''Domostroy'' ( rus, Домострой, p=dəmɐˈstroj, ''Domestic Order'') is a 16th-century Russian set of household rules, instructions and advice pertaining to various religious, social, domestic, and family matters of the Russian society. Core Domostroy values tended to reinforce obedience and submission to God,

Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...

and Russian Church. Key obligations were fasting, prayer, icon veneration and the giving of

alms Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of virtue or Charity (practice), charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving, and it is a widespread p ...

. Its real author is unknown, but the most widespread version was edited by the archpriest Silvester, an influential advisor to young

Ivan IV Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584. Ivan ...

.Carolyn Johnston Pouncey, ''The Domostroi: Rules for Muscovite Households in the Time of Ivan the Terrible'', p37 The text does include an epistle entitled "64. A Father's Epistle Instructing His Son," which was written by Silvester instructing his son, Anthemius, on some of the larger themes found within the Domostroi. An updated edition of the Domostroy was compiled by Karion Istomin during the late 17th century. To modern researchers, it is a precious account about Muscovite society and the life of wealthy

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

s and merchants. Modern researchers tend to trace the origins of the ''Domostroy'' to the 15th century Novgorod Republic, where it could have been used as a kind of

moral A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader, or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim. A ...

codex The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

for the wealthy. As such, it has some quotations from the ''

Book of Proverbs The Book of Proverbs ( he, מִשְלֵי, , "Proverbs (of Solomon)") is a book in the third section (called Ketuvim) of the Hebrew Bible and a book of the Christian Old Testament. When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different ...

'' and other biblical texts, and from earlier Muscovite moral texts such as '' Izmaragd'' and '' Zlatoust'', and from some western texts such as ''Book of Christian Teachings'' (Czech) and '' Le Ménagier de Paris'' (French). In modern Russia, the term ''Domostroy'' has a pejorative meaning. It is used in such classic texts as Herzen's ''My Past and Thoughts'' and Turgenev's ''Fathers and Sons'' to refer to a traditionalist way of life associated with

patriarchal Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of Dominance hierarchy, dominance and Social privilege, privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical Anthropology, anthropological term for families or clans controll ...

tyranny, as exemplified by the following quotations: "A wife which is good, laborious, and silent is a crown to her husband." "Don't pity a youngling while beating him: if you punish him with a rod, he will not die, but become healthier."

Structure

The book is divided into 67 sections (in Sil'vestr's version) dealing roughly with the following matters: * Religious practices * Relationship between Muscovite people and the

tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...

* Organization of the family * Management of the household * Culinary

References

* ''Domostroy'', SPb, Science, 1994 (from the presentation of the book) {{Muscovite Constitution 16th century in Russia Early Russian literature 16th-century Christian texts Christianity and law in the 16th century 16th-century books Works of unknown authorship Medieval cookbooks

Structure

See also

References