Firefighting - walking tying embers

I want to introduce you to Bulgaria and one of our slightly mystical customs

Firefighting - walking tying embers

Fire-dancing is one of the oldest Bulgarian customs, which in the past was practiced in Aegean Thrace, and today is preserved only in a few villages in the Strandzha Mountains - Bulgari, Kosti, Brodilovo. In 2009, the ritual was included in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. According to some researchers, the roots of the ritual lie in the pagan past of these lands and originate from the cult of the Sun among the Thracians.
Barefoot dancing on embers is a unique custom performed by certain communities, whose patrons are St. St. Constantine and Helena. Although firefighting is associated with year-round ritual practices, its peak is on June 3.

The preparation of the fire embers starts before noon. It must be spread in a regular circle, around which people later line up to watch the fire dance.
The firefighters in a state of trance enter the circle with shouts, as the first one crosses the embers of the cross, after which the other firefighters enter the circle of fire. Particularly characteristic is the small and flat step with which the firefighters walk on the embers and still do not injure their feet.

Firefighting, this is one of our phenomena, perhaps a pagan dance, a cult of the sun, but it is still practiced today and always arouses admiration.