February 14, commonly known as Valentine’s day is the most awaited day of the year for any couple. When love is in the air, and all we see is red and white, the colours resonating the feeling of love, affection. For the uninitiated, the day gets its name after a mysterious saint, though it is believed that it could owe its origin to more than one person. Its true origin is still very vague.
According to the legend, the day is celebrated to mark the death anniversary of Saint Valentine who died in mid-February in 270 AD. It is said that Saint Valentine was a priest, who defied emperors’ orders and secretly married couples to spare husbands from war. He was reportedly beheaded by Emperor Claudius II Gothicus.
History and legends around Valentine’s day
The origin of Valentine’s can be traced back to “Lupercalia”, a Roman festival for fertility. It is also believed that the day was celebrated as an attempt by the Church to add a religious twist to the Lupercalia festival. The festival was dedicated to Faunus, the god of agriculture, and Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. During the celebrations, men and women were paired based on a lottery system, and most of them eventually ended in marriage. At the end of the fifth century, Pope Gelasius I decided the time of Lupercalia celebrations as the date to celebrate Saint Valentine.
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It is also believed that Saint Valentine was able to miraculously heal the blind daughter of his jailer. Another legend says that a Bishop named Saint Valentine of Terni was the true namesake of the holiday. Although it is believed by the people that they are the same person. Saint Valentine became known as a patron saint of love. It was also said that he used to wear a ring with Cupid on it – the symbol of love – that helped soldiers were able to him. A poem written by medieval author Geoffrey Chaucer in 1381 is considered the origin of the modern celebration of love by historians. It connects Saint Valentine to the celebration of love, solidifying the belief in the history of the festival.
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