It’s Dyngus Day – Let’s Begin The Leg Whippings!

Dyngus Day is a big deal for Slovak, Czech and Polish people. Also known as Easter Money or Wet Monday, Dyngus Day (Smigus-Dyngus or lany poniedzialek in Polish; velikonocní pondelí or pomlázka in Czech; or Šibacka/Polievacka or Oblievacka in Slovak) is basically a celebration of the end of Lent.

But what’s more important about Dyngus Day is that by tradition, boys wake up unwedded girls in the early morning by pouring a bucket of water of them. They also whip their legs with long, thin decorated tree branches, a nod to pagan antiquity that is the Smigus part of Dyngus Day ritual. Nowadays, some have replaced the branches with Polish food, polka and other things that won’t cause a leg sore. Thankfully, the Wicker Man territory is no longer an issue with Dyngus Day. One thing’s for sure, payday loans won’t save anyone from this kind of heated situation.

What does Smigus have to do with Dyngus on Dyngus Day?

According to Wikipedia, a pagan god of water and moist earth is what Dyngus is. Smigus (from Smigac, to make a whooshing sound), who is his twin, represents lightning and thunder. While the act was an ancient spring cleansing rite, pouring water was an indication of fertility. This explains why boys pour water on girls. It is not clear as to whether the striking with tree branches element came from some form of flagellant purification or simply borrowed from the ritual slapping of Christian Confirmation.

Smigus , which tends to be forgotten, also features striking prominently, but this time it’s the parents striking children on Good Friday while praying about “God’s wounds,” Boze rany in Polish. Of course, we have unsecured loans to help pay to dress our wounds and keep the ashes out. In modern times, celebrating the twin Smigus aspect of Dyngus Day gave girls equal permission to chase boys with the switch.

Other Dyngus Day traditions

Exchanging decorated eggs (pisanka)is also big. You will get doused by Dyngus and struck by Smigus if you don’t have your fertility symbols. In areas of Poland like Mazuria and Masovia, there is a related Dyngus Day custom of sprinkling ashes on people and their homes for consecration and cleansing for the upcoming year. This is called a pólposcie and is done several weeks before Dyngus Day.