An attempt at a Christian reading of “The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish”

Practitioners advise purchasing a magical fish-shaped amulet for people who want to improve their financial situation, gain luck, and also wisdom. A figurine of a sea creature will bring harmony to the family and protect against poverty. Depending on the desired result, a specific type of fish is selected. The amulet can also be given to a child to protect against diseases and the evil eye. An additional advantage of the fish mascot is the absence of side effects.

Symbol meaning

Even in the late period of the Stone Age, a cult of veneration of fish was formed, since magical properties were attributed to aquatic creatures and considered deities. When there was not enough food, ancient people living near rivers or seas were saved by fishing. The fish has become a symbol of salvation from starvation. Stone figures and bas-reliefs were placed in temples, holy places and in houses. In the burials of the nobility, figurines are still found, which, according to beliefs, acted as a guide for the dead in the afterlife and brought good luck in another world. Most often, sculptures of aquatic inhabitants 15-20 cm long were made from clay, clastic sedimentary rocks, and later from marble. The cult is especially popular on the coast of the rivers of Siberia and Lake Baikal.

Since ancient times, the fish has symbolized luck and wealth, which is why practitioners recommend purchasing an amulet to improve all areas of life, make successful acquaintances and conclude a profitable deal.

The fish pendant is also suitable for children, as it will protect them from the evil eye and ill-wishers. A talisman made of gold will help your cherished dream come true, and a talisman made of silver will reconcile quarreling people. Cupronickel will be a good material for a magical amulet if you need to gain wisdom, curb negative emotions and learn to make concessions.

Goldfish is a talisman of good luck in business according to Feng Shui, embodied in a cross-stitched panel

Hello! Today I want to talk a little about the Feng Shui symbols that came to us from China. Each nation has its own talismans that have sacred meaning. Their symbols carry information about happiness, luck, and wealth. Feng Shui talismans, originally from China, have received a wide response and special veneration in our country. This is due to both the special attitude towards Chinese culture and the beneficial effects that Feng Shui symbols bring.

Historically, the Feng Shui tradition is associated with a positive change in the energy of the surrounding world in order to harmoniously influence fate. Changes in destiny occur by attracting harmonious energies to a specific person or place. If you want to change the atmosphere in your home or attract nice people, then Feng Shui talismans will do it great! You just need to realize that the talismans themselves will not change anything in the house and they will not change the career itself either. But they will be able to attract the right energies into the space, or just good people. In addition, Feng Shui energy protects space and people from adverse influences. And all this will begin to change your destiny and life in the direction you want!

A lot can be said about talismans in Feng Shui, since this eastern theory presents a whole arsenal of all kinds of helpers that contribute to the harmonization of one or another sphere of human life.

Among the variety of talismans, feng shui symbols stand out, which are especially in demand in our country. One of the most popular symbols is the Goldfish. The goldfish is a hero not only of Russian folklore, but also of the Chinese practice of Feng Shui. This talisman is revered not only in the east, but also in many cultures around the world. The word fish itself in Chinese also means happiness, luck, abundance, so the Feng Shui fish is a talisman that brings prosperity and well-being. The most popular and at the same time effective in matters of financial stability is considered to be a talisman in the form of a goldfish.

Panels came to us from Ancient China and to this day are considered exquisite decorations inside any room. They perform not only an aesthetic, but also a practical function. They depict a wide variety of Feng Shui symbols and talismans. Panels with fish are very popular in Feng Shui. Their goal is to attract good luck and material well-being.

This symbol is unique in that it can be placed in any area of ​​the house and it will activate it. However, most of all it gravitates to the southeast, the zone of Wealth, and attracts good luck, prosperity, and promotes career and professional growth.

Do you want good luck in business? Place the Goldfish talisman picture next to your workplace. It will bring prosperity and material well-being! And for Feng Shui symbols to work, be sure to believe that they will help you!

PS If you liked it, please press the button.

Which fish amulet should you buy?

Depending on the desired result, practitioners recommend paying attention to the abodes of the underwater world presented in the table:

Goldfish meaning

In ancient Egypt, the image of two goldfish was associated with the course of family life and the relationship of spouses to each other. The inconsistency of spiritual structures was expressed in different directions of movement - either in one direction or towards each other. The golden color personified solar energy; it was not for nothing that the Egyptians believed that fish accompanied the boat of the Sun god into the sea and warned of the sudden appearance of aggressive snakes.

The ancient Greeks personified the goldfish with fertility and love interests. And for the Romans, the silence and coldness of the water inhabitants became attributes of funerals, the relocation of souls to the afterlife. Among the Greeks there was a belief that it was the fish that transferred the spirit of a deceased person into the fetus of a pregnant woman.

For the Slavs, the goldfish's inability to make sounds became the reason to consider it the embodiment of the silent spirit. This meant not only the souls of dead people, but also of unborn children. That is why fairy tales and legends were born that infertile women could become pregnant by eating a fish or seeing it in a dream.

The Chinese associated the image of a goldfish with the opportunity to easily get rich, find harmony in the family, and abundance in the home. The image of fish in water signified sensual sexual pleasures and the enjoyment of love games. In China, the golden carp is a symbol of perseverance, strong will and courage; the possession of these qualities helped to become more perfect, more successful and achieve the conquest of any peaks. A drawing of a goldfish was included in engravings with wishes for “gold and precious stones, high-ranking children, longevity and abundance.”

An attempt at a Christian reading of “The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish”

Bishop of Tsalka Gregory (Katsiya) was born in 1972 in Sukhumi, in Saratov he first graduated from school and then from the State Medical University, after which he completed postgraduate and doctoral studies at the Moscow Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery named after. Bakuleva. Doctor of Medical Sciences, specialist in cardiovascular surgery. In 2010, he was tonsured a monk and ordained a hierodeacon and hieromonk. Since 2013, Bishop of the Tsalka Diocese of the Georgian Orthodox Church.

All the more interesting is the Christian interpretation of “Tales of the Fisherman and the Fish”, familiar to all of us from childhood, by A.S. Pushkin, which Bishop Gregory does based on the ascetic context of most of the images in this parable.

We will begin to tell fairy tales... of the Orthodox antiquity!.. It is so gratifying to the soul to listen... Who came up with them so well?

A. S. Pushkin

The whole world is one long parable, made up of countless parables.

Saint Nicholas of Serbia

One of these parables is the unusual “The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish” by A.S. Pushkin, in which, if desired, you can see many gospel images and meanings. The main characters of this fairy tale are well known to everyone: an evil and insatiable old woman, an obedient and selfless old man, an almighty goldfish. But other, inanimate participants in the fairy tale-parable - the sea, the dugout, the trough, the yarn, the net, the stable, the kingdom - have biblical meaning.

The leitmotif of this tale can serve as the wisdom of Solomon: He who trusts in his wealth will fall (Proverbs 11: 28). And it is clear that the evil old woman deserves this fate. But why is the kind old man, who finds himself at a broken trough with his wife, punished in the same way? After all, in fact, he did nothing wrong. He did not ask for anything for himself and humbly fulfilled his “obedience,” but was condemned along with the grumpy woman and was left with nothing.

Let's try to explain this tale in the light of the Gospel and Orthodox anthropology.

The gospel subtext is indicated by the number of years the old man and old woman lived by the sea - thirty years and three years - the age of Christ. The fish is an early Christian symbol of the Lord Jesus Christ. Gold is a symbol of divinity, holiness and eternity.

Zemlyanka (earth) is the human body, it is created from earth; the old man is the mind, the old woman is the heart of a person

Who could the old man and the old woman who live in the dugout be? The dugout (earth) is the human body, it is created from earth (see: Gen. 2:7), the old man is the mind, the old woman is the human heart. The sea is human life (the sea of ​​life).

The old woman (heart) is always in the dugout (house, mansion, palace), that is, the heart does not go beyond the boundaries of its body. The old man (mind) walks all over the world, the sea of ​​life, and brings various news to the heart, including miraculous ones.

The old man (mind) throws a net (net) into the sea. According to Theophylact of Bulgaria, such an image signifies the depth of a person’s thoughts and knowledge.

Once he threw a net into the sea, - The net came with nothing but mud.

Tina in this case is something small, vain, like the poet N. Nekrasov: “I plunged into the unclean mud of petty thoughts, petty passions” (“A Knight for an Hour”, 1862).

Another time he cast a net, and a net came with sea grass.

Grass is often found in the Bible as a symbol of the temporary, transient, impermanent: A man is like grass, his days are like a flower of the field, so he fades away (Ps. 102:15). For all flesh is like grass, and all the glory of men is like the flower of the grass: the grass withered, and its flower fell (1 Pet. 1:24).

For the third time he cast the net, - The net came with one fish, With a difficult fish - a golden one. How the goldfish prays! In a human voice he says: “You, elder, let me go to sea, Dear, I’ll give a ransom for myself: I’ll pay off with whatever you want.” The old man was surprised and frightened: He fished for thirty years and three years and never heard a fish speak. He released the golden fish and said a kind word to it: “God be with you, golden fish!”

Every person in his life one way or another meets the Lord, but does not recognize Him. Sometimes in the form of strangers, or the needy, the sick, languishing in prison (Matthew 25: 31–46). Moreover, according to Orthodox teaching, we must see the Lord in our neighbor. But we do not honor God in the Lord, and we do not see His image in our neighbor (hieromonk Vasily Roslyakov).

The ransom that the fish speaks of is a reminder of the ransom for our immortal soul: What good is it to a man if he gains the whole world, but loses his own soul? Or what ransom will a man give for his soul? (Matthew 16:26). How can an omnipotent goldfish, which fulfills any desire and falls into human hands of its own free will, pay off? Here is an analogy with the voluntary suffering of Christ at the hands of men.

The old man returned to the old woman and told her a great miracle.

An interesting psychological action takes place. The mind brings news, events, miracles to the heart. There is a dialogue between the mind and the heart. This is how Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov) describes such a dialogue in his article “Conference of the soul with the mind” (in this case, soul and heart are synonymous):

“The soul turns to the mind:

- My mind! You are the leader of the soul. Instruct me! Teach me how to curb and suppress the passions that arise within myself.

The mind turns to the soul.

– My answer will be disappointing. And I, along with you, soul, am stricken with sin. My major flaw lies in the incessant entertainment that rapes me. Struck by entertainment, I soar, wander throughout the entire universe without need and without benefit... Because of my entertainment, you remain in bitterness... Because of my entertainment, forgetfulness overwhelms me: I forget God, I forget eternity. We, the soul, constitute one spiritual being: I think, you feel. But we are not only damaged by sin, we are cut by it, as it were, into two separate beings, almost always acting opposite to one another. We are separated, opposed to each other, we are separated from God!

Soul.

- Give me some advice on how to get out of our general disorder? The heart cannot fight thought for long: it always submits to it. My mind! Be a guide to our common salvation.

Mind.

– I agree that the heart does not resist thought for long. But it, having shown submission for a moment, again rebels against the most correct, against the most godly thought, rebels with such strength and bitterness that it almost always overthrows and carries me away. Together with you, I am buried in a cramped and gloomy tomb of invisibility and ignorance of God.

Soul.

- My mind! Turn to the Word of God, from which we have already borrowed countless benefits, but have lost them through our negligence, our coldness towards the gifts of God.

Mind.

“And you, soul, must renounce your will, no matter how painful it may be for your heart .” Instead of your own will, you must fulfill the will of Christ, our God and Savior, no matter how disgusting and cruel it may be for a self-loving heart .

Soul.

“Lead me, my mind, following the commands of God.”

This is the kind of wise, deep and saving dialogue that could take place. In a fairy tale, the opposite happens.

The old woman scolded the old man: “You are a fool, you simpleton! You didn’t know how to take ransom from a fish! If only you could take the trough from it, ours is completely split.”

The old woman’s demands begin with the trough and end with the earthly kingdom. How similar this is to satisfying the passions of gluttony, love of money and vanity, those temptations that Adam could not resist and which the Lord Jesus Christ repelled.

It is worthy of attention how the old woman becomes a noblewoman.

The old man says to his old woman: “Hello, madam noblewoman! Tea, now your darling is happy.” The old woman shouted at him and sent him to serve in the stable.

Why to the stables, and not to the cows or pigs? The Holy Fathers say this: “The mind is only a workhorse of the heart” (Saint Alexy Mechev). And the holy king and psalmist David even warns us not to be like a foolish old man: Do not be like a horse and a mule, who have no understanding (Ps. 32:9).

The more the old woman asks, the angrier she gets. An interesting analogy can be drawn between the old woman who wants to become a queen and a real historical figure. This was Empress Eudoxia, the unofficial ruler under the weak Emperor Arcadia. Saint John Chrysostom openly denounced her for her immoderate luxury and sinful behavior. For this, Eudoxia sentenced the saint to death, replacing it with the expulsion of Chrysostom from Constantinople. John Chrysostom talks about this time like this: “The storms raised against me, the sea thrown down on me, the fury of sovereigns and the mighty of this world... all this for me is nothing more than a web.” This is how he describes the spiritual atmosphere during the persecution: “We see that the sea is rising violently from the very bottom ... we see neither sky nor sea, but everywhere only deep, hopeless, gloomy darkness.”

Why to the stables? The Holy Fathers wrote: “The mind is only a workhorse of the heart.”

The same spiritual atmosphere is depicted in the fairy tale:

Here an old man goes to the blue sea, He sees a black storm on the sea: And so the angry waves swell, And so they walk, and so howl and howl.

By the stormy sea, the holy fathers also understand the fallen world and carnal passions. And the stronger human madness, the higher the waves of the stormy sea of ​​worldly passions. The old woman orders the old man:

“Turn back, bow to the fish, I don’t want to be a free queen, I want to be the mistress of the sea, so that I can live in the Okiyan-sea, so that a golden fish can serve me and be on my errands.”

We know who wanted to become above God and how it ended. Unfortunately, in this tale, the old man and the old woman make the same mistake when they plan to become higher than God. And they are left with nothing.

If the dugout is the human body, the old man is the mind, the old woman is the heart, then what is the trough? We read in the explanatory dictionary: a trough is a household item for washing clothes and feeding livestock. Why do they need a trough?

Let us remember the words from the Great Penitential Canon of St. Andrew of Crete:

“I have defiled the garment of my flesh, O Savior, and have polluted that which is Your image and likeness. With the pleasures of passions I have darkened the beauty of my soul and completely turned my entire mind into dust. Now I have torn my first garment, which the Savior wove for me in the beginning, and therefore I lie naked. I have put on tattered clothes, which the serpent wove for me through deceit, and (therefore) I am ashamed” (Monday. Song 2).

“And sin sewed “leather vestments” for me, taking off my old woven clothes. Like fig leaves, I clothed myself with the robe of shame to expose my self-willed passions. I dressed myself in clothes shamefully stained and disgustingly bloodied by the outflows of a passionate and lustful life. I decorated the idol of the flesh with multi-colored clothing of vile thoughts and am subject to condemnation” (Tuesday. Canto 2).

“The community, organized according to God, is a spiritual laundry, washing away all filth... and all the ugliness of the soul”

You can also quote the words from the “Ladder” of the holy abbot of Mount Sinai John:

“The community, organized according to God, is a spiritual laundry, washing away all filth and rudeness and all the ugliness of the soul” (Sermon 26, 170).

That's why they had a trough, and the old woman spun her yarn - a peculiar way to cover her nakedness.

A trough is also called a manger for feeding livestock. According to the interpretation of Theophylact of Bulgaria, the Lord was laid in a manger at birth:

“It is placed in a manger, perhaps in order to teach us humility from the beginning, and perhaps in order to symbolically show that He appeared in this world - a place inhabited by us - who were like foolish cattle (Ps. 48: 13). For just as the manger belongs to cattle, so this world belongs to us. So, the world is a manger, and we are unreasonable animals; and to redeem us from foolishness, that is why He appeared here.”

What conclusions can be drawn from this fairy tale-parable?

From the narrative it is clear that neither the old man nor the old woman thanked the goldfish for the blessings. They treated her like a magical cornucopia and did not see God in her.

The old man (mind), casting the net three times, pulled out either dirty mud or fleeting grass, and the third time, having caught a goldfish, he did not recognize the most important thing, showing his foolishness and lack of prudence, which in the Gospel is called carnal understanding (see: Rome 8:5–7), and this is no longer just stupidity and feeble-mindedness, but enmity against God (see: Rom. 8:7–8). Saint Isaac the Syrian writes:

“The word about virtue requires a heart that is not concerned with the earth and close communication with it. In a person whose mind is burdened with concern for what is transitory, virtue does not awaken the thought to love it and seek its possession” (Word 1).

When the old man asks for a trough, the fish replies: “There will be for you .” When they ask for a hut, the fish replies: “So be it: you will have a hut.” But he already answers the request for nobility and the kingdom in a different way: “The old woman will be a queen.” That is, the old man and the old woman needed a new trough, a hut was not necessary, and a tower and a palace were unnecessary.

The old man and the old woman, forming a single whole - the human soul, repeat the fall of Adam, unable to resist the temptation of the passions: gluttony, love of money, vanity, and finally satanic pride, wanting to rule over the goldfish.

How similar we are to the old man walking along the edge of the sea and not recognizing the Lord! And the Lord asks us: “What ransom will you give for your soul? What do you want? Where is your treasure, where is your heart? (cf. Matthew 6:21). Are you seeking the Kingdom of Heaven or are you serving your passions?” We look at the Lord and do not see Him, we do not ask, we do not thank, we do not glorify. Saint Isaac the Syrian explains this situation this way:

“ The mind floats on the surface of the waters, that is, the sea of ​​the Divine Scriptures, and cannot penetrate with its thoughts the Scriptures to the very depths... while the heart is weak and cannot endure temptations from the passions encountered during external and internal battles” (Homily 1).

But a person also needs to appear before the Lord in clean, bright, wedding clothes (see: Matt. 22: 1-14). Therefore, the old woman spun her yarn to cover her nakedness, and they were given a new trough - a kind of “spiritual laundry”, where stains and impurities would be cleansed from the spiritual clothing of incorruptibility. But they immediately forgot about this trough, demanding for themselves not heavenly, but earthly goods and pleasures. Therefore, if people reject the Lord and refuse the salvation of the soul, which is the only thing needed (Luke 10:42), then the Lord says to these: Behold, your house is left to you empty (Luke 13:35). So the old man and the old woman are left with nothing. What God save us from!

You should not assume that the evil old woman remained in that fairy tale. If you listen to yourself, you will notice that such an old woman pushes us with our understanding and scolds displeasedly and ungratefully at the gifts we receive from the merciful Lord. And to the question posed by A.S. Pushkin: “What should I do with the damned woman?”, let’s try to answer together with the Venerable Isaac the Syrian, John Climacus, Andrei of Crete, Saints Nicholas of Serbia, John Chrysostom, Ignatius (Brianchaninov) and all the saints who have purified their minds and hearts. While we have the time, place and opportunity to wash away all the filth and ugliness of the soul with the grace and generosity and love of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The meaning of tattoos for men

Financial success, the ability to increase wealth and manage it correctly - this is exactly what men who choose a goldfish for a tattoo expect. In Russian fairy tales, a well-known magical image has been created that makes any desire come true, ensures luck and a comfortable existence. Therefore, a goldfish decorating the body has become a symbol of prosperity.

The image of a golden carp is a sign of a man’s persistent character, an expression of his remarkable abilities, since these fish can swim against the current. Tattoo owners emphasize their physical strength and desire to achieve what they want in any conditions, despite difficult circumstances.

A large goldfish tattoo embodies a person’s dreams of a big catch, unexpected great luck. Men who have set themselves the goal of becoming successful, wealthy, and famous, often turn to the help of amulets, and for them a tattoo with a symbol of wealth is a kind of talisman that attracts luck.

Symbol of success - Three-legged toad.

A three-legged toad with a coin in its mouth, along with a hieroglyph of good luck, is a very popular symbol, a symbol of great luck. Most often, the three-legged toad is depicted sitting on a stand of coins with the Yin-Yang symbol. The coin in the mouth represents gold. This is one of the most effective talismans for the wealth zone. The easiest way to activate monetary energy with the help of this talisman is to place one toad in the southeastern sector of each room or place it on the table, but not directly in front of you. Brings wealth, increases monetary luck. Once upon a time, the Three-Legged Toad was a malicious creature. But one day Buddha came, conquered her and bound her with an obligation to help people. Since then, Toad has been paying for the trouble he caused by spitting out gold coins. Usually a figurine of a Three-Legged Toad is placed near the front door so that it seems as if it is jumping into your house.