Dance of fire

Bulgarian ancestral ritual.

The Fire Dance or dance on embers, call “Nestinarstvo” in Bulgarian language, It is an ancient rite in which people walk on red-hot embers. It is also done in Greece and here in Spain (in the province of Soria).

Tradition marks that “nestinari” What are the “fire dancers” dance on the night of the feast of “Saints Constantine and Helena”, of 3 al 4 June according to the old calendar or the 21 May according to the current. Since 2009, the ritual is included in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

In Bulgaria the ritual is kept in its authentic format in one place: the village of “Bulgarian” in the Strandzha Mountains that are located in the Southeast of the country, near the border with Greece and Turkey (Istanbul area). In the past the villages of Kosti and Brodilovo in Greece and those of Gramatikovo, Slivarevo and Kondolovo in Bulgaria were also villas “nestinarstvo”. The fire dance is now practiced in other places in Bulgaria besides in “Bulgarian”, but it is more like attraction and tourist show, sometimes even in restaurants, summer festivals, etc. They do not have the tradition and authenticity of the original but they allow people to know this ancient ritual and keep it alive.

Montañas Strandzha in Bulgaria

It is also currently performed in some towns in Greece and here in Spain a similar ritual is performed in the province of Soria.. How is it possible that being Bulgaria to the East of Europe and Spain to the West they share this ritual, which is unknown in the rest of Europe?…, there is nothing proven but the explanation may be in the Celtic origin of this ritual, the Celts were originally from Central Europe (the current Germany) and from there they spread and migrated westward reaching Spain and Portugal, and east to present-day Bulgaria, and even Turkey.

Another fact that supports this theory of common Celtic origin is the fact shared between Spain and Bulgaria of the use of the bagpipe as a traditional musical instrument because in Bulgaria the bagpipe is also a well-known instrument used in folk music today.…The origin of the ritual of the fire dance is pagan although later in Bulgaria it was mixed with the religious (orthodox christian).

Other historians, although they agree on the pagan origin of the ritual, they associate it with the Thracian culture (tribes, ancestors of present-day Bulgarians). The “nestinari” they wear an icon of Saint Constantine in their dance ritual (Emperor Constantine The Great, which gave Christianity its equal status within the Roman Empire with the Edict of Milan) and Saint Helena (mother of Constantine the Great), despite which the ritual of the fire dance has never been recognized by the Orthodox Church, that in the past pursued its celebration and the dancers “nestinari” were demonized by the Church as possessed by the Devil, since sometimes the ritual included episodes in which the dancers went into a trance…

But, What is the original ritual? In the early morning of the day of Saint Constantine and Saint Helena, three young people carry the icon of these saints on pilgrimage and residents join the procession. The icon is enshrined and the attendees dance the traditional Bulgarian dance or “horo” to the music of drums and bagpipes. The natural hot springs, abundant in Bulgaria (see article Health tourism), it is thought that on these dates they have the best healing properties of the whole year. After the consecration of the icon the Nestinari enter the chapel to leave the icon there. The nestinari spend the rest of the day there, listening to the special sound of drums continuously, bringing them into a trance state. Then they start dancing, carry sacred objects as icons, church lamps, religious clothing, etc. Meanwhile a fire begins to be prepared in the town square and the oldest “nestinar”, whether man or woman, but too old to dance, is dedicated to preparing the embers on the floor of the square spreading them forming a layer of about 5 a 6 centimeters and 2 meters in diameter. Once the embers are prepared, the older dancers dance around the embers, then the rest of the dancers start to cross the embers on foot, pressed his bare feet against the red hot embers. During the dances the dancers carry the icon of Saints Constantine and Helena decorated with flowers. In their trance state dancers sometimes utter prophecies. Gradually the dances slow down and the movements calm down to completion. At the end of the ritual the dancers return the icon to the chapel.

In addition to fire resistance, What is remarkable after stepping on the embers is that the dancers' feet show no signs of burns or wounds. Doctors have found that the skin on the feet of dancers “nestinari” is delicate, no calluses, like any other, despite which the feet are not damaged. In any case, the corns or hardness of the skin on the soles of the feet would not be sufficient protection for the feet since the dancers sink their feet into the embers, not only is the sole of the foot in contact with the ember, but practically the entire foot is in contact with the burning embers, therefore there is no scientific explanation why the feet of these dancers do not suffer burns, not even scratches when stepping on the embers, which gives rise to many speculations and of course to increase the mysticism of the ritual.

It can be understood that “nestinari” are psychologically prepared to resist pain and endure the heat of the embers but no one can explain why the feet are not injured or burned. From the mentality of the followers of the ritual it is an undoubted manifestation of faith and a miracle… It is best to see the entire ritual in person and draw your own conclusions.…

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