A day of immense cultural and religious significance, Valentine’s Day was originally observed as a Catholic holiday to honour St Valentine, a Christian martyr. According to popular belief, the saint who lived in the 3rd century CE was going about his usual priestly duties at a time when Emperor Claudius II ruled Rome. Claudius is believed to have observed that the lagging enlistment into his Roman army was primarily due to men’s strong attachment to their wives and lovers. He had a simple solution: ban all marriages and engagements in order to ensure that more men joined the Roman military ranks.
Valentine realized the injustice and cruelty of such a decree and continued to perform marriage ceremonies in secret. When Emperor Claudius discovered these activities of the priest, he sentenced him to death and then, as if that wasn’t enough, had his head cut off. Valentine died on February 14, around the year 270 CE.
The renowned poet Geoffrey Chaucer in the Middle Ages was widely believed to be the first to link St Valentine with romantic love. This was the beginning of the tradition of courtly love, a ritual of expressing love and admiration, usually in secret. This custom spread throughout Europe and stories grew about a High Court of Love where female judges would rule on issues related to love on February 14 each year. Many researchers and historians believe that these meetings were in fact gatherings where people read love poetry and played games of flirtation.
Today, Valentine’s Day is one of the most special days in the world. Valentine’s Day is celebrated in most countries and different cultures have developed their own traditions for this festival. While couples celebrate this day by pampering each other to bits and showering each other with gifts and appreciation, Valentine’s Day is not just confined to people in relationships. It also bears the love for family, friends, and most importantly, the kind of love that we have for ourselves. Valentine’s Day celebrates love of all kinds and brings the near and dear ones together to celebrate each other’s presence and their admiration for one another.