Shrovetide before Great Lent (Lăsatul secului, Romania)
22 February 2026 · movable holiday — Forgive me, as I forgive you – let the fire carry the grudges away.
Lăsatul secului (roughly “entering the fast”) is the Romanian name for the last Sunday before Great Lent in the Orthodox calendar. Lent begins soon after, so this is the last day for eggs and dairy, while meat is given up a week earlier, on Meatfare Sunday (Lăsatul secului de carne); this Sunday is Cheesefare Sunday (Lăsatul secului de brânză). In many parts of Romania bonfires are lit in the evening, and in some villages of Transylvania and Maramureș people practise “strigarea peste sat” (shouting over the village), calling out playful verses from a hill. Fire stands for purification. An important part of the day is asking for forgiveness: people forgive one another so they can begin the fast with a clear heart. The date is movable because it depends on Orthodox Easter, which is calculated using the Julian calendar as the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. In 2026 the day falls on 22 February. In the sky, the wheel of light recalls winter turning slowly toward spring.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver wheel made of bright points and thin lines, like a constellation, slowly rolling across the night sky and shedding tiny sparks of light
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