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OUR LIFE MONTHLY, published by Ukrainian iational Women's League of America We send C hristm as G reetings to o u r staff, writers, subscribers, readers, friends and c ritics — and we wish them a N ew Year fille d w ith happiness and success! "Our Life'' BY DR. IVAN SENKIV UKRAINIAN CHRISTMAS EVE: FOLK BELIEFS AND RITUALS W hether we are aware o f it o r not, many o f o u r Ukrainian C hristm as Eve tra d itio n s are fille d w ith beliefs, ritual fo lk poetry and sym bolism o f an pagan ag ricu ltu ra l era. S pecifically, they are the remnants o f the w in te r solstice celebrations w hich marked the beginning o f the solar year, when the sun began to grow in strength as it turned tow ard spring. This celebration, w hich the ancients perform ed w ith great rejoicing, eventually became interw ined w ith the C hristian celebration o f C h rist’s na tivity. That earlier tra d itio n is preserved today o n ly in a fragm ented fashion, o r transform ed into new religious forms, but it is w orth exploring. The essential element o f the w in te r solstice celebration was the po pu lar belief in the m iraculous pow er o f nature on the day (Dec. 21) when the sun, rather than c o n tin u in g to wane in power, was m ysteriously ’’reborn.” It was believed that people could at this tim e invoke the pow er of nature to gra nt them a s im ilar grow th in happiness, wealth and peace in the new year. This was done by dram atizing and creating images o f wealth throu gh various cu lt form ulas, dances and songs. "Sviatyj ve ch ir’’ or "H o ly eve" was the result. Since "Sviatyj vech ir" was the sym bo lic pictu re of the de sired w ell-being sought fo r in the new year, even the poorest arranged fo r b o u n tifu l tables. Indeed, the entire day was de? voted to preparing the meal, w hich was consum ed on ly after sunset. The elde rly fasted all day and did not smoke. Argum ent, yellin g or anger was fo rb id d e n .T h e women baked bread all day and prepared the 9- to 12- course meal, consisting en tirely of plants and vegetables grow n in the garden and the field. In addition to "k u tia " (boiled wheat kernels mixed with honey o r sugar), there were "h o lu b ts i” (cabbage rolls), "varenyky" (dum plings) w ith cabbage o r potatoes; barley; cabbage soup; pureed beans; plum com pote; "ku lesh a” (boiled co rn flo u r), m ushrooms, etc A ll the foods were cooked in water, w ith oil added on ly at the meal. Dairy products and meats were forbidden un til Christm as Day. As she cooked, the housewife im itated the clu ckin g of hens, so that they w ould be fertile in the new year. As she pre pared the house fo r the supper, she im itated the sounds of m ooing cows and baa-ing sheep and neighing horses in order to insure the anim als’ health and fe rtility . The most im p ortan t part o f the meal was the "ku tia ", be cause it was considered to be the cu lt food o f the deceased an cestors ("g rand fathers” and "g rand m othe rs"), w ho were also sym bols o f fe rtility and life Indeed, "H o ly eve" was the feast of the ancestors w ho were honored guests at the sacred supper. Hence the name "H o ly " o r "sacred eve" In the eyes o f the people, all nature was populated w ith the souls of the departed, whose spirits permeated the water, trees, grain, and hom es.Grass and hay were the places o f repose of the ancestral spirits and it was believed that th e ir presence w ould increase the w e ll-being o f the household. For this reason, the man of the house as representative o f the fam ily and master of the sacred cerem ony on "H o ly eve” , b ro ug ht a sheaf of wheat (a "deed" o r "g randfather-sheaf") in to the house and placed it in the corner, under the icons. Furtherm ore, he bro ug ht hay into the house and laid it on and under the table and benches, so that the ancestral spirits residing therein w ould be present at the celebration. The basis fo r the cu lt o f the dead was human faith in the soul's im m ortality. In the po pu lar view, people did not die, but on ly changed form s. Life and death were sim ply the arrival and departure of new fam ily members, w h ile the souls of the departed were believed to maintain a tie between the terrestrial and spiritual w orlds thereby con ne cting hum ankind w ith eternity. Before the "H o ly sup pe r” , the man of the house perform ed magical rituals to insure the peace and safety o f the fam ily, livestock and pro pe rty against devils, w itches and evil spirits. Also, the master sym bo lica lly called down and invited storms, hail, sleet and frost to attend the supper in an attem pt to appease these forces o f nature and thereby safeguard against th e ir arrival durin g the sum m er harvests. W ith the p ro te ction of the ancestral spirits, the master o f the house was in touch w ith the universe and her tem pestuous forces. He was th e ir equal. A fte r the con clu sion o f these ceremonies, the fam ily sat down to "H o ly supper." S po on fu ls o f "k u tia ” were firs t throw n against the ceiling to insure the w ell-b eing of the livestock. Then the supper began in earnest. Afterw ards remains of the food and pieces o f bread were left on the table. By the lig h t of the candles, the visiting ancestral spirits w ould partake o f the meal th ro u g h o u t the night... Translated by A.H.S. Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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