Walpurgis Night

The pagan festival of Walpurgis Night, also called the Night of Witches and the Witchfire, is celebrated on the night of the 30th of April to the first of May. The peoples of some Western European countries at the same time celebrate the spring festival, which has its roots back to the traditions of the pre-Christian period. The inhabitants of the Celtic countries celebrate Beltein at about the same period, and the Walpurgis night in a number of German lands and in Prague is held in a traditional dance, which is conducted around the pagan May tree.

history of the holiday

This name was given to the feast in honor of St. Valpurga, which was canonized in 778. It is her annual remembrance on May 1.

In the past, in the Walpurgis' night, rituals were carried out aimed at expelling the witches. Villagers kindled a lot of fires, which often burned straw stuffed witches, walked around with torches at home, called church bells. People believed that in the Walpurgis' night the grass acquired a miraculous power.

The German belief says that on the Walpurgis night not only witches gather, but also werewolves with the souls of the deceased. Witches on this holiday come with lovers-features. In the middle of the meeting, on a large stone table or high chair sat Satan himself with a human black face and a goat's body. First, all guests kneel before him, kissing Satan's legs, showing submission and devotion. However, Satan only talks to the queen of witches, who reports to him about all the evil deeds done in a year. Together they plan the machinations for the next year. Then begins a feast with eating horse meat, skulls and cowhide. To the music that flows from the horse's head and cat's tail, the witches embark on wild dances, and in the morning on the grass the villagers see the circles trampled by them.

Walpurgis Night and Modernity

Today in this strange night in European countries, as a hundred years ago, burning bonfires, daring the witches who have flown to the Sabbath, playing in old-time fun, listening to performances of choirs students. Boys are allowed to shout loudly, burn firecrackers, since it is commonly believed that loud noise is the best defense against evil spirits. In Scandinavia, bonfires serve as invitations to spring, and garbage is burned all along. A traditional dish in the festive Walpurgis night is a fresh salmon that has been marinated in sugar, dill and salt. The Czechs pour sand on the threshold of their houses so that witches can go there only when they count the grains of sand. And in Bavaria, it is common to make fun of neighbors by pulling shoelaces out of their shoes, smearing door handles with a multicolored toothpaste or even moving the door completely to another place.