Forwarded from ᛉ Sagnamaðr Stark ᛉ
An old German folk tale about Ostara…
Every spring, Ostara awakens, and breathes life back into the land. Where she sets foot, the grass turns green. The hopping of the hares, some of the first animals to emerge after winter, awakens her.
But one year, Ostara awoke later than usual. As she made her rounds, she found a female bird that was on the verge of death. She nursed it back to health, and it began to greet her and travel with her each spring.
One spring, Ostara and her bird were greeted by a group of hares, one larger than the others. Her bird and the hare began to fancy each other, and danced together day and night.
Before Ostara returned to sleep, she transformed the bird into a hare. Yet, it remained a bird under its new coat of fur; when Ostara returned the next spring, it had laid eggs.
The origin of this story is not known, but it could explain why the “Easter Bunny” became associated with eggs. It’s also thought that the early Christians adopted the practice of painting Easter eggs from the Persian spring festival, Nowruz.
ᛉ
Every spring, Ostara awakens, and breathes life back into the land. Where she sets foot, the grass turns green. The hopping of the hares, some of the first animals to emerge after winter, awakens her.
But one year, Ostara awoke later than usual. As she made her rounds, she found a female bird that was on the verge of death. She nursed it back to health, and it began to greet her and travel with her each spring.
One spring, Ostara and her bird were greeted by a group of hares, one larger than the others. Her bird and the hare began to fancy each other, and danced together day and night.
Before Ostara returned to sleep, she transformed the bird into a hare. Yet, it remained a bird under its new coat of fur; when Ostara returned the next spring, it had laid eggs.
The origin of this story is not known, but it could explain why the “Easter Bunny” became associated with eggs. It’s also thought that the early Christians adopted the practice of painting Easter eggs from the Persian spring festival, Nowruz.
ᛉ