The legend of the dance of the dead

The legend narrated below could be titled “the wedding dress” and refers to a dance of the dead that would presumably have taken place in Gallura, in a place not well specified.

The death and worship of the dead has always proved to have great importance for the Sardinians. There are many stories related to the underworld and this is one of them.

The legend of the dance of the dead and of the wedding dress
The legend

The legend of the wedding dress sees a protagonist as a protagonist who, released in the middle of the night, ran into a group of men unknown to him. Those people, in the dark, who danced and sang, illuminated only by the moon’s rays, greatly intrigued him.

The night before had celebrated the feast of the saint of a nearby church and he had come across a dance of the dead. The most surprising thing for him was to see his wife wearing the wedding dress among those people. Among the crowd he recognized a fellow of his, who advised him to join the dance of the dead and to wait for the right moment to escape.

Reluctantly, he tied his horse and joined the party. In the disarray of those dances, he took out his knife and cut a piece of his wife’s wedding dress. When all the participants in the dance of the dead seemed distracted, the man unbuttoned his jacket and climbed quickly on the back of the horse. The souls noticed his escape and pulled him by the coat which, unfastened, slipped off, giving him the chance to escape.

He arrived home safely, where he slept next to his wife. The next morning, without telling anything about the incident, he asked his beloved to put the wedding dress on to air it. Once he was lying down, the man carefully looked at the dress and realized that the piece of fabric he had cut the night before was missing. Confident that his wife had stayed home all night, the man then realized that he had participated in a dance of the dead.

The presence of his wife at that party had a very specific meaning: his beloved would soon die. The man saw his bride go out within a few days.

The legend of the dance of the dead and of the wedding dress
What to do if you come across a dance of the dead

First of all, how to avoid a dance of the dead:

Avoid approaching groups of people who dance and sing totally in the dark.
Avoid getting close, especially if you don’t recognize anyone among those present. You could meet people who are alive at the moment, but that wouldn’t necessarily be good for you. Take for example the story of the wedding gown just read. If by chance, instead, I identified someone already dead, well … that would be the litmus test.
Avoid rural churches at night. It is the favorite place for souls to celebrate.
Avoid rural churches in the period in which the celebrations dedicated to the saint have just ended.
Now it’s done! You are facing an exclusive party for the uninitiated! What to do then? You have two options:

Celebrate all night with them.
Try to escape the dance of the dead at the first opportunity. Study a ploy! Just like that poor husband who found himself facing his wife in a wedding dress at the ball of the dead!
How to distract everyone so that you can escape?

You can try to talk until you heal them. Souls are sometimes enchanted by the monotony of the voice of a living person.
You can try to make them laugh by humming them “Dance, you dance, this party is yours! When our will come we will sing and dance! ” It seems that this nursery rhyme makes them laugh out loud!
Whatever the reason for their carelessness, this is the time to run away.
Other valuable tips:

Search among the dead for a relative, a friend, anyone who can give you a tip on how to escape.
The dead are unable to cross the waterways. If you are near a river, a pond, try in every way to reach the opposite bank. Once the rooster has sung three times, the souls of the deceased will be forced to withdraw. But you will be free to continue on your way.
Hoping that the advice should never serve you, good luck!