Epiphany Celebration

 

Last October my visit to Dubai was an extended and exciting one. It enabled me to attend Karwa Chowth, my granddaughter’s birthday, Diwali, my birthday, Christmas and new year. So in all it was 6 events I had attended in a span of 3 months. It was lot of fun.

After the new year party, my exuberant holiday was becoming boring. There was nothing more to look forward to. Anyways, time was nearing for my departure but an unexpected turn of events brought back blithe into my life. My son’s immediate neighbor Nelly and Tony invited us over on the 6^th of January. I was glad that the fun and gaiety was going to continue.  

As we entered the neighbor's house, we were ushered towards the garden . I noticed that the garden was pretty small and could only accommodate few guests. My two grand kids and the neighbor's two kids were bringing the roof down with the amount of noise they were creating while running around and playing.

The grown-ups settled down on the garden bench were offered wine. A huge bowl of fruits was placed on the table which comprised of tangerines, pear, apples and grapes. I was curious to know if more guests were expected but Nelly the lady of the house said we were the guest of honour for that evening. Although the nightmare of pandemic had abated, people in Dubai were still being cautious about inviting too many families together so it was just our family.

While I was greedily devouring the fruits, there was another small bowl of dry fruits and dates brought around. I drank little and indulged more in eating as fruits and nuts are my favorite. An hour and half later, we heard Nelly announce that the cake is being cut and therefore everyone must surround the table where the cake was placed.

The kids also joined us. The man of the house was cutting the cake slice by slice and the kids were handing over the plates.  We were told not to eat until everyone had their plates. I was impatient! Not to eat the cake, but to find out why we were asked to wait. When everyone was served, Tony announced that they were celebrating epiphany, a very old French tradition and the cake consisted of a small porcelain toy. Whoever finds the toy, will be crowned king or queen of the evening. Everyone was happily savoring the cake, it was yummy!! All of a sudden, guess what? I bit into a hard substance. I knew immediately what it would be!! I pulled it out of my mouth and announced loudly that I had the toy. Everyone clapped and cheered for me. I was then crowned the Queen. Wow!! This was such a lovely event to celebrate. I never had the opportunity to attend a celebration of this kind ever before. I was curious to find out more about this tradition and this is what I learnt: 

Epiphany, also called Feast of the Epiphany, Theophany, or Three Kings' Day, is derived from the Greek word epiphaneia which means “to reveal”. This is a Christian feast celebrated on the 6^th of January, 12 days after Christmas. It commemorates how a star led the Magi or the three kings or wise men, to the baby Jesus. Countries celebrate on the evening before, and on the actual day with parades of decorative floats, and people turn out in costume as kings bearing gifts. This was the day when the baby Jesus was 'revealed' to the world.

In Spain, children traditionally do not receive their presents on Christmas Day, instead they are given presents on January 6. Christians believe that it took 12 days after the birth of Jesus for the wise men, to travel to Bethlehem for the Epiphany when they recognized him as the son of God.

Epiphany Day is primarily observed by Orthodox, Catholic, and Anglican Christians. However, many Protestant believers don't understand the spiritual significance behind this holiday which is one of the earliest feasts of the Christian church. Epiphany is known as the holiday of light and finds representation with a dish of oranges, blood oranges, clementines or tangerines on the dinner table. Dried figs nestle among the dessert treats, which include spicy-exotic cakes. Because the Magi hailed from the Orient, spicy cake is a traditional Epiphany staple.

There is an old legend of a 4th Wiseman named Artaban. Like the other 3 wise men, he sees signs in the heaven proclaiming that a King had been born among the Jews. And so, he sets out to see the newborn ruler, carrying treasures to give as gifts to the child - a sapphire, a ruby, and a pearl of great price.

 The names of the 3 wise men were Gaspar (or Caspar), Melchior, and Balthasar. They brought along with them three symbolic gifts to give to Jesus. They were Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Since then, this event included in the Gospel of Matthew, is celebrated in all Spanish speaking countries around the world.