The city of Nicomedia, located in what is now Turkey, was the capital of one of the provinces of the Roman Empire. In the time of early Christianity in this city there were many converts to the new religion who were persecuted for their beliefs. Those who accepted death at the hands of the Gentiles became holy martyrs. One of them is Domna Nikomediyskaya, which in Russia was called Domnoy Noble, her memory is honored on September 3 (old style - September 16).
Domna Nicomedia lived during the time of Emperor Maximian Herculius at the end of the 3rd - beginning of the 4th centuries. He was known for his persecution of Christians, and Domna was a pagan priestess and lived in the imperial palace. In one of his master’s departures, the Christian priestess — Acts of the Apostles and Epistles of the Apostle Paul — fell into the hands of the young priestess, the study of which opened the girl’s eyes to the true faith.
The priestess came to St. Cyril, who at that time was a bishop in Nicodeia, taking Indus along with the eunuch. In conversations with Cyril, Domna strengthened herself in the faith and, together with the slave eunuch, received Holy Baptism. Filled with Christian mercy, the girl, accompanied by her faithful slave, began to help the poor, giving them their valuables and bringing food, taken in the palace.
Having learned about this, the head of the eunuchs imprisoned Domna and Indis, but failed to starve them - thanks to prayers, the prisoners survived. Then Domna pretended to be insane and she was released from prison, she left Nicode and disappeared into the monastery. After waiting out the danger, the former priestess changed into a man’s dress, cut her hair and left her refuge, which was soon ravaged by the Maximian soldiers sent by the emperor in search of Domna.
For some time she wandered until on the seashore she met fishermen, who stretched out with their nets the bodies of Indis and two other Christian martyrs Peter and Gorgonius, who were put to death and thrown into the sea for refusing to participate in a pagan holiday. The girl buried the bodies and visited the grave every day, indulging in grief. The emperor, having heard of a strange young man caring for the grave of Christians, ordered to seize him and chop off his head. It happened in the year 302.
In the folk calendar in Russia, Domna Dobrodnaya, according to custom, was remembered on September 3. On this day, it was customary to collect worn clothes in the house, junk and hang them on the nearest pillars. People believed that this would protect them from damage and the evil eye - it was assumed that an unkind person, seeing a large number of rags and worn bast shoes, would be surprised and begin to count them, after which he could no longer jinx the owners of things. In the evening, all the rags hung were removed and burned. Thorough cleaning was done in the houses that day; everything that was still wearable was washed and darned. Clean rugs spread in the upper rooms.
