Yule or the Winter Solstice is scientifically based on the standing still position of the Sun; this has been practiced for over 10,000 years by many cultures (especially Native Americans, Spanish and Mexican Indians) around the globe with ceremonies and festivals over 12 days). Yule is a kind of spiritual, psychic, and physiological renewal of mind, body, and soul involving the 4 elements (Earth or North, Air or East, Fire or South, and Water or West) and the 5th element being the Spirit Guide at the top of a right side up pentacle and pentagram (which are mathematically based on geometry). The winter solstice is unique among days of the year--the shortest day and the longest night. Darkness rules but only briefly; from now until the summer solstice, the nights will grow shorter and the days longer even in Alaska.The Winter Solstice's turning point was carefully monitored in many ancient cultures. The stones in the circle at Stonehenge were aligned to ascertain the dates of midsummer and midwinter, as well as the positions of the moon throughout the year. Even older than Stonehenge is the tumulus at Newgrange in the Boyne River Valley in Ireland. It was built in approximately 4500 B.C.E. On the morning of the winter solstice, a shaft of sunlight enters the mound, travels down a stone corridor, and illuminates the spiral designs on the back wall of the cave.
Yule is one of four Lesser Pagan Sabbats (with the religious festivals or holidays being Ostara, Midsummer or Litha, and Mabon) within the symbolically and constantly turning wheel of the year. Yule has long been celebrated as the rebirth of the sun (the Sun God Ra/Re), of sunlight, and the continual existence of life itself. According to Celtic folklore, the Oak King and the Holly King represent the two sides of the Greenman or the Horned God (Cernunnos); the Oak King oversees the lighter part of the year (at Litha) while the Holly King oversees the darker part of the year at Yule.
In the northern hemisphere, Yule is generally celebrated on or around December 21st depending upon the day of arrival of the full moon prior to this Sabbat. Yule festivals, ceremonies, and rituals can consist of a simple solitary prayer all the way through an elaborate social and spiritual gathering of men, women, and children. Depending upon their spiritual path, some folks observe Yule for 1 day or from 3, 7, or up to 12 days.
~ Merry Yule, Winter Solstice & Blesséd Be ~
