What can be done with consecrated willow. How and how much to store willow after the holiday

What do we know about the consecration of the willow on the feast of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem? - So, the pious tradition that has developed ... What to do with the consecrated willow / greens for the Trinity? - That, in fact, is all the questions that we have in this regard.

Do you know that...

Fact #1
The consecration of willow branches takes place at the evening service on Saturday.

During the polyeleos, the most solemn part of the festive evening service, after the Gospel, during the reading of the penitential 50th psalm, the priest censes the people standing with tree branches and greenery.

Then the prayer is read:

Lord our God, sit on the cherubim, resurrecting the power of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, save the world with the Cross, and burial, and His resurrection. Even now, having come to Jerusalem for free passion, people sitting in darkness, and the canopy of death, having received the resurrection of the sign, the branches of the trees, and the vaia date, the resurrection signifies the sretosha. Vladyka himself and us, in imitation of one, on this pre-holiday day, observe and preserve the vaia and branches of trees in the hands of those who wear them. Yes, even if they are people and children, Hosanna to You, and we will also reach the spiritual, life-giving and three-day Resurrection in songs and singing, in the same Christ Jesus our Lord: blessed be Thou with Him, with the Most Holy, and Good, and Your Life-giving Spirit, now and forever, and forever and ever, amen.

Lord our God, who sits on the Cherubim, who raised up Your power and sent Your only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, may He save the world through His Cross, burial and Resurrection. He, who came to Jerusalem for voluntary suffering, was met by people who were in darkness and the shadow of death, taking the symbols of victory - tree branches and palm shoots - and thereby predicted the resurrection.Himself, Vladyka, and us, on this pre-holiday day, palm and tree branches in imitation of them in the hands of those who hold and, like those crowds and children, who bring the exclamations of “Hosanna” to You, observe and save. So that we, with hymns and spiritual songs, may be deemed worthy to achieve the life-giving and three-day Resurrection in Christ Jesus our Lord, with whom you are blessed, with your All-Holy, and Good, and Life-giving Spirit, now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.

After this prayer, people standing in the temple with willow branches in their hands are sprinkled with holy water.

Fact #2

It is not the willow that is consecrated, but the people standing in the temple.

Although it is believed that branches of trees (most often willows) are consecrated, however, in prayer we are talking about a completely different thing, namely: we ask the Lord to sanctify us, give us His Saving grace, so that we, holding branches, like gentle children at the meeting of the Lord in Jerusalem, they remained so, so that they would not become like those who first shouted “Hosanna!”, And then began to shout “Crucify Him!” Even if we don't say such words, still with our sins, our insensitivity and laziness we crucify Christ again and again and make His Sacrifice for us in vain.

Fact #3

It is important not to take away the consecrated willow from the temple, but to come with it to the temple.

The twig in the hands is a sign that the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem for free suffering is just as important and touching for us as for those who two thousand years ago greeted him with palm branches and shouted "Hosanna!"

This is how it is sung about in the troparion of the feast:

The general resurrection, before Your Passion, assuring you, raised Lazarus from the dead, Christ God. The same and we, like the youths of the victory of the sign bearing, We cry to you the conqueror of death: Hosanna in the highest, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

In the general resurrection, before Your suffering, testifying, You raised Lazarus from the dead, Christ God. Therefore, we, like children, holding the symbols of victory, will cry out to You, the Conqueror of death: “Hosanna in the highest, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”

The Church is generally timeless. At divine services, it is almost impossible to hear anything about sacred events in the past tense, for example, that the Lord entered Jerusalem. It is less common to hear that He "went up to Jerusalem", but more often - "enters", and moreover, "today", now. In the souls of people, the gospel events are experienced each time in a new way. Therefore, they bring willows to the temple, stand with them during the service, to show that we also greet the Lord as our King and Messiah.

Unfortunately, this beautiful tradition was rethought over time in terms of external ritualism. If the liturgical texts focused on “Coming in the name of the Lord” - Christ and the people who met Him, then the folk tradition reduced the whole meaning of the holiday to the consecration of the willow. Bringing willow to the temple (or rather, taking it out of the temple), it turns out, is no longer necessary in order to testify to the Lord one's love, but in order to stock up on a good amulet.

Fact #4

If you didn’t stand with a willow in the service, glorifying the Lord, “coming to a free passion,” then you don’t need to go to church with it just to sanctify it.

From year to year, the same story is repeated: throughout the day, when the festive Liturgy has long ended, many people come to the temple with the question: “Where are willows distributed here?” Willow is not a pity, but for some reason it always makes me sad.

In books and oral conversations, you can find a lot of advice on what to do with willow, where to put it, how many years to store it, even in which cases it is advisable to eat a willow bud.

People hope to get help from the willow, because the willow is consecrated. But if you make out the text of the prayer, it turns out that there is not a single word in it that the willow is consecrated, its meaning boils down to the phrase: “... and us, in imitation of oneh (i.e. us, in imitation of people, who met the Lord with branches), on this pre-holiday day, fronds and branches of trees in the hands of those who carry, observe and preserve.

The object of consecration, the Church saw not the willow, but the person himself. In Trebnik - a collection of priestly prayers containing the following of the Sacraments and rites - there is not even an instruction to sprinkle the willow with holy water. This indication is in the Missal - a book containing the Liturgy, Vespers, Matins, but it appeared there later, as a reflection of the established practice.

On the morning of the holiday, the willow will be sprinkled with holy water, but the prayer for consecration is no longer read.

Usually sprinkling is repeated on the very day of the feast, after the Liturgy.

During the consecration of the willows, a prayer is read: “These willows are consecrated, by the Grace of the All-Holy Spirit and the sprinkling of this sacred water, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!"

But when performing this rite, one should not forget its inner meaning. The main thing is where the Lord is going and for what.

Holy Week begins for us on Palm Sunday. During these few days the Lord will complete His earthly life. In this consummation will be the completion of everything. As He Himself will say in His last words on the Cross: “It is finished!”

On April 1, 2018, many people will go for willows, because on this day the bright holiday of Palm Sunday is celebrated, and exactly a week later, no less wonderful event will come - Easter. The holidays are over and everyone is back to work. But what to do with willow after Palm Sunday? Just throw it away or leave it until next year? And what to do with willow branches from last year? Let's deal with everything in order.

Why is the holiday so called? That is, why precisely willows, and not flowers or branches, were spruce, as for the New Year? To answer this question, you need to remember the history and geography. Almost 2,000 years ago, the Savior triumphantly entered Jerusalem. Not as a conqueror (on a horse), but as a man who came in peace - he sat astride a donkey.

Of course, people had already heard this news, so a large crowd gathered at the city gates and along the entire path of Christ. All as one rejoiced and paved the road with freshly plucked palm branches. This is history. And now geography.

In our area, of course, palm trees do not grow, but this is not a reason to refuse the holiday. Since ancient times in Rus', whole families went to the forests, willow groves, on the coast of reservoirs to pick a few willow branches. Then they went to consecrate them in the church, and then put them in the most prominent place in the house (usually next to the icon in the prayer corner).

Why willows? Not only because palm trees do not grow in our area. It's just that the willow gives buds first in the spring. This process begins at the end of March. So it turns out that willow branches are both a symbol of the holiday and a harbinger of the coming spring of this year, all the best, bright and warm.

Willow in the house - where to put and how to store

So, the long-awaited day comes, and people go for willows. By the way, it is better to buy them the day before, because according to tradition, the branches are consecrated on Saturday, before the cherished day. Although if you go to church on Sunday morning with an unlit willow, there is nothing shameful in this.

After you have brought the branches home, they are supposed to be placed in the most prominent place in the house. Of course, you can make a beautiful composition, or pour water into a transparent vase and put it on the table. And if the house has a kind of bright corner where the icons stand, of course, willows should be placed there as well. You can put it in a small vase or just put it in front of the icon. So the question of where to put the willow branches is not so important. You can choose any location.

And now a few words about how much willow should be stored, and how long it should be at home. Many people keep the branches until Easter, and some throw away the willow just after Palm Sunday. Which one do you think is right? In fact, there is no correct option in this case. The old willow branches are kept until the new year, exactly until the next Palm Sunday.

Of course, you can not leave a whole bouquet at home - but put one, or three, or any other unpaired number of branches behind the icon or in another inconspicuous place so as not to disturb it. That is, it is not worth making a bouquet of dry willow branches - but you definitely need to save the branches. Why is this being done? It is believed that the consecrated willow branches protect the house and everyone in it for a whole year. This tradition stretches from the past, and it originated a very long time ago. Therefore, believers should do just that.

Where to put the old willow after Palm Sunday

Of course, not everyone will find it necessary to keep willow branches from last Palm Sunday in the house. What to do, how to deal with old willow branches? Throwing them away just like that, that is, as ordinary garbage, is not worth it. Willow branches are a symbol of the holiday, and not just an ordinary plant, let alone brushwood. Here are some ways to put old branches after Palm Sunday:

1. They are carried away to nature - best of all to the river, so that no one can stomp on them.
2. You can just burn the branches, but also scatter the ashes somewhere in nature so that no one walks on it.
3. Will the branch take root? So much the better - you can just plant it in your summer cottage. If it takes root, someday you will be able to take your own willows every year.

NOTE

Most of us will hardly be able to just throw away, for example, bread. Many people prefer to make crackers from old muffins or give them to the birds. The story with willow is in many ways similar: bread is a symbol of prosperity, harvest (and for believers, it personifies the body of Christ). The willow is a symbol of the holiday, the entry of the Savior into Jerusalem.

Firsthand: the opinion of Father Sergius

Believers often wonder what to do with old willows on Palm Sunday. And of course, there is a desire to hear the opinion of the church itself - what to do, and what does Orthodoxy think about this?

Here is an example of the answer of Father Sergius in one of the Orthodox forums. The idea essentially corresponds to the ideas described above. Festive willow is not garbage, therefore, last year's willow should not be thrown away as ordinary waste. You can burn the twigs or just throw them in the river.

Thus, it’s not worth throwing out the willow from last year just like that, regardless of which branch we are talking about - consecrated or unconsecrated. After all, this is not just brushwood or twigs for decoration, but a symbol of the holiday. And the fact that you brought them into the house speaks of your attitude to Palm Sunday - you want to get in touch with the ancient tradition. Therefore, it is better to keep your complacent attitude to the end and send willows, for example, along the river. Moreover, you can walk!

Every time before Palm Sunday, Orthodox Christians have a question: what to do with last year's willow, which they kept all year? And when should you get rid of it? On the eve of the holiday or on Palm Sunday itself?

A few words about the holiday itself

Palm Sunday is a holiday commemorating the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. This is one of the last events in the life of Christ. And it happened a week before Easter - Bright Sunday. Why Palm Sunday? As Jesus entered the Holy City, people lined the path with freshly cut palm branches. This tradition was adopted in the East at the time of the meeting of important persons. In Russia, for lack of palm trees, willow is used.

But on this day, not only willow and palm trees are consecrated in the church, but also branches of olive, boxwood, and laurel.

There is a tradition to decorate large branches with sweets and fruits, as well as colored ribbons. Illuminated branches were installed at the head, near crucifixes, near fireplaces and hearths of stoves, as well as in animal stalls and other places. They can be installed simply in dry places or placed in a vase of water. Branches protect the house from the elements, diseases, quarrels.
So, a year has passed, tomorrow is Palm Sunday again, you need to consecrate fresh willows. And what to do with the old, last year's? And when should you get rid of them? The consecrated willow is no longer just tree branches, but a real shrine. You can't just throw it in the trash. It is believed that willow retains its magical properties until next spring.

You can conduct a small ritual on Palm Sunday itself, before it or immediately after Palm Sunday. There are several options for getting rid of willow.

Let the old willows through the flowing water into any body of water.

Burn dried willow branches. In this case, the ashes must be poured out in a place where they will not stomp on it. You can throw the ashes into the river.

If willows sprouted in water, they are best planted in a forest or near a river.

Willows can be stored for several years. But at the same time, celebrate the holiday with fresh branches every year.

If someone dies in the coming days, then the willow is placed in the coffin.

Some older people collect willows to be laid with them in the grave.

With a lit willow branch, you can cleanse the house, sanctify it by going around the house with this branch and prayer.

Take them to the Church, where they are burned with prayer.

Take it to the forest and leave it between the willow bushes.

If there is a stove in the house, then last year's dried willow can be kindled for baking Easter cakes.

With an old willow, symbolic ones sweep around the corners of the house, and then burn it, thanking for the service.

The miraculous properties of the consecrated willow:

Coming home from the church, consecrated with a willow, they lightly beat all the household members so that they are healthy. Do not forget about all the cattle. All living things absorb the power of spring and renewal.

Willow protects the house from evil forces and spirits.

Willow is planted in the garden if the house has a marriageable bride or a young guy. As soon as the willow is accepted, there will be a wedding.

On St. George's Day, cattle are driven out to the fields with willows. Then he will be healthy and fruitful.

It is believed that a willow can ward off thunder, hail and clouds, tilting it towards the clouds.

The willow reduced the destructive power of the fire by throwing it into the conflagration.

Willow buds were swallowed to get rid of fever, sore throat, and infertility.

Wells were lined with willows so that evil forces would not fall into the water.

Folk traditions associated with Palm Sunday

To this day, there are many signs and traditions associated with Palm Sunday. They are passed down from older to younger family members.

On the night of Palm Sunday, you can make conspiracies for headaches. To do this, the hair from the comb was dipped into water and the willow was poured with this water. The water will go into the ground along with the headache.

On Palm Sunday, the girls did a love spell on a willow. When pronouncing a spell, the willow was laid behind the icons. It is impossible to throw away the charmed branches.

You can “hit” with a willow only on the back, wishing health. If you were whipped on the back, this person wishes you sickness and evil, and it can come true.

Willow branches could only be cut from young trees. It is important that there are no damages and mossy bark on the trunks.

You can not pick branches from a willow tree if it has a hollow. It is also impossible to tear branches from a cemetery willow.

You can not tear the branches bent over the river. It is believed that mermaids sit on them at night.

Signs

If it was frosty enough on Palm Sunday, then a fairly good harvest of spring bread was expected.

If there were frosts on the night of Verbnoye, then there will be a good harvest of cabbage and cucumbers.

If there is a strong wind on Verbnoe, then the whole summer will be quite windy, there will be hurricanes and storms. And if the day is warm and quiet, this will be the summer.

What kind of wind in Verbnoye will be like this all summer.

If the sun shines on Palmnoye, there will be a rich harvest of cereals and fruits.

Knock on the body with a willow on Palm Sunday, you will be healthy all year.

Willow is the most tenacious tree. Stick a branch into the ground and a tree will grow. A tree gives a person the same vitality.

If you eat a bud of a consecrated willow, any business will be easily solved. Of course, you can use the "magic" properties of the willow only in extreme cases.

Think of your beloved on Verbnoe, and he will come to you.

If you plant a home plant on Palm Sunday, you will be rich. But if the flower withers, you will live in poverty all your life.

The energy of Palm Sunday helps to make all wishes come true.

What to do with willow?

How to collect willow? Tear several branches from small young trees. Do not cut off all the branches from one bush. But you need enough branches to put several pieces in each room, and in livestock buildings too. Take the branches to the church for consecration. If it is not possible to go to the temple, you can sprinkle willows with holy water at home.

Arrange the branches in vases. They do not need to be removed for two weeks. On Maundy Thursday, the branches were used as sprinkles: they were moistened with holy water and sprinkled on all corners of the house. And then the branches can be used in different ways: leave it until the next Palm Sunday, or immediately let it flow along the river.

In the photo: Palm Sunday in the Church of the Archangel Michael. Gomel.

Time flies so fast. It seems that only yesterday was the New Year, and the day before yesterday was Easter, as Palm Sunday had already come again, Easter again in a few days.
I wonder if Palm Sunday is a holiday for you personally?
How do you celebrate it? What customs do you follow? Do you go to church to shine willow branches?
Or is it the most ordinary weekend or working day for you, when you have to dig and sow in the garden, when every minute in the field is precious?

Do you know when to tear willow branches for consecration and what to do with last year's?

A week before Easter, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem.
On this day, willow branches are consecrated in all churches. This is a very ancient holiday with its own customs and traditions, about which nothing is written in the Bible.
But many do not even know how to properly collect and sanctify willow, and then store it at home. How do you collect willow branches?
That's right, before going to church or already right along the way we find a willow tree or a bush of seals, peel off the required number of branches from it or buy it right from the church, fortunately, bunches are sold there in abundance, we line up and wait for the priest who walks in a circle or in a square and a huge number of people reincarnated as pious people with a specially trained broom pours over willows, heads, clothes.

HISTORICAL REFERENCE: When Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, he knew perfectly well what fate had in store for him. The city greeted him joyfully, covering the road under his feet with palm leaves. Therefore, the symbol of the feast of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem is palm leaves. But in our climatic conditions, palm trees do not grow, and Easter comes very early, it is believed that the willow blossoms first and its branches are ideal for this purpose.

According to tradition, willow branches for Palm Sunday are torn on the eve of the holiday, on Lazarus Saturday, or a couple of days before it. The bouquet must be placed in the water and fresh, unwilted twigs must be carried to the church. The number of twigs in the bouquet must be odd

When do they bless the willow in the church: on Saturday or Sunday?
Correctly illuminate the willow on the Sabbath.
On the eve of Palm Sunday, in the evening on Saturday, festive services are held in churches - Vespers. It is to this service that one must come with willow branches and candles.
After reading the Gospel, the priest says a special prayer, goes around the people holding willows with a censer and sprinkles them with holy water. It is at this service that believing parishioners receive grace.
The re-sprinkling takes place on Sunday morning, after the liturgy.

As a rule, people reincarnated as pious people go to the consecration of twigs in the morning, even without entering the church, they line up in a circle, the priest comes out and we know what is happening. The people came to receive grace! But that special prayer no longer precedes this sprinkling.
So what happens is what happens.
They came, stood, even had time to quarrel several times right in the churchyard, branches in a bag and celebrated at home. I didn't think about the fight. She herself heard several times yesterday, “What are you standing in front of me? Is there enough room for you?”, “Move away, you close my father, holy water will not fall on me!” I wanted to say that even a barrel of holy water would not help her.
How can people not understand that everything is much deeper and more serious than the performance they are putting on?

No wonder the priests are indignant that Palm Sunday today has turned from a holiday dedicated to the Lord into the day of the consecration of the willow. People come to church not to praise Christ, to remember his miraculous deeds, but simply to sprinkle willow twigs in their hands with holy water. Will it bring any benefit to the soul and body? Church officials are skeptical. For true grace, one must come to the All-Night Divine Liturgy.

What to do with the consecrated willow after the holiday?
After the consecration, willow branches should be brought home and stored in a red corner, spread out behind the icons, or you can put them in a vase so that the twigs dry or into water, then the plant will be fresh for a long time or take root. It will be possible to plant somewhere in the yard or in another place.

How many willow branches should be planted at home?
At home, you need to put the number of willow branches equal to the number of family members, or any odd number.

It is impossible to distribute your willow to anyone either in the church or after it. If someone who cannot go to church to be sprinkled and asks you to do so, then a separate bouquet should be collected for this person.

How much should willow stand after Palm Sunday?
The consecrated willow branches stand in the house until the next Palm Sunday, that is, a whole year.

Where to put last year's consecrated willow?
Willow branches consecrated in the church acquire the character of a shrine.
Priests advise burying last year's consecrated with twigs where people do not go, animals do not relieve themselves. Somewhere in the garden or at their summer cottage.
You can throw it into the river, burn it in an oven or at the stake. You can also feed the animals.

Slavic traditions.
Upon coming home from church, it is customary to symbolically whip all household members, especially children, with a willow. It is believed that then the plant gives them strength and health, while they say: "Be as strong as the willow, as healthy as its roots, and as rich as the earth!"

It is believed that willow buds after consecration can be eaten to protect oneself from diseases and troubles,
become pregnant or successfully complete some important business.
A willow is stuffed into a pillow for the deceased, put it in a coffin so that his soul goes to Paradise.
Priests consider these folk traditions absurd.

Willow branches are not a talisman. In the spiritual sense, the house is protected from evil by the prayer and faith of those who live in it. If godlessness and revelry is going on in the house, then no willows, icons and sprinkles, no crosses on the walls will save.

Don't want to miss new entries? Add me as a friend and subscribe to blog updates!
Add to friends
Subscribe to updates.

Did you like this post? Support me by liking this post on your social networks, or you can just write a comment! Your opinion is important to me!

The ancient Slavs believed that the willow has incredible power. People were convinced that she was able to provide them with protection from evil forces, protect them from troubles and help them overcome obstacles. Folk signs associated with this plant have survived to our time.

Sacred plant of our ancestors

Many believe that the superstitions associated with willow appeared because it is filled with life before other plants. If the weather did not allow the plant to bloom on time, then the willow branches were placed in water so that it would bloom by Palm Sunday. It used to be customary to lightly hit each other with a willow. It was believed that this gives a person strength and protects him.

Eating a willow bud was considered a very good sign, as this plant has medicinal properties and helps to heal many diseases. Willow branches were placed in water, and then sick children were bathed in it. Earrings of this plant were baked into bread, and in some villages they baked cookies in the form of willow buds.

A large number of signs associated with this plant have come down to us. They help to recognize the signs, they try to warn us about something important. Let's consider some of them.

• A strong wind blows on Palm Sunday - most likely, it will be windy all summer. It is warm and clear on this day - the whole summer will be hot, and the harvest will be rich.
• If on this bright day you touch a person with a willow branch, it will give him strength, health and cleanse him of negative energy.
• The consecrated willow should be kept in the house all year to protect the well-being of the family.
• There is a sign of pregnancy: in order to become pregnant, on Palm Sunday, a childless woman must eat a kidney of this plant.
• To drive bad luck and bad luck out of your life, you need to throw a willow against the wind.
• Plant branches thrown into the fire can extinguish it.
• Throwing a willow into the yard means protecting yourself from adversity.
• With severe pain, you need to touch the branches of the plant.
• To recover from the disease, you need to hug the willow, but do it no longer than 10-15 minutes a day.

In the old days, they believed that if you go to the deepest thicket of the forest, where no man has set foot, find a willow there and bring it home, then happiness, prosperity and good luck will settle in the house.

They talk about another unusual property of this plant. Believers are convinced that on the Christian feast of the Entry of the Virgin into the Temple, willow buds instantly swell and bloom, making light clicks. It is believed that the more severe the frost, the louder these clicks. This takes place on the night of December 3-4.

It also happens that on this night leaves appear on the branches of the plant, and after midnight they hide again and open only in spring. People who have managed to catch this amazing moment carry twigs to the temple or put them in the water at home.

What to do with last year's plant

When you bring home a consecrated willow, the question arises: what to do with last year's? You can't just throw it away like that. There are several options for how this can be done:

• Lower last year's plant into a reservoir (river, pond, lake).
• Burn and scatter the ashes over the river.
• If the willow has sprouted, you can plant branches in the forest or near the river.
• You can light it like a candle and walk around the house with it, saying a prayer, thereby conducting the rite of cleansing the apartment.
• In the old days, last year's branches were burned in the oven, in which Easter cakes were baked.
• Previously, last year's willow swept the corners of the house, and then burned on the street, saying words of gratitude for protecting the whole year.
• You can take the branches to the forest and leave them in the willow bushes.
• Or take them to the church, where they will burn them, saying the words of a prayer.

The question is often asked: is it possible to plant a willow near the house, on the site? In fact, you can’t plant this plant in your yard. There is a saying: if you plant a willow near your house, you will shorten your own life. Naturally, it is possible and even necessary to plant trees. But it is recommended to do this in the forest, because the willow should grow in freedom. And it is in the forest, and not in the garden, that the branches of the plant are cut for consecration in the temple.

Unusual plant properties

If the plant has taken root, it means that you are lucky in the future, prosperity and happiness await you.. It is advisable to plant a sprouted twig in a forest or near a river, making a wish, and it will certainly come true.

The twigs dried up - it means that they took upon themselves the misfortune of the owner of the house.

To feel self-confidence and vitality, you need to hang plant branches above the door of your house. Every time you enter your home, touch them.

So that the plant does not lose its strength when collecting, do not break off the branches, but carefully and carefully cut them. At the same time, mentally thank the tree, and also ask for forgiveness for taking away part of it.

It is considered a good omen to make yourself an amulet from a kidney, such a talisman will protect and heal its owner.