Eid il Burbarra
Today, December 4th, is Eid il Burbarra or the Feast of St. Barbara. I first experienced this unknown (to me) Christian celebration when I came to Jordan in 1959. The story behind the feast, as I heard it, goes that Barbara was the daughter of a pagan who converted to Christianity. In so doing she broke with tradition which caused her some problems. One of which was a marriage her father planned to force on her, so she ran away in fear for her life. She hid in a field of ripening wheat and was thus saved. Later she went to, or started a convent and lived a pious life. But the feast is supposed to commemorate the planting of wheat. It is celebrated in Jordan by serving a sweet porridge or pudding made from boiled wheat, raisins, nuts, and flavored with aniseed candies and spices. This dish is called Burbarra and is a special treat when shared with family, friends and neighbors. It’s always a big hit with children.
Although this feast really has no direct ties to Christmas it serves as a sort of jumping off place, as it were. December 4th falls on the same day of the week as Christmas will three weeks later. I was told that since calendars were not common years ago, people used this feast day to mark off the days until Christmas. But the wheat aspect is more directly applicable to Christmas. On December 4th, people begin to sprout wheat kernels, lentils, and beans on saucers layered with wet cotton. These they leave to sprout in a dark place, carefully tending them and keeping them moist so they will grow tall and green. A few days before Christmas most families make their cave for the holy family which is prepared from crumpled brown paper and spattered with mud. The figurines of the Holy Family are placed inside the cave and the saucers of green sprouts are placed around it making the scene resemble a real landscape.
Every household I visited in my husband’s tribe during Christmas had their nativity cave with all the sprouts proudly displayed in their sitting rooms. Even the churches made more elaborate caves for the Christmas season. I remember Eid il Burbarra so well, but unfortunately there has been little in the past years to remind me of it. But it is December 4th.
ASH
Although this feast really has no direct ties to Christmas it serves as a sort of jumping off place, as it were. December 4th falls on the same day of the week as Christmas will three weeks later. I was told that since calendars were not common years ago, people used this feast day to mark off the days until Christmas. But the wheat aspect is more directly applicable to Christmas. On December 4th, people begin to sprout wheat kernels, lentils, and beans on saucers layered with wet cotton. These they leave to sprout in a dark place, carefully tending them and keeping them moist so they will grow tall and green. A few days before Christmas most families make their cave for the holy family which is prepared from crumpled brown paper and spattered with mud. The figurines of the Holy Family are placed inside the cave and the saucers of green sprouts are placed around it making the scene resemble a real landscape.
Every household I visited in my husband’s tribe during Christmas had their nativity cave with all the sprouts proudly displayed in their sitting rooms. Even the churches made more elaborate caves for the Christmas season. I remember Eid il Burbarra so well, but unfortunately there has been little in the past years to remind me of it. But it is December 4th.
ASH
posted by joladies at Monday, December 04, 2006
1 Comments:
I love this Eid! Thanks for giving the historical background!
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