DescriptionBanyas are steam baths with wood stoves in buildings designed for dry or wet sauna sessions. After the first sweat it was customary to cool off in cold water in a lake or river. In winter one may roll in snow with no clothes on or dip in lakes where holes have been cut into the ice. After each sweat, cooling off is repeated and patrons use the break to drink beer, tea, or other beverages, play games or relax in good company in an antechamber to the steam room.Every banya was also inhabited by a spirit called the Bannik. He was thought to be a wizened little man with wild white hair and a long, straggly beard, long nails and hairy hands. Living behind the stove, his temperament was very capricious and sometimes considered malicious. In anger he might throw boiling water or even burn down the bathroom. He liked to spy on bathers, particularly undressed women, and he was able to predict the future. To consult him stand with your back exposed in the half-open door of the bathhouse. If the future predicts good, he strokes the back lovingly, if there are bad prospects he will grab your back with his claws.The banya is a huge part of slavic folklore and has songs, proverbs, aphorisms, poems written about it. The cultural importance goes beyond the day-to-day, with events linked to the banya ritual. Couples visited a banya when they married; and it was customary for Russian grooms to carry their new bride over the banya threshold to avoid birth complications, women gave birth in banyas, with midwives trained to deliver babies inside. Even in death, they brought people together, with mourners gathering in the banya after the funeral to ensure their loved ones were warm for their journey to the afterlife. Although these traditions are not followed so much today, many continue to gather regularly in the bathhouse for that sense of community, to be together, to celebrate and to mourn. – Ethan PollockBurn incense as offerings, to carry your wishes, desires, and when casting your spellwork.10 cones per pack Need an incense burner?Made in Ukraine
