The tradition of sealing newlyweds with wedding rings is ancient, international, and enduring. Wedding rings are perhaps the most iconic attribute of a wedding celebration. They are the very thing that flaunts a person’s marital status. What is the secret…
Everyone has, of course, heard of Pavel Lungin’s film “The Island,” and most have seen it, so there’s absolutely no point in retelling the plot. However, there wouldn’t have been any need to retell it anyway. Films like this are…
Life in a modern metropolis is like a race for survival – a multitude of daily events, city dwellers rushing to work, buses hastily pulling away from the stop, the hustle and bustle of evening chores… We’re used to living…
Leshy (master of the forest, forest spirit, leshak, forest spirit, grandfather of the forest) is a spirit, master of the forest in the mythological beliefs of the Slavic peoples. This is the main master of the forest, ensuring that no…
They say our literature is going through hard times. They say the Pushkins and Tolstoys are long gone, replaced by worthless mediocrities who can’t string two words together. Who would deny that the level of contemporary literature cannot be compared…
Have you ever wondered where those familiar phrases we say without even thinking come from? For example, “let’s have a road trip” sounds like something self-evident. But what is this “road trip”? Who invented it? The answer must be sought…
One of the main Orthodox holidays – the Protection of the Holy Mother of God – is celebrated on October 14. The Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos came to Russia from Byzantium and was established in…
Rostov-on-Don has historically been one of the most crime-ridden cities in Russia. Odessa has always been close on its heels. Detectives have encountered all kinds of crime in Rostov, mostly thefts of various kinds. Of course, there were plenty of…
There’s a saying in Russian culture that’s long become a formula for inspiration: “Boldino autumn.” It sounds so confident, as if nature and literature once shook hands and entered into a secret pact: you—silence and cold air, I—pages that will…
In 1600, Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in Rome. The renowned scholar, philosopher, and freethinker aroused the indignation of all church authorities—both Catholic and Protestant. He was no more welcome in Elizabethan England than in papal Italy. The…
Russian classics are a vast literary edifice, imbued with pain and concern for the fate of little people. Therefore, they have a universal resonance and remain popular in many countries around the world. Those of us over forty remember the…
Autumn is approaching its midpoint. It has already woven a colorful carpet across the earth; the clouds frown, seeing how nature has dressed up (they were so gray), and the rains weep for the passing summer. The harvest in the…