Moscow > Ubiquitous magic

Ubiquitous magic

Historians name the year 988 as the date of adoption of Christianity in Russia and the mass baptism of Slavs. Prince of Kiev Vladimir Sviatoslavovich tried to get rid of polytheism and the worship of nature as soon as possible with force and steely resolve. Despite all this, many old customs remain, but now have a Christian flavour. Moscow, founded on the site of ancient Slavic and Finno-Ugric settlements, has remembered paganism for long centuries. Even during the reign of the devout Alexei Mikhailovich, Muscovites celebrated Kupala (traditional Slavic goddess) and Kolyada (ancient winter festival), driving the Tsar mad. The faith in the result of a performed ritual that remains from paganism is still going strong. The ritual places might have changed, but the essence of the "magic thinking" remains the same.