online comenius

Between religion s

and

ethics common ground

-A

Comenius project magazine

PARTNERS C. N. Octav Onicescu, Bucharest, Romania

Instituto de Enseñanza Secundaria IES Santa Clara, Santander, Spain

Yahya Turan Anadolu Öğretmen Lisesi, Reyhanlı / Hatay, Turkey

ZESPÓŁ SZKÓŁ NR 31 IM. JANA KILIOSKIEGO, Warszawa, Poland Pencho Slaveikov Comprehensive Sofia , Bulgaria

School No.1,

C. N. Octav Onicescu

National College ''Octav Onicescu'' from Bucharest is a theoretical public school, where 780 students are learning. The school was founded in 1957 and is named after the great mathematician Octav Onicescu and it has 57 teachers and two principals.

The professors who teach in our education unit are qualified and have always shown a special concern for improvement.

Educational offer for the school year in progress is of 120 places in mathematics-informatics (computer intensive and intensive English), human profiles 60 places, 30 places for the sports profile.

Our High school is in Berceni district, located in sector 4. The population of this district is low and has an average income. For this reason many students in our school come from families with

limited financial possibilities. A small percentage of students are part of ethnic minorities, most of them are included in the Rrome minority. Besides this minority you can also find students from migrant families such as Chinese, Iranians, Turks and many others.

In the past few years the National College ''Octav Onicescu'' participated as partner in many national and international projects, programs leaded by the National Agency for Programs in Education and training programs coordinated by the Ministry of Education Research and Youth, School Inspectorate of Bucharest as well in partnerships initiated by our educational establishment.

Following these projects, our school students coordinated by teachers created www.onicescu.ro the school's website, an on-line magazine onix.onicescu.ro and a high school newspaper ''Jurnal de Liceu''.

In this project ''Octav Onicescu'' National College serves as coordinator of the project. This will ensure optimal communication between project partners using modern means of communication.

All partners will equally participate in the project,

the coordinator will ensure project monitoring activities. The final report will be done by the coordinator with the help of the partners.

SANTA CLARA SCHOOL

Santa Clara School is situated in the City Center of Santander, Capital City of Cantabria.

Many students come not only from Santander, but from other cities or villages of Cantabria , because our school offers not only Secondary studies but also professional modules in different areas. Our school has a great number of students whose families are of many different country origin as migration activity has being increased last years in Spain. Santa Clara has more than 22 different origin countries´ students: from Eastern Europe and ancient USSR , such as Ukraine. Other students come from Caribbean countries, Central America or South America, and North of Africa or other African countries of origin. So, we have teachers in charge of intercultural pedagogical work and also for special attention to those students who need it

in order to help them to adaptation to a new culture and study model in Spain when it is a need for them Project will in fact have the cooperation with the Psycho and Pedagogic Department in this sense.

The main lines of our project will be a great educative value in connection with the inner situation of school with those targets centred in the intercultural, integration and open minded view upon to all different cultures we have in this global and information sharing times.

YAHYA TEACHER

TURAN

ANATOLIAN

TRAINING

HIGH

SCHOOL

Yahya Turan Anatolian Teacher Training High School is a state and boarding school. The aim of our school is to train students to be a teacher trainee before university. The students and the teachers of Institution for initial teacher training are selected through certain examinations which make our teacher training school privileged among all the other schools in Turkey. The students learn English and French as a second language. We have

154 boarding students. Most of the students come from different cities in Turkey. It creates the cultural richness to the school. Our school is located the border to Syria.

Zespol Szkol nr. 31

Zespol Szkol nr. 31 im. Jana Kilinskiego, a partner school in the project "Between Religions and Ethics- A Common Ground", is based in Warsaw, Poland. It comprises a comprises a comprehensive secondary school where students can choose a class with extend history, geography and

mathematics or a class with extended art, history of art, culture or IT( computer graphic). There is a unique in Warsaw secondary school of artistic handcraft and metal work, where students learn to make jewellery and other decorative and utilitarian objects of metal glass and plastic. They are also take part in glass painting and decoupage classes. After completing this school, the students have the possibility of going on to a one-year postsecondary school to obtain the qualifications needed for the jobs of a goldsmith-jeweller or blacksmith (artistic objects).

The students are between 15-18 years old. they all learn English and German as foreign languages.

Because of the school's specificity, its students come not only from Warsaw but often commute from different peripheral small towns and villages.

Zespol Szkol nr.31 participates in e-Twinning projects ( "Contemporary Migration and the Children", "Penpals-Polish -Turkish Friendship") and its students correspond in English with their peers from many school abroad.

As for the students' specific needs, 15% of the students are financially disadvantaged and there

are 30% of dysfunctional students (dyslexia and health problems).

Pencho Slaveikov School

Pencho Slaveikov School is a successor of the oldest secondary school of Bulgaria’s capital, known as The First Classical Secondary School for Boys. It was founded in 1879.

This school is a general school catering for pupils of all abilities and backgrounds with a stable staff.

The teachers work hard and put in many extra hours to provide activities above and beyond curricular requirements. Their goal is to provide Bulgarian youths with the best possible education and to install in them high standards of morality and integrity. They are constantly striving to give the pupils opportunities which will enrich their

lives and open their minds to the range of possibilities available to them and to the world at large.

Pencho Slaveikov School primary stage department majors in foreign languages, music and art. The secondary stage department majors in foreign languages, art combined with foreign language learning, the humanities and natural sciences. Their course of study begins with a year of intensive training in English or Spanish and includes all academic subjects. The school enables students to develop critical thinking skills, participate in respectful exchanges of diverse opinions and become enthusiastic lifelong learners. In so doing, students will learn to demonstrate sensitivity to the global human condition and the environment, cherish democratic values, and become responsible citizens. The school offers a core curriculum, enriched by an array of elective courses and activities. The school is a partner in this project.

The project is an opportunity to develop new methods for combating educational exclusion and school failure and promote integration of pupils

with special educational needs and equality. We would like to promote intercultural awareness and fight against racism and xenophobia. Ignorance about the various religious systems, whether resulting from lack of available information or from sheer refusal to learn the available information, cannot foster genuine pluralism.

Instead, ignorance fosters vague and stereotypical impressions of foreign beliefs and symbols, leading only to increased feelings of superiority. To counteract these tendencies, it is necessary to develop empathy, to enter into the mental and spiritual universes of others, thereby discovering their internal logic, coherence, and reasonability.

The

first

meeting: Bucharest

Our Ancestors

– culture, religion, conduct rules Prehistoric pre-Christian religions in Dacia

Since the oldest times mankind tried to find out what are his or environment origins. The answers depending of ethic background and degree of spiritual evolution made possible the appearance of myths which tried to explain the phenomena and enigmatic events with a spatial or temporal nature which happened in man’s existence, in nature or universe, about human or cosmic destiny, things that before that were explained using the supernatural.

It’s interesting to observe the fact that although the world civilizations were dispersed and they made contact later, the myths have commune themes like creation of the world or food.

Gradually, the myths gave birth to religions, especially through a religious ceremony followed by creation of specific institutions (church).

Geto - Dacians had a monotheistic religion.

They worship Apollo (also known as Char-Ystos, the son of the sky) and after they moved to Orpheus, considered the founder of the first true religion (the first with a book) with a cosmogony and a theory of saving and anthropogenesis well

formulated. According to this cult, man carries with him the original sin (idea which appear later in Christianity), that must be served by sufferings, man soul being imprisoned in body just like in a prison. To stop the reborn, release the soul and find the salvation (similar to the Buddhist idea of metempsychosis), he must live a moral life, without animal food and practice the prayers and the purification rituals.

Orpheus cult influence was manifested to the ritual and Christian iconography, in many paintings of the catacombs, Christ being depicted as Orpheus in the depiction of ‘the Good Shepherd.’

Christianity was precisely a great enemy for the mysteries because it has much affinity with these cults.

Bibliography: Mircea Eliade, History of religious beliefs and ideas – Publishing: Univers Enciclopedic, 2004 Rizea Mariana The XII-th form

National Onicescu”

College

“Octav

Bucharest, Romania

Zalmoxis: cult, rite and interpretation Zalmoxis (Greek Ζάλμοξις, also known as Salmoxis, Σάλμοξις, Zamolxis, Ζάμολξις, or Samolxis Σάμολξις) was a legendary social and religious reformer, regarded as the only true god by the Thracian Dacians (also known in the Greek records as Getae Γέται). According to Herodotus, the Getae, who believed in the immortality of the soul, looked upon death merely as going to Zalmoxis (who is also called Gebeleizis by some among them) as they knew the way to become immortals.

‘The Greeks from Hellespont or Herodot himself has integrate all had heard about Zalmoxis, about the doctrin and his cult into a

spiritual horizon structure Pythagorean. Or, that mean that Getae-Dacian god cult believes in the immortality of the soul acts and certain type initiation rites. Beyond rationalism and Herodotus euhemerism (Doctrine mythological characters that would be deified people fear, or admiration peoples; Evhemer - ancient Greek philosopher) or his informants, guess the mystery of the cult character. That is maybe the reason way Herodotus reluctant to give details (if –but that in not sure- those that had been sad this things really told him): his discretion about Mystery is well known. But Herodotus acknowledges that he does not believe in the story of Pythagoras' slave Zalmoxis, and that, contrary, he is convinced about the anteriority of get daemon, and this detail is important.’

Mircea Eliade – History of religious beliefs and ideas, vol II The belief of Getae in immortality mentioned

by Herodotus, Eliade, following the study of Linforth, made an essential clarification in understanding the cult of Zalmoxis, namely that ‘immortalize’, after the term used by Eliade, ‘be

acquired through an initiation, What approaches Zalmoxis cult created by the Greek and Hellenistic Mysteries.’ Although the actual ceremonies hasn’t been transcribed by historians, the information transmitted by Herodotus indicates, according to Eliade's interpretation, a mythical-ritual scenario of death and return to earth. And as to the meaning of the only ritual magic transcribed by Herodotus, sacrifice, Eliade interprets law designed to, ‘update relations between the Dacians and their god, as they were originally, when Zalmoxis among them’, constitutes such a ‘symbolic repetition of the founding of the cult’, similar, only functionally with the updating of the Cross in Christianity.

Htonic character of the god was revealed by some ancient authors and by many modern scholars they have put it in the relationship, on the one hand with Dionis and Orpheu, and, on the other hand, with mythical characters, whose main feature was either a shamanic technique, be Mantica, or descent into Hell. Mircea Eliade nevertheless, see in Herodotus stories about

Zalmoxis cult, elements that approaches the dac god to Mystery.

Along with the form Zalmoxis that seems to be the real one (present in Herodotus, Plato, Diodorus of Sicily, Apuleius, Jordanes, Porphirios etc.), Antiquity also knew Zamolxis form (Lucian, Diogenes, Laertios, etc.). Eliade observe that one of the other forms may be derived by metathesis.

Porphiros explain the Zalmoxis variant through the trac word zalmos, ‘skin, fur’ what give sense to a anecdote that say that at his birth, a bearskin was thrown over Zalmoxis. From this etymology, some authors have concluded that Zalmoxis was originally a Bärengott (bear-god). The hypothesis is resumed Rhys Carpenter that place the getae-god among other "sleeping bears".

Not all the ancient sources consider that Zalmoxis was a god. Herodotus is the only source to suggest that the Getae were monotheistic: "...and they do not believe that there is any god but their own" (Herodotus). According to some, ancient sources don’t present any other God of Getae-Dacians than Zalmoxis. Among others, Vasile Pârvan, Jean Coman, R.Pettazzon, E.Rohde

and S. Paliaga consider that Getae -Dacians religion is monotheistic. Others consider it henotheistic. But Diodorus Siculus states that the Getae worship Hestia, following the teachings of Zalmoxis.

Bibliography: Mircea Eliade, From Zamolxix to Gingis Han, comparative studies about the religions and the folklore of Dacia and East Europe , translated by Maria and Cezar Ivﾄハescu, Humanitas: Bucharest, 1995 Mircea Eliade, History of religious beliefs and ideas, vol II Rizea

Ionela

Denisa Romani a

The Myth of the Hero slaying the Dragon

The hero slaying the dragon is one of the few myths that have survived for thousands of years in almost all the cultures of the world. Numerous songs, ballads and fairy tales retell the story of a dragon that created a serious disturbance in the community, and had to be vanquished by the hero.

This study attempts to analyze and compare the Romanian ballad Iovan Iorgovan, the hero who set to slay the dragon, with different versions of the ancient myth as part of the Indo-European cultural complex.

Dragons are mythical characters having the body of a very large serpent with one or several heads, spitting fire through their mouths, with many tongues and sharp fangs, and sometimes having a set of bat-like wings. In the various European traditions they are monstrous and fierce symbols of the chaos in Nature, belonging to the precosmic era. Gods or heroes had to reassert their sovereign power over the dragon’s force of destruction and chaos, and thus create or restore the cosmic order. As an obstructer of waters, the dragon has been vanquished by the god of storms, who thus frees the rain and returns fertility and prosperity to the community.

The Romanian tradition describes the dragon, ‘balaur’, as a huge and strong serpent, with wings

and golden scales, having three or nine and sometimes twelve heads, blowing fire through his mouths. Killing him was the greatest achievement of the legendary Iovan, or the fairy tale hero “Făt Frumos”/ Prince Charming. In a cosmogonic legend Fârtate, the world creator, punished the dragon for his continuous mischief by telling him to coil nine times around the Earth to protect it from floods, which reminds us of Midgard, the Teutonic dragon that also coiled around the Earth, and also reinforced the monster’s connection with water and floods. As I mentioned above, Romanians believed that after having lived under the threshold for seven years, the dragon came out and went to the sky as stormy clouds, an image reminding us of the Indian dragon Vrtra. The serpents/dragons ruled the wells and the springs, and the rainbow was their road. Their most widespread image is that of a strong storm, which is in accord with their description in other IndoEuropean traditions. The Romanian word for dragon is ‘balaur’, with roots in the I-E *bolä, Skt. bala ‘physical power’, found in Dacian language in names like Balius, Decebalus; in modern languages we find: Romanian bală, ‘monster, fierce beast’, Albanian bollë, ‘snake’, Serbian. blavor, ‘snake’, but also ala in Serbian or hala in Bulgarian, a female dragon, a creature closer to lamia.

The slaying of the dragon myth is generally interpreted as the symbolic victory of order over chaos, of growth over stagnation during the annual cycle, of rebirth over death. It is a myth that has to be recited and enacted cyclically in order to maintain its magic force. According to Calvert Watkins the dragon represents the chaotic world and it must be subdued in order to restore order; this is interpreted as a sovereignty fight. As the obstructer of waters the dragon generates draughts, and the hero must fight with it in order to free the waters, and ensure an abundance of crops. This is considered a fertility myth, which must be re-enacted every spring.

In conclusion, by comparing the motifs that are common to the Indo-European versions of the myth and the Romanian ballad we find several common motifs such as: the hero fights the dragon, using a wooden club, which makes him heroic and recognizable, whether it is Thor’s ‘Crusher maul,” or Indra’s “whizzing club,” or Iovan’s “buzdugan,” the leitmotif of the ballad: “Iovan Iorgovan / Brat de buzdugan”; “Iovan Iorgovan / Wielder of the wooden club”; the dragon tries to discourage the hero from fighting by threatening the community with the consequences of his death, the fly that would kill horses and cattle, as in the most of the ancient

Indo-European versions according to which something comes out from the dragon’s head, from his teeth, the Spartoi and the earthmen as in the Greek documents; or, from each of the Vrtra’s heads comes out in some versions a herd of cows, in other versions birds, or wives, as in the Iranian source. The difference is that in the ancient European versions the dragon’s head produces an army of fighters, and in the Romanian ballad an army of aggressive and dangerous horseflies; the Romanian hero rebuffs the dragon by acquainting it that he will teach people how to fight the flies, thereby taking up the leadership role of a sovereign, imparting the divine instruction to people. In the Romanian ballad the hero’s fight with the dragon does not free the waters explicitly, but the hero has to cross the Cerna river, as Herakles had to cross the western Ocean, or Indra had to cross ninety-nine streams. The fragment relating the magic offerings to the Cerna River conveys information about certain consecrating rituals at the river crossings, particularly since in most of the ancient myths such crossings of waters symbolize entering into a magic world. The Romanian ballad retains the main motif of the ancient myth, that of the hero, Iovan Iorgovan, the godlike presence, strong, powerful and young.

BIBLIOGRAFIE Mircea Eliade, The Encyclopedia of Religion, Ed., New York, 1987.

Vrabie, Gheorghe. Romanian Popular Ballad, Bucharest, 1966.

Romanian Popular Ballads; Stelian Carstean anthology. Bucharest, 1997 Watkins, Calvert: How to Kill a Dragon; Aspects of I-E Poetics, Oxford U. P., New York, 1995.

West, M. L. Indo-European Poetry and Myth, Oxford U. P. 2007 Kerenyi, C. The Heroes of the Greeks, Thames & Hudson, 1952; reprinted, 1997 Noolen, Lars. Animal Symbolism in Celtic Mythology, paper presented at the Univ. of Michigan, 1992.

Bailey, James and Ivanova, Tatyana. An Anthology of Russian Folk Epics. M.E. Sharpe, Inc. Armonk, New York, 1998.

Saineanu, Lazar. Romanian Fairy-Tales, Bucharest, 1978

Dundzila, A. V. Maiden, Mother, Crone: Goddesses from Prehistory to European Mythology and their Re-emergence in German, Lithuanian, and Latvian, Wisconsin, 1991 Dumezil, Georges. The Destiny of the Warrior, Chicago, 1970 Propp, Vladimir. Rădăcinile istorice ale basmului fantastic, Univers, Bucharest, 1973 Emile Benveniste & L. Renou: Vrtra et Vr(th)ragna; etude de mythologie indo-iranienne; Cahiers de la Societe asiatique, III, Paris, 1934.

Andreea Rotaru Romania

Dacians – Myths Being very old, the mythology of the Dacians is born from the desire of the humans to find their place in the world. It contains very few moralizing motifs and doesn't have a manipulator function.

Even the moralizing function is meant to protect the nature that men tried to be in balance with, and doesn't contain social elements like the more recent mythologies do. As an example, the symbols and representations that the Dacian mythology contains do not try to create a doctrine of submission to some political leaders and there's no desire to impose any kind of subconscious order or respect for a certain social class.

The myths of the Dacians are closely related to their way of life. The harsh living conditions of the

mountain areas, the loneliness and wilderness of the geography lead to a set of myths related to the primary elements of the nature. Weather, long distances and the threat of the wilderness are an important part of this mythology and of the dacian magic practices.

The dacian rituals and magic were performed by both men and women, but there was a distinction in roles between the two sexes. The men could become wizards that controlled the primary forces of the nature, a kind of guardians of the world and the nation, while the witches took care of enchantments, fertility and relations between people. In “Getica�, the player will find spells based on real incantations and magic formulas, as they were taken from the folklore.

The ancestral myths have been altered by the adoption of Christianise as the official religion. Like in any other assimilation process, the Christians have integrated the local beliefs into their own system, but gave the old myths a negative, malefic value, in order to turn the people away from them.

The Christian priests do not deny the ancient rituals, but rather they describe them as satanic manifestations, which is more effective than saying they are inventions or superstitions. The myths that form the basis of the Getica world have been found in this altered form, but we carefully

removed the parts that can be easily recognized as Christian additions, in order to present the original form of the dacian beliefs.

Nicoleta Ilie Romani a

The Eagle myth The myth of the Eagle (or the "Zgrimintes") is one of the original and special creations of the dacian mythology, which was later transposed in the romanian mythology as well. The origins of the

eagle's image can be traced back to the ascetic practices of the ancient dacians, to the priest castes, the early initiates.

Only those children born with the placenta on their head or the seventh son of the seventh son may become a hultan. Some of this special children are stolen by the old hultans when they are still young, and taken to the school in "Crugul Pamantului", where they are trained until the age of 20. "Crugul Pamantului" can be translated as "the middle of the Earth", but not necessarily "the centre of the Earth", but rather "the origin of the Earth", as in the expression "raised in the middle of the wolves". The folk in some zones in Romania still believe that children born with the placenta on their head are meant to know the secrets of the weather, while in other zones people think that these children will become “strigoi�, i.e. will be able to travel outside their body.

After completing their magic training, the eagles become the protectors of the mountain roads, masters of the air and the weather. They live a lonely life, isolated somewhere in the "guts of the mountains". In order to practice their magic, the eagles have to take - among others - a very strict

chastity oath; merely falling in love with a woman is enough to cause them to lose their powers. At times known only to them, these wizards come down from the top of the mountains and wander through the villages, disguised as beggars, putting men's hearts to a test. Whatever they receive as charity they throw on running water, as offerings for "the other World". When people are mean or when they hurt that which the eagles protect, the wizards unleash rain and hail upon their lands.

Since Christianise was adopted as the official religion, the myth of the eagles was altered. The Christians called them "solomonars", a name coming from the king Solomon (renowned for his wisdom), but, as it happens in any assimilation process, they turned the eagle into an evil figure, in order to drive people away from the old beliefs.

At the same time, Christianity produced a new character, called the anti-solomonar, meant to defend the people against the eagle; the eagle suddenly became a tyrant, threatening to destroy the villagers' crops if he doesn't receive proper payment. In “Getica�, we tried to filter the Christian elements and show the true image of the hultan, before the alteration.

The eagle is directly associated with the image of the dragon; the Getaes called the dragon “balaur�.

In order to fly through the clouds, a hultan must summon a dragon and ride it. While riding the dragon or walking on clouds, the wizard is invisible to men's eyes, being visible only to other mages.

Calling the dragon is an essential ritual for the eagle; the legend says that the dragons live in bottomless mountain lakes, and in order to ride one, the initiate must break the lake's ice with an enchanted axe and put a rein made of birch wood onto the dragon's neck. This is why the eagle never parts with his enchanted axe, his birch rein and his spell book.

Giuliano Isa Zamolo Romania

The wolf and hind myth

Our nations history is rich and blessed , there are always a bunch of legends, myths and stories, a source of knowledge but because, along with documents and archaeological discoveries of great significance, scraps of Herodotus, Strabo, Homer and Ovidius ... strengthen through this treasure of divine blend of truth and legend, the reality of myth, beliefs and conclusions of the undeniable continuity and roots of our people in these places, considered to be holy, to be protected by Zamolxis Sacred Earth, the God of the Dacians God of Light, also known as God Mosh, Nevada god, god of the rocks.

Myth 'Wolf and Hind "said the beast ancestor, was a lone gray wolf, which came down from heaven and was united with a deer, a doe appears.

According to this myth, Dacia was born under the sign of the wolf, so it was destined for defensive wars, invasions and immigrations, cultivation of mystery and reverence.

Since ancient times, the Dacians were known as "wolves of the Danube", "wolf warriors of light", "the wolf country", "beasts", "wolf children."

Strabo says that in the past is ancient Dacian "you" (the woman if she was daie) or "DAV", meaning "wolf" or "those who are like wolves." In fact, the entire nation was represented by symbols Thracian

characteristic, they are "surging" in Religion and Religion Deer Wolf, also appeared in cult Hind holy faith.

It is known as the Dacians have faith that they are immortal, they having no fear of death, smiling face death, they were known as "immortal wolves and wolf myth and the myth of the deer, the deer sacred, the myth of eternal life, rebirth, immortality myth Dacians expanded spectrum since ancient times worldwide.

The whole "world" of the Dacians is tied to symbols, they strengthen your faith in connection with divinity, thus shaping the idea that they are protected by divinity, by the very fact that there is something in the divine covenant with His chosen people. Many manuscripts, documents, notes, evidence brought to light by archeologists, reinforce the confession. A banner is the undisputed symbol of the Dacians, dragons, around which the warriors gathered in case of danger, before they turn to fight, and that was worn by knights twins. Along dragons, there were caul, flags Dacians. Dragons or dragon, dragon Dacians was a wolf's head with open mouth, the body of a snake with wings and neck who had stuck a thorn, and the slightest breath of wind that dragons 'driving out' sounds scary sharp, though coming from another world. This was frightening

for dragons enemies, was the voice of caves and cliffs, and the synthesis of wolf and snake has the attributes of strength and pride, fear imposed by dragons Dacian warriors and respect ... that is why the battle cry against the Dacians and the occurrence of these dragons , install a sense of fear and respect required, indescribable, if we accept as "beasts" on Dacian warriors. Geto-Dacians were renowned warriors everywhere admired for their courage and fearless, for lack of fear in the face of death, the determination to learn and be instructed to fight, their daring and skill with wielding weapons (bow, arrow), discipline who gave evidence, but were especially admired for studying ancestral battle cry, shout that instilled fear. There are not enough documents and evidence, but more distant from the notes, it seems that Dacia emblem, and most likely this dragons but cauls, three were in their chromatic colors, the rainbow is a symbol of the covenant and the connection with divinity, and these three colors in the master plan was because they had faith symbols defined in the Dacians, as follows: red represent morning, afternoon, yellow and blue signifies significance was dusk.

It is said that when he offered Burebista Dacian banner ready to fight should be uttered these words: "To hit the enemy with the power of wolf

fangs, get the snake and strain among juveniles, to go over them like a bird in flight. The flag that will be with him in the-flag fight will lift him above the cliff cities, to see him far away from those who believe that race is not afraid of wolves. "The proof of the wisdom of the ancient Dacian fortresses testify and traces of Dacian, built on hills, or other raised the exhortations grow to be the second front, setting, because, they say that everything would be commanded Burebista great masters of raising Only the cities telling them: "Let them pick the most high places, who knows where that comes danger and his mother to provide the victory."

Here we have ruled the Dacians and the gift of watch, to be Cautious.

Why do we believe about the divinity of the Dacians, the wolf has remained Dacians strength and courage, strength, and doe, gave Dacians gentleness and mercy and kindness. They were invited to feast on human and foreigners, but were attacked if they became beasts, beasts while defending their cities and nation.

I recently browsed the oldest collection of historical and magazine store with great excitement I read the notes and speeches of Dio Chrisostamus a "world traveler in Dacia, and was impressed by" the land of the Dacians or missiles

as Homer calls them .. "Geto-Dacians and seeing that they have met with fortitude, which places left, here:" ... I came eager to see some people fighting for domination and power, and others for freedom and homeland and I have gone from no danger made me reluctant ... and I returned to us, always thinking that the Zeist are above and more useful than human, no matter how meaningful it would be. "he also says with admiration "... you could see everywhere swords, breastplates, spears, all places are full of horses, weapons and armed men in the midst of these special people, I may present myself indifferent, spectator ..

Peacefully."

One thing is for sure, Dacians wolves hunted in a while and no deer and no doe, because they had faith in Religion wolf, the wolf as their strength and power was given to the deity, and faith in the Holy Religion Hind, doe is about heaven, symbol of love and kindness. And beautiful legend says that the union and love between the Beast and Wolf would have been born Holly Hind Dacia and why she is immortal, for, and shall protect and guard Zamolxis, cyclic, it's time for rebirth.

Ovidiu Roșca Romania

Mythology in Ancient Cantabria Comenius Project : Between Religions and Ethics: a common ground This paper is based upon some presentation made by two students of 4ºC under History and Cultures of Religions in the Santa Clara High School , Santander City – Cantabria, SPAIN, 2010, November Rocío Rodríguez made a general introduction to the meaning of Myths in different cultures. She tried to find if there are inside Myths a key to religions or not nd if so, how they interconnect.

Claudia Benito made the schematic relations and connections between myths, legends, religious beliefs and we tried to make some comparative regarding other similar myths, such as we can find in Scandinavian mythologies, and Ancient Greek or Roman Myths between others

It seems that the native Cantabrian mythology connected, from the beginning and with the passing of the years, with Celtic and becoming partly related with legends and traditions from the rest of the Cantabrian Mountains. In most cases its deeper meaning, passed from parents to children through oral tradition, has been diluted, either because this meaning has been lost or because the classic writers

didn't gather all the popular wealth and mentality of the time, paying attention only to cults and divinities that were similar to theirs.

On the other hand, the Romanization and later incursion of Christianism transformed the sense and representation of these pagan rites, reaching in many cases religious syncretism.

The fire cult has always been present in mythology Even so, Cantabrian people still conserve more apologues and legends with a great ritual or behavioural component than significant tales Divinities. Among the remains of myths that still persist as substrate in the Cantabrian tradition is the cult to great protective divinities, like the adoration to the Sun, as is evident in Cantabrian Steles, and in relation to the cult of the fire.

Also, the Cantabrians worshiped a supreme divinity-father which in Roman time was associated with Jupiter and the cult to the Sun, and later with the Christian God Cantabrian stele of Barros.

Combined with the marked warlike disposition of the Cantabrians, appears a god of war, subsequently identified as the Roman Mars, to whom they offered sacrifices of male goats, horses, or large numbers of prisoners, as Strabo, Horace and Silius Italicus point out.

These hecatombs were accompanied by the drinking of the still warm blood of the horses, as Horace mentions in regard to the concanos, and it will be, then, a true communion et laetum equino sanguine Concanum —Horace. Carm. III 4. v29-36 For the ancient Cantabrians these practices had a mystic origin thanks to the belief that these animals were sacred.In this sense, we can read the Spanish philosopher´s Gustavo Bueno book The Divine Animal, where a theory of religions

proposes that we can find three stages in the streams of religions: the fisrt one should consider animals as the centre of all religious activities: these animals are numen, such as we could see when watching the Paleolitic caves such as Altamira: those animals should be the first stage of religions “gods�: they are besides humans and they are not only able to kill them but also to become the human groups food allowing first humans to survive

Zurita Stela , PiĂŠlagos, Cantabria.

This big stela which represents a horseman rider by his mount, and with the company of a child or

maybe a page. Seeminlgy he wear a canid masque, supposedly a wolf.

At his feet a fallen warrior is eatened up by a vulture Apud Lorrio, A(1997):Los CeltĂ­beros. Extra Complutuum 7. Ediciones de la Universidad Complutense, Madrid.

Some link this ritual very closely with the variant of the Celtic solar god Mars and that these animals they represented his reincarnation.

The Human sacrifices among the northern peoples are also mentioned by Saint Martin of Braga and they will have the same value of redemption and prediction that for the rest of the Celts of Gaul, where they were very frequent. Then Strabo will tell that those who examined the prisoners' viscous, covering them with thin tunics, cut the right hand and consecrated it to the gods. The way to predict the future depended on the fall of the victim.

Together with this war deity, appear the germinator mother-goddesses related to the Moon, remaining almost until the present time, when they have a clear influence in rural environments, evident in the phases of sowing and gathering of the crops.

In the same way, the cult to a god of the sea was assimilated in Roman times through Neptune (a statuette of this deity, but with features of the original Cantabrian divinity, was found in Castro Urdiales)

The ancient Cantabrians believed in the immortality of the spirit. Thus they demonstrated in their funeral rites where cremation predominated, with the exception of those who died in combat, who had to rest in the battlefield until vultures opened their entrails to take their soul to Heaven and reunite in glory with their ancestors. This practice is testified in the engravings of the Cantabrian Stele of Zurita.

Sacrifice played a major role in the complex Cantabrian society in both its aspects: as a means

to fulfill the divine will as well as the prevalence of abnegation to collectivity against the individual.

Then, in a warring society, as the Cantabrian, immolation was not considered as primitive or barbarian but the strong determination required from the person to commit sacrifice gave it a great importance.

That was the case of the devotion, a singular and extreme sacrifice practices by the Cantabrians in which the warring communities joined their destiny to that of their leader. The German historian Schulte told about how Cantabrians did not ever lose their freedom against Romans, and they preferred to die than becoming slaves.

Telluric and arboreal mythology We can make a comparison between Cantabria and Scandinavian lands, because we have high mountains and a high rocked coast line and many rivers and valleys where many different tribes practiced hunting of wild bears and by the Sea fishing was so ancient activity as the Palaeolithic periods as shown by excavations. That could explain the reason why we have many similarities to the

Norwegian and Swedish Myths in telluric and wild life inhabitants in those deep woods.

Torre Bermeja (2.400 m) and Pe単a Santa (Sacred Mount) (2.596 m),in Picos de Europa.

At the same time, a terrene mythology of adoration to Gaia, the Mother Earth, exists through the divinization of animals, trees, mountains and waters like elementary spirits.

Beliefs, on the other hand, common to all the people who received Celtic influences.

Places like Pico Dobra, in the valley of Besaya ( by Besaya River), have given evidence of their sacred condition since pre-Roman times through the altar dedicated to the Cantabrian God Erudinus, dated on the year 399, which demonstrates that these rites extended beyond the instauration of Christianity in the Roman Empire as official religion.

In the same way toponyms like Pe単a Sagra ("Sacred Mount"), Pe単a Santa ("Saint Mount"), Mozagro(Montem sacrum = Sacred Mount) or Montehano (montem fanum = Mount of the Sanctuary) indicate that they have been considered sacred places from the most remote antiquity.

Also divinized were the rivers and water bodies.

At the Mount Cild叩 appeared an area dedicated to the mother goddess Mater Deva, known though

the Celtic world and personified in the Deva river.

At Otañes it was found a patera dedicated to the nymph of a fountain with medicinal properties Pliny the Elder mentions the existence in Cantabria of one of the intermittent fountains - the Fuentes Tamáricas - adored by the Cantabrians and that had a prophetic value and that corresponded to the current Velilla del Río Carrión.

Suetonius, in a story about the life of Galba, points uut as a symbol of good devination having found, during his stay at Cantabria, 12 axes in a lake.

There were, without any doubt ex-votos left there following their tradition (which is also found in other European peoples), which suggests a cult to the lakes The offerings to the waters of stips, or bronze coins of low value, as well as other pieces of higher value, as denari, aurei and solidi, its manifested in the presence of some of those pieces at La Hermida, Peña Cutral, Alceda and at the Híjar river.

Yew berries. This mythical tree may be the most representative of Cantabria and has often been planted with remarkable buildings.

There is a little village named as this sacred tree of Cantabria. It is El Tejo (the yew berry), near of Comillas village and the Oyambre beach and La Rabia estuary. At the same time, the forest were also divinized, a cult with clear Celtic influences through an arboreal mythology. Some species of trees were specially respected; the yew and the oak. The former is the most emblematic and symbolic species of Cantabria and it was venerated by Cantabrians in antiquity, being part of some of

their rituals. We know by the accounts of Silius, Florus, Pliny and Isidore of Seville, that Cantabrians committed suicide with poison they got from the leaves of this tree, but they preferred death rather than slavery.

It's usual to find them at the town squares, at cemeteries, churches, chapels, palaces and big houses because of being considered a witness tree, which has allowed them to perpetuate that halo of mystery and sanctity that surrounds everything related with this species. Oak trees were for some of our recently died grandfathers a symbol of protection as much in life as in the ethernity of life of human souls, so many little cemeteries had a big oak at the main entrance surroundings The oak is the Celtic tree by excellence maybe because it is the most sacred species for the druids, from which they recollected the muĂŠrdago.

It is a species that carries lots of folkloristic, symbolic and magic meanings in Cantabria, it was frequent to use it as "Maypole", the pole that presides the festivities in some towns, around which the people dance to celebrate the rebirth of the vegetal life. The Oak symbolized the union between the sky and the earth, image that gave them the position as axis of the world. They tend to attract lightning, so it played a preponderant

role in the ceremonies to attract the rain and the fire in all Europe.

Oaks, beeches, holly oaks and yews were used as a place of tribal meetings for many generations where religious and secular laws were taught.

Until recent times it was usual to celebrate open meetings under centennial trees (the meetings of Trasmiera got together at Hoz de Anero, Ribamontรกn al Monte, under a great holly oak that still stands).

In some villages after Christian development, an ancient ritual related to the beech grove was celebrated under the name of La Virgen del Hayedo, and people get disguised as of trees, animals, phantoms...

Here are some images of villages in Cantabria containing animals or trees inside, as much as the symbol of the sun.

Significative dates As in other peoples, in Cantabria there were dates that have been appropriated since antiquity for rituals and legends, days that are charged with dark or ancient meanings. For this reason during the summer solstice, the "night is magic".

Tradition says, in all different variants, that the Caballucos del Diablo (Damselflies, literally "Devil's little horses") and the

witches loose their powers after dusk and the curanderos gain control over them; plants as the four-leaf clover, the fruit of the elder berry, the leaves of the willow, the common Jupiter or the tree heath among others cure and bring happiness if they are collected at dawn.

Around Christmas (winter solstice) there were ritual ceremonies, remains of ancient cults to the tree, the fire and the water. Around those dates the sources of the rivers and the balconies were dressed with flowers and people danced and jumped over the fire. These ceremonies are connected to some kind of common annual dinner named magosta, which still is celebrated in Cantabria : La Magosta, in a big fire people jumping through fire and singing like in any other cultures ritual dinners, everybody eats chestnuts taken from the many chestnuts groves around Cantabrian fields and mountains

Also important were specific moments of the day, mostly the twilight. Ancient Cantabrians talked about the "Sun of the Dead", referring to the last part of the day when the Sun was still visible and that they believed was sent by the dead. They believed that it marquees the moment in which the dead came back to life and several author have related it with the solar cult Mythological creatures

Cantabrian people have not only telluric and natural divinities, but also fabulous beings with different aspects that people feared or adored and have legends and histories on their own. There are many of them in Cantabrian mythology, yet the most important are: The Ojรกncanu. The sorrow of Cantabria, this creature embodies the evil among the Cantabrians and represents the cruelty and the brutality. This giant cyclops is the Cantabrian version of the Greek Polyphemus that appears in other Indoeuropean Mythologies

The Ojรกncana or Juรกncana. Wife of the former, is even more ruthless as children are counted among her victims.

The Anjana. Is the antithesis of the Ojรกncano and the Ojรกncana.

Good and generous fairy, she protects honest people, the lovers and those who get lost in the woods or roads.

The Esteru. This is a Christmas character, he is a lumberjack that lives alone in the forest and makes toys to give them away in Christmas throughout Cantabria. The goblins. This is a large group of little mythological creatures, most of them mischievous. There are two groups among them: a) the domestic goblins, those who live in or around houses as Trasgu and Trastolillo b) and the forest goblins, as Trenti and Tentirujo.

There are other fabulous beings that populate the mythological pantheon of Cantabria, as the VentolĂ­n.

the Caballucos del Diablo

the Nuberu the Musgosu the Culebre

the Ramidreju Or beautiful legends such as that of the Sirenuca

("Little Mermaid"), a beautiful but disobedient and spoiled lady with a fancy for climbing the most dangerous cliffs of Castro Urdiales to sing with the waves and was, therefore, transformed into an ephydriad.

Or that of the Fish-man, a man from LiĂŠrganes who loved to swim and that got lost at the

Miera river, being finally found at the Bay of Cรกdiz, transformed into a strange aquatic Being Cantabrian mythology nowadays

Foggy forest of oaks in Cantabria. In the lushness of these forests Cantabrian mythology locates to spirits and mythologycal beings, trying to give answers to the fear of the unknown..

All these beings and legends prove the mystical mentality of a time, that was required in order to satisfy the Cantabrians needs to express their fears and to be able to enter into the hard and sometimes hostile and dangerous surrounding environment.

Even today there are Cantabrians that worship the Anjanas, not being replaced by saints or virgins, as they still consider that some gifts are granted by these good fairies of the mountains, and even today the Ojรกncano is used to scare the children when they are mischievous. But this world of meanings and values has become diluted little by little with the advance of the modernity and time,

giving place to new urban legends and forgetting the old deities.

It is until now that Cantabrian mythology has attracted the interest of scholars, especially after the publishing of the recompilation made by the writer Manuel Llano Merino (1898– 1938) throughout his work, enriched with oral tradition, and several other writers like Adriano GarcíaLomas.

References 1. Julio Caro Baroja suggests the possibility of the existence of an equestrian deity among Hispanian Celts similar to that of the otherEuropean Celts 2. At Numantia ( Actually Soria ), these representations of the horse-god are decorated with solar signs.

It is interesting to remember that Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra(1547-1616), author of the famous book Don Quijote de la Mancha wrote a dramatic tragedy theatre piece under the name The destruction of Numancia and here we can find many references to the ancient belivings of peoples in pre Roman times, and their moral and religious values 3. A. Schulten. Los cĂĄntabros y astures y su guerra con Roma. Madrid. 1943 4. The leaves of the yews and its seed, present in its red berries, contain a very toxic alkaloid, the

taxine, that provokes hypotension and cardiac arrests if consumed.

5. It's worth to mention the presence of millenary yews as the one that exists next to the pre-Roman church of Saint Mary of Lebeña and under which the town councils took place. This tree, present in the Inventory of Singular Trees of Cantabria, has been severely damaged by a recent gale.

6. Beings similar to the Ojáncanu or the Ojáncana are found in other pantheons such as the Extremenian mithology (the Jáncanu or Pelujáncanu and the Jáncanas, where is also evident the similar denominations in Asturias or the Basque mithology (Tartalo or Torto, among others.)

BIBLIOGRAPHY Mitos y Leyendas de Cantabria. Santander 2001.

Llano Merino, M.. Ed. Librería Estvdio. ISBN 84-95742-01-2 Los Cántabros. Santander 1983. González Echegaray, J.. Ed. Librería Estvdio.

ISBN 84-87934-23-4 Gran Enciclopedia de Cantabria. Santander 1985 (8 tomos) y 2002 (tomos IX, X y XI). Various. Editorial Cantabria S.A.ISBN 84-8642000-8

Mitología y Supersticiones de Cantabria.

Santander 1993. Adriano García-Lomas.

Ed. Librería Estvdio. ISBN 84-87934-87-0

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The Proto-Bulgarians  While the Thracians were assimilated by the Slavs prior to the formation of the new state, the Proto - Bulgarians and the Slavs followed a relatively independent course of development within the boundaries of the same state until the end of the ninth century. The ProtoBulgarians inhabited mainly North-Eastern Bulgaria, although traces of them have been discovered in Western Bulgaria, the Rhodope mountains and Macedonia (in the area to the north of Salonika, where Kouber's group settled.  The Proto-Bulgarians had a well developed literary tradition. In the new state, however, their script was not put to use, for the Greek script was in currency as a more effective means of communication between the various ethnic groups. A great number of stone-carved Bulgarian inscriptions in Greek or ProtoBulgarian symbols chronological, victorious and memorial - testify to the existence of an advanced 'historical memory'.

 Prior to Christianity Bulgarians had a different religion.  Our ancestors believed not only in the celestial bodies but also in a supreme GodCreator. So far scholars had only one real fact to rely on the name TANGRA in an early Bulgarian inscription of the 9th c. It turns out that, like the Persians, who called God with three parallel names, the Bulgarians called him Tangra, but also Edfu. The notion of TANDRA/ lightening/ is connected with the supreme God of thunder.  The roots of the religion of the Bulgarians can be found in the region of Pamir and Hidukush where they lived before moving to Europe.  Two relics of this forgotten religion were discovered: - a bronze rosette from Pliska, dedicated to the seven celestial bodies and marked by the typical Bulgar symbol IYI, and two stone slabs with the same symbol and drawings of the Sun and the Moon, found not far from the Bulgarska Morava river. To the same religion we can attribute also three newly deciphered runic inscriptions from

Murfatlar, two of which are dedicated to the Sun and Jupiter.  The history of the religious cult of the seven celestial bodies is very interesting. It appears for the first time in the Shumer-Accadian civilization where the names of the Sun, the Moon and the five planets, known to the Ancient world.  From this very part of the world the cult of the celestial bodies spread to the East and the West among the ancient peoples Assyrians, Indo-Iranians, Hittites, Celts, Romans, etc.

Bulgarian religion, with its devotion to the seven celestial bodies and the Supreme God, called Tangra and Edfu, is part of this religious system.

Bibliography: http://www.spellintime.fsnet.co.uk/Folklore.h tm http://www.veda.harekrsna.cz/connections/V edic-Bulgaria.php

Gabriela Markova 1st school,Sofia Bulgaria

The Slavs The Slavs migrated to the Balkan peninsula from Central Europe in the early part of the 7th century AD. They believed in many deities, spirits of nature and demons.

The Slavs had a dualistic view of the universe; that is, they believed that the world was fuelled by the interaction of complementary opposites such as dark/light, male/female, summer/winter.

At the centre of the Slavic universe, giving it structure, stood the World Tree. The realm of the dead lay at its roots, the world of living creatures at its trunk and heaven rose at its crown.

The Slavs worshipped their gods in the form of stone or wooden idols in shrines located near old trees. Their main god was Perun, the god of thunder, who gave his name to the Pirin mountains in southern Bulgaria.

Perun In Slavic mythology, the world was represented by a sacred tree, usually an oak, whose branches and trunk represented the living world of heavens and mortals, while its roots represented the underworld, i.e. the realm of dead.

Perun was a ruler of the living world, sky and earth, and was often symbolised by an eagle sitting on the top of the tallest branch of the tree, from which he kept watch over the entire world.

Perun was a punisher of evil-doers. Deep down in the roots of the tree was the place of his enemy, symbolised by a serpent or a dragon: this was Zaltys, a great serpent curled at the base of the world tree (which people later associated with Veles, watery god of the underworld.

Perun is generally believed to have been considered as the supreme god by the majority, or perhaps nearly all Slavs, at least towards the end of Slavic paganism. The earliest supreme god was probably Rod; it is unclear precisely how and why his worship as the head of pantheon evolved into the worship of Perun.

As the thunder god, he enters into a union with the mother earth (or sometimes creates it), and impregnates it through rainwater, causing her to generate life.

One of Perun's main roles is to restore the earth's productive powers after the multi-headed snake demon steals the holy waters, takes away the earth's moisture, and renders her infertile. After killing the demon, Perun releases the holy waters that come pouring down to restore the earth's fertility. Closely associated with this is the belief that the rains, especially, of the spring season

bless all those, who bathe in its waters, with strength, health, beauty, and fertility. These waters are also a protection against evil forces and spirits.

Perun's family all had roles in the coming of rain.

His sons would make the thunder and cause the lightning to strike. His daughters and wife would sift the rain. Together, they brought the moisture, thus making the land fertile so crops would grow.

This would have been very important to the agricultural societies which worshipped Perun.

To invoke Perun's favor or call upon him to bring the rains, worshippers would give food offerings to the god. It is considered unlikely that human sacrifices were made to Perun.

The sun as the eye of god Perun or, as the fire hidden in the eyes of god, can burn and destroy everything when they are open but, soaked in holy waters, it generates life-giving forces. These attributes of the sun and Perun are transferred on the earth to stones.

Stone, like the oak tree, is seen as a mediator between the two worlds. The grave stone represents death. Like the oceans, it also

separates the worlds of the dead and the living.

The stone appears as a frequent symbol of death in folktales. The death of the hero is represented by his turning into stone.

Bibliography: http://www.spellintime.fsnet.co.uk/Folklore.htm http://www.ancientbulgaria.com/category/history/slavs/

Ekaterina Kovacheva 1st school,Sofia Bulgaria

The Ancient Thracians

Bulgaria lies at the crossroads between East and West.The crossroad of the ancient civilisations of Thracians, Romans, Slavs and Bulgars, which have contributed to a heritage of literature and folklore.

Though suffering through foreign invasions, the country has preserved a strong cultural identity. Many of the country’s artefacts are kept in monasteries and medieval churches throughout Bulgaria, while others can be traced in myths, legends, songs, dances, ancient customs and traditions. The ancient Thracians were a group of IndoEuropean tribes inhabiting areas in Eastern, Central and Southeastern Europe. Bulgarian archaeologists assume that the Thracians came from northeast about 3500 BC – i.e. at the end of the Stone-Copper Age. In the 1st millennium BC the Thracians were among the most multitudinous peoples in Europe. On the Balkan Peninsula the Thracians were divided in numerous tribes The Thracians were mainly engaged in farming, gardening, cattle-breeding (esp. horse-breeding), pottery-making, weaving, metal mining, goldsmithing, etc. The various tribes were at a different socioeconomic, political and cultural level.

The Thracians gradually became one part with the Slavs, who settled on the Balkan Peninsula in 6th century AD, and thus when the Bulgarian Empire was established by Chan Asparuh in 681 AD they laid the foundations of the Bulgarian nation. The culture of the Thracians. The iron was introduced and this was the starting point for the Thracian culture. At the end of the 12th century and beginning of the 11th century BC the usage of iron led to increased production opportunities for the Thracian community and to class differences. Homer mentions the Thracians in his Illiad, calling them "people who reminded him of the gods". Herodotus, a historian who lived during the 5th century BCE (and gave the Greek word "history" it's modern meaning) called the Thracians "the most numerous ethnic group, second only to the Hindus".

Yet, despite this trivia, due to their independent tribes and failure to achieve a unified national consciousness, the Thracians have a mysterious and hollow history. The Greeks themselves believed that some of their own gods had Thracian origin. Amongst them were Ares, the blood-thirsty god of war; Dionysus, the god of vegetation and

fertility; Artemis (Bendis), the goddess of the animal world; and Orpheus. The Thracian pantheon, as it seems, was closely linked to the Greek one, but this does not mean that the two religious systems were identical Gods with Greek Names - Ares, Dionysus, Artemis, Apollo And Hermes: the Greek names hide gods from the Thracian pantheon. The reason is again the lack of a Thracian writing system. When the Greeks tried to describe the Orphic religion, they discovered some similarities between their gods and those of the Thracians. This is why Herodotus said that the Thracians worshipped Ares, Dionysus and Artemis, whom they called Bendis. Hermes was the deity of the kings who "always swear by his name and declare that they are themselves sprung from him." However, the Greek historian failed to mention the sun god Apollo, whose cult was widely popular, or the Thracian Zeus who was undoubtedly worshipped in the 1st Century BC. At the end of the Hellenistic age and the enforcement of Roman rule, another deity became popular too: the Thracian horseman.

Named with the collective Greek name Heros in accompanying inscriptions, it appeared on

votive tablets and tombstones throughout Thrace. The cult of the Thracian horseman was widely spread during the Roman Age, which indicates a renaissance of the Thracian religion at that time – something unknown for the other peoples under Roman domination. Its figure is well known thanks to the numerous historical records from the Roman Age, 1st-4th century AD – young horseman with a spear and shield or with killed game in his hands, followed by a servant, dog and a lion. As an all-knowing and all-hearing god he was portrayed with two or three faces. Due to the mixture of various religions the Thracian horseman was often depicted as a Greek god – Apollo, Asclepius, Zeus, Dionysus, etc., and as the Old Iranian god Mithra, as well as with some of their attributes – lyre (Apollo), single snake staff (Asclepius), impressive beard (Zeus), Phrygian cap (conical cap with its top pulled forward – Mithra), etc. The image of the Thracian horseman served as a base for Christian Saint George. The Dionysian cult was also very widespread, primarily in the mountainous regions of the Haemus, Rhodope and Pirin mountains. In his

original, popular conception Dionysus was the god of infinite creativity, of omnifarious Nature, of each tree and flower. The Myth of Dionysus- Dionysus is commonly thought to have been the son of Zeus, the most powerful of all Greek gods and goddesses, and Semele, a mortal woman.

Zeus' wife Hera was extremely jealous and planned a trick on Semele that would have her killed. She convinced Semele to ask Zeus to reveal himself in his true form. When Zeus revealed himself, Semele was burned to death after looking upon his glory. Luckily, Zeus managed to save the unborn Dionysus by stitching him into his own thigh. Because Zeus carried him until his birth, Dionysus became immortal. When he was older, Dionysus is said to have discovered the grapevine. He taught mankind how to cultivate the vine and make wine from the grapes. Dionysus became the god of wine. He was also associated with the madness and revelry that goes with it. According to the Orphics, when the young Dionysos was torn apart by the ferocious Titans, his blood splattered on the ground, and from that spot rose the vine, thick with clusters of red grapes, resembling the drops

of blood that had been shed. The grapes, then, contain a part of Dionysos within them, and whenever we crush the grapes, and drink their juice, we are drinking the God. It was Dionysos who taught man the art of fermenting the juice of the vine, and how to pour libations during festivals Bendis – was a Thracian goddess of the hunt whom the Greeks identified with Artemis, and hence with the other two aspects of the former Minoan Triple Goddess, Hecate and Persephone. She was a huntress, like Artemis, but was accompanied by dancing satyrs and maenads on a 5th Century redfigure stemless cup (at Verona). The Thracians fell early under the cultural influence of the ancient Greeks, preserving until a much later time, however, their language and culture. It also appears from mythological accounts that the Thracians influenced Greek culture from a very early period, with some Thracians, such as Orpheus even appearing as culture-bearers in some myths. But as non-Greek speakers, they were viewed by the Greeks as barbarians. The first Greek colonies. Thrace were founded in the 6th century BC.

Famous Thracians - In Greek legend, Orpheus was the chief representative of the arts of song and the lyre, and of great importance in the religious history of Greece. The mythical figure of Orpheus was borrowed by the Greeks from their Thracian neighbours; the Thracian "Orphic Mysteries", rituals of unknown content, were named after him. From the 6th century BC onwards he was looked upon as one of the chief poets and musicians of antiquity, the inventor or perfecter of the lyre, who by his music and singing was able not only to charm the wild beasts, but even to draw the trees and rocks from their places, and to arrest the rivers in their course. As one of the pioneers of civilization, he was supposed to have taught mankind the arts of medicine, writing and agriculture. As closely connected with religious life, he was an augur and seer; practised magical arts, especially astrology; founded or rendered accessible many important cults, such as those of Apollo and Thracian god Dionysus instituted mystic rites, both public and private; prescribed initiatory and purificatory ritual. According to the best-known tradition, Orpheus was the son of Oeagrus, king of

Thrace, and the muse Calliope. Sometimes, Calliope and Apollo were his parents. Despite his Thracian origin he joined the expedition of the Argonauts whose leader Jason had been informed by Chiron that only by the aid of Orpheus would they be able to pass by the Sirens unscathed. The Sirens lived on three small, rocky islands called Sirenum scopuli and sang beautiful songs that enticed sailors to come to them. They then ate the sailors. When Orpheus heard their voices, he withdrew his lyre and played his music more beautifully than they, drowning out their music. But the most famous story in which he figures is that of his wife Eurydice. Eurydice is sometimes known as Agriope. While fleeing from Aristaeus, she was bitten by a serpent which brought her to her death. Distraught, Orpheus played such sad songs and sang so mournfully that all the nymphs and gods wept and gave him advice. Orpheus went down to the lower world and by his music softened the heart of Hades and Persephone (the only person to ever do so), who agreed to allow Eurydice to return with him to earth.

But the condition was attached that he should walk in front of her and not look back

until he had reached the upper world. In his anxiety he broke his promise, and Eurydice vanished again from his sight. The story in this form belongs to the time of Virgil, who first introduces the name of Aristaeus. Other ancient writers, however, speak of Orpheus' visit to the underworld; according to Plato, the infernal gods only “presented an apparition” of Eurydice to him.Ovid says that Eurydice's death was not caused by fleeing from Aristaeus but dancing with Naiads on her wedding day. The famous story of Eurydice may actually be a late addition to the Orpheus myths. In particular, the name Eurudike ("she whose justice extends widely") recalls cult-titles attached to Persephone. The myth may have been mistakenly derived from another Orpheus legend in which he travels to Tartarus and charms the goddess Hecate. After the death of Eurydice, Orpheus swore off the love of women and took only young men as his lovers. He is reputed to be the one who introduced male love to the Thracians, teaching them to love the young in the flower of their youth. Orpheus at the end of his life disdained the worship of all gods save the sun, whom he

called Apollo. One early morning he ascended Mount Pangaion (where Dionysus had an oracle) to salute his god at dawn, but was torn to death by Thracian Maenads for not honoring his previous patron, Dionysus. It is significant that his death is analogous with the death of Dionysus, to whom therefore he functioned as a priest and avatar. His head and lyre—still singing mournful songs—floated down the swift Hebrus to the Mediterranean shore. There, the winds and waves carried them on to the Lesbian shore, where the inhabitants buried his head and a shrine was built in his honour near Antissa.

The lyre was carried to heaven by the Muses, and was placed amongst the stars. The Muses also gathered up the fragments of his body and buried them at Leibethra below Mount Olympus, where the nightingales sang over his grave. His soul returned to the underworld, where he was re-united at last with his beloved Eurydice. Thracians were considered by most to be the most ferocious fighters, especially in regions similar to their own rocky hills. Thracian society was patriarchal. Polygamy was standard and men considered women placed on earth to please them. Thracians

considered death an honor and accepted it as a natural part of life. The Thracian belief that death was only the transition to a future immortality made them send messengers to the gods, even if this meant killing them first.  Fortunately, the part of the Thracian beliefs which has survived in Bulgarian folk culture despite the Slavic and Proto-Bulgarian invasions and the adoption of Christianity in the 9th Century, is not so cruel. The kukeri, who dance in winter to bring about good health and fertility, and Trifon's Day, the holiday to celebrate wine and vinegrowing, are leftovers from the cult of Dionysus. The belief in the Thracian horseman has transformed into the worship of another horseman and a most popular saint, St. George. In more isolated areas in the country the tradition of leaving a small part of the crop without reaping it, as a sacrifice for the guardian spirit, has been active until only recently. The fire-dancers who step on live embers in restaurants along the southern Black Sea coast and in the villages of Brodilovo and Kosti in the Strandzha Mountain also recreate

an ancient Thracian ritual for establishing contact with the gods. Cut in the rock, Perperikon had functioned as a shrine since the Chalcolithic Age in the 5th millennium BC, and is now regarded as one of the most probable sites of the Temple of Dionysus, which was famous in antiquity. Most Thracian treasures were found by chance and at a relatively low depth, a sign that they were hidden during a war or another calamity or buried for ritual purposes, as a sacrifice or to be used by the dead in their afterlife.

The Thracians were too weak to resist their conquerors: the Slavs and the ProtoBulgarians. They gradually settled in the Thracian lands in the 5th-7th Century to establish their own state and in turn begin incessant wars over the Thracian territories with the successor to the Roman Empire, Byzantium.

Bibliography: http://www.spellintime.fsnet.co.uk/Folklore.htm http://www.ancientbulgaria.com/2006/08/03/thracians-the-oldestpeople-in-the-alkans/

http://www.omda.bg/engl/history/bulgarias_thra cian_heritage.htm Denitsa Kovacheva, 1st school, Sofia Bulgaria

BELIEFS AND MYTHS OF ANCIENT POLAND

The Polish pantheon of pagan gods exists in direct relation to many Slavic supernatural beings found among the peoples inhabiting Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Balkans, including Rus people.

The major gods are: 

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Dadźbóg - Sun god, possibly a culture hero and a source of wealth and power; Jaryło - God of vegetation, fertility and spring; also associated with war and harvest; Marzanna- Goddess of harvest, witchcraft, winter and death;

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Piorun - God of thunder and lightning, the supreme god, the only Slavic deity who was equated with the Christian God; Swaróg- God of fire, sometimes described as a smith god; Świętowit - God of war, fertility and abundance depicted as a four-headed god with two heads looking forward and two back.

Victory in battle, merchant travels and a successful harvest all depended on Świętowit; Trygław - God depicted as a three-headed man sometimes with bands of (gold) blindfolds over his eyes, or a man with three goat heads similar in nature to the Trinity in Christianity; Weles- God of earth, waters, and the underworld. He is the opponent of the Supreme thunder-god Piorun, and the battle between two of them constitutes one of the most important myths of Slavic mythology; Zaria- Goddess of beauty. She was greeted at dawn as "the brightest maiden, pure, sublime, honorable." She was also known as a water priestess that protected warriors.

Zory - Three (or two) guardian goddesses that represent the morning, evening and midnight stars. Zory serve the sun god Dadźbóg, who in some myths is described as their father. The Morning Star opens the gates to his palace

every morning for the sun-chariot's departure.

At dusk, the Evening Star closes the palace gates once more after his return. The Midnight Star holds the dying sun in her arms until he is restored to life the following morning. The three goddesses are also associated with marriage, protection, and exorcisms.

There is the ancient myth of a fight between the two major gods of the Slavic pantheon, Piorun and Weles. Attacking with his lightning bolts from the sky, Piorun pursues his serpentine enemy Weles who slithers down over the earth. Weles taunts Piorun and flees, transforming himself into various animals, hiding behind trees, houses, or people. In the end, he is killed by Piorun, or he flees into the water, into the underworld. This is basically the same thing; by killing Weles, Piorun does not actually destroy him, but simply returns him to his place in the world of the dead. Thus the order of the world, disrupted by Weles's mischief, is established once again by Piorun. The idea that storms and thunder are actually a divine battle between the supreme god and his arch-enemy was extremely important to Slavs, and continued to

thrive long after Piorun and Weles were replaced by the Сhristian God and Devil.

There is another myth revolving around the fertility and vegetation god, Jaryło, and his sister and wife, Marzanna, goddess of nature and death.

Jaryło is associated with the Moon and Marzanna is considered a daughter of the Sun. Both of them are children of Piorun, born on the night of the new year (Great Night). However, on the same night, Jaryło is snatched from the cradle and taken to the underworld, where Weles raises him as his own. At the Spring festival of Jare, Jaryło returns from the world of the dead, bringing spring from the ever-green underworld into the realm of the living. He meets his sister Marzanna and courts her. At the beginning of summer they get married.

The sacred union between brother and sister, children of the supreme god, brings fertility and abundance to earth, ensuring a bountiful harvest.

Also, since Jaryło is the (step)son of Weles, and his wife the daughter of Piorun, their marriage brings peace between two great gods; in other words, it ensures there will be no storms which could damage the harvest. After the harvest, however,

Jaryło is unfaithful to his wife, and she vengefully slays him (returns him into the underworld), renewing the enmity between Piorun and Weles.

Without her husband, god of fertility and vegetation, Marzanna — and all of nature with her — withers and freezes in the upcoming winter; she turns into a terrible, old, and dangerous goddess of darkness and frost, and eventually dies by the end of the year.

Various elements of old myths are revealed in tales and songs of legendary heroes like legendary founders of certain tribes such as the story about Lech, Czech and Rus or about quite historical persons like Krak the dragon slayer -prince and founder of Kraków, the ruler of the tribe of Lechitians (Poles). In the legend of Lech, Czech and Rus, three brothers went hunting together but each of them followed a different prey and eventually they all travelled in different directions.

Rus went to the east, Czech headed to the west to settle on the Rip Mountain rising up from the Bohemian hilly countryside, while Lech travelled to the north until he came across a magnificent white eagle sitting perched on a tree guarding his nest,

upon a background of a brilliant red sun. Startled but impressed by this spectacle, he decided to settle there. He named his settlement Gniezno (from the Polish word for 'nest' - gniazdo) and adopted the White Eagle with a red background as his coat-of-arms which remains a symbol of Poland to this day. According to the legend of Krak, around the year 700 AD the legendary Polish hero, prince Krak, destroyed a gigantic dragon by giving it a sheepskin full of saltpeter which caused it to drink water until it burst.

Polish tribes also worshipped different river and nature spirits – supernatural beings like, among many others, Strzygi - little creatures that would stalk forests at night and attack night-time travellers and people who simply wander off into the woods at night, eating out their insides, Rusałka - a water-nymph, Topielec – a spirit of human soul that died drowning, responsible for sucking people into swamps and lakes as well as killing the animals standing near the still waters, Karzełki - live in underground workings and are the guardians of gems, crystals, and precious metals; they will lead people back when they are lost underground; to people who are evil or insult them they are deadly; pushing them into dark

chasms or send tunnels crashing down upon them, Polewiki - field spirits that appear as deformed dwarfs with different coloured eyes and grass instead of hair; they appear either at noon or sunset and wear either all black or all white suits, they lead wandering people in a field astray, give them diseases or ride them over with their horses if they are found asleep; if a person falls asleep on the job after drinking Polewiki might murder them; Domowiki - seen as the home's guardians that sometimes help with household chores and field work; they do not do evil unless angered by a family’s poor keep of the household, profane language or neglect; some people even treat them as part of the family and leave them gifts like milk and biscuits in the kitchen overnight; the favorite place for these spirits to live is either the threshold under the door or under the stove. The Domowik maintains peace and order, and rewards a wellmaintained household. Peasants feed him nightly in return for protection of their house. When a new house was built, the Polish homeowner would attract a Domowik by placing a piece of bread down before the stove was put in.

Slavic myths are closely connected with Slavic festivities that followed changes of nature and seasons.

The year was lunar and began in early March, On the last night of the old year called Great Night people held a holiday similar to Halloween. Certain people (shamans) donned grotesque masks and coats of sheep wool, roaming around the villages as during the Great Night, it was believed, spirits of dead ancestors travelled across the land, entering villages and houses to celebrate the new year with their living relatives. Consequently, the deity of the last day of the year was probably Weles, god of the Underworld.

There was a large spring festival dedicated to Jaryło, god of vegetation and fertility. Processions of young men or girls used to go round villages on this day, carrying green branches or flowers as symbols of new life. They would travel from home to home, reciting certain songs and bless each household with traditional fertility rites. The leader of the procession, usually riding a horse, would be identified with Jaryło. The custom of creating pisanki (decorated eggs), also symbols of new life, was another tradition associated with this feast.

On the summer solstice in June the festival Sobótka (equivalent of Valentine's Day) was celebrated. The tradition was to light fires at the end of the day and bathe in open waters at sunset,

singing and dancing around a stake till midnight.

At midnight, under the pretext of searching for the flower of the fern, unmarried men and women ran into the forest. Ladies with a crown of flowers on their head, a symbol of their unmarried state, went first, singing. Next, they were followed by single men. The lucky man would return with a flower ring on his head with a lady to whom he had engaged.

In the middle of summer, before the harvest began there was a festival associated with thunder-god Piorun, It was considered the holiest time of the year, and there are some indications from historic sources that it involved human sacrifices. The end of harvest was celebrated at the Świętowit temple on the island of Rugia. People would gather in front of the temple, where priests would place a huge wheat cake, almost the size of a human. The priest would stand behind the cake and ask the masses if they saw him. Whatever their answer was, the priest would then plead that the next year, people could not see him behind the ritual cake; that the next year's harvest would be even more bountiful.

There also was an important festival on December 21 the longest night of the year and the night of the winter solstice (later associated with

Christmas). During this festival pagan Slavs celebrated the birth of a young and new god of the sun Dad藕b贸g to the old and weakened solar deity Swar贸g. They also worshipped their ancestors by lighting fires at cemeteries to keep their loved ones warm, and organizing feasts to honour the dead and keep them fed.

Christianity was introduced in the 10th century as a religion of the elite, flourishing mostly in cities and amongst the nobility. For Slavic peasants, Christianity was not a replacement of old Slavic mythology, but rather an addition to it.

Christianity may have offered a hope of salvation, and of blissful afterlife in the next world, but for survival in this world, for yearly harvest and protection of cattle, the old religious system with its fertility rites, its protective deities, and its household spirits was taken to be necessary.

Christian priests had to fight against so called double faith. On the one hand, peasants and farmers eagerly accepted baptism, masses and the new Christian holidays. On the other hand, they still performed ancient rites and worshipped old pagan cults, even when the ancient deities and myths on which those were based were completely forgotten.

Scherley Stylianos, Julia Radulska, Mikołaj Teperek, Joanna Krupa Dominika Sztaba POLAND

Slavic culture, customs and beliefs Slavs were completely subordinate to the cycle of the seasons. Therefore, the major holidays were associated with the vernal and autumnal equinox and the summer and winter solstice. Some old rituals have survived into our times (like painting Easter eggs, decorating a Christmas tree, etc. adopted in Christianity). Among those old Slavic rituals we can mention: 1) Drowning Marzanna – the ritual held at the spring equinox and intended to provide people with happiness and prosperity

throughout the coming time. It consisted in drowning a straw effigy (sometimes setting fire to it before throwing into the water) to bid farewell to winter and greet spring. Its participants used rattles and whips to make as much noise as possible while the effigy was being destroyed. Apart from performing this ritual people would clean their houses thoroughly and go to the woods to look for green branches heralding the advent of the new season.

2) Swadba – the wedding ceremony. The oath was taken in the presence of Swat or a tribal priest called ŝerca. The promise was uttered before the gods. The marriage meant fraternizing of two families and striking up formal friendship between them. At the end of the ceremony there was a feast, during which the couple ate a meal from one plate.

3) Birth – Women, just before giving birth called God called Rod and his helpers Rodzenice asking for good fortune for their child. Just after the birth of the child, old women were preparing a ritual meal, part of which was intended for Rodzenice and domestic ghosts.

They also told fortunes to the newborn 4) "Baptism"Christian baptism had its counterpart in one of the rituals of the ancient

Slavs. When a child was born, the eldest in the family (or father) took the child and bowed their head to all four corners of the world, blessed them and gave a name.

5) Postrzyżyny - Old Slavic ritual, associated with reaching by a young boy adulthood. In accordance with the tradition, when a male boy turned 7-10 his father cut his long hair.

Until that age he was in his mother’s charge and was treated like a child. After postrzyżyny the boy’s father was given charge of his son and the boy began to learn the work and ceremonies typical of men.

6) Stypa- Today it is a solemn meal in honor of the deceased on the day of their funeral.

Formerly it was believed that the deceased also need food, so their families went to the graves and organized dinner there. It was also popular to bury food near the grave.

7) Dziady – a ritual performed to establish contact with the souls of the dead and gain their sympathy by offering them generous hospitality. It took place twice a year. The food prepared for the spirits was usually honey and eggs. It was also made sure that none of the souls would get lost by illuminating the paths for them.

8) Doşynki – a harvest festival, celebrated every year as a form of giving thanks to the gods for the harvest and making the next harvest even more abundant. People paid tribute to the gods by making offerings of bread made with the wheat of the last harvest and wreaths made up of field plants.

A very important element of the culture of the ancient Slavs was democracy. Our ancestors initially had no concept of the king or authority and all decisions were made by joint voting or voting of tribal elders. The average settlement of the Slavs was a series of identical wooden houses with thatched roofs, surrounded with earth and stone walls and a palisade. The location of a settlement depended on the type of work done by its inhabitants. Fish and beaver farming as well as millet, barley, wheat, rye, flax, and hop far-ming were very common.

Every family fulfilled their everyday needs by themselves. Trading was carried out under a barter system. Slavic tribes were monogamous.

Men were farmers, carpenters, tool makers, beekeepers and brewers. Women raised

children, cooked, weaved linen and sewed clothes. In spite of this strict division of duties women and men had the same rights. Family was always very important for the Slavs. The eldest in the family was treated with utmost respect.

Although the ancient Slavs treated everyone as equal and having their say, they differed in terms of their assets. Someone’s wealth could be recognized by the robes they were wearing.

The thicker the robe was, the more wealth his owner possessed as he could afford a larger amount of material.

Another interesting phenomenon is Slavic morality when it comes to receiving visitors from another tribe. Everyone was obliged to treat a traveler with great respect and offer them lavish hospitality. According to the tradition the traveler moved from one Slave’s house to another and in case he complained about the treatment he received from the previous host, the next host came to his defense and challenged him to combat.

Slavic religious system was based on polytheism.

They saw a divine power in nature. Some gods were of less or more importance for them, which depended on the type of work they had. For example, farmers valued soil and fishermen prized water.

It was believed that after death all souls went to a new world called Nawia ruled by god Weles.

Weles grouped souls according to their merits and actions and gave them either happiness or misery.

It is a very challenging task to describe the Slavic culture as it is so varied and extensive. In my opinion, our ancestors’ beliefs, customs and rituals are extremely interesting.

References:

 Stanisław Szczur, Historia Polski /Średniowiecze/, Wydawnictwo Literackie 2002;  Andrzej Chwałba, editor, Obyczaje w Polsce /Od średniowiecza do czasów współczesnych/, PWN 2008;  Anna Chrypinski, editor, Polish Customs, Friends of Polish Art, Detroit, MI, 1977;  Marija Gimbutas, The Slavs, Preager Publishers, New York, 1971;  Sophie Hodorowicz, Polish Customs, Traditions, & Folklore, Hippocrene Books, New York, 1993;  Anstruther J. Sekalski, Old Polish Legends, 1997;  Wikipedia, the on-line encyclopedia

Małgorzata Karbowska, Klaudia Zielioska, Paweł Kamelak, Scherley Stylianos POLAND

Slavic tribes within the lands of Poland and their beliefs The first basic social communities on the Polish lands were families. The families living together on a small area formed small communities called “opola”. Depending on the area they lived in, “opola” formed tribes (e.g. Polanie, Wiślanie, Bobrzanie, Goplanie, etc.). Each of the tribes was ruled by a tribal assembly who chose a commander if the tribe was in danger.

Later the chiefs wanted to be in charge of greater areas. Their ambitions led to the unification of the tribes into larger communities.

Lots of Slavic tribes lived in the Polish lands.

The greatest included Wiślanie (on the upper Vistula), Polanie (on the river Warta),

Mazowszanie (on the middle Vistula), Goplanie (in the Kujawy region), Lędzianie (on the river San and the river Wieprz), and multiple Silesian tribes .

Slavs believed in various forest and field creatures, imperfect like humans, but stronger and smarter.

Trees were the most important as they possessed a hidden source of power and long-lasting life. The trust in trees was caused by the fact that forest provided Slavs with food, shelter and protection against enemies and wild animals. They even divined what the future held from the rustle of trees.

The oak was always extremely important for Slavs – it was a symbol of man’s power. The second in terms of importance was the birch as its sap was believed to have special nutritional properties. The Rowan scared away bad ghosts and symbolized the rebirth of life after winter. The lime was the tree of women – the tree of fertility. They also praised hazel, and its nuts were used as a sacrifice for the gods. The willow and alder were water demons’ trees. They were considered bad and damaging and said to be used by witches. Aspen

stakes were believed to kill vampires and werewolves. There was a belief that a tribe called Neurowie lived near Polesie and turned into wolves for several days every year .

Slavs believed in souls, both human and animal. A soul could have the shape of a bird, butterfly, bee or a phantom. The phantoms were souls of bad people, dead abandoned children, drowned men, suicides, etc. After death, some souls went to Nawia - the land of happiness, and some flew to the Sun, where they melted. Sometimes souls came back to the world of the living and appeared in various forms. On particular days Slavs would commemorate their ancestors by lighting fires for them and sharing their meals with them. When a husband died his wife was beheaded and burnt at the stake together with him. Ghosts and demons were believed to live in houses, farms, rocks, water – simply everywhere. Our ancestors found godly powers in nature; their religion was based on nature’s rights. Apart from the nameless gods and powers, they also had their chief gods who were known by particular names.

When Mieszko I came to power in Poland and adopted Christianity in year 966 Christian priests put up a fight against old pagan beliefs.

Luiza Grabowska, Ola Około-Kułak Iwona Norberczuk, Katarzyna Hajdas POLAND

CARNIVAL The carnival is a public celebration that takes place immediately before the Christian Lent, with variable time (from late January to early March in the year), combining elements such as costumes, parades and street parties. Despite the great differences that its conclusion presented in the world, their common characteristic is to be a period of permissiveness and a lack of control.

The origin of its conclusion seems likely to pagan festivals, such as those performed in honor of Bacchus , the god of wine, Roman Saturnalia and the Lupercalia, or to be made in honor of the ox Apis in Egypt . According to some historians, the origins of this festival date back to ancient Sumeria and Egypt, more than 5,000 years, with celebrations alike at the time of the Roman Empire , where the custom spread throughout Europe, being brought to America by the Spanish and Portuguese navigators in the fifteenth century.

Carnival is mostly associated with Catholicism , and to a lesser extent with the Eastern Orthodox Christian, usually Protestant cultures do not

celebrate the carnival or have modified traditions, like the Danish Carnival.

The largest Carnival celebration in the world is that of Rio de Janeiro , but many other countries have major celebrations, such as being held in Italy in the Venice Carnival in Colombia with the Carnival of Barranquilla , in Spain with the Carnival Santa Cruz de Tenerife , the Cรกdiz Carnival and Carnival of Aguilas

which are also the only Spanish carnivals to have the category of International Tourist Interest .

The anthropologists found in the surviving elements of ancient carnival festivities and cultures, as the Feast of Winter ( Saturnalia ), celebrations Dionysian Greek and Roman ( Bacchanalia ), the parties pre-Hispanic Andean cultures and African American . Some authors consider that rural society, heavily structured by

Christianity, the time of "carnival" offered masquerades pagan rituals following a period of permissiveness that was opposed to the repression of sexuality and severe Lent liturgical formality.

I.E.S. Santa Clara Santander-Spain Made by Lara Cesco Rebeca Ordo単ez

Dochia Dochia symbolizes one of the oldest Romanian myths.

There are two legends related to this myth.

One of them is related to Traian and Dochia. It is said that Dochia was the daughter of the dacian king, Decebal, with whom Traian, the Roman Emperor fell in love. Being followed by Traian's army, she hides on the holy mountain, Ceahlau, with the sheeps. Mary, mom of god, helps Dochia and turns her and the sheeps into a rock complex.

Another legend says that Dochia had a son, Dragobete, who got married against her will. In order to tease her daughter in law, in a cold winter day, Dochia gave her a ball of black wool and told her to go to the river and wash it, and not come back until the wool becomes white. The girl tried to wash it, but even though her fingers began to bleed, the wool remained black. In desperation because she couldn't return back to her beloved husband, she started to cry. Impressed, Jesus Christ came to her and gave her a red flower, telling her to wash the wool with it.

After thanking him, the girl put the flower in the river and noticed that the black ball has turned white.

Happy that she had succeed in doing this hard job, she headed home, but she wasn't welcomed by her mother in law, because she thought that Martisor (this is what the girl called him, because she didn't recognize Jesus) was her lover. After this, Dochia started to head with her sheeps to the mountain, being sure that the spring has came, otherwise how could Martisor have the flower? During the trip, she removed her coats one by one, all twelve of them, until none remained. But the weather had changed.

As hot as it was at the beginning of the day, as cold it was then. It was snowing and everything started to freeze. Dochia freezed with her sheeps, turning, according to the legend, into a rock. The rocks can be seen nowadays on the Ceahlau Mountain and they are a testimony to this myth.

Denisa Ungureanu Romania

Călușul The Căluşari were the members of a romanian fraternal secret society who practiced a ritual acrobatic dance known as the căluş. According to the Romanian historian Mircea Eliade, the Calusari were known for "their ability to create the impression of flying in the air”which he believed represented both the galloping of a horse and the dancing of the fairies (zine). Indeed, the group’s patron was the "Queen of the Fairies" (Doamna Zianelor), who was also known as Irodiada and Arada, and who Eliade connected with the folkloric figure Diana Due to their connection with the fairies, the Calusari were believed to be able to cure the victims of fairies and for around two weeks - from three weeks after Easter till Whitsunday - would travel to all the local communities where they would dance, accompanied by a few fiddlers, in order to do so.In their dance, the Căluşari carried clubs and a sword, as well as a flag and a wooden horsehead. They swore on the group’s flag to treat each other as brothers, to respect the customs of the Calusari and to remain chaste for the next nine days. Upon their return home, their flag was fixed into the ground, with one member climbing up in and crying out "war, dear ones, war!".

The origins of the Calusari are unknown, although the first written attestations are from the 17th century musical notations of Ioan Căianu. Eliade noted that "Although the oath taken is made in the name of God, the mythico-ritual scenario enacted by the calusari has nothing in common with Christianity" and that, in the 19th century at least, there was clerical opposition to the group, with its members being excluded from taking communion for three years in some regions.The Romanian historian of religion Mircea Eliade believed that the term Căluşari originated with the Romanian word for horse, cal, from the Latin caballus.

The generally accepted derivation of Căluş is from the old Latin double form "collusium, collusii", meaning both "a dance group" and "a secret society", however other derivations have been proposed. The Romanian word căluş also means "a small piece of wood placed in the mouth to prevent talking", and derivation from this word has some support from the presence of the mute figure in some groups, and the ritual silence that used to be observed by the entire group. Others see căluş as a diminutive of cal "horse", in turn derived from the Latin caballus, and point to the horse's mythical associations with fertility and war, as well as the imitation of horses found in certain Căluş dances, although these dances do not currently play a principal role in the ritual. Another theory is that it

derives from "Coli-Salii", the Roman priests dedicated to the worship of Mars.

The căluş is a male group dance, although there are records of traditions from Oltenia region that included 1-2 young girls, now obsolete.

Dancers wear white trousers and white tunics, with brightly coloured ribbons streaming from their hats.

Bells are attached to their ankles, and dances include the use of sticks held upright whilst dancing, or pointing at the ground as a prop.

Like many morris dances, in many traditions căluşari dancers include a fool, known as the "nebun", or "mute".

The dance includes the following elements. 

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The starting figure of walking (plimbări), or a basic step, in a circle moving counter clockwise.

More complex figures (mişcare) performed in place between walking steps.

Figures are formed from combinations of elements, often have a beginning-middle-end structure.

Radu Badea Romania

Dragobete Dragobete's story dates from dacians time, and he is the mythological divinity related to the well-known Cupidon, the Valentine's day hero. Dragobete is known to officiate all the animal's weddings. As the time pass, romanians transformed Dragobete in the master of love. Dragobete was a outstanding, beautiful son, known for his ability to steal virgin’s and young married women's minds. Because of this, of his passionate character, Virgin Mary punished him and transformed him into the plant which gate his name.

It is believed that on the Dragobete's day, the birds talk into their language, looking for their perfect match for mating, and then the birds are starting to build their own home ( nest ) .Unmated birds, will remain like this till next year, when Dragobete is approaching. It is said that this is the reason that teenagers are meeting in this day, to make their love like the birds one: united and safe.

Giuliano Isa Zamolo Romania

A brave young boy released the Sun

A myth tells how the sun descended on Earth in the form of marvelous girl. But a dragon stole her and locked her in his palace. When the birds stopped singing, children stop playing , and the world has fallen into distress Seeing what happens without the Sun, a brave young boy went to the palace to deliver marvelous girl. He search for the palace for an year, and when he found it, he called the dragon to a fight.

The young boy killed the monster and liberated the girl. The Sun was built back in the sky and lit up the entire earth again. It's spring, people have regained joy, but the young fighter kite lying in the palace after it was seeing heavy fighting. Warm blood was drained in the snow, until the couple left breathless. In places where snow has melted, sprang snowdrops - heralds of spring. They say that when people honor the memory of brave young man with a thread linking the two flowers: one white, another red. The beautiful red color symbolizes love and courage reminds young and the white is the snowdrop, the first flower of spring.

Muhammad Ali Karimi Romania

Baba Marta Grandma

or

March

The month of March, according to Bulgarian folklore, marks the beginning of springtime. Therefore, the first day of March is a traditional holiday associated with sending off winter and welcoming spring.

In Bulgaria, "mart" is the word for March and "baba" means grandma. The mythical character of Baba Marta personifies the spring, the sun that can easily burn the fair skin of people's faces. According to the national belief Baba Marta is a grumpy old lady whose mood is unpredictable. The common belief is that by wearing the red and white colours of the martenitsa people ask Baba Marta for mercy. They

hope that it will make winter pass faster and bring spring.

Baba Marta is a pagan tradition. Pagans worldwide celebrated the coming of the spring each year, thousands of years before Christ's birth. Spring was renowned as a time of renewal and fertility representing new life and a fresh start after the cold winter.

Martenitsa is usually worn pinned on the clothes, near the collar, or tied around the wrist. The tradition calls for wearing the martenitsa until the person sees a stork or a blooming tree.

Hristo Itzov Bulgaria

Mucenicii On March 9th, in Romania is celebrated the day of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste (Locally known as Mucenici).

Now let's take a short look into the pages of history.

The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste or the Holy Forty were a group of Roman soldiers in the Legio XII Fulminata (Armed with Lightning), who have become martyrs for their Christian faith in 320. They were killed near Sebaste, in Lesser Armenia, victims of the persecutions of Licinius, who, after the year 316, persecuted the Christians of the East.

According to bishop Basil of Caesarea, forty soldiers who had openly confessed themselves Christians were condemned by the prefect to be exposed naked upon a frozen pond near Sebaste on a bitterly cold night, that they might freeze to death. Among the confessors, one yielded and, leaving his companions, sought the warm baths near the lake which had been prepared for any who might prove inconstant. One of the guards set to keep watch over the martyrs be held at this moment a supernatural brilliancy overshadowing them and at once proclaimed himself a Christian, and placed himself beside the thirty-nine soldiers of Christ. Thus the number of forty remained complete. At daybreak, the stiffened bodies of the confessors, which still showed signs of life, were burned and the ashes cast into a river. This

celebration overlaid the start of the agricultural year and it generated a traditional holiday. During this day house cleaning is a must, the unnecessary objects and the garbage are burned, but only with fire brought from the house, so that the warmth of the family invade the nature too. Also, during this day, the Gates of Heaven are opened and numerous rituals are performed so that warm weather may come. Some believe that the Martyrs were drowned and flowers rose to the surface. As a result, some desserts are made in the figure 8 to look like garlands. Others believe that the figure 8 denotes a stylized human form of the martyrs themselves. In the Muntenia and Dobrogea regions of Romania, the dough is smaller and cooked in water with sugar, cinnamon and crushed nuts, symbolizing the lake where the Martyrs were cast.

Horia Popescu Romania

SPANISH TRADITIONS LA NOCHE DE SAN JUAN IN THE NIGHT OF SAN JUAN It is a festival very old in which they celebrate the arrival of the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere whose rite is leading a fire. The purpose of this ordinance was "to give more power to the Sun" from those days, was becoming more "weak"-the days are getting shorter until the winter solstice.

Symbolically, the fire also has a function "cleansing" in the people who watched. This festival is celebrated in many parts of Europe , but is especially strong in Spain , Portugal Norway , Denmark , Sweden , Finland ‌. In South America, Brazil has Festas Junin, Bolivia , Chile and Venezuela the night of San Juan. The Night of San Juan is, likewise, connected to ancient traditions and Spanish legends as Legend of the Enchanted :

In essence, the legend recounts the emergence of a beautiful young woman combing her long hair with a comb of gold, about the Night of San Juan and near a castle , cave or other natural area full of powerful symbolism. The encounter with her may lead to a viewer's enchantment, which generally tends to be a shepherd or farmer.

Meanings

The "history" of the enchanted, in itself, is rooted in a time when the knowledge and the very history of the company was transmitted in a human oral and reflect past events difficult to explain today. La Encantada reminds the nymphs of classical mythology (young female figures of great beauty that appear next to water). Many of them also can sense the precedents of the fairy tales (young, physical and spiritual beauty are haunted by some evil power and are waiting for a hero brave to break his spell with a beautiful action.)

The similarities between the stories suggest a contact culture , perhaps from the prehistory .

Ulysses and the Sirens ( Attic pottery , British Museum ).

Symbols Cave Associated with the earth and the underworld , the meaning symbolic of the caves have traditionally been related to the mysteries of birth and death . As input to the underworld or the world of the dead, were used since the Paleolithic as burial sites. But the caves are also representations of the generator womb of Mother Earth , which made them places of birth of the gods , heroes , spirits and other mythical beings.

In turn, this confluence of life and death is like the best locations to perform the rites of initiatory death .

Its symbolic importance of intercultural and intertemporal is remarkable, since the same Jesus Christ is buried in a cave and Orpheus seeking his beloved Eurydice touring a cave (Hades).

Mirror Is related to the moon , another symbol female , and appears in numerous legends and fairy folk

character magic and mythology. Raises appearances of either the past or visions of the future .

Comb Anthropologically, the symbol of the comb is closely related to the boat (for rowing ). There is a great linear relationship between the two and represent the mutual penetration of the elements water and fire . The comb is an attribute of fabulous beings of feminine nature, as lamias and sirens , it is the ratio of naked tail comb of fish and the consequent meaning mortuary.

If you are interested you can read more about how in Cantabria celebrate this Magical Night in our blog: http://iessantaclaracomenius.blogspot.com I.E.S. Santa Clara Santander-Spain

SPANISH TRADITIONS THE

NIGHT

OF

THE

MAGIC

KINGS

In Spain , compared with the recent introduction of Santa Claus in the usual Christmas due to the influence of American culture and foreign countries, it is traditional for Christmas gifts to children they may bring the Kings the night of 5 to 6 January. Before, the children must send a letter to the king asking for the presents they want and indicate the credit for those who deserve to receive gifts. On the night of January 5th children must leave their shoes in the house somewhere. The next day the gifts are there, or in the case of a wrong, coal in place. On January 6 festive often in Spain, even when regional party depends on the authorities of each region was established. There is therefore considered a national holiday. Adults also receive gifts. The breakfast is typical of Kings Rosc贸n in many places also taken the day before picnic or dinner. In Spain these roscones usually contain a Christmas figurine.

In some Latin American countries adopted the custom of the Spanish that children (and by

extension, older) receive gifts of the Magi, or the day before, that is, on the night of January 5 or the morning of January 6 .

It is normal for children to write a letter to the king asking for the gifts they want and ensuring their good behavior during the year since, according to tradition, children who misbehave receive fresh coal instead of gifts. Most postal services accept these cards. More recently has also begun the practice of writing through e-mail or even directly to their website.

Magic children receive Like the usual Anglo-Saxon about Santa Claus , it is often wise men appear in gift shops and malls, where children have the opportunity to take a picture sitting on their knees and submit the letter with their requests directly. The representation usually consists of a stage with thrones and the characteristic symbols, such as pictures or drawings of camels, the star, a mailbox and Eastern-looking ornaments. In the thrones is where they feel the kings, is commonly characterized employees. Sometimes represent the three kings of tradition, but depending on the circumstances or the size of the stage, may include

only one. They also include a page, signature character in charge of leading the children from where they expect their parents to kings and to collect the cards.

In some places, the authorities organized the socalled Three Kings on January 5, during which the characters are usually on horseback or in carriages, wearing robes and crowns, instead of the Phrygian dress completely unknown. The next day, Jan. 6, is a public holiday. That day the children enjoy their gifts.

In Spain, the Kings put the gifts which the children have left their shoes. Sweets are also left to give to the Magi and even food or water for the camels,

which is the means of transport.

Other customs of the January 6 This tradition originated in Spain in the typical twisted roll of kings (also called rosca de reyes) taken on that day and that hides a little surprise inside.

I.E.S. Santa Clara

Bulgarian Customs First is about fire-dancers.This is a custom that can be seen only in some villages between Strandzha and the Black Sea, around Bourgas. It is observed on the holiday of St.Konstantin and Elena , and sometimes on some of the local village fairs and the church/patron saint's days. A basic element of the custom is the dance in fire ( glowing embers). The whole village takes part in the celebration but it is only the fire-dancers that participate in the ritual dance. They are chosen by the saint who is patron of the holiday. The dancers are able to "see" his face, to "hear" his voice and his spirit is transferred in them and on his behalf they can interpret omens , give advices and scorn people.

Fire-dancing is inherited. Only the head fire-dancer is the one to pass the strength and inspiration to the other fire-dancers. Head fire-dancer could become only the son or the daughter of the present one and only if he is either too old or after he has passed away. The head fire-dancer house is s sacred one because there is the so called "stolnina" or "konak"/"rasting place",which is a very small chapel

where the icons of st.Konstantin and Elena are kept as well as those of the the Virgin Mary , st.George , st.Pantaleimon , and some wood-cuts from the Holy Sepulcher and red pieces of cloth decorated with a sun. There is also the sacred drum which sets the beat of the dance. It is also believed that the drum has magical powers and it can sure the one who carries it if he happens to be ill. This drum is not to be used in any other case.

On the very day of the holiday after the service in the church, the people make their way to the "konak" led by the head fire-dancer and the priest. There the head fire-dancer censes the icons and the other firedancers and passes to them the spiritual strength and inspiration of St.Konstantin. They start beating the drum and play a special fire-dancing song on a pipe.

Some of the fire-dancers get "caught" (a state of religious trance) and start dancing with the saint's icon in their hands. After that everyone sets off for the spring which bears the name of the saint and there they set up a big feast with prepared at home boiled mutton. After sunset they all return to the central square where they build up a big fire around which they play a horo to the accompaniment of the pipe and the drum. When the fire goes out and turns into glowing embers , the fire-dancers start dancing

on them. The fire-dancer dances bare-footed on the embers and while he is dancing he may see and foretell the future.

Second is about Laduvane.The Laduvane takes place on the New Year's, St. George's day, Midsummer and St. Lazar's day.

With this ritual the young girls foretell who the lad they are going to marry will be and ask Lada, the goddess of love and marriage to show them what he will be like. On this day the girls bring water from the spring or the well in a white cauldron. This water has different names depending in the day in which the ritual is performed - quiet, untouched or colorful.

After they bring the water the girls gather in a house and each of them leaves her ring or a bunch of flowers with a ring around them, or a bracelet in the cauldron. They leave the cauldron under the roses or some other kinds of flowers during the night under the stars. In the morning one of the lasses or a young child dressed as a bride takes the rings and the flowers out of the water and the rest of the girls are singing short songs. They sing about a fore-coming marriage, happiness in the marriage, social status and qualities of the future husband: "a ripe and over-ripe quince" (the girl will be old when she gets married);

"alone you are on a stone" (she will marry an orphan); "a yellow veil gathers splinters" (the girl will get married). Each girl takes some oats from the cauldron and puts it under her pillow. They believe that whoever the boy they dream about that night is that will be the one they are going to marry. Their health during the next year is foretold by whether or not the water is freezing in the cauldron. The celebration ends with a big horo.

And the third is about Kukeri.On New Year's Eve and Zagovezni in Bulgaria special rituals called Mummer's games take place. The Mummer's games are performed by men only. They put on special masks hand-made by each of the participants.

Most of the masks are constructed by wood. Different colored threads are glued on it as well as pieces of multicolored fabrics, mirrors and other shiny elements. The masks representing a ram, a goat or a bull are considered the strangest. Their necessary part of the Mummer's games proves the thesis that the origin of the mummer's games is connected to the ancient Dionysius' games. The impact that the masked mummers make gets even bigger by the sound of the copper and bronze bells that hang on them.

Some of the masks have two faces. On one of the sides the nose is snub and the face is good-humored and on the other the nose is hooked and the face is ominous. Those masks symbolize the good and the bad which coexist in the world and are inevitable. A very important thing for the symbolic of the masks is the color of the decoration. The red is the most used one - a symbol of the fertility of the reviving nature, of the sun and the fire; the black color embodies the earth and her goddess mother and the white is a symbol of water and light SANDY ANGELOVA Bulgaria

Sânzienele / the Fairies The custom of Fairies and its origins are lost deep within the midst of time. This is a local habit who’s original name was lost. We only managed to save the roman name of Sanziana, which is actually related to the name of Sancta Diana, and the slavonian one, “Dragaica”. The English word for Sanziene is Fairies.

The celebration of the Sanziene (held on the 24th of June, the day John the Baptizer was born) is related to the cult of crop gathering, the cult of vegetation and fertility and it holds a fascinating mixture of Christianity, paganism and witchcraft. The Sanziene/ Fairies are also plants with yellow flowers with a pleasant smell. They grow in fields and at the edge of forests. Accompanied by music and the shouting of the younger men, girls gather these flowers in bouquets and knit them in circular shapes. These bouquets are then brought to the village and are put behind doors windows and balconies. The flowers are also being spread amongst the vegetables in the garden because it is believed that they will protect the owners and the house it’s self from evil spirits and

that they will also bring luck prosperity and good health.

During the Fairies night, old women also go to place known only by them to gather healing plants.

Most of these herbs are than sent to the church where they are blessed and therefore are purified by the negative influence of the “iele� (evil fairies who live in the forests). Only then they will be safe to use for healing. The Fairies were also considered by girls to be a mean through whom they could find out who their husband is going to be, and when will they get married. Also, there is a custom that says that the bouquets that were previously gathered by the girls should be thrown over the house and if they remain there then soon there shall be a wedding.

Another tradition says that before going to sleep, in the night of the Fairies, girls should put under their pillow one of the flowers she has gathered and she will dream the man she will marry. During the same night, right before sunrise, girls must go to the stables and throw a bouquet at the cattle and if the flowers shall get stuck in a young cow’s horns than the man she will marry is going to be young. If not, the future husband will be an old man.

During the same night, at sunset, young men meet outside the village and set big fires around which they sing songs about love and magic. The next day, girls who soon shall be married dress up in white clothes wearing yellow flowers behind their ears, and set a traditional ring dance, to celebrate the upcoming event.

Ovidiu Roșca Romania

In Turkey Bayram means Festival.

Eid al-Adha (“Kurban Bayramı”, i.e. “Sacrifice Bayram”), Dhu al-Hijjah 10-13 What is Eid al-Adha?

At the end of the Hajj (annual pilgrimage to Mecca), Muslims throughout the world celebrate the holiday of Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice). In 2010, Eid alAdha will begin on November 16th, and will last for three days.

What does Eid al-Adha commemorate?

During the Hajj, Muslims remember and commemorate the trials and triumphs of the Prophet Abraham. The Qur’an describes Abraham as follows: “Surely Abraham was an example, obedient to Allah, by nature upright, and he was not of the polytheists.

He was grateful for our bounties. We chose him and guided him unto a right path. We gave him good in this world, and in the next he will most surely be among the righteous.” (Qur’an 16:120-121)One of Abraham’s main trials was to face the command of Allah to kill his only son. Upon hearing this command, he prepared to submit to Allah’s will. When he was all prepared to do it, Allah revealed to him that his “sacrifice” had already been fulfilled. He had shown

that his love for his Lord superseded all others, that he would lay down his own life or the lives of those dear to him in order to submit to God. Why do Muslims sacrifice an animal on this day?

During the celebration of Eid al-Adha, Muslims commemorate and remember Abraham’s trials, by themselves slaughtering an animal such as a sheep, camel, or goat. This action is very often misunderstood by those outside the faith.

Allah has given us power over animals and allowed us to eat meat, but only if we pronounce His name at the solemn act of taking life. Muslims slaughter animals in the same way throughout the year. By saying the name of Allah at the time of slaughter, we are reminded that life is sacred.

The meat from the sacrifice of Eid al-Adha is mostly given away to others. One-third is eaten by immediate family and relatives, one-third is given away to friends, and one-third is donated to the poor.

The act symbolizes our willingness to give up things that are of benefit to us or close to our hearts, in order to follow Allah’s commands. It also symbolizes our willingness to give up some of our own bounties, in order to strengthen ties of friendship and help those who are in need. We recognize that all blessings come from Allah, and we should open our hearts and share with others.

It is very important to understand that the sacrifice itself, as practiced by Muslims, has nothing to do with atoning for our sins or using the blood to wash ourselves from sin. This is a misunderstanding by those of previous generations: “It is not their meat or their blood that reaches Allah; it is your piety that reaches Him.” (Qur’an 22:37) The symbolism is in the attitude – a willingness to make sacrifices in our lives in order to stay on the Straight Path. Each of us makes small sacrifices, giving up things that are fun or important to us. A true Muslim, one who submits his or herself completely to the Lord, is willing to follow Allah’s commands completely and obediently. It is this strength of heart, purity in faith, and willing obedience that our Lord desires from us.

What else do Muslims do to celebrate the holiday?

On the first morning of Eid al-Adha, Muslims around the world attend morning prayers at their local mosques. Prayers are followed by visits with family and friends, and the exchange of greetings and gifts.

At some point, members of the family will visit a local farm or otherwise will make arrangements for the slaughter of an animal. The meat is distributed during the days of the holiday or shortly thereafter. 

Eid ul-Fitr (“Şeker Bayramı”, i.e. “Bayram of Sweets” or “Ramazan Bayramı”, i.e. “Ramadan Bayram”), Shawwal 1-3

Seker Bayram, or the “sugar festival,” is celebrated by Muslims at the end of Ramazan, the fasting month for Muslims. It lasts three and a half days. It is a national religious holiday in Turkey. Schools and government offices are closed during those days. It is traditional to wear new outfits during Bayram (meaning festival), so parents get new clothes for their children. Many children are excited about wearing their new clothes on the first day of the festival. The house is completely cleaned a few days before the festival.

The First Day: The first day of Seker Bayram is the most important. Everybody wakes up early and the men go to the mosque for the special Bayram prayer.

After returning from the mosque, all of the family members dress up nicely, mostly with new clothes, and another important tradition is practiced: the Bayram visits.

Ramazan Visits: Young people visit their elders first.

The other relatives, neighbors and friends are also visited. Due to those visits, the traffic is quite busy on the first day of the festival. Bayram visits are kept very short—ten to fifteen minutes. Mostly candies, chocolates, Turkish coffee and cold beverages are offered to visitors. People who cannot visit their friends and family members in other towns make telephone calls or send cards celebrating the festival.

Children normally love Bayram visits and would like to visit as many elders as they can because it’s traditional for elders to give pocket money to the

children. Children can easily collect pocket money for one month. The best part for the children is that there is no restriction on how much they can spend and how they spend it. Therefore, amusement parks are set up in almost every town during the festival.

Ramazan Tipping: Kapicis (doormen or superintendents of apartment buildings), trash collectors, and Ramazan drummers often knock on doors during the Seker Bayram festival expecting gifts or tips.

Cemetery Visits: Another tradition practiced during the festival is visiting the graves of deceased family members. The visits to graveyards start one day prior to the festival and continue during the festival.

Gifts and Congratulations: If you visit your Turkish friends, a box of candy or chocolate would be the most appropriate gift to take. The phrase for wishing your Turkish friends’ a happy holiday is “Iyi Bayramlar” (ee-yee-by-rahm-lahr), which means literally “good festivals” or “I wish you a happy festival.”

Ramazan Names: Another tradition in Turkey is to give boys born during Bayram the name “Bayram,” just like giving the name “Ramazan” to boys born during Ramazan.

Another name for the festival is “Ramazan Bayrami.”

In Arabic, the holiday is called “Id-ul Fitr.” The name

“Seker Bayram” or “sugar festival” probably comes from the tradition of exchanging sweets during the holiday.

Typically shops are closed on the first day of the festival, but they open up again on the second day.

When you visit Turkish friends or encounter children during Seker Bayram, you’ll often see them kiss your hand and place it on their forehead as they bow to you. It’s a Turkish tradition for children to show respect for elders in that way. They put the back of your hand against their forehead to show you that you have a position “at the top of their head.” The correct response is to kiss the child on both cheeks as a sign of love and sympathy for them. You’ll then often see the children put out their hands afterward, expecting a bit of pocket change! It’s traditional to give the child a coin or some coins when they do that.

The sincerity of the act they just performed is another question entirely!

Yunus Emre Yalçın , Enver Avcıoğlu , Ali Emre Öztürk Yahya Turan Anadolu öğretmen lisesi

News from Turkey meeting Proje Heycanı 21 Şubat 2011, 08:53Sait Çelik Yahya Turan Anadolu Öğretmen lisesinin İngilizce öğretmeni Nhal Şen Başkanlığında yapılan proje ilgi gördü.

Hayat Boyu Öğrenme Comenius Projesi ‘‘Din ve Ahlak : Ortak İzdüşümde Uzlaşı ’’ adlı proje kapsamında AB Ülkelerinden Romanya,İspanya,Polonya ve Bulgaristan’dan 30 kişilik öğretmen ve öğrencilerden oluşan grup Yahya Turan Anadolu Öğretmen Lisesinde incelemelerine devam ediyor.

Okul Müdürü Hamdi BOZKAYA: Misafir öğrencilerin ev sahipliğini aileler yapıyor Okul müdürü Hamdi BOZKAYA yaptığı açıklamada bu projenin beş ülke için önemine değindi. Misafir Öğrencilerin ev sahipliğini okulun öğrenci ailelerinin yaptığını belirten Bozkaya, böylelikle projenin ruhuna uygun olarak kültürler ve dinler arasındaki benzerliklerin tespit edildiğini öğrenci ve öğretmenler arasında sıcak dostluklar yaşandığını belirtti.Okul müdürü Hamdi Bozkaya, bu süreçte bizi yalnız bırakmayan misafir yüklenici ailelere çok teşekkür ediyorum. Bu proje kapsamında bizim öğrencilerimiz de ilk ziyaretlerini bir iki ay içerisinde gerçekleştirecekler, dedi.

20 Şubat Pazar günü Hatay gezisi yapıldı İncelemeler 20 Şubat Pazar günü çok yoğun bir

programla başladı. Program dâhilinde Hatay’ın önemli tarih ve dini mekanları ziyaret edildi. İlk olarak S.Piyer Kilisesi gezildi. Ardından Habib-i Neccar Camisi gezildi.Harbiye de mola veren grup öğleden sonra Müzeyi ardından da Katolik ,Protestan kiliseleri ziyaret edildi. Müzeye yoğun ilgi gösteren grup adeta müzeye hayran kaldı.Şehir turundan sonra Reyhanlı’ya gelen grup öğrencileri, öğrenci ailelerine emanet edildi.Öğretmen grubu ise kaldıkları otele bırakıldı.

21 Şubat Pazartesi Okul İncelemeleriyle Geçti 21 Şubat Okul içi Eğitim çalışmalarıyla geçti. Okul tanıtımın ardından ülke öğrencileri hazırladıkları konularla ilgili sunumlar yaptı.Evrensel ahlak ilkelerinin de irdelendiği eğitim çalışmalarında insanlığın özünde barınan hasletler anlatıldı. İlçe Milli Eğitimi Ziyaret Öğleden sonraki programda İlçe Milli Eğitim Müdürü Muharrem Keleşoğlu ziyaret edildi. Keleşoğlu, öğretmenlere yoğun ilgi göstererek hatıra mahiyetinde il ve ilçemizi tanıtıcı resim ve broşürlerin de yer aldığı armağanlar verdi. İlk Ziyaret Nisan’da İspanya’ya Yapılacak Proje sorumlusu Nihal ŞEN,ilk ziyaret Nisan ayında İspanya’ya yapılacak , 22 Şubat Salı İskenderun gezisi yapılacak ve 23 Şubat günü misafirler ülkelerine uğurlanacak, dedi.

Similarities:

Romania - Bulgaria Both countries celebrate the coming of Spring, on 1st of March. In Bulgaria is called Martenitsa, while in Romania is called Martisor.

In Bulgaria, Martenitsa is represented by a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and worn from March 1 until around the end of March.

Martenitsi are always given as gifts. People never buy martenitsi for themselves. They are given to loved ones, friends, and those people whom one feels close to. They are worn on clothing, or around the wrist or neck, until the wearer sees a stork or swallow returning from migration, or a blossoming tree, and then removes the Martenitsa and hangs it on a blossoming tree.

In Romania, Mărțișor, marţ and mărțiguș are all names for the red and white string from which a small decoration is tied, and which is offered by people on the 1st day of March. The string can also be black and

white, or blue and white) Giving this talisman to people is an old custom, and it is believed that the one who wears the red and white string will be strong and healthy for the year to come. It is also a symbol of the coming spring. Usually, women wear it pinned to their clothes for the first 12 days of the month, until other spring celebrations, or until the bloom of certain fruit-trees. In some regions, a gold or silver coin is hanged from the string, which is worn around the neck. After wearing it for a certain period of time, they buy red wine and sweet cheese with the coin, according to a belief that their faces would remain beautiful and white as cheese, and rubicund as the red wine, for the entire year.

LEGENDS : Bulgaria : This is only one of the many legends, and perhaps not even the best known one, attempting to offer an explanation of how the tradition of creating and wearing martenitsa started.

Khan Kubrat's (632–665) five sons went hunting accompanied by their sister Huba. When they reached the Danube river they saw a silver stag. Mesmerized, the men did not dare shoot at it. The stag crossed over to the opposite bank of the river showing them a ford.

A bird flew bringing them bad tidings. Their father, the founder of Old Great Bulgaria was on his deathbed. In his last hours Kubrat's last will was to tell his offspring—Bayan, Kotrag, Asparukh, Kuber and Altsek—not to sever the still tenuous link between the different Bulgarian tribes. His sons vowed to defend Bulgaria.

Soon after their father’s death, the Khazars invaded the land. The Khazar's Khan Ashina conquered the capital Phanagoria. Huba, Kubrat's daughter, was captured by Ashina. Hoping to give her brothers a chance to freedom, Huba attempted suicide but was stopped by the guards.

Her brothers kept their vows in different ways. Bayan stayed with his sister and recognized the supremacy of the Khazars. Kotrag went northwards, to the River Volga, while Asparukh, Kuber and Altsek went south to search for a new land without oppressors.

The brothers who left secretly arranged with Huba and Bayan to send word by a golden thread tied to the leg of a dove if they were able to find a free land.

One day a falcon sent by Asparukh flew into Huba's room and she and Bayan quickly made plans to escape. Just as they were looking for a place to cross the Danube River, Khazar pursuers spotted them and

rushed toward them. Trying to find a ford, Huba let the falcon free. She tied a white thread to its leg and handed it to her brother. Just as the bird was about to take off, an enemy arrow pierced Bayan and his blood stained the white thread.

While Huba and Bayan managed to reach the newly discovered land by Asparukh (present-day Bulgaria), they were both mortally wounded. Asparukh rushed to the side of his dying brother and sister but he could not save them. After their death he tore the pieces of white-and-red blood stained yarn and adorned his soldiers with them.

Romania : The tradition of Mărţişor is very old, going back more than 8 000 years ago, according to archaeological research in Romania.

In ancient Rome, New Year's Eve was celebrated on March 1st - 'Martius', as the month was called in the honour of the god Mars. Mars was not only the god of war but also an agricultural guardian, who ensured nature's rebirth. Therefore, the red and white colours of Mărţişor may be explained as colours of war and peace

Romania - Spain

Both countries are celebrating, on 24th of June, the Birth of John the Baptist.

Saint John the Baptist Day is celebrated in many villages and towns in Spain. Many events take place on the evening of June 23. People in Catalonia celebrate Saint John the Baptist Day by:  Lighting bonfires, jumping over small fires (correfocs) and setting off fireworks.  Writing wishes or sins on a piece of paper and burning the paper.  Diving or bathing in dew, a stream, a river or the sea.  Staying awake all night near a small fire.  Watching the sun rise on the morning of June 24.  Collecting and cooking with the herbs thyme, rosemary and verbena.

In Western Christianity The Nativity of St John the Baptist, though not a widespread public holiday outside of Quebec, is a high-ranking liturgical feast, kept in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran Churches. Since in the Roman Rite it is celebrated since 1970 as a Solemnity, in the 1962 form of that liturgical rite as a feast of the first class and in still earlier forms as a Double of the First Class with common Octave. It takes precedence over a Sunday on which it happens to fall. The Reformed and free churches give this celebration less prominence.

The day of a Saint's death is usually celebrated as his or her feast day, but Jesus himself and the Virgin Mary and Saint John the Baptist, while not being exceptions to this rule, have in addition a feast day that celebrates their earthly birth. The reason is that St. John was (Lk 1:15), like Jeremiah (Jer 1:5) and the Blessed Virgin, purified from original sin before his very birth, though not in the instant of conception as in the latter case.

The feast of the Baptism of the commemorates John's baptism of Jesus.

Lord

In Eastern Christianity In the Eastern Orthodox Church and other Eastern Christian Churches, St John the Baptist is usually called St John the Forerunner, a title used also in the West ("Πρόδρομος" in Greek, "Precursor" in Latin). This title indicates that the purpose of his ministry was to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus Christ. In the East also, the Feast of his Nativity is celebrated on June 24. It is a major feast day and is celebrated with an All-Night Vigil. It has an Afterfeast of one day. The feast always falls during the Apostles' Fast.

In Romania, on 24th of June, we also celebrate Dragaica, while the Spanish people celebrates the longest day of the year.

‘Sanzienele’ or 'Dragaica' is a Romanian tradition with pre-christian roots which is celebrated on June 24 – which coincides with the Orthodox holiday Ioan Botezatorul (St. John the Baptist). It is a midsummer tradition which celebrates nature and fecundity.

Sanzienele are also called Dragaica in some regions of the country (Muntenia, Oltenia). The word

“sanziene� is also used for a plant with golden flowers, which are gathered into wreaths and placed in the house (actually also thrown on the roof) to protect the house and its inhabitants from evil spirits. The legend goes that Fairies are young girls who give their magical powers to flowers and herbs during this period. During this time, young women can find their destined one – if they put the Sanziene flowers under their pillow during the night before the holiday, they will dream their future husband, the tradition goes.

The Fairies night (June 23rd to June 24th) is considered a mystical moment, when the nature is at it peak and displays its most vital force. The traditional belief is that miracles can happen during the Sanziene night, when the skies can open.

Dragaica is known as the Goddess of Agriculture, tradition keeped since neo-lithic age, when agriculture was discovered, and where the woman had a very important role, being capable of an unbelieveble patience, and watch a grass wire grow up.

Remembering the deads

All the countries that participated at the project meeting, have a holiday that celebrates the deads.

It's an ocasion to remember them, show our love for them.

We celebrate it on Saturdays, and on Sundays we go to the Church.