WNAM MONITORING: Azerbaijan celebrates the first Tuesday before Novruz Holiday – the Tuesday of Water or Su Chershenbesi today.
The Spring is approaching, which means the festive Novruz Holiday won’t keep us waiting. Novruz, loved by all Azerbaijanis, is celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox and symbolizes a new life.
Novruz celebrations begin a month before the actual holiday. The four Tuesdays named after these elements and called Su Chershenbesi (Water Tuesday), Od Chershenbesi (Fire Tuesday), Yel Chershenbesi (Wind Tuesday), and Ilakhir Chershenbe or Torpaq Chershenbesi (Earth or Last Tuesday) are being celebrated before the main holiday.
Each Tuesday has its own traditions. Water is a symbol of purification and clarification.
Water purifies and stirs, fire, earth and wind awaken the nature, and trees begin to blossom, symbolizing the coming of spring.
Since God created man from water and earth, water symbolizes the beginning of life, and legend has it that water is renewed on this day.
On this day, young girls used to walk to springs in the mountains to get pure water, and came back with water in their Sahangs, a traditional Azeri jug made of metal with special carvings on it. Girls used to splash water around their houses and on their relatives’ faces. A bowl of water in the Khoncha, a Novruz tray with nuts and sweets, is a required attribute of Water Tuesday.
