In the Czech Republic, Great Friday (Velký pátek) is the popular name for what most call "Good Friday". Velký pátek is a day of fasting for Roman Catholics who will not eat meat until Saturday evening after the church bells start ringing on their legendary return from Rome.
On Velký pátek, we prepare our holiday bread (mazanec), which must not be cut or eaten until the priest says, "Christ is risen!" (Kristus vstal z mrtvých!) on Easter Sunday. It is a universal custom to make a new loaf of bread with the sign of the cross before cutting it in order to bless it and thank God for it. Bread baked on Velký pátek - if hardened in the oven - can be kept all year, and its presence protects the house from fire.
There are many (surprise surprise!) superstitions associated with Velký pátek. Although Praguers have gotten away from some of the annual traditions, people in small villages still practice time-honored rituals. These customs, dating back to at least the first century, are designed to bring health and happiness to the participants throughout the following year.
We're a superstitious bunch aren't we!? I have to admit that I won't allow laundry to hang dry on Velký pátek, and I also won't eat meat, but these traditions are a little harder to adhere to:
- Women carry out their quilts to air out in order to chase illnesses out of the house.
- Some believe that water dipped before sunrise without a spoken word has healing power and will stay pure all year.
- People get up very early on this day and hurry down to the brook (or stream... or river) where they wash themselves with cold water and then cross the brook with bare legs because they believe that this ensures good health for the entire next year.
- People also take their daughters down to wash at the well so that they'll be pretty and well spoken for.
It's also believed that water sprites come out onto dry land on Velký pátek. Water Sprites are a story for another day, but if you come across this guy...
A few more interesting beliefs and superstitions are:
- Work. Just don't do it!! I'm not sure if it's out of genuine respect for the religious festival, or from superstitious fears that to do it will somehow bring misfortune. According to an old Czech saying, "Na Velký pátek zemi nehýbej", which translates to, "On Great Friday, do not move the soil."
- Supposedly, the weather for the whole year is foretold by the weather on Velký pátek. For instance, if it rains on Velký pátek, then the rest of the year will be dry. Another saying is "Velký pátek deštivý dělává rok žíznivý", which means, "A rainy Great Friday makes for a thirsty year."
- On Velký pátek, according to legend, anyone can look upon the sun without being blinded by its glare
There are several legends associated with Velký pátek as well, and the one I find romantic yet disturbing is this one: High up in the mountains amidst the cliffs there is a stone figure of a maiden. She is seated and holds in her lap an unfinished shirt, also of stone. Eash year, on Velký pátek, at the hour of the Passion, she sews a stitch: one year, one stitch. When the shirt is finished, the world will end. Everything under the sun will die, and Judgement Day will be at hand.
Let's hope she never finishes that shirt!!!
