Winter Solstice and Mothers Night

The winter solstice occurs at 1:48 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. In the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice happens during the coldest season of the year, when the sun is at its lowest angle and is seen for its shortest period. This is the turning point, the moment of new beginnings - the darkest time, with the brightest hope.

I've recently been reminded that we need to believe in these little myths - that the sun is returning and hope is reborn - so that we can continue to believe in the Big Myths, like justice, mercy, democracy, freedom - "That sort of thing".

“Humans need fantasy to be human. To be the place where the falling angel meets the rising ape.” ~Terry Pratchett, Hogfather

 

And tonight is known as Modraniht, or Mothers Night, by Saxon Pagans. On this first night of Yule the early Germanic and Scandinavian tribes paid tribute to the ancestral mothers who protected and watched over the family, helped with childbirth, and healed illnesses.

Agenda today:

1. Read a novena

2. Spirit Guide trance

3. Celebrate Yule

4. Mothers Night fire and prayer

1. Read a novena:

I've been reading this Creation Novena from the Indian Catholic Matters site:

Day 6: A Prayer for the Air

Creator God, we give thanks for the air. We thank you for our enjoyment of its caress. Thank You for the soft play of wind in the treetops and the warm touch of a breeze against our faces. Thank You for the air we breathe, for the breaths we draw every moment.

As we warm the air of Your Earth, help us understand its mighty power, its ability to not only caress but to destroy. As we pollute the air of Your Earth, help us understand how essential it is to breathe itself.

In this season of Advent, give us understanding, and give us the will to use our understanding well.

We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

2. Spirit Guide trance:

I feel the darkness of winter in my body and my heart; some mornings my bones ache and I can't shake the gloom. The expectation of joy and good cheer are not helpful.

A couple of year's ago I found this article by Jade Grigori, a Shaman teacher, about Winter Solstice in the indigenous north:

Winter Solstice: A Time of the Shaman’s Gift Bringing

"The underlying aspects of the various cultural Winter Solstice celebrations lies rooted deep in Shamanic origins. Amongst the Saami (Laplanders) and Siberians, Buryats and Altaic tribes, all of the far northern climes, there was and is a very common motif in the Shamanic practices surrounding the Winter Solstice ceremonies."

The shaman was called on by the people to go into a deep trance, helped along with mushrooms and/or shamanic drumming. The purpose was to access and deal with burdens of Inner Darkness:

"At the time of the Winter Solstice the days have descended into the depths of darkness. It is at this moment, however, that the Sun begins to return, and with it, the days begin to lengthen. As the days become longer more light radiates into the world. This natural rhythm of the dance of Earth and Sun is a trigger within our psyche.

As all the things that have remained hidden in the darkness begin to be revealed in the greater light of day, so do all the things that we tend to hide in our own Inner Darkness begin to be brought forth into activity as the days lengthen, just as seeds left in the darkness beneath the soil begin to sprout and grow in response to the emerging light. Generations upon generations of experiencing this cycle of our own Soul’s dynamic led the people of ancient cultures to utilize the very same patterns of nature to deal effectively with their burdens of pain and suffering, of anguish and trauma that had laid hidden within the Inner Darkness of their own Soul."

Jade suggests that we can use Winter Solstice ceremonies to release our burdens and the grudges we hold, forgive the debts owed us, and start fresh - be reborn, accepting how things are.

The Shaman also receives a symbolic gift for each person, which he or she sings into the Soul Essence of each person, as a blessing and a gift of the Spirit.

"The ceremonies performed at the Winter Solstice are powerful in their transformative effect. They are empowering of each participant in the awakening of each to their own inherent spiritual gifts. They are ceremonies of compassion and liberation, ceremonies of blessing, well-being and abundance in the year to come."

I plan to perform my own interpretation of a Spirit-Guide ceremony, probably on Friday - when I have a day to myself (no two-year-old to watch)  - with an intention to receive a message or a gift or an insight of some kind, from my Inner Guide. As a Quaker, I've got lots of experience in listening to the small, still voice, but this is a different thing: I am going to be directive, and specific.

1. Set the Mood: Light a candle and dim the lights. Turn on my primal drum music very softly. Settle into the peace of the darkness.

2. Craft a Clear Intention: Today I will call on the Spirit of Love to guide me in the New Year, and ask "What can Love do?"

3. Relax, breathe, walk or float: With each breath, allow my awareness to deepen and become softer. No stress. No rush. Walk or float in a void.

4. Go through the Door: When I feel ready, see myself moving through a doorway or opening into another space. Take time to settle here, in the safe, dark, warm, womb.

5. Invite my Inner Guide: Call on the Spirit of Love, and ask my questions. Ask for what I need: A blessing, a message, a leading, and/or healing.

6. Open myself to messages and gifts: I may get a vision, or thoughts, or just a feeling.

7. Give thanks and return: Saying thanks out loud is a how I acknowledge the reality of the gift. Then, turn around and exit the way I came in.

8. Journal: Take a few moments to remember my experience, and write it down in my prayer journal.

3. Celebrate Yule:

My ancestors were predominantly Anglo-Saxon, that is, of English and Germanic descent, and I've done some research into modern Saxon Paganism in an attempt to reclaim some of my heritage and better connect me to my ancestral roots.

When Anglo-Saxons first began to settle in England they brought Yule with them. We don’t know too many details about what this festival entailed: A Yule Log was cut to provide fuel and gradually pushed into the fire as it burned. Homes and halls were decorated with evergreen leaves and branches. Feasting took place.

However, by around 650AD, a number of kingdoms had converted to Christianity, and it's no coincidence that Christmas Day and Yule share the same week. The early Roman church realized that people were more likely to convert to Christianity if there was some continuity in their lives. Although many kingdoms embraced the new faith, people hung onto traditions that had been observed for generations. It is interesting to note that the word Christmas itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word, Cristesmæsse, first recorded in 1038.

My feeling about the traditions of the Christmas and Yule season are that they have very little to do with either Christmas or Yule, and are mostly family customs that have been handed down and been incorporated into winter celebrations. They are only meaningful if I imbue them with meaning; the meaning comes in the spiritual significance of the rituals and symbols, and in how they help me to focus my days on my values and principles.

I celebrate the Yule by deepening my connection to the earth, by sharing peace and goodwill, and by giving attention to birth and re-birth. These are my spiritually significant themes of Yuletide.

4. Mothers Night Fire and Prayer:

This first Yuletide evening, I will go outside after dark alone, and have some quiet time. Then I will light a candle for my ancestral mothers, an offering of light on this longest night of the year. 

I don't worship my ancestors, but I acknowledge them:

I thank those women who came before me for the Love and Light you brought to the world, and see beyond your weaknesses and your racism. You too are that of God, and a part of me.

I will carry the candle around the bounds of my yard.