A special Russian holiday on June 6 is Rosehip Day: history and traditions, folk signs

On June 6, Orthodox believers annually honor the memory of St. Symeon Stylites, who lived in the fourth and fifth centuries and became famous for spending 37 years on the pillar in fasting and prayer, becoming the founder of the asceticism of stylites. In the national calendar, the holiday is known as Rosehip Day. It is believed that it is at this time that the rosehip, a beloved and revered plant in Russia, begins to bloom. Read about the history, traditions of the holiday and the folk signs associated with it in the Izvestia material.

The history of the feast and the life of Simeon Stylites

Simeon Stylites was born at the end of the 4th century in the village of Sisan (now Kozan, Adana province, Turkey). At the age of 18, he took monastic vows. The monk began to observe the strictest fasting, abstinence, pray strenuously and exhaust his body. The other monks were perplexed by him and asked the abbot of the monastery to force Simeon to leave the monastery. For some time the monk lived at the bottom of a waterless well, but after that he was returned to the monastery.

However, Simeon did not stay long in the monastery, he went into a stone cave, taking only bread and water with him. The monk blocked the entrance to the cave with stones, and after the first four weeks of Great Lent, Bishop Vass came to his cave, scattered the stones at the entrance and found that Simeon was lying on the ground as if dead, but the bread and water remained untouched, he did not even touch them. Vass washed his mouth with a sponge, and then he came to himself a little, after which the bishop gave the monk communion, and he took a light meal.

Later, Simeon chose the form of asceticism that glorified his feat of faith. For the sake of solitude, he climbed onto a small stone platform at the top of the pillar (tower) and spent all his days on it in prayer and preaching. Initially, his pillar was no higher than four meters, but later the monk increased it to 45 meters and erected a double fence around it so that pilgrims could not get too close to it. Simeon stood on the pillar for most of his long life.

Among the believers who came to him for a blessing were the most influential people of their time. Emperor Theodosius II the Younger greatly respected St. Simeon and followed his advice. The new Byzantine emperor Marcian visited Simeon secretly, dressed as a commoner. After his death, Simeon was buried near his pillar, and the liturgy for him was celebrated by Patriarch Martyrius of Antioch. Subsequently, a monastery was built on the site of the pillar of Simeon.

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In 2025, the holiday is celebrated on June 8th and 9th, respectively.

Traditions of Shipovnikov Day, celebrated on June 6

In the national calendar, the holiday was called Rosehip Day. According to legend, it is with the flowering of the rose hips that the real summer begins. "The rosehip blooms — the blush of the year leads," they used to say in the old days. Rosehip blossoms were also associated with the beginning of a new cycle in nature and all kinds of rituals were performed related to strengthening the family and the health of children.

The rosehip bushes themselves were called a Free-standing tree in Russia. The plant has been attributed magical properties since ancient times. A beautiful folk legend is associated with the flowering of the rosehip, which took place in the Kuban.

One day, a Cossack chieftain fell in love with a girl and wanted to marry her, but she loved someone else, so she rejected him. The Cossack woman's parents were in favor of marrying the chieftain and kept her locked up until the wedding, but she broke out of the house and ran away to the forest, where she committed suicide out of desperation. The girl's lover was then in distant lands and did not know anything.

The death of the girl became a grief for the chieftain, her parents and her lover. In the place where she was gone, a wild rose rose bush grew, with incredibly beautiful flowers. Walking nearby, the chieftain decided to pick some roses to take them to the grave of the Cossack woman. However, as soon as he touched it, thorns appeared on the branches and injured the Cossack. So the chieftain realized that he had not been forgiven even after his death.

What can and cannot be done on Rosehip Day

In the old days, on Rosehip Day, it was customary to decorate houses with plants, and birch trees with wreaths. In addition, the feast of the Free Tree was associated with the beginning of summer or green Yuletide.
It was believed that if you wash your face with dew from rose hips, you can preserve your youth and beauty for a long time.

Girls, dreaming of becoming irresistible, came to the rosehip bushes at dawn, asking him in a whisper to share their beauty. Men considered this day a great day for fishing.

Rosehip flowers were harvested and dried, knowing about the healing power of the plant. But on Rosehip Day, only herbalists and healers were allowed to do this. The petals of the plant were used in the treatment of wounds, a decoction with honey was used to purify the blood, and an infusion was used to treat colds.

The doctor told about the benefits of rose hips for cancer prevention

On Rosehip Day, it was strictly forbidden to offend this plant. It was believed that this would lead to a breakup with a loved one. Also, on this day, you can not be sad and cry, because this condition can last for a long time, until autumn. It was impossible to quarrel with loved ones. It was also not recommended to wash for a long time, because with water you can wash off luck.

Folk signs for June 6

According to the signs of the day, the upcoming weather was judged. According to observations, if it rains on Rosehip Day, it leads to a good harvest of mushrooms. If the rose hips bloomed on a holiday, it meant that there would be no frost or cold weather until autumn.

Earlier, Izvestia told about the traditions and signs of the national holiday Basilisk Day, which was celebrated in early June.