A Northern Yule

by Andy

editorial

For many pagans Yule is the end of the year. The sun finally "dies" at dusk, the longest night of the year follows, and then it is reborn at dawn. Our traditions for celebrating this holiday often come from the culture that felt the "death" of the sun the most, the Norse. For them, in the far northern reaches, the solstice night could last many, many hours.

In the Norse mythology, Balder, the God of the gentle, warming sun, was murdered. Balder's death triggered Ragnorak, the Norse Armageddon, and the world ended. After the last battle, Balder escaped the now destroyed Hel he had been in and started a new age of the world, the current age.

The Norse peoples saw Yule as the feast at the end of the world. At the solstice, they would celebrate the death and rebirth of Balder the Sun God. From their traditions come many of our modern ones, both pagan and Christian. Yule logs, wreaths, mistletoe, Solstice/Christmas trees, and even Santa Claus come from the Norse.

This, the Yule '97 issue of Widdershins, is focused on the Norse traditions and the Ásatrú branch of paganism. The Ásatrú are the modern followers of the Norse path. It is a look at where much of Yule (and Christmas) come from and where it is today.

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