Emmaus

On Easter Monday, the congregation in Catholic churches listen to the Gospel about disciples of Jesus on the road to Emmaus. On that day, the people of Kraków go to the local Emaus: originally a church indulgence and today a festivity by the Church of the Holy Saviour in Zwierzyniec. The locals have done it for centuries, as historians prove that the custom that underpins the Christian form of this fair may go as far back as the 12th century. On the other hand, it may even be older, as it seems akin to the pagan forefathers night, which was celebrated on the spring equinox.

In former times, the ambience of the festivities was more spiritual, yet from the 19th century they were transformed into a folk festivity. The stalls offered toys and sweets, and plenty of competitions were organised. These included throwing a rag ball at a target, and climbing a pole that was greased to make the feat harder. In our times, the stalls have been flooded by the omnipresent plastic. Yet there has been a slow return to the traditional toys of the Kraków Emaus, including wooden figurines, clay roosters, and whistles.

The Kraków Emaus festivity – after all held on the Easter “Wet” Monday – provided an opportunity to pour water from the nearby Vistula over your fellow humans with impunity. Another custom practised by the frolicking students was to drive the maidens going to church with willow wands covered in pussy willows, shouting Czemu nie rychło na Emaus? (Why don’t you make haste to Emaus?) This custom, known from the first church indulgence in the 16th century, was even at that time defined as “ancient”, which only confirms the historians’ assumptions about the age-old pedigree of the local tradition.