Epiphany also known as Theophany in Eastern Christian tradition, is a Christian feast day commemorating the visit of the Magi, the baptism of Jesus.
This is a revived tradition. Since 2017, after a 55-year interruption, the bright Christian feast of Epiphany has been celebrated every year on January 6th in Zverino. A tradition passed down through the centuries, which annually gathers and unites people with their love for all things Bulgarian and native.
The celebration includes a solemn program with a holy liturgy, a procession, a blessing of the waters, the rescue of the Epiphany cross, and a men's ice dance at the mouth of the Zlatitsa River. The organizers of the event are the Zverino City council, the 'Fakel-1926' Community Center and patriotic young men from the village, led by Borislav Radoslavov, and with the support of Yordan Velichkov.
Details
The start of the celebration is in the early hours of the morning. At 6:00 a.m., the participants, dressed in national costumes, gather in the community center building and together welcome the special guests - the Smolyan bagpipers from “101 Kaba Bagpipes”. At 8:30 a.m., everyone goes to the 'St. Dimitar' Church, where a holy liturgy is served. A procession departs from the church to the “Prastenite” (the rings) on the Zlatitsa River, led by the icon of the Holy Baptism, gonfalons, and waving national tricolors, to the sound of bagpipes and drums.
Only local boys from Zverino participate in the rescue of the Epiphany cross from the icy waters of the Zlatitsa River! As tradition dictates, after the cross is saved, the Men's Ice Dance is performed to the rhythms of 'The Song of Captain Petko Voyvoda', in which all the other men join. The culmination of the festival is a large Bulgarian horo dance around a burning fire on the village square to the sounds of magical Bulgarian folklore.
Every year, regardless of the weather conditions, more and more people gather. In recent years, there have been hundreds of participants – not only from Zverino, but also from the entire gorge – from Sofia to Mezdra.
