The Pilgrimage of São Bartolomeu do Mar takes
place on the 24th of August at the town of Mar at the northwest
Portugal, mixing the sacred and the profane, producing an unusual ritual
(it happens in this date because in the popular belief, it is the date
when the devil goes on the loose).
This odd tradition dates back to
the sixteenth century and consists in children under seven years old
going around the church with a black chicken in their arms, to pass
beneath the litter and then go to the beach dive in the waves in uneven
numbers, namely, in three, five, seven or nine (is called the Holy Bath
"Banho Santo").
All this is made for children to stay away from what was though to be demonic effects such as gout, epilepsy and stuttering. The tradition continues every year.
