Laurie Cabot was born Mercedes Elizabeth Kearsey on March 6, 1933 in Wewoka, Oklahoma.  She grew up in California but later as a teen came back to the Northeast to Boston to finish school.  She later when on to be a dancer at a well known club in the city, The Latin Quarter.  In later years Laurie would teach classes at Salem State College as part of the continuing education program, she’d give lectures and classes at other schools as well, and she would do a great deal of community work as well, and earned the Paul Revere Patriot’s Award in the late 1970s from Governor Michael Dukakis for her community service work with dyslexic kids.  In 1977 Gov. Dukakis bestowed Laurie with the title of “The Official Witch of Salem”, a title that Laurie has proudly carried ever since.

Laurie says that when she was a child, around the age of 6, she became aware that she had psychic abilities.  In her book “Power of the Witch” she tells a story about an elderly neighbor Mr. Bancroft, who passes away of a heart attack.  A week before his death she was told by her friend Kenny that Mr. Bancroft died and when Laurie went home to tell her mother she told her that their neighbor was alive and well.   Not knowing what happened or how she got the information Laurie just carried on as normal.  But a week later when Mr. Bancroft did pass away Laurie talked to her friend Kenny to find out how he knew that was going to happen.  He had no idea what she was talking about and said he never told her anything of the sort.  Laurie said that she wished someone had explained to her what precognition was so she could understand these experiences since this wasn’t the first and certainly wouldn’t be the last time she’d experience this.

In 1971 Laurie opened the very first Witch shop in Salem on Derby St.  It was also the first Witch shop in the country as well.  Her shops went through a handful of incarnations, including Crow Haven Corner which was opened by Laurie, later taken over by her daughter Jody, and is still open but under the ownership of a woman named Lorelei, a well known psychic from the area.  Just this week, a few days ago on the 31st of January, Laurie closed her most recent shop, The Official Witch Shop, ending her 40 years of having a shop in Salem.  It was a something the was certainly an end of an era but it was a sign of change since Laurie’s reasons for closing the shop was to make her more available to focus on creating a physical temple for her Cabot Kent Hermetic Temple.  And I am excited for that!

Laurie also founded several Witchcraft advocacy groups over the years including the Witches’ League for Public Awareness (WLPA) in 1986 and later the Project Witches Protection (PWP).  In 1987 Laurie decided to run for mayor of Salem after incumbent mayor Anthony V. Salvo made some derogatory comments in the media about Witchcraft.  Laurie wanted to continue on the efforts to change the perceptions of the idea of who Witches are and what they are capable of, so she started her bid for the office of mayor.  She ended up dropping out of the race on August 11th, and didn’t file the signatures and nomination papers to officially join the race, stating that other obligations, including work on a book, would prevent her from fully filling the mayoral duties.

When I first read “Power of the Witch” after having only read Scott Cunningham at this point, I felt like there was a whole other level to the Craft that I was discovering.  At this point I was 15.  I had read “Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner”, “Magickal Herbalism”, and “Earth Power”.  I had read a few bits and pieces from other books at the library but these Cunningham books were onces that I had bought at a local new and used bookstore.  I was a three years or so into my exploration of Witchcraft and two into actually practicing Wicca.  My interest in Salem was growing since it was only a few hours away and it was the kind of thing that you couldn’t avoid hearing about in school, especially with it being so close.  That was how I heard about Laurie.  When I was in the bookstore in the mall one weekend I started looking to see if I could find this book and much to my happiness, I found it with ease.

The approach that Laurie takes with the Craft as a science, giving a solid basis to many of the practice and beliefs beyond just believing in them, that inspired me.  I’m a person that likes proof and facts.  I don’t tend to beleive something because someone tells me about it or even if ten people tell me.  I need to find facts, history, and then experience things on my own.  And there were some things that she presented that made sense beyond just “oh, I could believe that”.  I think that it was really reading “Power of the Witch” that made me realize that this path was right for me.

Laurie’s Crystal Countdown, which is based on Jose Silva’s “Silva Mind Control” techniques, is by far the most effective meditation technique (for me) that I’ve ever worked with (and later it would reappear somewhat modified when I would begin studying with the Temple of Witchcraft).

And years later I would meet Christopher Penczak, start reading his books, and discover that he was a student of Laurie’s, something that made complete sense because so much of the things that made sense to me from her work comes through in his as well.  Even though I’ve been on this path for 26 years, I’m a huge advocate of always learning and always studying on this path.  So three years ago when Christopher started teaching the Temple tradition on a larger scale it gave me a chance to study with him, learn more about some of the similar things that Laurie teaches that drew me in, and finally put the last piece into the puzzle of my spiritual and magickal path.

On March 5th I’ll finally get to study directly with the woman who I feel is responsible for me seriously being on this path; I’ll be taking Laurie’s Witchcraft 1 class, her first degree class, something I’ve wanted to do for some time.  I’m planning to take Witchcraft 2 as well and, as long as I’m still going to be in Salem and I don’t end up moving back to California (ugh, make it stop!) I’ll be taking Witchcraft 3.

Here’s the cover of this year’s book!

The interior this year is set up with dated pages unlike last year. Here is what the calendar portion on the inside looks like this year.  (click to see a larger image)

Once I have the final proof in my hand and I can verify that everything looks as it should, I’ll be able to announce the sale details, links, etc.  I can tell you that the cost of the calendar will be $13.95 and it runs about 187 pages of so.

So stay tuned, all the final details will be out next week!

Today I’m going to share some rituals and magickal work that you can do with your log.  Let’s start with making a log for your altar.

Blessing Your Yule Log
Regardless of how you plan to work with your log, the first step should be blessing the wood itself for its use as a sacred object.  To do this all you’ll need is a chalice of some sort of sacred libation.  This can be wine, cider, holy water, mead, or any liquid that you would use as an offering in ritual to the Gods. Bless and consecrate this libation as you normally would for ritual to make it sacred for ritual use.  Then gently sprinkle some over the whole log.  As you do you can use words of blessing such as:

With this sacred wine (mead, cider, water, etc) I bless you and make you sacred.
May all energies or spirits that reside within this wood that would do me harm
Be released and banished.
May this wood be fit to reside in my magickal space as a tool of honoring the God
and the returning light.
So Mote It Be!

Now you’re ready to begin preparing your log for use!

Making A Yule Log For Your Altar
Pick Your Log
Begin by picking out a log of wood anywhere from 1 – 1 1/2 feet in length.  Consider the average size of your altar or an altar surface that you may end up using.  You want your log to be a center piece and a focal point but you still want to have space for your other altar tools and altar work.  I personally feel that if you’re using a log year in and year out that it’s best to work with something that is traditional to the season rather than magickally specific since your magickal and energetic needs will change year to year.  However, this is just my personal feeling and you should do what you feel is right for you.

Fashion Your Log For Use
First, create a flat surface on one side of the log.  Naturally, with the log being round, it will roll around easily when placed on a table, especially if the table is bumped.  There are several ways you can do this depending on your craftiness.  You can use a saw to cut down one side to make it flat or you can create small feet to raise the log up and hold it level. This can be done with 2 or 3 flat, level, even blocks of wood nailed into the log to hold it steady and even.  Depending on your particular log you use you’ll need to make the decision on what will be the best way to keep it steady, but this is a very important practical safety step so be sure to give it consideration when getting started.

The second important safety related step to consider is how you will be using candles on your log.  Will they be placed on the surface of the log or will you want to place them inside the log, essentially using the log as a holder? If you want to simply place the candles on the log, you will need to sand down three flat spots large enough for your candles to be securely placed with wax, adhesive, or small candle holders.  I recommend taking a woodworking knife and stripping away the bark in the areas you wish to use and then sanding the wood underneath until flat, even, and smooth.  If you wish to place the candles inside the log, you will need an appropriate drill bit to create holes in the log that will accommodate the candle sizes you wish to use.  Keep safety in mind while doing this and pick the option that will be best for your log.

If you decide to go with the candles in the log option you may want to consider permanently placing candle holder in the holes rather than putting the candles directly into the log.  I would also recommend using taper candles, not votives, for this.  Votive candles inside the log will have a much higher chance of creating a fire than using tapers.

Be sure to give a little test run before cutting, sanding, or drilling anything by having a friend help hold the candles in the places you plan to put them.  Mark your candle locations and go from there.  Make space for one candle in the center of the top of the log and then place another on either side of the center marking with at least a 3 to 4 inch space between, again for safety (the heat from an adjacent candle could easily melt another and cause a problem).  If you’re log is big enough to give wider space between them, give this a try.

From here you can decorate your log with whatever items you wish.  Some like to glue pine cones, mistletoe, pine boughs, and other greenery around the spaces where the candles will be places.  Others like to place these decorations around the bottom of the log.  Again, keep safety in mind and remember that any fresh plants or greens used will eventually die or possibly rot.  So be careful not to permanently affix anything to your log that you may need to remove.  Items places around the candle bases have a chance of having hot wax and even sparks from candle flames landing on them.  If you’re going to be attentive to your log at all times when it is lit you will be able to watch for these things, but others that are used in a decorative manner as well and left semi-unattended may be best decorated at the base.  Get creative!  Add magickal items like gris-gris bags for prosperity or herbal charms for fertility around the base or sides.  Tie holiday ribbon to create some knot and chord spells and weave them into your log.

When you’re done with the log itself, you’ll need to get three candles to place inside.  Traditionally the colors used for the Yule Log are red, green, and white, though some people will use just the green and red candles.  Bless and charge the candles then dress them as you see fit and place in their spaces on the log.

Making A Log To Burn
If your log is going to be burned in a fire you’re next steps will be simple.  Once your log has been blessed you’ll want to add any decorations to it that you feel will be helpful in its burning.  This is where you can add magickal items like pieces of parchment with petitions to it or herbs and greens.  Remember to only use natural items that are safe for burning.

Using Your Log
If you’re going to be putting your log into the fire this is often done as its own magickal act to mark the beginning of the season or as a way to start the Yuletide festivities.  When you’re working with an altar top log there are mini-rituals that you can do with it as part of the awakening of the light.  Below is a ritual I have written for using an altar top Yule log.

Rowan’s Yule Log Ritual
You’ll Need:
1 Yule Log (decorated, blessed, and consecrated)
1 white candle (the returning light)
1 red candle (spark of life, the Goddess)
1 green candle (rebirth, the reborn God)
Yule oil or Candle dressing oil
Yule incense

Anoint your candles with Yule oil, charging and blessing them.
Place the candles in or on the Yule Log in the following order:  Red on the left, Green in the center, White on the right.

Light your Yule incense and waft it around the Yule Log and say:
By the powers of earth, air, fire, and water
I consecrate and bless this sacred Yule Log
To be fit for use within this circle
As a symbol of hope and light.

Looking at the unlit Yule Log, reflect on this time of year.  Recite the following words or something similar:
With the dying of the light we are faced with the longest night of the year.
The Holly King who has ruled during the dying half of the year gives way to the Oak King who grants us his gifts of growth, light, and expansion.
Let the Yule Log, a symbol of his reign and return, burn bright and usher back the Sun God.

The Goddess is the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone.
She is the one who creates all life and the one who we all return to at the end.
And she is the one who carries us back through the cycle once more.

Light the red candle and say:
Within the dark cauldron of the creation that is the womb of the Goddess,
the spark of life is ignited.

Light the green candle and say:
Life begins to flow back to the earth.
The Goddess gives birth to the Child God, the God of Life, the God of Promise.

Light the white candle and say:
With his return he brings the sun,
He brings the light of renewal.
And with this light we know the Green Man and the promise of spring is coming to us again.

Take a moment to look at the log, lit and shining brightly.  Feel the power of the fire, its warmth and light.  Reflect on the meaning of the log and it’s fire.  Say:

As the light shines from the fire
We rejoice in the return of the God!
We rejoice in the return of the Light!

Hail the Child of Light!
Hail the God of the Sun!

Chant these last two lines to raise energy to send energy toward the God to call him back to the earth.  If you have the room you can do this while drumming and dancing around the altar.

Allow the candles to burn for either 12 minutes, 12 hours, or 12 days; for the purpose of planning your ritual it’s best to decide ahead of time how you plan to burn the candles.  When you put them out, be sure to snuff them with a candle snuffer and relight them with the same purpose and intention as you did for this ritual, though you don’t need to go through the whole ritual again. Be sure to keep an eye on your candles and your Yule Log so that you don’t accidentally light the log itself on fire with the candle flames.

When your candles burn down and you’re finished with them, removed the stubs, clean up the log, and wrap it up and store it safely until next year.

If you have a fireplace and you plan to burn the log you can easily modify this ritual to accommodate that process.  Be sure that when the log is almost done burning that you save a piece of the log for the next year.  You can then collect the ashes and scatter them around your yard, garden, and outside the perimeter of your home while asking for protection and prosperity for the coming year.

Consider the fact that the returning of the sun is a reminder to us that even in the darkest of nights the light always prevails.  So even if you’re dealing with a holiday where you don’t have a lot of money for gifts and celebrating, or if you are far away from home, friends, and family just remember that there is a light on the horizon but it’s up to you to turn your head toward the sky to see it.

So with that I wanted to expand a bit on the post that I did a few days ago where I shared some Pagan friendly holiday and Yule music.  This time though I wanted to share some of my favorite fun and different music.  While these may not be Pagan songs specifically, they talk to the other thing that we need to keep as part of the season.  Fun!!

And this is a little of a different song from these but it’s one of my favorite non-traditional holiday songs by one of my favorite bands, Audra.

When a full moon and an eclipse happen together the powers of rebirth are especially strong.  Considering that we’re also coming into a time of year where rebirth is part of our magickal themes this is a good time to also consider some magick of that sort such as re-dedications and renewal to your path and spirituality as well as personal projects.

This is also the Full Oak Moon in Gemini which brings a time for healing, uncrossing, and working with communication issues.  With the eclipse energy it would be a great time for the uncrossing work especially, but it’s also a good time to try and put issues to bed and really just prepare to move forward in a positive manner.  What a wonderful affirmation for those who, during this holiday season, might be dealing with some of the common family tensions that come with this time of year.

Some suggestions for magick tonight:

• banishing and releasing work to rid yourself of bad habits and things that are holding you back from reaching your goals
• adding that last boost to existing magick you may have been working on (it’s a good time to send added energy and an extra push toward your goals)
• divination work to try and see answers to particularly cloudy situations
• meditation work to connect to and commune with the shadow self
• drawing on triple strength and power for change
• re-dedication to your path and the power of positive forward motion

There is no Moon Void of Course times for today so you’re free to work your magick on 10th when you need to.  The moon will go VOC on Sunday the 11th from 2:41am until 2:11pm eastern time.  So be sure to work your magick on Saturday with the moon phase and the eclipse!

Rowan, I need some help.  This year will be the first year that I’m celebrating Yule.  I’ve been Wiccan for a few years now but I’ve never really celebrated Yule before and have just acknowledged it in my mind and carried on with the usual Christmas traditions with my family that I’ve done my whole life.  I’m 27 and living home right now because I lost my job last year.  My family knows I’m not Christian, and really they aren’t terribly religious, but they also aren’t all that open minded either.  So I don’t know what to do.  Do I tell them I’m not celebrating Christmas but Yule?  Do I still get, give, and accept gifts?  Are there any other areas that I need to consider because I’m still trying to figure out where the line between Yule and Christmas even is.
Thanks for your help!
Deb

Hi Deb! Happy Yule to you!

Let me start by saying that what you’re going through and trying to figure out is one of the most common things that people wrestle with during their first Yule.  Especially if they’re a little older and just starting to celebrate the Sabbats.  So don’t worry, this is normal. 

First, keep in mind that many of the traditions and things that you do now and have done your past 27 Christmas’s are more or less rooted in Pagan traditions.  Christmas is very much an appropriated Pagan holiday.  There is little that you need to change, especially if your family isn’t religious and trying to get you to go to church or honor the holiday from a Christian perspective. It’s really all a matter of how you look at it and how you approach it.

Giving gifts is something that we do in the Pagan Yule tradition as well.  We may not give the same kinds of gifts that others might and we may not give as many, but we do give gifts as a way to show appreciation and good wishes for the coming year.  The practice of gift giving at the holidays is believed to come from the Romans and their festival of Saturnalia.  During Saturnalia, as part of the celebrations to Mithras, the Sun God, people created special celebrations meals and created and gave gifts to one another to celebrate the joy of the new year.  This was a tradition that continued and carried on to other parts of the world as people traveled and eventually the Christians made it part of their Christmas celebrations.

The reason that most in the Christian faith see for giving gifts is because they were given to the baby Jesus at his birth, but they are still gifts given as an act of joy and good wishes.  This is the real reason for gift giving and therefore shouldn’t be something that makes you feel uncomfortable, really.  The biggest difference that you might see in the Pagan Yule tradition, and among many Pagans in general, is that we are more likely to give homemade gifts, gifts that are spiritual in nature, or gifts that have a really specific purpose or intent behind them rather than just giving someone a gift card because of an obligation to give a gift.  We also sometimes will forgo physical gifts to on another and instead opt to make donations on someone’s name to a favorite charity.  The idea is that whatever the gift may be it is something that fosters positivity and embraces the ideals of one’s Pagan faith.

When it comes to what to call your holiday and what greetings to use, I say it really doesn’t matter.  For example, if someone says “Merry Christmas” to you there’s no reason to make a federal case out of it and get upset saying “I don’t celebrate Christmas, I celebrate Yule.”  The meaning, intent, and well-wishes are what truly counts.  You can mostly wish someone a “Merry Yuletide” and most people will know what you mean and probably just think it’s a cute and different way to say “Happy Holidays” since most people don’t really know that Yule is its own spiritual and religious holiday in modern day.

Just keep in mind one thing; the holidays are about family, friends, love, and joy.  This isn’t a time that we need to create dividing lines but a time to come together and look past those differences.  If your family knows you have another spiritual preference but aren’t really open to you sitting down and explaining it to them, that’s fine.  Your faith is for you and not something you have to explain to others unless they ask.  But if someone does ask, be honest and explain it the best you can from where you are on your path.

Since this is your first Yule, don’t forget that in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to make time to honor your holiday too.  On December 22nd at the Winter Solstice do a small ritual, or even just a small meditation, but do something to honor the still point of winter and to honor the turning of the Wheel.  As we move through the rest of the 21 Days of Yule I’ll be talking more about rituals and ritual ideas to consider.  So stay tuned!

This ends up being one of the biggest complaints from a lot of Pagans, especially newbie Pagans; why don’t we have any solstice music?  Well, we do.  In fact a lot of the music that we consider traditional for this time of year, while the word “Christmas” may be part of it, is very Pagan in nature. (“O Tannenbaum”, anyone?)  It’s just in how you look at it and how overly sensitive you might find yourself to references to the Christian holiday.

As an aside, and I mention this just about every year during the 21 Days of Yule because someone always ends up asking why there’s no Lorenna McKennitt in the Yule playlists I post.  For the most part her holiday music is more traditional Christian/Christmas music. While Lorenna McKennitt is a favorite among Pagans because of her Celtic and world music sounds, she herself is not Pagan and her holiday music tends to be more traditional.  I typically don’t include any of her music in my holiday list for that reason.  Believe me, I love her music and have nothing against her!

So here we go…some Yule time tunes for 2011.

During these 21 Days of Yule we’ll take a look at a few of different Gods that are often honored at Yuletide.  There are a number of different Gods that are honored by different traditions during Yule.  Today we’re going to take a look at a duality that is quite popular this time of year, especially in Wiccan, Celtic, and Druid traditions; this comes in the form of two brothers, the Holly King and the Oak King.

The story and theories of the Holly King and the Oak King were most made popular by Robert Graves in his book “The White Goddess“.  These two Gods are seen as representing the two halves of the Celtic year.  They meet to battle twice a year at the solstices for the turning of the seasons.  At each point one defeats the other and takes reign of the seasons.

The Oak King

The Oak King by Anne Stokes

The Oak King rules the light half of the year.  He takes his place of power at the Winter Solstice after he defeats the Holly King and he reigns until the Summer Solstice.  The Oak King is a young God, he’s fresh and child like in many ways.  He is often depicted much like the Green Man or the Lord of the Forest.  He is covered in greens and often made to look as though the top of his head is an oak tree.  The Oak King represents life, rebirth, growth, and opportunity.

The Holly King

The Holly King by Anne Stokes

The Holly King rules doing the dark half of the year when life is waning.  He defeats the Oak King in battle at the Summer Solstice and rules until Yule when they battle again.  The Holly King is often depicted as an old man with long grey hair and a beard.  His cloths are often similar to those of an old-fashioned Santa Claus image; he wears a long red coat and red pants and has holly sprigs twisted into his hair.  Some in the neo-Pagan community believe that the Holly King is actually a precursor to the images of Santa Claus.  The Holly King represents wisdom, completion, the learning of life’s lessons, and a time for rest and withdrawal.  

The Oak and Holly Kings are associated with two sacred Druid trees, holly and oak. The Holly King is obviously associated with the holly but the Oak King is associated with not only the oak itself but also mistletoe.  Mistletoe grows at the high branches of the oak and so we may often see depictions of the Oak King with mistletoe among his branches.  Two of the sacred plants for Yule are holly and mistletoe.  Mistletoe is a symbol of love and protection but we also see the white berries of the mistletoe to represent male life essence (quite literally representing semen) and the red berries of the holly to represent life energy and the female life essence (representing menstrual blood).  Together they spark new life and creation. 

While this is the time that the Oak King takes his reign we stop to honor the Holly King as well because it is the time that he is defeated and goes to rest until the Summer Solstice.  So while we honor is demise we also honor the rise and return of the Oak King.

The battle between the Oak King and the Holly King help to turn the Wheel of the Year.  One cannot live without the other and together they usher in the changes of the two halves of the year.

To Honor the Oak King and the Holly King…
One popular way for groups or covens to honor the Oak and Holly Kings at both the Winter and Summer Solstice is to have two males from the group act out the battle through ritual pageantry.   In a group I was in some years ago two men where chosen to represent each King.  They would battle at the Winter Solstice and the one who was chosen to be the Oak King would win and then take the role of male lead in the group for the next six month (he would act as High Priest in rituals, for example).  He would then battle the Holly King come summer and the Holly King would take charge.  The person who had been in the position of Oak King would then pick another man to take his place as Holly King.  He would then lie in wait for his battle and time to rule come the Summer Solstice.  It was a lot of fun and an interesting way to see how the male dynamic would play out.

Here are some correspondences for the Oak and Holly Kings that you can use for your Yule rituals this year.

Holly King
Colors: red, white, silver, black
Plants and Herbs: holly, red berries
Animal: Wren
Associated with: Bran the Blessed, Mordred, The Green Knight, Santa Claus

Oak King
Colors: green, brown, yellow, gold
Plants: oak, mistletoe
Animal: robin
Associated with: Robin Hood, Jesus, Balder, The Green Man 

A last thought…
I know a lot of Wiccans and Pagans who, in the early stages of their practice, reject a lot of things associated with Christmas because of their desire to embrace as much of the Pagan tradition of Yule as possible.  One of the things I see people reject is the idea of Santa.  While we’re be talking more about the Santa Claus myth in the next week or so, think now about how the Holly King has ties to Santa Claus.  Many of the mainstream holiday symbols, including Christmas symbols, have some reflection on Pagan tradition either because they have their origins there or by the very fact that, without a doubt, this is the most Pagan co-opted holiday of them all.

Yule
The name for the holiday that we most commonly use is Yule.  This comes from two Germanic words, “jól“ or “jul“, which is said to mean “wheel”.  There is a little debate about this meaning because the proposed use of the word comes prior to the actual use of the wheel in Scandinavian countries.  Because of this there is another theory that Yule many have just been a word that has never been associated with anything other than meaning “feast or festival of the Winter Solstice”.

Winter Solstice
The other name that we hear a great deal in the Pagan community as a general term for this holiday season is Winter Solstice.  In truth this is what just about all of our holidays are honoring; it’s the return of the Sun and the light to the Earth.  It is the shortest day and longest night of the year because the Earth is tilted as far away from the Sun as possible.  From this night forward the Earth’s tilt begins to shift in the other direction which means we’ll begin to see the return of the light.  The word “solstice” comes from the Latin “sol” and “sistere” which means “to stand still”.  At the time the solstice occurs there is a very brief moment when the Sun appears to stop and stand still before changing direction.

Sun’s Return or Festival of Sol
Both of these names reference the celebration specifically of the Sun’s role in the holiday season.  When we honor Sol, the “sun”, we celebrate the fact that it is, in fact, returning.  Many people in modern day Paganism don’t give this aspect of the season a great deal of consideration because we have reached a point in our understanding of the universe where we know that the Sun will come back to us.  But remember that in more primitive times when the Sun went away so early each day and the Earth became cold and things began to die, there was the worry and concern that the Sun itself was dying and wouldn’t be back.  Festivals to honor the Sun and to work magick to encourage the Sun’s return would take place at winter festivals and many of those elements we still see in today’s Yule rituals.

Mother Night
This is one of the names for Yule Eve that is sometimes used.  This is a reference to the idea that the Goddess spends the night before Yule in labor with the Child of Light, the Child God.  Sometimes when this is used the day of Yule may be called Child’s Day to honor the birth of the Young God. 

XMas doesn’t mean what you think it does.
A lot of people who are either non-Christian or non-religious will use the term XMas, or some variant of it, when writing about the December 25th holiday.  While over the year it has come to mean a “Christ-less” holiday in a cultural context, it actually means the same thing as Christmas.  The “X” in Greek mean’s “Christ”.  So the original use of XMass was another way of saying “Christ’s Mass”, which is what Christmas literally was observing, a mass dedicated to the birth and celebration of Christ.

So while culturally it may be acceptable to use XMas as a way to try and denote a secular it is inaccurate.  Don’t call the winter holiday something that you don’t celebrate.  If you celebrate Yule, call it Yule.  If you don’t have a name you’re comfortable with, call it “the Holidays”.  Honoring your path and the holidays you celebrate amongst the holidays that others are celebrating is important and creates an affirmation about your path for yourself and the Gods.

But now it actually IS time to get started thinking about Yule, the Winter Solstice, and the other holidays that many of us will celebrate with friends and family since today is December 1st.  So let’s begin the 21 Days of Yule this year with the basics.

This year Yule falls on Thursday December 22nd.  I talked about the changeable dates for the Sabbats this year while talking about Samhain so hopefully you’ve had a little time to figure all these changing dates out.  But since Yule occurs when the winter solstice takes place, we see that date change each year; this year it occurs on December 22nd.

The winter solstice occurs when the Earth is tilted on its axis at the farthest point it can go from the sun.  This is why we tend to find that this is the coldest time of year and why we talk spiritually about being far from the sun and sometimes being without the light of the Gods.  An important thing to keep in mind is that while we in the northern hemisphere are experiencing the winter solstice, those in the southern hemisphere are enjoying their summer solstice, the time when the Earth is tilted as close to the sun as it will get all year.

While many Wiccan and Pagan books today talk about December 21st being the dates that Yule occurs, this isn’t entirely accurate so it’s important to really pay attention to what’s happening in skies.  Many Pagans will honor “Yule Observed” on the 21st, or even more commonly, on one of the weekend days prior to the actual astronomical event.  For example this year you’ll find many public Yule rituals and events are taking place on December 17th and 18th.  Many people will attend these events to celebrate with their covens and communities but will then gather privately in their homes and with their families on the actual date of the solstice for their own private rituals.

When the winter solstice comes we experiences the longest night of the year and the shortest day of light.  On the night of Yule we first honor the death of the God and the decline of the sun, something that has been slowly happening from the day after the summer solstice.  After we make this honoring we then being to work acts of sympathetic magick to encourage the sun’s return and to aid the Goddess in her long night of labor as she prepares to birth the Son, the Child of Light, the Young God.  This includes things like light candle wheels, lighting lights on evergreen trees to symbolize the never-dying light of the God, and stoking the hearth fires.  A popular Yule tradition is the singing of songs and carols, something that is thought to encourage the arrival of the sun and the God once again.

Once the winter solstice has occurred we enter the time of the growing of the light.  Even though it wont be noticeable for a number of weeks, every day from the time Yule takes place the sun is growing and staying in the sky a little bit longer each day as the earth begins to shift once again on its access.  And so the Wheel turns once again.

Time to start preparing!
Over the next 22 days I’ll be doing a daily post about Yule.  It may be Yule history, Yule traditions, information about how Yule and the other winter seasonal holidays connect to one another, or magickal Yule information.  As I share these posts I encourage you to come and share your own thoughts and comments!  Please feel free to post in the comment sections with your stories of Yule, the traditions you grew up with, and how you celebrate and practice Yuletide observances now.

Since today is the 1st Day of Yule, it’s a good time to start planning out what you’re going to need for your Yule rituals and your Yule altar.  Tomorrow we’ll be talking specifically about ideas for crafting your Yule ritual space.  What kind of things do you like to use for your rituals this time of year?