The Long Night

   As the "Holiday Season" is soon upon us I wanted to take some time to share some thoughts about this time of year. Our modern culture would have us believe that it's all about the Christ Child and Santa Claus, presents, and treats; but where does this come from? What about things like Christmas Trees and lights, ham, and stockings? For me the beauty of the season is found in the earliest roots of our Proto Indo-European ancestors, because from there we will see how so much is developed and made into what we understand as Christmas today.  

   For a time forgotten, these Megalithic builders placed great importance on the Winter Solstice. The longest night of the year and hence the shortest day. The theme of dark and light is ever present in the stone monuments they have left behind. Places like New Grange in Ireland where the suns rays align to the roof box, travel down a chamber to light the back wall of a burial chamber all demonstrate their obsession with tracking the movement of the sun and moon throughout the seasons. Much speculation exists on any of their spiritual connections with solar and lunar observations. The popular and common thought that seems to be accepted is that the spirits of the people within the tomb could unite with the ancestors during such alignments, or the ancestors were able to be present at such places when this gateway or threshold was open by the alignment. It could even be suggested with places like Stonehenge & the near by place of Woodhenge also played an important role between Winter and Summer Solstice. All that can be said is that from Northern Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany, and even in places in France, Spain, Germany and Italy the Winter Solstice seemed very important to the people of the Neolithic. The theme again of Darkness and Light, of day and night and life and death were no doubt very important.  These people dealing with new found agriculture and technology of the 1st discovery of copper, and tin, of hunting, and survival through the hard winters no longer following big game after the ice age became tied to a farmstead. The pastoral lifestyle became hard and often unbearable. The longest night or the darkest time of year had to be hard on them. 

   What does this have to do with Christmas? 

What is Christmas but not the celebration of the birth of "The Christ Child"? Is he not the symbolic human figure of 'the light'? Is this why the early biblical editors chose to set his birthday near the Winter Solstice in place of a pre-existing Pagan culture. Most likely. Is the son not also 'the sun'. If we understand its direct connection to Mithra and Zoraster it is clearly evident. In the ancient Welsh (Brythonic) tradition we can understand the divine child of light with the Mabon or Maponos (Gaulish) 'the great boy, the great son'. In later folk customs of the British Isles we see the battle between the Oak and Holly Kings. 

    It was from such peoples like the Bell Beaker culture that stretched from Sardinia, Sicily, Northern Italy, Germany, France and Spain all the way to the British Isles and Ireland during the Bronze Age that we see the continuity of culture still embracing the Winter Solstice traditions from the earlier Neolithic cultures already in place for much time. 

What do we know from our ancestors of the European Iron Age?

   The Coligny Calendar found in Gaul (France) mentions the month of December as Deuoriuos. The word 'Riuros' translates to "frost month" from the Gaelic reo, Welsh rhew, Breton riv. In Irish 'reo' means a deep-darkness, so the word Deuorious (Deuo-ro-ious, "great divine feast") would be linked to their observation of the Winter Solstice and would give us a glimpse of the Old Celtic understanding of this holiday. A deeper look into the Gaulish Coligny calendar of the 'samos-giamos' part of the year would give us a more in depth understanding of these solar points on the calendar and their traditions in the continental Celtic world.  

   What can be said is that there was an effort to celebrate hope during this dark time. The seed of light sown in the womb of darkness will grow and in its appropriate season will bloom and blossom. Christmas tree lights, candles, bonfires are all good examples of our early focus of light during this time which clung to hope in connection for the Sun/Son to return. The Proto Indo European culture, and even Joseph Campbell and Carl Jung cover in depth this 'Child of Light- The returning Sun'. He is always born at the time of deepest darkness. What can not be argued is that the archetype is clear and cross cultural with the Mabon/Maponos. The divine child of light is associated with re-birth and salvation. 

   In times before the industrial revolution many of these Winter Solstice celebrations lasted weeks, "the 12 days of Christmas" comes from a time when the Solstice was celebrated for about 3 weeks. Such festivities were not merely indoor family traditions, but entire communal celebrations of public display. These included sporting events, processions/parades, musical performances, divination, and lots of feasting. 

So much could be said in detail about the many cultural celebrations during this time of year. To get a good feel for the many subtle layers of this seasonal festival one should look into a well researched study into the following:

Winter Solstice https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_solstice

Wren Day - Lá an Dreoilín https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wren_Day

Saint Stephen's Day https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Stephen%27s_Day

Mummer's Day https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mummer%27s_Day

Mari Lwyd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mari_Lwyd

Cailleach https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cailleach

Alban Arthan - Alban Arthuan   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alban_Arthan

Yule https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule

Mōdraniht   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mōdraniht

Krampusnacht - see krampus.

The Wild Hunt https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Hunt

Koročun or Kračun - Slavic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korochun

   We would be very dismissive if we did not mention the Norse/Germanic culture for it is here that we have the most direct imagery for our modern Christmas season. If you have a Christmas tree, garland, holly, wreaths, lights and other things of green-red-white in your house consider it thanks to the Pagan Germanic customs. YULE being a holiday where we get much of our traditions from was during this Solstice time. Santa Claus from the Dutch: Sinterklaas is without argument a combination of the Christian Saint Nicholas and the much older tradition of the God Odin during Yule with one of his many names as Jolnír. It was common for children to leave carrots or other treats in their shoes for Odins eight-legged horse Sleipnir much like children hang stockings and leave treats for Santa and his reindeer today. 

Does your family eat Ham during Christmas? Ever wonder where that comes from? The Yule Boar! Check out the following.

Christmas Ham/ Yule Ham  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_ham

The Yule Boar - Sonargöltr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonargöltr

   It is hard to forget the Germanic Yule Goat often associated with Krampus the counter part of the dark side of Saint Nicholas. This half man half goat beast would punish the children who misbehaved. No doubt this bastardized anthropomorphic figure is a direct connection to the Germanic pagan past of a Horned God figure. Imagine growing up in alpine Germany long ago where you were terrified by this creature and then having a man in a costume come to your house, spank you or scare the jeebus outta ya. Be good or else! I know some parents that still bribe their children with be good or else. It be much cooler if they dressed up as Krampus after some story telling. 

There is three major themes that are connected to the Winter solstice of we dig through the cross cultural European traditions. 

1. The theme of the Child of Light. The spark of life who is born at the darkest time. To triumph he is often hidden away until the right moment. From the Irish Myths with Fionn Mac Cumhaill & Lúgh to the Welsh tales of Lleu & Mabon/Maponos, to even how Jesus was hidden from Herod the Great. The birth of the light child (Luke Skywalker) Luke = Lewk. The child of light a vigiorus leader who will rule during the samos half of the year when he grows after being hidden. 

2. The theme of the Exiled Mother. Powers of generation and growth are unable to manifest outwardly, but is still active & present usually hidden or not easily recognized. Stories of Demeter and Persephone, Isis and Osiris, Nanna and Balder add to the Celtic tales where we have The Great Mother and The Great Son. Sometimes its her consort, or husband who she wanders searching for while grieving instead of her child. 

3. The theme of the Sun Sacrifice. The new-born light must be given energy from a like source of itself. This is usually blood from a hunt or farm animal with the warm red blood sprinkled or poured onto the cold white ground where the seeds and crops go. Often by someone wearing Gold the color of the Sun. 

How ever you celebrate the Holiday Season, be aware that it is Happy Holidays & Seasons Greetings. There are so many cultures, customs, and traditions of both Judeo-Christian and Pagan being celebrated. I hope you can see from the above that we have more in common through archetype and symbolism than that which divides us. Have a safe and wonderful holiday, and always remember the wise words of our prophets William and Theodore; "Be excellent to each other, and Party on Dude." 

~ In the know:

Sirius shared the same declination as the Winter Solstice sun around 3,150 BC, when Newgrange was built, and it is possible the people who constructed Newgrange were well aware of this coincidental alignment, and therefore they may have used the passage of Newgrange to watch the precessional drift of Sirius over long periods of time. Viewed from Newgrange, Sirius set over a hill called Réaltoge, which is an Irish word for "star". In folklore, it was said there was gold buried under the ringfort.