Horse. What does a horse mean in Feng Shui? What does the image of a horse's head mean?

The symbolism of the horse is extremely complex and not entirely clear. The horse symbolizes intelligence, wisdom, nobility, light, dynamic strength, agility, quickness of thought, and the passage of time. It is a typical symbol of fertility, courage and powerful power. This image is also an ancient symbol of the cyclical development of the world of phenomena (the horses carrying Neptune with a trident from the depths of the sea embody the cosmic forces of primeval chaos).

You can purchase symbolic images of a horse

As a solar force, a white, golden or fiery horse appears along with the solar gods (Helios, Ra, Indra, Mithra, Marduk), harnessed to their chariots; as the lunar (element of moisture, sea and chaos) force - the war horses of the oceanic gods, the divine horses of Poseidon. The winged horse is the Sun or the cosmic horse. It represents pure intellect, innocence, life and light; it is ruled by heroes. A frisky and fast horse can symbolize wind and sea foam, fire and light.

The horse is a psychopomp and messenger of the gods. In various traditions, the horse was once a funeral animal that transported the deceased to another world. Thus, the horse symbolizes both life and death (a pair of horses, white and black, represent life and death).

The suit of the horse is not random. In various traditions, one can notice the predominance of two colors: gray and red. On Russian icons depicting snake fighting, the horse is almost always either white or fiery red. In these cases, the color red clearly represents the color of flame, which corresponds to the fiery nature of the horse. White color is the color of otherworldly creatures, creatures that have lost their corporeality - wherever a horse plays a cult role, it is always white. Thus, the Greeks sacrificed only white horses; in the Apocalypse, death sits astride a “pale horse”; In German folk beliefs, death is riding on a skinny white nag.

The horse represents unbridled passions, natural instincts, and the unconscious. In this regard, in ancient times he was often endowed with the ability of prediction. In fairy tales (for example, those of the Brothers Grimm), the horse, as possessing the qualities of clairvoyance, was often entrusted with the task of promptly warning its masters. Jung believes that the horse expresses the magical side of Man, intuitive knowledge.

The most important and famous Vedic ritual - “horse sacrifice”, Ashvamedha. In its structure, elements of a cosmogonic nature are visible - the horse practically personifies the Cosmos and its sacrifice symbolizes (i.e. reproduces) the act of creation. The ritual was intended to cleanse the entire country of sin and ensure fertility and prosperity. Traces of this ritual can be found among the Germans, Iranians, Greeks and Latins.

The horse is the embodiment of the god Agni. He is the god of fire, a mediator between two worlds, accompanying the souls of the dead in the skies. In the Rig Veda, the sky is compared to a horse decorated with pearls.

Ashvins (“having horses” or “born of a horse”) are the divine twins of Vedic mythology, solar deities. Their role as divine healers is emphasized. They are “all-knowing”, “divine doctors” - they help in trouble, bring wealth, give vitality, and restore life to the dead.

IN Iranian mythology, the chariot of Ardvisura Anahita is harnessed by four white horses: wind, rain, cloud and sleet. One of the most colorful legends tells of the battle between Tishtria, personifying Sirius, and the demon of drought, Apaoshi. Every year they engage in single combat on the seashore. Tishtrya descends from the sky in the form of a white golden-eared horse. There he is met by Apaosha - a black, shabby, ugly horse. Much depended on the outcome of their battle - rains, fertility, life. This is a pan-Indo-European mythological story about the liberation of the world's waters as a result of a duel between the thunder god and a demonic opponent.

IN Chinese mythology horse - Heaven, fire, yang, south, speed, perseverance, good omen.

IN Buddhism a horse is something indestructible, the hidden nature of things. The winged or cosmic horse “Cloud” is one of the images of Avalokiteshvara. In Japan, one of its manifestations is the goddess Batō Kannon, the merciful Great Mother. She may appear either as a white horse, with the head of a horse, or wearing a crown with the figure of a horse.

Ancient Greece:
The creator, father or giver of horses appears to be Poseidon - the god of the sea, earthquakes and springs. In Greece, Poseidon was revered with the epithet Hippias (Equestrian). According to legend, the lover Poseidon pursued Demeter, but she, avoiding him, turned into a mare. Then Poseidon himself turned into a horse and united with Demeter, from this marriage Arion was born, a divine horse who could speak.

winged horse Pegasus was the son of Poseidon and Medusa. With a blow of his hoof, he opens a new key on Helikon - the “horse spring”, Hippocrene. White horses carry the solar chariot of Phoebus-Apollo, Helios rushes across the sky on a fiery four horses under a golden yoke, Dioscuri gallops on white horses.

U Romans white horses are harnessed to the chariots of Apollo and Mithras. Epona, borrowed from the Celts, becomes the Roman goddess - protector of horses. The horse is an attribute of Diana the Huntress.

Rider gods Celts often have the appearance of warriors. In Ireland and Wales, the word “horse” (Irish ech) is included in the names of many mythical characters associated with the solar cult and the other world. For example, the good god Dagda is called Eochaid, the Father of all, and one of the rulers of the Fomorians is called Eoho Echkend (“ Eoho horse head").

The goddess Epona was considered the heavenly patroness of horses. She was invariably depicted surrounded by horses, often with symbols of fertility and abundance. Epona was often identified with healing, in particular with hydrotherapy. In addition, her cult is associated with death; it is believed that she played the role of guide and guardian, guarding the souls of the dead during the transition to the underworld.

IN German-Scandinavian In mythology, the horse is dedicated to Odin, who rode the eight-legged mare Sleipnir. Clouds are the war horses of the Valkyries. In Christianity, a horse is the Sun, courage, nobility. The horse is the emblem of Saints George, Martin, Mauritius, Victor; wild horses are the emblem of Saint Hippolytus.

The four horses of the Apocalypse are war, death, famine and epidemic.

Chivalry:
“The knight owns a horse, symbolizing spiritual nobility, so that when mounted on it, the knight would rise above all people, so that he could be seen from afar and so that he himself could see far around and before others could do what his knightly duty tells him.” (Raymond Lull).

Slavism: Studying Scythian burials, they found that if the deceased had a favorite horse, then the relatives killed this horse at the grave, thinking that it would carry him to the land of spirits, or they cut off several horse hairs and put them in the grave. The hair gave the same power over the horse that it gives in a fairy tale. It is known that horses were buried along with soldiers. “They killed horses and slaves with the intention that these creatures, buried with the deceased, would serve him in the grave as they served during life.”

Shamanic tradition: The horse occupies a very special place in shamanic ritual and mythology. The horse, primarily a carrier of souls and a funeral animal, is used by the shaman in various situations as a means to help achieve a state of ecstasy. It is known that a typical shamanic attribute is an eight-legged horse. Eight-hoofed or headless horses are recorded in the mythology and rituals of German and Japanese “male unions.” The horse is a mythical image of Death, it delivers the deceased to the other world, and makes the transition from one world to another.

"A Brief Encyclopedia of Slavic Mythology" Shaparova N.S. Publishers: "AST", "ASTREL", "RUSSIAN DICTIONARIES". Moscow 2001

HORSE is one of the most mythologized sacred animals; attribute of the highest pagan gods and Christian saints; a chthonic creature associated with the cult of fertility and death, the afterlife; a guide to the “other world”. In ancient times, the horse was considered the brainchild of both Belbog (the element of light) and Chernobog (the element of darkness); in this case, a white horse was usually dedicated to the light god, and a black one to the dark one.

In popular beliefs, the horse was endowed with the ability to foretell fate, and above all, death. For this reason, horses were often used in fortune telling: for example, during Christmas fortune telling, Russian horses were blindfolded, sat on it backwards and watched: where it goes, the fortuneteller will marry. Once upon a time, at the temple of the supreme god of the Baltic Slavs, Sventovit, they kept a sacred white horse, which was brought to three rows of spears for fortune telling: if the horse stepped on the left foot, it was considered a bad sign, and if on the right, it was considered a good sign.

The horse has traditionally been an indispensable attribute of many deities, and especially the deities of war, thunder, etc. The most archaic in Slavic mythology is the image of a horseman (saint, epic hero, deity, etc.) slaying the Serpent. So, for example, Perun was invariably represented as a rider on a horse or chariot, striking Veles the Serpent. In general, many pagan deities were represented as mounted (for example, the seasonal deities Avsen and Yarila). In pagan times, sacred horses were kept at the temples of many high gods, and it was believed that the deities themselves rode these very horses; for example, according to legend, the god Sventovit rides out to battle with demons, etc., on his white sacred horse, kept at the temple.

Ivan Bilibin "Red Horseman"

In later times, when pagan gods were replaced by Christian saints, the horse began to be an attribute of many Christian characters. So, for example, such saints as St. George the Victorious and Elijah the Prophet were represented on horseback. In addition, saints appeared - patron saints of horses: they were, first of all, considered the “horsemen” Flor (Frol) and Laurus, as well as Yegoriy, Nikola and others. The days of remembrance of such saints were often called “horse holidays”: for example, among For the Eastern Slavs, such days were considered “Frol” (18.VIII) and St. George’s Day. Among the southern Slavs, St. was considered the patron saint of horses. Fedor (Todor) Tiron; Todor's Saturday (the first Saturday of Lent) was also a “horse holiday.”
On “horse holidays,” they did not work on the horses, fed them to their fill, and also performed various ritual actions with them: they brought them to the church and sprinkled them with holy water, bathed them, decorated their tail and mane with ribbons, organized horse shows and races (at the same time, , horses were forbidden to saddle), etc. In addition, in many places, on horse holidays, herds were driven through “earth gates”, “living fire”, etc. in order to protect horses from damage, disease, etc.

Ivan Bilibin "Black Horseman"
A characteristic feature of the “horse” saints and horse holidays was their calendar timing of periods of changing seasonal cycles: winter and spring (George and Todor), summer and autumn (Florus and Laurel). The connection of the horse with the cult of fertility and calendar rituals was also manifested in the custom of dressing up as a horse on Christmastide and other holidays. So, on St. George’s Day, the Russians made a “horse” (mummered), on which a shepherd rode; On the pasture, this “horse” entered into a funny fight with a “horse” from another village. During the ritual send-off of mermaids on Ivan Kupala, a carnival effigy was made using a mask - a horse skull, which at the end of the ritual was burned at the stake, thrown into the water, etc.; the horse skull here embodied evil spirits, a mermaid, a witch, death, etc., which had to be destroyed or expelled.
In funeral rites and in general rites associated with death, horses played a special role. In popular beliefs, the horse was associated with “the next world,” the afterlife, and was often perceived as a guide to the world of the dead. In pagan times, the horse was buried (burned) along with its owner; There was also a known custom of burying a fallen horse as a person, leaving an overturned sleigh on the grave.
Among family rituals, the horse occupied an important place in wedding customs. So, for example, in the Russian medieval wedding ceremony, a horse was given as a ransom for the bride; horses and mares were tied near the hay barn (basement), where the newlyweds spent their first wedding night, etc.

"Encyclopedia of symbols, signs, emblems" ed. "Lokid" 1999, "Myth" 1999

(HORSE) In the Revelation of John the Theologian, four horses are mentioned. A white horse means plague, a red horse means war, a black horse means hunger, a pale horse means death. The four horses of the Apocalypse constitute the eschatological motif of the end of the world. This is a notebook.
In Ancient Greece, the horse was sacred to Priapus. Traces of horse hooves were signs that bestowed grace. In later times, this function began to be performed by horseshoes, which were hung above the door.
Horses are symbols of the wind, which in turn is an attribute of female symbolism associated with sexuality and lust.
In the Germanic sagas, a wild hunter walking in the wind kidnapped and pursued girls. Wilderness areas often take their names from horses. In East Slavic folklore there is a motif of a wild hunt and a wild horseman. The souls of the dead gallop with King Stakh (Belarusian, folklore).

"Dictionary of Symbols" reference book Nadya Julien ed. Ltd. "Ural"

HORSE
universal energy, libido
The horse was a totemic animal of the Germanic peoples and a solar symbol: in racing, symbolizing the movement of the heavenly bodies, the horse embodied the sun.
- In the Bible, the horse is a symbol of the mind, designed to pacify instincts, just as a rider tames a wild horse.
The allegorical call: Gather together for the great supper of God to devour the corpses... of horses and those sitting on them (Apoc. XIX, 17, 18) - means a requirement to adapt the mind to divine truths, where the rider acts as a symbol of wisdom, which guides the mind, the cart , religious doctrine.
He does not look at the strength of the horse (Ps. CXLVI, 10) - he points to reason not supported by wisdom.
Do not be like a horse, like a foolish mule (Ps. XXXI, 9): the human mind is dulled in the desire for material things.
- In different interpretations, the meaning of the symbol depends on the suit of the Horse. In the Apocalypse, a white horse is a symbol of victory, a red horse is a symbol of destruction.

Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Black or deathly pale is associated with the moon and water and is the embodiment of the devil or curse.
White and winged (spirituality) symbolizes self-control: the Unicorn could only be caught by a virgin, endowed with strength and power so wonderful that the Christian Church made it a symbol of faith, purity and innocence. Winged Pegasus is a spiritualized life force: his hoof carved the light of intuition, poetic inspiration... The white horse transports the Holy Scriptures from India to Tibet. The sparkling horse carries Mohammed to heaven, O Mother archetype of fairy tales and legends, embodying purely animal and bodily life. The Horse is also a symbol of the mother’s womb: the Trojan horse served the fall of Troy, because it contained its enemies in its womb.

- The horse is a complex and multifaceted symbol. This is both a solar symbol of life and a chthonic image, symbolizing death in many subjects (mythological cannibal horses of Diomedes eating foreigners, the red horse of the Apocalypse, etc.). The horse is associated with all cosmic forces, with the feminine earthly and masculine spiritual principles. She is the embodiment of pride and the desire for dominion, alien to spirituality. The hidden inconsistency of the symbol is clearly presented in the mythological image of the centaur.

Associated with voluptuousness in medieval bestiaries, the horse is seen as a universal symbol of psychic energy put at the service of human passions, especially sexual desire, which, if uncontrolled, leads a person to self-destruction.
The horse also embodies impulsiveness, uncontrollability of desires, instinctive drives, which are the driving factors of human behavior. The horse was dedicated to Neptune-Poseidon, the god of the seas and storms, and was associated with the ardent Phaeton, who dared to go against the will of Zeus.
The connection of the Horse with the dark forces of human nature, with the masculine principle, sexuality has been noticed by many authors (Nietzsche through the mouth of Zarathustra: My legs are the legs of a horse, they mince and gallop, despite obstacles, and their rapid pace gives me devilish pleasure).
- A dreaming horse is a multifaceted symbol associated with mental processes, meaning the formation and certainty of instinctive drives that push a person to achieve real goals.
A black horse of death and destruction in a dream is synonymous with poverty; she embodies the negative, perverted libido. A white horse speaks of a loss of sense of reality and can be associated with death.
A horse that rears up, snorts, goes berserk, or runs away testifies to the inner immorality of the dreamer’s erotic life.

- The seventh sign of the Chinese horoscope, the Horse (ma) represents a cheerful and charming personality, but with a choleric temperament, changeable and stubborn. The Year of the Horse is hectic and filled with events that favor risky endeavors; intense and intense in the diplomatic and political spheres.

"Life of the Russian people" A. Tereshchenko "Russian book" 1999

HORSE
They take a white horse out of the stable at night, and in the absence of a white one, another one, and blindfold it. One of the girls gets on the horse and gives it the freedom to go wherever it wants. Whichever direction she goes, her betrothed will come from that side; but the horse always goes to the stable. The white horse is chosen because the devil's marks are visible on it if he has had time to ride it.
The most ancient Slavic fortune-telling with a horse also consists of moving it through a shaft or pole. If she gets caught with her feet, then her husband will be angry and her life will be unhappy; if he passes without getting caught, he will have a quiet, kind husband and a happy life. It is still in use in Little Russia and the north-eastern part of Russia, Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. To the island of Rügel, the priests transferred through a pole, with comments, the white horse on which the god Svyatovid rode. In Stettin they transferred a black horse over a spear. If he did not touch the spear with his feet, then success in the enterprise; and if touched, then failure or misfortune.

"Russian Hut" illustrated encyclopedia of St. Petersburg, "Art-St. Petersburg"

KONIK (MEN'S STORE). 1. A short wide bench built into the wall. In most of Russia, it took the form of a box with a hinged flat lid or a box with sliding doors.
The konik probably got its name from the horse’s head carved from wood that adorned its side. Konik was located in the residential part of the peasant house, near the door. It was considered a "men's" shop because it was a men's workplace. Here they were engaged in small crafts: weaving bast shoes, baskets, repairing harness, knitting fishing nets, etc. Under the conic there were also the tools necessary for these works.
The traditional idea of konik as a place for men persisted for quite a long time. So in villages located along the river. Vyatka, even back in the late 30s. XX century It was considered indecent for a woman to sit on a bunk. 2. A tall, thick, wide board fixed vertically near the door; fences off a short, or “men’s” shop from the entrance doors of the hut. It got its name because its upper part was given the shape of a horse's head.
Koniks were typical mainly for huts in the northern provinces of European Russia.

Encyclopedic dictionary "Slavic world of the 1st-16th centuries" V. D. Gladky, Moscow Tsentropolygraf 2001

KONEK, princeling, horse, prince - the upper edge (ridge) of a 2-slope, and sometimes 4-slope roof. In Russian wooden buildings, the roof was often covered on top for greater strength with a thick hollowed log, the front end of which was sometimes carved in the form of the head of a horse, deer, bird, etc.

"Encyclopedia of Superstitions" "Lokid" - "Myth" Moscow 1995

HORSE
When leaving home, meeting a white horse is a bad omen; you need to immediately spit on the ground to ward off trouble. (Yorkshire).
The bushwhack rips the soles off horses' hooves. (Everywhere).
A hog's scrotum with a hole tied to the stable door will protect horses from witchcraft. (Everywhere).
A horse with identical white “stockings” on its front legs brings misfortune to its owner; but if the stockings are on unpaired legs (for example, front and back), then it brings good luck.
If pestilence begins in a horse herd, it can be stopped by burning one of the sick horses entirely. (West Riding, Yorkshire).
If the horses croup towards the fence, expect a storm. (Everywhere).
On New Year's Day, wash a kitchen towel and dry it on the fence. If you then dry your horses with it, they will be fat and sleek. (Wales).
In the Yorkshire Riding, only about 80 years ago, the following method of treating a disease that affected horses' hooves was still common. His description is certified by the authority of St. G. Ormsby.
The horse's owner was to go out into his garden at midnight and "take out" the turf at the foot of the largest apple tree, and then carefully hang it on the highest branch of the tree, all in silence and solitude. When the turf “crumbled” to the ground, the disease left the animal.

This method of treatment was known in many other areas of Northern England, but with the addition that the turf was to be taken from the place where the diseased animal had grazed the grass.
Denham (Folk Lore of the North of England) states that many farmers did not use any other means to treat infected hooves and ignored all the advice of veterinarians, believing that hanging turf worked better.
In Alcombe, a dynasty of village blacksmiths for many generations possessed a talisman that could be used to remove nails from the arrows of horses' hooves and instantly heal wounds. The superstition associated with this talisman states that only one person can use it.
In 1940, the daughter of the last blacksmith began treating horses, and the treatment (albeit based on superstition) was always successful.
Without a horse, the land will not give birth, and without bread, there is no life for the peasant. In traditional agricultural Russia, the horse was revered as the main breadwinner: “A horse is a man’s wings.”
Caring for the horse was prescribed to the peasant by life itself, which is reflected in numerous Russian folk proverbs: “They don’t buy a whip for a horse, but oats. It’s not the horse that carries, but bread (or oats). The Cossack doesn’t eat himself, but feeds the horse. Don’t feed the horse ride, but feed the dough; don’t smooth it with your hand, sprinkle it with flour.”

Folk fantasy has poeticized the horse, endowing it with the gift of healing and the ability to protect from evil spirits, damage and the evil eye. Thus, during hysterical attacks, everywhere in Russia they put on a collar from a sweaty horse, smoke from a horse’s hoof was used to fumigate patients with fever, etc.
According to popular belief, the horse has a special intuition and by its behavior one can predict all sorts of changes in both family life and the weather: “If a horse unharnesses on the road, the house is unhealthy or the wife is unfaithful.” "Horses snort on the road - to a joyful meeting. A horse shakes its head and throws it up - to bad weather. A horse snores - to bad weather. A horse snorts - to rain. In winter, a horse lies down - to warmth." (Cf. the English belief about horses becoming “crouped to the fence” before a storm). “Fire brigades have a belief that if horses, beyond expectation, turn into the wrong street where they are being directed, then there will be a fire in that area; there will also soon be a fire near a burned-out house when the horses do not stand still and beat with their hooves; they also say Why should there be a fire in the city when they don’t stand still in the stable.”
In addition to exhausting agricultural labor, the horse shared with man all the hardships of wartime. It is no coincidence that in Russian fairy tales and epics the horse is always portrayed as a devoted battle friend, fearlessly fighting the enemy and often saving the hero’s life with his intelligence and magical knowledge.
At the same time, there is also the idea that a horse is a damned beast, in popular expression, “dog meat.” “The people say that the Mother of God put Christ in a manger and covered him with hay to bury him from the murderers sent by Herod. The ox standing at the manger, as if realizing the importance of the moment, stopped eating; but the horse ate and constantly opened the refuge of the Divine Child. Therefore, he concludes legend, God cursed the horse and said to it: “You will always eat and never be satisfied”... And God blessed the ox and said: “People will eat your meat.”
In a peasant farm, the care of horses is “given” to the house-elf (serf): “A horse is loved by the house-grandfather when it matches the color of the hair on the owner’s head and beard. The horse is afraid of the weasel, which sucks blood from the horse’s mane and head. The horse loves the goat, which stench and, at the same time, taking advantage of freedom, drives out all harmful animals"
But St. Frol and Laurus are widely considered to be the special protectors of horses in Russia. The Penza legend tells about the history of the patronage of these Saints to horses: “On the second day of the third Savior, a man plowed his “fallow” to sow winter rye. The horse balked and stopped; the man began to whip it with a whip, and then began to beat it with a stick with all his might. fell to her knees and neighed. The owner showered her with abuse and curses and threatened to plow a whole tithe* on her in one day. To this tale, out of nowhere two wanderers with staves appeared.
“Why are you beating the horse?” they ask the peasant. “After all, you will answer to God for it, every animal is in the account of God, and the horse itself knows how to pray to Him (1). Here, every week you have a holiday for rest , and your horse doesn’t have a single one all year round. Tomorrow is our day - Frol and Lavra: so we came to intercede and advise you to take your horse to the village to the church and punish the neighbors the same if they want their horses to be healthy and in We are strong and willing to work. We are assigned to the horses for protection. God ordered us to be their intercessors and intercessors before Him."...
According to Oryol belief, the veneration of these Holy Martyrs is caused by the following incident.

St. Frol and Laurus. Translation from an ancient Russian icon.

Both brothers, Frol and Lavr, lived by walking around the villages and digging wells. Once their work was so unsuccessful that the earth collapsed and buried both of them, and without anyone noticing it. And the well, by the way, collapsed in the usual manner. The only unusual thing was that puddle that began to flow from the collapse and revealed miraculous powers: one man’s stunted horse that walked here began to grow healthier - not from the oats (as it turned out according to the owner’s certificate), but precisely from this very swill. Others also began to drive their nags here and achieved the same thing. Then the men decided to dig a well in this place and came across Frol and Lavr there: both brothers were standing, with iron shovels in their hands, safe and sound. What is remarkable is the desire of the legends to associate these Saints of the Greek Church with the host of Saints of the Russian Church, as those who were most attuned to the needs of the Russian people." The Orthodox Church honors St. Frol and Laurus on August 31, popularly this day is called the "horse holiday." Even at the beginning of the 20th century century "in Moscow, on Myasnitskaya, opposite the post office, and near the ancient Frolovskaya Church, along the wall of the former Stroganov School of Painting, one could admire the exhibition of the most important Moscow trotters, brought here for prayer and still constituting the amateur weakness of the merchants, deeply rooted in the city morals. Another such varied and brilliant exhibition, not for boasting, but for the sake of prayer, only once provided free of charge for viewing by amateurs, can no longer be seen anywhere in the entire space of Great Russia.”
On the day of the celebration of St. Frol and Laurus, horses were brought to churches throughout Russia: “Up to 300-400 heads of horses are brought to the village... to be sprinkled with holy water... They are brought to the “horse festival” fed with sheep and even with hard-salted egg bread (2).
The manes and tails are combed, and the girls have woven into them ribbons or scraps of calico or calico of the brightest colors... A hundred miles away... from all sides people come here to serve the water blessing service after mass, and also after everyone is riding three They will have time to go around the churches once. The priest brings out the cross with holy water, blesses it with the cross and sprinkles it all the time, and everyone leading the horses past him tries to ensure that at least one drop of holy water falls on the horse.”
In some areas, after the prayer service and sprinkling of the horses, races were held.
“It has been established everywhere as a general and unchangeable rule to feed the horses to their fullest on this day and under no circumstances to work on them (even at the races it is not customary to saddle horses)”
In the remote provinces of Russia, even in the 19th century, the custom of sacrificing a horse or other domestic animal was preserved on the day of St. Frol and Laurus.
In a number of regions, on August 15, on the day of St. Stepan the Hayloft, “many villagers water ... horses through silver. Having bathed the horses, they lead them to the students, throw a small silver coin into the water and then water the horses from the cap, where the coin also lies. The villagers think that from this ritual the horses become kinder, are not afraid of the dashing eye, and come into the favor of the brownie. A silver coin is taken from the cap and placed, secretly from everyone, in the stable under the manger. In the old days, such a coin was often passed from father to son "

(1) Based on this belief, in the black earth provinces the custom is observed of hanging the image of Frol and Laurus in the stables, on the right side, above the manger; Rarely do people decide (for example), in Penza province, to defecate there, and in rare stalls a killed magpie is not hung up (to make the horses more cheerful). - Approx. S.V. Maksimova.
(2) “In some places, there is a custom of burying Frolovskaya prosphora (rye). Each householder carries one such prosphora in his bosom to break the house into pieces and give a piece to each yard animal, starting with a horse and ending with a pig. - Note SV. Maksimova

"Encyclopedia of signs and superstitions" Christina Hole, Moscow "Kron-press"

Horsehair
In earlier times, there was a belief that if horse hair was left in water, it would turn into eels. One of the authors of The Book of Days (1864) notes that just a few months before the book was written, a Suffolk man claimed to have proved this experimentally. He, he said, placed some horse hairs in a stream that ran past his house to see what would happen. In a very short time he discovered many young eels in the stream.
The fact that some types of worms resemble hair from a horse's mane or tail can probably be considered responsible for the famous folk remedy against worms in children. Acting on the magical principle that a disease can be cured by something resembling itself, caring parents cut the horsehair very finely, pressed it into a sandwich and gave it to the child to eat.
A remedy for goiter, described in Oxfordshire in the present century, was to ask the horseman for a few hairs from the horse's tail, without telling him why they were needed. If you then constantly wear this hair on your neck, the swelling will gradually subside and eventually disappear completely.
There was a firm belief among schoolchildren that if you hold a horsehair in your fist during a spanking, the rod will split and cannot be used, or, if it does not split, then at least the beat will not hurt.

A Dictionary of Symbols, Jack Tresidder, ed. "Grand" Moscow 2001.

"Encyclopedia of Symbols", Sheinina E.Ya. Publishing house "Torsing" Moscow 2003

The coat of arms is always depicted in profile. It is called mad (effare, carbe) if it appears rearing, playing (anime), if the color of the eyes differs from the color of the body, wild (gai), if it is without a bridle, bridled (bride), saddled (selle), covered with armor ( barde), blanket (caparaconne). The description accurately indicates the color of the decoration, harness and cover of the horse.
In the symbolism of Tibetan medicine, a horse is a substance that accompanies the main medicine to the affected organ.

"Dwelling in the rituals and ideas of the Eastern Slavs" A. K. Bayburin Leningrad "SCIENCE" 1983

Of particular interest is the upper part of the roof. “A thick log with an angular groove at the bottom was placed on top of the gap formed by the converging edges of both slopes at the top; This is a stupid thing, a shell. With its weight, it pinched the roof shingles and kept them from being blown away by the wind. The front, butt part of the ohlupnya, covering from the façade the joint of the timber and the end of the prince’s sleg, was often hewn in the shape of a horse or a bird.” The upper edge of the prince's sleg (horse) was called the horse or prince. The image of a horse's head on the roof is apparently connected not only with the cosmic (“solar”) symbolism of the horse.

Solar signs are the solar disk under the roof and the ridge.

Bronze "noisy" pendant-horse. Old Ladoga, ca. 10th century.

Bronze "noisy" pendant-horse. Vodskaya land, ca. 10th century.

Paired horses in Russian folk and church art.

1 – ridge on the roof of the hut. Arkhangelsk province, XIX century; 2.3 – Sun and Month. Miniatures of the Kyiv Psalter, 1397; 4 – North Russian embroidery (according to B. A. Rybakov).

Taking into account what was said in the section on the “construction sacrifice”, we can assume that there is a connection between the horse heads that were sacrificed and the “skates” on the roof. The house, as if “growing” from a horse’s head buried in the ground, was crowned with its image, which gave the entire dwelling the appearance of a horse in terms of the overall architectural design.147 The house-horse analogy apparently includes another semantic layer: ideas about life and death.148 It is known that horse skulls displayed on fences, on poles, had the meaning of a talisman.

And finally, the horse (princeling) on the roof can be considered as one of the implementations of the common Indo-European motif of a horse at the world tree, examined in detail by Vyach. Sun. Ivanov,149 despite the fact that the house, as has been repeatedly said, can act as a substitute for the world tree. Vyach. Sun. Ivanov views the horse at the world tree as a substitute for human sacrifice. The fact of replacement is also important to us. The fact that the horse was considered in many cultural traditions as the most adequate replacement for a person serves as further confirmation of our interpretation of the synonymy of “horse” and “princeling.”150

In mythology, the horse has an ambiguous meaning. As the solar force, a white, golden or fiery horse appears with the Sun gods, harnessed to their chariots; as the lunar (moisture element, sea and chaos) force - the war horses of the oceanic gods. Thus, the horse symbolizes both life and death.

The horse also symbolizes intellect, wisdom, intelligence, reason, nobility, light, dynamic strength, agility, quickness of thought, and the passage of time. She has an instinctive, sensitive animal nature, magical powers of deification and symbolizes the wind and sea waves. Appears in images of the fertility gods and Vanir. The devil can ride on it, and then it becomes phallic. If the rider is a Wild Hunter and Earl-King, it means death.

The winged horse is the Sun or the cosmic horse. It represents pure intellect, innocence, purity, life and light; it is ruled by heroes. At a later time, the horse replaced the bull in sacrifices. Both of them personify the gods of Heaven and fertility, male power, as well as chthonic forces.
The white horse of the ocean relates to both the principle of water and the principle of fire. A lion killing a bull or a horse means the Sun, drying up moisture and fog.

A black horse is a sign of a funeral. Foretells death and symbolizes chaos. Appears during the twelve days of chaos between the old and new years. The sacrifice of the October horse means the death of death. In Buddhism, a horse is something indestructible, the hidden nature of things. The winged or cosmic horse "Cloud" is one of the images of Avalokiteshvara or Guan Yin. Buddha left home on a white horse. In Chinese Buddhism, a winged horse carries the Book of the Law on its back. Among the Celts, the horse is an attribute or image of horse gods, such as Epona, the Great Horse, the mare goddess, Mebd of Thar and Macha of Ulster, protector of horses as chthonic deities and forces of death. The horse can also be a solar symbol as a sign of courage, fertility; in addition, he is a psychopomp and messenger of the gods. In Chinese mythology, the horse is Heaven, fire, yang, south, speed, perseverance, good omen.
The horse is one of the seven symbolic animals of the Twelve Earthly Branches. Its hoof (not a horseshoe) brings good luck. When the cosmic horse is solar, it is contrasted with the earthly cow, but, appearing with the dragon symbolizing Heaven, the horse represents the earth. A winged horse carrying the Book of the Law on its back is a sign of good luck and wealth.

In marriage symbolism, the horse means speed and accompanies the groom, a strong lion, the bride is accompanied by flowers. The horse is a typical symbol of fertility and powerful power. In Christianity, a horse is the Sun, courage, nobility. Later, during the Renaissance, it began to symbolize lust. In catacomb images, a horse meant the rapid passage of time. The four horses of the Apocalypse are war, death, famine and epidemic. The horse is the emblem of Saints George, Martin, Mauritius, Victor; wild horses are the emblem of Saint Hippolytus. It is noteworthy that the horse is completely absent from Egyptian symbolism. Among the Greeks, white horses carry the sun chariot of Phoebus and, being the principle of humidity, are associated with Poseidon as the god of the sea, earthquakes and springs. Poseidon can appear in the form of a horse. The Dioscuri ride on white horses. Pegasus means the transition from one level to another, it carries the lightning of Zeus. Centaurs often appear in rites dedicated to Dionysus. In Hinduism, the horse is the physical ship, and the rider is the spirit. Manu's mare is the deified earth. The white horse Kalki is the final incarnation or vehicle of Vishnu as he appears for the tenth time, bringing peace and salvation to the world. Varuna, the cosmic horse, was born from the waters. Gandharvas, horse people, are a combination of natural fertility and abstract thinking, intelligence and music. The horse is the guardian of the South. In Iranian mythology, Ardvisura Anahita's chariot is drawn by four white horses: wind, rain, cloud and sleet. The Magician's Chariot is drawn by four war horses, symbolizing the four elements and their gods. In Islam, a horse is happiness and wealth. In Japanese mythology, the white horse is a vehicle or form of manifestation of Bato Kwannon, corresponding to the Indian Buddhist Avalokiteshvara and the Chinese Guan Yin, the goddess of mercy and the Great Mother. She may appear either as a white horse, with the head of a horse, or with the figure of a horse wearing her crown. The black horse is an attribute of the rain god. In Mithraism, white horses carry the chariot of Mithras as the sun god. The Romans have white horses harnessed to the chariots of Apollo and Mithras. Epona, borrowed from the Celts, becomes the Roman goddess - protector of horses. She was also a funeral deity. The Dioscuri ride on white horses. The horse is an attribute of Diana the Huntress. In Scandinavian and Teutonic mythology, the horse is dedicated to Odin, who rode the eight-legged mare Sleipnir. The horse appears accompanied by Vanir as the god of fields, forests, sun and rain. Clouds are the war horses of the Valkyries. In the shamanic tradition, the horse is a psychopomp; means the transition from this world to another. In addition, it is associated with sacrifice and is a sacrificial animal in Siberia and Altai. The horse's skin and head have ritual significance.

The skin, like the golden fleece, carries the symbolism of fat, and the head contains the life principle. In Sumerian-Semitic mythology, the chariot of the sun god Marduk was drawn by four horses. The horse's head was the emblem of Carthage. The winged horse appears on Assyrian reliefs and Carthaginian coins. In Taoism, a horse is an attribute of Chang Kuo, one of the eight immortal Taoist geniuses. Symbol of animal vitality, speed and beauty. With the exception of Africa and the Americas, where horses mysteriously disappeared for many millennia until the Spanish introduced them, the horse was everywhere associated with the advent of dominant civilizations and with superiority. A broken horse is an important symbol of power; hence the popularity of equestrian statues. In rock art, as in romantic art, horses “float on the surface” - the embodiment of the power of life. They were associated with the elemental power of wind, storm, fire, waves and flowing water. Compared to other animals, their symbolism is least limited, extending from light to dark, from heaven to earth, from life to death. In many rituals, the horse served as a symbol of the continuity of life. Every October, the Romans sacrificed a horse to the god of war and fertility, Mars, and kept its tail throughout the winter as a symbol of fertility. According to ancient beliefs, the horse knew the secrets of the afterlife, the earth and the cycles of its development. This early chthonic Norse god Symbol was replaced more widely by Odin riding an eight-legged horse by the common association of lo-Sleipnir (shadi carving with the gods of the sun and sky, although in stone) horses continued to play a role in funeral rites as guides or messengers to the afterlife. The riderless horse is still used as a bitter symbol in the funerals of military leaders and statesmen. Death is usually represented as a black horse, but he also rides a pale horse in the book of Revelation. The white horse is almost always a solar symbol of light, life and spiritual enlightenment. She is the emblem of the Buddha (he is said to have left earthly life on a white horse), the Hindu Kalki (the last incarnation of Vishnu), the merciful Bato Kannon in Japan, and the Prophet in Islam (for whom horses were emblems of happiness and prosperity). Christ is sometimes depicted riding a white horse (Christianity thus associates the horse with victory, ascension, courage and generosity). The white horse, symbolizing the chalk lands of southern England, was depicted on the banners of the Saxons; Perhaps this symbolism was associated with the Celtic horse goddess Epona, who came from Roman mythology and was considered the patroness of horses.

Winged horses are also a solar and spiritual symbol. Horses drive the chariot of the sun in ancient, Iranian, Babylonian, Indian and Scandinavian mythologies. They are ridden by many other gods, including Odin, whose eight-legged horse Sleipnir symbolized the eight winds. The clouds were the horses of the Valkyries, Scandinavian warrior maidens, servants of the goddess Freya. Although the horse has been primarily associated with elemental or innate power, it can also symbolize the speed of thought. Legends and folklore often imbue horses with magical powers of divination.

The most important and famous Vedic ritual is the “horse sacrifice”, Ashvamedha. In its structure, elements of a cosmogonic nature are visible - the horse practically personifies the Cosmos and its sacrifice symbolizes (i.e. reproduces) the act of creation. The ritual was intended to cleanse the entire country of sin and ensure fertility and prosperity. Traces of this ritual can be found among the Germans, Iranians, Greeks and Latins.

The Ashvins ("having horses" or "born of a horse") are the divine twins of Vedic mythology, solar deities. Their role as divine healers is emphasized. They are “all-knowing”, “divine doctors” - they help in trouble, bring wealth, give vitality, and restore life to the dead.

In Iranian mythology, Ardvisura Anahita's chariot is drawn by four white horses: wind, rain, cloud and sleet. One of the most colorful legends tells of the battle between Tishtria, personifying Sirius, and the demon of drought, Apaoshi. Every year they engage in single combat on the seashore. Tishtrya descends from the sky in the form of a white golden-eared horse. There he is met by Apaosha - a black, shabby, ugly horse. Much depended on the outcome of their battle - rains, fertility, life. This is a pan-Indo-European mythological story about the liberation of the world's waters as a result of a duel between the thunder god and a demonic opponent.

In Chinese mythology, the horse is Heaven, fire, yang, south, speed, perseverance, good omen.

In Buddhism, a horse is something indestructible, the hidden nature of things. The winged or cosmic horse "Cloud" is one of the images of Avalokiteshvara. In Japan, one of its manifestations is the goddess Batō Kannon, the merciful Great Mother. She may appear either as a white horse, with the head of a horse, or wearing a crown with the figure of a horse.

Ancient Greece:
The creator, father or giver of horses appears to be Poseidon - the god of the sea, earthquakes and springs. In Greece, Poseidon was revered with the epithet Hippias (Equestrian). According to legend, the lover Poseidon pursued Demeter, but she, avoiding him, turned into a mare. Then Poseidon himself turned into a horse and united with Demeter, from this marriage Arion was born, a divine horse who could speak.

The winged horse Pegasus was the son of Poseidon and Medusa. With a blow of his hoof, he opens a new key on Helikon - the “horse spring”, Hippocrene. White horses carry the solar chariot of Phoebus-Apollo, Helios rushes across the sky on a fiery four horses under a golden yoke, Dioscuri gallops on white horses.

The Romans have white horses harnessed to the chariots of Apollo and Mithras. Epona, borrowed from the Celts, becomes the Roman goddess - protector of horses. The horse is an attribute of Diana the Huntress.

The horse gods of the Celts often have the appearance of warriors. In Ireland and Wales, the word "horse" (Irish ech) is included in the names of many mythical characters associated with the solar cult and the other world. For example, the good god Dagda is called Eochaid, the Father of all, and one of the rulers of the Fomorians is called Eoho Ehkend (“Eoho horse’s head”).

In German-Scandinavian mythology, the horse is dedicated to Odin, who rode the eight-legged mare Sleipnir. Clouds are the war horses of the Valkyries. In Christianity, a horse is the Sun, courage, nobility. The horse is the emblem of Saints George, Martin, Mauritius, Victor; wild horses are the emblem of Saint Hippolytus.

The four horses of the Apocalypse are war, death, famine and epidemic.

Chivalry:
“The knight owns a horse, symbolizing spiritual nobility, so that when mounted on it, the knight would rise above all people, so that he could be seen from afar and so that he himself could see far around and before others could do what his knightly duty tells him.” (Raymund Lull).

Slavism:
Studying Scythian burials, they found that if the deceased had a favorite horse, then the relatives killed this horse at the grave, thinking that it would carry him to the land of spirits, or they cut off several horse hairs and put them in the grave. The hair gave the same power over the horse that it gives in a fairy tale. It is known that horses were buried along with soldiers. “They killed horses and slaves with the intention that these creatures, buried with the deceased, would serve him in the grave as they served during life.”

Shamanic tradition:
The horse occupies a very special place in shamanic ritual and mythology. The horse, primarily a carrier of souls and a funeral animal, is used by the shaman in various situations as a means to help achieve a state of ecstasy. It is known that a typical shamanic attribute is an eight-legged horse. Eight-hoofed or headless horses are recorded in the mythology and rituals of German and Japanese “male unions.” The horse is a mythical image of Death, it delivers the deceased to the other world, and makes the transition from one world to another.

In the eastern calendar, the Blue Horse symbolizes dynamism and assertiveness, a combination of prudence and fiery passion. The Year of the Horse corresponds to colors such as green and blue. The element is wood, which has such characteristics as practicality, immoderation, and temper.

Although the year will not be complete without jumping and kicking, so characteristic of the Horse. This year will be fast-paced, sometimes you will need to stop and think about what is happening so as not to get into trouble. It is also better not to be stubborn, although this is the main trait of the Horse, but stubbornness is good only in moderation.

In the year whose symbol is the Horse, only hardworking and persistent people will have good luck. The horse is a hard worker and does not tolerate lazy people. At the same time, it is good if there are no restrictions in the work, but only freedom of thought and creativity. Horses do not like confined spaces. The Horse also does not like monotony, so the year under the symbol of the Horse will be full of events and changes.

For love, the year whose symbol is the Horse is also very suitable. But at the same time, you should not get too carried away and succumb to emotions, you need to leave your mind, otherwise you can make a mess. The Horse's stubbornness is not the best quality, so in relation to loved ones it is better not to go too far, so as not to put up with it urgently.

Hard work and the desire to work will be very useful to you if the symbol of the year is the Horse.

You can purchase symbolic images of a horse

IN Chinese mythology horse - Heaven, fire, yang, south, speed, perseverance, good omen.

The four horses of the Apocalypse are war, death, famine and epidemic.

Horse. What does a horse mean in Feng Shui? What does the image of a horse's head mean?

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