Susan messages
Happy Solstice
at Home2b.nl
Happy Solstice
Trying
to find new ways of spirituality.
Winter Solstice
is held on or around December 21st or 22nd.
Solstice
means "standing still sun". Winter solstice is when,
because
of the earth's tilt, the northern hemisphere is leaning
farthest
away from the sun, and therefore,
the sun has
its lowest arc in the sky.
It marks
the shortest day of the year
(in the
Northern Hemisphere) and is the longest night.
The sun
is at its lowest and weakest, a pivot point
from
which the light will grow steadily stronger and brighter.
This is
the turning point of the year.
The
solstice observance comes from many cultures and
has its
roots in the pagan tradition long before Christianity
made its
entrance in Europe. In fact Christianity borrowed
many of
the symbols from these traditions and made it their own.
Among
those observing the solstice were the Celts, French,
Native
North and South Americans, Persians, Russians,
Swedish,
Norwegans, Greeks, Orientals, Germans,
Irish,
Africans, Saxons, Swiss, ancient Egyptians,
the
Roman empire and those of the Baltic regions.
The
Winter Solstice is often referred to as Yule,
it is
the time of the year when light returns again
to the
northern hemisphere as the sun begins to shift
and
makes a start to move northward.
Since
the sun represented the male diety in the Roman tradition,
they
honoured the Birth of the Sun God on December 25th.
The
birth of this "Divine King" was celebrated long before
the rise
of Christianity and as the "return of the Sun God"
where He
is reborn of the Goddess.
The
Romans called it "Dies Natalis Invicti Solis",
the
Birthday of the Unconquered Sun.
They
made a big midwinter holiday at this time. Because it was so dark,
lamps
were kept burning in order to ward off the spirits of darkness.
Everyone
was granted free time to celebrate with friends and family
with
special food, gifts and general merry making.
Many
people wore jewellery and every place was decorated
with
boughs of laurel and evergreens which symbolized life's continuity.
Special
gifts of candles, incense, dolls, cakes and fruits
were
given to friends. Processions of masked people with wild hats
danced
through the streets to the delight of the population.
Both
master and servents enjoyed a great feast together.
The
Solstice was celebrated with several symbols from nature,
among
them were the Yule Log, evergreen trees, mistletoe,
holly,
the oak tree and ivy. The Yule log was
the
centerpoint of the celebrations and was burned for 13 nights.
Many of
the symbols represented health, prosperity,
fertility,protection
and more. Candles symbolized protection
and
light in the darkest part of the year.
Wreaths
referred to the wheel of the year.
There
are so many details to share with you
(it will
be available in another web page)
about
this ancient revelment but for now let us be reminded
of the
"common ground" that many cultures had regarding this winter
festival.
Our
popular use of the colours red and green at Christmas
also
come from the pagan rites of the solstice.
The
green on plants symbolizes fertility, life, growth
and the
feminine aspect. Red signifys drive, fertility,
and
strength, and represents the virile Mars/male aspect.
Some
winter plants such as holly have both green leaves
and red
berries while others such as those in the evergreen family
remain
green all year round.
The
Celebration of the Winter Solstice is a very old tradition
which
was meant to bring family and friends together
in a
warm and bountiful atmosphere. The spiritual significance is
the
re-birth of the Sun God, a time of renewal and faith.
Also because the light is returning, there will be
new life again.
As it is
the darkest time of the year, it is a good time
to
meditate on the spiritual side of life and the world.
The Winter
Solstice is considered a turning point.
Why not
use this time to turn the world into a better place?
Since
many different cultures orginally celebrated
this
special winter solstice time as the high point of their spiritual calendar,
it is a
good time to reflect spiritually on the similar spiritual practices
that
many cultures once shared.
Let us
all focus on the similarities that this ancient spiritual festival evokes
and
which brings us together as a human race,
rather
than on differences that modern religions have.
Let us
come together as a human family based
on the
similar spiritual traditions of our ancestors which was more nature based.
After
all nature is what the Divine Creation is all about.
This
year of 2005 the Winter Solstice is
on
December 21st at exactly 18:30 Universal Time
or
Greenwich Mean Time.
Let us
all celebrate it together this year
in a
sense of shared spirituality
since
this is a time of peace, hope and love.
Blessed
be all!
You may e-mail:
Updated
July 21, 2011
Everything on this website:
CopyrightŠ2002-2011 by Susan and
Robert