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Finnish Easter Witche´s Holiday

6/13/2018

Day of the Snakes

In Pre-Christian times people across the northern hemisphere have celebrated spring equinox between 19th and 23rd of March. In Finland Spring Equinox was known as Matopäivä the day of the snakes. Mato in old Finnish meant both snake and worm and everything that slythered. It was believed that on the day of spring equinox snakes and worms woke up from hibernation. There are several myths in Finnish folklore telling how snakes came to be and according to one version Akka the earth goddess was the one who created the snakes. During spring equinox Akka the earth woke up and all the snakes came out to dance in her honor. Origins of Akka and the snake cult most likely was brought by the Baltic tribes that arrived to what is now known as Finland about 7000 years ago mixing together with the already existing saami population. Similar snake worship can be found from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia and it seems to have been very common in all Baltic countries in the past. In Lithuania snake was worshiped as one of the most sacred totem animals and it is very likely that the goddess Akka was inspired by Zemyna, Lithuanian goddess of the earth.

Superstitions

It was forbidden to let animas out to the fields during spring equinox because people believed that fields were filled with dancing snakes. Spring Equinox was a day when hunters and fishermen build small traps and fishing nets from willow twigs. People made lots of weather forecasts on spring equinox. If there was full moon on the night before Matopäivä. Next day would be sunny but there would be frost during the night. There was lots of taboos connected to this day. Women were not allowed to do any chores that had something to do with snakes or handle objects that looked like worms or snakes, like sewing, spinning or even baking. Breaking this taboo would have been offensive towards the snake spirits. If taboos were broken, next summer tons of snakes would come and bite the people and the animals. Many families had lyylieläin, a wild animal which was half domesticated. It could have been a cat, deer or a snake that lived in the farm but was free to go as it pleased. If the pet was a snake people would give it milk and take good care of it. People believed that there was powerful protective magic in the snakes because they had the access to the underworld to meet the ancestors. Snake was a deliverer of hidden knowledge.

Protection From The Evil Eye

When Christianity arrived to Finland first in the form of Catholism and later on as Lutheranism Easter got many new meanings and superstitions. One of the most weirdest customs that I´v come across has to do with Maundy Thursday. In Finnish Maundy Thursday is Kiirastorstai and kiira was an evil spirit of enviness. People believed that if they were not in good terms with their neighbors they might send them kiiras to steal their luck. To protect themselves they took a sleigh and put all kinds of metal objects to the sleigh and into their pockets. They would hang a cow bell in to their neck and pull the sleigh around the house while chanting protection spells at the same time. This custom was called kiiranajo. It is possible that this custom comes from the time period when pagan folk magic was emerged into Catholic traditions. Sometimes incense was burned in the sleigh and driving the kiiras away became a purification ritual. The more closer we come to the modern times kiiranajo became a custom that was to mimic the sufferings of Jesus carrying the cross. This custom is not practiced in modern day Finland and in fact most Finns haven´t ever heard from it.

Very Long Friday

Four Days of Easter from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday were known as Piinaviikko the pain week. After the reformation in the 16th century Finland became a Lutheran country and Finnish Lutheran church has been often accused for highlighting such things as misery, suffering of Jesus, regression and self-loath during Easter and this has made psychological damage for many older Finnish generations. Good Friday was known as Pitkäperjantai the long Friday. It was called like that because people just wanted the day to end. It was forbidden to laugh, make visits, cook food on the stove or make fire (people only ate cold foods) and parents were allowed to spank their children.

Magical Saturday

Good Friday was followed by Easter Saturday which in Finland was known as Lankalauantai (the string Saturday). Since according to the Bible nothing special was happening on Saturday it became the witch´s day and it was filled with divination, superstitions, spells and magic. Predictions were made to find out who was going to get married, who was going to have babies, how the crop would grow and so on. Spells that were performed during the night between Saturday and Sunday, standing on a crossroads of three roads during full moon were extremely powerful. In many cultures autumn time is especially connected to witches but in Finland and other Scandinavian countries spring is the time of witches and in the old times it was believed that witches were most powerful around Easter.

Symbolism of Eggs

Holy Sunday was the end of fasting. Good food was served and people were allowed to eat as much as they wanted. In the old days eggs were sacred food and in Finland eggs were only to be found during spring and the summer. Egg hunting predates way before the modern day commercial Easter. There was one funny superstition how to find eggs. Person had to go to the cowshed, touch testicles of a ram or a goat while chanting and then they would know where to find eggs. Another superstition was that if person went to get water from the spring in Easter morning before crows made any noise and then would wash their face, they would remain strong and fresh for the rest of the year.

Easter Decorations

In modern day Finland there are lots of decorations connected to Easter. International symbols of Easter like baby chickens, eggs and bunnies are popular. One of the most common Finnish Easter traditions which originates from eastern Finland is picking willow twigs. Willow twigs are decorated with colorful ribbons and feathers. Sometimes eggs that are painted with watercolors are attached to the twigs as well. Willow twigs were originally used as wands in pagan rituals and in folk magic. In Eastern Finland where religion was mixture between pagan customs and Russian Orthodox people used willow twigs in Orthodox rituals to bless the fields.

Day of the Little Witches

One of the most fun and interesting Finnish Easter traditions are Easter witches. Tradition is 200 years old and originally came to Finland from Sweden in 18th century and it is still very popular tradition in western Finland. Easter witch is known as trulli which comes from Swedish word trollan meaning troll or a tiny witch. In the morning of Palm Sunday children dress up as trulli. They put on very colorful skirts and scarfs (both boys and girls) and some paint freckles to their faces. Trulli´s have copper coffee pots where they storage all the sweets and candy they get. Tradition is bit similar to American Halloween trick or treat tour. Kids go in groups from house to house exchanging decorated willow twigs to money and sweets. They cast a little spell with the twig.

Virvon varvon tuoreeks terveeks, tulevaks vuodeks, vitsa sulle, palkka mulle
(I will make spell for you to ensure good health for the coming year, twig for you, reward for me).

When I was a child dressing up as trulli was the best part of Easter. Many times me and my friends planned carefully our route and went to the houses where we knew there was the best candies. In most part of Western Finland Palm Sunday is the day when trulli´s are on the move but depending on the area witching day can also be Easter Saturday or Holy Sunday.

Rebirth In Nature

In Finnish Easter is Pääsiänen and this word is derived from Hebrew word Pesach which is a Jewish celebration becoming free from slavery and also from Swedish word Påsk meaning Easter. Because of church regulations still few years ago during the Easter all shops were closed several days in a row. Fortunately this is not the case anymore and shops are open during Easter and Christmas and all other holidays. Like in most countries in modern day Finland Easter is a holiday that is a mixture between different pagan and Christian customs and traditions. Thanks to the Easter witch tradition and the chocolate eggs it is a popular holiday among children. Majority of the Finns are non-religious and for many Easter is more about the arrival of spring simply because March-April is the time in Finland when snow starts to melt away and spring finally arrives.