Winter Solstice traditions (Jesus, rituals, beliefs, America, church)

[lilithu]

I don't know if I've picked the right forum for this but here goes:

Winter solstice is fast approaching and I am helping to organize the solstice celebration at my UU church on Tuesday. This year, I'd like to bring in traditions from around the world.

For example, the winter solstice is important in Chinese culture as the time of family and thanksgiving. In Taoist tradition, it is the time when Yin is at its peak (Yang peaks in the summer). I know that the solstices and equinoxes are important to many Native American spiritual traditions as well. And we all know that Jesus wasn't actually born in late December. (shepherds do not let their flocks graze in the fields in the middle of the winter). Rather, the birthday of the Son was moved to coincide with the (re)birth of the Sun.

Since we have a nice variety of different beliefs here, I was wondering if anyone would share their winter solstice traditions. It might help me plan a more multicultural solstice celebration for my multicultural church. Thanks!

[Circle_One]

To us, the Winter Solstice is the time where we acknowledge and celebrate the rebirth of the Sun as well. At this spoke in the Wheel of the Year, it is the time when the Oak King claims victory over the Holly King, thus ensuring that the light and warmth of the sun will increase each day thereafter.

Our celebrations start out in silence and darkness, with quiet rituals (echoing the fact that it is the longest night of the year), then we have a massive feast, followed by lighting a ritual fire and continued with drinking, dancing, singing, and a great party (echoing the rebirth of the joyous sun to come).

[lilithu]

I got this great response from a friend in another forum:

I come from a small New England town growing up with a lot of neighbors born in the old country (Alsace-Lorraine). Something about the solistice that I never saw elsewhere: They saved thier seeds from year to year for thier food gardens. They tied them in bunches to dry in the pantries. On the solistice, the seeds were brought out to decorate the kitchen table for all the meals. The idea being that the germ of the seed was now complete and the presence and honor recognition of the family impregnated the seed with design and desire to bring forth that which the family could enjoy in the following harvest.

[lilithu]

For the Chinese, the winter solstice - DONG ZHI (or "arrival of winter") - is our Thanksgiving day. Not a day to eat turkey mind you, but a day where the whole family is supposed to gather round, eat a LOT of food and be thankful for what we have been blessed with. It makes sense to me to be grateful for one's blessings and to gather together on the darkest night of the year.

The one dish that we have to have for Chinese winter solstice/thanksgiving is TANG YUAN - a dessert soup with little balls made of gooey rice flour, filled with sweet black sesame paste. yum yum. :9 TANG literally means "soup" and YUAN means "round" or "complete" but taken together TANG YUAN sounds like TUAN YUAN, the words for "family reunion." The little round balls symbolize unity and harmony within the family.

I won't be with my family for winter solstice, but I will be celebrating with my other family, my UU church, and I will be thinking of home.

[Circle_One]

That sounds really yummy! And I like the idea of a meal that represents, almost exactly, that which you are celebrating.

[lilithu]

Originally Posted by Circle_One

I like the idea of a meal that represents, almost exactly, that which you are celebrating.

Hi Circle_One, namaste.

Is that unusual compared to other cultures? That's the way that I grew up and it's never occured to me that other people don't do this. Traditionally, symbolism is very important in Chinese culture, including the food. For example, on Chinese New Year, it's absolutely impossible to not eat too much because the first day of the new year represents the rest of the year, so everything good and sought after has to be eaten on new years day so that you can have it for the rest of the year. You have to eat fish because the word for fish sounds like the word for good luck and thus represents good luck. The fish has to be served whole because it represents togetherness and abundance. You have to eat dumplings because they look like and represent old Chinese money packets. You have to eat steamed eggs because the yolks look like and represent gold. Tangerines represent luck. Oranges represent wealth. etc. etc.

Long noodles for long life. We HAVE to eat noodles on our birthdays.

When a couple is married, the first meal that is served to them is intentially undercooked dumplings, because the word for undercooked sounds like the word for birth.

And all that's just for the food. Don't even get me started on the other things that NEED to be done symbolically, or the things that need to be avoided. We can't give knives as presents because they cut things. We can't give fans or umbrellas because they sound like the word to "break" or "fall apart." The number four is considered unlucky because it sounds like the word "to die." These symbolisms permeate our everyday lives. Several of my Pagan friends have said that I have a gift for seeing the correspondances that are needed for performing rituals. If that's true, perhaps my upbringing has something to do with it.

[Circle_One]

Is that unusual compared to other cultures? That's the way that I grew up and it's never occured to me that other people don't do this.

I'm not sure about other cultures. For us, a lot of the things we do in accordance to our celebrations are done with or for the symbolism, but not so much with the food. As I said earlier, with our Winter Solstice celebrations, all must start out in darkness and silence, slowly gathering slight noise with soft rituals and a few candles being lit, because that represents the darkness of the solstice, being that it is the longest night of the year, as well as the silence that falls as the Oak King and Holly King wage their battle.

When that is done, we have the feast, light the Yule log and fill the room with singing, dancing and just joyous behaviour, which represents the victory of the Oak King and the warming rays of the sun getting longer every day after.