Cuckoo festival (cumulation) among the Slavs

The oldest Slavic holiday of the cuckoo is inextricably linked with the ritual of ritual People who performed this ritual moved to a new stage of social development The main meaning of this holiday is to establish a spiritual connection between young girls who needed support and help Traditionally, the holiday is celebrated on the last Sunday of May or the second Sunday after Easter However, some sources mention celebrations on Peter's Day or St Nicholas the Great Girls aged 10-12 years old initially took part in the rituals: this holiday for them was a farewell to childhood Young women, unmarried girls, also took part in the cumulation Women who had recently gotten married could join them The process was usually led by an elderly woman, more often a widow Guys could also be involved in the celebration, but only after the ritual had been completed So, for example, in some areas they were allowed to follow the girls, make fun of them, and interfere with the preparation of the festive meal Adults sometimes also joined, but they sat separately from the youth, not participating in the rite of commemoration Girls in the forest found a birch tree (sometimes it was a rowan, willow, willow or maple), decorated it with ribbons, and curled a decorated wreath on it Through it they kissed each other and exchanged gifts, that is, they established nepotism Sometimes they made a cuckoo, which was baptized and buried according to all the rules A cuckoo is a doll dressed in lace or decorated with birch branches After all the rituals, the young people began the festive dinner with an obligatory dish - scrambled eggs On the same day they wondered about the subsequent fate of the young women If a woman just got married, she wondered what gender her firstborn would be A few days later, the ritual of dispossession was carried out Then the tree was cleared of decoration, and the gifts were returned to the owners (“exchanged”) Despite the seriousness of this holiday - after all, girls were beginning to be considered adults - young people danced in circles, sang songs about spring, and jumped over the fire It’s interesting that only on this day was it permissible for a girl to hug the guy she liked and even go for a walk with him