Water in everyday life of the East Slavic Population in the Tyumen region
The article incorporates extensive field data to consider the role of water played in everyday life of the East Slavs (Russian, Belorussian, Ukrainian) living in the Tyumen region. The role of water in alternative medicine is being analyzed. The article gives a detail survey of the immersion ceremony at the Epiphany Day. It also analyzes the “water history” of the Tyumen region, connected with the popularity of the thermal mineral water springs which were functioning at different periods of time and are functioning at the moment in Zavodoukovsk, Yalutorovsk, Yarkovo, Omutinskoe, Tyumen, Yurghinskoe, Ishim and other regions. The author comes to the conclusion that water has been playing an important part in everyday life due to its accessibility (we always can get it), its special powers, possessed only by this substance (after being manipulated and as a result of faith in its capabilities), its cheapness (it costs practically nothing compared to pharmaceuticals and, unlike those, gives no side effects) and so forth. Moreover, water “organizes” human activity, reflects human worldview and consolidates social relations that were meaningful in the past and are still relevant at present.