Matura is one of the most remote of the traditional twelve communes of Pshavi. It is 7 kilometers from the nearest road, at the head of the Matura valley (just over the ridge to the north is a branch of the Ardot'i Valley of Xevsureti). In the summer, it is possible to hike alongside the Maturis c'q'ali, the river that flows down from Matura to join the Aragvi just below Muko and Gogolaurta. In the winter, however, the river valley is blocked by snow, and the risk of avalanches makes it too dangerous in any case. One has to walk to Matura along a higher path that overlooks the valley (at about 1500 m altitude), and which is usually snow-free, although it can be slippery due to ice. Our guide was Pavle Mgelashvili, an 82-year-old Pshavian for whom the hike to Matura is no bigger a deal than a stroll to the corner store for us city folk. After P'aat'a and I reached Matura (after nearly being lost in a blizzard) we met Sik'o Tadiauri, who is one of two traditional priests (xevisberi) still living in Matura. Sik'o and his wife Elo made xink'ali (meat boiled in sacks of dough) and kada (bread with a sweet buttery filling) to be offered in commemoration of the souls of their ancestors on Xorcielis Shabati ("Meat-fare Saturday"), nine days before the beginning of Orthodox Lent. After a morning ritual in the home, blessing the food offerings to the dead souls, Sik'o went to the main shrine of Matura commune, dedicated to the Archangel (Mtavarangelozi). He sacrificed two lambs -- in a unique ritual not pictured here, but which I will write up & discuss in the near future -- and then we had a small feast nearby. As you can see from the pictures, the snow-covered scenery around Matura is breathtakingly beautiful, but you can also understand why only three households remain in Matura year-round.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Next: Mat'ani Carnival.