Joyful and important event – a new person was born! The appearance of a baby in an Uzbek family is accompanied by the ancient ritual celebration “Beshik tui” – “Wooden cradle”. The ritual has survived in the culture of the Uzbeks from time immemorial and is still observed in Uzbekistan. Beshik tui is usually performed on the seventh, ninth, eleventh or fortieth day after the birth of the child. For each Uzbek family – it is a big holiday, all relatives, neighbors and friends of the family take part in the preparations. The sounds of karnaya, surnaya and tambourine mark the beginning of the ritual. On the day of the event, relatives on the wife’s side bring lavishly decorated cradle – beshik, clothes, toys for the baby, sweets, traditional Uzbek flatbread wrapped in dastarkhan.
Many guests come to the house and gather around a festive table filled with treats. And while guests enjoy the food, musicians playing, celebrating and having fun, the older women perform the rite of the first diapering of the baby and putting him into beshik. The ceremony ends with the baby watching. The guests shower the beshik with nawat and parvarda to make the baby’s life happy and prosperous.
Beshik tui first swaddling the baby!
