Candlemas: omens and magic rites

February 15th is an important Orthodox feast for Christians — the Meeting of the Lord (Candlemas, the feast of the blessed thunder candle). Its name comes from the Gospel meeting of the infant Jesus Christ with the righteous Simeon in the Temple of Jerusalem. Yet long before this faith arrived, our ancestors believed that on this day winter meets spring. They also held that the signs of nature could foretell when warmth would come and what the harvest would be. Many rituals are performed on this day.

From this day the frosts began to loosen their grip, for the day is seen as the boundary between winter and spring: “on Candlemas winter has met spring; at Candlemas the sun turns toward summer and winter toward frost.”

There was also this belief: if you feed your hens well on Candlemas, they will lay well: “feed your hens oats on Candlemas, and you will have eggs in spring and summer.”

Look at a lit Candlemas candle. If the flame burns even and calm, you need expect no health troubles. If the flame flickers and takes on a blue tinge, beware of illness — especially ailments of the inner organs and the nervous system.

On Candlemas you must not leave money lying on the table — it will simply start draining out of your home. But if you lose money, do not be upset: it promises financial wellbeing, and prosperity awaits you and your family.

A thaw on Candlemas means an early spring. Yet warm weather also warns that the weeks following the feast will be very cold. Warm weather on Candlemas also promises a good wheat harvest.

On Candlemas it is customary to bake pancakes (blini, thin festive pancakes). But you must not eat them before the first star appears — that brings misfortune. As soon as the clock strikes eight in the evening, eat a piece of Candlemas pancake and ask for luck to be sent to you. Treat to pancakes everyone to whom you wish happiness: family, friends, neighbours.

Almost every rite and ritual on this day involves water, for it holds a special magical power. And all Christian traditions have long since mingled with pagan beliefs.

The ritual is performed on Candlemas. The magical working will help you draw luck and prosperity into your home and family, and rid yourself of troubles and failures.

On Candlemas, fetch holy water from church. Buy six large wax candles.

When you return home, pour a little holy water into a plain glass with no pattern. Read the “Our Father” three times and drink three sips from it. Then set the glass on a table covered with a green tablecloth.

Arrange the candles into a symbolic triangle, and place the glass of water in its centre.

“Water, my sister! Carry off grief, wash away failure, bathe my brow! May I, God's servant (your full name), become fortunate! As you flow lightly onward, washing steep banks away, so may all come together for me and every barrier break open! So be it!”

Leave the candles to burn down completely. Take three sips from the glass and wash your face with the rest.

After the third day of performing the ritual, take the candle stubs to church and drop them into the bucket where church stubs are collected.

Light candles for your own health and for the health of your friends and foes alike. As you leave the church, give what you can spare for its needs.

Before the rite, warn everyone at home that you must not speak until dawn, except for the words of the rite itself.

On Candlemas, wake before sunrise. Draw water in silence.

When you return with the bucket of water, the eldest of the household — best of all a man — should meet you on the threshold and ask: “What are you carrying?”

He pours the water into a large mug or ladle.

Pour the water he has drawn into a jar and keep it through the year.

Drink it in times of hardship. You may wash your face with it or sprinkle your goods.

If a hungry dog comes up to you on Candlemas, feed it — it will promptly “lead” into your home a person with whom your life will be full and peaceful. Though feeding homeless animals is always worthwhile: our ancestors never doubted that it helps draw luck and prosperity.

This incantation is read at noon on Candlemas day, at the church gates, facing east, eight times:

“The people stand at the church gates, meeting Jesus Christ, the little Child. The Mother of God walks with Christ, and Simeon bows before Them. And I, God's servant (name), bow at the church gates. I bow to the Christ Child, I bow to God's Cross, I bow to the ground before the Mother of God. And I shall whisper into Christ's ear my dearest wish (name the wish). As the people met Christ at the gates, so shall my wish swiftly come true. Amen to my words. Amen.”

Another powerful ritual for a wish fulfilled

Pour into a glass some holy water drawn in church on the feast of the Meeting of the Lord, take three sips and read the “Our Father”.

Set the glass of holy water on the table, place two candles on either side — also brought from church on Candlemas — and read over the water:

“As water pours and winds blow, may failure spill away and trouble scatter; may God's servant (name) be bathed in morning dew and wrapped in fresh wind. May God's servant (name) become fortunate and understanding; may all flow together and hold fast, and every block and barrier part as though never there! My words are locked, and the key is lost.”

The candles must burn down completely, and the water should be used over three days, dividing it into roughly three equal parts. Whatever you do not drink in a day, pour over yourself after bathing.

If you have quarrelled with someone and the hurt weighs on you, try to meet that person on the feast of the Meeting of the Lord and greet them first. Your hurt will vanish as if lifted by hand.

Pour a little Candlemas water into the bottle of your perfume, close it and leave it overnight at the head of your bed. If the water darkens even slightly, the evil eye (porcha, a cast spell) lies upon you. Seek to rid yourself of it at once. The darkened water must be poured away.

On Candlemas you may also tell fortunes. The old Christmastide and Christmas divinations will serve perfectly.