07/07/2022
With this post I'm officially saying I'm changing the topic (and the name) of this blog, and from now on, it all will be about our beautiful country! Let's raise awareness and attract attention to 💙Ukraine💛 The world needs to know more about our culture, history, mentality, traditions, destinations, cuisine ... And I do hope many of you will fall in love with 🇺🇦 and we will definitely meet there REALLY soon!
And it's kind of symbolic that the first post falls on July 7, a very peculiar holiday to Ukraine - Ivana Kupala, also called Kupala night (July 6-7). Picturesque, unusual, distinctive, authentic 🌿
Some history:
Initially, before the spread of Christianity, the pagan holiday of Ivana Kupala was associated with the summer solstice (the birth of the summer sun – Kupalo). With adoption of Christianity, the ritual of the holiday got dedicated to the birthday of John the Baptist which is on June 24 in Julian calendar and falls on July 7 in more modern Gregorian calendar.
🌿On Kupala day, young people jump over the flames of bonfires in a ritual test of bravery and faith
The failure of a couple in love to complete the jump, while holding hands, is a sign of their destined separation
🌿Girls float wreaths of flowers (often lit with candles) on rivers, and attempt to gain foresight into their romantic relationship fortune from the flow patterns of the flowers on the river
🌿Men may attempt to capture the wreaths, in the hope of capturing the interest of the woman who floated it
🌿There is an ancient Kupala belief that the eve of Ivan Kupala is the only time of the year when ferns bloom. Prosperity, luck, discernment, and power befall whoever finds a fern flower.
Therefore, on that night, village folk roam through the forests in search of magical herbs, and especially, the elusive fern flower
🌿Traditionally, unmarried women, signified by the garlands in their hair, are the first to enter the forest. They are followed by young men. Therefore, the quest to find herbs and the fern flower may lead to the blooming of relationships between pairs within the forest