There are many things that come to mind when referring to Easter but no matter where you are from, Easter eggs traditions exist. We have various religious observances when referring to why this holiday is celebrated but the truth is that most people just think about Easter eggs and the mythical Easter Bunny figure.
We thus have an interesting dilemma in front of us: where to eggs and bunnies intersect? Is there a connection with Christ’s resurrection? Since most people have no idea how to answer these questions, let us take a look at Easter eggs origins and understand how they appeared in a connection with Easter.
Everything starts with Easter traditions. Many of the different customs that appeared have a connection with various holidays and celebrations that were close to Christ resurrection date. The traditions were incorporated in order to make it easier for people to convert to Christianity. Missionaries had to convince people of different things and the use of customs and festivities that already existed made it a lot easier. The resurrection of Christ is always near Sprint Equinox so various observances and traditions existed.
Spring Equinox pagan celebrations were held on the 21st of March. People were then worshiping the German fertility and springtime goddess, Eostre. The symbol for the goddess is a spring hare due to the belief that the goddess was a rabbit in earthly incarnation. Also, one of the symbols associated with Eostre was that of eggs.
The egg is a universal symbol that basically highlights the start of brand new life, a perfect symbol for spring as all flowers bloom and new life appears. Since in Christianity we have Christ’s resurrection, Easter eggs stand out as great symbols that were perfect to be used. As missionaries converted German Anglo-Saxons, festivities and symbols connected to pagan celebrations were included in Christian observances.
Decorating Easter Eggs – Why Does This Happen?
Now we know why Easter eggs were chosen as symbols but where did the decorations appear? The truth is that the decoration of the eggs was also connected with a tradition that was present at that point in time. Zoroastrians celebrate New Year on Spring Equinox day. A Nowrooz celebration that was popular was that of painted eggs.
Zoroastrians painted eggs for hundreds of years in order to have them carried and then presented to kings. The same symbol was used as mentioned above. Missionaries once again took in the tradition and made it a part of Christian celebration.
Easter Egg Tradition Variations
From country to country we do have various traditions that appear, which is normal since Easter eggs are basically linked to a combination of different cultures, religious traditions and customs. Nowadays the meaning of Easter eggs is different but traditions do practically remain the same.
In USA the tradition appeared because German immigrant children were building Easter Bunny nests. If the children were good, Easter Bunnies lay colored eggs in those nests. That is what the starting point was for the tradition.