Midwinter has been celebrated around the globe for thousands of years. The midwinter celebrations of Yule, Diwali, Hanukkah, Christmas, Saturnalia, and others originated in different times and from different cultures. Even so, they share many common traditions and symbolism. A common thread among them all is the symbol of light. In the dark days of winter, around the Winter Solstice, we long for the light of the sun. Our wintertime traditions with stories of bright stars, traditions of Yule logs and candles, and decorating with twinkling lights all serve as reminders to look toward the coming light in all its forms.

Is it possible that as different as they are these traditions, stories, and ideas originate from a similar place - a universal truth? When we look at the history and traditions of each, and how alike they are, it is easy to see the connections and similarities. We honor the traditions you are celebrating this year, and we wish you health, peace, joy, and light!

Learn more about the traditional midwinter celebrations:

Yule

Begins on Winter Solstice and lasts 12 days

The celebration of Yule, originally a Nordic tradition, dates back to pre-Christian times. The holiday now celebrated as "Yule" encompasses Winter Solstice celebrations throughout Scandinavia and Northern Europe. The feast of Yule lasts 12 days and celebrates the return of the sun as the days began to get longer with the winter solstice.

Symbol of light:

Yule Log: What is now referred to as the Yule Log was originally an entire tree. The tree was ceremoniously brought to the hearth, and the end was lit from the carefully tended remains of the previous year's tree. Throughout the 12 days of Yule, the tree would be gradually fed to the fire. The lit fire symbolized the return of the sun and its light and life-giving properties and was an offering to Thor, the Norse King of the Gods. The ashes were sacred and spread on the fields or saved as medicine.

Other symbols & traditions:

Feasting
Gathering with friends and family
Candles and bonfires

Saturnalia

Begins on Winter Solstice and lasts seven days

Saturnalia stood as the most grand holiday on the Roman calendar. Its origins come from earlier Winter Solstice and midwinter rituals that evolved into a festival honoring the Roman god, Saturn, god of agriculture. During the seven-day celebrations, rulers suspended discipline and reversed the usual order. Businesses and schools closed, and wars momentarily ceased. Masters served their slaves. True to Roman ethics and antics of the time, the celebrations typically transgressed into unrestraint and debauchery.

Symbol of light:

Wax taper candles were a traditional gift to symbolize the returning light of the sun bringing life to the fields.

Traditions:

Gift-giving, especially candles
Close of business and schools
Decorating with wreaths and greenery - the evergreens symbolized the life that continued through the dark, cold days of winter and the promise of springs return.

Hanukkah

Eight days beginning on the eve of the 25th of the Jewish month of Kislev. On the Gregorian calendar this usually occurs sometime in December; it may also be late November.

The word Hanukkah means "dedication" and celebrates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem where Jews rose up against their Greek oppressors in the Maccabean Revolt. Also called the Festival of Lights, it celebrates the miracle of one day's supply of oil burning for eight days.

Symbol of Light:

Menorah: candle holder holding nine candles, eight to represent the eight days the oil burned and one, called the shamash, or helper, to light the others. Beginning with one candle on the first night, each night an additional candle is lit. Prayers are said or sung while lighting the menorah.

Traditions:

Feasts, especially foods fried in oil
Gathering with friends and family
Exchanging gifts: This is a more modern tradition, adopted from the Christmas traditions of gift giving
Spinning dreidels: Before the Maccabees drove out the Greeks and rededicated the Temple, Jews were forbidden from worshipping or studying Torah. To hide what they were doing, they would quickly put the scrolls away and pretend to be playing with little tops, or dreidels.

Christmas

December 25

Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, the son of the Christian God. Flesh and blood, he was born of a virgin mother and the Holy Spirit, a creation of divine light. While there is no mention of the actual date of Jesus' birth in the Bible, the date was chosen by Pope Julius I, quite possibly to absorb pagan religious rituals of Yule and Saturnalia. This is why many of the symbols we associate with modern-day Christmas celebrations directly are related to pre-Christian pagan midwinter celebrations.

Symbols of light:

Jesus - symbol of rebirth through salvation and eternal life
Star of Bethlehem - a guiding light towards the promise of rebirth

Traditions:

Feasts
Gathering with friends and family
Exchanging gifts

Inti Raymi

Nine days culminating on June 24. This is the Winter Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.

Inti Raymi means "Festival of the Sun". It honors the Incan sun god, Inti, on the shortest day of the year, the Winter Solstice. In ancient times, as winter came and the days grew shorter, the people feared that the sun would not return. They offered sacrifices and fasted, pleading with the sun to return. Each year it did. The traditional belief is that on June 24 Inti is reborn. In modern times Inti Raymi is the second-largest festival in South America, second only to Carnivale. Huge crowds line the flower strewn streets of Cusco, Peru, to observe processions. The day is filled with prayer, music, dancing, and performance. At the end of the procession, actors representing the Sapa Inca and his consort Mama Oclla (the high priest and priestess) and their entourage perform speeches and rituals.

Stacks of straw are set on fire at sunset, and ritual dances are performed around the fires to honor the Empire of the Four Wind Directions. The celebration culminates in a procession with the high priest pronouncing blessings on the people.

Image of light:

Inti – Incan sun god
Bonfires - representing the return of the sun

Traditions:

Pageantry
Feasts
Celebration, dance, song, prayer

Shab-e Yalda

Celebrated on the eve of the Winter Solstice

Shab-e Yalda means "Night of Rebirth" and is an ancient Persian holiday to celebrate the triumph of Mithra, the god of the sun, over darkness. It is celebrabrated in other Central Asian coutries like Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and in some Caucasian states such as Azerbaijan and Armenia. People gather together on the eve of the Winter Solstice to protect each other from evil. They burn fires to light their way through the darkness and practice acts of charity. Some stay awake all night to celebrate the moment when the sun rises, banishing evil and symbolizing a return to prosperity.

Mithra, the Persian god of light and truth, was said to be born to a virgin mother on the morning of the longest night of the year. It was said that Mithra was born out of the light that came from within the Alborz Mountains, symbolizing light overcoming darkness.

Images of Light:

Fires – symbol of protection from evil
The sun – banishes evil and symbolizes the return of life giving crops
Mithra – God of Light and Truth

Traditions:

Feasting – particularly on fruits, nuts, and hot tea
Reading poetry
Gathering with friends and family
Burning fires

Diwali

Usually occurs between October and November (the dates change each year based on the Hindu lunar calendar) and consists of five days. The major celebrations occur on the third day of the festival.

Diwali, also called the Festival of Lights, is a Hindu festival and is the biggest celebration of the year in India. It gets its name from the row (avali) of clay lamps (deepa) that are lit outside homes to symbolize the inner light that protects us from spiritual darkness. This holiday has been adopted by Buddhists and other non-Hindus in India and is now a national holiday, although the different sects celebrate it in commemoration of different events. What is common among all of these legends is the idea that it is a day of rebirth or triump of light over darkness.

Diwali is considered the start of the New Year. Many people clean their homes, purchase new clothes, and make charitable contributions.

Symbol of light:

Candles and clay lamps

Traditions:

Fireworks
Gathering with friends and family
Feasts
Performing seva, or selfless service
Gifts are exchanged on the day following Diwali

I have only listed a few of the midwinter celebrations that happen around the world. There a many more, and all have profound similarities. Finding these connections among the many different ancient and sacred belief systems has reaffirmed, for me, the idea that we are all one, that there is one universal truth, and that all belief systems, as different as they may seem on the surface, tap into that truth.