Stay at home. On the second day of Easter, in Şugag, Alba county, young people married in the year before Easter gather in front of the local town hall to celebrate the custom of Statu’ la vase on Easter Monday. In the past, this custom was practiced in several areas of the country, but now people have started to forget it.
Stand at the dishes, the unusual custom of the second day of Easter
Young couples come to church dressed in the black and white Shugajan costume, to which the men attach a whistle to their waist. After the religious service, the bride and groom gather in the center of the village to receive the blessing of the priests, through a special service.
Guests give them gifts
Every young family has a table that the wife decorates as beautifully as possible with selected dishes, specific to Easter. They prepare food for relatives, family, neighbors and friends. The guests give gifts to the couples. Most often, they offer dishes. The procession of guests begins with the godfather who offers the first gift for the young family in exchange for a cake made of fine flour and called “pupăza”.
The rest of the guests give other household items, two each, which signifies the new union formed by the young people who have moved on to family life.
This year, 14 young families are carrying on the tradition. The large number of families led the organizers to move the custom from the churchyard to the center of the village to have more space, according to A3.
Surprises for young couples
This year, the Alba County Folk Ensemble, directed by Alexandru Pal, will support an artistic celebration program. The event will end with the traditional instrumental group “Fluierașii din Șugag”.
The spiritual father of the custom is Marius Moga senior, originally from Șugag. He was actively involved in the revival and preservation of this tradition.
The event is organized by the Alba County Council and the “Augustin Bena” Culture Center in partnership with the Town Hall of the Șugag Municipality and the Șugag Orthodox Church, according to alba24.
