October 22 is the festival of "White Cranes". History and features of the holiday

October 22 is the holiday of the White Cranes. This memorable day is known not only throughout Russia and CIS countries, but also far beyond their borders. The great holiday is dedicated to the memory of soldiers who died in the battlefields of the Great Patriotic War and buried in mass graves. Such a poetic name appeared due to the same poem by R. Gamzatov. It was he who became the founder of this wonderful memorable day.

about the author

The poet was born in September 1923 in the village of Tsada, located in Dagestan. Poet and laureate of the State Prize of the Soviet Union.

He graduated from the Arian school and the Avar pedagogical school. After graduation he worked as a teacher, then as an assistant to the director, as a correspondent in the newspaper Bolshevik Gory, and as an editor in the radio committee of Dagestan. Since 1945 he began studying at the Institute. Maxim Gorky in Moscow. Since 1951, Rasul Gamzatovich served as chairman of the Writers' Union of Dagestan. In this position he remained for the rest of his life.
Gamzatov began his creative career at the age of nine. Very early his poems were in newspapers and magazines. The first collection of poems was published in 1943 in the Avar language. Many of his works later became songs.

Rasul Gamzatovich has a lot of government awards, titles and prizes. His name is widely known outside of Russia and CIS countries. The writer died in 2003, he was buried near the Tarki-Tau mountain, near the grave of his wife.

The history of the holiday of White Cranes

On October 22, one of the most sad holidays celebrating the memory of the victims during the Great Patriotic War is celebrated. But why exactly did cranes become a symbol of celebration? Retribution of honors to the soldiers takes place on October 22. The festival of White Cranes was offered to celebrate the poet Gamzatov Rasul Gamzatovich. He is the author of the same poem "Cranes".
Initially, this day was celebrated only in Dagestan, but very soon the relay took over many cities and countries of our vast homeland. The poem, written by Gamzatov, also underwent a change. The poet wrote in the initial version of the line: "It seems to me sometimes that the dzhigits ...", which was later changed. The initiator of such a change was Mark Bernes - the first singer of the song. The profound meaning of this soulful work made a great impression on the songbook. The singer suggested changing the word "dzhigits" to the synonym "soldiers". It was in this version that the song was heard by a huge audience.
The lyrics were an epigraph for the holiday.

In Dagestan, honoring takes place in the village of Gunib. It is here that representatives of different nations try to come on October 22. The festival of White Cranes is a symbol of endless peace and solidarity in many fraternal countries and republics.

The impetus for writing the poem was a sad event that occurred in Japan, which the poet visited. In August 1945, the atomic bomb struck in Hiroshima.

As a result of the explosion, tens of thousands of people were affected. So, one little girl, who was only 8 years old, named Sadako Sasaki, became a victim of radiation sickness. According to the Japanese tradition, if a sick person makes a thousand cranes-origami, tsuru, he will recover. Sadako struggled to make a thousand paper cranes, but managed only 644. This story to the depths of the soul struck the poet, and he wrote a poem "White Cranes."

In August 1986, the first time a monument with a picture of cranes was discovered. The grand opening was held in Dagestan. At the heart of his composition are cranes. This first "crane" monument was the starting point for the celebration of the days of "White Cranes".

The Crane Symbol

Why is the crane a symbol of this poetic holiday? In many cultures the white crane is the personification of spirituality, peace, light and warmth. In Japan, this is the embodiment of longevity, in China - a symbol of immortality, in Christianity - respectability and patience, among African peoples - the messenger of the gods. In the Caucasus it is said that the souls of warriors who died in battle turn into snow-white cranes and swell upward.

In many cultures the crane is the mediator between the worlds of people and gods. He is a bright sign of liberation and immortality, symbolizing peace and prosperity.

Poetic solidarity

Every year, October 22 invites the literary holiday "White Cranes" to schools, libraries, universities, writers and poets' clubs, and many other institutions in our country and abroad.

The epithet of the celebration is Gamzatov's poem "The White Cranes". The lines of this creation open up the events, they are immortalized in the stone tombstones.
Traditionally, there is a holiday of the White Cranes on October 22nd. The script is written using a huge number of poems. These poetic sketches are dedicated to soldiers who gave their lives in the battles for their Motherland.

Immortalized in stone

In 2009, UNESCO proclaimed: October 22 - the White Cranes Festival, placing it on the international list of memorable events. It is a holiday of solidarity and a poetic song about the dead soldiers all over the world. The meaning of this memorable date was the commemoration of the memory of the innocently left soldiers during the various wars around the world, which continue, unfortunately, to this day.
Most often, monuments are executed in the form of eternal fire, cranes, the image of a mother and a soldier. The holiday served as the beginning of the creation of "crane" monuments in the whole vast world.

Feast of the White Cranes - October 22

Photos of the "cranes" monuments you can see on this page. In 1986, the first such monument was opened in the village of Gunib. Every year at the memorial on October 22, honoring soldiers who have not returned from the battlefields. Here, under the white Russian birches, the soldiers of the Absheron regiment and the mountaineers of Shamil are buried.

In 1980, a memorial was opened in St. Petersburg under the name "Cranes".

In Saratov is the highest "crane" monument on the Sokolovskaya mountain. The opening took place in 1982 on May 9. The structure consists of 5 levels, each of which symbolizes the city, for the liberation of which the Saratovites fought. Three forty-meter arrows are framed by cranes, as a symbol of freedom and purity.

In 2015, in honor of the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Great Victory over the Nazis in Astrakhan, a memorial was erected under the name "White Cranes".

It is located in the Victory Park. A stele fourteen meters high gives a run-up to the cranes rising above the monument. It is a symbol of infinity and purity.

Interesting Facts

After the opening of the first "crane" monument in Dagestan, commemorative sculptures depicting hovering cranes began to be erected all over the country and beyond. Nineteen of these monuments are best known on the expanses of Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Dagestan and many other countries and republics.
After the performance of the song "White Cranes" by Mark Bernes , her popularity began to grow outside the country. Especially popular was the event due to the introduction of this significant day in the UNESCO list. British singer Mark Almond recorded a single in English called "The Storks". In 2008, the Polish band "Majdanek Waltz" recorded the song "Zurawi".

Conclusion

Be sure to visit the "crane" monument on October 22. The Feast of the White Cranes symbolizes not only the bright memory of the deceased soldiers, but also the hope for a bright peacetime. Honor the feat of ordinary soldiers defending their native lands and our mighty power.