivan threw the wormwood grass into the sticky, sister Marya came out of the sticky, hugged her brother, and began to cry. They abandoned the house by the lake and went to live far, far away.

And they live inseparably to this day and they are always called together - Ivan and Marya.

IVAN THE TERRIBLE AND HIS SON IVAN Ilya Repin The problem of the hero has always been the most important in Russian historical painting. At the same time, the word “hero” had a double meaning: a hero is a positive image embodying moral values, and a hero, as the main thing actor