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Easter is a very old holiday. It had quite unique traditions in different regions of Lithuania. Many of them have not been passed down from generation to generation and, sadly, they have not survived to this day. One of the most important customs of celebrating the second day of Easter in the Kėdainiai district, visiting the rural population and watering it, has been known since the 19th century. in the late 19th century and the efforts of the townspeople of Užupė.
On the second day of Easter, Lithuanians have the custom of giving drink to those who sleep. They thanked them for the wash. The animals were sprinkled with holy water on Easter morning as the water is believed to bring health, beauty and protection against disasters.
This unique tradition of Easter washing in the Kėdainiai district, which has been preserved to this day, is now a very rare and special phenomenon. It can no longer be heard that this sacred action, as usual, would have survived elsewhere in Lithuania. In Užupė, the ritual was destroyed only by a pandemic, but the Kėdainiai district municipality plans to provide this tradition to the collection of intangible cultural heritage values.
Wash off with cold water early in the morning.
On the second day of Easter, two lovers of tradition, the inhabitants of this town and the two musicians Algirdas Berankis and Stasys Jasiukas brought their musical instruments, a jug or a bucket of water and a linen towel together with their children and grandchildren. , they visited their village huts and neighbors awake for many years.
They then washed their hands by filling them with water and then wiping them with a linen towel. In return, you get an egg or a piece of cake or other delicacy. Some of the collected goods are later handed over to larger and more difficult-to-live families.
After the death of the couple, only one Algirdas Bernakis kept the tradition for several years. Although he is not alone, before the pandemic he was assisted by children, protesters and grandchildren. Once upon a time, he and his father started walking the farms in their hometown of Užupė, when they were just ten years old.
Get ready at night – go to music in the morning
You still have to prepare for the process on Easter Sunday night, because you have to get up very early, as they say, with the first roosters, because when you go to the neighbors’ hut, you have to find them still asleep. . I had to get up already at 3 in the morning.
For many years, even the peasants who upheld this tradition during the Soviet era with their brothers, sons and grandchildren chose a farm at the end of the village to begin their journey. That’s where it started. When they appear, they wake up, get up and perform their ritual. However, in some cabins, people are already waiting for the sinks and apply with a glass of water to surround those who come.
Although Algis is a conductor by specialty, but plays the accordion well, Stasys played the bagpipes and played the tambourine. After washing, you should greet the family, play the song, and greet the parties.
Wash your cheeks with beet soap
Regina Lukminienė, a cultivator of ethnography in the Kėdainiai region, who is especially happy with this unique and most importantly preserved tradition, first recorded it in 1995. The ethnographer recalls that people sincerely believed in this rite. They believed that it provides health, protects against disease and ensures a good harvest.
In the past, the town’s washing machines also used “soap.” It was cut from a fodder beet as a soap-shaped chunk. Washing machines came up with tricks to make it fun. Unnoticed, the hostess was blinking over her face with red beets, and then she obviously needed to wash off that redness with a handful of water, then beet soap, and then wipe off with a towel.
Beria wishes
The bastards wish happiness, luck, health, that a good harvest can grow in the fields, that there will always be barrels full of all kinds of goodies. If you do not visit a toilet, success will come, believe the townspeople.
There are also families from these houses that do not allow it. While joking, they close the door or put a carriage (block) to make it difficult to exit. Sprinkle the windows?
The tradition maintained in the Kėdainiai region dates back at least 100 years. Now the employees of the Kėdainiai Cultural Center Surviliškis Cultural Center join Užupis. They prepare a cozy and fun stay for the villagers at night.
Currently, 66 people live in Užupė village, Surviliškis old age, Kėdainiai district.
