The Rite of ‘Ciahnuć Kaliadu na Duba’ (Pulling the Christmas Dummy onto the Oak Tree) is an element of the winter holiday cycle according to the traditional Belarusian peasants’ calendar of pagan origin. It is the only Belarusian rite that is performed to mark the end of Christmas celebrations, which starts with eating the traditional family lenten kuccia on January 6 and is followed by ščodraja kuccia and carol-singing rounds during the night from January 13 to January 14, and after that – by Water Consecration feast, when they go to the springs for water and use it to consecrate their homes and yards
The Kury Rite is connected with the celebration of so-called Sviatki, winter holidays between Christmas and Epiphany, is observed every year on Ščodry Viečar, which is celebrated on New Year’s Eve on January 13. The Kury Rite is unique in that it involves only children (aged 6 to 14). Another interesting feature of the tradition is that this Christmas group carry no traditional caroling masks, that would represent any traditional characters – they do not have a goat, or a bear, or a horse. The girls and boys wear special ceremonial clothes, decorate a Christmas star, and go through the village singing songs. When approaching a house, they sing special Christmas holiday songs, one of them being a special song called Kury (Chickens). The homeowners, in their turn, give the members of the group some treats: pancakes, local kind of bacon sala, and sweets. The rite ends with the sunset. The ritual act is associated with some special ceremonial attributes, such as the clothing, a Christmas star and a candle that burns in the Christmas star at the icon of Our Lady of Sorrows. Not one generation of the villagers from Dzmitraŭka, Virkaŭ and Niasieta took part in the Rite when they were children. Many of them - today’s grandparents, parents, or elder sisters – are enthusiastic about sharing the caroling tradition, the songs and the order of performance with today’s rite performers
