#green week

I also wanted to explore drawing wings/avian clothing and this was just perfect!

This was also for the LU server weekly prompt for FWOF, Green week!

So here’s Green to start it off!

Another successful green week! This year from March 16th through the 20th(first day of spring)! But I added in more green I wore recently because I just have a lot of it. (This isn't even all of it. I have 6 egl dresses and 2 or 3 skirts)

Green week is only fleetingly mentioned in my primary sources about Czech calendar customs as Rusalia. It is described as the echo of old pagan customs honoring the dead.

So even though in much of the Slavic world this week is devoted to appeasing a particular type of ancestor—the unclean dead—I’m just focusing on honoring my ancestors in general.

Since birches are heavily associated with Green Week, after I gave Děduška his first fruits, I headed down to the river birch to leave some for any spirits that might be hanging out there.

Green Week also called zielone świątki (Polish), Rusalii (Romanian), зелені свята (Ukrainian), русалска седмица (Bulgarian), rusalné svátky (Czech), or зелёные cвятки (Russian), is an annual fertility festival that occurs between the Christian holidays of Easter and Pentecost, and is sometimes connected with Pentecost directly. ❈ While customs will vary based upon regional culture, the holiday centers around encouraging the blooming of crops and honoring the dead. One of the key themes found in multiple cultures is the presence of Rusalki. In some beliefs, such as those of Romanians, they need to be chased away and the Calusari engage in a dance believed to help protect human souls; in other beliefs, such as those of the Russians, the Rusalki emerge and need to be left offerings, as they will assist in the growing of agricultural goods or at the very least stop their interference. ❈ During this holiday it is also common to use trees, most commonly birch trees, as means for honoring the dead, as it was believed that they contained the souls of those who had passed. On the Thursday of Green Week, called Semik, rituals to assist or honor the unclean dead would take place. Birch trees would also be petitioned by women in fertility rites and vows, and, in some cases, a chosen birch tree would be "drowned", similar to the drowning of an effigy of Marzanna or Morana to usher in spring during Topienie Marzanny.

green week / rusalki week — may 16 through pentecost

"Green Week is connected to Slavic rituals of celebrating the full spring and the reborn greenery (the nature fully reborn after winter) after all the tree branches had already turned green. Its core nature is a form of maintenance of the rhythm of the nature, with magical practices of purifying the surroundings from demons or evil spirits that might have an effect on the further process of growth towards the end of spring. Goal of these rituals was designed to boost nature’s fertility, the ability to grow, and to prepare the soil, crops and livestock for the upcoming summer season and the later (expectantly abundant) harvest."

CUSTOMS

• adorning houses, pathways and shrines with green branches (particularly of the birch-tree), herbs and flowers

• sweeping floors with a green birch-tree branch to ‘purify’ it

• scattering sweet flag / calamus on floors as a protective barrier

• adorning cattle with flowers and incensing them with sacred smoke (more about it here)

• rolling eggs around cattle’s sides in rituals of protection and of boosting the fertility (same ritual was performed for humans)

• burning bonfires around which joyful celebrations with dances and singing were organized

• walking with torches around crop fields to get rid of evil spirits and demons

• walking with so-called ‘gaik’ or ‘maik’ (branches decorated with flowers and ribbons, held on a long stick)

some other ways we can celebrate in current time:

• honor your ancestors, especially the ones that passed away too early or in tragic circumstances (you can also honor Rod, the god of fate, bloodlines, ancestral magic and ancestral knowledge)

• honor the spirits of local woods and bodies of water - you could help clean the woods and waters and give offerings asking for blessings of abundance and good luck

• honor the gods - especially deities connected with spring, fertility, youth and beauty such as Lelya, Dodola/Perperuna, Mokosh, Lada, Jarilo, Vesna, Zhiva, Dazbog, Morana (in her spring-planting-mother aspect), Kostroma and Kupalo

• dress a birch tree, make offerings and perform rirtuals in front of it - you can take a couple of sticks found nearby home, for good luck and success

• while I discourage this course of action this particular year, because of the virus situation normally you’d also want to organize a party and sing and dance with your friends, or go watch/play sports game of some sort

• perform rituals and cast spells connected to wealth, health, beauty, happiness, friendship, love and fertility

• make a bonfire. us slavs love bonfires. slavs also love jumping through bonfires for good luck, but please make sure to spread the kindling around first and try not get hurt while performing your feat of agility.

• get a sword, real or fake and dance with it. don’t get hurt, it would ruin the fun.

°•. ✿ .•°

sources:

https://lamusdworski.wordpress.com/2016/05/24/green-week/

https://slavicfolklore.com/the-rusalka-and-the-green-week-festival

Ooooooohhhh I can do green!