Mask 12: Veil of Saint Svorada
Tagged by blark as a part of Stella’s relay.
A shroud of fine silver maille, the fringes tarnished by time. Fine golden rings pick out scripture, written in ecclesiastic script: “Heaven keep me, for this one is weak; Heaven keep me, for this one is guilty; Heaven keep me, for this one is lost.”
Orthodox churches celebrate Saint Svorada’s feast on March 19th: for her faith, a pagan king condemned Saint Svorada to wander in a labyrinth of stone until she died, but Svorada hid her eyes and found the labyrinth’s center by divine vision. On her feast day, folk bind their eyes in white cloth, then try to navigate labyrinths of pebbles or woven straw, their neighbors laughing and shouting encouragement—those who make it to labyrinth’s center wear a wreath of hollyhock.
After burning incense and speaking the scripture aloud, those who wear Svorada’s veil can unerringly find their way to holy places, including hidden shrines and secret temples. Those who follow the veil-wearer—be they friendly or otherwise—become lost before the veil-bearer reaches the halfway mark. If the veiled try to convey the path followed afterwards, they instead describe an endless labyrinth.
I tag CK next!