Ivan Kupala Day (Івана Купала, Ivana Kupala) is the day of summer solstice celebrated in Russia and Ukraine on 7 July OS and 23 June NS. This is a pagan fertility rite, which has been accepted into the Orthodox Christian calendar, and has also been associated with St. Andrew. It is opposed to the winter solstice holiday, or Korochun. In Polish mythology, Kupala is the goddess of herbs, sorcery, sex, and midsummer. ... Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of summer solstice on northern hemisphere The summer solstice is an astronomical term regarding the position of the Sun in relation to the celestial equator. ... July 7 is the 188th day of the year (189th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 177 days remaining. ... Jump to: navigation, search June 23 is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 191 days remaining. ... Pagan may refer to: A believer in Paganism or Neopaganism; the belief in many gods, or typically, the belief in a pantheon, or set of gods, and usually accompanied by tolerance, or inclusion of other gods. ... The term Orthodox Christian refers to two Christian traditions: Oriental Orthodoxy, which separated from the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church in the 5th century; Eastern Orthodoxy, which the Roman Catholic church separated from in 1054 was the church that was started by the apostles. ... Saint Andrew (Greek: Andreas, manly), the Christian Apostle, brother of Saint Peter, was born at Bethsaida on the Lake of Galilee. ... Jump to: navigation, search Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of winter solstice on northern hemisphere In astronomy, the winter solstice is the moment when the earth is in a point of its orbit at which the northern hemisphere is most inclined away from the sun. ... Jump to: navigation, search Karachun, Korochun or Kračún is a Slavic version of Halloween as a day when the Black God and other evil spirits are most potent. ...

Ivan Kupala was the way that the old Russians called John the Baptist. Up to the present day, the Russian Midsummer Night (or Ivan's Day) is known as one of the most expressive Russian folk and pagan holidays. Many rites of this holiday are connected with water, fertility and autopurification. The girls, for example, would float their flower garlands on the water of rivers and tell their fortunes from their movement. Lads and girls would jump over the flames of bonfires. Nights on the Eve of Ivan Kupala inspired Modest Mussorgsky to create his Night on Bald Mountain. Jump to: navigation, search The Baptism of Christ, by Piero della Francesca, 1449 John the Baptist (also called John the Baptizer or Yahya the Baptizer) is regarded as a prophet by at least three religions: Christianity, Islam, and Mandaeanism. ... Fertility is the ability of people or animals to produce healthy offspring in abundance. ... Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (Russian: Моде́ст Петро́вич Му́соргский) (March 21, 1839 – March 28, 1881; sometimes spelled Modeste Moussorgsky), was an innovative Russian composer famed for his colourful, exotic, and lush orchestral pieces dedicated to various subjects of medieval Russian history. ... Jump to: navigation, search Night on Bald Mountain is the common name for (Ivanova noch na Lisoy gore), a tone poem by Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, a Russian composer and member of The Five, Mily Balakirevs group dedicated to producing a distinctly Russian kind of music. ...

See also

• Kupala
• Kupolė
• Pirogovo

In Polish mythology, Kupala is the goddess of herbs, sorcery, sex, and midsummer. ...

External link

• Night on the Eve of Ivan Kupala
• Rites of St John's Night