This book provides a systematic documentation of popular rituals, belief systems, and customary practices of Crete. By popular rituals, the author means the traditional acts associated with folk worship, expressed through various events and symbols throughout the cycle of the year. It offers a poetic and scientific approach to folk culture and the collective psyche, supported by in-depth research and impressive photographic material, primarily taken by the author himself during fieldwork that began in his teenage years and early adulthood, starting from the 1970s.

Through these folk rituals, ancient beliefs and traditional practices have endured, either intact or adapted to the religious, social, and economic conditions of each era.

Today, as the folk ritual customs of Crete, like those of many other regions, are in decline, this book serves as a valuable artifact and testimony of life. It is not only the descriptions—mostly the result of field research efforts—but also the insightful perspective of the author, who seeks the origins, roots, religious extensions, and social significance of folk worship as it manifests in his homeland, Crete. The book gains broader relevance for Greek culture overall, as it offers material for a more comprehensive understanding of similar or parallel customary practices within Greek and wider Mediterranean contexts.