User:Est. 2021/Draft/Feast of Our Lady of the Hens

Celebration

Opening the doors

The celebrations in honor of the Madonna begin with the ritual gesture of opening the doors of the sanctuary, closed since Easter to set up the throne and prepare the statue of the Holy Virgin, which, by ancient tradition, is darkened all year round for the veneration of  believers.  In fact, while the miraculous image has always been displayed on the altar, the wooden statue was created only for a processional purpose. [Citation needed] The cloth that covers the niche of the statue is raised only in the last week of September, when it occurs  the date of the coronation of the icon, which is linked to a week of preaching and solemn masses. [What is the connection?] This event attracts thousands of citizens, pagan and non-pagan, in front of the sanctuary (which opens its gates to  18:00).

Procession

Our Lady of the Hens in procession

The religious festival takes place on Sunday in albis with a procession of the statue of the Madonna del Carmine carried on a cart formerly pushed by the faithful, but now equipped with an engine.  The people offer it to various birds, mainly hens, but also ducks, doves, turkeys, peacocks or hen.  The offering of the hens is accompanied by that of sweets or tortani, rustic pies stuffed with salami and eggs, which were once the rich food of the farmers.  Mothers bring their children closer to the Virgin, so that she can protect them.  The procession reviews the streets, alleys, courtyards and farms of Pagani with the fowl in tow, who enjoy the admiration of all, perched on the head, on the arms, at the feet of the Virgin, regardless of the noise, of the music.  and barrels, which weigh down the air.  Furthermore, along the procession route, the faithful create the toselli, votive shrines embellished with satin blankets, lace and terracotta molds.  In the courtyards, where the greatest space allows the creation of a more conspicuous tosello, there are also the statuette of the Virgin and small chicken coops, to which are sometimes added also tammurriate, exhibitions and banquets.  In front of the pontifical basilica of Sant'Alfonso, the statue of the Virgin receives a couple of hens as a gift from the Redemptorist fathers, according to the tradition begun by Saint Alphonsus himself, which is returned by the Madonna with two doves.  Immediately after the exchange rite, the procession resumes to stop again in Piazza Corpo di Cristo, where a solemn mass is sometimes celebrated outdoors, presided over by the bishop.  After the Eucharistic celebration, the procession continues its journey and the Madonna returns to the sanctuary, where, at the end of the procession, the Magnificat is sung.

Tammurriata

The most important feature that surrounds the entire festival is the tammurriata, a frenzied popular music that bursts on Friday in albis, accompanies the population for the whole day of Sunday and ends at dawn on the following Monday, when the people of devotees  he goes to lay the tammorre used during the feast at the feet of the Madonna.  The tammorra is a frame drum that releases sounds determined by the impact of the palm of the hand and fingers.  The rhythm of the tammurriata is also determined by a second instrument, strictly in tune with the tammorra.  These are the castanets (or castagnette), two pairs of wood, which, fixed to the middle of the two hands, produce a clear, ringing sound, which accompanies the darker, deafening one of the tammorra.  The tammurriata determines the beginning of the celebrations, accompanies the people in celebration during the whole Sunday and gathers the dancers beyond the party until it is finally sealed.  After the procession of the Virgin, the circles are created, where tammurriators and devotees freely give life to the tammurriata.

Deposition of tammorre

The deposition of the tammorre

At dawn on Monday, the tammorrari, engaged for three days and three nights to play and dance in the toselli, go in procession to the sanctuary, where they deposit their instruments at the feet of the Virgin and, thanking her, make an act of submission,  and then, without ever turning your back to the altar, leave the sanctuary singing the ancient popular song Madonna de la Grazia.