In the previous article, we introduced Hryhoriy Dzhul, a musician, conductor, cultural activist, and educator. It was he who founded and worked for decades with the Koliada folk group.
A Nativity Scene Experience in His Childhood. Awakening of the Musician’s Soul
We started telling you about his professional and creative career path from his very childhood, and these memories were shared with us by Hryhoriy Dzhul’s wife Mrs Olha. And now we are going to immerse ourselves in Hryhoriy’s warm Christmas memories of the Nativity Scene.
‘The long-awaited evening has come at last! The family is dressed up in festive clothes and waiting for the carolers. The Didukh is glowing golden under the icons in its place of honour. The fire crackles cheerfully in the stove. The aromas of a festive dinner are spreading from the kitchen. We – children of nine, seven and three years old – peer through the frozen window, waiting for a miracle. There will be a nativity scene performance today!
Finally, we hear the bells ringing, knocking on the window, calling out: ‘Let us ring the bells, let us carol! ‘Come in, come in,’ replies my father. The boys bring a church-shaped szopka (Vertep) into the house, put it on the chest in front of us, and wait for everyone to come in. We stared at the Nativity Scene. Violins, flute, cymbals, and tambourine started playing, and the boys started singing ‘The eternal God is born’. I froze, my hair stood on end because of the unexpected solemn power and beauty of the ancient carol… The performance began.
A candle was lit in the szopka. They were performing the scene from the story when King Herod ordered all the little children to be slaughtered. The soldiers stabbed with their swords every child who came into their sight! Heads were rolling on the ground and blood was flowing. Rachel’s mother fell down on her knees in front of her slaughtered children and wept loudly, stretching her arms to heaven.
I cried quietly, followed by Irka. The boys sang: ‘Do not cry, Rachel. Your babies’ bodies have been chopped up, but their souls are intact. They will never die, they will become angels.’ The carolers sang quietly at first, in one voice, and then continued in polyphony louder and louder, until the sound of the carol filled the entire space. The voices ‘’competed‘’ with each other. Each part was rushing forward, leading its own motif. Finally, the voices, in reconciliation, intertwined, gradually fading away, and came to a halt. The carol struck me with its power and versatility. It was pulsating in me and did not let go…
Little Pavlun in his cradle saw my sister and me crying and started to cry the loudest! The boys sang ‘We are all merry at Christmas’. But I couldn’t hear or see anything anymore. The terrible story performed, reinforced by the fierce power of the carol, pulsed and pulsed in me and did not let go…
Our father gave the carolers money for the church, and our mother dropped some fragrant cakes into their sack. The carolers took the bag out of the house and left. The three of us sobbed even harder. My mother came in from the hayloft and cried with us, taking little Pavlun in her arms. Dad escorted the carolers out of the yard and came back to the house to evidence a ‘great flood’! He hugged my sister and me and sat down next to us. And it became so warm in his arms: cosy, calm, that we gradually calmed down and fell silent. Dad said solemnly: ‘Christ is born!’ ‘Let us praise him!’ we answered with trembling voices.
It seemed to me that the song was my soul! It echoed and spun, resounding in my brain. It clenches my heart to pain, swells my chest, falls like a stone into my stomach, and makes me cry and laugh. It is tearing out. And I held it here with my hands, near my throat, and I will never let it go. Because how can I continue to live without my soul?
Since then, my father began to read to us in the evenings not only Shevchenko, Kulish, and Franko, but also the Bible and Christian parables.”
From the memoirs of Hryhoriy Dzhul
We are sincerely grateful to Olha Dzhul for sharing her valuable memories!
In our next articles, we will tell you more about the Ukrainian customs and traditions that Hryhoriy Dzhul brought to Bohuslavshchyna, about the Koliada group, and, of course, about how much he loved Ukraine and did everything for its development and freedom.
“Portal through the Centuries: Bohuslav Carols” is implemented by the “Around Us. UA” NGO as part of the “From Ideas to Action” training course.
The training course “From Ideas to Action” is implemented with the support of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED) within the framework of the Safe Harbour Initiative. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official position of the EED and are the sole responsibility of the “Buslav Sich” NGO.
Photo courtesy of Olha Dzhul, family archive.
