Shrovetide is a pagan and distinctive holiday. Some traditions of its celebration have survived to this day.
So, with the beginning of Maslenitsa week, pancakes begin to bake in almost every house. Previously, only wheat flour and water were added to the dough. And nowadays there are no pancakes - sweet, filled, and even pancake cakes. Pancake personifies the sun that everyone is waiting for after a long winter. The tradition of eating pancakes on Shrovetide means swallowing a piece of the warm and gentle sun. Another tradition has to do with the amount of pancakes baked. The more pancakes the villagers can bake, the sooner spring comes.
The sun is round, so many ancestors believed that the circle has magical properties. This is the origin of the tradition to lead round dances on Shrovetide. The wider the round dance, the hotter the sun will be, and, accordingly, the richer the harvest. In addition to round dances, young people often harnessed horses and traveled around the village in a sleigh. This was done so that spring would come to their village as soon as possible.
Fire was considered another symbol of the sun. So, in the villages, residents chose the largest wooden wheel, set it on fire and rolled it along the road to the slope so that it fell into the ravine. Anyone who can roll his wheel to a ravine without falling will live the whole year happy and in abundance. Another popular sign was associated with the fun on Shrovetide. It was believed that the person who will not have fun and participate in the holiday sweepstakes will be unhappy until the next spring.
Fist fights became another Shrovetide tradition. And the most daring winners had to fight the bear. Indeed, in the winter season, the bear sleeps in its den, and he wakes up only at the beginning of spring. Hence the tradition - to fight the bear, to wake him up from sleep.
And of course, not a single Shrovetide celebration was complete without burning a straw effigy. Throughout the entire week, a scarecrow symbolizing Maslenitsa was carried throughout the village, brought him food and entertained in every possible way. After all, the Scarecrow of Maslenitsa is not only the personification of the holiday itself, but also the evil winter and death. Therefore, on his farewell day, he was burned at a ritual fire, thereby saying goodbye to the bad and meeting the good.
