The Longest Night: Reflecting on Yule
The Celtic Wheel of the Year recognizes eight seasonal festivals each year: the turning of the seasons at the two solstices and two equinoxes, and the midpoints between each. Because they align with the seasons, these festivals honor the cyclical flow of life, of the year, and of nature itself. In case you missed our Wintering Workshop earlier this month, we summarized our favorite takeaways for you here.
The Darkest Day of the Year
This time of year, the Celtic Wheel lands on Yule: the winter solstice, the longest night, and a time of both reflection and looking forward. As we enter the dark months in the northern hemisphere and with them a new year, let’s pause to consider all that Yule can offer us in this season.
Recognized on the winter solstice (December 21st this year, though it sometimes falls on the 22nd), Yule marks the pinnacle of darkness in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of winter. Carrying the same energy as midnight, it asks us to pause our activity, allow our bodies to rest and be restored, and begin to dream of what’s to come. This isn’t a time for action, but to give our deepest desires space to spread their roots in the dark.
Resting in Harmony with Nature
Our modern conveniences have distanced us from the changes of the seasons, from electric lights, to central heating and air conditioning, to the 40-hour work week. But we are still a part of nature, and as nature surrenders to winter, we too are called to slow down.
It’s unlikely that in our modern human cultures we have the flexibility to truly hunker down for winter like so many of our siblings in the natural world do. Bears hibernate, trees shed their leaves, rodents burrow into the earth… but most of us still have to go to work. Nevertheless, Yule beckons us to follow suit as much as we can—to find solace in quiet moments of rest, to gracefully turn away from busyness and say no thank you a little more often, allowing ourselves the gift of stillness.
These periods of rest do not run counter to our productivity; they are necessary to it. Like soil that grows more fertile in its fallow season, we too need the quiet of the dark season to restore our bodies, minds, and spirits.
Hope for a Light to Come
Although Yule calls us to slow down and embrace the long nights of winter, this festival is not solely about darkness. It also suggests renewal, vitality, and hope. As we honor the longest night of the year, we’re reminded that from this point forward, the light will return.
People of many faiths throughout the world hold “longest night” services around this time. The early Christians chose to celebrate Jesus’s birth only three days later, when the light’s return is visible to the naked eye casting his coming as a light in the night that affirms hope even the darkest times. With the coming of Yule, we look forward to a new year, twinkling with possibility, rejuvenation, and hope.
Living in Alignment
At the Healing Society, we recognize the importance of living in harmony with the world around us. We love to host seasonal events that help us align with the cycles of nature, and we’d love to have you join us.
These gatherings offer a space for reflection, connection, and spiritual growth. Most of our events are free for Healing Society members. In the meantime, we hope you’ll find some time for quiet and stillness this Yule and winter, bringing the spirit of rest, renewal, and hope to your own life as we honor the passing of this year and welcome the coming of the next.