The symbolic meaning of wine

published on 2/9/10 12:03 PM

Photo: Архив

The symbolic meaning of wine

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Trifon Zarezan has always been one of the best-loved traditional holidays in Bulgaria. This is the holiday of vine-growers and wine-makers. At present it is celebrated on February 1, but many people prefer to mark it on February 14, in accordance with the old festive calendar in Bulgaria. We take the occasion to introduce you to a number of folklore elements related to wine and vineyards.

Different song stories illustrate the fact that for Bulgarians wine is much more than a beverage. Traditionally, Bulgarians drink red wine. It is the ancient mythological symbol of fertility, blood and life. That is why wine is a compulsory element in all traditional rituals in this country. You cannot appreciate a festive table in Bulgaria unless you have red wine on it. It is especially on Trifon Zarezan, or St. Trifon’s Day, however when wine is supposed to be most abundant. The more it is, the better the yields will be during the year. The ritual guests to every home as mummers are treated generously with wine too. Good wine should be full-blooded, frothy, thick and mellow.

Wine used to be given even to children, at a very young age, so that they would grow up strong and healthy. There is a song that sounds like an echo of that ritual which sings of a girl who decided to prove her superiority and show to all that “she is a maiden above all maidens, a bride above all brides, and braver than the bravest.” Dressed like a man, she managed to climb high into the mountains where shepherds are and asked them to treat her to “mellow wine that has been boiled nine times on end”, as well as to a whole roasted lamb. After she dealt with the wine and the abundant food, the girl laughed at the shepherds for letting her fool them.

Evidence of the magical powers of wine is provided by a number of rituals in Bulgarian folklore. When bachelors get together in a brotherhood of a non-blood relationship, they strengthen their bond with wine, which will link them for life. Wine can break a nymph’s spell, if someone finds himself in a nymph’s meadow, the folk belief tells. When the inhabitants of a house want to honour their guardian spirit, they leave a mug of wine for him in the corner of a room or in the attic. The faith in wine’s magical power to grant living strength is at the basis of the old ritual of pouring wine into the foundations of a house, when its construction begins.

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The symbolic meaning of wine

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