As TFE gets ready to celebrate (and learn about) Kupala, here are some interesting facts we’ve discovered along the way…
what IS kupala?
Ivan-Kupala Night (or Kupalle) in Belarus is a traditional Slavic holiday that is similar to to the summer solstice, when the Earth experiences the most daylight.
Kupalle is celebrated during the night from 6 to 7 July according to the Gregorian calendar, and 23 to 24 June by the Julian calendar.
The roots of Kupala Night came from ancient history when people were pagans. On this night, people thanked and honored other powers they worshipped, like the Fire, the Sun, the Water, and the Earth. In the past, people believed that on this day, every living creature was in a special connection with each other on Earth. They also believed that all plants had special magical powers on this day.
How can we celebrate kupala?
In the morning, the girls go out into the field for flowers. The collected flowers were believed to have healing powers. The girls wove wreaths from flowers, decorated themselves with them, and used them for fortune-telling.
All the possible evil spirits like witches, snakes, water, mermaids, and werewolves awaken at Kupala Night. Therefore, you shouldn’t sleep all night.
The fire has a special meaning on the night of Kupala. They put the fire during the celebration because it is believed that it can exile everything bad from their lives, and it can free up a person from all the negativity. That is why jumping over the fire is one of the most important rituals on this night.
Also, people go to the forest to find a blooming fern that is very hard to see. People believed that the God of Fire, Perun, sends fire to this flower and the fern flashed with a bright light for a few seconds at midnight on Kupala Night.
It is believed that those who find the plant will have everything that he wished.