Throughout Poland, the days of November 1 and 2 are dedicated to the memory of the dead. Families visit cemeteries and the graves of their loved ones in large numbers, and then meet at home for lunch together. Soldiers’ graves and forgotten graves are also visited. The currently celebrated Catholic holiday (All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day) has its origins in pre-Christian times, and the rituals and customs found today are, as it were, an intertwining of pagan and Christian beliefs.
As late as the 19th century, these rituals were called Dziady (from the deceased ancestors – now grandparents).1 It was believed that on the night before Grandfathers’ Day, the souls of the dead descend to earth, attend mass in a nearby church and then visit their homes1. For this reason, wickets and doors were left open in homes, and food and drink were left on the table or windowsill. Marianna Niebrzegowska reports, “After singing ‘Hail Queen of Heaven and Mother of Mercy, the souls are free until the twelfth hour and come home to make their rounds. I was afraid sometimes when I was little.” She also says: “When I was small they used to bake dumplings with sauerkraut, and the other with sweet carrot mixed with millet groats and carted them off to All Saints’ Day, because the church grandfathers were full, a row from the gate these grandfathers sat.” In our area, the custom of cooking dishes for the dead lasted the longest in Poland. They were prepared from specific products that had ritual significance – honey, groats, poppy seeds, kutia (a traditional dish that still occurs on Christmas Eve), broad beans, peas, lentils. After being put out on the table for the night, the food was carried to the graves and then distributed to “church goers.” These were pilgrims going from church to church, living on alms. They were thought to live ascetically and piously, and therefore had a unique opportunity to interact with God and the Saints. In exchange for food, they were asked to pray for the souls of the dead. This custom was effectively eradicated by the church, which criticized the custom of giving food and especially alcohol to grandparents and encouraged monetary offerings in exchange for communal prayers for the souls of the deceased (the so-called expiatory prayers) held in church. Today, memorials are a living tradition.
All Souls’ Day is associated with special preparation of graves. They are cleaned and washed in advance by family members, and then decorated with living flowers – mainly chrysanthemums, wreaths of silk and pine and artificial flowers. During the holiday, candles are lit on the graves as an extension of the prayers recited for the soul of the deceased. At the end of the holiday, a procession is held, around the cemetery.
