#svyatki

In the longest night gathered for the dinner Lug Velesa members were visited by koledar followed by the sounds of bagpipes.  More about this subject find out in our episode on Koledari.

🕯🌟So much magick happening tonight! Where to start? Let’s start in Iceland where they are having HUGE bonfires dedicated to the Elves and Yule Lads. The Elf Bonfires are called Alfabrennur and according to the old myths, it’s one of the few days the hidden people make themselves visible to humans and the Elf King and Queen ride through the countryside visiting the bonfires and enjoying sweet offerings. The bonfires are made from old Christmas trees, as it’s said to be bad luck leaving them up after tonight!🪆Next we have the Russian holiday Svyatki which is observed from January 6th to the 19th. They believe this is a special time for divination and fortune telling. Woman are highly regarded during this holiday and men are not allowed to participate in many of the rituals. One of the rituals/spells is to go inside a dark room with a couple of candles, a page of newspaper and a fire safe plate. You need to remove all of your jewelry and your belt before you continue otherwise it will anger the spirits. After you have removed your “protection” you crumple up the newspaper, put it on the dish and set it on fire. Once the fire is out you hold the plate next to the wall and the pile of newspaper ash should show you something about your future. This is also when they practice mirror magic, which is believed to be the most dangerous because the mirror could show you something you don’t want to see thus destroying your life. Another spell is wax dripping. Take a bowl of cold water and hold a lit candle above it. Speak out what it is you have a question on. When the wax is dry you should be able to decipher the message in the shape of the wax. Svyatki is a time of caroling, dancing and feast after feast! It is also a time where you are “allowed” to practice your old pagan rituals without getting in trouble with the Catholic Church. Do you celebrate Svyatki? Which rituals are your favorite? I hope you are having a peaceful day.🌟🕯 #álfabrennur #svyatki #pagan #folklore #elves #yulelads #divination #fortuneteller #iceland #russia #christmas #tradition #history #thevelvetlotus (at Norwood, Massachusetts) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJw9psmhSCv/?igshid=sv85mkrlnrva

Come one, come all RP characters, join us for Svyatki! Role play characters from every universe and fandom are invited to join the family of @KyvanRus between December 25, 2013 and January 18, 2014 for a Russian holiday celebration! This isn't an SL. We hope it will be the start of a new holiday tradition where characters can step away from their current storylines while their role players take a break from the real life hustle and bustle to just have some fun and enjoy some socializing in the snow (or beside the fire). All we ask is that you stay in character and not feed on the other guests (unless asked to, of course). It doesn't matter if a character interacts with us or has a reason to be in St. Petersburg, Russia, this party is open to all and exists outside the SLs and universes we play in everyday. Did we mention that gifts are exchanged at anytime throughout the Svyatki celebration? So if you haven't finished all your holiday shopping or a reindeer ate your list, you'll have a bit more time to find that special something for those special someones. Feel free to share this invite with any characters you RP with. No RSVP is needed but please take a moment to greet your host so we can add you to our list to make socializing easier for everyone. All RP characters, canon or original, playing in any universe/fandom are Well Come!