The Magic of the Winter Solstice (Yule)

December has brought snow and freezing temperatures to the UK this year. Although we are experiencing the usual chaos, as I look in my garden I can see a wonderful robin sitting on the hat of my statue, Rosie Lee, who stands in the pond and the Oak tree looks lovely with the snow on its boughs. Other birds are coming and going feasting on the food we have put out for them.

My thoughts are turning to the Winter Solstice, a Pagan festival also known as Yule and one of the most sacred and magical of the festivals. The Winter Solstice falls on the 21st December, the shortest day of the year and the longest night, and was celebrated in Britain long before Christianity. It is the turning point of the year when the sun starts to grow stronger and traditionally in Celtic Shamanic practices the Druids would cut the Mistletoe from the Oak tree and give it as a blessing as it stands for fertility and birth. Pagans are known as “people of the land” or “country dwellers” and celebrating these Pagan Festivals is now more common with many of us turning to Shamanic practices as we become more aware of the effect we have on the earth and our environment.

Pagans celebrate the rebirth of the Sun at Yule and bring holly and ivy into their homes to symbolise the masculine and feminine elements and as they are evergreen this signifies that the earth never dies but just sleeps during the winter months. The Winter Solstice is a solar festival as the sun enters Capricorn and the Oak King challenges and triumphs over the Holly King and the Sun God is born.

This year the Yule festival is also a Full Moon so it is a time to make plans for the future and set goals as this is a time of hope, love and joy when creative energies are awakened. Holly, representing the Holly King, ivy, the Goddess, and mistletoe, fertility, should decorate your home and a piece of holly should be on the main entrance to your home to invite good fortune all year.

Many of these old traditional practices are still around; the holly wreath on our front doors; oranges used to be given in Christmas stockings symbolising the Sun; food is flavoured with cloves and spices which would have hidden the taste of stale and rancid food and of course the chocolate Yule log is still very much in evidence at this time of year.

Our Yule fire will have an oak log on it and a piece will be saved for next year representing the never ending cycle. Any candles burnt should be white with a main candle for the festival and smaller ones for all those present. This is time to spend with family and friends to celebrate this magical time of the Pagan Year and to look forward to 2011 using our creative energy for the year ahead.