Ar senČu kultu saistĪtćs maskoŠanćs tradĪcijas LatvijĀ

The article deals with three groups of masks – vecīši, dādas and ķekatas, which are connected with the ancestor cult – a set of beliefs requiring reverence to the souls of the deceased ancestors. Although the passage of a person into the after-life world is a one-way movement, some specific periods have been set, when the veļi, or the spirits of the ancestors, are invited to keep company with the living people in a kind of personal encounter. The belief about the presence of the ancestors is manifested in the ‘veļi season’ traditions and suitable forms of mask-making. These forms have changed according to regular sequences. The investigation establishes a connection between the masks and the questions of fertility and moral sense based on the respective symbolism within the tradition. The anthropomorphic character of the masks is indicative of the sense of the very process of masking within the ancestor cult tradition, as well as the symbolic representation of the outer appearance bespeaking of after-life existence. The article explains the names of the respective groups of masks and the connection existing between aged people, grandparents, people of lower social status and the world of the spirits. Although the idea of communal masking derives from the mystical consciousness, an important element of the passage involves modifications of the characters of the acting persons. In distinction from the veļi tradition, the masking rituals do not represent family-type relations with the ancestors; the feasting of the mask-bearers represents a general sacrifice to the spirits of the ancestors.