Many Christian holidays have pagan roots. Just as Halloween has ties to All Saints Day, Easter’s roots can be traced back to ancient pagan rituals that celebrated the spring equinox, the season associated with rebirth.
According to a German legend, one spring morning the fertility goddess Eostre noticed a fallen bird freezing after a dusting of snow that had fallen overnight. The bird was not able to fly and was near death, so the maiden benevolently transformed it into a hare in order to save its life. Because of its former nature as a bird, the bunny retained its ability to lay eggs (the ultimate symbol of fertility and rebirth), which the bunny would paint in bright colors and give to Eostre as a gift of thanks.
Sounds an awful lot like the modern Easter Bunny. But does that make this symbol of the Easter a cryptid?
While that might be a stretch, there are some countries that infuse the Christian holiday with elements that range from the mystical to the bizarre. In Sweden for instance, legend has it that on the Thursday before Easter, witches take flight on their broomsticks destined for the mystical island of Blakulla where they gather with other dark creatures. This supernatural assembly 
is known as Paskkarringar, and the congregants are said to be joined by the Devil himself to celebrate a witch’s Sabbath which lasts until Easter Sunday. The chaos of Blakulla is capable of spilling out into the real world, creating havoc and terror. For three days evil spirits, trolls, and witches run amok, but with the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday these otherworldly beings return to their dark lairs and peace is restored.
Finland adopted this tradition of Easter witches and it is known as Virvonta. The Fins combine two Easter traditions, celebrating both the covenstead of witches and the resurrection of Jesus. In 
Sweden and Finland, at Eastertime the boys and girls dress as trolls and witches and go door-to-door in their neighborhoods exchanging small handmade gifts for sweets.
Not a bad deal, in my opinion. Sounds like a springtime Halloween.
In the Transcaucasian country of Georgia, every year around Orthodox Easter, Georgian cemeteries fill with families who gather to drink wine, nibble on sweet bread, and roll eggs dyed a deep blood-red. It’s part of a longstanding Georgian tradition of dining with the dead every spring.
In Papua New Guinea you’ll find Easter trees at the front of churches that are decorated with sticks of tobacco and cigarettes that are handed out after the service.
In the Philippines some devout Catholics have taken to the practice of self-crucifixion and self-flagellation on Easter. Their thinking is that it helps purify them and cleanse them of the sins of the world. The Roman Catholic Church, however, is not keen on the idea and has been actively trying to discourage this practice, without much success.
An Easter custom in the Czech Republic is less severe. In this country, men get a special Easter “whip” which they use to swat women they are fond of. In return, the women give the man who “whipped” them a decorated egg. If the men are old enough, they also receive a shot of whiskey. Not to be left out, women can make their own play for a man they like and are encouraged to dump ice water on him. This seems to be quite a stray from Easter eggs hunts and candy baskets, but to each his own.
Easter celebrations on the Greek island of Corfu are varied and unique, but amongst their strangest traditions is when celebrants throw crockery and pots out of the windows. On Holy Sunday around 11 o’clock all the church bells ring and that is the time when people throw their big, red clay pots filled with water from their balconies and terraces. The sound of the Corfu Easter pots smashing is deafening and symbolizes the earthquake that is alleged to have occurred upon the crucifixion of Jesus.
Regardless of how Easter is celebrated around the world, here in America Easter’s symbolic representation is all about the egg and the bunny.
Today, more than a billion Easter eggs are hunted in the United States each year, while more than 100 million plastic eggs are purchased each year for Easter. And then there are all the chocolate and candy eggs that are consumed.
And of course we have the Easter Bunny who makes appearances at parties, events, and malls across the nation. Millions of children line up to take pictures with the ubiquitous, cuddly, long-eared folkloric figure. But seeing how this is Tales From The Moonlit Path, I feel obliged to stray down the rabbit hole, as it were, and give passing mention to an ever-evolving urban legend known as The Bunnyman. Although this mythical being has no direct correlation to Easter, he does assume familiar attire. The Bunnyman is most often seen under a certain bridge in Fairfax County Virginia dressed in a white rabbit suit and carrying a large knife or hatchet that he uses to attack and murder people. He is believed to be the spirit of an escaped inmate from a mental asylum.
This is one bunny you want to be sure to avoid taking a selfie with this Easter. And if you’re out on an egg hunt and spot a plastic egg under a bridge, best leave it be.
From everyone at Tales From The Moonlit Path, have a safe and Happy Easter!