|
 |
Feast in the Georgian culture |
|
|
|
|
the cultural life of the Georgians feasts play an important role. Till present time mass feasts are the essential festive event which continues keeping to the archaic scenario of the participants' behavior
|
|
|
|
|
| Ceramic milk pail. Georgians. Tiflis Province. Late 19th century |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Horn for drinking wine. Georgians.Tiflis. Early 20th century |
|
|
|
|
| Vessel for wine and water. Georgians. Tiflis Province. Late 19th century |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| Wine vessel made of coconut set in silver. Georgians. Tiflis Province. Early 20th century |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Professional musical group "Sazandari" playing at a festive feast. Georgians.Tiflis Province. Early 20th century. Photo-archive of the RME |
|
|
|
|
| Ceramic wine vessel. Georgians.Gori. Georgia |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| Wine vessel. Georgians. Tiflis. Early 20th century |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| Silver wine vessel. Georgians. 20th century |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Feast in Georgian culture
The feasts always played an important role in the cultural life of the Georgians, and they carry on the archaic "scenario" of the participants' behavior up to now.
Feast in Georgian culture
Mass feasts carry on up to now the archaic scenario of the participants' behavior and accompany all the calendar, private and occasional events. The researchers of Georgian culture note that in a year there were much more festive days in a year than weekdays. The Georgians regarded any festival as a God blessed event that harmonized relationships between people. Guests' reception was always accompanied by a great feast. Only that family was considered respectable which was known for its hospitality.
Atmosphere of the feast
During the feast an atmosphere of easy contacts always reigned which was accompanied with rich dishes and absence of bans on over-use of food and drinks. Festive decoration of the table, elegance of wine vessels and dishes, solemnity of the toasts put all the participants in a good mood. All the present were connected by a general emotional experience of the feast, and it favoured the intensification of the feeling of ethnic closeness and the establishing of the group values.
Sources of the tradition and the division of the parts.
The atmosphere of feast abundance goes back to the mythological idea of the "golden age" when any living individual had access to generosity of the horn of plenty. Euphoria of the festival corresponded to the deep images of the traditional worldview of the Georgians. As early as in the ancient times a certain order of conducting a feast and behavior style of its participants had been formed.
Each Georgian ethnic group had its special features of conducting a feast. For instance, the feasts of the Georgians-Khevsurs were closely associated with the cult of warriors.
Each feast of the "rural army" among the Georgians-Khevsurs had a precise organization and a role distribution depending on age and social status. Feast participants were divided into two groups: elders, who were called metaseni (those who held cups), and youngsters, zedamdegni (those who stood and served). During the feast elders occupied honorable places at the head of the table and young men sat at the end of it. Feast often was held in the open air close to the sanctuary, on the green mountainside in the shade of the trees. Two or three young men were chosen as meludeni - beer carriers who were sent to the sanctuary to get a holy drink. Sanctuary priests blessed those who came and gave them a certain amount of the drink. When the meludeni returned back, feast participants stood up to greet them.
Ritual feast scenario
As a rule a feast included several oblidatory actions - common men's prayer, prayer for the dead warriors, ritual singing, and rites of drinking holy beer. Each action had its own title: "Courtesy and conscience", "Game and singing while standing", "Extolling the heroes by the bowls", "Game and singing one at a time", "Proposing a toast holding a cup", "Rendering homage", "Cup sent for drinking".
After a prayer of all the men including fifteen and sixteen- year- old youths, the karakha was held. Zedamdegni put before the mataseni the vessels on the table, filled them with beer, and then offered a loaf of bread to each of the elders. A young and an elder men together halved the bread and then the young men put on it meat, greens and other tasty food for the elders.
Those sitting at the table started eating. Only after the meal, metaseni raised the cups, proclaimed blessings in the name of the community deity and drank slowly with pauses from the cups. Then the ritual drinking was followed by the "game and singing while standing". One of the elders took stringed musical instrument panduri and slowly got to the end of the table. There, standing or having one knee on the floor, he sang an old heroic song while young men standing behind his back performed each stanza in chorus. During the feast new beerbringers were chosen and sent to the sanctuary to get more beer.
Handing over the drink had ritual and playing character. Sanctuary servants received them with honor, took them to the "darbazi" room, offered them beer and tried to make them drunk. After this they brought to darbazi a vessel for the holy beer and the chief sanctuary servant filled the cup with beer, prayed for the dead hero and poured into the vessel beer from the cup. Such manipulations with beer were repeated many times while praying for each dead hero. Meludeni had to keep in mind all the names in exact chain which was chosen by the priest and had to repeat these names at the feast where he gave cups to the elders. This episode was called " praising of the ancient heroes by the cups".
In the pauses between the actions participants had to talk leisurely about heroic feats and victories of the community members; elders told young men about martial valor and honor. From time to time someone of the elders stood up, took panduri, went to the end of the table and standing on one knee started playing and singing an old song about martial feats of the members of one family represented at the feast. Everybody listened to him in silence. According to the custom, one of the elders in the middle of the song stood up with a full cup and wanted to continue the song. One who was singing fell silent but continued playing the musical instrument. New singer, having approached the panduri player, gave him to drink. In his turn the panduri player, having finished playing, gave to the singer his cup with beer. This action called "courtesy and conscience" was repeated several times allowing every participant to sing his song which praised boldness and courage of the family.
During the feast role distribution between elders and youngsters gave opportunities to the young learn the style of behavior, chain of actions, memorize old songs. Thus, traditions were being handed down from generation to generation.
The atmosphere of the feast disposed to deep emotional experience. Need in such experience of the event was obvious for every participant, and texts of songs and prayers could prove it.
It is important to note that skill of singing was among the traditional men's valor such as excellent weapon wield and skill of playing musical instrument.
Wedding feast
In descriptions wedding feasts of 19 - 20 c look like complicated oratorio with singing and dancing which has complex musical score and dramatic scenario. Wedding feast was organized in the bride's house as well as in the groom's. "Edzhibi" - master of wedding ceremonies was conducting the feast providing not only order of events but also "directing" which was based on knowledge of traditions and variants of plot developing. Assumed toast themes and succession of guests from both sides who would speak were strictly followed.
Folk celebrations during church holidays and Feasts were accompanied by different competitions: the races, archery, throwing of stones in a sling, singing and poem making among folk singers- ashug. In the meadows people were singing and dancing in complex rings the distinctive feature of which was specific movements of the dancers. It is interesting that one participant of the ring dancing could climb on the shoulders of another dancing man and in his turn, support the third one.
Wine vessels
According to religious rules, etiquette and aesthetics of the Georgian feast traditional utensils had to decorate the table. As a result, the utensils had not only utilitarian functions but also served as symbols and ethnic markers. Among vessels for the festive table jugs played the most important role.
According to their functions wine vessels are divided into two types: individual - for each participant of the feast, and common - for table decoration. Common vessels as a rule were of anthropomorphic form. This can be explained by the fact that ancient ancestors considered wine vessel to be the keeper of secrets of the Universe, receptacle of man's soul. "Sura" and "doki" were the most spread among this type of vessels.
Individual wine vessels were also of different forms. Some of them were very small: they were used in the beginning of the feast when wine was consumed in small portions. Such vessels are called "chinchila" and made in the shape of a small jug with a capacity of a glass. "Karkara" - is a bigger metal jug with a bent neck consisting of three interlaced tubes. "Tasi" and "piala" are hemispherical vessels with or without a tem. "Kula" has an original shape -it is a wooden, set in silver vessel that has a closed semispherical body from which at right angle long narrow neck goes. "Khantsi" and "dzhikhvi" are the most famous Georgian wine vessels. They are made in the shape of a horn, decorated with silver trims with rich decorations. Horns with capacity of several liters were used for drinking wine in the middle of the feast when a man demonstrating his endurance completely drained the horn.
Ornamentation on the metal vessels was often made in the technique of engraving and chasing. Among the most popular motifs there were flowers, fruit, leaves of the creepers, birds in the trees, animals. Quite often one could find images of realistic scenes participants of which were celebrating, dancing and playing traditional musical instruments. As a rule such images were framed with medallions and vignettes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
In this heading:
|
|
|
Headings of section:
