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Easter Holiday in the Upper Don

Easter, or Resurrection of Christ, the major holiday of all Orthodox Christians, was looked forward to impatiently in the Don region.

Easter symbolizes a triumph of the Orthodox faith, the victory of the Lord over sin and death, and a beginning of a new world consecrated by Jesus Christ. It was preceded by the Great Lent, the time of abstinence in food, in words, in deeds, the time of spiritual purification of man.

Easter day was identified with the day of spring coming. It was awaited with joy: the Great Lent, forbidding eating all the fat, having fun, playing weddings was ending.

On the Palm Week Cossack women cleaned in their houses and outside, and did the washing.

Holy Week was a severe lent. In pious families they had a meal once a day and read prayers.

By the end of the Palm Week, on Thursday called “Clean”, all the members of the family washed themselves and made everything clean. The women coloured eggs with bulbous husk, made dough for Easter pies. On Saturday they baked pies, bread, cookies, bagels and pretzels.

Well-off Cossacks and out-of-town merchants baked Easter pies with raisins. In ordinary families they covered the pies with whipped egg white without sugar, as it was expensive for them.

On Saturday night Cossacks went to the church for the night holiday service for consecration of the Easter pies. Sometimes the people had to cover a long distance for the Easter service, as churches were only in a few of the villages.

They returned from the church early in the morning bringing with them consecrated Easter pies and eggs. The family gathered at the table served with dishes prepared beforehand. They began eating with consecrated pies, eggs, and bacon with other dishes to follow. After that the head of the family poured to each adult a small glass of home-distilled vodka.

A big Easter holiday dinner began. It was always rich and lavish with meat, noodles, chicken, pancakes with cream and stewed fruit. After dinner the families went out to see the sun playing bright colours.

Young people dressed in their best clothes went to enjoy themselves in games and attractions outside their settlement. They played quick games, swings, simply talked, went to pick tulips. Someone went boating along the River Don. And, of course, they sang and danced.

During the Easter holiday week the people did not do hard work, but only that was necessary, attended the church, visited their relatives and friends and shared the joy of the Easter holiday.

Irina Korenyugina