Know Your Festival: From egg hunting and bunnies to hot cross buns, here's how Easter is celebrated

With Easter upon us, suddenly the social media is overflowing with the colourful images of decorated eggs, delicious dishes like hot cross buns and Pasteira, and the tales of the cute Easter bunnies. celebrates the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion.

But what is Easter and why is it celebrated? And why are the Easter eggs and Easter bunnies so symbolic? Let’s find out.

The history of Easter:

As per the Christian mythology, Jesus Christ was crucified at Calvary on Good Friday. According to the Gospel, it was on Friday that the son of God was betrayed by Judas before he was crucified to death. After the crucifixion, Jesus’ body was taken down from the cross and placed in a tomb guarded by Roman Soldiers.

However, three days later, Mary Magdalene, followed by some of the Jesus’ disciples, went to the tomb only to discover that Christ’s body had disappeared. Christians believe that Jesus rose again three days later. The three days are known as the Easter Triduum.

Jesus’ followers believe that he was resurrected on this day i.e. Sunday. Easter, also known as Pascha, celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It falls on different dates usually between 21 March and 25 April every year depending on the lunar patterns.

The symbol of Easter eggs:

Even before Christianity came into existence, eggs were seen as a symbol of Spring, a celebration of the rebirth and strength. This the reason is why the Mesopotamians, who were an ancient Christian community living in an area roughly covered today by Iraq, Syria and Kuwait, used to stain eggs red to symbolise the blood of Christ. Eggs were then cracked against one another, leaving just the empty shells as a symbol of the empty tomb that Jesus left behind on Easter Sunday.

The tradition is followed even today but in the form of egg rolling. Egg rolling represents the rolling away of the rock from Jesus’ tomb. The era of decorated eggs was started by the famous Russian jeweller Peter Carl Fabergé, creator of the priceless Fabergé eggs, who gifted these Easter gifts to Tsars Alexander III and Nicholas II.  Over the years, the elaborate decoration of Easter eggs came into fashion.

However, the introduction of chocolate eggs is a relatively new phenomenon which originated in France and Germany during the 19th century. And as chocolate production conquered the market, festivals like Easter and Christmas became completely commercial.

The tale of Easter Bunnies:

Though the bunnies are nowhere mentioned in the Biblical scriptures, this hasn’t stopped the cute creatures from becoming a part of Easter. And you can totally blame the Germans for it! Originally an ‘Easter hare’, a buck-toothed bringer of chocolate to the kids who behaved themselves, was first mentioned in German literature in 1682. They were later incorporated into the mainstream tradition in the 17^th Century. Early depictions from Germany showed the floppy-eared creatures delivering toys and eggs in baskets to Christian families.

While it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact origin of the symbol of the bunnies, many scholars believe that it comes from the pagan ritual. The pagan festival Eostre is dedicated to the goddess of fertility, who is often depicted as a bunny. And this also goes well with the Biblical scriptures, as Easter celebrates the re-birth of Jesus after his crucifixion.

These extremely cute bunnies are also analogous to our very favourite Santa Claus!

Why Hot Cross Buns:

You must have noticed your local bakeries stocked with the Hot Cross buns. These buns are a traditional snack for this time of the year. These buns also mark the celebration of the end of Lent- a solemn religious observance in the Christian calendar which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends approximately six weeks later, just before the Easter Sunday.  The cross on the top of the buns represents the crucifixion of Christ and the spices inside it is a reminder of the spices that were put on his body.

So, here’s wishing you all a very Happy Easter. Enjoy your day!

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