Firewalking traditions

Firewalking is an act during which a person walks over a layer of hot ambers or stones. It has been part of many cultures. Usually it is seen as an act of faith, courage.

embers

Let's begin in Europe. People the villages of Ayia Eleni, Langadas, Melike, Mavrolefke and Kerkine in northern Greece and those in several villages on the Strandzha mountains of southern Bulgaria perform a firewalking ritual called Anastenaria. People performing actually descendants of people who arrived to those areas during Greek-Turkish exchange of population in 1923.

Term Anastenaria also determines some Orthodox Christians who observe certain ritual period lasting from the 26th of October until the 15th of August. Key figures in the Anastenaria are Saint Constantine and Saint Helen. Other saints also exist but these are the most important.

There are two major events in this period. One is organized in January and one in May. They are dedicated to Saint Constantine and Saint Helen. These events include procession, lot music and dance and an animal sacrifice. Village community which organizes the Anastenaria is headed by a "group of twelve". Women make majority in the group.

Communities participating in the Anastenaria have shrines called "konaki". In some villages the konaki can just be a room in the house set for the occasion. There they keep icons and red kerchiefs called "semadia" or "simadia" ("signs" of the saints). Offerings of oil, incense and lighted candles are also kept there.

People gather in the konaki on the eve of Saint Constantine and Saint Helen day which is on the 21st of May. There local musicians perform using traditional Thracian drum and lyre. People dance. After some time they enter in some kind of trance, as they believe, under influence of Saint Constantine.

In the morning of the Saints' day people again meet at the konaki. From there they go to a well where they'll be blessed with the holy water. After that animals are sacrificed. The way it is done differ from community to community. Let's take for example village of Ayia Eleni. There the animal sacrificed must be more than one year old. Its age must be of odd number. The best is seven. The animal must be unmarked. It can not be a castrated one either.

In the evening of the same day. People gather at the konaki again. They dance. Then a fire is lit somewhere close to the building. People participating in the ritual or as they are called the "anastenarides" hold the icons and dance around the fire. After that some of them, as believed with the help of saint, start firewalking.

The same ritual is organized during the festival of Saint Athanasius in January. What differs from the above mentioned ritual in May is the fact that firewalking is done indoors.

What about the origin of the Anastenaria? Well, there are several legends. Here is one of them. In the middle ages the church of Saint Constantine in Kosti (now in Bulgaria) was set on fire. Voice by saints calling for help were heard from inside the church. Brave villagers enter the church to help. They survived with the help of saints.

Most of Greek scientists do not agree with the story. They believe that the origins of the ritual can be found in ancient cult of Dionysus.

Hindu population of south India but also part of their diaspora in South Africa, Malaysia and Singapore organize the Thimthi festival.

The Thimthi (Theemidhi, Theemithi) festival is a firewalking event in the month of Aipasi (Aippasi) of the Tamil calendar. By our Gregorian calendar it is in October and November.

This firewalking festival is honouring Draupadi. She is the daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla, who becomes the wife of the five Pandavas. Hindu people believe that she is the incarnation of Goddess Māri or as she is also known "Mariamman" (Maariamma) or "Mother Mari". Some people just call her Amman (in Tamil mother).