The legend of the Chinese horoscope is the rooster. Kerebelyak Highlands - Agytan-Kuryk (Cock Mountain)

When Strefil trembles

At the second hour after midnight,

Then all the roosters throughout the earth will crow,

At that time, the whole earth will be illuminated.

("The Pigeon Book")

IN folk beliefs Slavs Rooster was a bird of things and was endowed with the ability to resist evil spirits. Even in pagan times, the Rooster was considered the embodiment of fire. In the old days, the Slavs dedicated their highest deity, Svyatovid, a white rooster. That's why Western Slavs still believe that a white rooster brings happiness to the house.

At Eastern Slavs it is also not customary to keep a black rooster: in this case, the spouses often quarrel. The southern Slavs, on the contrary, prefer to have black roosters on the farm. According to them, "the white rooster is the black master." In general, people believe that without a rooster there will be no livestock, a cow's milk will become tasteless. It was believed that the rooster was lively and pugnacious. If the family was divided, then both families got new roosters.

The rooster was revered as a symbol of fertility. He was one of the main "participants" of the wedding ceremony. A ritual dish was prepared from a rooster to celebrate the end of the harvest. After harvesting the grain, the Serbs slaughtered the rooster on the threshing floor, its blood was sprinkled on the grain, which was first thrown into the ground during sowing.

The rooster was traditionally relied upon by the Slavs as a symbol of life. "For the roosters to sing," the distant ancestors said, and they carried the bed of the deceased to the chicken coop for three days to sing to the roosters. The power of life must supplant death.

Red rooster in popular imagination associated with fire. Old people claim that when a fire starts from lightning, a fiery rooster descends from the sky right on the roof. The phrase "put a red rooster" means to set something on fire. They believed that if a household dies

go out, there will be a fire. If a rooster cries and beats at the window, then by this he, again, predicts a fire.

In Slavic beliefs, the cry of a rooster has the ability to drive away evil spirits. "The rooster sings - it means that the time has come for the evil spirits of the dark!" - said the people, firmly believing that from the evening until the "first roosters" it is supposed to roam the land of any undead. "The rooster sings - they call in heaven for matins!" - the pious elders would say, confident in the correctness of the legend: they say, as soon as the roosters stop singing, the whole world will end ... However, the singing of hens (hen crow) is considered the most unkind omen. It happens that the hen sings like a rooster! - this proverb is applied to people who do not take up their own business, and even boast of dubious success in advance.

All Slavs know the belief about the unschooled cock singing. Among the southern Slavs, such roosters are called "krivtsi", "mother". They sing when someone is born or died, they predict death to the hearer, they lure them into the street to do evil. In order to protect themselves from them, having heard a rooster crow after midnight, it was supposed to throw burning coal out of the house or shoot out of the window. Of particular mythological significance is the cry of a rooster at dawn and at noon. It is widely believed that roosters singing at this time predict death or a change in the weather.

When a rooster sings at the wrong time at night, it means that he sees a nekoshny (that is, a devil or brownie) and drives him away. Hence the belief: in order not to be crushed by evil spirits, you need to turn on the other side when the rooster cries. Holy is the spirit on earth, the devil through the earth. This is a talisman against evil spirits. That's what they say when the rooster crows. When moving to a new house, a cat and a rooster were allowed to spend the night in advance. This was done to expel evil spirits.

Answer - He was not born, he was not baptized, but everyone is surprised that the devils are afraid of him - a rooster. The ancient Slavs considered the rooster a reliable amulet against the devil and any evil spirits, so they tried to make the rooster brighter and louder in the yard. The loss of a rooster was considered a misfortune.

There was a belief that a rooster could not be kept on the farm for a long time. Every year on the day of Elijah the Prophet, the Serbs slaughter an old rooster on the doorstep and start a new one. According to their ideas, an old rooster can bring death to the owner or turn into a demonic creature. In the old days, it was said that a seven-year-old rooster would lay a small egg and rake it into the dung. From this egg a serpent or other diabolical creature will hatch, taking the form of a fire, a spark, a cat, a little man, a chicken. This is an impure being. For three years it fulfills all the wishes of the owner, but then takes his soul. This unclean one feeds on milk and scrambled eggs without salt.

One old legend also speaks of the connection between the rooster and the snake:

Once upon a time, in the Smolensk region, there was a huge dead snake. The surrounding Residents tried to cover him with earth, but could not do anything: the earth was thrown from his body. On the advice of the sorcerer, small children began to carry the earth on wagons, into which roosters and chickens were harnessed. The earth thrown from these wagons itself grew on a snake. So a mound was poured over the serpent.

Popular rooster and Christmas divination. Whose feed a rooster and a chicken will peck in advance, that one will be married. If the rooster looks in the mirror, then the Bridegroom will be a dandy.

The cock's friend - the chicken - also did not stay away from ancient beliefs and rituals, fairy tales and sayings, signs, stories and riddles.

Do not sing like a rooster to a hen (and sing, so on your own head) - i.e. will sing when her head is cut off. According to legend, a hen that crowed a rooster lays an egg from which a basilisk hatches (that is, a dragon, a snake).

Chickens (at a chicken) are counted in the fall. (According to mythological ideas, this is the care of the brownie, who considers poultry according to the availability of heads, and for each absent one he strictly asks the owner and hostess.)

And with Baba Yaga, the chicken, in every way, has an indispensable mythological connection. Everyone knows the hut on chicken legs. Pig wrapped in straw. In a fairy tale, this is the House of Baba Yaga. He is a lonely grave (in the forest, damn it

gi); coffin, domina, where the skeleton lives (lies in a fairy tale) - bone leg. And chicken legs are legs under the coffin so that it stays longer in the grave.

Hut, hut on chicken legs, turn your back to the forest, your front to me! The chicken and the house on chicken legs are also correlated with Baba Yaga, who personifies the first ancestor or Death itself.

There was once a pagan holiday Doda in Rus' - a commemoration of all the dead, and especially parents. The chicken was a memorial sacrifice. Later, in the Christian era, it arose as a successor to the holiday of Santa, a chicken holiday, a chicken name day - Kuzminki, celebrated on November 1 / November 14 on the day of the holy unmercenaries Cosmas and Domian. On the day of the chicken name day, they joked: they say, on this day, "the rooster kicks with the chicken, and the chicken roosters." The meaning of the holiday of the Father has been preserved. The chicken remained a memorial sacrifice, chicken soup is an obligatory memorial dish. This holiday was also called rooster, kochety. The youth organized merry festivities, the guys dressed up in bright hats with the likeness of a cock's comb.

In most cultures (with the exception of Scandinavian and Celtic symbolism), the rooster is an attribute of the solar gods, embodying the male principle (Yang), the Bird of Glory, symbolizing superiority, courage and vigilance.

In European antiquity, in general, the functions of the gods to whom the rooster is dedicated are much wider. The rooster not only announces the beginning of the day - French name rooster "chante-clair" literally means "singing dawn", but is also the conductor of the Sun in both its annual and daily cycles. As befits any ancient, well-developed image, the image of a rooster in the mythology of different peoples is dual. On the one hand, this is a solar animal, with its crowing announcing the arrival of dawn and scaring away the demons of the night, on the other hand (primarily black roosters) - a magical and sacrificial animal for underground forces. However, positive, bright symbolism prevails.

As herald of the dawn, he is dedicated to Apollo, Mithra, Ahuramazda, Amaterasu and other solar gods. The militancy of the rooster makes it the personification of the fighting spirit in many cultures, and in this capacity it is associated with the gods of war, Ares, Mars, etc. Arab, Turkic sources invariably endow the ideal commander with the courage of a rooster. In heraldry, the rooster also symbolizes military courage, and as such it is depicted on the coat of arms of Gaul (France).

The rooster is vigilant not to miss the time of dawn, and thanks to this property it becomes an attribute of Athena, Mercury and Hermes. Ares, the Greek god of war, coming to a secret meeting with Aphrodite, put his servant Alectryon on guard to wake the lovers before morning. One day, Alectrion overslept, and the angry Ares turned him into a rooster, rightly believing that in this guise a negligent servant would perform his duties much better. Later, the image of a rooster began to be used as a weather vane, turning in the direction from which the forces of evil threaten.

The "soul-bird" mythologeme, including the concept of birds as guides or bearers of souls in world of the dead, widespread in traditional cultures. Bound and with underworld, V Ancient Greece the rooster as an image of healing death-rebirth was dedicated to the god of healing Asclepius. In this sense, the opposition of roosters by color turns out to be functionally significant: if a white or red rooster is associated with the sun, light and goodness, then a black rooster is associated with water, underworld and symbolizes death, God's judgment, evil.

Sign of the eastern horoscope Rooster

Among the Celts and Scandinavians, the rooster was originally a chthonic image, an attribute of the underground gods, and its crowing resurrects the heroes of Valhalla for the last decisive battle.

Associated with life and death, the rooster symbolizes fertility, primarily in its productive aspect. The rooster is one of the key symbols of sexual potency, and in this capacity the ancient Greeks dedicated it to Priapus. It is believed that the cock's comb protects against nightmares, the eating of cock's testicles eroticizes women and predisposes them to the birth of boys, that the rooster, dispersing clots of darkness near the woman in labor, facilitates the release of the fetus.

Thanks to the fiery red crest and feathers shimmering in the light, in many cultures it is a symbol not only of the Sun, but also of fire and the Sun - the expression "red rooster" in almost all languages ​​means flame, fire. It is believed that a red rooster protects from fire, and a white rooster from spirits.

In Christianity, the rooster welcomes the rising of the Sun-Christ, who puts to flight the forces of darkness and evil. In combination with the passions of Christ, the rooster means resurrection; associated with the apostle Peter, means human weakness and repentance.

In the Middle Ages, a negative aspect arose in the West symbolic meaning rooster as the embodiment of lust and pugnacity. IN Chinese mythology a three-legged rooster with golden feathers, sitting on a high Fyu-san World Tree in the Tanggu Valley, is considered a symbol of Yang, the emblem of the Sun, light and spiritual rebirth. Greeting the sun, he shouts three times to the whole Celestial Empire: the first time, when the sun takes a morning bath in the waters of the ocean; the second time - when the luminary reaches the zenith, and the third time - at sunset. A golden rooster on a peach tree from Mount Taodushan is the first to respond to his cry, and then all the other roosters of the earth pick up their loud song. In Indian myths, the "rooster king" acts as an analogue of the golden ancestor flying, controlling the chorus of earthly roosters from the top of the magical Jambu tree growing on the middle mainland Jambudvipa.

In Europe, the rooster symbolizes such commendable qualities as vigilance, courage, courage and reliability, and in China, nobility and generosity are added to them. An old Chinese manuscript says: “A rooster has five virtues. He wears a comb on his head, which symbolizes learning. Wears spurs on his feet - military prowess. When the enemy is in front of him, he is not afraid, but attacks - courage. Seeing food, calls the rest (hens) - generosity. Carries a night guard, not missing the hour (dawn) - faith.

In China, there are several customs and signs based on puns, and some of them are related to the rooster. For example, in Chinese the words "cock" (kun-chi) and "crowing" (min) sound the same as "honor and glory" (kun-ming). And yet, the words "cock's comb" (kuan) and "official" are also homonyms, so it is customary for officials to give a rooster with a huge comb. In general, many symbols, amulets, and customs are associated with the rooster.

As in Europe, in China the rooster was used in funeral rites, providing protection from evil spirits and accompanying the soul of the deceased to the realm of death.

The rooster symbolizes such meritorious qualities as courage and generosity.

Roosters and chickens have occupied important place and in Japanese culture. In the excavations of the Yayoi period, in addition to wooden ones, clay figurines of birds are also found, and ritual ceramic ware in the form of a bird was used in the communal rites of the Late Yayoi (2-3 centuries AD); these figurines and vessels depict roosters (chickens of a primitive small breed of jidori were brought to Japan during the Yayoi period). Thus, it was at this time that cults of spirit birds began to take shape in Japan. Researchers also believe that already in the Yayoi period, the rooster played an important role in the rites of succession to the power of the leader (matsuri). It was placed in front of a wooden house, where the souls of ancestors were called. In the next historical era - the Kofun period (6th - 7th centuries), the cults of birds, in particular the rooster, continued to develop, but with an increase in funeral themes. At the same time, clay roosters still symbolically performed their function of calling the Sun and reviving life. According to myths, roosters were used to extract (i.e., revive) the sun goddess Amaterasu from the cave.

At this time, roosters are called "long-singing birds of the Eternal Tokoyo Land" - apparently, these roosters belonged to a special breed of shokoku imported from China in the 6th century. (the country of Tokoe is understood both as a world of death and as an ideal world located somewhere beyond the ocean, i.e., a symbolic connection between the two worlds is carried out in the sky with the help of birds). Shokoku roosters are distinguished by a continuous long cry (up to 1 hour) every day at exactly the same time, and they were used as a natural clock. In the Heian era (VI11-XII centuries), there was a special position of a man-rooster (keijin, tori no tsukasa) at the court - his duties included taking care of the rooster, which announced the time with its cry.

Shokoku roosters were kept as sacred birds at Shinto shrines, and were also used in the annual (3rd day of the 3rd month) cockfight at the Heian court. The practice of cockfighting, popular since ancient times in India, Iran, China and South-East Asia, at the beginning of the 8th century. was brought to Japan from China. Very soon they became a favorite pastime of the Japanese aristocracy. During the Kamakura era (1185-1333), cockfights were held annually in March. During the fights, stakes were made, and during the Edo period (1600-1868) a special large fighting cock (shamo) was bred. Cockfights were officially banned in 1873 and are still sometimes held in outlying provinces.

In Buddhism, the rooster is a symbol of lust, standing in the center of the inexorable wheel of Samsara in the company of a pig and a snake. In the same capacity, it is present in the Tibetan mandala.

Legends about the rooster ... He will be born twice, he will never be baptized, but the devil is afraid of him. Who is this? That's right, the Cockerel is a golden comb! Chickens began to breed about 4 thousand years ago, much later than other farm animals and birds. This is the great merit of the ancient Persians. It was in Persia that the cult of the rooster began to emerge. The rooster, along with the dog, was very revered in those days: after all, one guarded the house and the flock, the second was and is the messenger of the morning, light and sun. The rooster has left its mark on many areas of the spiritual, cultural and material life of our society. In this regard, only Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, Lomonosov can be compared with him in terms of the breadth of interests, influence on the development of sciences and society. It is, of course, blasphemous to compare some rooster with great thinkers, but nothing can be done - you will not go against the truth. It turned out that the role of the rooster in religion, literature, tales, legends, military affairs and even meteorology is so great that none of them could fully develop without having as folklore character rooster. No other domestic animal can compare with it in this, although they all have invested a lot of work in the development of human society. Definitely: the rooster is a unique bird. Since ancient times, the rooster, like the sun, has been counting time. His cry among all peoples was an important temporal reference - “the first roosters”, “second, third roosters”, “to ... roosters”. At all times, the rooster was a kind of "alarm clock". With his cry, he called people to work, because humanity at all times lived according to the "sun clock", and not mechanical ones - they got up with the sunrise, and went to bed with its sunset. The rooster raised the peoples of all countries of the world and civilizations to great labor feats. The invasion of the Tatar-Mongols in Rus' also began with the crow of a rooster. The commander of Genghis Khan, Sabudai Bogatur, issued an order to the army: “In the morning, after the first cock crow, build up on a plain among the hills. I will move on the Uruses ”(V.G. Yan“ Batu ”). Sabudai on campaigns always carried a rooster with him, which was monitored by a special caretaker, and checked his internal biological clock with his cry. Even A.V. Suvorov used a rooster as an alarm clock. According to contemporaries, the commander often took a rooster with him on a campaign. The first crowing of the cock raised the army to go on a campaign early in the morning. Night is the time of passions, the witches' coven and the action of evil spirits. It is the third cry of the rooster that is the signal for the end of this disgrace. With his cry, he dispersed all this evil spirits, and announced the beginning of the day, and with it the victory of good over evil (N.V. Gogol "Viy", M.A. Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita"). Most religious traditions- from fire-worshippers to modern religions - the cock drives away darkness and evil spirits with its cry. The rooster, among other things, is considered the messenger of the sun. In most cultures, he is associated with the highest solar deities. IN Ancient Egypt these birds were kept in temples dedicated to the Sun, ranking them among divine beings. Among the ancient Jews, the rooster was a symbol of the "third watch of the night" (from midnight to dawn). In China, the rooster is revered and respected. In the old days, the Chinese would often stick or paint a picture of a rooster on the door of their house during New Year's Eve celebrations. lunar calendar. This tradition has been preserved in our time only in the rural areas of Shaanxi Province, in northwestern China. In ancient times, the Chinese considered the rooster a symbol of the sun. Thus, the image of a rooster on the door personified the coming of the sun into the house. This expressed the expectation of the arrival of spring. It was also believed that the rooster could protect against the negative effects of evil spirits. It was believed that there is a direct connection between the sun and the rooster, because he is the first to announce the dawn and the beginning of a new day. And since in Chinese New Year's Eve sounds like "yuandan" (the first dawn of the year), it is natural that only the Heavenly Rooster knows when the first sun of the New Year will rise. "Golden Rooster" - national award Chinese People's Republic for achievements in cinema. It is noteworthy that the film award was established in 1981 (the year of the Rooster). The rooster left its mark on the Christian religion with its crow - "the rooster will not have time to crow for the last time, as Peter will deny Christ three times." Apparently, this is due to the fact that it was the rooster that became the symbol of the Apostle Peter, and then the Catholic Church. Starting from the 9th century, according to the decree of the Pope, the spire of each church temple was to be crowned with the image of this bird - the emblem of the Apostle Peter. According to another version, the rooster on the spire of the church served as a reminder that "God's church watches over the souls of believers." In the Christian religion, roosters were entrusted with the time of the end of the world. The end of the world will come when the rooster does not crow its traditional "ka-ka-river". Apparently, this is a rash assignment. What will happen if he forgets to do this or starts to be mischievous, or even worse - the geneticists mess something up? The image of the guardian rooster was placed on the roofs of houses, poles, spiers, weather vanes ... The weather vane is one of the most ancient meteorological instruments - the wind direction indicator was most often decorated with a figure of a rooster. IN English language it even bears the name "weather cock" (weather cock). The weather vane, among other things, is an indicator moral qualities a person who changes his views and decisions depending on the "direction of the wind" (A.P. Chekhov "Chameleon"). The connection with the dawn is also reflected in its name. If Russian word"rooster" comes from the verb "to sing", then the Aborigines of Australia call the rooster "the bird laughing at dawn." And the French name of the bird "chanteclair" literally translates as "singing dawn." So the rooster left its mark in pop art. It turns out that roosters in different countries “shout” in the language spoken by the inhabitants ... At least, so it seems to us. For example, our rooster cries “koo-ka-re-ku”, in France - “ko-ko-ri-ko”, Japanese - “koke-kok-ko”, English - “kok-e-doodle-doo” . The Bulgarians, for example, are sure that their roosters cry "ku-ku-ri-chu", the Germans - "ki-ke-ri-ki", the Italians - "chi-ki-richi". Chinese cockerels make completely different cock cries - “in-in”. This led to the fact that in many countries there were lovers of cock singing. The poultry farmers of Greece, Germany, Albania, and Russia were especially interested in the "musical" abilities of roosters. Competitions are held in several categories - vociferousness, the number of screams per hour, and, of course, musicality. For example, in Germany, the winner of one of the competitions shouted more than 90 times in one hour. Excellent songstresses have been bred in our country: Yurlov chickens, which people say about: "Ten quarters can be measured with your fingers until the Yurlov rooster sings." In those days, there were no stopwatches, so the time of singing was measured with fingers. This breed was not inferior in vociferousness to foreign performers. Worship of roosters led to the fact that in Japan 300 years ago, Yokahama chickens (or phoenix) were bred, in which the tail length reached 7 meters or more. Moreover, the longer the tail feathers, the more valuable the bird. The tail is the most main feature in this breed. Some fanciers keep these roosters in special glass cabinets, and the tail, coiled in loops, is hung on a special hook. In order for the bird to move less and not break its tail, food and water were placed on both sides of the perch. Every day, the rooster was taken off the pole several times and taken out for a walk, while the tail is wound on a special turntable or carried by a person. Imagine a rooster striding importantly around the yard, followed by a man, like a train carrying his tail. The comb is considered the highest pride among roosters. Scientists conducted an experiment. A “middle hand” rooster was glued to a large red foam rubber comb. Before that, everyone who could beat him and bullied him, but here something incredible happened. Everyone, even the largest roosters, began to curry favor with the newly-made leader. At first he did not understand his new position, he shied away from them until he realized the meaning of what had happened. The cockerel-foam rubber scallop went into a rage, began to bully everyone, even the largest roosters. This continued until the comb fell off his head. This is where he got it! Birds exchange information among themselves not only by crying, but also by tilting their heads, changing the position of their wings and tail. So, by clipping the bird's wings, we deprive them of the means of communication with each other. And communication with your own kind always has a positive effect on well-being. Roosters are especially painful for this procedure. One of the characteristic features of roosters is pugnacity. In an adult ordinary rooster (5-6 years old), the length of the spurs reaches 6 centimeters or more. As a result, fighting breeds of chickens were bred, used exclusively for cockfights. They have an original physique: a broad-shouldered body raised in front, a strong neck with a small head without a comb, and long legs armed with spurs. Such roosters are more reminiscent of birds of prey than a proud handsome man. On occasion, they can even deal with a hawk. In ancient times, cockfights were part of the “training program” for a young fighter. In ancient times, Greek soldiers, watching the fight of roosters, learned courage, stamina and perseverance. IN Ancient Rome cockfights were also popular over 2,000 years ago. The courage and passion with which the roosters fought were set as an example for young legionnaires. Roosters not only raised the morale of the soldiers. Their behavior determined the outcome of the battle. There were sacred roosters in the army, who were given grain before the battle: if the birds pecked it with appetite, the troops went forward, if not, the generals did not expect anything good from the battle. The warriors of Julius Caesar in the 1st century AD, on their own heads, brought fighting chickens to the north of Europe. They quickly gained popularity among many peoples and served as a symbol of the struggle against the conquerors. The brave Gauls, the ancestors of the French, who constantly caused trouble for the Roman military leaders, got their name from roosters (“gallus” in Latin means “cock”). The Romans gave this name to the Celts because they were red-haired and their fiery red tufts resembled cockscombs. The Gauls considered the rooster their patron and highly valued the fighting qualities of this bird. On coins French Republic starting from the 18th century, there was an image of a fighting cock - a symbol of warlike Gauls. Unfortunately, the "euro" leveled the symbol of the fighting spirit of one of the European nations. Cockfights were especially popular among the temperamental inhabitants of Latin American countries - Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, the Caribbean, in the south of the United States. The world-famous Texas fighting chickens were bred here. In Russia, fighting cocks have been known since the 18th century. This sport in Rus' was called "cock hunting". It is impossible to imagine a poultry yard without a rooster. The rooster is the owner of the yard. He is the first to leave the chicken coop at dawn and with his “ko-ko-ko” hurries the chickens to the exit. He finds a grain and begins frantically calling chickens. In addition, the rooster constantly remembers his obligations as a producer, managing not to deprive anyone of his attention. He is able to “delight” up to 30 chickens per day, but such intensive work adversely affects his health. Therefore, zootechnical science determined the “harem” norm for him - no more than 10 hens. Interesting and something else. Hens after the last close "communication" with the cockerel are able to carry fertilized eggs for ten to fourteen days. However, with the advent of a new rooster in the house, the palm in this matter immediately passes to the new producer. It is roosters, not hens, who pass on to their daughters such qualities as egg production, puberty (i.e., the beginning of egg laying) and the incubation instinct. Therefore, a rooster in a chicken coop is no less important than a good chicken. The rooster is interesting to watch. He never loses the feeling dignity. Even when punishing him for any offense, he leaves him as if unnoticed. And if he does have to retreat, he does it with dignity, as if that was exactly what he needed to do. It must be recognized that the rooster does not participate in the incubation of eggs and the upbringing of chickens. But there are exceptions to the rules... There is a legend that arose thousands of years ago that roosters are supposedly allowed once in a hundred years (moreover, by no one knows by whom) to lay an egg - the so-called knotweed. It was believed that if this knotweed carries six weeks under the arm of an immaculate virgin, then a “basilisk” (which means “king”) will hatch from it, ready to fulfill any orders of its adoptive mother - to take revenge, fall in love with yourself, get riches and so on. By the way, despite the fact that this legend is many years old, for some reason no one has ever seen a basilisk. Legend of the Ugly Egg universal recognition for a long time, until the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1474, a rooster was tried in Basel, accused of laying an egg. The culprit was mercilessly beheaded by the Holy Inquisition. In the villages of Russia in the 19th century, the basilisk theme was also very popular. Even in our time, you can hear the story of old people about evil spirits hatched from knotweed - an unfertilized egg. Naturally, no one had ever seen this freak, but everyone described him, and each in his own way. Some claimed that the basilisk is a yellow rooster with large prickly feathers on its wings. Others claimed that he walks on four legs, has the body of a toad and a snake's tail, and instead of feathers he has fish scales. The rooster among the Slavs, both Western and Eastern, was a border bird and was endowed with both the ability to resist evil spirits and demonic properties. IN folk tradition he is constantly associated with fire, protects the house from fire and lightning, however, at the same time, the red rooster personified the fire itself. There is an expression: "let the red rooster go." According to the ideas of our pagan ancestors, when a fire started from lightning, a fiery rooster descended from the sky, sat right on the roof of the house and set fire to everything around. But all these myths and legends are the fruit of people's rich imagination... A chicken family lives in my neighbor's open aviary, the head of the family, Vasya the rooster, has been living for several years. One day frosts broke out, and the hostess was visiting. The chicken house is flimsy, cold, all the winds penetrate. The hostess caught herself - and ran home. She looked into the chicken coop, and a cockerel was sitting there, spreading its wings, and under them his whole family - 11 hens. And how did they fit? Vasily himself suffered greatly - his comb turned blue and hung to one side, his paws also became stiff. So the family would have died if the hostess had not taken her into the room. The hens immediately fell on their side and fell asleep. The poor rooster was very cold, but he saved his family. For a long time he walked with a gray comb, however, then he blushed again, but he never recovered - he hangs to one side. And the hostess feeds him with selected grain and says: “Master!” And how he sings his "ku-ka-re-ku"! A person hears a cock crowing at a distance of two kilometers. Unlike, for example, the repeated sounds with which the rooster calls the hens to the found food, the crowing is made once, but longer and at higher frequencies. The higher the tone, volume and duration of these signals, the stronger the effect. The same cock always crows in the same way: deviations do not exceed half a tone. Crowing is a kind of challenge to other roosters, to which they give a response call. True, in the case when the rivals are cocks of the same rank. If, say, in the same yard a cock that occupies a subordinate position crows, then the dominant one simply attacks him, without honoring him with an answer. But what are the roosters talking about, separated by a great distance and not seeing each other? So, with the help of crowing, a biologically useful result is achieved - the capture, development and protection of sites, and in the end - the resettlement of the species in a harmless way, because the matter is limited only to intimidation. The rooster warns the opponents in advance that this area is occupied and they must look for a free "place in the sun." And only if all suitable places are populated, the battles will begin. In this case, the winner - the animal that is stronger not only physically, but also mentally - will become the successor of the genus, which, of course, is also beneficial for the prosperity of the species, for its progressive evolution. All of the above applies to wild birds. But the same form of territorial behavior was also preserved in the domestic chicken, although it lost its biological significance: after all, man provides all the needs of domestic animals and controls the evolution of the species. There is a very curious legend connected with the famous roasted rooster. After the Resurrection of Christ, a Jewish girl came to her father and said that she had seen the resurrected Savior. old jew, a cautious man, did not believe and answered his daughter that he would then rise again when the roasted rooster flies and sings. At the same moment, the roasted rooster fell off the spit, flew and screamed. Roosters love to scratch near trees. From the side in which they turn the chest, you can expect wind. Cockfighting portends good weather, while standing on one leg in winter means frost. The compilers of the calendar, too, could not but honor the rooster with their attention. According to the ancient Eastern calendar, every year it receives the name of one of the twelve animals. Among them is a rooster. According to ancient belief, it is believed that the fate of a person largely depends on the year in which he was born. People who were born in the year of the rooster are distinguished by a calm, balanced character. They are sociable, understand the mood of others, have the ability to convince the interlocutor. This purposeful people which usually do not deviate from the decision made. Greatest Success they achieve in middle age. The next "year of the cock" will be in 2017. Probably still primitive people seen in a rooster loudly proclaiming the onset of a new day, a mysterious messenger supernatural forces, deities of the Sun. It is known that wild roosters were domesticated as cult animals in ancient india(III...II millennium BC). It was strictly forbidden to eat the meat of roosters, but at the same time it was allowed to hunt wild chickens and eat them. Only much later in ancient Europe, meat of domestic chicken, and then eggs began to be eaten. Although they say that a chicken is not a bird, it also understands a lot about the weather. The main thing is that chickens and roosters do not run out ... (According to the materials of K. FABRY, candidate of biological sciences, j. "Science and Life", 1972. No. 9).

Alexander Tamilin

01/09/2005 | Visitors: 24348

Here is another raid of the Earth around the Sun is preparing to become history. We didn’t have time to say in March: “Spring. Hurry up New Year!”, as, looking at the disappearing autumn, it became clear that this very New Year is just around the corner. Santa Claus with the Snow Maiden, go, they are already wearing with might and main, carrying, packing and wrapping. What is left for us? And all that remains for us is to prepare the sleigh in the summer, sum up the results and look ahead. Slowly waving a pen to the Monkey, with whom we will meet again in some 11 years.

The symbol of the next year, 2005, is a much less exotic inhabitant of our latitudes than its predecessor. Less exotic, but no less interesting and colorful. Who is he - Rooster?

Since each of us has seen this bird at least once in our lives, I will only note that this is a two-legged male chicken with a bright red crest and a multi-colored tail, which, like everything living (and inanimate) on this planet, has latin name- Gallus.

Since ancient times, the Rooster has not been deprived of the attention of people and has been a symbol of mostly good, bright and joyful. For example, among the ancient Greeks, who for some reason called him an electruon, the Rooster heralded the light, and also symbolized the eternal rebirth of life. At the same time, however, he worked for full time at Persephone, who most spent time in the kingdom of the dead.

The ancient Romans went further. They not only stopped lowering the Rooster to the other world, but also assigned him the status of a vigilant and all-seeing "sacred cow", which was forbidden to be used as a banal food. Violators of this law after punishment, apparently, ended up where they no longer needed food. True, the use of the Rooster was still found to be somewhat consumer - it was used in fortune-telling and in weather predictions. However, from the height of millennia it is easy to criticize people who did not have either the Hydrometeorological Center or the Department of Statistics ...

In ancient China, our Cockerel went up, was not noticed in fortune-telling on coffee grounds, but instead accompanied not anything, but the Sun itself on its thorny path according to the fifth and tenth houses of the Chinese zodiac. In addition, among the Chinese, the Rooster personified courage, dignity, loyalty and benevolence. Although the latter did not prevent him from becoming a symbol of the war and October. Here is the logic for you! Yes, and about the sacredness, options are possible, because if, according to the law, you cannot be eaten, this does not mean at all that you cannot be sacrificed. It seems that not all roosters lived to gray years, leaving a four-digit number of descendants. Well, God be with them, the Chinese. Let's take a look at the Japanese.

In ancient Japan, the Rooster not only called the faithful to prayer, but one day, as they say, called the sun goddess Amaterasu from the cave where she hid her light. It was the Rooster who did not allow the indicated higher being to succumb to narrow corporate (or personal) interests and, with his singing, helped her to take the right path. For which he received free movement on Shinto shrines, and also avoided getting into the consumer basket. And not at all because of the glaring discrepancy between the ancient Japanese minimum wage and the ancient Japanese subsistence minimum.

The Rooster was also sent to the defense by the ancient Jews, who entrusted him with the position of the third guard of the night, who kept the border locked every day of God from midnight to dawn. It is difficult to say what and how the Rooster did if the adversary began to brazenly and shamelessly show aggression precisely at that time, but complaints about the quality of his service have not reached our days.

Drawing a line under the pre-Christian period, we can summarize that in those distant times the Rooster did not just crow, decorated various religious ceremonies (including sacrifices!) And was a constant companion of all kinds of solar deities. The only exceptions here were the Scandinavians and the Celts, in whom our crested and loud-mouthed hero was found exclusively with underground, or rather, afterlife, gods.

Well, in our own way, the ancient Slavs solved the problem. Our immediate ancestors considered the Rooster the best amulet, but at the same time did not hesitate to use it (including in parts) for such global purposes as fighting the evil eye in adults and insomnia in children. In addition, I'm afraid, the Rooster was very much included in the diet of the ancient Slavs. This is how we did with our talismans back in those days. time immemorial when mentalities were formed!

The emergence of Christianity, if not breathed into the image of the Rooster new life, it certainly refreshed the old one.

With the end of our era and, accordingly, the beginning of our era, the Rooster finally and irrevocably became a symbol of light, which welcomes the sunrise in the east and at the same time stampedes the forces of darkness and evil. In addition, it symbolized the resurrection and coming of Christ, and was also associated with the apostle Paul, meaning human weakness and repentance.

St. George completely turned the Rooster into an allegory of the good shepherd, since he “beats his loins with his wings (repents), which raises his voice.” In The Denial of Peter, scenes from which were often depicted on early Christian coffins, the crow of the Rooster three times was a warning against arrogance.

Somehow imperceptibly, the division of the red-crested brethren by color also appeared: if the colored Rooster had good success in the field of fighting evil spirits, then his black counterpart just represented this force. However, this unfortunate fact did not particularly affect the overall image of the proud bird.

The main activity of the Rooster was the triple morning singing (singing?! screaming!), Which not only, as mentioned above, dispersed a dense party consisting of Baba Yaga, HellRaisers and other Kuzey brownies, but also performed the combined functions of an alarm clock and alarm. Moreover, Rooster in this market segment was an absolute and complete monopolist. Fortunately, in the Middle Ages, there were not only alarm clocks, but also antitrust laws.

The exploits of the rooster in the field of expelling the undead have been repeatedly sung in folklore and in fiction. In order not to go far, you can take Gogol or Bulgakov, in whose famous works the Rooster saved more than one living soul. And it’s not in vain that the image of this bird as a guardian from devilish forces placed on the roofs of houses, weathervanes, chests. It is even surprising that this universal soldier with such a list of duties and merits did not receive government awards. The world is still unfair!

By the way, the cock's cry, judging by the legends, helped in the construction. For example, a legend recorded by Ivan Franko tells how seven brothers-princes before their death wanted to build a church in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. However, no matter how much it was built during the day, at night the masonry fell into the ground. Then the elder brother ordered to build a golden (!!, and if it didn’t help?!) ball, in which they placed a live rooster. When the ball was attached to the top of the tower, "the rooster crowed and she herself ascended from the ground right up to the sky." Here is such, as Baron Munchausen used to say, true story. Can our builders adopt?

In fairness, it should be noted that in the Middle Ages some less beautiful qualities "stuck" to the Rooster. Let's say, in some places in Europe, he was a symbol of lust and pugnacity, and our native folk tales glued to the Rooster the label of a boastful and not distinguished by intelligence and quick wits. It's probably all jealousy. How many can boast that they were the emblem of France and with one of their voices dispersed the night “guests” to their “houses”? Many have become synonymous with dawn and rebirth? Or maybe someone has been waking us all up every morning since time immemorial? Or someone wants to take this post? That's it! The planet must know its heroes! Know and appreciate.

Now that, I hope, everyone has realized the responsibility and importance of the moment, it remains only to express confidence that an interesting, calm and cheerful year awaits us. We are waiting for you, Green Rooster!

A bright figurine of a cockerel can be found
everywhere in Portugal. He is depictedon
magnets and pictures, on various dishes, embroidered on towels and tablecloths. stick figure
cockerel is made of clay, ceramics and porcelain. The image of a rooster is considered by many to be a symbol of Portugal. Some even associate it with the name of the country, because. in Portuguese, "rooster" sounds like "galo".
Although, as you know, it is also a symbol of France. It's the same parallel.
The French consider themselves descendants of the Gauls, and in Latin "rooster" and "Gauls" sound
equally gallus. So many years agothe Romans called the Celts, who inhabited the vast territory of present-day France, later called Gaul.
And even today the emblem of the National
of the French Olympic Committee is an image of a rooster.
In different countries of the world, the rooster symbolizes dawn, awakening, vigilance, perky, cocky. It is associated with the sun, fire, etc.

.
. But back to Portugal. At one time, the rooster that saved a man's life,
became inPortugal as a symbol of justice. One old
a legend that took place in distant centuries in the city of Barcelos.


It happened a long time ago when the capital
Galicia Santiago de Compostelo wasone
from the centers of religious worship and many believers went topilgrimage to
these holy places.
.
.
One day a young Galician, on his way
to the above locality, kept his way through
city ​​of Barcelos. Tired of the road, he asked for an overnight stay in one of the inns.After prayer and supper, getting ready for bed, he undressed and lay down in the bed prepared for him.

.
The young and muscular torso of the pilgrim attracted the attention of the mistress of the court, who decided to share a bed with him. But the young man was deeply religious and rejected the intentions of the woman.His goal was wandering and prayer, carnal sin was not part of his plans.
But there is nothing worse than a rejected woman. Deciding to take revenge on the offender, she
waited for the young man to fall asleep, slipped her silver
cutlery

As the classic used to say: Better for a man to live in the desert without water than to meet
on its way a vengeful person". What happened to our unfortunate.In the morning
having paid the hostess for food and lodging for the night, the traveler was about to leave, as
then she suddenly raised a cry:
- Guard! Robbed! Stop the thief!
Law enforcement officers came running to the cry, grabbed the poor fellow, searched his belongings and, finding it missing, took him to the judge's house.

When the troublemaker was brought to the judge, he ate with friends, so he did not pay much attention to the excuses of the red-handed
thief. No matter how the Galician tried to convince everyone that
that he had no idea how “miraculously” the stolen items got to him, no one believed his assurances of innocence.
The fact of the theft caused a public outcry. It was necessary to urgently judge the culprit
and punish to the fullest extent of the law.At that time, theft was punishable by death.
Here's to you" Dura lex, sed lex - The law is harsh, but it is the law. There was only one verdict - the gallows.

Calling to Saint James and before being pushed out the door, he managed to say: “ I am not guilty. And it's obvious just like the fact that this fried
the rooster on your table will crow when they hang me!". those present
just laughed at him. And the judge, in a fit of anger for the spoiled mood, ordered the execution of the poor fellow immediately.

There was no need to go far. Medieval
cities were built according to the usual type for that time. Square, town hall building,
the house of the judge, opposite the scaffold or the gallows, everything is nearby, convenient and, assays
everything for the audience.
The judge and his friends, without ceasing to make fun of the Galician, continued their meal. However, for some reason, no one touched the rooster. And what previously seemed like a fantasy, suddenly turned into reality in one moment.At the very moment when a noose was thrown over the pilgrim in the square, the rooster, cooked according to all the rules of culinary art, suddenly stood up
to his feet and crowed at the top of his lungs.

After a “light” short shock, remembering the words of the Galician, the judge jumped out from behind the table and rushed to the square with all his might to prevent injustice from happening. Fortunately for the Galician, the noose was not tightened, as the knot was
hastily tied incorrectly. Yes, and the judge managed on time, since it’s not possible to run far
it was necessary to. The execution was stopped, and the poor man was released on his way.

Years later, he returned to Barcelos and, in gratitude for his salvation, installed
in the city a huge statue of a rooster.Since then
the rooster is a symbol of justice and a reminder that the truth will always prevail, even if it has to.
sing to the roasted rooster.

.
On the cross located in the territory the former castle of the Counts of Barcelos of the Dukes of Braganza, built in the 15th century, carved images of the protagonist-savior, the victim of injustice and St. James in the form of a pilgrim.

"The Tale of the Cockerel" was told and retold a great many times and in a different way. Only morality remained constant. Therefore, we ask you not to judge strictly for the free interpretation of the classics, where different versions this legend.