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| Celebrate the winter solstice to reclaim the festive spirit | Celebrate the winter solstice to reclaim the festive spirit |
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| Midwinter celebration is our oldest, most important festival, dating back tens of thousands of years. The day of the winter solstice – usually around 21 December – is the date when we experience the shortest day and the longest night in the northern hemisphere: the exact time when our part of planet Earth is leaning furthest away from the sun. | Midwinter celebration is our oldest, most important festival, dating back tens of thousands of years. The day of the winter solstice – usually around 21 December – is the date when we experience the shortest day and the longest night in the northern hemisphere: the exact time when our part of planet Earth is leaning furthest away from the sun. |
| The word “solstice” comes from the Latin solstitium meaning “sun stands still”, when the apparent movement of the sun’s path seems to stop briefly. But this doesn’t just occur for one day; in practice we enter the darkest days of winter at the solstice but it takes several days – until the morning of 25 December, in fact – for the daylight to be perceptibly longer by just over a minute. | The word “solstice” comes from the Latin solstitium meaning “sun stands still”, when the apparent movement of the sun’s path seems to stop briefly. But this doesn’t just occur for one day; in practice we enter the darkest days of winter at the solstice but it takes several days – until the morning of 25 December, in fact – for the daylight to be perceptibly longer by just over a minute. |
| This event has long been viewed as the reversal of the sun’s ebbing presence in the sky, which has led to concepts of birth becoming commonly associated with this major solar event. The ancient Egyptian god Osiris, the Roman god Sol Invictus and the Greek god Apollo are among many divine solar entities whose birth was celebrated on 25 December, long before the coming of Jesus and Christianity. It took nearly 400 years after Jesus was born for that date to become his birthday, and it is no coincidence. | This event has long been viewed as the reversal of the sun’s ebbing presence in the sky, which has led to concepts of birth becoming commonly associated with this major solar event. The ancient Egyptian god Osiris, the Roman god Sol Invictus and the Greek god Apollo are among many divine solar entities whose birth was celebrated on 25 December, long before the coming of Jesus and Christianity. It took nearly 400 years after Jesus was born for that date to become his birthday, and it is no coincidence. |
| In our agrarian society, midwinter was used to mark and guide activities such as the slaughtering of animals, the sowing of crops and the monitoring of winter reserves of food, all vital to ensure the preservation and continuance of human life. It was the last celebration before deep winter and the “famine months”, as January to April used to be known as new crops weren’t ready for harvest. | In our agrarian society, midwinter was used to mark and guide activities such as the slaughtering of animals, the sowing of crops and the monitoring of winter reserves of food, all vital to ensure the preservation and continuance of human life. It was the last celebration before deep winter and the “famine months”, as January to April used to be known as new crops weren’t ready for harvest. |
| Only the strongest animals could be kept through the winter; the rest were slaughtered in November and their meat preserved. Mead and wine made at the end of summer had fermented and was also ready to drink. So by midwinter, there was plenty to feast on. | Only the strongest animals could be kept through the winter; the rest were slaughtered in November and their meat preserved. Mead and wine made at the end of summer had fermented and was also ready to drink. So by midwinter, there was plenty to feast on. |
| Protecting fragile life until it can be “reborn” by the sun is the basis for our beloved customs of bringing evergreenery, yule logs and trees into the house. People believed that the spirit of summer, life and growth went to shelter in the evergreen bushes and trees in winter – and that by cutting them and bringing them inside they were being offered shelter until the spring. When the church was trying to eradicate earlier pre-Christian practices, the decoration of churches with evergreens was strictly forbidden, but it was futile. Much older practices are so engrained in the human psyche that they gave in and holly and ivy were allowed in church. We even have the carol The Holly and the Ivy, which seems pretty strange in relation to the baby Jesus born in the Holy Land, but this is where the connection originates. | Protecting fragile life until it can be “reborn” by the sun is the basis for our beloved customs of bringing evergreenery, yule logs and trees into the house. People believed that the spirit of summer, life and growth went to shelter in the evergreen bushes and trees in winter – and that by cutting them and bringing them inside they were being offered shelter until the spring. When the church was trying to eradicate earlier pre-Christian practices, the decoration of churches with evergreens was strictly forbidden, but it was futile. Much older practices are so engrained in the human psyche that they gave in and holly and ivy were allowed in church. We even have the carol The Holly and the Ivy, which seems pretty strange in relation to the baby Jesus born in the Holy Land, but this is where the connection originates. |
| The yule log (which these days most people think of as a chocolate cake) was the largest log – or even whole tree trunk – to be brought into the house and burned during the 12-day celebration of midwinter in Scandinavia and Germany from the early 900s. | The yule log (which these days most people think of as a chocolate cake) was the largest log – or even whole tree trunk – to be brought into the house and burned during the 12-day celebration of midwinter in Scandinavia and Germany from the early 900s. |
| And the archetypal figure of Father Christmas also originated from the prehistoric forests of the north, characterising wild, natural life at midwinter, and grew into the ill-tempered elf Pelznickel, whom German settlers took with them to America. He became amalgamated with the character of the Norse god Odin, who rode an eight-legged horse across the winter skies, and the kindly Saint Nicholas. We now have a gift-giving magical entity flying in a sleigh drawn by eight reindeer. | And the archetypal figure of Father Christmas also originated from the prehistoric forests of the north, characterising wild, natural life at midwinter, and grew into the ill-tempered elf Pelznickel, whom German settlers took with them to America. He became amalgamated with the character of the Norse god Odin, who rode an eight-legged horse across the winter skies, and the kindly Saint Nicholas. We now have a gift-giving magical entity flying in a sleigh drawn by eight reindeer. |
| Candles, fairy lights, and lanterns reflect the importance of creating warmth and light and encouraging the return of the sun. Midwinter is a solar event that symbolises the rebirth and continuation of life. Its relevance is without borders, creed, beliefs or practices. Many of its traditions have been woven into our Christmas celebrations without most of us being aware of their heritage. | Candles, fairy lights, and lanterns reflect the importance of creating warmth and light and encouraging the return of the sun. Midwinter is a solar event that symbolises the rebirth and continuation of life. Its relevance is without borders, creed, beliefs or practices. Many of its traditions have been woven into our Christmas celebrations without most of us being aware of their heritage. |
| As Christmas becomes increasingly engulfed by consumerism, it is time for us to reconnect with its authentic origins rooted in the natural world. By understanding that the reason for celebrating at this time of year reaches far back into our primordial beginnings, and resonates deep within each one of us, we can begin to reclaim the focus of the festive season. | As Christmas becomes increasingly engulfed by consumerism, it is time for us to reconnect with its authentic origins rooted in the natural world. By understanding that the reason for celebrating at this time of year reaches far back into our primordial beginnings, and resonates deep within each one of us, we can begin to reclaim the focus of the festive season. |
| • Gillian Monks is author of Merry Midwinter: How to Rediscover the Magic of the Christmas Season | • Gillian Monks is author of Merry Midwinter: How to Rediscover the Magic of the Christmas Season |
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