![]() That was to see if you’re paying attention. This is mostly adapted from Amazon bestseller Hark! The Biography of Christmas, apart from Yuley McYuleface. So yes, Merry Christmas, and God bless us everyone, but also Wassail, Io Saturnalia, and Yuley McYuleface. As it grew and spread through the centuries like a growing, spreading thing, it gained bits and pieces of Yule, Saturnalia and Merrie Old English wassailing. By the fourth century, Christmas had its date of December 25th papally confirmed. Lasting about a week, Saturnalia was characterized. In ancient Rome, the winter solstice was celebrated at the Feast of Saturnalia, to honor Saturn, the god of agricultural bounty. Much of the cider wouldn’t be consumed (although much would), instead being daubed on the oldest apple tree in the orchard, with cries of “Awake from your sleep, tree!”Īs Christianity became THE Roman religion (thanks, Emperor Constantine – he saw the sign of Christ in the heavens before battle, believed, won, and converted the whole empire), Christmas rose and Saturnalia and the other pagan Roman religions went the way of the dodo (which was still very much alive at the time. Forest Service has a helpful breakdown of several plants we associate with Christmas and the traditions behind them, the most prominent being the Christmas tree, or Yule tree. In pre-Christian Scandinavia, the Feast of Juul, or Yule, lasted for 12 days celebrating the rebirth of the sun and giving rise to the custom of burning a Yule log. It was more about hopes for harvest and harking back to nature worship. So in the west of England on “Old Twelvy Night”, farmers would celebrate with a “wes hal” – Old English for “good health”.Īt the turn of the first millennium, “Wassail!” was the equivalent utterance to “Cheers!”, to be responded to with a hearty “Drinkhail!” The wassailing tradition was a crucial part of the farming calendar, and not just because drink and song maketh a mighty fine party. Just like the Norse and the Romans, English farmers hoped for the swift return of the nice weather for their crops. Old England was in love with its trees (anyone who’s been to a National Trust property can testify we still are). So rather than sacrifice animals to old gods, or sometimes even the devil, the locals were encouraged to perform the same actions for the Christian God. Ending song is Mossgrown path by Mauerbrecher.When Augustine brought Christianity to bits of Britain around the turn of the 7th century, Pope Gregory the Great wrote to him advising not to replace pagan custom, but absorb it. Learn more about him and his published works on This podcast depends on your support: I asked him about these and other subjects pertaining to magic, the afterlife and pagan beliefs. He is the author of The Traveler's Guide to the Afterlife which Examines beliefs from many different cultures on the soul, heaven, hell, and reincarnation and also The Odin Brotherhood, first published in 1992, in which Mirabello reveals some of the secrets of a mysterious society in Britain which values "knowledge, freedom and power" as part of their occult work which honours Odin and the other Norse gods. He has appeared on Ancient Aliens and America’s Book of Secrets on the History Channel as well as in the documentary The Kingdom of Survival. Mark Mirabello, Ph.D., is a professor of history at Shawnee State University in Ohio and a former visiting professor of history at Nizhny Novgorod University in Russia. Christmas is also referred to as Yule, which is derived from the Norse word jl, referring to the pre-Christian winter solstice festival. Puhvel, J., ‘Comparative Mythology’ (1987). Hui, J ‘'Svá segir Starkaðr’: Manipulating Memoralisation in Gautreks saga’ (2015). Dumézil ‘Aspects de la fonction guerrière chez les Indo-Européens’ (1956). ![]() Compton, T., ‘Victim of the Muses: Poet as Scapegoat, Warrior and Hero in Greco-Roman and Indo-European Myth and History’ Washington, DC: Center for Hellenic Studies (2006). Do you have the traits of the Indo-European sigma male warrior-poet? The Romans celebrated Saturnalia on December 17, a festival of light, which was marked by great feasting and drinking. ![]() ![]() In this video I explain who Starkad was and how his myths parallel other Indo-European stories of a Sigma male outsider who loves kings, hates the lower classes, is rude to women and goes into mad rages of extreme violence against his enemies. This aristocratic transgressive lone wolf character is actually a prehistoric Indo-European archetype equivalent to Hercules in Greece, Suibhne in Ireland and Krishna’s cousin Siśupāla of Chedi from the Hindu religion of India. The Viking hero Starkad / Starkaðr was a warrior-poet with extra arms who was blessed by the god Odin.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |