Ancient Skies

Time to spread out the tarot cards.
I do it twice a year, in May and October [well, I evidently late a little]. I don't know why I do this, I don't believe in it really or what. I like the art of tarot graphically and sometimes it's fun; you can meditate a little on your own life with the help of the cards... etc. Well, sometimes it gives me the creeps when the cards show my exact present happenings or when something comes true and not always a positive thing... My most horrible experience: Before we knew it I pulled out the 'Death' card a couple of days before the doctor informed us that dad has malignant tumor in his throat… [you know 'Death' means drastic changes in one's life/end of an era but not death] His first operation was success although every doctor doubted it, so one year later when everything seemed somewhat fine I dared to play with the cards again. I pulled out 'Tower' [disaster] about one month before dad passed away…
From then on I usually pull three cards, any number but one… one can be too meaningful so you automatically see more in it, although it's just a card… technically, but I starting to doubt it…

Anyway, I have two kinds of classical tarot decks [Mantegna, Rider], one Greek fortune telling deck, one mermaid deck and one Cigány/Gypsy deck at the moment, but I'm planning to make my own fortune telling cards based on Hungarian symbols. This will not be a tarot but a simple symbol deck. The conception and chosen symbols are ready, only the translation what missing and the graphic design not clear in my head yet, but I'll try.

But till that I made my own spread cloth from felt

What are these embroidered symbols?
Ancient Hungarian [Magyar] Moon, Sun, star, comet… etc. imageries.

Such as many ancient pagan nation, Magyars also had their own sky map. They gave their own imaginary names to the planets, stars, Milky Way and had their own constellations as well. My ancestors had a very vivid and complex imagination about the night sky.

Sun was the most worshipped among the Scythian, Hun and Ottoman tribes/clans [too]. Now, Magyars were more close to the Eurasian Scythian 'horse-riding' and nomadic people in many aspects, but we mixed with too many tribes in the ancient times so not clear at all where we came from exactly… We are an 'enigma nation' without a clear known beginning… But what is sure, ancient Magyars' life too – as pagan, nomadic nation - depended on the light and warm. They celebrated every sunrises and Spring equinoxes. Sun symbolized life and truth. They called their leaders [prince or the spiritual leader as well] by the title 'kende' or 'kündü' what means "son of Sun". They saw the sky as 'égi frigy' [lit. means 'sky matrimony'] where the Sun has the male/husband and the Moon has the female/wife principle [as in many other pagan culture] whom are inseparable till the world is world…

The golden stag
The most famous Hungarian mythical leading creature, the "Miraculous Deer" is the symbol of rebirth, renewal and the Sun.
"According to Hungarian legend, preserved in the 13th century chronicle Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum by Simon of Kéza [Kézai Simon], while out hunting, the brothers Hunor and Magor saw a miraculous white – later described as golden - stag. They pursued the animal, but it always stayed ahead of them, leading them westward into Levédia, where they married two princesses and founded the Huns and Hungarian people. One of the main reasons for claims of religious and cultural ties between Huns and Hungarians is the stag and the brothers Hunor and Magor." Wikipedia
The stag is symbolizing the starry sky for a long time ago for many Eurasian and some Native American tribes as well.

Although we were a Sun-worshipper nation, I'm personally rather a Moon maniac. That's why I embroidered the Moon in the center and the Sun among the other symbols. Sun is definitely not my favourite… especially on Summer *cough*
But that doesn't mean Moon was neglected. Not at all. As pagan nation they respected the 'ancient mother'/female principle as well what Moon symbolized to them. They called it by the name Ezüst Boldogasszony [Silver Happy/Merrywoman? or Blessed Lady], Babba Istenanya [Beautiful Goddess Mother or Mother God] or Babba Mária [Beautiful Mary]. Some ethnic groups in Transylvania still calls the Moon as 'babba' [beautiful/fair] or Babba Mária like the csángó people for example. The only difference that today Babba Mária is rather the Holy Mary then the ancient Moon goddess [who was also Mária/Mary]. So in the churches the Babba Mária statues are now simply Virgin Mary statues… shame.

After the Magyar tribes settled down in the Carpathian Basin [well, actually they invaded it I know that... history is history, there is nothing pure in it.] and later our first king Stephen I [who officially founded the Hungarian state] brought the Christianity into the country [what was sadly or not but necessary in those times, otherwise we would vanished into the thin air with the other nomadic tribes and we would never had a real country/state...], our ancient symbols and knowledge started to fade away along with the ancient strength [in soul] what really united us. Later the bigoted "symbol inquisitors" started to erase the ancient solar symbols too for good. They forbade the use of every non-Christian 'pagan symbols'. Leastwise they tried to…

Thanks to one of our famous 20th century anthropologist István Kiszely's research work, who found these solar symbols, what survived the destruction

[Photo from kiszely.hu]

The first five is clear, I think. The others are probably various stars and comet imageries.

Where he found them? On folk artifacts like embroidered tablecloths and pillow cases, painted or carved wooden furnitures; they were secretly disguised as floral and animal folk patterns. So the brave ones whom saved at least one precious thing from our ancient past were the village people whom I always despise… ~Hmm my mistake

So, while Kiszely found symbols, some eager ethnographers like Arnold Ipolyi, Lajos Kálmány, István Lázár, Ferenc Gönczi, Ede Wigand Toroczkai and János Jankó found something else; Hungarian names of the stars and constellations hidden in folk tales and old villagers' memories. It's funny that three of them was relited with religion although they searched our pagan past… Ipolyi was bishop, Kálmány was priest while Lázár was a monk. Interesting…
Beside linguistic and ethnological researchings, it helped this 'star collection' the book "Égigérő fa" [Skyhigh tree] by János Nagy Berze too. He collected in his book as many ancient Hungarian legends and myths as he could, what contains earlier folk names for certain stars and constellations. 

Modern researcher who carries on the work is László Mándoki who is working at Janus Pannonius Museum in Pécs. His major works were the books "Az Orion csillagkép a magyarságnál" ["The Orion constellation for the Hungarian people" or something like this] and the "Herman Ottó Csillagnévgyűjtései" [Ottó Herman's names collection of the stars]. I don't know who is this Ottó Herman, but no problem because I never heard about the previous people as well except Kiszely and Arnold Ipolyi… but always good to know something new. I will search for those books.

For centuries even the simple Hungarian peasant on the field knew the ancient star names and followed every little sky phenomenas. They interweaved this knowledge into the folk tales and myths and was remained in their belief as well. The star names are all about human problems, joys, belief and hope. Every ancient wiseness of my ancestors is on the sky, I just had to search for it…

The meaning of the Magyars' tradition and spiritual culture was the connect with the ancestors and with the ethereal beings. Their ideological traditions are the proof. For example: They believed that the sky has 7 layers. ['7' is a very mystical number in Hungarian folklore and belief and was also common in other Eastern cultures as well.] They believed that the sky is the home of our mighty heroes, gods and legendary figures and the Milky Way is what connects this sky realm with the Earth.

László Nagyváradi [finally a name I know] - who is the astronomer of the University of Pécs - identified 128 constellations and stars according that folk 'star collection'. He said it's interesting that Magyars and later the Hungarian village people as well not only imagined their own constellations but they could see visually even a single star. For example, they called the Sirius as Sánta Kata [Limping Cate]. They associated to this very shiny star a picture of a girl who stepped into a scythe [it simply symbolizes the tragedy of a girl whom probably someone knew once]. Or there was the Kalász csillag [Wheatear Star] what looked even more shiny and yellow when the harvest season began.

Some other examples

Venus had many names: Alkony Csillag [Nightfall star], Esthajnalcsillag [Twilight star, we still call by this name today], Vacsoracsillag [Evening or Supper star], Álomhozócsillag [Dreambringer star], Hajnalcsillag [Dawn star]… etc.

Milky Way also was called by many names: Hajnali hasadék [Dawn Ravine], Éjszakai Szivárvány [Night Rainbow], Tündérek Útja [Fairies' road], Hadak Útja [Armys’ road], Lelkek Útja [Souls' road], Tejút [Milky Way, the same as in English], Cigányút [Gipsy road]… etc.

Orion and its surrounding = Kaszás telke [Scythe-man's Land], Óriás gázlója [Giant's Wading]
Corona Borealis = Ruzsáskert [Rosegarden], Mária kertje [Mary's Garden]
Ursa Minor = Szarvas nyomdoka [Deer Track], Kis Göncöl [Little Göncöl]
Ursa Major = Göncölszekér [Göncöl's Chariot, still use this name instead of 'Great Bear']
Messier 45 in the Taurus = Fiastyúk [Hen – who is just hatching eggs], Hetes [Seventh]
Pleiades = Kaptár [Hive]
Sagittarius = Koldusszekér [Pauper Chariot]
a star in the Andromeda = Hálócsillag [Net star]
Alcor = Ostoros [Whipper]
Hyades = Méhkas [Beehive]
Saturnus = Székelyek csillaga [Székelys' Star]
Jupiter = Magyarok csillaga [Magyars' Star]
the stars of the Swan = Vezér [Leader], Hadnagy [Lieut], Had vezető [High Commander], Három hadnagy [Three Commanders], Lövőcsillag [Shooter star], Bajnokcsillag [Champion star], Sereghajtó [Lagman]
Berenice's hair = Tatárdúlás [Tatar ravage]
etc.

Stars what represented emotions: Szerencse csillag [Lucky star], Kisasszonyok öröme [Young Lady's Joy], Bánatcsillag [Sorrow star], Elátkozott csillag [Cursed star], Magános csillag [Lonely star], Szegény ember szerencséje [Poor man's Luck]… etc.

We had…
Szerelemcsillag [Love star], Levegőcsillag [Air star], Tengercsillag [Sea star], Szőkecsillag [Fair star], Álmatlancsillag [Sleepless star], Sellőcsillag [Mermaid star], Aranyhajúcsillag [Golden Hair star], Sárkány koronája [Dragon's Crown], Boszorkány szeme [Witch's Eyes], Tündérhölgy palotája [Fairy Lady's Castle], Árvalány pillantása [Look Of An Orphan Girl]… etc.

The ancient Magyars lived and enjoyed their life by the changes of the sky and nature. More harmonical life I think than living on star gossips like most of the people nowadays in Hungary too. In my point of view that is a very poor life… 

Well, let's see what cards I've got this time…

It's creepy again… ~Hmm, we'll see… But one for sure; enough from the negative happenings!! This Autumn was a s. Did I tell you that I have dreams about Aqua that she is still hopping happily in my room…? I can't tell how I miss her… I can't endure seeing that little white urn on the shelf. Spring is soo far yet…

„csillagtalan setét éjjel” = starless dark night

 

Good Day and Have a nice Weekend!/Szép napot és jó hétvégét! ✌

Sources

kiszely.hu, szabadonebredok.info, csillagaszat.hu, Hungarian Mythology by Arnold Ipolyi and some things from head

Recipe Part IV / Fisherman's Soup For Christmas

There is always something fishy about Christmas. I mean on the table…
Long tradition that we use to eat fish at Christmas. As I am a half-mermaid [beside I am a fox… merfox? too much anime… nevermind] I die for everything what fish, crayfish and shrimps… the only things I cannot bare to eat is the mussel, scallop, sea cucumber and whatever else and octopuses are sacred for me! I cannot help it I'm Eastern European, beside we have no sea, only a – beautiful – lake and two – also beautiful – rivers. So I mostly eat "our" fishes what more familiar to my taste.
Anyway.
Most of the now living traditions in my country based on Christianity and because of it many ancient folklore traditions of ours fusioned with Christian elements along the centuries [as at many other European countries' as well].

Before Christianity people celebrated the midwinter anyhow as the rebirth of the invincible sun gods. Then in 350 A.D. pope Saint Julius I commanded that the nativity would fell on the day of 25 December and from then on we celebrate the baby Jesus birth on this day [as for me back to sun-gods… ~Ok I like those nativity porcelain scenes before the churches...].
So why we eat fish at Christmas for Christ's sake?! … For Christ's sake.
To the Christians fish symbolizes Christ himself although it's a much ancient symbol [nearly thousands of years old] and not just the fish but the fish eating as well. Fish was known by as the symbol of the "Great Mother". Fish symbolized fertility, birth and the force of women and it always was a major symbol at Midwinter. The word also meant "womb" in some tongues. Egyptians ate fish for the sake of the fertility goddess, I... [You know who]. She wore a fish on her head as well. Scandinavian people ate fish for the sake of their fertility and love goddess, Freya. Romans ate fish on Fridays to celebrate the love Goddess Venus… etc. So the fish-eating ceremony firstly have pagan history.
In Christianity the fish and fishery symbolize Jesus and when Christians were threatened by Romans in the first centuries after Christ, they use it as an own mark. "They used the fish symbol to mark meeting places and tombs, or to distinguish friends from foes…" [1] This was the sign of the 'ichthys' or the sign of Christ himself [ΙΧΘΥΣ/Ichthus greek word means 'fish' but it's an acrostic: Iēsous Christos, Theou Yios, Sōtēr/"Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour" [1]].

As for me I eat fish at Christmas because I want to and our fish soup recipe takes time so I cannot have the patience to do this anytime in the year. But the main reason is that this was my father biggest present for us at every holiday a big bowl of warm Fishermen's soup…

We have different kind of fish dishes, but I think the most common and preferred one at Christmas is this paprikan Fish-soup. It hasn't got a long history at all. This dish became from the fish-paprikash and only about 150 years old.
It has many variations across the country but the main ingredients are the same everywhere: carp, onion, paprika and salt. The method of the making of this soup is also variant by regions: Balaton area, Tisza area, Danube area.
The original idea has been found in an old cook book from 1871. An old cook lady 'Aunt Rézi' noted this soup as 'Fish-paprikash a la fisherman' which was fish paprikash/paprikás in loose sauce. The main point at this soup that you add the ingredients to the pot all at once. They say that the Fisherman's soup is ready when your thumb and first finger stick together in the steam of the soup…

Although we live next to Balaton, my dad used to cook the Szeged/Tisza style Fisherman's soup. When once he had been Szeged for awile, his friend taught him to the Szeged/Tisza way, that is they add different kind of fishes' parts [heads, tails] to the soup and they put through the whole on a sieve before they add the fresh carp fillets ["the noble fish"] at the end.

Slow-cooking Fisherman's Soup a la Szeged/Szegedi Halászlé

Cook it the day before you want to serve it. Need one night for the richer flavour. Oh and the cooking time is almost 4 hours so calculate in it this too if you are planning to try this. Just saying. :)

You'll need to the stock
1 big and 1 medium onion [peeled and diced, can be red onion too]
1 1/3 tablespoons sunflower oil
65 g ground Hungarian paprika [Hot or not it's up to your taste. We have many variations from hot to sweet paprika and we usually mark them by strongness: strong/hottest=csípős or erős, mild hot and sweet=csípős csemege, semi sweet=csemege, Noble sweet="Édesnemes" labels on the packages. Best is the Kalocsai and Szegedi brands.]
4 Fisherman's Soup stock-cubes [there is under Knorr or Maggi brands in Hungary and Knorr is the better]
2 fish heads of smaller Ponty/Common carp [or Harcsa/Catfish or Süllő/Pike-perch] 
3 fish-tails or fins - also of smaller Ponty/Common carp [or Harcsa/Catfish or Süllő/Pike-perch] 
3 whole Jász keszeg/Ide [or Vörösszárnyú keszeg/Common rudd or Dévér keszeg/Common bream, need about max. 25 cm long specimens, offal removed] 
1 tomato [cut into four pieces]
1 yellow bell pepper [cut into four pieces]
about 2 1/2 liter cold water 
1/2 tablespoon salt

You'll need on the following day
2-3 finger-thick Ponty/Common carp fillets [5-6 dkg per piece]
roe of Carp [optional and no need to salt it]

Method to make it

Wash the fish parts, whole ides and carp fillets under cold water until the water is clean. Heads may contain minimal blood so wash them very thoroughly!

Dry the carp fillets with a paper towel. Salt them and put aside them into the fridge along with the roe till next day. Cover them with a kitchen foil.

In a medium-sized pot warm the oil on low heat. Add the onion and the stock-cubes and saute them until the onion is soft and translucent. Stir it constantly!

 
Add the cleaned fish parts, fish tails, the whole ides, tomato, bell pepper, salt and finally the water. Stir it a little as you can. Bring the soup to boil on high heat. After it boils turn the heat to the lowest. Put the lid on but leave a little space for gases. Cook it for 3 hours long. 
If too much water boiled away after 3 hours, add some more. Cook the soup for another 10 minutes.

Then add the paprika and cook the soup for another 30 minutes. 
If the soup is ready [every fish parts are overcooked] take another pot and with a sieve put through the whole soup. Only the pure stock what we need at the end, everything else can go to the dumpster.

So we have a pure deep-red spicy liquid now. Taste the stock whether it's salty enough to your taste. If not, add some more, but it's good if it's not too salty. 
Cool out the soup completely then leave it for one night somewhere in the coldest place in the house without a lid on.

The following day bring the soup to boil again and after it bubbles turn the heat to low and add the pre-salted carp fillets and roe and boil the whole about 10 minutes on low heat. Ready to serve it with fresh bread!

Enjoy it!/Jó étvágyat!

What for sure you can always find on a typical Hungarian Christmas table: cabbage and fish, poppy seed or walnut rolls [bejgli] aaand pálinka in/and for every case… Hahaha

Ancient Hungarian agricultural people as well used to do magic rituals at this time of the year to predict the next year crops and they hoped it will bring good fortune and good health for the whole family too. The symbols of these magic rituals are still on our tables at Christmas although many people just forgot it what those dishes, fruits, seeds, vegetables symbolized many centuries before. So there are some rules around the dinner table what we "need" to eat if we want some good but don't want any trouble for the next year:

1. Eat - something from - beans, peas, lentil, poppy seed, walnut and fish and your following year will be rich in every way [it meant to be good crops]. Especially beans and lentils bring to the eater much money. If it would be such easy… I cannot work only eat. Dream job. Haha  
   
   
2. Our famous poppy seed rolls were used for love magic [to predict one's future husband, thank God I hate poppy seed…] and they gave some to the domestic animals too to guarantee their health to the following year. They leaved a poppy seed roll cake on the table for those whom passed away but want to visit their loved ones once more. They used the walnuts for death magic, for healing and for to keep off bad forces. The apple represented the beauty and health and they used it for love magic and death magic as well. From the Christmas loaf and apples the whole family ate so knew they will stay together in the next year as well. This ritual was important because they believed if someone from the family get into bad ways will remember whom he ate the apples with and go home for good. 
   
   
3. Cabbage also brings richness for the next year. The best is the 'White Beans and Cabbage a la Vecsés'. It brings richness and happyness but only in the toilet, don't daydream... 
   
   
4. They believed that roasted squash and the honey good for throat problems in the winter times and garlic garantees the familys' future. The garlic symbolizes the healthy life and the honey [along with the Hungarian decorated honey gingerbread] symbolizes the sweetness of the life. 
   
   
5. What is important that do not eat winged animal for Christmas because those means bad omen for the next year, they scratching the soil backward instead of the pigs what scratching it forward, so it means the pigs scratching the good fortunes and good forces in front of you while the winged animals do quite the opposite… [2] Damn it's a misfortune I don't like to eat porky things except bacon sometimes. And my traditional dish is after Fish soup is turkey meat … ~Hmm so that is why I'm always run out of luck [and money…] Ancient people were more wise… At least they survived it anyhow.
   

[1] Wikipedia, [2] "Hungarian Etymological Dictionary"

These ancient agricolous traditions still live on in our life, these are ineradicable magic "rituals" of ours, although today youth generation does not care for these things at all [as everything else neither…].

So in Hungary we call the evening of 24 or Christmas Eve as 'Holy Night'/Szenteste when the whole family dinner together and after that they give the presents to each other as well. On 25 and 26 the close relatives visit each other for a holiday lunch or just have a good time together. 

Now as always I celebrate with my lovely mom, my deceased dad's picture and the youngest but naughtiest one in our family…

 ~Oh.. I just imagined how she is hopping happily on my parted bodies and organs… I bet she would do it…  

Relax my tree is the only abnormal here, the family tree is perfectly normal... 

Happy Christmas rein-Dear Reader! [lame joke sorry…]/Boldog Karácsonyt Kedves Olvasó! ✌ See you next year!

finally for "Something Completely Different", a beautiful Hungarian folk song from Márta Sebestyén