Each witch comes to the festival with her devil lover. The lord of demonic forces himself - Satan, in the form of a goat with a black human face, sits solemnly on a high chair or on a large stone table in the middle of the meeting. All those present at the meeting declare their obedience to him by kneeling and kissing. Satan turns with particular favor to one witch who plays a leading role in the circle of sorceresses and in whom it is easy to recognize their queen (hexenkönigin). Flying from different countries and regions, unclean spirits and witches report that they have done evil, and conspire for new intrigues; when Satan is dissatisfied with someone's tricks, he punishes the guilty with blows. Then, by the light of torches kindled from a flame that burns between the horns of a large goat, they begin to feast: they greedily devour horse meat and other foods, without bread and salt, and prepared drinks are drunk from cow hooves and horse skulls. At the end of the meal, a frantic dance begins, to the sounds of extraordinary music. The musician is sitting in a tree; instead of a bagpipe or violin, he holds a horse's head, and with a pipe or bow he is either a simple stick or a cat's tail. Witches, clutching hands with demons, jump, spin and dance with wild joy and shameless gestures. The next morning, in the places of their dances, circles are visible on the grass, as if trodden by cow and goat legs.
- Afanasyev A.N. Poetic views of the Slavs on nature
This belief, also reflected by Goethe in the tragedy "Faust", developed around the end of the 8th century, probably in the same way as the belief in witches and witches in general arose and spread: since May 1st was celebrated with special solemnity by the pagans, the old women and in general, all those who could not immediately abandon pagan rituals in favor of Christianity, despite the strict prohibition, continued to gather in inaccessible places in order to meet the 1st of May in an appropriate way, that is, with songs and dances. The setting (bonfires, wilderness), and maybe the rumors deliberately spread by these secret pagans (to get rid of unnecessary witnesses), contributed to the spread among the people of stories about witches gathering that night in various inaccessible places. John Kohler mentions these celebrations in 1603, then in the same XVII century, but already in the second half, there is a mention by Johannes Pretorius.
According to legends, the same gatherings of witches happen on Christmas nights, on the eve of Lent (German. fastnacht), on Bright week, on spring St. George's day (among the Eastern Slavs), May 1 (among the Germans), and on Midsummer's night.
Traditions among European peoples
Among Italians, on the last evening of April or May 1, companies of village youths go from house to house. They carry a green branch (Italian majo, maggio) decorated with colored ribbons and fresh flowers, sing a song announcing the coming of spring, and ask for offerings. In some places on one of the evenings in May, the guys lay a green branch at the entrance to their darling's house. This is a sentence form. If the girl agrees to marry him, she takes this branch into the house. Otherwise, it throws it out on the road. In Sicily, everyone, young and old, goes to the meadows on May 1. There they collect flowers (yellow daisies) and make bouquets, wreaths and garlands from them. Then they go to the chapels, where they express their cherished desires. Sicilians believe that these daisies should bring happiness and health.
Among the Slovaks and Czechs, on the night before the first of May, young men put trees - "May" (Slovak maj). This is a tall coniferous tree (fir or spruce), peeled from the bark, with a crown left at the top. The top of the tree is decorated with multi-colored ribbons, scarves, kalachik. A wide wreath of spring flowers is hung below the crown. Several such trees are planted in each village, the tallest of which is on the main village square. In addition, each young man places a tree (usually a birch) in front of his girlfriend's house. By May, the first youth "music" in the open air was held on the main square. Guys with a small tree went from house to house with carols and invited girls to dances. For this invitation, the girls were supposed to present the boys.
Among the people of Lusatian, the custom of establishing a maypole and beliefs associated with belief in witches is timed to the first of May. On the eve of May 1, young men chopped a tall pine or spruce in the forest, brought it to the village at night, cleaned the trunk, leaving the top green, and then decorated it with a wreath, colored ribbons, a wooden cross and planted it on the central square before sunrise. In the morning, a dance party was held under this tree. Luzhitsky believed that on May 1, witches flock to their sabbath and at this time they are especially dangerous. For protection, various measures were taken: they painted crosses on the doors, put a broom on the doorstep, hung green branches, beat stones on metal, fumigated the barn; tried not to leave milk and household utensils outside the house. There was a custom to "burn witches" ( khodojty palić): guys with burning brooms in their hands ran into the field, threw brooms into the air.
Croats and Slovenes in some areas on the eve of May 1 staged ritual processions of children and youth. Festively dressed groups of children and girls went around the house with good wishes and received gifts for this.
Images in culture
In literature
- "Dream on Walpurgis Night" in "Faust" by W. Goethe.
- Scenes in the novel "The Master and Margarita" by M. Bulgakov.
- The novel "Walpurgis Night" by Gustav Meyrink.
- The events of HF Lovecraft's story "Dreams in the Witch's House" take place shortly before Walpurgis Night and are directly related to it.
- Attempts on the life of Merlin, the hero of the Chronicles of Amber (Merlin's Pentateuch), systematically take place before Walpurgis Night.
- In the book "Little Baba Yaga" by the writer Otfried Preusler, Walpurgis Night is mentioned throughout the book. The little witch is not allowed to attend the Walpurgis Night feast, as she is not yet mature enough for dancing.
- Play in five acts "Walpurgis Night, or" Steps of the Commander "by Venedikt Erofeev.
- The 23rd chapter of the Unbreakable Machine Doll manga is titled "Walpurgis Night".
- Part 5 of the Fantastic Symphony of Hector Berlioz entitled "A Dream on the Night of the Sabbath".
- Ballet "Walpurgis Night" -
Looked at the page: 3 067
In the calendar of dates that are of particular importance, especially for those who do not neglect the knowledge of the occult sense, Walpurgis Night stands out. Probably not a single night of the year, except perhaps on the eve of All Saints' Day (otherwise, Halloween), attracts so much attention and does not become the object of so many conjectures, surrounding her with legends and mysterious rituals. Let's take a closer look at the origins of Walpurgis Night, its traditions and halo, and what this magical date can bring to those who are not afraid to look beyond ...
So, Walpurgis Night - what is it? Like the overwhelming majority of holidays with pagan roots, the mystical background of this night is based on the Solstice, the Wheel of the Year, in other words, on the mystery of the cyclical change of seasons, the “death” of nature in spring and its rebirth in the springtime. The immediate forerunner to Walpurgis Night was Beltane, a Celtic festival that welcomes the start of the summer season.
The attributes of the "witch's night" also migrated from the Celtic source - the kindling of fires, the Maypole (or the Maypole), numerous rituals and sacrifices. By the way, similar holidays existed in almost every culture of the Earth, where importance was attached to the cyclical nature of nature. And everywhere it was believed that today the barrier between our world and the world of spirits is becoming thinner and spirits - both friendly and not loyal to mortals - roam the earth.
However, such a "otherworldly" and clearly menacing flavor, this celebration received it in Europe, in particular - on the lands of the Germanic peoples. The Germans already treated Walpurgis Night with apprehension, and the Christian clergy, with their characteristic categoricalness, identified most of the pagan holidays in satanic rites. The night from April 30 to May 1 did not escape its fate. The fact that the famous in an unkind sense Bald Mountain is geographically located in Germany and has the name Brocken added fuel to the fire. So the history of the origin of such a holiday as Walpurgis Night is rooted in distant pre-Christian times.
Name
Like many old traditions, Walpurgis Night is a mixture of a number of different customs. However, the very name of the holiday is fraught with a fair amount of irony, because Walburga is a very revered holy ascetic in Europe. The legend about her tells that Walburga was a righteous woman, rewarded by the Lord with the gift of healing. In 748 A.D. she found herself in what is now Germany and quickly became one of the most revered healers. Since she was a nun, she was buried on the territory of the monastery, but after some time her grave, unfortunately, was disturbed. The indignant and angry ghost of the healer was not slow to appear before the bishop.
It is not known how the nun, albeit a ghost, caught up with such fear on the bishop, but after her visit, the remains of Walburga were removed from the burial place and transferred to a new place. Walburga found her last rest in a crevasse in the rock, which very soon began to ooze oil with healing properties. The news of the wonderful rock spread with lightning speed, the suffering, pilgrims and admirers were drawn to the burial place. The Catholic Church reacted quickly - the nun-healer was canonized, the remains in the form of relics were taken to dozens of churches, and the commemoration of the nun was scheduled for May 1. So it happened that Walpurgis Night, when witches, warlocks and other satanic public feel most at ease, bears the name of one of the most ardent companions of the Holy Church, although it would be more correct to call this night the eve of St. Walburgi. So this pagan action takes place at the same time every year, on the night of April 30 to May 1.
Dances on Bald Mountain
So - what, in the opinion of the Inquisition and the parishioners, was happening on that bald mountain on Walpurgis Night? In one word, the most natural sabbath. And not simple, but led by the Prince of Darkness himself, who took the form of a monstrous goat. The musical accompaniment was appropriate for the audience - the instruments were made from the skulls and tails of cats. The guests' meal was also expected in a peculiar way - horse meat was served on the table, and neither salt nor bread was supposed (an echo of beliefs about the sanctity of bread and about the hostility of all kinds of evil spirits). Serving was also "in style" - horse skulls and goblets made of hooves.
The celebration began with the invited witches showing respect to the host of the celebration, Satan, by kissing him in an obscene manner. After that, the servants of the Unclean One were strictly accountable for the work done during the year on perpetrating various intrigues to people and spreading evil in the world. The punishment for insufficient efforts was blows with a whip from the Prince of Hell himself. After reporting, they started planning - they thought over how they would do evil and obstacles to good Christians. It all ended, of course, with an orgy with the participation of devils - lovers of flocked witches. Of course, such an unbridled picture is the fruit of the "propaganda" work of the Catholic Church, which thus dared the parishioners from pagan rituals.
Love and witches
Of course, like any mystical date, Walpurgis Night attracts primarily those seeking love. Every ritual, according to legend, has a special power on this date, so that countless various sacraments that should help in finding or retaining a loved one were performed that night. So, Walpurgis Night: rituals for love.
- To return the departed chosen one or find new happiness, you will need: a glass of spring water, salt and a photo of your beloved. The photograph is placed in water, the salt is previously scattered on the lips in the image, the glass is placed under the bed until morning. You need to repeat the ritual for several nights in a row.
- To destroy the misunderstanding and the resulting coldness in the relationship, you need a cube pure ice and a small saucer. You need to carefully, without taking your eyes off, watch how the ice turns into water and vividly imagine that the barriers between you are also melting.
As you can see, nothing complicated. Of course, these are not such effective rituals that I do personally, but they are “free”.
Money - rituals and ceremonies
It is quite expected that the second most popular rituals on Walpurgis Night of Wealth - what else besides love is needed for a calm and happy life?
You will need candles - one gold, six green, nine white. In addition, you need pine salt and oil. All candles are smeared with oil, after which they are arranged according to the scheme - in the center is gold, then it is surrounded by green, the outer circle is white.
The ritual is performed in the first minute after midnight - salt is scattered around the outer ring of candles, candles are lit from the inside - gold, green (clockwise), white (also salting). The table is bypassed three times (also clockwise), after which the conspiracy is pronounced:
"Jupiter will walk around the sun three times, bring me money."
After that, you need to calmly sit down and imagine yourself rich, visually imagine money in your wallet and pocket.
Of course, such mystical night could not do without a variety of fortune-telling. On Walpurgis night, fortune-telling is a ritual very close to the original Russian Christmas-time fortune-telling, and the methods for this can be used the same (). In the end, it is not the form of the ritual that is important here, but the power that it acquires on the night of April 30 to May 1.
Signs
Over the centuries, the tradition of celebrating the "witch night" has been enriched with numerous signs associated with this date. We list just a few of them:
- Dew at the dawn of Walpurgis Night can preserve beauty for a long time. She needs to wash up, and the attraction will not leave you all next year.
- For fertility and good health at dawn it is recommended to drink well water.
- An irresistible beauty in the eyes of men will be presented to a girl by a wreath woven of ivy on the "night of witches".
- It is considered a bad omen to bring branches of blooming lilacs to a house where there is an unhealthy person. There is a belief that the heavy, intoxicating smell of lilacs can carry the patient to the next world.
How in Russia
As already mentioned, analogues of Walpurgis Night were found almost everywhere where the cycle of nature was revered. Pre-Christian Russia was no exception. On this night, our ancestors also divined, burned fires, and performed various rituals. Herbalists and healers attached particular importance to the night from April 30 to May 1, because herbs, as they believed, were gaining special strength at this time, much greater than those collected at ordinary times.
Men today were especially careful and even avoided, it happened, any communication with the fairer sex. It was believed that in the guise of a thoroughly familiar, say, a neighbor, a witch could be hiding, cherishing by no means good intentions. The Russians on this day tried not to use foul language and especially not to remember evil spirits, fearing in this way to attract evil creatures. The bathhouse was heated to wash off any possible filth, and in every possible way they avoided black color, traditionally dedicated to Morana, the goddess of death and winter. As you can see, Walpurgis Night in Russia was not too different from its European counterpart.
Born on the night of the witches
Naturally, children born on such an unusual and mystical day attracted special attention to themselves, because it was from them, as people believed then, that sorcerers and witches grew up! However, this might not have happened, since not all "Walpurgis" children clearly showed their abilities or received the proper skills. Nevertheless, according to the observations of ancestors, children born on this day had almost always an unusual character - they were drawn to wild animals and nature, had a very sharp and observant mind, were often quick-tempered and quarrelsome, did not get along well with people. Many who were born on Walpurgis night later actually became healers, hermits, and sorcerers.
Like all ancient rituals, Walpurgis Night has now almost lost its significance, however, in many European countries to this day, paying tribute to their ancestors, they stage reconstructions on this night, costumed performances and in other ways remember this vivid and mystical tradition. Such celebrations are especially honored in Germany, in the homeland of the mysterious "witch night".
Do you still have questions about the rituals, ceremonies and omens for Walpurgis night, or have other questions? Ask them in the comments and I will definitely answer you.
Let your life be filled with only pleasant moments.
Collocation Walpurgis Night causes fear and awe in common man... Walpurgis Night is always associated with some kind of devilry and revelry of witches. It is impossible for an ordinary person to understand what is happening around, and whether it is a reality. Since ancient times, our ancestors used Walpurgis Night to drive out devils and cleanse the house of evil spirits. This holiday dates back to antiquity and belongs to pagan beliefs. It has the exact date on the calendar, which is May 1st. On the night of April 30 to May 1, all the souls of the dead come out to people and arrange the most incredible things.
Pre-religious celebrations of Walpurgis Night.
The name of the Beltane holiday is known to few people in our time, but in the eighth century it was the most desired and long-awaited for pagans. From many Gaelic dialects, the name of the holiday is translated as May, which means that it is time to drive cattle to summer pastures. Many legends and beliefs are associated with the first of May. On this day, the most important pagan deity - the Sun descends from heaven to earth and he needs to make a sacrifice. This is done so that the whole year is fruitful and not devoid of the highest protection.
In November, Samhain was celebrated, which ended the bright half of the year opened by Beltane. Both of these days were very important for the pagans, because they symbolized the beginning and end of the blessed summer period. At the same time, the traditional actions of November 1 and May 1 coincided. Burning fires, which were made in the highest places, were considered a mandatory ritual.
The preparations for the holiday were carried out very carefully. A week before the celebration, all residents were engaged in collecting special types of wood, which were supposed to burn in a sacred fire. Two huge bonfires on the mountain were surrounded by a deep moat. It was intended for the audience.
Long before dawn, all the inhabitants left their houses and, chasing animals in front of them, climbed up to huge bonfires. They took their place in the moat and silently waited for sunrise. The first rays of the sun gave a start to lighting a fire and chanting. Three times all the people walked around the fire, drove herds of animals through it and brought torches to their homes to bless and illuminate the family hearth.
Some peoples had a tradition to plant the May bush and decorate it. In Germany, a May pole was installed, games were held near it and round dances were performed. This merry celebration was banned with the advent of Christianity as a relic of paganism. It is very difficult to get out of the habitual way of life, so the old women, on pain of death, continued to carry out traditional rituals, hiding in dense forests. After some time, the holiday was forgotten, and the spring celebration turned into a witches' Sabbath.
The history of the origin of Walpurgis night.
Surprisingly, the traditions of celebrating Walpurgis Night are associated with a specific historical person. A native of Devonshire, Walburga was the daughter of a Saxon king named Richard. Going to long journey to the Holy Land, the father is very worried about the safety of his little girl, so he leaves her in the care of the strict abbess of Winbourne Monastery. Within these walls, young Walburga was destined to live twenty-six years. Then, as part of a group of missionaries, the nun of royal blood went to Germany. On the way, a terrible storm flew into the ship, and all the travelers fell into panic. Nun Walburga knelt down and began to pray, others followed suit, and the storm vanished as quickly as it appeared. Since then, sailors began to revere her as their patroness.
Having traveled the long path of a nun and an abbess, she became famous for her miracles, which she performed with faith in God. The date of her death is February 25, 777. After her burial in the abbey, they started repairs and desecrated the saint's grave. The soul of Walburga came to the new abbot, and he ordered to transfer the remains of the deceased to a cave in Aistadt. This happened on the first of May. Healing moisture began to ooze from the rock, which brought relief to all those in need. After the canonization of Walburga, her remains were transported to the temples of Germany in order to achieve her patronage.
You may wonder what connected this holy woman with the unclean forces that come out into the light on Walpurgis Night? There are several interesting and at the same time suspicious facts.
The day of her remembrance coincides with the celebration of the pre-Christian celebration of the arrival of spring.
On the frescoes depicting the saint, there are strange symbols that are not characteristic of the image of a nun. She is depicted against a background of lime trees and mountains, as well as with a dog and a mirror. All these symbols speak of her connection with natural or pagan beliefs, rather than with Christian ones. In the image of Walburga, the canons of faith and traditional customs of the pagans were intertwined.
Walpurgis night in folklore.
Walpurgis Night is reflected in folklore and literary creativity. This event could not go unnoticed and over the centuries has been overgrown with many legends, stories and fables. Their homeland is Germany.
From the Middle Ages, there is a prejudice that Walpurgis Night Is a rampage of witches that engulfs all of Germany. At the same time, the villagers burned stuffed witches at the stake and cleared houses and fields from evil spirits. Meanwhile, the witches, on the contrary, prevented the beginning of the warm season and spent all the time until dawn in terrible dances and orgies.
It was believed that many herbs on Walpurgis night acquire a special healing power... In this regard, women versed in herbs went out into the forests and fields and collected precious roots. After that, they treated all the suffering with their broths with an unshakable faith in success and a positive result.
The inhabitants of the Middle Ages sacredly believed in all the stories about Walpurgis Night and were afraid of evil spirits. All decent people tried to protect themselves and their property.
Walpurgis Night Traditions.
The gathering place for all witches is Bald Mountain, which is located in Germany. This is where the elite of the witch world meet. They come, fly on brooms and pitchforks, accompanied by devils who are their lovers. Satan himself rules the ball here, who in the form of a horned goat sits in the most honorable place in the center. Each witch is obliged to show her respect to the lord. They take turns approaching the dais and kissing the master. The most beautiful witch, who is the ringleader and is considered the queen of the congregation, enjoys special favor with Satan.
Having shown their reverence to Satan with songs and dances, everyone began to tell what they had done over the past year and what evil they had done. Here it is decided what the witches will do for the whole next year, and what mean things they will commit to the human race. Satan is a strict judge; he does not forgive those who disobey him and punishes severely with blows of the whip.
To begin the diabolical meal, the witches light numerous torches. The dishes on the table are peculiar. This is, first of all, horse meat, which is eaten without salt and bread. All drinks are served from horns, hooves and animal skulls. A devilish orchestra of cat tails and horse skulls is heard over the mountain.
After a hearty meal and libations, the witches dance wildly around the fire. Their cavaliers - demons do not stop jumping and spinning, as if in a frying pan. Here, depraved and lustful orgies are arranged, in which everyone who is on the mountain participates. When Walpurgis Night ends, on the site of the Sabbath people see bare bones and footprints.
Walpurgis night these days.
The traditions of the ancestors have found their response in our days. Many peoples of Central and Northern Europe continue to celebrate the holiday of spring and the flowering of nature. Following ancient traditions, people burn huge bonfires, trying to make them as bright and large as possible. Thus, they disperse the witches gathered for the Sabbath and purify themselves by the power of fire. Throughout the day, concerts with student performances, round dances and games are held on city squares. For more than a hundred years, this program has been used for celebrations on Walpurgis Night. AT different countriesDespite the general concept of the holiday, there are peculiarities of its holding. Traditions have been unshakable for a long time.
On Walpurgis Night, the Scandinavians, like other peoples, kindle bonfires and conduct cleansing rituals. They burn all the trash that has accumulated over the year. In honor of the holiday, a special dish is being prepared - gravlax. It has no analogues in the culinary traditions of other nations. Fresh fish - salmon is pre-aged in salt with added sugar and dill.
Elsewhere in Europe Walpurgis Night accompanied by explosions of firecrackers and loud sounds. It is believed that evil spirits, frightened by the noise, will run away into the woods, and will not bother respectable citizens. Firecrackers trust to blow up the boys after sunset.
Walpurgis Night a special holiday for the Czechs. In this country, there are many legends about this day and among people lives in front of evil spirits. To prevent a single witch from entering the house and harming people, a lot of sand and grass are poured on the threshold. According to legend, before entering the room, they recount everything that lies on the threshold. The more sand there is, the less likely the witch will cope before dawn.
Walpurgis Night time for the Bavarians. On holiday, for a joke, the doors are removed from the hinges and transferred to another place, while their handles are smeared with paste or soot. And if you gape, the laces will either be stolen or tied together.
Walpurgis Night has not gone down in history, but remains a valid holiday. The uniqueness of the celebration is that it contains three directions: the holiday of spring, the sabbath of witches and the day of remembrance of the canonized saint.
Walpurgis Night has absorbed many different historical and traditional elements. What is their, let's say, energy-informational component? ..
Firstly, the holiday of Walpurgis night is the main witch's sabbath and at the same time an important celebration in paganism associated with fertility. This is a period when people acquire new strength and fulfill their most daring desires. Outwardly, in a way, the action resembles Halloween: both of these mystical festivities, different in time, are accompanied by the presence of various kinds of mummers, symbolizing certain characters from the category of evil spirits and afterlife. But the origin of Walpurgis Night is still somewhat different.
What does this word mean and why is Walpurgis night?
Expression walpurgis Night literally means night of witches or witch fire... The word is pronounced with an accent on "y". This pagan action, as many people think, has its origins in ancient Rome and is associated with the witches' sabbaths, although it is officially mentioned since the protocols of the medieval inquisition.
The well-known medieval belief also says that on Walpurgis night, on their main feast, held on the tops of the mountain slopes, the witch elite flew on broomsticks from all over Germany and Scandinavia. Feasting on the popular Brocken Bald Mountain, is the expression Bald mountain in translation means Calvary- the Vedmas and devils tried with all their might to prevent the beginning of spring, sending spoilage to cattle and people.
Therefore, on the eve of the inhabitants of villages and villages held magical ceremonies with the aim of driving out witches, everywhere kindling bonfires and burning scarecrows on them. They walked around neighboring houses with lighted torches, rang church bells, etc., in order to forever smoke witches and various evil spirits from their villages. The common forest grass acquired miraculous power at this time, and herbalists-healers replenished their herbal reserves during this period.
However, the place to celebrate Walpurgis night may be at different nations different, but traditionally this action is held in the open air: in forests, on hills or in spacious forest clearings near water bodies.
What is Walpurgis Night? history of the holiday
Thus, having originated in pagan times and bearing the imprint of ancient pagan traditions and beliefs, the feast of fertility, when people, appeasing the gods, ritually prayed for the harvest and healthy offspring, smoothly passed into the next era. The only difference is that through the efforts of the church, all of its pagan attributes were erased or replaced with Christian ones.
By the way, another of its names, Zhivin's day, as already mentioned here, is associated precisely with the name Zhiva, the goddess of fertility. After all, the very word life was called before stomach, thus symbolizing the concepts of body, property and human existence itself as such.
In the Christian era, the goddess Zhiva was replaced by Paraskeva Friday. Its functions and attributes also resemble those of another pagan goddess, Makosh, the goddess of fate; (in Scandinavia - the goddess Norn).
Interestingly, this holiday has not passed Muslims either: the night when destinies are decided in this religion (Laylat al-Qadr) and when, meeting the sun rise, Muslims make their wishes, coming just on April 30 - May 1, which smoothly returns us to the theme of Walpurgis Night.
Walpurgis Night in other calendars
On the night from April 30 to May 1, Walpurgis Night is celebrated in the countries of Central and Northern Europe. This tradition dates back to Celtic times and their eight festivals, which conventionally divided the year into approximately eight identical parts, respectively, depending on the position of the sun in relation to the earth. So there was the concept of winter (Yule) and summer solstice.
In addition, the following were also celebrated:
- Imbaelk (Imbolk) or, in Scandinavian, - Groundhog Day, (in Russia - Presentation): the time when winter met with spring;
- Walpurgis night (or Zhivin's day), preceding the Beltane holiday (April 30): end of winter and beginning of summer;
- Samhain (Halloween) November 31, or All Saints Day in the Christian tradition, marking the end of the summer period and the beginning of the new year for the Celts;
Walpurgis Night, celebrated on the eve of Beltane (Beltana), was held on the night of May 1 and marked the transition from winter to summer with its great summer sun; Halloween, on the other hand, crowned the onset of winter, that is, on the night before November 1, it opened the gates to the underworld for the living, just like Walpurgis Night.
Name Walpurgis Night
this festival was later appropriated by the Germans in honor of Saint Walpurgis (Walburga, Waltpurde, Walpurgis, Vabur, Falbur, Buga, Godurj). This character is a real historical figure who was born into a noble British family: Walpurgia was the daughter of one of the kings of Western Saxony.
Walpurgia set out from the monastery to Germany as a missionary to create a network of German monasteries by sea, and on the way their ship was overtaken by a terrible storm. And - the nun, falling to her knees on the deck, immediately reassured him! .. - And this was the first miracle she performed, after which the envoy was greeted in Germany with reverence.
A hundred years later it so happened that the abbess's grave was desecrated: and one night her indignant shadow rose from the grave ...
As a result, Walpurgis was canonized, canonized and named after her the aforementioned pagan festival of Walpurgis night.
How is Walpurgis Night celebrated?
Although, as we can see, the general signs and signs of this holiday are in many ways similar, nevertheless, since ancient times, everywhere it is celebrated in different ways.
- In order to free themselves from the garbage accumulated over the winter, spiritual renewal and the earliest possible attraction of spring in Scandinavia, for example, they burn bonfires, feast on gravlax - fresh salmon marinated with salt, sugar and dill.
- In the Czech Republic, on the eve of Walpurgis Night, they sprinkle the threshold with sand or throw grass so that any other evil spirits cannot easily enter the house without counting all the obstacles in the form of grains of sand or blades of grass along the way.
- In Bavaria, Germany, people, defending themselves from evil spirits visiting the earth at Walpurgis night, smear the door handles with toothpaste, even transfer room doors to other places and pull the laces out of their shoes ...
And almost everywhere - at sunset, young people begin to scream; has fun and blows up firecrackers, creating a noise that drives away evil spirits ...
From an esoteric point of view, as already noted, Walpurgis Night is a kind of overlap of various traditions that create a common perception of a single and integral picture of mystical triumph. Indeed, it turns out that on the same night in different parts of the world people with different religious and mystical views simultaneously perform similar rituals ... And if the essence of these rituals does not contradict each other, this gives the whole action even greater mystical power and energy.
In a situation where one tradition, for example, is at enmity with another, the so-called egregor war can begin. For example, even a special psychiatric clinic specializing in pilgrimage and pilgrims has been built in Jerusalem: during religious holidays, as noted, a particularly strong wave of psychiatric exacerbations begins.
Dream on Walpurgis Night or the Golden Wedding of Oberon and Titania
And I would have climbed up the hill.
There all your color is in the midst of drunkenness,
All devilish chieftaincy,
And Satan is at the very steep
Keeps the key to many secrets (3, p. 183), -(Faust says to Mephistopheles).
The description of the scenes of Walpurgis Night in Goethe's Faust confirms all of the above: the great author depicts with his undying word the participation of a mere mortal in the mystical coven of the afterlife.
This unique fragment of the eternal work of the great Goethe was finally completed in 1806. The prototype of the hero Goethe, who participated in the Walpurgis Sabbath, was the German literary figure Christoph Friedrich Nicholai, nicknamed the Backward-Seer, hostile to Goethe and Schiller. With this not very flattering name, Goethe provided a colleague in the shop after he told in his publication how he got rid of hallucinations by putting leeches on his buttocks. And, very nicely, this article was read publicly at a meeting of the Academy of Sciences in Berlin. Further in Faust, in the episode "Classical Walpurgis Night", the elements of ancient Greek mythology proper are described.
... As for dreams in this mystical period, they are prophetic.
Walpurgis night in Russia
This holiday in Russia, as it was celebrated in Europe, was not particularly widespread. Despite this, information about him can be found in the book of the famous Russian folklorist Alexander Afanasyev in the book "Poetic views of the Slavs on nature."
Each witch comes to the celebration with her devil lover. The lord of demonic forces himself, Satan, in the form of a goat with a black human face, sits solemnly on a high chair or on a large stone table in the middle of the meeting. he wrote.
During the same period - on the night from April 30 to May 1 - we also burn the garbage accumulated over the winter; ask for the harvest to the goddess of fertility; they collect medicinal herbs, and also make wishes, writing them down on bright ribbons or paper strips, which then decorate the May pole. Previously, this pole was simply put on fire - so that the message would reach the gods in this way, now all these ribbons are hung flat on the branches of trees.
In fact, the Russian version of Walpurgis Night is more similar to the Roman counterpart of this celebration, when noisy events with wine, games and entertainment are held in honor of the goddess of fertility every spring. And, nevertheless, it should be noted that the more popular analogues of Walpurgis Night in Russia were the holidays of Ivan Kupala and, now already, Halloween.
