Yule - The Winter Solstice

The Winter Solstice, als known as Yule, falls on or around December 21st in the Northern Hemisphere, and June 21st in the Southern Hemisphere. It is the shortest day of the year, with the least amount of light and the most darkness, which is probably why our ancestors celebrated with gaiety, greenery, and plenty of candles blazing against the dark Winter's night.

From this day forward the days will grow a little longer and the nights a little shorter, showing us the path out of the cold and darkness and into the Spring.

But for now, for many of us, it is still dark and chilly, with our energy at low ebb and our spirits struggling to find the light.

In the Wiccan symbolism of the Wheel of the Year, Yule marks the end of the Holly King's reign, representing the dark half of the year, as he is overthrown by the Oak King, who represents the light half of the year. This change in power ensures the slow return of light and warmth. The Goddess, in her role as mother, gives birth to the infant sun; completing the cycle of birth, growth, death and rebirth. The Wheel has completed another turn.

THE OLD WAYS: THE EVERGREEN WINTER:

Second only to the Winter Solstice symbol of light comes the tradition of Winter greenery. It has long been traditional to bring evergreens into the home at Winter Solstice. Because evergreens remain green year-round, the ancients regarded them as symbols of immortality, rebirth and resurrection, cast against the barren winter. The wreaths and garlands we hand during Winter harken back to these ancient beliefs.

Yule marks the beginning of a new cycle of the Wheel, and as such is a time to think about what you want to manifest in the year ahead.

A BRIEF EXTRA HISTORY:

The Goddess gives birth to a son, the God, at Yule. (This is in no way an adaptation of Christianity. The Winter Solstive has long been viewed as a time of divine births. Mithras is said to have been born at this time [Northern Hemisphere specific]. The Christians simply adapted it for their use in 273 C.E.) Yule is the shortest day of the year. Earlier peoples noticed such phenomena and supplicated the forces of nature to lengthen the days and shorten the nights. Wiccans sometimes celebrate Yule just before dawn, then watch the sunrise as a fitting finale to their efforts. Since the God is also the sun, this marks the point of the year when the sun is reborn as well. Thus, the Wicca light fires or candles to welcome the sun's returning light. The Goddess, slumbering through the winter of her labour, rests after her delivery. 

Yule is the remnant of early rituals celebrated to hurry the end of Winter and the beginning of the bounty of Spring, when food was once again readily available. To contemporary Wiccans, it is a reminder that the ultimate produc of death is rebirth, a comforting thought in these days of unrest.