Winter Solstice is the pagan holiday where the old and new meet. In the Northern Hemisphere, Winter Solstice is the shortest day and longest night of the year, while in the Southern Hemisphere, it is the Summer Solstice. Winter Solstice (also known as Yule) is one of the eight major holidays in what is known as The Wheel of the Year. Four of these are solar, quarter holidays based on the relationship of the Sun to the Earth. These solar holidays are the Spring and Summer Equinoxes, and the Summer and Winter Solstices. Winter Solstice marks the end of fall and the beginning of winter.
The term “Yule” comes from Old Norse, meaning “a large, celebratory feast.” To the ancients this was a feast of both life and death. A Yule log was lit, and the partying would last until it burnt out. This could go on for weeks!
This longest night of the year is the holiday of the Ancient Crone aspect of the Goddess. It’s the holiday that celebrates the night, dreams, deep wisdom, aging, death and rebirth. Pagan holidays are earth-centered, and celebrate the natural cycles of death and rebirth. These special days mark the times in the year when we take a time out and take note of what is meaningful to us in the here and now. We take stock of time and place.
Our pagan holidays lead us towards the deep mystery found in life, death and rebirth. While Summer Solstice is seen as honoring the Gate of Life, Winter Solstice honors the Gate of Death. This holiday takes note of the change from light to dark and day to night. We would be remiss, however, to view this as a heavy, fearful time. Death does not mark the end. For pagans, time isn’t linear, and the Winter Solstice also marks the time when light and life return once more. Instead, death is viewed as something to be in awe of. Dark is not scary or evil: much good comes from the dark. Without the dark, we cannot have light.
For in the dark, we can gaze into the universe, and the Winter Solstice is that essential bridge for us to seize our abilities in releasing the personal over to the land of death, the greater collective and the unknown beyond. As the saying goes, “as above, so below.”
Winter Solstice is related to the Roman holiday, Saturnalia, which traditionally took place around December 17th, lasting for about a week. Like Mardi Gras, Saturnalia was a time-out-of-time. Wars and disputes ended, people exchanged gifts, and the hierarchy was overturned. Often known as the Festival of Lights, candles were lit and greenery was placed on doors.
According to myth, the Uranian solar god Mithras was said to be born on Winter Solstice, and his festival took place around December 25th. There has been speculation that his cult eventually evolved into Christianity, and his legend was merged with that of Jesus: two Capricorns said to be “the light baring child.”
Coming back full circle, in modern paganism this is traditionally thought as the time when the Crone meets the birth of the child (The Sun). The Sun, bringing with it the light, is the divine child – which represents the new solar year. Time and life as we experience it is ushered through another rotation around the Sun. In Tarot, the Devil card corresponds to Winter Solstice. Lucifer is also known as a light bringer, and with their divine light is divine wisdom.
The darkness has arrived, and we are here to honor it by allowing ourselves to rest, renew, and take stock of where we are in the here and now. This is a moment to reflect on the year, to embrace new ways of thinking as well as to take into account what we are being called on to unlearn. This is a time for honoring the gifts in life as well as the grief we carry with us. The Winter Solstice aids us in celebrating the fact of our existence in the corporal world. Our ability to feel and experience is increased during this long, dark night of the soul, and that is what being alive is all about.
Winter Solstice Ritual for a Group or Solitary Practitioner
- 2 seasonal candles in red, green, black or silver*
- a bell
- a sprig of holly, ivy or pine (all of the above, or whatever grows seasonally that you can forage in your natural environment)
- incense: frankincense, myrrh, cinnamon or sandalwood
Cast a circle, sit on the floor near your altar – don’t light candles yet.
Take a few moments to remember what it was like for our ancestors at this time of year. The harvest had been brought in, and they knew that in a few months, their stockpiles of food would be running low. It was the season of Death, the time when the Earth went dormant once more, sleeping until the spring returned. Our ancestors knew that despite the darkness of this night, soon the light would return to the Earth, bringing with it light and life. This night, the Winter Solstice welcomes back the Sun, the ultimate giver of light.
Ring the bell.
Light first candle*, say: “Tonight is the night of the Solstice, the longest night of the year. As the Wheel, I know that tomorrow the Sun will begin its journey back to us. With it, new life will begin, a blessing from Earth to her children.”
Ring the bell.
Light second candle: “It is the season of the winter goddess. Tonight, I celebrate the festival of the Winter Solstice, the rebirth of the Sun, and the return of light to the Earth. As the Wheel of the Year turns once more, I honor the eternal cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth.”
Ring the bell.
Light incense, make an offering by burning a sprig of your chosen botanical. Meditate on what changes you’d like to see before the next sabbat. Reflect upon the time of the season: although life lies dormant beneath the soil, what new things will you bring to fruition for yourself when the planting season returns? How will you maintain your spirit throughout the cold months?
Either end the rite with feasting and celebration!
Allow your candles to burn down entirely in order to set your intentions. Never leave candles burning unattended! If you need to put you candle out, avoid blowing it out unless no other option exists. Put it out with a snuffer. When you return, light the candle and repeat the incantation once more so that the spell and/or your intention sets completely.
*Never leave your candles burning unattended.