Easter in Slovakia

I first heard about the Easter traditions in Slovakia around a campfire outside Slovak Paradise in early September, a full six months before the said holiday. A group of Americans and Slovaks were arguing whether the holiday tradition needed to be put to rest.

From pagan times, Easter Monday is the day when Slovak men "sprinkle" water on the women and whip them with whips (what else do you whip with?) The korbac (whip in Slovak) is made from braided branches of willow rods. According the legend, the whipping and water keeps the women beautiful and fertile for another year. After being whipped and watered, the woman gives the man chocolate and alcohol. Though Christianity came to Slovakia in the first millenia, this tradition remained.

The whipping and sprinkling is supposed to be gentle and merely symbolic; however, stories always arise of people being thrown in lakes and bathtubs. The first day back from Easter vacation, a Wednesday, I saw a girl drenched walking around the school with three of my students who were quite proud of hosing the girl down.

Before break, one of my students kindly (I think) made me a korbac. It was probably the nicest thing a student had ever done for me. He asked if I was going to use it. I assured him that I would hit each woman I could see as hard as I could. After break, he asked how my holiday was. I told him that I fulfilled my duty of hitting each woman as hard as I could. I guess I didn't tell him though that I only hit one girl with it and the hardest I can hit is a tap. He didn't need his heart broken.

So I did not participate in the tradition. The pieces just didn't add up to me. How is it that I get to hit someone, throw them in water, then I get candy, money, and alcohol? Shouldn't I have to pay for hitting people and throwing them in water?

Of the students I asked, the guys all said the tradition was worth keeping and nearly every girl said the tradition was bad.

I understand that traditions are important for a culture; they promote unity and uniqueness. However, the unexamined tradition is not worth celebrating. A tradition only remains a tradition as long as people celebrate it. A tradition comes into being whenever people celebrate it. My brother and I tend to spend holidays watching bad horror films (Usually zombie flicks. You can't beat a good zombie movie. They represent society and culture so well). Who knows? Someday every American will be watching "Night of the Living Dead" on Thanksgiving.

As far as this tradition is concerned, I have no problem with it as long as it becomes non-gender specific. Men need to be beautiful just as much as women.

I say again, as Socrates says before the jury before he is sentenced to death, the unexamined life is not worth living.