Some dances are just simply hotter than others. But I don't mean the Rhumba, Salsa, or even the Tango. No... I'm referring to a dance that involves bare feet and bonfires! Today we tell you about a folk ritual in the far southeast of Bulgaria that is now protected as a world cultural heritage.

In the village of Brodilovo in the Strandzha Mountains, Bulgarian Nestinari dancers perform the ancient ritual of dancing barefoot over burning coals in this village and several others in the region.

The Nestinarstvo dance is usually performed in the village square, watched by the local population, on the day of the village's patron saint, or on the day of Saints Helen and Constantine.

The ritual is a mixture of Eastern Orthodox beliefs and older pagan traditions from the Strandzha Mountains.

The dance ritual starts after sunset when a bonfire is lit.

When the fire dies and only embers remain, the Nestinari dance barefoot over embers, while drums and bagpipes play along.

Veselina Ilieva, a famous Bulgarian Nestinari dancer, said the ancient dance is now protected by UNESCO.

Veselina Ilieva, Nestinari Dancer, said, "It's a very ancient ritual that we perform for the health and happiness of all the people of the world, and that is our prayer to God."

The dance was mentioned for the first time in writings from 1862.

Georgi Cvetkov, visitor, said, "According to one of the legends, this Strandzha mountain was the native land of the Nestinari dancers about 800 years ago, and it was performed mostly by the people who lived here in that mountain and people located near the Veleka river. The dance is practiced only by Bulgarians and Greeks."

Some historians believe that the ritual has pagan origins, despite the fact that the fire dancers carry religious icons in their hands.

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