Entschtanning 12: Es Lichderfescht

(Note: Entschtanning 2-11 are posted on www.urglaawe.net).

Tonight at sunset we begin the closing of the Entschtanning observance, although the Entschtanning “season” actually runs up until the Spring Equinox observance next month. 

Tonight is what we Urglaawer call “es Lichtfescht” or, more correctly in Deitsch, es Lichderfescht, which is our festival of lights. On Night 3, we discussed the cleaning of the hearth and of other fire-bearing vessels, including candleholders. This echoes pre-Christian customs that ended up featured as part of Christian Candlemas practice (Yoder 49-50). 

As the interviews and collecting of stories from across the Deitscherei progressed, some interesting interpretations of the use of light during this time emerged. Some of these were “superstitions” and involved sympathetic magic; others were more philosophical.

The superstition that turned up most frequently was an idea that we sometimes hear of at Yule: adding light to the night will help to strengthen the Sun. One elderly man likened the ritual practice of lighting candles from Groundhog Day onward to a parent pushing and guiding a learning child’s bike and then releasing hold when the child had acquired ample balance to move alone. 

The philosophical interpretations are more far-reaching. The whole of this observance is about enlightenment, conscious and conscientious living. At this time, we strive to finish the preparations for the ideas that we developed for the New Year at Yule. We are to be ready to put those ideas into effect by Oschdre in March. 

This brings us to the mind shift (Umdenk) that we often speak about when one converts from monotheism (particularly Christianity) to Heathenry. Within the Urglaawe community, this shift was first expressed by my kinsman, Daniel Riegel, prior to his passing in 2011. He described the mind shift in the context of embracing the dark half of the year, which was consistent with many others’ experiences of recognizing the totality of the self, shadow and all. This recognition of our whole being is not the same as accepting ourselves “as is” and not striving to be better. Instead, it is using the totality of ourselves in order to become the best we can be.

There is a tendency in our society to pretend the shadowy sides of ourselves do not exist. We bury them deeply, and we are ashamed of them. This attitude is pervasive in some Plain sectarian communities, and it is rooted in Christian orthodoxy. Shadow sides are generally viewed as being “evil” or profane. Orthodoxy, meaning that one is required to believe a certain way, trumps orthopraxy, meaning that one is required only to practice the same way within a group. Orthodoxy leads to dogma, and dogma leads to suppression of variant ideas. 

One of the more common beliefs within Urglaawe is that the deities want for us to be at the end of this cosmic cycle where they were at the beginning of it. To achieve this, we have to grow as a race of beings. Such growth, particularly an evolution of consciousness, is very difficult when the largest religions in the world actively attempt to limit questioning and independent thought. 

Maintaining perspectives from Christianity while practicing Heathenry can result in confusion. Our relationships to the deities and to our ancestors differ from that of the Christian understanding. Our relationship to the world around us differs (see Night 6). It is difficult to wrap one’s head around the idea that there may be multiple “truths” or that our deities have individual personalities that may lead them even into conflict with each other. 

And, at the risk of offending some readers of this post, the “lore” is not Gospel, and to treat the myths as such can lead one to become, for want of a better phrase, a “Christian dry drunk.” The baggage of orthodoxy remains even though the trappings of the religion have changed. Germanic Heathenry has never (at least within the period in which history has been written down) been monolithic. Different tribes knew different deities in different ways… and that is wonderful!

Ditching the mindset of Christianity is critical. We are not “fallen.” We do not need an intercessor to remove the stain of sin. We have the ability and responsibility to improve ourselves, yes, but we do so to create a better future for ourselves and for our descendants, not because we have a bill to pay from the past. 

During Lichderfescht, we embrace this ability and this duty to bring enlightenment into ourselves, our communities, and our world. 

This ends the musings of the Entschtanning season. The next Urglaawe observance is Grumbieredaag (“Potato Day”) on March 17, which is the first planting of the season.

Hail to those who have gone before and the wisdom they left us!

Hail to those yet to come. May we be worthy of their honor!

——————
Yoder, Don. Groundhog Day. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2003. ISBN: 0-8117-0029-1.

Entschtanning 1: What's the Deal with the Groundhog?

The Groundhog (Deitsch: Grundsau, actually a "ground sow") bears some similarities to Ratatosk, the squirrel that runs up and down the World Tree, Yggdrasil, bringing news of the nine worlds. 

While we have a Tree of Life (Lewesbaam) in Deitsch culture and in Urglaawe, our forebears saw similar imagery in other contexts as well, including the very land which they farmed. Groundhog burrows are often complex, with different rooms and multiple openings, all of which are used as allegories to the other realms of existence. The forebears thus set an analogy between the burrow and the Nine Worlds. 

Thus, the Groundhog is the otherworldly messenger. The Groundhog brings news and prognostication from all of the visited realms. For an agricultural people, the short-term weather is naturally something that the people would like to know, which is probably why that particular feature was passed on to the wider American culture.

Within the Deitsch culture, the Groundhog Lodges often present other prognostications, sometimes presented in humorous contexts. Some farmers and some Hexerei practitioners observe the behavior of groundhogs and other animals at this time to make other determinations as well. 

I am not so well versed in some of those, but one practitioner told me that the depth of, and the slope to, the first room in a groundhog burrow can serve as an indicator of wet or dry weather. If the first room is fairly close to the surface or is of a fairly steep slope, then the weather will be mostly dry. If the slope is not steep or if the room is higher than its entrance from the burrow, then one should expect wet weather. There are other behaviors that are examined as well. 

Most historians will grant that Groundhog Day has its roots in heathen-era German practices, but the origins stretch back likely even further. Predicting weather or other things that can impact crops is a practice that transcends cultures, and observing the behavior of animals is an important tool in the forebears' kit. It was certainly not the only tool; lunar phases, historic weather patterns, river depths, etc., all were (and are) considered as well.

Remember that the events in Punxsutawney are not organic. We're not watching the behavior of a groundhog in the wild. Thus, what may seem to be a silly observance with frequent inaccuracies is not the whole of the story. The annual events in Punxsutawney (and other places) certainly helped to keep the essence of the lore alive, but the true significance of Groundhog Day is masked by the commercial pomp and circumstance of the day.

Groundhog Day is actually a visceral observance. It comes from a time when people had few reliable means of knowing when they could plant, and they relied upon their relationship with nature and with the animals to make determinations about the consumption of remaining food stores and to plan for the planting. 

Thus, this weekend we shall honor the Groundhog and remember our interdependence on the animal kingdom around us.

Fasching / Entschtanning

With the festivities of the Urglaawe Grundsaudaag now passed, we in the Deitscherei turn our eyes to the next observance: Fasching, also known as Entschtanning, Uffdredde, or Uffdredding in Deitsch.

Most Christians in the Deitscherei are very familiar with die Faschtnacht (known also by any number of spelling variations). Faschtnacht is the night before Ash Wednesday. The featured item of the day are the deep-fried doughnuts called "Faschtnachtskuche." The principle behind these doughnuts is the consumption of excess lard before the Lenten fasts begin. Similar cakes and doughnuts turn up in other cultures, including in the King Cake of Mardi Gras. Faschtnacht, though, is one small aspect of a longer time period called Fasching.

Although the Fasching is technically the same day as Shrove Tuesday, in Urglaawe it is the extended time from Grundsaudaag until roughly mid-February. As is the case with other Wild Hunt observances, Fasching includes costumes that represent the spirits, a great deal of food, and, in the past, tricks-or-treats. Although these features are very subdued in the Deitscherei in comparison to many European countries, these elements are increasing in the context of Urglaawe.

One surviving tradition is that the last person in the household to arise is deemed "the Faschtnacht," "der Faas," or "der Faschingkluck." This person has to do the chores of his/her siblings and to tolerate teasing by his siblings all day long.

I am a proud Deitscher. There are few traditional observances that really have me either flummoxed or even a little embarrassed. However, there is one Fasching tradition that does both. Fortunately, this tradition has all but died out. It was clearly related to the chores and teasing cited above, but it was a little bit more twisted. 

According to Alfred Shoemaker (Eastertide in Pennsylvania, pp. 1-5, Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books 2000.), there was an elaborate teasing tradition that reflected a fertility rite and involved the clucking sounds of chickens in school. As the children arrived at school, the girls would cluck like hens, and the boys would caw like roosters. As each child arrived, he (or she) was greeted with, "Hallo, Faas!" by the child who had immediately preceded him. The child then received clucking and cawing instructions and made the appropriate sound until the next child arrived. If the child erred and spoke about anything else, or if a girl cawed or a boy clucked, there were penalties involved.

The typical penalty was that the child had to kiss another child of the opposite gender. Girls were encouraged to kiss any boy whom they wished. Apparently, though, the penalties for the final arriving child, if a girl, sometimes included sitting in the teacher's lap and giving him a kiss. As a teacher myself, I find this aspect particularly disquieting, but even the thought of the children walking around clucking is a little bizarre to me. However, this was the tradition of the past and it does reflect a surviving Heathen cultural element.

It will be interesting to see the evolution of the Fasching celebrations in the Urglaawe context. As stated earlier, Fasching is a reflection of the Wild Hunt, however, it also bears the aspect of the folk undertaking efforts to increase the strength of the approaching Spring. As such, the celebrations will relate to inviting Oschdre to approach faster. 

Macht's immer besser!

Fasching

Today is Shrove Tuesday, known as the Fasching, the Faschtnacht (fasting night), the Entschtanning ("the coming into existence"), or the Uffdredde ("the emergence") which is observed all across Europe and around the world in many different ways. This is the culmination of Carnival in Brazil and Italy. It is Mardis Gras in Cajun Country. Similar costumed events take place in most of Europe. I remember from my time spent in the erstwhile Yugoslavia that Shrove Tuesdsay was the night for a type of tricks-or-treats among the Croatian children.

In the Deitscherei, this is the day upon which we eat some artery-clogging, yet delicious, deep-fried doughnuts called "Faschtnachtskuche," or simply "fastnachts" in English.

So what is the purpose of all these observances? In the Christian context, Fasching is the last celebration before the onset of Lent, which starts on Ash Wednesday tomorrow. The purposes of items like the fastnachts is to consume the remaining lard in the household so it is used rather than wasted during the fasting time. As far as I can tell, the consumption of Faschtnachtskuche, King cakes, pancakes, or similar foods is a tradition stemming from Christianity. It may have its ultimate origin in Judaism's removal of chametz prior to Passover. Deitsch tradition is that Faschtnachtskuche must not be consumed after the onset of Ash Wednesday.

It is virtually indisputable that the costume parades have their roots in Heathen traditions related to the Wild Hunt. In the pre-Christian era, the parades would likely have taken place at various times in early- to mid-February and would have been tethered to the observance that we now know as Groundhog Day.

As with other Wild Hunt depictions (Halloween, King Frost, Belsnickeling/Yule, Mummenschanz, April Fool (possibly), and May Day), the purposes of the parades are a complex weaving of honoring deities, ancestors and compassionate spirits, of placating baneful spirits, and of exerting efforts to hasten the arrival of the growing season. Certainly the Perchtenmaske, or the masks of Berchta, have their roots in Heathen lore; however, the gruesome characteristics may be a result of the condemnation of the cult of Berchta by Catholic authorities in the 15th century.


The Heathen practices were originally tied to lunar calendar observances but eventually became associated with February 2. The timing of Shrove Tuesday comes from the Christian calendar and moves in accordance with the Computus' determination of the timing of Christian Easter.

A hint of the connection between the Heathen events of Groundhog Day and modern Shrove Tuesday may be found in Croatia's creating of the "mesopust," which is a doll made to represent a man who is treated like a scapegoat. This sounds very much like a Butzemann, except the Butzemann is honored rather than burdened, and the Butzemann takes vanquished habits and negative energies with him in fire on Allelieweziel (Halloween). While the Butzemann is typically created for Groundhog Day, it is not uncommon to have his creation occur later in the month. It is quite possible that the traditions of the mesopust and the Butzemann stem from the same traditions.

In the Deitscherei, another aspect of the Fasching is that the last person in the household to arise in the morning is deemed "the Faschtnacht," "der Faas," "der Faschingkluck," or myriad names. When I was growing up, within our household, the last child to arise in the morning of the Fasching had to do one extra chore by the end of the day. Customarily, in many Deitsch households, the last child has to tolerate teasing by his siblings all day long.

The same applies to the last child to arrive at school on Shrove Tuesday.

In the past, there were some rather elaborate teasing rituals involving the clucking sound of chickens in school. As the children arrived, the girls would cluck like hens and the boys would crow like roosters. As another child would arrive, he/she would receive instructions that he could not cluck or crow like the others until yet another child arrived. Instead, the last child would have to call out, "Hallo Faas!" to the next arriving child (see Alfred L. Shoemaker's Eastertide in Pennsylvania, Stackpole Books, 2000, pp. 1-2).

If a child erred and clucked or crowed, there were penalties involved, particularly having to give a kiss to a member of the opposite gender. Girls, in particular, were encouraged to kiss any boy who caught their fancy.

The clucking, crowing, and kissing sound like they were originally part of some sort of fertility-related ritual. Speaking as a teacher in the post-modern era, I can say that I would be more than a little bit disquieted by my students engaging in this behavior. However, the tradition was clearly in effect well into the 20th century, and aspects of it may well live on in parts of the Deitscherei even now.

Enjoy your Faschtnachskuche, everyone!