From March 20 until March 31 The Vilnius Ethnic Culture Center invites you to pause in the Šventaragis Valley and gain vitality, inspiration and hope by visiting interactive sculptures symbolizing the element of water created by Rytos Jonas Belevičiaus and Rūta Ona Čigriejūtė, which will help you experience the poems of the poet Vladas Braziūnas, accompanied by the sounds of spring water.
March 20 the Vernal Equinox occurs - a celebration of the transformation of nature, when the duration of day and night is briefly equalized throughout the globe, and astronomical spring begins. This year, as we cross the threshold of spring, the Vilnius Ethnic Culture Center invites you to feel the element of water becoming more active during this period and to visit the sculptures dedicated to it in the Šventaragis valley.
Water is one of the original elements of the world, in various cultures it is considered the beginning of all life and a natural force with magical powers. It can be all kinds: sky and underground, flowing springs, rivers and stagnant lakes and puddles, fresh rain and salty sea. It can be refreshing, healing, cleansing and protective - we meet it in all its forms not only in nature and in the household, but also in folklore, ancient customs and beliefs.
Connecting heaven, earth and the underworld, water marks the beginning and end of the world in legends and stories and explains the occurrence of some phenomena. In customs, it accompanies the essential moments of a person's life and appears symbolically during many calendar holidays. The ancient Lithuanian custom of bathing in the river flowing from the east on the morning of the equinox in order to seek purity and health speaks of the belief in its magical power to restore life to the Earth after winter.
