By Fire Well and Tree

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 12!   Twelfth night!   New Year’s Eve!  Traditional parties work well here, but a more spiritual aspect can be observed either quickly at home or as part  of the party!   Activities include divination (so placement of runes  or other divination tools  on the altar).  There’s also a suggestion I quite like  from the Matthews’ book  to gather  juniper  (if it wasn’t gathered on Day 9)  and letting it dry by the fire (or wherever that is in a modern home) for use to bless the home tomorrow.  In addition,  we burn the yule log, wreath, or whatever, at midnight as  we ring in the new year (weather permitting).   While it is New Year’s in the South, also, one could celebrate Twelfth Day, with a picnic or other similar activities.   The next day, January 1.  T ake down all the  stuff and  cleanse the residence by aspersing with the gree...

 Good Day! And Welcome to Day 11!   We are almost there!   A s we prepare to return,  we give  one last nod to the spirits of the other world. We honored the Winter Wanderer and the Green Man at the beginning, so today we will honor those other-worldly “nature” spirits, who can move be tween the  world s , and who watch over us as we depart sacred time.   The late Alexei   Kondratiev , in his book  “The Apple Branch , ” has a wh ole  ritual cycle  about the Cosmic Boar  Hunt that sends the Boar into the land/underworld in the dark half of the year, and out of it at  Beltainne ,  where he is replaced by the  Stag.  The role of the boar in Christmas and winter activities can be seen in “The Boar’s Head Carol,” and the importance of the boar’s head to St. Stephen’s Day festivities, is believed to be an echo of an earlier offering to Ing ( Freyr ).   So  this night in the no...

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 10!   We are almost at the end, and as such, we need to  make preparations  to return to the more mundane world.  In the Matthews’ book, they talk about St. Distaff’s day, which is the first day after the Twelve Days of Christmas (usually the day after Epiphany) when women were permitted to return to their spinning.  As we prepare to return, we can place a symbol of our work on the altar, and honor those deities or spirits associated with that.   I tend to put my drop spindle on the altar, since not only will we be returning to work, we will be returning the house to its more mundane rhythms as well.    

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 9!   On Day 9, we celebrate the green growing things of the season. For the north, we honor the evergreen, that stays green even as the rest of the world appears to die.  We can honor and meditate ( or even journ ey ) on the world tree, placing a sprig  of real evergreen on the altar, preferably juniper as that was used like sage for cleansing in northern Europe.   In the south, we can honor the deciduous trees that will lose their leaves and go dormant six months from now. We can also honor the herbs and flowers that are at their peak, and place sprigs of herbs or flowers on the altar.  

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 8!   On Day 8 we cel ebrate the all- important precipitation on which we all depend.  In the North, honoring winter and snow, and deities associated with that.  I have a snowflake ornament I place  on the altar, and if I’m lucky, I can get a bowl of snow!  In a pinch, ice cubes could work, too.   In the south, we can celebrate rain and storms, and any deities associated with them.  One could plac e an umbrella next to the altar, and again, maybe a bowl of  rain water  (or just from the tap)!  

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 7   This is a pretty complicated day, with lots of possibilities.  On the one hand, one could celebrate the  Feast of Fools.   Suggested by the Matthews, and it might be fun for families with children, to put them in charge of something they’re normally not in charge of, including maybe dinner and then the evening’s ritual and candle lighting.  The tradition is  definitely one  of switching roles and of ritualized dis respect (meaning it isn’t real) that is attested to in  customs surrounding Saturnalia or Boxing Day,  for example.   Another possibility is to honor the  out-dwellers  or more chaotic  elements that we usually set a part, as they do have their place in the order of things.   On the altar I have placed dice, for the randomness of chance, or  mardi  gras beads.   In the south, we can honor “chance” by engaging in games of luck an...

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 6!   This day honors both the spirit of hospitality and gifting.  Many folks this day will be visiting or receiving others, and a reminder to honor the ancient customs of * ghosti .  This fits well with the secular and mainstream day of gifting.     It’s not too much a stretch (and indeed it is well-attested in the development of Christmas) to see the focus on a Child of Light, and in the North, we can honor that figure in our own pantheons, such as Baldur, Aengus,  Maponus , and others.  In the South, the sun is at its peak strength, so honoring the fully-grown champion or hero can be done here (Lugh,  Heracles, etc.).  A symbol of either hospitality (perhaps the bow off a package) or the Child/Hero of Light can be added to the altar.  

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 5!   On Day 5, we honor the  Alfar , those male ancestral spirits (like the  disir ), and the spirits of the home.  As you can see, we are at Christmas Eve, and I see no reason why milk and cookies can’t be set out for the house spirits !  Santa is often called a “right jolly old  elf”… or is that Alf?  And if you’ve been tortured by “Elf on a  Shelf”… this can all work in together.   

 Good Day! And Welcome to Day 4!   On Day 4 we honor the spirits of nature.  Placing symbols and figures of Nature Spirits, and offerings of appropriate foods.  I like to offer birdseed and t hen make sure it goes to  the birds on my land.  

Good Day! And Welcome to Day 3!   Today we will be honoring those archetypal figures of the season , who will be our guide through the devotional .  It has been very powerful to engage in a trance journey to directly welcome and honor the Winter Wanderer or the Green Man, as is seasonally appropriate.  Especially in the north, acknowledgement of the Wild Hunt can be important at this time as well, so an offering of grain for the steed of the Winter Wanderer, in addition to mead or ale can be offered. I think the Green Man would appreciate an offering of clear spring water.  Woodland  Santas  you can find at some holiday stores can represent the Winter Wanderer on your altar, and a Green Man face works for the Summer