Photo: from open sources
Find out the main features, traditions and prohibitions of today
On November 17 in Ukraine, all Orthodox Christians remember Gregory the Wonderworker. Read about what you can and absolutely cannot do, and who to congratulate on their name day.
Traditions of this day
The saint always sought to find the real meaning of life and learned about it only after reading the Gospel. In ancient times, crowded holidays and celebrations were held on Gregory. Adults and children rode sleds and went down the slide, trying to slide further so that next year would be successful.
Our ancestors called this day “Gregory the Winter-Pointer” in honor of St. Gregory the Wonderworker. The peasants went to wells or reservoirs and listened to the water: if the water flowed quietly, it meant that the winter would be warm.
Important signs of this day
- Good weather today predicts a mild winter, and vice versa.
- Cloudy weather on Gregory means that there will also be few sunny days in winter.
- Dark ice on the river portends a good harvest.
- If you play in the snow on this day, it is a sign that you will be healthy throughout the next year.
- What the weather is like today, it will be like this in winter.
- Frost today portends a cold winter.
What not to do on this day
On this day it was forbidden to work hard and go on a long journey – they believed that this would only bring failure. You also couldn’t brag, otherwise all your achievements would be lost. You were not allowed to try on someone else’s wedding ring because you could get yourself into trouble.
Who’s angel day today?
Grigory, Lazar, Mikhail, Nikon, Sergey, Andrey.
