Spring Greeting

This cycle includes such holidays as "Maslenitsa", "Vialikdzen'" (Easter), "Yur'ya" and others.Each celebration is characterized by specific cycles of  "vesnavyia" (spring) songs. The most ancient celebration is "Yur'ia". Yur'ia is in fact christianized name for pagan God-Sun - Yaryla. 

The typical ritual on Yur'ia (reflected in "yur'iauskiia" songs is calling for Yaryla (Yur'ya), the Sun-God, to bring out the keys and open his mothers (Earth, Nature) womb - to let out the grass, and flowers, and animals. As usual these holidays are also celebrated by specific ritual food - eggs (symbol of life in most of indo-european cultures), pancakes (circle is an important magical shape - it depicts sun).

One more folk festive of pagan origin is Maslenitsa. It is a ceremony at the junction of two seasons; it sees off winter and meets spring. Popular festivals of folk music is organized at the time of Maslenitsa. People sing traditional songs and dance in the streets wearing national costumes. But the distinguishing feature of this holiday is, of course, pancakes!

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"Vozhdenie Suly": a gift from antiquity

Do you know what "Vozhdenie Suly" is? This Belarusian rite was held in the village of Markovichi, Gomel region. Sula is a spear, a throwing weapon. Perhaps an arrow or a sula, which was thrown into the crowd of men, was a lot: the "victim" of arrow was given to the pagan god of fertility. But this is just a guess.

Museum of Old Folk Crafts and Technologies Dudutki

Dudutki is one of the most attended museums in Belarus. It is located 40km away from Minsk in a picturesque site near the Ptich River.

Kalyady

The Pagan Flair Of A Belarusian Christmas. In the Belarusian countryside, the religious holidays of Christmas and Epiphany are fused with pagan “Kalyady” rituals.