– both those commonly known and less obvious. It’s not just about putting hay under the tablecloth or leaving an empty plate at the table for a lost wanderer.
In the Polish tradition, there was also another one in the past a custom that is rarely paid attention to today, but which was of great importance to our great-grandparents. It’s about blowing out the candle.
Our ancestors believed that blowing out the candle on Christmas Eve brings . For them, fire was a carrier of life energy, as well as an intermediary between our world and the spiritual sphere.
December 24 was considered the day when the boundaries between these two spheres blurred. So it was feared that If you handle the flame carelessly, you can be unnecessarily disrespectful and expose yourself to misfortune and failure in the future.
By blowing out the flame, a person can drive away good energy and and the smoke floating in the air can take with it the good fortune of whoever dared to blow out the candle.
In that case, How to properly extinguish a candle if not by blowing it out? It is considered safest in terms of energy to simply wait until it goes out on its own. Under no circumstances should you use your breath for this purpose.
A candle extinguisher that can be used many times will work well. You can also gently dip the wick into the wax with a stick (the flame will go out without smoke) or cover the flame with a lid, thus cutting off air access to it. The ancestors believed that, instead of dispelling it.
Even in the past, however, some people intentionally extinguished candles with one decisive blow, asking specific questions in their minds. In this way, entire families predicted the future by observing what happened to the smoke after the flame was extinguished.
If it was thin and straight, you could count on a long life, happiness, a peaceful year and fulfillment of dreams. Smoke curling towards a window or door or retreating was not a good omen. It meant that there would be obstacles or false people around on the way to implementing the plans.
If there were sparks or a loud crash, it was a harbinger of unexpected events and changes. A candle that went out on its own meant that the moment was inappropriate.
