“You know mistletoe is important to Druids but do you know why people kiss under the mistletoe? It’s a Norse myth. Baldur the son of Odin was the most beloved by the other gods. So much that they wanted to protect him from all the dangers in the world. His mother, Frigg, took an oath from fire and water, metal, stone and every living thing, that they would never hurt Baldur. At a gathering, they tested him. Stones, arrows and flame were all hurled at him. Nothing worked. But there was one god that wasn’t so enamored of Baldur, the god of mischief, Loki. Loki discovered that Frigg had forgotten to ask mistletoe, a tiny, seemingly harmless plant and completely overlooked. Loki fashioned a dart out of mistletoe and it killed Baldur. Frigg was heartbroken. She decreed that mistletoe would never again be used as a weapon and that she would place a kiss on anyone who passed under it. So now we hang mistletoe underneath our door during the holidays so that we will never overlook it again.”
Reblogging again because SOMEONE ASK ME ABOUT WHERE SANTA CAME FROM AND WHY HE HAS EIGHT REINDEER DO IT.
Santa? Is Odin. With a bit of the Turkish Saint Nicholas plastered over top to make him more acceptable to Christianity.
Let’s wind this back a bit.
So. In Norse tradition, Odin rose with the wild hunt on Midwinter. Children would leave out offerings of hay or root vegetables in their shoes for Slepnir, Odin’s horse. In norse tradition, all gifts create an obligation that must be returned in kind, so if Odin found the offerings pleasing he would leave treats and sweets in return.
So. We have a magical bearded man riding through the sky on a winter feast day and leaving treats for children in footwear if they pleased him. Sound familiar? Yeah.
As for Slepnir, Odin’s mount? He has eight legs. So. Bearded man with powerful magic flying through the air on an eight-legged steed on a winter feast day and leaving treats for children in their footwear if they pleased him.
Yeah.
Enter Christianity. Now, the midwinter season is important to all cultures that live in cold climates. The passing of the worst of the hard times and the beginning of the longer days and the promise of the return of life and light and fertility is a powerful thing. There were Christian festival days around the same time as Midwinter was celebrated in many polytheistic faiths. Christians found that they couldn’t get people to stop celebrating the feast days they’d been celebrating for several thousand years, so opted instead to just absorb those traditions into their OWN midwinter festivals. It was a far easier and more effective way of convincing people to convert.
However, the idea of him flying through the sky, being associated with elves, possessing powerful magic, and the eight-legged steed stuck. (reindeer, incidentally, are an animal with a lot of symbol and power in Norse tales. Ullr, the god of the hunt, had ties to reindeer, and at some point the eight legged horse became eight reindeer.)
Incidentally the image of Santa as a chubby little jolly man didn’t come around until modern advertising began depicting him that way. Before that? A tall, strong man, usually with a staff (echoing Odin’s staff or spear).
So. There you have it. Santa, the jolly bearded old man of beloved childhood Christmas memories? If you ever wondered where he came from in a ‘Christian’ holiday, there’s your answer. He didn’t. He’s the amalgamation of an ancient Norse god and a Middle Eastern saint, filtered through the lens of pop culture.
Jim Butcher actually did this very well in the Dresden Files, where Odin makes several appearances, one wearing the mantle of Father Christmas.
Christianity never really managed to make the old gods vanish.
Spring: Amazonite, Amethyst, Apple Aura, Green Aventurine, Green Goldstone, Jade, Kunzite, Malachite, Morganite, Pink Tourmaline, Rose Quartz, Ruby Aura
Summer: Amber, Carnelian, Citrine, Heliodor, Fire Agate, Fire Opal, Ruby, Sunstone, Tangerine Aura
Samhain is comiiiiiinggggg and i’m one excited witch!
Samhain (pronounced ‘sow-in’) is drawing very near, and as its my favorite holiday i can’t seem to make enough posts about it. It begins at midnight on October 31st, and celebrations often go on until November 2nd. It is the witches new year!
Some historic traditions:
Just like at Beltane, bonfires are lit in high places on Samhain, like at hilltops, and around them rituals would take place. During this community ritual, people would take flames from the bonfire and use them to relight the hearths of their homes. They did this to bind the community together. They would also use these fires for divination in their rituals.
In Gaelic regions, during household festivities many rituals that took place were intended to divine the future of everyone there, for example apple bobbing. (If you don’t already know this, Apples are strongly associated with ancestors and the other world.) The first to bite into an apple was the next allowed to marry!
As you most likely have heard a zillion times, The veil between our world and the next is thinner on Samhain. This is true, Samhain is a liminal time, and that means the barriers separating the world of the living and the dead and other spirits can be crossed more easily than at any other point in the year. It is said that entities called ‘Aos Si’ can slip from their world into ours, through a summoning or their own will. During Samhain it is traditional to leave libations for any aos si that have come into our realm. This is usually in the form of food & drink, like a plate of soul cakes, a small portion of a meal and a cup of wine. Due to this thin veil, it is a time for honoring those who have passed. It is widely believed spirits of loved ones will come and visit their former homes and seek hospitality from those within. Places should always be set for loved ones who have passed at the table on Samhain. I even set a place for a spirit I feel in my home. People will often hold a “dumb supper”. It is a silent meal during which you set a place for visiting spirits, and invite them to join you.
Traditional Samhain Activities
Bobbing for Apples- The fewer tries it took to catch an apple, the sooner you’d fall in love or marry. If the apple was crisp and crunchy, the participant would have a happy marriage. If it was soft or rotten, it was bad news for your love life future.
Peeling the Apple– You peel one long strip of skin from an apple and then throw the peel over your shoulder. Whatever letter the peel resembles is said to be the first letter of your soulmates name.
Hazelnut Divination- Couples would throw hazelnuts into a fire, and if it burned it predicted a long and happy relationship, and if it cracked open it showed a rocky road ahead.
Samhain Correspondences
Colors: Red, brown, gold, yellow and orange.
Herbs: Rosemary, mullein, rue, mugwort, calendula, tobacco, apple leaf, sage, wormwood, tarragon, bay leaf, almond, hazelnut, garlic, mandrake root, yew, sandalwood, pumpkin, pennyroyal, pine needle, cedar, chrysanthemum, & hemlock.
Symbols: Lanterns, candles, acorns, bones, photos or memoirs of passed loved ones, Jack O’ Lanterns, corn dolls and corn stalks, scythes, cauldrons, spiderwebs, masks, oak leaves and mirrors.
Food & Drinks: Apples (or foods with apples baked in), potatoes, corn, nuts, turnips, pumpkins, mead, cider, mulled/spiced wine, tea.
Things to do: DIVINATIOOOON GIRLLL(scrying, tarot reading, rune casting, pendulum reading, etc.), holding a dumb supper, lighting a bonfire, looking into your past life,leaving offerings for spirits, cooking, feasting, dressing up in a costume.
Animals: Black cats, owls, bats, stags, ravens, crows, spiders and black dogs.
I would like to add a note to be cautious on Samhain. If you have a black pet please keep it inside, lots of sick people will harm these animals on this night. Please be careful with spirit work as well, the veil is very thin and as you would normally with spirit work protect yourself, but x10 on samhain. Carry a gris-gris, Create your circles, Keep blessed salt around, Make sure you end conversations with the Ouija and it won’t hurt to keep a silver coin on it, like they say it keeps evil spirits from coming through. Treat spirits, creatures and humans around you with respect.
Blessed be, I hope everyone enjoys Samhain!! Note your favorite samhain activities and traditions, and please note any traditions passed down to you!
Samhain is coming fast and, to celebrate, here’s a quick recipe to make your own celebrating candle.
What you’ll need :
🎃 A Pumpkin / Pumpkin Spice Candle or wax
🎃 Coffee Candle or wax
🎃Ground Coffee
🎃 Apple and Cinnamon wax/flavor
🎃Nutmeg
🎃The candle Kit of your choice (whatever mold, jar, wicks or size you wish)
1. Melt all the waxes into a designated melting pot (make sure it’s only for candles because i won’t be responsible if it causes food poisoning)
2. As it melts, sprinkle some grinded coffee into the mix (just eyeball it)
3. Grate some nutmeg into the mix.
4. Pour your mix into whatever mold or jar you want your candle to be.
5. Wait for it to cool down, look if you need more wax and you are done!
As Samhain begins, this candle will have a multitude of properties.
The pumpkin will be able to grant wishes, bring love, prosperity and fertility. Plus, if you crave either a face unto it or a sigil, it will also bring protection to your home.
The coffee will dispel nightmares, encourages hard work, removes internal blockages, and infuses intentions with stamina.
The mix of apple and cinnamon will bring Love, fidelity, fertility, marriage, sexuality, beauty, vanity, wisdom, personal & spiritual power, spirituality, healing, success/victory, protection, love, luck, lust, strength, and prosperity. Some even believe that the apple can bring immortality.
The nutmeg encourages luck, money, health, fidelity.
Note: Always make more than you think you need. I had added even more way to my pillar candle because it was creating a crevice as it cooled down.
teakepp 