The banya is very similar in nature. No one really goes by themselves. They go with other people, because when you’re sitting in this hot room, it’s a great time to have deeper conversations. Think about what it’s like to have a conversation during a long walk with someone. Sometimes in that kind of setting, it’s easier to open up about your feelings. When it’s all done (you’ve gotten really hot, jumped in the snow or dumped a bucket of cold water over your head a few times, and talked through your thoughts and feelings) you shower and spend the rest of the day being a couch potato and drinking tea. Doesn’t this sound like a great way to relax?
You might wonder why people created something like the banya. A long time ago (think, Middle Ages), before people invented or had access to soap, they bathed in the banya. There was no running water back then! The stove was used to heat water for cleaning and people used bunches of leaves (called a ven-eek), soaked in hot water to scrub their skin. People in Russia still do this today as an old tradition. The bunch of leaves acts as a massager and stimulates good blood circulation as well.
Since the banya is part of such an old tradition in Russia, there are lots of myths surrounding it. One myth talks about a little elf called a ba-nееk that lives in the banya and takes care of it. For some reason though, people consider him to be mischievous and evil. Check out a picture of him on the right. The banya is one of the most unique parts of Russian culture for me because it is something that I’ve never experienced at home.
