A Time of Darkness

“Hello darkness, my old friend.” – The Sound of Silence, written by Paul Simon

As I wrote in my previous blog, the Winter Solstice is known as Yule in Northern European Paganism as well as neopagan Wicca. Because of the Earth’s changing tilt, its North Pole reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun on that day. The result is the longest night of the year in the Northern hemisphere.

People have mixed reactions to nighttime and darkness. For some, the reaction is negative. This feeling isn’t unreasonable, for the night can hide many dangers. The darkness of night can also bring on a sense of sadness and loneliness. Others find great beauty in the darkness. The world at night takes on mystical air. The shadows and the moon’s eerie glow create a sense of magic at night.

If you have a dark allure, which is a passion for the night and the dark, as I have, relish this time of year. However, if you find this dark time disturbing, know it won’t last forever. Days will shorten as the tilt of the Earth gradually moves back towards the Sun.

Remember, everything changes, and the darkness never lasts. 

Saturnalia and Yule

December 17th through the 23rd is the ancient Roman Pagan festival season as Saturnalia. And December 21st, the winter solstice, is Yule for the Germanic Pagans of Northern Europe. While Saturnalia and Yule have festive elements, both have dark aspects.

Saturnalia was a Roman festival dedicated to the god Saturn as evidenced by the name. Saturnalia began with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn and was followed by a public banquet, private gift-giving, gambling, and a week-long party resembling the modern Carnival or Mardi Gras. The poet Catullus called it “the best of days.”

However, Saturn was a complex god with chthonic aspects. Saturn was connected to the underworld, with 3rd-century sources recording that the bodies of dead gladiators were offered to Saturn during Saturnalia. There’s further evidence of Saturn’s chthonic nature in an Estrucian artifact that may bear his name. This artifact places Saturn in the north, a direction associated with the realm of the dead. Saturn ruled over winter lightning, unlike Jupiter, who ruled the lightning of Summer storms.

Yule was a winter solstice festival historically observed by the Germanic peoples. For the Yule festival, locals would assemble at the temple. They would bring food, ale, and livestock for sacrifice. The priest would splatter the blood of the sacrificed animals over the altars, walls of the temple, themselves, and the locals. They would toast to the god Odin. The Yule festival lasted for three days. 

The Germanic people believed that a supernatural event called the Wild Hunt occurred during Yule. In the Wild Hunt, the god Odin would fly through the night with an army of undead warriors. If someone was unlucky enough to be outside at just the wrong time, they could be swept up, transported far away, or killed.

So enjoy Saturnalia or Yule (or, like me, both). Go ahead and party like it 99 B.C.E. But remember to watch your back, for it's not all fun and games.