The joyful and sunny arrival of spring is the embodiment of Carnival. After a long and cold winter, such a holiday is very relevant. The traditional symbol of Shrovetide is baking pancakes and holding festivities. Maslenitsa week is the last one before Lent. Each day of the celebration of Shrovetide has its own name and rituals.
On the first day of Shrovetide week, it is customary to meet Shrovetide with baking pancakes and mass festivities. They prepare for the holiday in advance: they finish building slides, build swings, prepare venues for events, sew carnival costumes. Traditionally, the first pancake is used to commemorate the dead, paying tribute to memory and respect. On Monday, it will be very helpful to visit your family to agree on how to celebrate Shrovetide.
Shrove Tuesday - "Flirt". The name itself denotes the meaning of the celebrations on such a day: to invite relatives and friends to visit, to eat pancakes, to have fun. The second day of Maslenitsa week is considered a favorable period for newlyweds. Young couples, who got married a few weeks before Shrovetide, ride down the snow slides together and thus invite happiness into the house. For those who have not yet found their happiness, "Flirting" can help in solving such a problem. It is on this day that brides and grooms can find a mate. Shrovetide fun, fun, ditties direct still free brides and grooms to family life. Guests are received, treated to pancakes, and then sent to ride the slides. To create a romantic environment for future couples.
Family relations continue to grow stronger during Maslenitsa week and the next day - "Lakomki". "Let's go to the mother-in-law for pancakes!" - says the husband to his wife. On this day, the mother-in-law invites her son-in-law and daughter to the table to treat them with delicious pancakes. It is especially important to sing songs about the beloved and caring mother-in-law on Wednesday. It is imperative for young couples to follow this custom to show their respect for their elders. Future children will also love and honor their parents.
On "Broad Thursday" it is customary to celebrate a bright spring holiday with a wide heart. Noisy celebrations, fist fights, carnivals, sleigh rides in large groups are indispensable attributes of the mass celebration on Thursday.
If on Wednesday the mother-in-law invited her son-in-law to be treated with pancakes, on Friday, on the contrary, the son-in-law lays a generous table with Maslenitsa delicacies and invites his dear mother-in-law to visit. This day was popularly nicknamed "the mother-in-law of the evening". In addition to the usual pancakes, you can diversify the menu. After Shrovetide, such a pleasure may not be presented, because there is a long fast ahead, which prohibits the consumption of certain basic foods.
On Saturday comes the "Sister-wife's gatherings", when the wife invites her husband's relatives to visit. The sister-in-law is the husband's sister, with whom the spouse can whisper about her husband's favorite habits, as well as establish strong family contact. If the husband does not have a sister, other close relatives are invited.
"Forgiveness Sunday" is the seventh day of the celebration of Shrovetide and the final one. It can rightfully be called the culmination. On this day, it is customary to ask for forgiveness from friends, relatives, relatives. You should also visit everyone whose attention and care you value. People are freed from sins on such a forgiven day before Great Lent. At the end of the holiday, a straw effigy is burned. The scarecrow is usually made tall and bright so that winter is not offended by the spring and leaves as soon as possible. Shrovetide leaves and leads the winter. After Maslenitsa week, a new stage in life begins. Shrovetide helps people get rid of resentment, misunderstandings with loved ones. It can be considered a family holiday, because the celebration takes place mainly with the family. Sometimes Shrovetide is compared to the New Year for this.
