December Solstice a Long Day 11: Spirit Return to the Otherworld

 Good Day! And Welcome to Day 11! 

We are almost there!   As 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 between the worlds, and who watch over us as we depart sacred time. 

The late Alexei Kondratiev, in his book “The Apple Branch,” has a whole 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 north, we honor the boar, and the promise of abundance to come.  I place a boar carving on the altar and offer an apple for the Great Boar. 

That leaves the Stag, as Kondratiev’s counterpart to the boar.  There is a lot of important mythology of the importance of stags, or deer in general (and it is interesting that Freyr ends up using an antler to defend himself). They can be associated with protection and kingship, and thus the value of integrity.  I place antlers on the altar and offer corn for the Great Stag. 

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