Yule / Winter Solstice

Watch the most recent Yule class below.

MIDWINTER
JUL
MODRESNACHT

WHAT IS YULE?

The Quarter-Day festival season known to Pagans, Heathens, and Witches as Yule, is the celebration of Winter Solstice. This moment is recognized by nearly every belief system, philosophy and spiritual practice in the Northern Hemisphere.

Before there was Christmas, there was Yule. Underneath your Christmas trees, eggnog and fat jolly guys in red suits lie the roots of one of the more significant Pagan festivals of the year. Winter Solstice, The Long Night, or (from the Norse “Jul”) Yule—which means “Wheel.” We see this name echoed in the Welsh myth of Caer Arianrhod. This is the castle of stars in the sky that never sets. The fixed stars in this constellation rise at this time of year This is the home to the Weaver Goddess Arianrhod, the Goddess of The Silver Wheel.

Hundreds of deities celebrate holy days at Yule. Much of the symbolism we work with centers around the death and rebirth of The Sun. One name for this Holy Day is ‘Modresnacht’ or Mother’s Night, in reference to the Mother Goddesses giving birth to the new Sun.

For Many Pagans, this day marks the death of The Holly King and the birth of The Oak King. We also see the rise of a form of The Goddess known as The Crone.

Winter Solstice marks the official threshold of a journey undertaken by Witches, Pagans, Heathens and other polytheists all over the planet, and shared by all of our ancestors going back to the deepest reaches of memory and time.

Yule is a time when many Witches gather with family and friends to eat good food and drink wassail and say goodbye and hello to the sun as it hits its low point in the sky.

The phenomenon of waning light of the sun is central to the Yule holiday.

Each day, as the sun rises on the Eastern horizon, it moves a couple degrees north or south. For us here in the Northern Hemisphere, the closer to Summer Solstice we are, the further north the sun will rise and set. The closer to Winter Solstice, the further south it rises and sets. Interestingly, at the Summer and Winter Solstices, the Sun will rise and set at the same place in the sky three days in a row. Possibly, this is where religions received the inspiration of the “3 days and nights” element that many deities have to pass through.

In Yule we leave the abundance of Fall and head into the desolation and expanse of the Winter Sabbats Yule (Dec 21) and Imbolc (Feb 2). The work of Yule season focuses on the stop and start of Winter. At this time of year we get a chance to cease and begin again.

The Sun now approaches its lowest point on The Wheel. At Yule, even The Sun dies. But like many deities, Death is not The End, and after three days, a miracle takes place.

A lot can happen in three days. For Pagans, this was the annual “reset button” for the sun, whose power was seen to wax and wane throughout the year. At Winter Solstice, the Sun was thought to “die,” only to be “resurrected” three days later. This death and resurrection imagery is found in belief systems from all over the world, and throughout time. And even though ancient people ultimately came to understand the Sun would come back, it was still a scary reality to watch the earth shut down, to witness the light grow dim.

Many cultures saw this as the face of primordial chaos asserting its influence, wiping away all the order humans had delicately put into place. In Rome, people celebrated Saturnalia as a way to appease The Lord of Misrule. In Central Europe, we see Krampus as the face of mayhem. For Ancient Egyptians, Set kills his life-giving brother Osiris. Amaterasu, the Japanese Sun Goddess, retreats into a cave after an argument with her brother. The world plunges into darkness and evil spirits run amok.

The Triple Goddess, usually depicted as the loving, generous Mother Earth brimming with fertility, became the barren Crone Cailleach, silver hair streaming, picking off the sick and the weak members of the village. The game of bobbing for apples was initially a form of divination to forecast your fate for the coming year. Would you be lucky enough to make it through the season?

However, chaos and death are obviously not the only elements of Yule. Most plants died, but the evergreens—pine, spruce, fir, juniper—lived through the cold. These became symbols of ancestor wisdom, loyalty, and shelter. A log of this wood—the Yule Log—burned through the three days the sun was checked out. Pagans saved a small piece to light the fire the following year.

As for old St. Nick, he’s more of an amalgamation of a few holy rollers. One was Odin, who was, according to A Witches Bible Compleat, sometimes called “Nik.” Another was a Witch Goddess named Befana, who would ride around on a broomstick, dropping presents for children down chimneys. And the third part of St. Nick may, in fact, actually come from Siberian and Sami shamans who venerated the red and white amanita mushroom and relied on reindeer to help find them.

Yule is the deep heart of the wintertime Underworld Journey. This is a time to connect to the Archetypes and Spirits of Winter and make the most of our collective hibernation. We can utilize Winter’s season of stillness as an opportunity to stop, reset ourselves, and start again.

Take this quiet moment to shed old forms, gain wisdom from the experiences of the past year, take a small rest in the dark, and the witness the rebirth of the Light, the Divine Spark, while you restore your energy and begin the long trek into the coming year.

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WITCH’S WORK
Return to Source, Death and Rebirth, Wisdom, Ancestors

PLANT HELPERS
Pine, Cedar, Spruce, Mistletoe, Holly

STONE HELPERS
Bloodstone, Garnet, Black Tourmaline, Sodalite

THEMES FOR MEDITATION
What is the Light you shine in the world?
At this time of year what symbols are the most sacred to you?
What deep Wisdom have you gained over the year?

Yule Season Work

Spinning The Wheel weekly Podcast

Join me for my weekly romp through the Season’s astrology, holy days, and lunar work!

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