On the 9th day after Easter Belarusians mark the Day of Rejoicing (Radaunitsa). On this day, people usually visit cemeteries and bring flowers and ‘treats’ to their dead.
The remembrance rite of having a meal at the cemetery has its rootss in pagan customs and traditions. For example, our ancestors used to disperse grain on the graves to treat the souls of their departed which, according to the Belarusian myths, appeared in the shape of birds.
Radaunitsa is not so popular among Belarusian Catholics as All Saints Day. But many of them also go to cemeteries to pray for their departed relatives and friends.
Belarus’ Orthodox Church and Greek Catholic Church included the tradition of ‘Easter of the dead’ in their worship, but the Orthodox Church does not approve of the custom of leaving food on the graves; according to them, the souls need only prayers.
At Military Cemetery in Minsk, the Way of the Cross has been staged today.
Some etymologists state that the term ‘Radaunitsa’ derived from the word ‘rod’ (family, clan). Orthodox Christians associate the name of the feast with the belief that after Easter people bring the joy (‘radost’) of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ to their dead and gone relatives.Or, perhaps, the parent word was Lithaunian ‘raudine’, i.e. a prayer for the dead.
In the times of paganism, people living on our lands believed that the prson who was the first to arrive at the cemetery on Radaunitsa might hear from their ancestors where to find a treasure. Addressing the dead, people asked their help, protection and contribution to a good harvest.
Belarus is the only country where Radaunitsa was made a public holiday.
