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Maslenitsa in Russia
Maslenitsa (Butter Week or Crepe week) is an Eastern Slavic religious and folk holiday, celebrated during the last week before Great Lent.
It is one of the oldest Slavic holidays. According to old pagan traditions Maslenitsa is a sun-festival, which celebrates end of the winter.
In Russian Christian traditions, Maslenitsa is the last week before the onset of Great Lent when people eat a lot and prepare to many weeks of abstention. It is the last week during which Russians who are going to fast may eat cheese, eggs, milk, caviar and other dairy meals such as so popular pancakes.
At Maslenitsa week for Christian religious people meat is also forbidden, but with increasing secularization more and more Russians do not abstain from meat and eat pancakes with meat and other popular meat dishes like BBQ.
During Great Lent fun and parties are also excluded, so for Christian Russians Maslenitsa week is a good opportunity to visit friends, have fun, eat and drink a lot and take part in public activities.
During maslenitsa Russians make a lot of pancakes. It is a national tradition. We eat pancakes with sour cream, caviar, chocolate, cheese and many other ingredients to taste. We can buy craps in the city or make them at home, most of Russian families know how to make craps.
During Maslenitsa week in cities and around there are many social activities. In public places there are many concerts, fairs and special shows which encourage winter to come faster. Russians like to go outdoors at Maslenitsa week and spend the time playing with children, sledding, organizing snowball fights or just go to watch something interesting in the city.
As usual Maslenitsa starts in February or March.
The last day of Maslenitsa Week is called "Forgiveness Sunday". Relatives and friends ask each other to forgive them for their in general or to forgive their behavior, mistakes etc. Sometime at Forgiveness Sunday we give each other presents.
One of the most important Maslenitsa traditions is burning of scarecrow. Russians make or buy dolls of Maslenitsa. It’s a doll made of wood and straw which is cold Lady Maslenitsa. And we burn Lady Maslenitsa at bonfire. While she is burning we sing songs, laugh, drink and call Spring to come faster to our lives. As usual we burn Maslenitsa doll at the end of the week.
