In ancient times, after the sacrament, the young couple left the church in crowns, which were not metal, but were woven, as a rule, from myrtle or olive leaves. They sat in them during the wedding feast. Then two ritual actions were performed: the removal of the crowns and the blessing of the chambers of the young spouses. The removal of the crowns was accompanied by a special prayer. There is such a prayer in modern Trebniks. The priest asks the Lord: "Bless their entrances and exits: multiply their lives in goodness: receive their crowns in Thy Kingdom, undefiled, and blameless, and without slander, unto the ages of ages." The crowns taken from the spouses were hung in the marriage chambers and remained there for several days (the period of 8 days was not universal). Then they were filmed. This action was accompanied by the "Prayer for the Release of the Crown". It ends with thanksgiving to God: "May they give thanks to Thy all-holy name, the Father, and the Sons, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages, Amen." Statements that spouses should spend 8 days in abstinence have no grounds. The marriage bed of the young spouses was blessed on the day of the sacrament.

Is it a sin to "play" on the stock exchange, to make money with the help of speculative transactions in the foreign exchange and other markets?

Priest Athanasius Gumerov, a monk of the Sretensky Monastery, the Holy Scriptures forbid these activities: "Lord! who can dwell in Thy tabernacle? who can dwell on Thy holy mountain? He that walketh blamelessly, and doeth righteousness... > who does not give his money on interest, and does not accept gifts against the innocent. He that doeth such things shall never be shaken" (Psalm 14:1-2,5).

Is there a ban on meditation and magic in the Bible?

Hieromonk Job (Gumerov)  

The Holy Scriptures are any forms of divination, witchcraft, magic, etc. He calls it an abomination and strictly forbids: "Do not turn to those who summon the dead, and do not go to sorcerers, and do not bring yourselves to defilement from them. I am the Lord your God" (Lev 19:31). In Deuteronomy this prohibition is repeated: "When you enter into the land which the Lord your God is giving you, then you shall not learn to do the abominations that these nations have done: there shall not be among you anyone who puts his son or his daughter through the fire, a soothsayer, a diviner, a soothsayer, a sorcerer, a charmer, a conjurer of spirits, a sorcerer, and a questioner of the dead; For everyone who does these things is an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you. thou shalt be blameless before the Lord thy God" (Deut. 18:9-13). Whoever practiced sorcery according to the Law was subject to the death penalty (Lev. 20:6, 27). The Bible praises Josiah (2 Kings 23:24) that they cleansed the earth of all diviners. The New Testament Church adopted from the Holy Scriptures the prohibition of all forms of sorcery as a satanic occupation, and adopted at the Sixth Ecumenical and other Councils special rules: "Those who give themselves over to sorcerers, or so-called hundreds, or the like, in order to learn from them what they wish to reveal to them, in accordance with the previous patristic decrees concerning them, let them be subject to the rule of a six-year penance. The same penance should be subjected to those who lead bears, or other animals, to the ridicule and harm of the simplest, and, combining deception with madness, pronounce fortune-telling about happiness, fate, genealogy, and many other similar interpretations; as well as the so-called cloud-chasers, charmers, makers of protective talismans, and sorcerers. As for those who become fossilized in this, and do not turn and do not flee from such pernicious and pagan inventions, we determine to be completely expelled from the Church, as the sacred canons command. For what fellowship is there between light and darkness, as the Apostle says: or what is the foundation of the Church of God from an idol; or some part of the faithful with the unbeliever; what is Christ's agreement with Belial (2 Corinthians 6:14-16)?" (Canon 61 of the Sixth Ecumenical Council).

And in our time, the devil tempts people with this pernicious occupation. Such people become prisoners of demonic forces. Gradually, their spiritual nature fades away. They become impervious to divine truth. These people have neither the will nor the ability to free themselves from the power of the devil. Often such people begin to have mental disorders. A state arises, which in spiritual literature is called possession. Deliverance from demonic fetters requires a person to resolutely renounce Satan and sincerely repent. Pastors must show them sensitivity and attention in order to help them return to a saving life in the Church. Experience shows that treatment is not easy, but with goodwill and determination, with God's help, it is possible to become a spiritually complete person.

How to deal with blasphemous thoughts?

Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov)  

You probably guess that it is the enemy of your salvation who sows blasphemous thoughts, the division between the Church and you. Be sure to tell your confessor about this at confession. I think he will ask you more about all the circumstances of such a temptation. In the meantime, do not fall into despondency: the Lord will not impute blasphemous thoughts to you as a sin if you do not agree with them, if they do not come of your own free will. And so, of course, it is. You just don't know how to resist them properly. One of the goals of the enemy is to destroy the peace in your soul. Don't let him achieve it! And how? The Holy Fathers unanimously advise not to pay any attention to such thoughts, no matter how long they last. They will disturb you, torture you, and leave you behind. And yet, there is an old monastic prayer, which in Slavonic sounds like this: "Put your eyes on your head, O enemy! Mother of God, help me!" Everything is clear here, and the "pretexts" are precisely annoying thoughts that the enemy instills.

How to get rid of a curse?

Hieromonk Simeon (Tomachinsky)  

It is a great gain to recognize one's wrongness and repent of it! For the sake of this, it was worth suffering some life failures...

You have realized your mistake – repent of it at confession, mentally ask for forgiveness from the other person and pray for him. And most importantly, try to maintain a living connection with God, especially by participating in the Sacraments, take communion more often, and then God's blessing will accompany you everywhere, and no human curses will have any power.