What is a custom? These are rules of conduct that have been entrenched in the minds of the people thanks to repeated repetitions. What customs are, where they come from and where they disappear, read about all this below.
What is custom
As mentioned above, the rules of conduct that have become norms for people through repeated repetition. This includes customs that are performed on holidays, as well as those that turn into a daily routine. Basically, people follow them out of habit, not really thinking about the meaning of actions. Every society has its own customs. Some of them are regulated by the state, while others are observed within the same family. How long does it take for a habit to become a habit? At least a few years, at least 3-4.
How is tradition different from custom?
Concepts are best learned by comparison. We already know what a custom is, but now let's talk about tradition. What it is? Traditions are a complex of various actions that are passed down from generation to generation in order to preserve and develop culture. And here scale plays a role. The tradition can be considered as a local phenomenon, but still more often it is created and maintained on a national scale. No one forces people to observe established traditions, this is a voluntary matter.
Now let's look at the differences. Tradition is much broader than customs, since it most often has a larger territorial scope. People perform various rituals, sets of actions, often without thinking about the hidden meaning that their ancestors laid in them. But such traditions are supported by the state, as it considers them an integral part of culture. But folk customs often change under the influence of time, government, the way of human thinking. But for the most part, people do not see much difference in these concepts.
How do habits arise?
Man is a complex being. And to better understand what customs are, you need to know how people create them. Initially, such rituals, or repetitive actions, were performed by man in order to survive. It was a kind of reaction to discomfort. People started the custom of killing a mammoth once a week so as not to go hungry. The girls sewed clothes from the skins of animals once a month so as not to die from the cold. There were many such small local customs in any society, and they still exist today. True, our contemporaries do not have to survive, so the rituals are not aimed at the biological needs of a person, but at creating spiritual comfort. If you think about it, many of the unconscious rituals that are instituted in our society have no logical basis under them. These customs are common among superstitious people. Why do students eat lucky tickets from the bus before the test?
Why do people, returning home, if they forget something, always look in the mirror? There were once explanations for these customs, but today they cannot be found. Life is too changeable. Every person has the ability to create own customs. How? Before an important event, he may develop the habit of walking for an hour on the street in order to clear his head, or introduce summing up the results of the day into his evening ritual.
How habits disappear
Time goes by, everything changes. Human life is very fickle. Today one job, tomorrow another, today one love, and tomorrow you can meet a new one. That is why habits have to be changed. An example of such changes is the disappearance of witnesses at weddings.
These people used to play the same important role like a bride and groom. But over time, the custom of inviting witnesses lost its relevance. Today, newlyweds do fine without them, which means there is no need to appoint friends to this role.
Another example is baptismal divination. The girls used to do this every year. Today, this custom has fallen out of favor. Young ladies do not want to spend time in a dark bath in the company of candles and mirrors. They have more fun things to do. It turns out that customs know how to die due to a change in public interests.
- vital;
- way of life;
- imposed from outside;
- rituals and ceremonies.
Why do we need customs
Today there is an American globalization of all countries. Most of the goods and services that we are used to consuming every day are not a product of our culture. Customs and customs must be known and observed in order not to lose one's roots and nationality. After all, Russia is a country with its own original culture, speech and art. Of course, it is necessary to modernize the country by updating customs and traditions, but this does not mean that it is necessary to borrow them from other countries. Why is it so bad to borrow a foreign culture, because before it was the norm of life and when one country was captured by another, culture was imposed against the will of citizens. But today it seems terrible, because, forgetting their history, people restructure their thinking. And as a result, such an option may turn out when one person will rule the society, imposing the only possible way of life on everyone. It is worth reading at least one dystopia to understand how bad it will be to live in this situation.
Examples of customs
Today there are many rituals that people perform automatically, without even thinking about their essence. The sources of custom are folk traditions transmitted in writing or by word of mouth. There are many examples.
When meeting on the street, men take off their gloves for a handshake. It seems to be a sign of courtesy and attention, but this custom has long roots. Previously, men took off their gloves to show that they did not hide weapons there, and as a result, their intentions are pure.
Another example of a custom is Maslenitsa. More precisely, the rituals associated with this holiday. For example, burning a scarecrow. This custom also has long roots going back to ancient times. Burning scarecrows, people see off winter and welcome spring.
Jumping over a fire is considered another Russian custom. True, in recent times few people do it. But before this fun was popular. The guy and the girl jumped over the fire, holding hands. If they did not unhook their hands and successfully overcame the obstacle, it was believed that their life together would be long and happy. But if young people moved away from each other during the jump, this meant that they were not destined to be together.
Unusual customs
It doesn’t seem strange to us Russians to burn an effigy for Maslenitsa or decorate a Christmas tree for New Year. But for Thais, it’s completely normal to lower boats down the river, in which people put flowers, light candles and light incense. It all happens at the beginning of November on the day dedicated to the spirits of water.
The norms of customs are determined by the society in which we live. And in other countries things are the same. In Turkey, for example, there is a custom: before a man takes a second wife, he must give his first darling jewelry worth 10 thousand dollars. This is to prove to the woman that her husband - wealthy man and will be able to feed both her and the second woman.
In Kenya, there is a custom according to which the young spouse must do all the work of the wife for a month. It is believed that after this acquired experience, he will not reproach a woman all her life for doing nothing while doing housework.
Unlike manners and etiquette, customs are inherent in the broad masses of people. A custom is a spontaneously formed, habitual, stereotyped way of people's behavior. Custom - the traditionally established order of conduct. It is based on habit and refers to collective forms of action. Customs are mass patterns of actions approved by society that are recommended to be performed. Informal sanctions are applied to violators - disapproval, isolation, censure. The Slavs had such collective actions as the custom of giving birth to the first child in parental home, the custom of feeding the father of a newborn at a christening dinner with a mixture of porridge, pepper, salt, vodka, and sometimes vinegar, the custom of "printing a grave", etc.
sidebar
M. Kupriyanova English etiquette
For most, the word "etiquette" is associated with something like a starched white tablecloth that is pulled out on holidays. Meanwhile, using the rules of etiquette every day, you get additional pleasure from communicating with others. A few words about specific rules good manners. Who should go through the door first - a man or a woman? There are two legends about this. Our ancestors, in order to check whether the cave was inhabited, were the first to launch a woman. If she returned, the men boldly mastered the shelter, if not, they looked for another. In the Middle Ages, a woman walked ahead of a man and thus, as it were, guarded him - the cult of the Beautiful Lady was so strong that it was unthinkable to attack not only a woman, but also her companion. Today, a man must go ahead of a woman when he can protect her from possible danger, say, entering the hall of a Restaurant or an elevator. In other cases, he walks behind.
Approaching the door, the woman expects the man to open it. She can count on the same service when she gets out of the car. ^ which side of the woman should the man go - on the right or on the left? Since he is obliged to you P 0 To support his right, his strongest hand-
Whoa, you gotta move to the right. But there are two exceptions to this rule: if your companion is military and if you are moving down the street, then you need to choose the least dangerous or dirty side. Who greets whom first? The French military regulations say that the more polite one greets first. But according to etiquette, the young should greet the elder, the man - the woman. But the hand for shaking gives -
Xia in the reverse order: a woman - a man, an older one - a younger one.
In general, a handshake is not a very desirable form of greeting for a woman. Holding out her hand, she often does not know whether they will shake her fingers or kiss her. Therefore, it is better for a woman to give her hand in a relaxed, indefinite form, so that a man has a choice. Adapted and abridged by: Moscow Komsomolets. 1994. April 7th.
Tsivyan T.V. On some issues of constructing the language of etiquette // Proceedings on sign systems. "Artoo, 1965. Vol. 2. S. 144.
The custom regulates the behavior of group members, strengthens group cohesion, introduces the individual to the social and cultural experience of the group. Examples of customs are celebrating the New Year, weddings, visiting guests, etc. Compliance with the norms of custom is ensured by the strength of the public opinion of the group.
 |
A custom that is preserved and passed down from generation to generation is called tradition (from lat. traditions transmission, tradition). Tradition is everything that is inherited from predecessors. Values, norms, patterns of behavior, ideas, social institutions, tastes, and views act as traditions. Meetings of former classmates, fellow soldiers, hoisting the national or ship flag can become traditional. Some traditions are performed in an ordinary setting, while others are performed in a festive, upbeat one. They belong to cultural heritage surrounded by honor and respect, serve as a unifying principle.
Tradition is a way of reproduction, the process of transmission (transmission) from one generation to another of the main content of culture - values and norms. Traditions preserve all the most valuable things in culture.
The mechanism for this transfer is:
♦ folklore, i.e. oral tradition;
♦ imitation, repetition of a pattern of behavior. Adequacy is achieved by repeated repetition of actions, and the role of rituals is great in this.
AT pre-industrial societies most, and in pre-literate - the entire content of culture was transmitted through traditions.
The importance of traditions for the life of society cannot be overestimated. They play a role similar to heredity in a living organism. And just as violations in the apparatus of heredity can lead to the death of an organism, so cultural destruction and loss can lead to the degradation of society.
Traditions do not allow the "connection of times" to fall apart, accumulate the cultural experience of previous generations and pass it on to their descendants, which allows them to build their lives not from scratch, but from the place where their ancestors left off. Interruption of cultural tradition (as a result of natural disasters, wars) leads society to decline. The loss of traditions means the loss of socio-historical memory (public amnesia), as a result of which the people cease to perceive themselves as the subject of history, just as a person who has lost his memory ceases to feel himself a person. Such people (and society) are easy to manipulate like a child.
So sometimes cultural tradition interrupted not only by force, but artificially. Some forces in arrogant impatience are trying to "drive the horse of history" by making a "great leap". The main way to do this is to break the connection between generations, setting "progressive" children on "backward" fathers: the Hitler Youth in Germany, the Red Guards in China. The sad consequences of this are well known. In general, the desire to renounce the old world, to destroy everything to the ground, to throw Pushkin off the ship of modernity, is a manifestation of extreme lack of culture, sociological illiteracy and national unconsciousness.
The implementation of sociocultural norms is often expressed in rites and rituals - a strictly defined sequence of symbolic actions embodying certain social ideas.
Rites accompany the most important moments in a person's life - birth (baptism, naming), growing up (initiation), creating a family (wedding, wedding), death (funeral service, burial, commemoration). The social meaning of the rite is to promote a better assimilation by the individual of group values and norms. The strength of the rite lies in its emotional and psychological impact on cash. The aesthetic side of the rite is aimed at this - music, songs, dances, expressive gestures, etc.
Ritualism is often associated only with religion. In fact, ceremonial (ritual) actions are common in all spheres of social reality: military oath, initiation into students, opening of a monument, presidential inauguration, etc. Their rituals exist even in prison. For example, the ritual of "propiska", i.e. admitting a newcomer to the prison community; the ritual of "lowering" - transferring to a low-status group, a lower "caste".
Rites associated with birth, marriage, death are called family; agricultural and other rituals - calendar.
In medieval England, there was such a custom. When an apprentice, engaged in unskilled dirty work, was transferred to master printers, who were engaged in clean, highly skilled work, the comrades finally arranged a washing in reverse. The young man was immersed in a vat of waste. It could have been sour milk stored in advance, where for several days they spit, urinated and did everything that came to mind, colleagues. Through a rite of passage, i.e. literally everyone went through the rite of passage from one job to another. It has survived in England until recent days, but in a purely symbolic form.
Many ancient rituals are connected with bread. Twinning - the division of cakes between the named brothers, the wedding ceremony - the ritual of sharing bread between husband and wife. "Bread and salt" - this greeting is a symbol of cordiality and hospitality. In the religious rite of communion, believers "eat the flesh" of God in the form of bread.
Ceremony and ritual
They exist not only in the realm of religion, as one might think. Symbolic actions permeate all areas of human culture.
Ceremony- a sequence of actions that have a symbolic meaning and dedicated to the celebration (celebration) of any events or dates. The function of these actions is to emphasize special value celebrated events for a society or group. Coronation is a prime example of an important ceremony for society.
Ritual- a highly stylized and carefully planned set of gestures and words, performed by persons specially selected and prepared for this. Ritual endowed symbolic meaning. It is designed to dramatize this event, to arouse reverent awe among those present. An example of a ritual is the offering of a sacrifice to a pagan god.
Most rituals break down into component parts and elements. So, an obligatory part of the ritual of taking off aircraft is waiting for the command “Takeoff is allowed”.
The farewell ritual includes the following: sit “on the path”, hug, cry, wish a happy journey, do not sweep the floor for three days, etc. The ritual of defending a scientific dissertation is a complex set of elements.
The history of many rituals goes back to ancient times. For example, no one knows where and when the ritual " fire dances”(only written references to him, made in the 1st century BC, remained). Walking on fire and even dancing barefoot can be on all continents. This is done, in particular, by the North American Indians of the Navajo tribe, the peasants of Sri Lanka and Muslims in India, the inhabitants of Landagas (Greece), the shamans of the Chinese Lolo tribe, and the Bulgarians. In Russia, they did not walk on hot coals, but during the celebration of the arrival of spring, young peasants jumped through the high flames of a large fire.
According to K. Lorenz, the ritual has a cultural origin and performs three features: prohibition of fighting between members of the group; keeping them in a closed community; distinguishing this community from other groups. The ritual restrains aggression and unites the group. The accumulation of aggression is the more dangerous, the better the members of this group know each other, the more they understand and love each other. Sometimes the slightest gestures of a best friend, as soon as he coughs or blows his nose, we respond with such a reaction as if we were hit by a drunken bully. Human culture is entirely based on ritual. Non-ritualized actions such as picking, scratching, sneezing, spitting, etc. there is very little left in it. They are called uncivilized actions.
The rigidity of the traditional ritual and the perseverance with which we adhere to it are necessary for society. But everyone needs them too. After all, the observance of rituals and cultural patterns requires control by our consciousness and will, and the urgent control over our behavior further develops the sphere of morality and morality.
Morals and prohibitions
Morals are a kind of custom. manners- these are especially significant for the group and highly respected customs that have moral significance.
Mores reflect the moral values of society, their violation is punished more severely than the violation of traditions. From the word "mores" comes "morality" - ethical standards, spiritual principles that determine the most important aspects of society. latin moralis means "moral". Morals are customs that have moral significance. This category includes those forms of human behavior that exist in a given society and can be subjected to moral assessment. AT Ancient Rome this concept meant "the most respected and sanctified customs". In many societies, it is considered immoral to walk the streets naked (although it is allowed to do so at home), to insult elders, to beat a woman, to offend the weak, to mock the disabled, and so on.
A special form of mores are special prohibitions, which are called taboo. This Polynesian word refers to a system of prohibitions on certain actions (the use of any objects, the pronunciation of words), the violation of which in primitive society punished by supernatural powers.
Taboo- an absolute ban imposed on any action, word, object. It regulated the most important aspects of human life: it ensured compliance with marriage norms, protected from the dangers associated
in particular, with touching a corpse. taboo(the process of tabooing) was widespread in archaic societies, but taboo has not disappeared in modern cultures either.
Taboo served as the basis for many later social and religious norms. In modern society, certain parties are tabooed: blood-related relations - a ban on incest (incest); food process - a ban on cannibalism, a ban on eating pork among Jews and Muslims. Desecration of graves or insulting the feeling of patriotism are taboo. Taboo is the strongest in existence human society a kind of social prohibition, the violation of which is punished especially harshly.
Fashion and hobbies
A person learns traditions and customs regardless of his will and desires. There is no freedom of choice here. On the contrary, such elements of culture as tastes, hobbies and fashion indicate free choice person.
Taste- an inclination or predilection for something, most often a feeling or understanding of grace. Taste in clothes shapes individual style,
sidebar
Eating and drinking bans
They are in different religions. In Orthodoxy, in matters of food intake, the principle of Christian freedom is observed. Christ freed people from the obligation to observe in food and drink the prescriptions of the Mosaic Law set forth in the Old Testament.
And yet, some prohibitions exist: you can not eat strangled and blood (that is, meat containing blood), for "blood is the soul." You can not indulge in excesses in food and drunkenness, for "drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God." Orthodox Christians have a special diet during Lent. God-abiding Jews eat kosher food, i.e. ritual, prepared according to special rules. It is divided into several categories - vegetable, fish and meat. At the same time, fish is not considered kosher if the fish does not have scales. Meat food is considered kosher if the animal has no wounds. Orthodox Jews do not eat meat with blood. In addition, Jews can only eat animals with cloven hooves and regurgitating cud. They do not eat meat food after milk food for six hours, but milk food can be eaten after meat food, but after rinsing the mouth. The most detailed rules regarding food are developed in Islam. In addition to direct prohibitions, there are also indirect ones, meaning censure or disapproval. Pork is strictly prohibited. Such a ban existed in Ancient Egypt, among the Jews, and then the early Christians. The reason is that pork spoils faster in hot climates and
there are more opportunities to get poisoned by this meat than lamb or beef. Islam strictly forbids the consumption of alcohol. Even the presence of a drunken feast is considered a sin for a Muslim. The emergence of a ban on alcohol is not accidental. Drunkenness interfered with the fulfillment of religious precepts. For a faithful Muslim,
It is a sin to miss even one of the five obligatory daily prayers. It is condemned, although not forbidden, to eat mule meat. Historians explain this indulgence by the fact that the Turkic peoples joined Islam, in the menu of which horse meat was traditionally present. You are allowed to eat fish. The Sharia - the Muslim code of laws and rules - specifically stipulates which parts of the body of animals cannot be eaten: blood, genitals, uterus, tonsils, spinal cord, gallbladder, etc. Finally, the meat of even “edible” animals becomes forbidden if the animal is not slaughtered according to Sharia rules. Abridged by source: AiF. 1994. No. 9.
manner of dressing. Taste is individual, so it shows how much a person has deviated from generally accepted norms, average standards.
Enthusiasm- short-term emotional addiction. Each generation has its own hobbies: tight trousers, jazz music, wide ties, etc.
Fashion- change of hobbies that have mastered large groups.
Fashion also understood as the rapidly passing popularity of something or someone. Usually these are some minor norms - in clothes, food, behavior, etc. If a person's taste can persist throughout life, then hobbies are constantly changing. When hobbies take hold of the masses, they grow into fashion. A fondness for twists, short skirts or "flying saucers" can be called both fashion and hobby. Unlike hobbies, fashion expresses social symbols. Having trendy slacks is considered prestigious, not because they are beautiful, but because slacks are a symbol mass culture. Fashion items are more expensive than ordinary clothes, and their acquisition is regarded as a success. Fashion trends are rather inherent in the urban environment, where the status and prestige of a person depend not so much on diligence or character, but on lifestyle, wealth, and manner of dressing.
If customs and mores are stable and long-term social norms, then fashion and hobbies are among the unstable and short-term patterns of behavior. Fashion - periodic change of patterns of mass behavior: in clothes, musical tastes, architecture, art, speech behavior. Custom is focused on tradition, fashion - on modernity, renewal, innovation.
Fashion is out of character primitive societies, but is becoming commonplace in a complex, industrial society. It could not be found in a caste society. In a class society, fashion was limited to the circle of aristocrats; in a class society, it subjugated the masses of people. The so-called mass or in-line production, when standardized and cheap products are made, is such because it satisfies
sidebar
Versailles fashion
From the middle XVII in. trendsetter was the French court of King Louis XIV. This was the heyday of absolute monarchy in France. Its manifestation in fashion was the noble and royal fashion, the successor of the Spanish fashion, adapted to the tastes of the French. Strict geometry was replaced by bright colors and colors, complex cut. Since that time, French taste and fashion have conquered all of Europe and have not ceased to own it for centuries. Baroque fashion introduced new materials and decorations; silk and lace replaced velvet. The clothes became very picturesque. The freely fluttering dress embodied fantasy, and with it the desire for eccentricity and luxury. The nobles wore camisoles made of brocade and decorated with gold
ribbons, waistcoats, tight knee-length trousers, silk stockings. Near 1640 wigs with curled curls appeared. The King was the trendsetter. Louis XIV he loved extravagant clothes, wore shoes decorated with ribbons 40 cm wide. The king's favorites were allowed to wear a blue cloak with a red lining, embroidered with gold.
meets the needs of the broad masses of consumers. With mass production, mass art and its element - fashion - came to modern society.
Fashion has the ability to come and go quickly. The cycle of changing tastes and preferences of people is very short - a few years. Often, at a new stage, something that already once existed returns. The cycle of the return of the old lasts 20-30 years. For example, in the 1980s. among young people, torn jeans and scarves on the forehead were in fashion; this is how hippies dressed back in the 1960s. The twist, the sheik, tight trousers, sleeveless dresses, jungle fire ties, walks by water bodies and cultural conversations (about nature, weather, music, books) have become fashionable among teenagers. The culture of the 1960s and 1970s returned to everyday life, i.e. the clothes, manners, music, and spirit of their parents' generation. Teenagers of the “new wave” began to be called fans of parental childhood (dudes).
Not all segments of human behavior are subject to fashion and hobbies. religious activities, political activity, family life more regulated by customs and traditions and to a lesser extent by fashion and hobbies.
Tastes determined by the climatic and geographical conditions in which the people live. Thus, among the landlocked Zulus and Mongols, fish has never been a fashionable delicacy, and meat is rarely eaten in Oceania. The main product (mass fashion) here is fish, but the inhabitants do not have enough protein and they even eat insects.
However, with all the diversity of human tastes, there is one product that all peoples use - bread. Until the Middle Ages, for the most part civilized world unleavened cakes were used as bread. It was only at the very beginning of the Middle Ages that flat cakes in Europe were pushed aside by bread made from sour dough. Yeast appeared in Egypt 3.5 thousand years ago, but at first yeast bread was available only to the elite. The experience of its baking was borrowed from Egypt in ancient Greece and ancient Rome, where the baker was elevated above other artisans. When people mastered the technology of baking cheap bread, it became a fashionable product available to the general population.
Values
Culture, like society, rests on a system of values. Values- socially approved and shared by most people ideas about what kindness, justice, patriotism, romantic love, friendship, etc. are. Values are not questioned, they serve as a standard and an ideal for all people. If loyalty is considered a value, then deviation from it is condemned as a betrayal. If cleanliness is a value, then sloppiness and uncleanliness are condemned as indecent behavior.
No society can do without values. Individuals can choose to share these or other values. Some are committed to the values of collectivism, while others are committed to the values of individualism. For some, money may be the highest value, for others - moral impeccability, for others - a political career. To describe what values people are guided by, sociologists have introduced the term "value orientations". They describe individual relationships or the choice of particular values as a norm of behavior.
So, values belong to a group or society, value orientations belong to an individual. Values are beliefs shared by many people about goals to be pursued.
The honor and dignity of the family has been one of the most important values of the human community since ancient times. Showing concern for the family, a man thereby demonstrates his strength, courage, virtue and everything that is highly appreciated by others. He chose highly esteemed values as a guide to his conduct. They have become its cultural norm, and the psychological orientation towards their observance has become its value orientation. Studying the value orientations of modern Russians by means of a survey, sociologists can find out: a) what values they prefer to be guided by at work and at home; b) how, rightly or wrongly, the social ideals behind private orientations are understood.
Even the simplest norms of behavior embody what is valued by a group or society. cultural norms and values are closely related. The difference between norm and value is expressed as follows:
♦ norms - rules of conduct;
♦ values - abstract concepts of what is good and evil, right and wrong, proper and improper
basis Eastern culture Japan and China advocates filial piety(Chinese "xiao"). It includes such officially recognized duties as respect "for parents, unquestioning obedience to them, the duty to take care of the father and mother all his life. Compliance with this cultural standard alone has rebuilt social relations in society so much that Chinese people today, perhaps, surpasses all others in terms of respect for elders.
Values have common ground with the rules. Even the common habits of personal hygiene (washing your face, brushing your teeth, blowing your nose in a handkerchief, ironing trousers) are values in a broad sense and are translated by society into the language of prescriptions.
prescriptions- this is a prohibition or permission to do something, addressed to an individual or group and expressed in any form (oral or written, formal or informal).
Values It is what justifies and gives meaning to norms. Human life is a value, and its protection is a norm. A child is a social value, the duty of parents to take care of him in every possible way is a social norm. Some norms are obvious, perceived at the level of common sense, we fulfill them without hesitation. Others require tension and serious moral choice. To give way to older people, to say hello when meeting with acquaintances seems obvious. However, staying with a sick mother or going to fight for the liberation of the Motherland (the hero of one of the plays by J.P. Sartre faced such a dilemma) is a choice between two fundamental moral values.
Thus, in a society, some values may come into conflict with others when both are equally recognized as inalienable norms of behavior. Not only norms of the same type come into conflict, but also different types, for example, religious and patriotic ones: a believer who sacredly observes the norm “Thou shalt not kill” is offered to go to the front and kill enemies.
People have learned to resolve (in whole or in part, real or illusory) value conflicts in various ways. For example, Orthodox
Catholicism and Catholicism do not give hope for salvation to a person who has unjustly acquired wealth: “let the rich man not enter the kingdom of God.” To atone for the sin of money-grubbing, Russian merchants donated huge sums of money for the construction of churches and shelters for the poor. In Western Europe, they found a more radical solution - Protestantism justified wealth. True, Protestantism justifies only what has been acquired by tireless personal labor. Therefore, the Protestant ethic has rendered mankind a great service, eventually becoming a doctrine that does not justify wealth, but calls for diligent work.
Rice. 34. To atone for the sin of money-grubbing, Russian merchants donated huge amounts of money.
for the construction of temples
Values are generally accepted beliefs about the goals that a person should strive for. They form the basis moral principles. In Christian morality, the Ten Commandments provide for the preservation of human life ("thou shalt not kill"), marital fidelity ("thou shalt not commit adultery"), and respect for parents ("honor thy father and mother").
Different cultures may give preference to different values (heroism on the battlefield, material enrichment, asceticism). Each society has the right to determine for itself what is a value and what is not. For example, the traditional values of American culture include personal success, activity and hard work, efficiency and usefulness, progress, things as a sign of well-being, respect for science. In Russian culture, not individualism has always been valued, but collectivism, which is sometimes respectfully called catholicity, non-personal success, but the public good, not profit and utilitarianism, but compassion and mercy. At the same time, values such as hard work and respect for science are highly valued not only in American culture, but also in Russian. What other similarities and differences can you find? Reflect on this.
One of the most ancient social regulators is custom. In the early stages of the development of society, custom was the simplest form of social control, i.e. obedience to custom occurred unconditionally, custom was considered the only possible way of life.
A custom is a rule of behavior of a general nature that has developed historically, as a result of prolonged repeated repetition and has become a habit. eight
The formation of customs occurs both in the people (tribe, ethnic group) as a whole, and within its structural units (estates, professions). Customs regulate a variety of areas of activity, therefore they are legal, commercial, religious, international, military, etc.
As society develops, a more effective regulator of human life appears - law. The law that appears in the conditions of eastern, ancient or feudal societies does not suppress custom: the power is quite long time considers himself obliged to obey him, to rely on him in his actions (including law-making). There are even customs that are taken under the protection of the authorities and become legal customs, i.e. right. The further development of society pushes customs into the informal sphere of human relations.
In the cultures of modern societies, the role and place of customs are not the same.
Among the peoples Western Europe there are no ancient customs left, they have lost their original meaning. Many customs have been forgotten. Some customs were transformed into the mentality of the peoples, thereby defining the national psychology.
The countries of the East are traditional, for the peoples living in the East, the importance of customs is very high. For countries where Islam is strong, customs remain the active regulator of social relations and often openly compete with state institutions and even oppose them. This situation undermines the formal legal system. History and modernity are replete with examples of the inability of state power to use force due to the opposition of various tribal clans (many African countries, Afghanistan, Sicily in Italy, the Caucasus and Transcaucasia in Russia). 9
In today's world, customs play a secondary role. However, they continue to occur (albeit with less intensity compared to antiquity). An example is the emergence of a system of customs that reflects the Soviet way of life. The emergence of customs in modern life is explained by unpredictability human life and the desire to systematize life phenomena. Such customs turn into law and, accordingly, are called legal. Legal customs are called upon to contribute to the law enforcement process, to supplement and enrich the mechanism of legal mediation of various social relations. 10 (Article 5 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation “Custom of Business Practice”)
Closely related to customs are such social regulators as tradition, ritual and business habits.
Tradition (from lat. tradition - transmission, legend) - a set of elements of social and cultural heritage, transmitted from generation to generation and preserved in society or its individual groups for a long period of time. 11 According to O.V. Martyshyn, tradition is a broader concept than custom. In addition to custom, tradition includes values, ideas, worldview guidelines that are stable forms of the material and spiritual culture of a particular people. Tradition affects the life of society much more than custom.
Ritual (from Latin ritualis - ritual, from ritus - religious rite, solemn ceremony) - one of the forms of symbolic action, expressing the connection of a person with the system social relations and values and devoid of any utilitarian meaning. 12 The ritual has historically been used to give external honors to the gods. A ritual is a strictly regulated sequence of actions designed to create an atmosphere of mystery and solemnity when performing religious rites. Important in the performance of rituals is the symbolism, which should indicate the connection of people with God or some higher values. Now the ritual occupies an important place in non-church, civil life. Examples of rituals are the ceremony of marriage, the giving of military honors, the procedure for taking office as the head of state - the inauguration, the performance of the anthem at a football match, etc. Despite the fact that the external attitude to this kind of rituals seems formal, their deep rootedness in national cultures obvious. Society at this stage of its development cannot exist without general civil rituals.
Business habits are formed in the production, scientific, educational activities of people and are aimed at increasing its efficiency.
Such social norms as customs are unlikely to ever lose their weight in the general system of social norms, since they concentrate the experience of generations and serve for the further development of culture.
CUSTOMS, TRADITIONS, STANDARDS.
Custom - a way of behavior inherited from ancestors, which is reproduced in a society or social group and is familiar and logical for their members. The term "custom" is often identified with the terms "tradition".
Tradition (from Latin “tradition”, custom) is a set of ideas, rituals, habits and skills of practical and social activities transmitted from generation to generation, acting as one of the regulators of social relations.
Some people combine such concepts as customs and traditions into one whole. However, this is not entirely true. Most often, when it comes to the transfer of the foundations of social order to their descendants, we are talking about the transfer of traditions. If we are talking about the transfer of rituals of weddings, funerals, holidays, then they talk about customs.
If we are talking about the generally accepted national dress of the people, then this is a tradition, since it concerns the whole people as a whole. If some part of the people add their own decoration to their national clothes, then this is already a custom concerning this part of the people. Such a custom can turn into a tradition if it is accepted by the whole people. Most likely that's how it is different customs became a common tradition.
That is, various customs in the complex and create generally accepted traditions. Therefore, people identify traditions, customs and rituals in one concept, although this is not so. A tradition is not born overnight. It emerges from established customs. And customs are born from the life and behavior of people themselves.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian photographer and inventor S.M. Proskudin-Gorsky invented the technique of color photography. He did it autonomously at the same time as the French brothers Auguste and Louis Lumiere, who are considered the official inventors of color photography. Proskudin-Gorsky captured in his photographs precisely people in national clothes believing that this tradition needs to be documented. Thanks to him, we have an idea of the national clothes of the peoples of Russia.
All peoples have traditionally had a high value of the word of man. There were times when there was no written language. Therefore, the word spoken by a person was not just appreciated. The word was given mystical meaning. It was believed, as, indeed, now, that a wish, statement, obligation, or even a curse said aloud, always has its consequence and is necessarily carried out. And this happens regardless of whether the person who spoke out wants it or not. The wishes of health and happiness have always been perceived by ancient people as something material. It happened that people asked to return their words and wishes to them, if it turned out that these wishes were not expressed to the one who deserved it. There were times when people who told a lie were required to take back their words.
This is where the phrase "take back your words" comes from. Some people today believe that words are material and try not to scatter them. Others do not attach any importance to this and their words in the eyes of other people are worth nothing. And today no one takes seriously the words of talkers and braggarts, but the words of worthy people are highly valued. They are listened to. They are referenced.
The value of the word was the higher, the larger was the family of the person giving the word. Not keeping your word is like dishonoring your family as a whole. For example, the Chechens have such a concept that defines the uniquely high price of the word of a man. They call it "DOSH". That is, if a man declared DOSH, then not only he, but his entire family is responsible for this. Chechens have this concept to this day, because they have preserved tribal teips, each of which unites many people. I believe that such concepts as "DOSH" also existed among other peoples, but since the collapse of tribal relations, people's share of tribal responsibility has decreased and fidelity to the word has remained at the level of personal responsibility of each person individually, and not the whole clan. And there really is someone in that much. Whoever is ready to die for his word, and whoever lies, will take it inexpensively. The level of personal responsibility is immeasurably lower than the level of responsibility of the whole family, but after all, family responsibility is also built on the personal responsibility of each relative. Another thing is that once a disgraced relative is deprived of the right to say "DOSH" to someone.
If a person claims something, he must prove it to those who listen to him. After all, he is interested in the fact that those who listen to him believe him. Then, to prove the veracity of his words, he begins to cite the words of authoritative, worthy people as an example. Those words and statements that are time-tested and no longer need proof of honesty. If these arguments correspond to the words of the speaker, then people begin to believe him. They make sure that a person is not hypocritical and does not lie.
However, there is another tradition that appeared relatively recently and also refers to the value of the spoken word. This tradition was invented by Hitler. He argued that if you want your lies to be believed, you don't have to tell one lie. You need to mix lies with the truth and then everyone will believe you.
This is a false tradition, but it also has a certain value. The desire to deceive listening people once again emphasizes how important the value of the human word is for everyone without exception. And for honest people, and for liars. So, whether we like it or not, our tradition of valuing the word lives with us to this day. Even scammers try to use this tradition.
In addition to the value of the word, there is also the value human act. Actions are different. Significant and not so much. But they are all positive or negative. All mankind is working to meet the needs of people. So many people work every day in their positions and do the things that they should do. These actions are not considered unusual, but they are what make it possible to provide society with everything necessary. These are positive actions. However, some people also do negative things. These are crimes. In order to protect themselves from crime, society comes up with laws that protect honest and decent people. But there have been times in human history when laws did not protect people. Then people defended themselves. For any crime against friends or relatives, they responded with revenge. Revenge is one act, or a series of acts logically interconnected. Revenge on enemies was considered a must. Refusal of revenge had to have good justification, otherwise it became a disgrace.
In one of his stories, the writer, writing under the pseudonym "Kont", former warrior an Afghan, describes an incident that happened in one of the Afghan villages. A block post of the Soviet army was placed next to it. It was a small fortress, bristling with machine guns and machine guns. The fighters were constantly waiting for the attacks of the Mujahideen from anywhere, but not from the side of the village. In order not to bring trouble on the inhabitants, the Mujahideen did not enter the village and there was an unspoken agreement with the Soviet fighters on this score. One night, the unthinkable happened. The checkpoint was attacked from where they were not expected. From the side of the village. The attack was met with dagger fire from the checkpoint. When it blossomed, the soldiers saw that dead old people lay on the ground, the inhabitants of the village armed with something. Only a few of them had old, useless in combat, hunting rifles. Sabers, daggers, axes lay next to the rest. The investigation showed that one of the checkpoint fighters entered one of the houses at night and first raped and then stabbed a 13-year-old girl. They saw him, but he managed to escape. None of the old people of the village had any doubts that there were too few of them and they were all aged. They did not see for themselves any other development of events, except for revenge. Without waiting for the morning, they rushed to the last attack in their lives. To say that their opportunities for revenge were negligible is like saying nothing. They could not take revenge, but no one could reproach them for not taking revenge. As the Russian prince Svyatoslav said: "The dead have no shame." Only the old people did not think that someone would say something. They went to take revenge, because that's how they were brought up.
Laws appeared in every country, but revenge still remained among the people. Laws don't always work. Revenge has always been more feared than the law. This is a very ancient custom. Each nation had its own characteristics of the manifestation of revenge, but all of them were distinguished by cruelty. Cruelty doesn't make anyone better. Cruelty breeds other cruelty, and then there is no end in sight to evil. In ancient Greek Sparta, revenge was supposed to be fierce by killing all the relatives of the perpetrator. So that he suffers from every news of the death of his relatives. The culprit was killed in last turn. It is clear that the latter had no choice but to start a war against his avengers.
When Jesus Christ came to teach people, he called everyone to forgive one another. It was he who said that if you are hit on your right cheek, turn your left. Thus the Savior laid the foundation for the custom of forgiveness. For many, this custom is incomprehensible, because it contradicts the custom of revenge to which people are accustomed. But revenge does not stop evil, but continues it. Murders are also random. Among the ancient Jews, for example, several cities were allocated in which the murderer could hide from revenge and it was forbidden to pursue him in these cities.
1. Annual customs.
Almost all peoples had a HARVEST FESTIVAL. The exception was the peoples who could receive 2-3 crops per year. For them it wasn't like that significant event. Then other traditions were invented. The bulk of the population of the Earth received a crop once a year and tried to celebrate this event magnificently. This holiday was a symbol of abundance. After this holiday, it was customary to play weddings, and not only among Christians, Muslims, or representatives of other religions. In the spring, there was no longer enough food. This custom came to us from pagan times. Everyone celebrated weddings, because immediately after the harvest there was plenty of food, and work stopped due to the end of the harvest. A harvest festival, a natural and logical celebration.
Today, the harvest festival is not celebrated as magnificently as before. Only peasants celebrate it. This happens for several reasons.
- Not the entire population is engaged in harvesting, but only a small part of it. For example, in the USA in agriculture only 3% of the population works. For other people, this means nothing. In the Middle Ages, about 90% of the population worked in agriculture.
- Now with the end of the harvest, the work on the ground does not end and practically continues all year round. New system agricultural technology intensively exploits the soil. Formerly people used one field once every two or three years. That is, the field worked for one year, and rested for two years. Today the fields do not rest. They are actively fertilized with mineral fertilizers. Part of the fields are sown for the winter, and earlier this was done quite rarely. In other words, there is no such thing as winter downtime in agriculture.
- Many other magnificent holidays have appeared that did not exist before, including those that are celebrated at the same time as the harvest festival.
The farewell to winter was celebrated very magnificently among the people. In Russia, this holiday is known as Shrovetide. It wasn't easy to get through the winter. The peasants did not have central heating. Firewood had to be prepared. The huts were small, so that it was easier to warm them with one stove. Food was cooked in the same oven. In winter, the entire population was tied to their homes as sources of heat. Therefore, people celebrated the farewell to winter with great joy. This holiday falls on the spring equinox. During the celebration of Maslenitsa in Russia, it was customary to burn an effigy of winter. In different parts of Russia, this custom was celebrated with its own details. Somewhere they burned an effigy wrapped in pea straw. She burns well. Such a scarecrow was called a jester pea. In Kostroma, a scarecrow was called "kostroma".
In different places, different chants were dedicated to this holiday, but the meaning and time of the holiday always remain the same. This custom also came to our time from pagan times. The Orthodox Church celebrates Shrovetide week on the eve of the beginning of the strict Easter fast. All butter week people baked pancakes, pies and walked festivities. On Thursday, it was considered a tradition for mothers-in-law to cook pancakes for their sons-in-law and treat them. Oil Sunday is called forgiveness. On this day, all people ask each other for forgiveness. Before the revolution, wall-to-wall fistfights were held on Forgiveness Sunday. This is a special custom. That is, adult guys and men lined up opposite each other in an amount of up to several dozen people. On command, they approached and began to fight. The rules were strict. If the fighter fell, then he was out of the fight. It was impossible to beat a lying fighter. The fight was not supposed to be traumatic and unnecessarily violent, but blood from injuries was considered common. The battle continued until complete victory. After the battle, the opponents hugged and asked each other for forgiveness.
Weddings are rightfully considered the most striking customs. Today, this ceremony is preserved and people arrange magnificent weddings to leave a memory of this event. But not only. A wedding is not just a joyful celebration. This is an event that not only makes many people responsible for the lives and happiness of a young family, but also makes a young family responsible to all those present for their life together, which they promise to create at the wedding. That is, a wedding is not only a holiday, but also mutual obligations. How else? The bride and groom and their parents invite all those whom they respect to the wedding. This invitation can be seen as a statement that they are not just inviting guests, but promise to honestly and honorably start a family. In turn, everyone who is invited to the wedding should continue to provide all possible assistance to the young family if they turn to him for help. So a wedding is not just a feast. This is not just a collection of gifts. This is an important life event.
It is still customary for Muslims, but not everywhere, to pay a ransom - kalym. It is believed that a man who paid a dowry is wealthy enough to support his own family. The amount of bride price is negotiated individually, but this custom is not practiced in all Islamic countries. At weddings, it is customary to give only money. This money is given to the parents of the young. But parents must provide their children with housing, furniture, and everything necessary for life, right down to clothes and utensils. Accordingly, they bear all the costs of organizing a wedding. Money received at a wedding from guests, as a rule, cannot reimburse parental expenses.
Christians can give everything. Both money and gifts. Everything is for the young. A bride price is not paid, but the bride must bring a dowry with her. The amount of the dowry depends on the wealth of the bride's family. Parents pay for the wedding. But in this sense, the differences between Muslims and Christians are not significant.
Before the wedding, it is customary for Christians to arrange a wedding. This is called conspiracy and it ends with an engagement, or betrothal. Senior representatives of the groom come to negotiate with the parents of the bride. Representatives may not be relatives. Usually these are matchmakers, but the presence of the groom's parents is obligatory.
Matchmakers observe the ritual of the event. The parents of the bride and groom learn about the intentions of the young and if they are positive, then an agreement on the timing of the wedding takes place. The bride and groom are betrothed with wedding rings. From now on, they can communicate in public, but before the wedding they cannot live together. What is it for?
If one of the young people changes their mind about getting married, then all preparations will be stopped and the wedding will not take place. In this case, the young are not bound by any circumstances and can find other chosen ones. That is, young people are given time in order to take a closer look at each other better. The rings are returned to the groom as they are bought by the groom's parents for the engagement.
The agreement may or may not take place. If the bride does not like the groom, she can immediately refuse him. This event becomes shameful for the groom, so he must be sure that the girl will agree to the marriage.
In Ukraine, in Belarus, in Moldova, in Russia and among many other peoples, it was customary to bring out a pumpkin (garmelon) to an unlucky groom. It was a shameful sign of rejection. Why shameful? Because if the groom sees that the girl does not like, but continues to be persistent, then having received a pumpkin, he no longer has the right to send matchmakers to this girl for the second time. That is, the girl has the opportunity to get rid of the annoying groom once and for all.
Muslims also have a similar custom. If the bride at the wedding hits the groom with a whip in front of everyone, then the wedding will not take place. However, both the groom and the bride herself are considered disgraced in the eyes of the guests and the whole society.
Today, many young people strive to earn big money and only then get married in order to pay their own expenses. They don't want to depend on their parents. In this case, two problems arise, of which it is difficult to choose the worst. Firstly; such a situation may be offensive to parents. Parents, as a rule, are ready to take on any debt in order to fulfill their duty to their children. Secondly; the money-making process can take an unknown number of years. This can deprive a person of the opportunity to create his own family.
Giving a girl in marriage without matchmaking has always been considered a disgrace. According to the logic of weddings, it turned out that no one was interested in protecting the interests of the young. No one even knows that there was new family. There are no witnesses to the obligations that the groom and his parents take on. Therefore, it is not customary to give a girl for her husband secretly. And it doesn’t matter if she is paid with a bride price, or if she gets married in Orthodox church, the meaning is always the same. Family obligations should be public and frank.
AT hard times, when the guests were not able to make gifts, and the parents to gather a rich feast, they still tried to play the wedding. Often this was done by joint efforts, but the wedding still became memorable, joyful event. Even the most modest gifts were made, but weddings were made.
Any speculation in this regard does not promise anything good. Previously, often, parents themselves decided to whom to marry their daughters and to whom to marry their sons. Many acted on the principle of material interest. That is, they tried to intermarry with a rich groom, or a rich bride. Often young brides married elderly grooms and vice versa.
This situation gave rise to another custom. This is bride kidnapping. The act is radical, but it solves all problems at once, including the cost of the wedding. The logic behind the kidnapping is simple. The kidnapping of an unmarried girl by her fiance puts her in the category of either disgraced, or married women. But the kidnapper can immediately abandon her and leave her disgraced. The bride's parents, who could not prevent the kidnapping, look impartial among people and are ready to give their daughter to the kidnapper, if only to comply with all necessary rites and enlist the support of relatives and witnesses. Even if before that they publicly refused this fiancé. At the same time, they try to do everything to keep the kidnapping a secret. If the parents fundamentally do not recognize the groom-kidnapper, then the bride becomes his wife without a wedding. This is understandable. Not a single suitor, after the abduction, will woo her.
However, there were also frequent cases of a preliminary agreement on the kidnapping of the groom with the bride, the groom with his parents, the groom with his parents and the bride in order to avoid the costs associated with holding a large wedding. Here the logic is very simple. If a girl was kidnapped, but not married, then this is considered a shame. If she was kidnapped, but after numerous trials and showdowns (sometimes turning into fights), the family was nevertheless created, then the image of the bride even acquires a certain romantic connotation. Therefore, kidnappings are sometimes even staged at rich weddings.
BURNING.
What can be no less important than a wedding? Of course, the funeral of a deceased person. The Bible mentions that the person who buried the deceased looks worthy before God, but after the funeral he must be cleansed. And today there is a custom to wash hands after participating in a funeral.
As life shows, not all people get married, but everyone dies. Death makes burial obligatory. Our ancestors buried the dead in the ground so that they would not be defiled by animals and birds. After all, we were talking about dead relatives. But the attitude towards the unfamiliar dead was the same. Subsequently, rites of burial in coffins were invented. The coffin symbolizes the boat in which the deceased goes to another world. Among believers, it is customary to give funerals a special meaning. After all, this is the last way of a person to another world. It is customary for Orthodox Christians to bury people in the ground. In India, Japan and other countries, dead people are cremated. Burn. Materialists also follow the general religious traditions and cremate the dead.
It is customary for Christians to keep the dead at home from one to two days. This is done so that those who are far away and cannot quickly come to the funeral can say goodbye to the deceased. On the day of the funeral of the deceased, it is customary to bury the dead in church, or at home. From the house, it is customary to carry the coffin in your arms along the street where the deceased lived. A ceremony of farewell takes place at the cemetery, when relatives kiss the deceased on the forehead. Those who wish can speak out loud about the deceased, but it is customary to speak about the dead either well or nothing. After lowering the coffin into the grave, each person present throws three pinches of earth into the grave as a sign of farewell. After the funeral, people go to the wake. It is not customary to knock glasses at the funeral table. The feast is short-lived. A buried person is commemorated, as well as deceased relatives are remembered. At the funeral of deceased children, alcohol is not consumed.
Then the relatives gather to commemorate the deceased after 7 days. The deceased on the fortieth day is commemorated more magnificently. It is believed that within 40 days the soul of a deceased person is still wandering, and on the 40th day it is where it should be. On the day of the funeral, a cross is erected on the grave, and a year later, on the anniversary of death, it is customary to erect a monument. But all this is sufficient.
It is customary for Muslims to complete the funeral before sunset on the day of death. Nobody is waiting. Mullah performs his prayers and rituals. The deceased is carried to the cemetery only by men. Women don't go to the cemetery. The deceased is commemorated for seven days in a row. These commemorations are not so much feasting as reasonable. Every day people talk about life, death, God, faith, etc. They try not to leave the family of the deceased without attention, so that it would be easier for her to get used to the loss. Muslims celebrate the 40th day in the same way as the anniversary.
Funeral customs and rituals are quite diverse and can only be described in a specialized work in a very large volume. All of them are logically conditioned. Only the most general rules are described here. People learn it by participating in the funeral of dead people. At the funeral of the most famous and respected people comes a large number of of people. But the number of people at the funeral does not say what a person was like in life. It is important with what thoughts people come to the funeral and how they later remember the deceased. Good or bad.
COMMON PRACTICES.
There are many such customs. They are inherent in every nation, since they are logically conditioned by the same circumstances. Let us take the simple case of a young man giving up his seat in a public transport. This is not just an element of upbringing. This is a common custom that has changed, but its essence has remained the same. There was no public transport yet, but it was customary for every nation that the younger ones not only give way, but get up at the time when the older one approached them. And the age difference didn't matter. And today it is customary to get up if a person approaches you and starts a conversation with you. And even if he is the same age as you. It is simply considered impolite if you talk while sitting with a person who is standing in front of you.
In ancient Sparta, it was allowed not to stand in front of an older person if he had no children. It was explained simply. His children will stand before no one.
It was not customary to sit and talk to women. This was considered a rule of bad taste and an educated woman would not continue the conversation with the interlocutor sitting in front of her, unless, of course, he was disabled. Today, it is customary for many peoples to give way to standing in transport not only for the elderly or pregnant women, but simply for older people. This is perceived not as help in a difficult situation, but as a tribute.
Before the revolution, all men showed such respect for women, but with the development of feminism, people began to perceive the politeness of men towards women in transport as harassment.
Interestingly, before the revolution, aristocrats and philistines had a custom to take off their hats when they met a pregnant woman. A tribute to motherhood.
INTERESTING TRADITIONS OF SOME PEOPLES.
I find some of the customs of the Japanese interesting. In the year they celebrate the day of the boys, and separately the day of the girls. These days are dedicated specifically to children up to 6-7 years old. These days they always dress up in the most beautiful clothes and they can do anything.
AT Japanese schools food lesson is traditionally held. Every day, two students serve their class lunch. Thus, students learn the Japanese table traditions of serving, eating, and behavior at the table.
In Italy, on the eve of the new year, it is customary to throw old things out of the windows into the street. It is believed that they will remain in the old year, and the family will acquire new ones in the new year.
In Finland and Norway, it is not customary to praise a person in public. This is considered gross flattery and may even hurt the person you are praising.
In China, it is not customary to give anything related to the number 4. This number symbolizes death. In the same place, it is not customary even to designate floors with the number 4. They go like this 1,2,3,5,6,
In India, it is not customary to thank for a gift. This is considered bad manners. You can praise the gift.
In the USA, it is not customary to pay for a woman in a taxi, open the door for her, carry things for her ... because she can take it for sexual harassment and file a complaint with the authorities.
In Greece, it is not customary to praise the utensils or paintings of the hosts at a party. According to customs, the owner will have to give it to you.
In Georgia, it is not customary to leave guests' glasses empty. The guest can drink or not drink, but his glass will always be full.
Words of welcome from different peoples various. The Chinese at the meeting asks: "have you eaten?", the Iranian will say: "be cheerful", the Zulu will warn: "I see you."
A custom is a historically emerged stereotypical rule of behavior that is reproduced in any social group or society and becomes habitual for its members. The custom is based on a detailed pattern of actions in specific situation for example, how to treat your family members, how to resolve conflicts, how to build business relationships, etc. Outdated customs are most often replaced over time by new ones that are more in line with modern requirements.
“Custom is older than law,” says Ushakov's dictionary. Let's look at and try to define what they are in different areas of public life.
Does a behavioral pattern always become a habit?
As mentioned above, custom presupposes the presence of a behavioral pattern. But the latter cannot always act as a rule of conduct, since each person has the opportunity to choose one of possible ways actions depending on their interests, goals or objectives.
And customs are formed only under the conditions of stereotyping and familiarity of a particular pattern of human behavior in the current situation. If following a custom is natural and does not require a mechanism of coercion or control over its implementation, then it becomes a social norm of behavior.
An example of the emergence of a legal custom
If a custom is a fixed stereotype of behavior that is sanctioned state power, - means, he received the status of legal.
The formation of legal customs occurs as a result of many years of experience (and in this they differ markedly from written law). For example, the creation of a system of law among the peoples of the Caucasus (belonging to the Russian Federation) was greatly influenced not only Russian legislation and Sharia norms, but also the centuries-old traditions of the highlanders.
These, of course, include the veneration of the elders in the family (which, by the way, is also associated with the famous phenomenon of the longevity of Caucasians). Or, for example, a custom that limits contact in the family between people who have different consanguinity (daughter-in-law and father-in-law cannot even meet in the house by chance) - all these norms of customs have acquired the status of legal ones, having been fixed in legislation.
Having become legal, customs also acquire legal significance: that is, a court or other state body can refer to them as a source of law.
If they are not supported by the government, they remain at the level of everyday norms of behavior. For example, a custom in the Caucasus, officially banned, but actually continuing to exist, or the national custom of the Slavs to “wash” every significant event in the family or at work, with which the law is also unsuccessfully fighting so far.
What is a legal custom: an example
By the way, pay attention to the fact that the sanctioning of a legal custom is carried out in the form of a reference to it, and not to its textual consolidation in the law. If the consolidation took place, then the source of law becomes not custom, but normative act in which it is reproduced.
As an example, we can cite the unwritten procedure that was once developed in representative bodies of power: the right to open the first meeting of the newly elected parliament was given to the oldest deputy. In the new Constitution of the Russian Federation (part 3 of article 99), this custom received legal confirmation and, accordingly, the highest legislative force.
Interaction of law and customs
Separately, it is worth considering the relationship between and existing in any society customs. How do the legally enshrined rules and folk customs inherent in individual social groups or strata of society interact?
Most often, such relationships come down to a few basic options.
- Useful customs for the state and society are supported by legal norms and conditions are created for their implementation (respect for elders, care for children, priorities in property relations, etc.).
- Legal norms periodically serve to oust customs that are harmful to society, such as, for example, excessive alcohol consumption or, among certain nationalities, kalym, blood feud, ransom of the bride and some Sharia norms. There are customs associated with racial or religious intolerance, which are naturally cut off by the state.
- In some cases, legal norms are indifferent to customs, mainly if they relate to interpersonal relationships or everyday behavior.
Examples of legislative consolidation of folk customs
After the custom acquires a legal character and its observance is ensured by the state mechanism of control, it receives a more stable position.
An example is the ancient customs of communal system in Russian villages. They are until the beginning of the 20th century. formed the basis of legal acts of land use and land relations. All disputes that arose in the process of using the allotment were resolved at the village village meeting, and they went to court only in cases where one of the parties believed that the decision was unfair.
The principle of resolving in court, for example, issues such as damage to crops, skew (violation of the boundary during mowing), sowing of a neighboring wedge, etc., was mainly dictated precisely by the customs to compensate for the damage caused by an equal action or determine its price: “you sowed my field , and I will sow yours”, “for the grain harvest harvested from an unauthorized sown wedge - 8 kopecks for the owner, and 8.5 for work.”
Relationship between civil and customary law in Russia
True, in the judicial practice of the Russian Federation in our time, references to are rarely used, since a stable legal system has not yet been finally formed and has not existed for a sufficient time, and public consciousness continues to change, which prevents the creation of a system of established customs that can be a source of law. .
On the other hand, the practice of concluding civil law contracts based on the observance of customary norms is intensively developing in the country, and the formation of corporate codes in this way is also practiced. Custom is a source of law that is applicable primarily in the area, since there participants legal relations have some freedom of choice.
What are business practices?
As already mentioned above, legal custom gained the widest distribution in civil law. The Civil Code of the Russian Federation determines that the custom of business turnover is an established rule of conduct that is universally applied in a particular area entrepreneurial activity, not provided for by law and regardless of whether it was recorded in some document or not.
For example, every Monday at enterprises in Russia it is customary to hold planning meetings, the fare in a fixed-route taxi in most cities of the country is paid immediately at the entrance, and in Irkutsk, on the contrary, at the exit or during negotiations taking place in a cafe or restaurant, unless otherwise agreed, ladies don't pay for themselves. Such customs include a handshake, which reinforces the outcome of any agreement and the legal force that a receipt has, certified only by a signature, etc.
The development of entrepreneurship was the impetus for the emergence of new business rules and business practices. They complement the existing legislative acts in cases where the latter cannot fully satisfy the needs of any area. business relations. So, in it is mentioned, for example, that the fulfillment of obligations must exactly comply with the requirements of the law or legal acts, and in the absence of such, the customs of business. There is a similar reference in Art. 82 contained in Customs Code RF.
How do multinational customs coexist in Russia?
The peoples inhabiting Russia are a multitude ethnic groups having different cultures, traditions and customs. This provision throughout the history of the state dictated the need to take into account the national factor in legal regulation.
AT different time the attitude of the state to the possibility of applying the norms of customs was different: from following the principle of free development of national minorities to the definition of criminal liability for making decisions based on the customs of the indigenous population.
But in Russia, regardless of the official position, traditional legal systems have always existed, creating at times a situation of double regulation. By the way, it has been preserved to this day, however, having switched to new level interaction between positive (state) and traditional law.
Conclusion
As can be seen from the above, a custom is a stereotype of behavior, which may also be a source of law. Customs are modified: some of them are introduced by social practice, some are imposed by certain sections of society, some become obsolete and disappear.
Customs act as a norm that supplements the law, as well as indicators of the proper and possible in the life of each member of society, they are created by people, and their application contributes to raising the level of legal culture, as well as the accumulation of experience in relations between citizens of a state striving to establish a comprehensive democracy.
