When studying the paganism of the ancient Slavs, while elucidating the roots and depths of people's memory throughout the first millennium of our era, academician archaeologist B. A. Rybakov investigated the emergence of religious and mythological ideas. He carefully studied folk amulets, and paganism in urban life, as well as rituals and festivities. Slavic wedding rings are described by him very briefly. Although some space has been given to rings found in graves.
What were the real rings like?
As academician B. A. Rybakov writes, these smallest pieces of jewelry show the idea of the macrocosm, which should protect the microcosm of the girl. Wedding symbols, which are applied to Slavic wedding rings, are three crosses or three suns, or two crosses and a sun in the middle. This technique shows the movement of the heavenly body from dawn to the middle of the day and from noon, its highest point (which the pagans revered), to sunset. These were wedding rings from the Slavicsymbols found in graves. The venerable scientist says nothing more about rings.
This is a photograph of real Slavic rings from the 13th-19th centuries.
Wedding amulets of the ancient Slavs
The most complete set of amulets B. A. Rybakov describes as follows:
- Quietly sitting bird (is it in the nest?).
- Two spoons.
- Sawtooth object (predator jaws).
- Key.
Their meaning is as follows: a bird builds a family nest, spoons intended for a couple express a wish to be full, and if wider, they mean well-being in general. The symbolism of the key is the safety of the family property. The jaw of a predator is an ancient amulet that drives away all evil from a person. Slavic wedding rings with a wedding man are not mentioned by scientists. The term "svadebnik" is missing from his two-volume study. One has to come to the conclusion that this is a mythology created already in our time. She is, of course, beautiful, but in fact, quite far from the truth.
Mythology of the 21st century
Lack of faith - fluctuations from monotheism to polytheism - these days is replaced by the creation of wondrous fairy tales. This does not mean that they should not exist. Let them be, but taking them seriously is the height of naivete. So are Slavic wedding rings. Let them exist.
Jewellers make them exceptionally beautiful, patterned. And if you remember Buddhism, it assumes that each person exists in his own world. Andif he believes in it, then it means he has a place. If you believe in Slavic wedding rings as amulets, then perhaps they will become them. It's like a placebo effect. We drink, as we were told, medicine, but in fact something useless, but it works, and the person feels better for a while.
What do fairy tales say today?
Modern mythmakers have a rich imagination, certain knowledge of the story, which they twist as they want, and knowledge of archetypes according to Jung. Therefore, in their tales it is difficult to distinguish between truth and harmless fiction. For example, they write that patterns were not applied to Slavic wedding rings. The wedding man is a special symbol - a powerful amulet. It was required to preserve love (and in ancient times love marriages, we recall, were rare, they were concluded mainly by calculation), and the interaction of childbirth, and harmony in the marriage union. Here is a photo in front of you - a ring with a wedding man, consisting of open eights.
The number eight resembles the sign of infinity, which, according to the authors, should mean the immutability of ongoing processes. But the absence of change means stagnation and stagnation. Is it good? Shouldn't young people be active, energetic and open to change, actively influencing the surrounding reality? In other words, to promote progress and self-development.
What else can you find in myths?
Some suggest giving Slavic wedding rings to single people raising children in order tosave family energy. Other authors, on the contrary, are categorically against such a gift, since a person will forever remain alone, a person should not unite with loneliness. It's just a question of what you yourself will believe, what kind of world you will create for yourself after such a wedding gift.
This leads to the simplest thought - "yes, fairy tales are everything!". Such rings and a wedding man in themselves do not represent anything significant, but only reveal our subconscious.
Conclusion
Giving beautiful wedding rings with and without symbols can and should be done. But this should not be given great importance. The main thing is pure and kind relations, an internal connection, which in the family is united by a single goal. Then life will flow quite harmoniously.
