A rather evident societal movement that aims to establish the elements of pagan beliefs in the contemporary life exists in Lithuania. Its origin goes back to Romuva founded at Vilnius university in 1967. In those Soviet times, the authorities would not have tolerated the interest into ancient religions therefore folklore served as the beginning: the activity of folklore groups, folklore expeditions, collecting of ethnographic data, etc. But then also i.e. in 1967, the first Rasa Feast Day (Eve of the Feast of St. John the Baptist) was organised by Vilnius' Romuva at Kemave' with special respect to ancient traditions. Though closed by authorities in 1971, this students' organisation did not stop its activities but, on the contrary, engaged in ethnographic work it followed the slogan: the accumulated folklore data, customs and traditions are to find practical application in life. As openly this could not be practised, small groups of like-minded people gathered, families also successfully carried the pursuit, Rasa Feast Day being (and later was) the most favoured one.
How it was celebrated? It is example from Rasa Feast Day 12-13 years ago. About 50 students, gathered for the occasion, the place of meeting being notified by telephone on the eve (the place was constantly changed as to avoid the undesired people). Several times the National Park, one of the nicest spots of Lithuania, was chosen for the gatherings. Only good acquaintances were invited. The script was written by someone older and the ritual was usually opened by the sounds of the horn. Some people arrived earlier for to fell some little trees, make gates and prepare logs for a bonfire, while girls braided wreaths. The informant told to have once braided several wreaths their total length being 6 metres. Everyone brought something for refreshments, the foods were set on some peculiar stone. Wild strawberries were gathered, once they caught crayfish. All people were dressed in national costumes.
At the beginning of the celebration all passed through set and decorated gates, washed their faces and dried them with a linen towel. Girls gave braided from fragrant field flowers and greenery wreaths to young men. Afterwards they would go kupoliauti (to gather armfuls of field flowers and grasses): a flower of a grass of one sort was picked up every 9 steps, later some person explained the meaning of the contents of the bouquet. An altar was made up of stones where the fire would burn, singing songs and sutartine's (polyphonic songs) about the Sun, they waited for the sunset. As the last rays of the sunset dimmed in the west, they would start to throw the wreaths into water and bathe in flowing water. Later when darkness fell, they used to go boating (in pairs or in groups). As the majority were young, it was curious who would go or dance with whom, etc. (Some families were conditioned by these attachment later). At dawn they would visit fields, linger under an oak, then under a linden, singing songs where these trees were mentioned of sutartine's - parugine's (rye visiting polyphonic songs). After the sunrise, they would all disperse unkurriedly. (The author's interview with A. Nakiene' 1995.)
With the declaration of independence the pagan movement made attempts to be officially registered as a community of traditional religions. But as according to the Act of Religions, a doctrine of pre-Christian belief is not considered a traditional religion, only the Kaunas and Vilnius religious communities of Baltai (the Balts) were registered. In 1992 the Rudiments comprising 8 items were proclaimed. Here are they briefly presented:
1. Being a Lithuanian national religion, Romuva follows the ancient Baltic religion but does not deny other religions; it raises the sainthood of Nature.
2. The religion of the Balts is not based on dogma, prediction of revelation, its essence is the harmony of Nature and man,
3. Romuva is the place where man can concentrate, find comfort and spiritual harmony.
4. The entire world and human life is the manifestation of the great Life. The Balts called it God, Zhemyna, Motina (Mother) or by other names of gods.
5. Only a body dies, while a soul transfers into another form of life.
6. The source of the belief of the Balts are folk songs, legends, customs and other valuable inheritance of our ancestors. Calendar, family and national feast days are celebrated. The rituals are performed in special places (alkai).
7. The basis of the belief is Morals. Virtues are fairness, industrious-ness, modesty, harmony, i.e. the ability to get on with other people and the world as a whole.
8. Virtues are developed by tradition in the community and in the family. (Druvis 1992, 4).
Presently the community comprises 80-90 people in Vilnius, Kaunas and Telshiai, though at traditional feasts a much greater number of people gather. (The author's interview with Jonas Trinkünas, elder of the Romuva union 1995.)
As stated by the members of Romuva community, this movement is not an accidental phenomenon. It attempts to prolong the existence of natural features, since old having been alive and vivid in the Lithuanian culture and nation. They derive inspirations from the works of a theo-philosopher Vydünas as well as the activity of the people who revived the Romuva belief in Lithuania in the period between two wars. The word Romuva originates from Remove', an ancient Prussian temple mentioned in the chronicles. No historian source gives a testimony of this ancient Lithuanian religion in the name of Romuva or in the form it is presently understood. But the members of the Romuva movement do not have any doubts about the very existence of such religion: in their opinion, ancient pagan did exist, had their religion but being Christians, chroniclers made no mention of it (Shiaure's Ate'nai (Nothen Athens) 1994).
The movement of modern pagans does not have any solid structure or hierarchy and the membership of activity is a matter of free choice and decision for an individual. Generally they are united by the same world outlook and total indifference towards the Christian tradition. Some groups though, join the elements of Christianity and paganism while their concept of sacredness corresponds with the Christian and pagan layers. The revivaliate of paganism holds a notion that the manifestations of sacredness and rituals having survived in folklore and ethnography, there is no need to create new ones. But the preserved in folklore elements of the ancient religion are given a somewhat different interpretation by pagans than they are usually construed by folklore specialists. Let's say, sutartine' which folklore researchers ascribe to the songs of work, or to the season of manuring fields to be more exact, is considered by pagans a sacral song revealing ancient religions symbols. Another typical example might be a harvest song Shaly kelio jovaras stove'ja (At the road a popular stood). For the solemn and rather rigorous character of its melody and the symbolics of its lyrics, it has become the religions song for the ceremonial opening of Romuva meetings (Druvis 1992).
At present this community strives to establish itself firmly in the social life of Lithuania and to attract more attention on its existence. For this reason, an attempt is made to more precisely formulate and define the rudiments of pagan world outlook. Every now and then debates with the representatives of the acknowledged traditional confessions occur, who do not find the only act of belief to be sufficient enough. Jonas Trinkünas, the leader of the community, claims that three requirements necessary for a religions confession are possessed by Romuva, i.e. community, belief truths and rituals. But they all are not strictly formulated of normed by Romuva of the Baltic belief. In their words, the Lithuanian tradition implies two traditions: polytheistic and monotheistic. Both can also be noticed in Romuva. By some people the former is found more congenial as they positively access the world variety and the diversity of human life in general. Another opinion urges the "reconstruction" of the hierarchy of pagan priests, the foundation of temples and the election of authoritative spiritual government. The oponents to this point of view argue the reconstruction of prechristian religion to be impossible as it has no written tradition. It had survived for ages but various alterations and dogma was, most probably, foreign to it. Modern pagans think that religions dogmas were implied by naturally existing things, e.g. sun, water, tree... The ancient religion is believed to be experienced rather than comprehended. The most essential thing for them is sacral experience and sacral lies with nature, felt while together for the celebration of some feast or in the course of practices and which is the culmination of the ritual (the author's interview with J. Trinkünas 1995).
It is interesting to note that by the movement nature and folk songs are considered a pagan of Lithuanian "system". They claim that songs embrace an entire whole. Therefore they tend to directly to understand the folk songs' contexts, adopting them to one of another ceremony or feast with reference to their subject matter.
It must be stated that for the main data about the ancient religion different groups of modern pagans apply to folk songs and other folklore sources. Referred to are also scare data spotted in historical sources and contemporary studies of religion (an important source has become a recently-published G. Beresnevichius' study Religine's reformos (Reforms of Religion) and an earlier published one Dausos (Heaven).
Modern pagans celebrate, main calendar feastdays: Easter, Rasa Feast, All Souls' Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas. The calendar notifies some other feast days (with dates) but not all of them are to be observed. Rituals are very simple, only the feelings of community and amity are of great importance. People dance, bonfires are lit, the fire being one of the most important components of a ritual. (In Vilnius the ritual Fire was lit in the summer of 1989 on the hill of Gediminas' grave. Modern pagans think that in the home of every Lithuanian a family heart should be fostered - a little altar to be lit during the family or other feastdays). Among other ceremonies, common refreshment is also very important. Celebrating calendar feast days, adequate songs, dances, rounds and sutartines are performed. An important ritual moment is a nature visit which increases the feeling of harmony. On All Souls' Day ancient burial mounds are visited where special songs are also performed. All pagan groups sing almost the same songs (about 50), the texts telling about the dead, talking with them or revealing orphans' grief, etc. (According to the folklore classification, there are no songs special for All Souls' Day).
By performing ancient songs, modern pagans feel the spirit "rising from the depths of the ancient belief (Shiaure's Ate'nai 1994). It is thought that songs correspond the most essential layer of world outlook and ritual of the Balts. There are songs which are performed by water as they tell about flowing water, the others - about an oak or on hill.
The members arrange texts of the feast days. There are already the texts for christenings or namedays, funerals, those for weddings are under preparation but it is not necessary to accept them or strictly keep to them. The present-day feasts are celebrated openly but in small groups. Vilnius' Romuva is a group of 20-30 good friends or acquaintances, weddings or children's christenings of almost all of them having been performed according to ancient pagan customs. Some years ago when a son of one of the movement leaders drowned, his body was cremated and buried following the pagan practices. Fire was carried in front of the funeral procession.
The members of the community come together with their families. There is a tradition in some families to play ancient musical instruments. The Trinkünas' family should be noted here as one of the most active. But when in their "teens" children try to escape common ceremonies or even openly protest their parents' wish to participate in the community feasts. Parents do not usually compel their participation (The author's interview with J. Trinkünas 1995).
This summer one modern pagan groups which does not ascribe itself to Romuva community, celebrated a wedding. About 20 people prepared for it for 2 months, the most important thing being to select and learn about 50 wedding songs (selected form the volumes of Wedding Songs from a Thesaurus of Lithuanian Folk Song, edited by Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore). The feast took place in the National Park, with the wedding eve and the major eve feasted before. All were dressed in national costumes and the main accent of the ceremony was on singing of learnt songs. The wedding rings were put on by elder person of the group. They come together for the calendar feast days, never drink alcoholic beverages and are close by their common outlook (The author's interview with Regina Zhiliene' 1995).
Modern pagans have been recently rather often noticed in the society. In Vilnius the sites of real or imaginary pagan temples have been fixed and recorded. While restoring Vilnius Cathedral, in its undergrounds was found a basement of a square room with the remains of an altar in the middle. It was identified by archaeologists as pagan temple and dated back to the first period of pagan reaction - between the Christening of King Mindaugas in 1251 and the official christening of Lithuania in 1387 accepted by Grand Duke Vytautas (Kitkauskas 1994). The remains of another temple were identified at Verkiai estate near Vilnius.
The most distinct sign of the social establishment of modern paganism is perhaps connected with the inauguration of Algirdas Brazauskas, President of Lithuania, elected in 1993. The script of the ceremony tended to stress the state tradition of the Great Duchy of Lithuania, paganism and Christianity appearing at the same level of importance. At the beginning, on the Castle Hill pagan ritual was held, a bonfire was burnt and President's official flag was sanctified, afterwards President attended the Christian ceremony at the Cathedral where the official flag was once more consecrated by the Bishop of Vilnius.
Interview with Jonas Trinkunas. 1995. Interview with Auste' Nakiene.' 1995. Interview with Regina Zhiliene'. 1995.
Beresnevichius, G. 1990: Baltu religijos reformos. Vilnius.
Beresnevichius, G. 1990: Dausos: Pomirtinio gyvenimo samprata senojoje lietuviu pasaule'zhiuroje. Vilnius.
Druvis 1992: Vilniaus Romuva.
Kitkauskas, N. 1994: Vilniaus arkikatedros pozhemiai. Kultüra.
Shiaure's Ate'nai 1994, No. 44.