![]() It marks the beginning of Spring and the time when days and nights are of equal length. Patrick’s Day, occurs in the middle of March in the Northern Hemisphere. Spring or Vernal Equinox, also known as Ostara, Easter, and St. ![]() Since so many of these traditions have persisted for thousands of years despite extensive efforts to eliminate them, we think it best to celebrate the Winter Solstice with these ancient customs, recognizing our links to the rest of humanity, past and present. The effort was never completely successful, and eventually many Winter Solstice customs were incorporated into Christmas observances. ![]() In the fourth century AD, Christian authorities in Rome attempted to eliminate the pagan festivities by adopting December 25th as Christ’s birthday. Also popular was the exchange of small gifts thought to bring luck on the recipient. Romans celebrated this event with Saturnalia, a festival of merrymaking, and decorating their homes and temples with holly and evergreens. The Inca held midwinter ceremonies at temples that served as astronomical observatories like Machu Pichu. Germanic tribes decorated a pine or fir tree with candles and tokens. In the Celtic Druid culture, the Winter Solstice was celebrated by hanging sacred mistletoe over a doorway or in a room to offer goodwill to visitors. In pagan Scandinavia the winter festival was the Yule, celebrated by burning the hearth fires of the magically significant Yule log. In the Northern Hemisphere it usually occurs around December 21st. The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, with the sun at its lowest and weakest. For further reading on these topics see here. Celebrating these events recognizes both the continuity of humanity over thousands of years and how much we have progressed from the simple agrarians who depended upon astronomical sightings for their survival. Here are some astronomical events that have been used to mark holy days in many different religions for thousands of years. ![]() The depth of humanity’s need for holy days and the biological connection to the earth’s yearly cycles are subjects that have not been satisfactorily researched. Observing holidays is a tradition intertwined with spirituality. ![]()
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