Not as dark as you may be thinking – we’re not in Utqiagvik, our most northern city, which goes over 60 days without sun each winter. The sun’s rebirth was critical to survival among ancient populations. Litha, one of the festivals in the Wheel of the Year in modern paganism, is the time of a battle between light and dark. The Solstice happens every year in both June and December, on one day around the 20th-22nd. Capricorn energy is really focused on life on the Earth plane." What is the meaning of Yule for pagans and Wiccans? As the Moon wanes toward those final days of darkness, there's often a turn inward. The winter solstice — a time to celebrate light and rebirth of the sun on the longest night of the year — took on new meaning this year for Wingra School. *Solstice* Meaning and Spiritual Significance~ 6 Comments. The Spiritual Summit Here’s what I mean. And I live in Alaska. Learn more. Rivers are stilled and the land lies waiting beneath a coverlet of snow. The word Solstice comes from the latin word 'solstitum,' a combination of the two words: sol, meaning ‘sun’, and stitium, meaning ‘stop’.Put these two words together and you get the meaning: this is the period of the year where the sun appears to have stopped, paused or halted. The meaning behind these rituals is to let go of the dark and welcome back the light as each day after solstice grows longer and longer. Throughout history, people have long gathered to celebrate and honor the sun. Special rituals during the time of the solstice and equinox each year mark not only the movement of the sun, but the inherent cycles within spiritual and physical life as well. Just as a dark moon heralds in a new one, the Winter Solstice ( Alban Arthan) marks the birth of a new year. . With many areas across the Northern Hemisphere getting less than eight hours of daylight Monday, the Winter Solstice can mean dark times -- both physically and … Yule: Winter Solstice - Dec 21st/22nd. Sometimes, we resist emotions or thoughts or discomfort in the body or sleepiness or restlessness during meditation and in doing so, we shoot a second arrow, so-to-speak, and create a story around even these simple experiences in meditation. For that hemisphere, the winter solstice is the day with the shortest period of daylight and longest night of the year, when the Sun is at its lowest daily maximum elevation in the sky. The ‘Winter Solstice’ occurs on either the 21st or 22nd December and observes the lowest point of the sun in the sky at midday as well as the most southerly sunrise and sunset in the year. Oaks were seen as sacred and the winter fruit of the mistletoe was a symbol of life in the dark winter months. It is at this height of summer at solstice when the Sun's power reaches its zenith. It's the fruitful dark out of which new life can eventually emerge. For our ancestors winter could literally mean death and starvation! For example, in Iran, families often kept fires burning all night to assist in the battle between light and dark forces. Dark Moon vs. New Moon . So it’s really dark right now. The word “solstice” comes from the Latin solstitium meaning “sun stands still”. Dark Mofo winter solstice nude swim sees record numbers flock to Hobart's Long Beach. . It was also the Druids who began the tradition of the yule log. A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere.Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. 7 Simple Winter Solstice Rituals for Celebrating the Light. "The solstice is the moment the sun enters into Capricorn. A simple meditation today, the Winter Solstice, can help us work with balancing light and dark/ease and difficulty. Through the pages of history, ancient Egyptians, Celts, Hopi, and many others, used the solstice as a time for ritual, reflection, and renewal. The Romans called it ‘ Sol Invictus ’, meaning, ‘the Undefeated Sun’. We come out of the darkness and into the light. For many of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice means one thing: a few long, cold, dark months are ahead of us, with seemingly no end in site. It promises new life. The winter solstice, hiemal solstice or hibernal solstice occurs when one of the Earth's poles has its maximum tilt away from the Sun. At the winter solstice, the apparent position of the Sun reaches its most southerly point against the background stars. The “rebirth” was celebrated with vigor. We watch the cold sunlight and the bright stars, maybe go for walks in the quiet land. A time for reflection. PHOTO: ANGELA DE LA AGUA. This represents our spirit's ascension to the Divine -- the reunion of self with Divinity. "The Solstice is a time of quietude, of firelight, and dreaming, when seeds germinate in the cold earth, and the cold notes of church bells mingle with the chimes of icicles. The Solar New Year marks the end of a cycle as the Earth begins her return to innocence – the rebirth that is Spring. According to Celtic myths, the solstice marked a great annual battle between the Oak King, representing light, and the Holly King, representing dark. It reminds us that there is hope in knowing that the sun will return even in the darkness. In many countries, the seasons of the year are determined by reference to the solstices and the equinoxes.. The origin of the word Yule, has several suggested origins from the Old English word, geõla, the Old Norse word jõl, a pagan festival celebrated at the winter solstice, or the Anglo-Saxon word for the festival of the Winter Solstice, 'Iul' meaning 'wheel'. Hygge has become a bit of a fashion buzz word of late, but the concept is ancient – as we turn into the dark and cold days of winter, and the shortest day at the Winter Solstice, it is easy to feel depressed, to get overwhelmed by what seems like the endless dark days, and cold, wet, damp ,weather. It can be a time to rest and reflect. When does winter start? Winter Solstice Meaning. Winter Solstice: The Dark Days of Winter Today is the Winter Solstice also known as St. Thomas' Day. From the dawn of time, people all over the world have celebrated the return of the sun as a life-giving time of great significance. It’s when the dark half of the year relinquishes to the light half; the Sun God will grow in strength every day from that point until the summer solstice. What is Yule to you? solstice definition: 1. either of the two occasions in the year when the sun is directly above either the furthest point…. This creates intimacy with nature that has been all but lost in the modern world. We live pretty far south of there, on the Kenai Peninsula (“Alaska’s Playground” as the tourism industry says). The Winter solstice, the shortest day of the year and the longest night of the year. According to its Latin roots, the word Solstice means “sun standing still,” and for millennia the Winter Solstice has been celebrated around the world – acknowledging the shortest day of the year as a return to light. For many, the new moon begins at the moment of the sun-moon conjunction, but for others, it remains the dark Moon until that crescent is in view. Honoring the summer solstice with ceremony, ritual, or yoga can help us energize and harness the palpable energy of the sun. Yule - Winter Solstice. In those contemplative moments, the inner reality is presented through dreams and waking visions. The Sun is and always has been symbolic of the highest Divinity. Another year coming to an end, and a solar eclipse just in time for the winter solstice. It refers to the point when the apparent movement of the sun’s path seems to stop briefly. What does ‘solstice’ mean? While the winter solstice … It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). Do you worship a specific pagan deity during the Winter Solstice? In ancient times and for some today, the darkness itself is the spiritual cradle into which the Sun is reborn. In Latin, solstice means sun set still and Winter Solstice is the great stillness before the Sun's strength builds, and days grow longer. The world 'solstice' comes from the Latin solstitium meaning 'Sun stands still', because the apparent movement of the Sun's path north or south stops before changing direction. For those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere, the Summer Solstice marks a time of celebration, of honoring the light, our connection to the Sun and the Earth. At the Great Pyramids of Egypt the summer solstice sun crowns the head of the Sphinx; the Druids celebrated the marriage of heaven and earth and the defeat of the dark god of the year just as the Egyptians celebrated the defeat of the dark god Seth by Horus as the sun; and in Rome, the festival of Vestalia continued a Druid tradition of guarding the sacred fire. Symbolically, the summer solstice represents awakening, enlightenment, and the triumph of light over dark. For pagans, Litha represents a fight between light and dark, and between the ruler from the winter to summer solstice – the Oak King – and the ruler from summer to winter – the Holly King. Winter Solstice . For others, it’s just a date on the calendar and that’s pretty much it. The name “Yule” has been researched and several possible origins exist, however none are the definitive one. Yule is a holiday that taps into the eternal cycle of life and death and the battle between light and dark. Every culture has festivals to honor this day and our ancestors around the earth built numerous monuments to commemorate this time. . The literal meaning of ‘solstice’ comes from two Latin words – sol, meaning sun and sistere, meaning to come to a stop or stand still, translating to ‘sun standing still.’ It’s the darkest day of the darkest year. And the joy we feel at Summer Solstice is a mere sampling of that supreme bliss! The meaning of Solstice. Indigenous and pagan people around the world understand the deeper meaning of such times. The Oak King won each year at the winter solstice, allowing daylight to return slowly. The winter solstice is “special” this year and here is how it may affect you… For some people, the two equinoxes and solstices are part of everyday life. Is at this height of summer at solstice when the apparent position of the highest Divinity every. 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