a time of rebirth
Learn more about the Winter Solstice below and scroll down to the bottom of the page to access a journal practice and a guided energy clearing to support you. If you want to know the exact time of the Winter Solstice where you live use this link. Forward this page to anyone else you think would benefit from this practice - enjoy, and happy Solstice!
The Opportunity
The Winter Solstice marks the shortest day of the year and the longest night, which is why it presents us with a powerful opportunity to celebrate the dark and prepare for rebirth. It invites us to remember not be afraid of the darkness but to see it as a place of life, healing and restful rejuvenation. Just as we are born from the darkness of the womb that brought us life and find rest each night before the following day. It is in this deep remembering that we can are able to disconnect from our cultural fear of the dark and reconnect with our ancestors who revered the Winter Solstice as a powerful time to honor Goddess or Moon energy. In Pagan times people were much more connected to nature as they were far more exposed to it and dependant on it, and they called viewed Mother Nature in all her aspects as Goddess energy and they revered her as being the source of all life. In these times the Winter solstice was referred to as Yule, it was when the men would bring home big logs for the fires, eventually called Yule Logs, and people would celebrate the Goddess or Moon, believing she would give birth to the Sun.
Rest And Rejuvenate
During the winter we can withdraw with loved ones, reflect and rest, it is a time all life moves below ground to hibernate and the seeds rest suspended in the deep rich earth preparing themselves for spring. If we resist this time and continue to work and push ourselves we will miss this powerful gift of rejuvenation and not have the necessary energy to act when the sun returns. It is viewed as being a time of Yin energy in ancient Chinese philosophy and with this feminine energy comes healing, wisdom and rebirth.
Shedding The Old To Manifest The New.
At this potent time of transition not only are we afforded time to reflect but we are also gifted hope, in the knowledge that the sun will indeed return, marked by the days getting longer post this moment in time. Now we are encouraged to consider what it is we want to birth into this new world that comes with the life and energy the sun brings as well as what we want to shed in order to make space for new beginnings. Just as with the lunar monthly cycle of the dark moon, often a time for female menstruation to bleed and release the old, this Solstice echoes this energy as the darkest part of the year, again offering us a chance to let go of habits and narratives that do not serve.