105 Chapter 6. Manifestation of Various Values in Traditional Udmurt Feasts feast, and the pancakes are baked first thing the next day, on the very day of the feast. Bread and various cereal products are also baked to treat the guests. The family tries to lay the table more richly than on ordinary days. On this day, older female relatives are invited to bake pancakes, with the most respected female baking them first on that morning. Fig. 3. Baking pancakes in the oven, Bayshady, Bashkortostan, 2018 (Photo: Tatiana Minniyakhmetova) The next day after the preparations, when the sun has come up, the table is laid with all the prepared dishes. When serving, charcoal—the magic protection—is thrown into the vessel that contains the beestings. For the same purpose, in order to maintain prosperity, the hostess circles the ritual table with a knife. Afterwards, she lights a fire in the stove which must be kept alive throughout the entire day. While these preparations are going on early in the morning, the relatives and neighbors are invited to the ritual meal. Usually, if there is a lot of beestings and the village is not very big, all the villagers are invited to the meal. Before the guests’ arrival, the stove is stoked for baking pancakes. Standing in front of the stove, the hostess prays for the health and fertility of the cow and cattle, as well as for a prosperous life for the family (Minniyakhmetova 1995: 332). After the prayer, she begins to bake pancakes. When some pancakes have been baked, one of the invited females takes the initiative in baking. The first pancake is given to the cow.
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