Just a few days left and the most important Christian and significant pagan holiday will usher us into spring. We look forward not only to the days off, which during this period I will again be able to spend with family, but also to the moments when once again we will all meet around one table. Just like Christmas, Easter brings peace and love into our lives, although in a different form. It is no wonder that its celebration is associated with suffering and sorrow, but also with the rebirth of life, faith, and hope.
Did you know that its original name comes from the word "pésah," which refers to an ancient Jewish holiday? Moreover, Easter is a movable feast, the date of which is influenced by the moon. Easter Sunday is always celebrated as the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs first after the date of the vernal equinox. However, you never have to worry about this. The calendar always gives us a clear answer.
Customs and traditions or "Šibi ryby, mastné ryby, dávaj vajca od korbáča, ak nemáš, tak kus koláča."
Easter has always consisted of these days: Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday. Each day is associated with specific customs and traditions that vary from region to region. For example, in Anglo-Saxon countries, they search for Easter eggs or bunnies, while in Slovakia, we whip and sprinkle girls. It is impossible to say which customs are wiser or better. Probably for each of us, the most beautiful are those we remember from childhood.
Typical customs in Slovakia are sprinkling and whipping with a whip. Younger or older boys or men go from house to house, from family to family as a sign of health, sprinkling and whipping every eligible girl in the house with a braided whip. As a reward, they receive a hand-painted or decorated Easter egg, nowadays also a chocolate egg and money. In the past, eggs were decorated by hand with simple patterns. Several weeks were spent collecting, blowing out, and then preparing them together using various techniques. Besides classic painting, they were, for example, wrapped in wool, straw, or had ornaments drilled into them. Of course, it is easy for children to decorate Easter eggs with stickers, scratching, or wax from melted crayons. Similar versions of Easter eggs have been found in the history of the Chinese and Egyptians. But coloring eggs is most closely associated with Slavic countries. In the past, Easter eggs were mostly dyed red, symbolizing Jesus' blood.
Of course, today we can buy everything ready-made. Also, a baked lamb tied with a red ribbon, which is also one of the irreplaceable symbols of Easter, just like a large chocolate bunny. Fortunately, the charm of homemade products is returning. Similarly, you can easily buy a whip. After all, having it nicely braided is an art. The way it is braided is passed down from generation to generation. First, you need to find the right twigs. Meanwhile, gather catkins, which welcome not only Easter but also spring to the household. In some families, it is customary to plant the whip in the garden after Easter.
Since the holidays are deeply connected with Christianity, customs also include observing fasting, which ends on Holy Saturday. So that besides the spiritual experience of the holidays, joyful moments with family and a table full of delicacies come into play. Classic treats include smoked meats, smoked meat and potato salad, and in many families, Easter cabbage soup is not missing. Slovak housewives like to prepare Easter roulade or lamb, mutton, or rabbit in a roasting pan. An excellent delicacy is serving smoked ham with horseradish. In eastern Slovakia, meat stuffing and homemade cheese or "syreček" or "hrudka" traditionally belong on the Easter table. Sausages, beetroot, horseradish, and of course eggs must not be missing on the Easter table.
Instead of cakes, Easter bread - Paska, or cakes or strudels made from yeast dough are served. In some families, there are also cakes with classic butter cream and chocolate glaze, but mostly simple cookies like Linzer cookies or vanilla crescents are prepared.
And even though recently more and more families decide to spend Easter holidays away from home and do not cling to traditions so much, these holidays will always remain a symbol of rebirth and hope for better times.
