To start things off I would just like to state that I'm new to the whole pagan faith. I know Yule is on the 22nd and I've read up a little bit about it but I just don't get it. What types of things can I do on Yule to celebrate and what is the reason for Yule? Thank you for your time.
Yule is sort of the Samhain of the Germans and Scadinavians...it is the deep dark time...also is the time of the Wild Hunt, the harvesting of souls. Odin, on his Wild Hunt, in sleigh with flying reindeer is the root of Santa, the two original reindeer were Donder (thunder) and Blitzen (lightning). It is the Solstice...the deepest part of the dark time...with the sun gaining strength from that point out. Think of the ones you have lost and the survival to the warm time. Think on the ancestors and what winter might have meant for them. Harvest a log from your land, and have friends gather around the fire as it burns, telling storys and making boasts for the year ahead. We always have a winter gather of friends, where everyone gives a handmade gift, and we all have "dirty santa". Wiccans are gonna say things about "the wheel of the year" and what not, but all that is is combining 3 different cultures worth of IndoEuropean holidays and celebrating them all...in their redundancy. Also, almost all "christmas decorations" come from Yule, so read up on trees and apples and what not.
I never understood why Wiccans celebrated Samhain & Yule! Even though my religion is not that of the European. When I Moved to the States to New England I was taken by the beauty and the tastes & Smells of the different seasons. I find myself around this time making Holly Wreaths and Wreaths with dried apples & oranges
Actually when I dabbled in Wicca I only really bothered with Samhain, probably due to some stupid hangups about Christmas. In the grand scheme of things I don't feel 'bad' about that; as I don't get any extra kudos for doing all X sabbats, even though you're going through the motions, instead of pouring you all into celebrating the Y sabbats that truly resonates. So having moved on from that stage, and come to properly understand the sabbats, I do celebrate Samhain and Yule on my own terms; it just wouldn't feel right honour one facet of my heritage [Celtic or Germanic] and not the other.
Kinda where I am Sage....Yule is our deep winter gather, more hang out, share, tell stories and sit around a fire...Samhain is a deeply religious night full of ritual...so the two are celebrated differently here.
We invite all the wiccans to Beltaine for the same reason Crowley invented Wicca. I mean, who DOESN'T want to dance around a fire with naked teenaged girls?
LMAO hmm can't say teenage girls have ever done it for me, especially when I was one. Good to know Heron, glad to know I'm not the only one
