The Christian church has always regarded intimate relationships with condemnation, considering them to be "shameful." She attributed them to animal instincts, unacceptable to man. Sex even between husband and wife was allowed only in order for the couple to have children. Nudity, especially female nudity, was condemned and forbidden.
Pagan liberties
With the birth of Christianity in Russia, nudity became not just forbidden, it became strictly taboo. There were many reasons for this. Many historical sources claim that before Christianity, in Russia, intimate life was quite free, and sometimes reached debauchery. This can be judged by some rituals that were erotic in nature. Often in these rituals it was necessary to strip. An example is the well-known pagan holiday of Ivan Kupala. It was believed that on the night of this holiday one could see a blooming fern. To do this, it was necessary to bare.
Gentiles believed that female nudity saved villages from epidemics. At this time, they had to go around them naked, driving away any illness from the villages. And in order to protect her home, the woman undressed naked and in this form poured grain around her house.
There was such a ritual: if a woman could not get pregnant, then she had to sleep naked on a moonlit night or during the day walk through the field in the same form under the sun. In order for Mother Earth to give a rich harvest, the girls went around all the fields naked, as if sharing fertility with the earth.
As for the men, then they did not stand aside. So that the earth bears fruit well, they undress and ride on it naked. Have sexual intercourse directly in the fields on the ground or imitate them. And if there was no rain, then the girls exposed their genitals in order to excite the sky. Aroused, it was supposed to send them rain. In order to always be beautiful and young, the girls bathed naked in the dew in the morning.
Christian bans
Christianity tried to rid people of pagan habits (wean them). Nudity began to be considered a great sin and was allowed only when bathing in baths. The coming era of the ban on nudity did not allow even spouses to undress in front of each other.
A woman had no right to take off her shirt at night.
As for the night, even the pagans avoided sleeping naked at that time. They believed that at night a naked man was completely vulnerable. Dark forces can take advantage of his nakedness and defenselessness, capturing it. And, seduced by a female body, evil spirits could inhabit it.
