E-mail: lucia1980@yandex.ru Tel.: +7 (903) 765-23-05
1, str. 13, Leninskie Gory, Moscow, 119991, Russian Federation
Associate Professor, Moscow State Lomonosov University
This study is dedicated to the two most widespread beliefs of contemporary Greek people — το κακό μάτι, or the “evil eye”, and το ποδαρικό — fortune-telling about luck in the New Year or at the start of any endeavor that befalls one’s first visitor, who receives either the name το καλό πόδι (“good or lucky foot”) or το κακό πόδι (“bad foot”). Ritual practices of an apotropaic or healing nature associated with these superstitions have remained unchanged in Greek society for many centuries. The article pays particular attention to those who are considered the bearers of the “evil eye” or “bad foot” and the evolution of these ideas, which are often related to religious and ethical ideas, contacts with other cultural traditions, and to the degree of a community’s openness. The article also examines the innovations that technological progress and globalization bring to ritual practices and draws the conclusion that even with new forms of ritual implementation, their mechanism and semantics generally follow archaic patterns. The sources of the study are surveys of informants conducted in Greece and in Greek communities of the Russian Federation in the period from 2005 to 2024, as well as material from Greek media and works by Greek and foreign researchers.
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