Embracing Yule

Yule has long been synonymous with Christmas, but its roots are far older than the Christian festival with which it has become associated. The name is believed to be derived from the Old Norse word jól, meaning ‘merriment’, and is the root of our word ‘jolly’. However, the Venerable Bede, in his description of the Anglo-Saxon calendar, suggests that the two Geola or Yule months are related to the Old Norse word iul meaning ‘wheel’.

Yule was originally a festival held at the winter solstice, the time when the northern hemisphere endures the shortest day and the longest night of the year. This turning point occurs around the 21st December. 

Celebrating the winter solstice can be a sacred rite rich in meaning and symbolism. Here, Marian Preselo, practitioner of the Old Ways, describes the plants at the heart of her Yule gathering in Wimborne.

Yule
The midwinter solstice – December 21st/22nd

A burnished glow in the Western sky from a low slung golden sun on a cold and frosty December afternoon, heralds the arrival of Yule ~ one of the 8 Sabbats in the Wiccan Wheel of the Year ~ They mark significant points in the seasons and cycles of Mother Earth. The midwinter Solstice is one of the solar festivals ~ it is the shortest day of the year, when the sun is at its lowest point in the sky.  Night overshadows day and the moon’s power is at its zenith.     

Ayurveda is the ancient art of living in harmony with nature.  This Indian philosophy of health and well-being dates back 5000 years and translates as ‘Science of Life’. It is a holistic system which offers us tools for living a healthier and more balanced lifestyle, recognizing that we are all unique with our own  individual constitution (dosha).  It focuses on food, exercise, yoga and lifestyle choices to suit and enhance our individual dosha through the different stages of our lives and the changing seasons.

It is important to keep our doshas in balance as the seasons change, and a slight adjustment in diet can help fuel that inner fire as the temperatures drop outside.

This variation of basic vegetable soup is transformed into a hearty meal by adding high-fibre wholegrain pot barley, which is a wonderful aid to the digestive system and when combined with warming spices, makes the perfect soup to counteract the winter weather.

Hello and welcome to our online magazine, Hermit’s Bazaar, which began its journey as a seed of an idea back in 2005 and came to fruition with our first issue in December of 2007.