Easter Traditions in Ukraine
Easter bread, pussywillows, and pysanky mark Ukrainian Easter.
Christian and pagan rituals have merged in Ukraine to create annual springtime customs that celebrate the end of winter and the resurrection of Christ.
Ukraine’s practice of coloring eggs made the pysanky tradition a famous Easter tradition the world over. But Easter in Ukraine is surrounded by many more customs, rituals, and traditions that meld Christian and pagan practices together.
Ukrainian Paska, or Easter Bread
The specially-baked Easter bread, called paska, has great symbolic significance in Ukraine. The baker of the bread must keep her thoughts pure and the household must remain quiet for the bread to retain its fluffy texture while in the oven. It is customary to keep the baking of the paska a strictly family affair; neighbors or strangers are not permitted to enter the house while the paska is being prepared. In ancient times, the man of the house would stand guard at the door while the paska loaf was being made to prevent any intruders from casting the “evil eye” onto the bread and thus threatening the family’s prosperity for the coming year.
The paska bread, sometimes shown as having been baked in saucepans so that the shape is somewhat tall and cylindrical, is decorated with symbols welcoming springtime. While Christian symbols, like crosses, may decorate the paska loaf, many symbols are of pagan origins. Flowers, leaves, birds, and sun symbols are often formed out of dough and baked into the golden-brown crust of this Easter bread.
In some cases, three paska loaves may be baked at different times during the Easter season. The first one honors nature, the second the dead, and the third those on earth. These are not eaten until Easter Sunday, when the Easter feast is laid on the table and consumed by the family.
Pagan Springtime Rituals and Christian Rus
Springtime rituals were already well established by the time Vladimir turned Kievan Rus into a Christian state. Pagan Ukrainians had been welcoming spring with dancing, fires, painted eggs, and other rituals for centuries. Some of these annual practices were absorbed into Christian Easter rites but maintained their roots in the peasants’ eyes as important springtime traditions.
For example, the cutting of pussywillow branches was not originally a Christian substitute for palm branches. Since pagan times, the pussywillow’s bloom was seen as a signpost for spring and was thought to have healthful qualities if ingested. Pagan Ukrainians would cut the branches and swat one another with them to bless each other with the pussywillow’s strength to come out of winter so early in the year. When Palm Sunday began to be celebrated, the two practices merged into one.
Pagan sun and springtime rituals are now masked in Christian traditions. They may be practiced to certain degrees today depending upon region and the importance placed upon them by individual families.
