So yesterday, I got to know something fun about Bulgarian culture. Vassil, one of Larry's readers, is Bulgarian, and he hung this little token from one of the bushes in the Sullivans' garden. He told Larry that in Bulgaria, they have this tradition: When you see the first sign of spring, you hang a little token on the bush, tree, flower, or whatever other flora is displaying its first spring flair. So I guess he saw the buds on the forsythia bush and hung this little token on it:
When I first caught sight of it from afar, I thought it was a fishing lure. ;o) But what a neat tradition! Yay for cultural differences! And yay for springtime!
2 comments:
When I was living in New Mexico, I was fascinated by the Native American (usually Navajo or Hopi) sand paintings. They are traditional colored creations of sand, used originally in "medical healing" ceremonies. The "paintings" are glued to particle board now, but in the original ceremonies, they were considered specific to the ceremony, and were swept away at the conclusion. They have human-like figures, dressed in feathers and leather, holding tokens of superstition. I remember being told that the female figures had circular heads. The male figures had rectangular heads -- which made them "blockheads". I will never forget that description. Hooray for education about other cultures!
I've heard of those paintings, and I believe I've seen some that were "mounted" in that fashion. But as for the ones in the original ceremonies....I always thought it was a shame to destroy such beautiful artwork! But I guess that was just part of their religious significance.
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