The Domovoi · The One Who Lives Behind the Stove

In Russian folk belief the domovoi, the house spirit, lives behind the stove or under the threshold and looks after a household’s luck: he likes order and livestock, warns people against trouble, and sometimes presses down on a sleeper’s chest and brings nightmares.

The rule when moving house is to invite the domovoi over first; the usual practice is to put stove ash or an old boot in a corner of the new home and say, “Please come to the new house.” Those who move without inviting him find that things at home begin to go wrong.

The wooden houses of Suzdal are museums now. The person in charge says this: leave a house empty too long and things fall apart faster.

Folklore / Suzdal · Russia / Time immemorial