What to wish for yourself and others on the Old New Year: the semantics of tradition and the psychology of meaningful blessings Wishes on the eve of the Old New Year (on the feast of St. Basil, January 13) are not just ritual formulas of politeness. Within the framework of traditional culture, they possessed the power of prognostic and programming statements, and from the perspective of modern psychology and neurolinguistics, they represent tools of positive futurism and the construction of desired reality. Their content, pronounced in this specific "borderline" chronotope, carries a special semantic load. 1. Historical-ethnographic context: the magic of the first day. The key to understanding the importance of wishes lies in the folk perception of St. Basil's Day (January 14) as a "giving a setup" for the entire year. In the Slavic agrarian tradition, this was the day of incantations for the future harvest and prosperity. The ritual of "sowing" (spreading grain in the house) was accompanied by verbal formulas of wishes, such as: "For happiness, for health, for a new summer!", "Lord, God, give all kinds of grain according to the measure, that according to the measure — great, and in the field — in sheaves!". These actions and words were a magical act of "sowing" future prosperity. Wishing something meant actively participating in the creation of the future, not passively waiting for it. Interesting fact: In the Polissia and other regions, there was a custom of "St. Basil's porridge". The hostess cooked porridge until dawn, and according to its appearance, they divined the year: a full pot and fluffy porridge promised happiness and harvest, while running over the edge or dark — misfortune. After divination, the porridge was eaten, followed by (and thus, enhancing) the wishes pronounced. This is an example of a deep connection between verbal wishes, action, and material carrier (food). 2. Psychological mechanism: from wish to setup. Modern psychology (cognitive-behavi ... Read more