Vervishche or hair shirt. What is the hair of the monks

In the works of the past, in the pages of the Bible, and in contemporary writings the word "hair shirt" is quite common. What is "sackcloth", what does this garment mean, what direct and portable meaning of the word - we learn from this article.

The first mention of a hair shirt

In the biblical texts of the Old Testament , the word "sackcloth" is mentioned several times. The meaning of the word "sackcloth" can be learned from this ancient book. Lean vegetation and an acute shortage of fresh water in the Sinai desert did not allow many families to keep cattle. Therefore, the most common domestic animals in the arid terrain are goats. The goat herd fed the Jews with milk and meat, tools and first household items were cut from their bones, while the hide and wool allowed the ancient inhabitants of Asia to dress and get dressed. Vlasyanya of the ancient Jews called a thick, stiff cloth of goat hair or wool. Initially, a rough and strong cloth was meant for making bags. Later, the inhabitants of Judea and Israel began to put sackcloth in a sign of sadness and memory of the deceased - so the word "sackcloth" appeared. What is the garment intended for mourning, confirm the pages of the Old Testament. Vervishche was put on a naked body, girded with a belt made of the same material. Wear sackcloth should have been all the relatives of the deceased. In special cases, these clothes made of hard hair were not removed even at night.

Vryasnitsa in the Middle Ages

Christianity borrowed many of the customs and traditions of ancient Jews. Together with Judaic legends, Christianity also achieved a vervish. In the Middle Ages, this clothing was still sewn from rough goat or horse hair. Unlike pre-Christian times, now this garment has ceased to be a sign of mourning. In the Middle Ages, sackcloth is an indispensable attribute of monasticism. Monks and Communion wear this dress as a sign of humility and frailty of the flesh. Vervishche wore men and women, many heretics led to the bonfires in this dress. People in the Middle Ages understood how to damage the health of hair, that such constant wearing causes itching and irritates the skin, that wounds from wearing coarse tissue can develop into ulcers. But wearing a vervish was considered an integral part of serving God, and body wounds were perceived as evidence of suffering for Christ and the Christian faith.

Vlasyanya in modern times

Beginning with the Renaissance, the hairdresser gradually disappears from the usage of the believers, who chose more tolerant and unburdened forms of worshiping God. In return, it appears in literary allegories, the plot of biblical pictures and in everyday speech.

A symbol of sadness, remorse, deep spiritual anguish - a hair shirt. What is a rough similarity of clothes is already little associated with religious feelings, can be seen from the appeared portable meaning of this word. The expression "to put on a hair shirt" became synonymous with the word "grieving", "grieving". As a garment at the present time, hairdress is an indispensable accessory of Christian monks, righteous people and schemes.