Easter Traditions

It is almost one week after Easter but I would like to finish my plan and write you something about Easter traditions. Almost two weeks ago we spent two hours in heritage-park in Lublin and we found out many different things about traditions from the past. After this day I decided to find something more and I was surprised how many beautiful traditions we still have in some parts of Poland. Also when I tried to find something on websites in English language, the most important part of this articles was about polish traditions. The funny thing for me was to see pronunciation of the word Święconka:  [ɕvʲɛnˈtsɔnka]. I’m sure that foreign people have some “little” problems with expressing this word :)

When I started to write this I found out that to write about everything I will need one week and 100 pages so I decided to put here most important things. Everyone knows about Holy Week, about Paschal Triduum and reasons of celebrating these days so I will focus on something other.

First of all: Święconka  meaning "the blessing of the Easter baskets" on Holy Saturday. It is one of the most enduring and beloved traditions. No one can imagine Easter without this tradition. It is said to date from the 7th century in its basic form, the more modern form containing bread and eggs (symbols of resurrection and Christ) are said to datefrom the 12th century. Baskets containing a sampling of Easter foods are brought to church to be blessed on Holy Saturday. The basket is traditionally lined with a white linen or lace napkin and decorated with sprigs of boxwood (bukszpan), the typical Easter evergreen. The three-part blessing prayers specifically address the various contents of the baskets, with special prayers for the meats, eggs, cakes and breads. The priest then sprinkles the individual baskets with holy water.

The foods in the baskets have a symbolic meaning:
-eggs - symbolise life and Christ's resurrection
-bread - symbolic of Jesus
-lamb - represents Christ
-salt - represents purification

The food blessed in the church remains untouched according to local traditions until either Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning.

Pisanka is a common name for an egg ornamented using various techniques. Originating as a pagan tradition, pisanki were absorbed by Christianity to become the traditional Easter egg. Pisanki are now considered to symbolise the revival of nature and the hope that Christians gain from faith in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There are various types of pisanki, based on the technique and preparation used:

• Kraszanki (sometimes called malowanki or byczki) are made by boiling an egg in a decoction of plants or other natural products. The colour of kraszanka depends on the kind of product used (eg. brown – onion peels; pink – the juice of beet).
• Drapanki or skrobanki are made by scratching the surface of a kraszanka with a sharp tool to reveal the white of the egg shell.
• Pisanki are created by drawing on an egg shell covered with a layer of molten wax, or alternately drawing designs with wax on a bare egg. The egg is then submerged into a dye.
• Naklejanki or nalepianki are decorated with petals of elderberry, scraps of colourful paper (including wycinanki) or with patches of cloth. Popular in Łowicz and the surrounding area.
• Oklejanki or wyklejanki are decorated with bulrush pith or yarn. They are common in the Podlaskie region of Poland.

The oldest known Polish pisanki date from the 10th century, although it is probable that eggs were decorated by Slavic peoples even earlier.

In the past, only women decorated eggs. Men were not allowed to come inside the house during the process, as it was believed that they could put a spell on the eggs, and cause bad luck.

On Easter Sunday, before the ceremonial breakfast, these eggs are exchanged and shared among the family at the table. This is a symbol of friendship, similar to the sharing of the Opłatek (Christmas wafer) on Christmas Eve.

Śmigus-Dyngus is a celebration held on Easter Monday. Traditionally, boys throw water over girls and girls do the same to boys on Easter Tuesday. This is accompanied by a number of other rituals, such as making verse declarations and holding door-to-door processions, in some regions involving boys dressed as bears. The origins of the celebration are uncertain, but it may date to pagan times.

Dziady śmigustne is mostly observed in Małopolska and Mazowsze. The boys would march through the village with one of their number dressed as a bear with a bell on his head – either wearing a real bearskin (śmigus-dyngus “beggars”). The group would go from door to door collecting "gifts for the bear" before "drowning" the bear in a nearby stream or pond. This was probably an adaptation of a traditional ceremony to drown a straw figure of Marzanna, the spirit of winter. The "bears" were often invited in as they were believed to ensure that there would be a good harvest, reflecting a very ancient belief in the power of the bear to prevent evil, encourage crop growth and cure diseases.

         An Easter palm is a traditional Polish symbolic decoration associated with Palm Sunday. The ceremonial palm branch is the "most important attribute" of Palm Sunday in Poland. Communities of Polish emigrants, such as those in the United States, observe the tradition of making of Easter palms as well. Easter palms may reach as high as 10 metres.In the 2011 edition of an Easter palm competition that has been held yearly since 1958, one entry reportedly topped 36 metres, making it the tallest Easter palm on record. There are many regional variations between Easter palms in Poland. In the south of the country, willow branches of various lengths are tied together, sometimes with hazel branches or wicker as well, and topped with a large flower bouquet and other decorations, including a golden cross. In the Kurpie region, the entire length of the Easter palm is often decorated with flowers. An ethnographic museum in Kraków has over 200 Easter palms in its collection.

Of course there are many different traditions but I don’t want to bore all of you too much (I hope that it didn't happen at the beginning) so I think that I will finish on this point and next time I will write something about “tradition” in every polish highschool called “open door”.