Yuletide

Yule.
My second favourite holiday!
The winter solstice, and the days of Yule represent the shortest day of the year. It is a festival of bright lights and fire, in the middle of the darkest season.
Most people whatever their religion, now accept that the 25th of December is not Jesus's birthday - and even more people view it as a commercial way of money making by companies, which may be true, but it does not diminish the ancient rites of a pagan festival...which as far as we can tell is where 'Christmas' descends from.

So Yule, to most witches, falls on the 21st of December. The word Yule, and the general festivities, relate back to Germanic paganism, with the first recorded use of the name Yuletide being found in 1475. In it's earliest form the term yule, or yuletide, was significant to a 12 day festival in the month of December, or sometimes just a referral term for the month itself.

As with most of Witch tradition, the true origins and rites are rather jumbled - but the general belief is that the days of Yule, are a celebratory festival during the Winter festival, rejoicing in the rebirth of the SUN, and/or the Great Horned God.

In simple terms, you are thanking the gods/goddess that you have survived a long hard winter, and are joyful that the sun is being reborn. The longest night is behind you, and their is hope.

So as a witch, you might ask why I have so many christmas related things in my household. A decorated tree? mistletoe? holly and ivy?
Why do I cook so many rich, cinnamon treats, and yule logs endlessly all month?

You might be surprised to learn some of their origins, and how they date back to our wonderful pagan and druid ancestors.

A Tree

That possibly tacky thing in the corner of the living room, covered in twinkling lights, and brightly coloured baubles, actually has some deep seated roots!
The evergreen tree was sacred to the Celts, because it did not die! Its boughs became a symbol of the eternal divine. Your gods and nature have not abandoned you, when all the greenery around you cannot penetrate the hard earth. Bringing full trees into your house is a more recent tradition, but it held the same basic priniciple. This tree would live the winter, and so would you, and when the sun returned to the earth, you would replant the tree back to nature. 


Mistletoe

Druids revered the oak tree, and the mistletoe that grew from it. During the winter when all other signs of nature had vanished, the green twigs of mistletoe and their white berries, were seen as a sign of eternal fertility.
They travelled far, and climbed high for this mistletoe to clear couples of infertility.
Often hung over their doorways, over the years we have developed the tradition of kissing beneath it.
So...don't kiss too passionately, now you know the supposed effects ;)

Yule Log

Originally not a scrummy, chocolate cake at all!
Can you believe?!
The Yule log was just that, a log. Harvested with your own hands, and placed in the fireplace. The log would be decorated, for the season, and then put in the fire as the main kindling, at winters end. The fire here, representing the newborn sun.
Nowadays, what with fireplaces being hard to come by. Many witches, use their yule log as a base for three candles. The candles still represent the coming sun, it's a lot safer. and you can reuse the same log year and year again.

Nativity Scene?!

Yes.
I know.
The nativity is about the birth of christ? Yes. It is.
However, originally called the 'crib', the first such scene was made in 1224, to remind people of the religious side to christmas.
But for thousands of years, us magical folk, have been carving things into wood, making sculptures from clay, wheat poppets, even voodoo dolls. Their techinical name is 'santons', and making a santon of those you love is very powerful magic. Creating physical, visual images of your family and friends, and keeping them together, in a set-up similar to that of the nativity, forms strong bonds between you, and keeps you connected even over great distances. 

Holly And Ivy

A sprig of holly near the door is said to invite nature sprites. It is a deterant for evil beings, and a welcome to positive entities.
It is also a symbol of remembrance for the historic battle of the Holly and the Ivy. 

That Family Meal

This ones simple.
Harvest was over, times were hard. Getting everyone together for festive meals, around the fire, kept everyones spirits up - it shut out the dark, and laughter and good cheer, held away the negativity.
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So there you have it.
Christmas is a bit more witchy than you thought isn't it?


I will be back on Thursday for more tarot for you guys,
But I am already wishing you the happiest of  Yules with your nearest and dearest.

Much love,
Jade
xoxo

Yuletide Altar

Altars are a very sacred space to any witch.
That is not to say that you can't practice witchcraft if you do not have an altar - but they are a wonderful place to ground and center yourself, as well as a great way to leave a dedication to your chosen faith, and to have as a thanks to the goddess.

Now, like most of my fellow sisters, my altar changes seasonally. It's very easy to alter your altar to bring some of nature indoors.

I thought today I would share with you my current autumn/winter altar.
Altars are private places where a witch can 'pray' if you will. It is a great space for meditation and any spellwork.

Over ten years ago, when I set up my first altar - I had been gifted and purchased so many wonderful artifacts, that I was cramming as much as I could fit onto my altar.

Over time I've learnt that less is more, and that I can utalise the space around my workspace for spare candles, my runes, my chi-gong balls, and to burn incense.

I've found working on a small table for an altar to be most useful.
Plenty of space below it for storage, and you can easily cover it all up with a large piece of pretty fabric.

Choose items that are personal to you!

This is very easy to do with small items like crystals, as you can change them routinely without changing your entire altar. Crystals that represent things you wish to achieve this month, or crystals for meditation work wonderfully.

(For those curious; quartz, eagles eye, tigers eye)

For the months of September and October, I had a pumpkin lantern on my altar, now that Samhain has passed, and we are moving into Yule - I have replaced the pumpkin with a festive wreath.  I placed it around an ever-present candle on my altar.

 At the base of this bowl, are rose petals worked in love magic months ago, that will stay on my altar for a long, long time. But depending on what my altar is meant to be expressing, I add different objects to the top of the bowl.

Now, it is red leaves of autumn, a pine cone, and a seagull skull.
There are two skulls on my altar at the moment. A bird and a fox. Both are real, and both were ethically obtained.
The skulls are really important throughout the course of winter. It reminds us of natures trials in these months, and of the impending death of flowers, and trees, and grass, and animals, with the presence of snow and frost, and biting cold.

Whilst Tarot and divination are a large part of my life, I don't usually have a tarot card on my altar. But recently 'The Moon' card has been calling to me. I've pulled it multiple times - it's moved from the bottom of my deck to the top at least twice. And the moon has been in my dreams.

The Moon represents your subconscious. Your hidden desires. It tells you to listen to your dreams and learn from them. The Moon represents a darker side to you emerging. 

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Bonus!!!

If you are lucky enough to have a familiar, set them up a little bed, near your altar. You'll find they love to sleep nearby when you are doing spell work.

Show me your altars in the comments.

I love seeing where you all work your magic.

Love and Light,

Jade

xoxo