For the modern human being, summer represents the season of vacation, but for the traditional world the things are completely different. As agriculture is one of the traditional occupations of the Romanians, a lot of beliefs about the fertility of the soil can be found on Romanian ground.
After the summer solstice the days become shorter and shorter. In the regions which respect a traditional mentality, people place their hope in the force of the earth which feeds them and take all measures for the crops to be reach. Wheat is very important for the everyday food and at reaping time people believe in some traditional practices.
Mircea Eliade says that reaping customs originate in agricultural rituals through which primitive human beings try to create a bond to the sacred forces which ensure good crops. Death and the symbolic rebirth of the wheat’s spirit refer to the immortality of the human spirit. Connecting this to the act of reaping, one can notice a certain similitude: both human life and wheat life are cut off by the same tool – the reaping hook, which becomes the symbol of death in the medieval epoch.
The belief in the existence of the spirit of wheat gave birth to the reaping time customs. In the primitive societies this spirit has to be protected, since it symbolizes the end of a vegetal cycle. In the same time, the spirit of wheat ensures the rebirth of future crops.
The last reaping day is an essential moment in the traditional calendar. A series of ritual moments are taking place now, which must contain a ritual object, a ritual song, but also a ritual dinner. The reaping which takes place in form of voluntary collective work of the peasants is different than the reaping which takes place only with the members of the family. The voluntary collective work is a ceremonial moment which may differ from one region to the other, but everything is centred on the spirit of wheat.
The wheat ears crown is one of the ritual objects used in Transylvania in order to ensure richness of crops. In some areas in Transylvania, a crown of the most beautiful ears is wreathed on the last reaping day. It is taken by the most hardworking girls in the village and brought to the house of the person for whom the peasants did the reaping. On her way, the girl is accompanied by a group of other girls and women, who sing the crown song.
People spray with water the girl who carries the crown. Once the group reaches the house of destination, it dances the Cântecul grâului (Wheat song) and everyone enjoys the food the hosts prepared. After finishing this ritual, the ears crown is placed on the gate and is considered to be a protective icon until the next year’s harvest.
Bibliography and photos:
„romaniaturistica”[online]la URL: http://www.romaniaturistica.ro/obiceiuri-de-seceris
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