Long before modern medicine and science reached rural corners of Russia, people relied on deeply rooted folk customs to explain the unexplainable. Some of these age-old rituals may seem shocking, surreal, or even macabre today—but they were once taken seriously as essential parts of village life. Here are six of the strangest ancient rituals that were once practiced in Old Russia.
1. Salting and “Re-Baking” Infants
Peasant children in a hut during winter E. A. Pokrovsky, 1884.
Image: Public Domain.
In old Russian villages, infant mortality was tragically high. Without antibiotics or modern healthcare, desperate parents resorted to folk rituals to protect their babies.
If a child was born prematurely or seemed sickly, they would cover the baby in dough, place them on a bread peel, and slide them into a preheated oven—briefly. This bizarre ritual, called “perepekanie” (literally “re-baking”), was believed to help the child “finish cooking,” just like in the womb. The practice lasted in some regions well into the 20th century and was accompanied by prayers, songs, and ceremonial dialogue between parents and the midwife.
Later, the scraped dough was thrown to a dog to pass on the illness. Another version, called “salting”, involved rubbing the child with salt and soot or stuffing salt into their ears to ward off evil. Similar customs existed in Turkey and Central Asia.
2. Witch-Hunting Ritual
The Sorcerer’s Visit to a Peasant Wedding, painting by Vasily Maksimov, 1875.
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
In Europe, the Inquisition hunted witches. In Russia, villagers handled it themselves. If they suspected a sorcerer, a brave man would mount a horse backward, ride around the village on March 25, and look at chimneys.
It was believed that witches would fly out of chimneys headfirst on that day, but only those riding backward could spot them. Looking back during the ride could result in death or madness, so the task was later entrusted to experienced folk healers—paid handsomely by the village.
3. Feeding the Water Spirit
“The Water Spirit (Vodyanoy).” Illustration by Ivan Bilibin, 1934.
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
Fishermen believed in appeasing the vodianoy—a water spirit who could cause drowning, break equipment, or even kill bees. On April 1 (Old Style), the spirit was said to awaken—hungry and angry.
To calm him, villagers bought the worst horse from local gypsies, fattened it, tied its legs, braided its mane with red ribbons, and smeared its head with honey and salt. At midnight, the horse was thrown into a river or lake as a gift. The head fisherman would pour oil into the water, saying: “Here’s a gift for your housewarming. Protect our family.”
Afterward, men returned home to celebrate the “deal” with heavy drinking.
4. Fighting the Cow Death
“Plowing Ritual.” Painting by Grigory Myasoedov, 1911.
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
When livestock died, peasants blamed not disease, but a supernatural hag called Cow Death—a raked-handed spirit who needed to be given a ride to enter a village, where she’d slaughter all the cattle.
To stop her, women would gather at night—barefoot, wearing only white shirts, hair loose—and plow a circle around the village using a real plow pulled by nude or pregnant women. A widow guided it from behind.
The women made noise with pans and whips. They carried icons, incense, straw bundles, animal skulls, or live roosters. Any animal or traveler they encountered could be attacked, believed to be Cow Death in disguise.
At the end, they burned manure in a pit and led sick cows through the smoke to “heal” them. After the ritual, Cow Death allegedly wandered the village looking frail and exhausted, suffering in misery before finally fleeing into the steppes.
5. Divination by Butt-Petting
Yuletide Divinations. Painting by Konstantin Makovsky, 1905.
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
During the Yuletide season, girls performed love rituals to foresee their future husbands. One bizarre method involved riding a horse backward with a sack on its head. If the horse stopped by a house, the girl would soon marry someone from there.
Another method involved entering a bathhouse or grain shed and sticking their bare backside through a window or door, saying: “My destined one, come and touch me!”
If the spirit touched her with a bare hand, it meant she’d marry a poor man. A hairy touch predicted a wealthy husband. If no one touched her — no marriage awaited. But if she was struck with a whip, it foretold a violent marriage with an abusive spouse.
Sometimes, boys would hide inside to grope the girls. One recorded incident ended in tragedy: a girl in Penza died of fright, thinking she’d been grabbed by a demon.
6. Funerals for Flies
Image: Juan Pablo Mascanfroni / Unsplash
In regions like Vladimir and Smolensk, peasants held mock funerals for insects—from September 1 to October 1. They buried flies, cockroaches, fleas, and mosquitoes in coffins carved from turnips or boxes, complete with miniature crosses.
The ritual included prayers, songs, pan-banging, and funeral feasts with pies, mead, and beer.
Why?
- To symbolically kill off pests for the winter (it was seasonal, after all).
- Some believed dead relatives’ souls returned as insects—so this was a way to honor them.
- It was fun. Mourning bugs like people helped villagers laugh in the face of mortality.
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