A special national holiday on May 18 is Arina Kapustnitsa: history, traditions, omens
- Новости
- Local news
- A special national holiday on May 18 is Arina Kapustnitsa: history, traditions, omens
Every year on May 18, Orthodox believers honor the memory of the Great Martyr Irene of Macedon, one of the early Christian saints. In the national calendar, the date is known as Arina Kapustnitsa. In 2026, the holiday falls on a Monday. Read about its history, traditions, signs and strict prohibitions in the Izvestia article.
What is the church holiday on May 18?
Irina lived in the late I – early II century in the region of Migdonia in Macedonia and was the daughter of the local pagan ruler Licinius. Before her baptism, her name was Penelope. The father sought to protect the heiress from the influence of others and built a separate palace for her. The girl grew up among her peers and servants, and her mentor Apelian, who was a secret Christian, was in charge of her education.
The teacher taught Penelope not only science, but also taught her about Jesus, Christian virtues and the meaning of faith. When the heiress grew up, her parents began to choose a groom for her to make a successful match, but she did not want to tie the knot.
According to church tradition, during this period the girl had a sign. Three birds flew into the window of her chambers one after another —a dove with an olive branch, an eagle with a wreath, and a raven with a snake. Apelian explained the meaning of the vision to Penelope. The dove indicated the meekness, purity, and grace of baptism, the eagle with the wreath indicated spiritual height and the reward for victory, and the raven with the snake indicated future trials, persecutions, and tribulations.
After that, Penelope finally refused to marry. According to legend, she was baptized by the Apostle Timothy, a disciple of the Apostle Paul. During the sacrament, the ruler's daughter was named Irina and openly chose the faith, which was considered alien and dangerous in a pagan environment.
Irina began to convince her parents to convert to Christianity. Her mother reacted calmly to her choice, but Licinius demanded that her daughter worship the pagan gods. When she refused, her angry father ordered her to be tied up and thrown under the hooves of horses. However, the animals did not touch the saint. One horse broke loose from its leash and severely wounded the ruler himself. Through the prayer of the girl, the father was healed, after which he believed in Christ, along with his wife and many witnesses, who, according to legend, turned out to be about 3 thousand.
Licinius left the administration of the region and settled in his daughter's palace, intending to devote himself to the Christian life. Irina continued to preach. She lived in Apelian's house, prayed, read sacred books, and received those who wanted to hear about the faith.
The new ruler, Zedekiah, demanded to stop preaching and sacrifice to the pagan gods, but Irene refused. As punishment, she was thrown into a ditch with snakes and other reptiles. For ten days, the girl remained unharmed — she was guarded by an angel, who also brought her food.
Zedekiah considered the incident witchcraft and ordered Irina to be subjected to new tortures, but the tools broke each time. When one of the saws did wound the martyr, a storm began, lightning flashed, thunder struck, and heavy rain fell. The eyewitnesses were so impressed that many converted to the Christian faith. Zedekiah himself did not retreat, but the people, shocked by the sufferings of Irene, rebelled against him and expelled the ruler.
Later, the saint was tortured by other rulers, but each time, according to legend, she remained alive and continued to preach. The church tradition connects healing, miracles and conversion of thousands of pagans to Christ with her name.
Ephesus became the last place of her earthly journey. There, according to legend, the Lord revealed to the saint the approach of death. Irina, along with Apelian and other Christians, went to a mountain cave outside the city, went inside and ordered the entrance to be closed with a large stone. When the companions returned a few days later and opened the shelter, the body of the martyr was not found in it.
Traditions of the national holiday Arina Kapustnitsa on May 18
In Russia, the name Irina was transformed into the more familiar Arina. By May 18, the ground was already warming up enough, and the housewives were actively planting cabbage seedlings in the beds. In some regions, cucumbers were planted with her.
A significant part of the future table depended on how the young plants took root — the cabbage was eaten fresh, fermented, stewed, put in cabbage soup, used as a filling for pies. She helped to survive the winter, make the diet nutritious and varied, so they talked about her as a real wet nurse. Hence the proverbs arose: "A peasant will not be satisfied without bread, cabbage soup does not live without cabbage soup", "Wisdom in cabbage soup, strength in cabbage", "Planting cabbage is not an open-mouthed walk".
Women were assigned to plant cabbages. It was believed that a "man's hand" could damage crops. Before work, the housewives wore several layers of old clothes to look like a future cabbage. The denser and "layered" they looked, the stronger, according to legend, the cabbage should have grown.
The day before or early in the morning on May 18, peasants performed protective rituals for the garden. A large boulder was placed in the garden and covered with a white handkerchief. The stone was supposed to "convey" strength to the heads, and the white cloth was supposed to convey pure color and density. In some regions, an old broom was stuck into the ground or wards against the evil eye and pests were placed among the seedlings. And the girls were dancing around the beds, as if they were "curling the cabbage" so that it was denser.
The housewives always cooked a dish of this vegetable for Arina Cabbage. Leftovers of sauerkraut for cabbage soup were used. It was believed that every family member should try this treat so that there would be health, prosperity and harmony in the house.
Cabbage was used not only in food, but also in folk medicine. Its leaves were applied to sore joints, bruises, cabbage juice was used for stomach pains.
On the night of May 18, special attention was paid to dreams, unusual words or phrases from them were tried not to forget — the ancestors believed that in a difficult situation they could become a clue. Therefore, in the morning they always retold the vision to their loved ones.
What not to do on Arina Kapustnitsa holiday
In Russia, Arina Cabbage was associated with a number of prohibitions, the violation of which could lead to misfortune and illness. The main one was related to cleanliness in the kitchen. Our ancestors believed that dirty dishes should not be left in the house at night. Leftovers and clutter could attract evil spirits, and with it — quarrels, poverty and discord. Therefore, in the evening, the housewives tried to wash all the cutlery and clean the table.
What else you can't do on May 18:
- girls go to visit widows and unmarried adult relatives — such a meeting will "attract" loneliness.;
- leaving the house after sunset unnecessarily leads to a dangerous encounter or misfortune.;
- stepping over stumps and fallen trees near the house — the ancestors considered them an obstacle to the dark forces, stepping over such a border, you can "ferry" evil spirits with you.;
- gossiping and slandering — deception can lead to toothache and trouble;
- complaining about fate — complaints can become "fixed" in a person's life for a long time.
Folk signs for May 18
On Arina Kapustnitsa, the peasants carefully observed nature and the behavior of birds in order to determine by signs what the summer would be like, whether it would rain and whether they could count on a good harvest.
- inclement weather leads to a rich harvest of bread;
- Clouds are moving from south to north — rain is coming soon;
- Geese and ducks wash themselves in water — for warming;
- drizzle all day — bad weather will linger for a long time;
- The birds have quieted down — the weather will soon turn bad;
- after watering, the water quickly went into the ground — the summer will be dry.
- puddles remain in the beds after watering — summer promises to be wet.;
- lightning on Arina Cabbage — for a good cabbage harvest.
Earlier, Izvestia reported on the signs and strict prohibitions of the special holiday of Mavra Rassadnitsa.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
