|
|
|
|
| News article |
back to newsletter |
| |
 | Easter Traditions |
|
Everybody knows the custom of colouring Easter eggs and hiding them somewhere in the grass … and finding them months later. But do we all know where the custom comes from, how did the Easter bunny come to the egg? And what other traditions and customs are there around the world? Let’s try and find some explanations: The British for example say that Easter has a much longer tradition and actually goes back to a time before Christianity. According to them Easter is named after the Anglo-Saxon goddess of the dawn and spring “Eostre”, meaning that Easter is the end of winter and also of lent. Many of the symbols connected with Easter have something to do with birth, luck and fertility.
The Easter bunny for example, which is actually an Easter hare, has its origins in the pre-Christian fertility lore where hares or rabbits symbolized new life in the time of spring. But also because of his fast reproduction. In the Byzantine symbolism the hare is a symbol for Christ who brought life in death. But hares have also been a symbol for the moon already from antiquity on. This comes from the fact they sleep with their eyes open. This is a reason why the Easter bunny is a hare and not a rabbit as rabbits are born with their eyes closes while hares have their eyes open. According to the myth they were taught never to blink with their eyes or close them. That makes them a creature of the night such as the moon. But what does this have to do with Easter? In fact the first moon after the vernal equinox determines the date for Easter which brings us again back to the connection between moon and hare. Also the fact how the hare actually came to the egg has different backgrounds. One story for example tells that the picture of the hare was imprinted into the Easter bread which was made from eggs, which created the story of an egg laying hare. The other one, in my opinion much nicer one, is the legend that the Easter hare was actually a very big and handsome bird which belonged to the goddess Eostre. One day she turned the bird magically into a hare but from the inside the hare was till a bird and continued to build nests which he filled with eggs.
The tradition to give away these eggs as presents has different origins. The egg has been for all times the origin of the human being or the universe itself. Already in pre-Christian times the egg was a symbol of life and resurrection. For this reason eggs were put into graves. According to the legend the egg keeps something inside like a grave and from the supposedly dead body a new life arises which gives a clear connection to the resurrection of Christ. Another explanation for eggs being used as gifts goes back to the Middle Ages where eggs were used as an entity for counting. Easter was the fixed time of payment when eggs were given to the landlord as a compensation for the leased land. But now appears the question why the eggs are coloured and not left white? This custom comes apparently from Egypt where dyed eggs where eaten during the spring festival. The western world took this tradition over in the 13th century and coloured the eggs red which symbolised the blood of Christ, of life and vitality. Today many different colours are used for the eggs; all of them derive from a certain meaning.
|
|
| |
|
Also the tradition of the Easter fire goes back to pre-Christian times when the fire was a holy symbol for the people. The six old Roman women priest of Vesta had to take care that the holy fire never went out. In ancient times people used spring fires to greet the sun which applied to be the centre of life. This tradition, or name it cult, was used to guarantee fertility, growth and harvest. In the 8th century this tradition was taken over from the Christians. The victory over winter and the awakening after a long and dark period of time was reinterpreted and used as a symbol for Christ’s resurrection. The fire is lit with a candle on Saturday before Easter.
The Easter lamb is also a very common tradition. It goes back to a Jewish tradition when a lamb was butchered and eaten at the Feast of Passover. In the Christian belief the lamb became symbolically the Lamb of God and is seen as a sign of life. The white fur of the lamb is a symbol of purity and a peaceful life and should tell people to live their lives in peace. Today the lamb often appears in baked form as a cake which is richly decorated.
|
|
|
| |
|
