YULETIDE, WINTER SOLSTICE & CHRISTMAS.
By Liz Gale
As the nights get longer and we feel the darkness growing at this time of year, mankind yearns for the light, for the sun. Many people head off to other parts of the world in search of warmth and sunshine but for those in the Northern Hemisphere who stay at home the sun seems weak and hardly melts the frost.
In earlier times man would have noticed the decline of light and warmth and using his understanding of sympathetic magic, fires were lit to encourage the re-emergence and growth of the sun. And it worked!! From the Winter Solstice, 21st/22nd December, the daylight grows and the nights shorten.
Nowadays we still have our festivals of light during the darker days of winter. Jews have Hannukah, Hindus and Sikhs have Divali, Muslims have Eid-al-Fitr at the end of Ramadan, Christians have Christmas and Pagans of many paths have Yule.
As a Christian for many years I celebrated the birth of the Son of God, now as a witch I celebrate the re-birth of the Sun God, born of the Goddess at Winter Solstice. fires and candles are lit to welcome Him and we give gifts and have a party. My practice is the same although my beliefs are changed!!
Many of the customs around this time have light as their theme. The Christmas tree introduced into the UK in the Victorian age is always lit, previously with candles, now with fairy lights. More and more people are extending this to illuminate the exteriors of their homes. While we do not have large fire-places to burn the Yule log we still remember it even if it is now a chocolate covered cake with a candle on it.
Shops are full of candles to give as presents or to light our homes and dining tables. What apt gifts to celebrate the Sun or Son; giving a candle is giving a gift of light!!
Other customs have ancient origins too. My home is decorated with evergreens, holly and mistletoe. At Yule the Holly King who has ruled since Summer Solstice yields up his power to the Oak King. He has ruled over the ripening grain and the harvests and the Sun God descending into the Earth like a seed. Now the seed is growing and the Earth Goddess gives birth to the young Sun God. He will grow in strength and power.
The Oak King rules now as the buds swell ready to burst into leaf in the spring-time, the days lengthen, light grows and we feel the promise of spring and the end of winter. Truly this is a time to rejoice!!
The legend of the mistletoe comes from Norse mythology when, during a dispute between the Gods, Loki, a god of darkness, gave a spear made of mistletoe to a blind god, Haldur and he killed Baldur, a god of light with it. Baldur had been protected from hurt by all things living on the earth, but this plant grows in a tree, hanging in the air like a ball. He had been much loved by his parents, Odin and Frigg and by his friends, so mistletoe has become a symbol of love. It will hang in my hallway so I can greet my visitors with a kiss.
The Child of Promise grows, each day representing one year of his life until on Twelfth Night, 6th January, he is considered to be a young man, ready to go out into the world.
We too, will notice that the days are lengthening. So we take down our decorations, re-cycle the tree and evergreens but keep a piece of mistletoe as a protection against illness for the coming year.
Winter 2004