11 February 2007
Valentine’s Day-celebration of the spirit of love!
Come February and there is an unmistakable fragrance in the air; and it is, undoubtedly, the fragrance of love. Young lovers all over the world, oblivious of the history of Valentine’s Day, send chocolates, flowers and cards to each other to express the most pristine of human emotions. So overjoyed are they to find an occasion to express their emotions openly, that studying the reasons behind the celebration of this festival seems an absolute waste of time. The essence of this festival lies in the free expression of love; and lovers surely do full justice to it.
However, for those who are truly interested in knowing the history of this day, I present a brief account of it. To begin with, according to the most popular legend, Valentine’s Day derives its name from a saint St.Valentine, who lived in Rome in the third century. In defiance of the orders of Emperor Claudius II, who outlawed marriage for young men, St. Valentine performed marriages for young lovers. This invited the wrath of the emperor who condemned St. Valentine to be put to death. Hence, according to this legend, Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the memory of this martyr who died for the cause of love. Another story related to this legend claims that St. Valentine was himself in love with the daughter of the jailor and wrote a love letter to her in which he addressed himself as “…your Valentine”. This accounts for the popularity of this expression in present times.
The above legend is Christian in its origin. There is an alternate legend related to Valentine’s Day that has its origins in pagan roman traditions. In Rome, February was marked by celebrations of the spring festival. During the festival, a special event known as the feast of Lupercalia was celebrated on the 15th of February. This day was celebrated as a fertility festival and was dedicated to the Faunus, the God of Agriculture in Roman mythology. During the celebrations of the festival, the unmarried girls would place their names in a big urn and the young men would choose a name out of the urn to be paired with that girl for that year. These pairings often culminated in marriage.
There are various others reasons for believing that this day and month, are surely the most appropriate to be chosen for a celebration of love. It is believed that February is the month for the beginning of birds’ mating season. So, if the animal kingdom celebrates this season as one of love and companionship, can humans be left far behind?
Celebrated the world over in varied cultures and traditions, Valentine’s Day is a perfect reinstatement of the fact that humankind has not lost hope in the power of love and its ability to transform lives.