Postcard from Bishkek

The Second Tuesday after Easter is the Orthodox “Parent’s Day”.  It’s not like Mother’s Day or Father’s Day in the the West in that it is a special day for remembering one’s deceased relatives.

Apparently, the tradition goes back a long way and there are fourth century references linking it to a spring pagan festival.  The modern tradition is for people to visit the cemetery and remember departed loved ones.  It used to be the case that people would take eggs and cold meats with them to eat at the cemetery, (and give to beggars and other needy people) as they reminisced about, and talked with, the departed …

As one saying put it:  On Roditelskoye dehn: plough in the morning, cry in the afternoon and skip in the evening.

Also, according to Orthodox tradition, Easter is a time for concentrating on Christ’s victory over death and not on the nature of death.  It is not acceptable for funerals to take place immediately following Easter, and visits to the cemetery are delayed until this day.

The current practice is for family groups to go to the cemetery and clean the graves of deceased relatives on this day.

It’s not the only occasion known as Roditelskoye Dehn, but the ninth day after Easter is the most important of these days and is held by some to be particular perspicuous for saying prayers of intercession for the deceased.

In Kyrgyzstan:

Roditelskoye dehn is only really marked by the Russian Orthodox community, and the most obvious sign that it is a special day will be the number of people heading towards a cemetry.