Why did everyone in Russia dream of finding a fern flower?
Ivan Kupala Day (July 7) is one of the main folk summer holidays. It’s associated with many beautiful rituals involving fire, water and flowers: jumping over a fire, bathing in water and morning dew, weaving, giving and sending flower wreaths down the river. And one of the key legends of the holiday is the search for… a fern flower!
An ordinary fern does not bloom and reproduces by spores, but the "magic" one blossoms in scarlet. "Look, a small flower bud turns red and, as if alive, moves. Indeed, wonderful! Moves and becomes bigger and bigger and turns red, like a hot coal. A star flared up, something quietly crackled and the flower unfolded before his eyes like a flame, illuminating others around it,” wrote Nikolai Gogol in ‘Evenings on the Eve of Ivan Kupala’.
It’s difficult to find – it grows in the very thick of the forest. Some beliefs indicate that it is advisable to look for it naked. And, if you are lucky enough to find it, then cut your palm until it bleeds, hide the flower under your skin and run without looking back. All the forest demons will chase and frighten the lucky one.
But, if you pass all the tests, the fern flower will reveal the places where treasures are buried to its owner and will also make them “knowledgeable”, that is, someone who will be in touch with evil spirits and receive various bonuses from them. However, the flower brought nothing but grief to Petro, the hero in ‘Evenings on the Eve of Ivan Kupala’.
