The Longest Night of the Year & Other Celestial Delights.
Hello!
How’s your December going? Are you ready for the Holidays is a repeated question during the busiest month of the year. There are 14 religious holidays in December, and perhaps you are celebrating more than one.
Finding space and stillness is essential for your well-being during the hustle and bustle, and this month offers us two distinctive spiritual moments to encourage this. The Winter Solstice is happening on Thursday, December 21st, and December’s full moon, known as the Cold Moon, occurs on Tuesday, December 26th.
Winter Solstice
Winter Solstice Labyrinth Walk, St. Andrews, Picton, Ontario.
Thursday, December 21st, 2023, is the official first day of winter and the Winter Solstice. This is the day with the shortest period of daylight and the longest night of the year, and this new season brings a transition of energy as we return to the light. It only happens once a year and is a very auspicious day for many cultures.
Upon the Winter Solstice, the Sun appears at its lowest in the sky. The Sun’s gradual decrease in the sky reverses upon the Winter Solstice, marking what many cultures believe to be a “rebirth” of the Sun as the daylight hours become longer.
While we celebrate the Winter Solstice, those living in the Southern Hemisphere will be simultaneously marking the arrival of summer.
I have a Winter Solstice ritual that I’ve practiced for the last few years. I spend time in deep meditation and reflection and write out what I’m grateful for, my prayers for loved ones, and my intentions for 2024. I walk the labyrinth at St. Andrew’s in Picton, reviewing what I’ve written, and release them into a bonfire. This year I will be participating in a group event led by a local poet that will embody the spirit of life this season.
Cold Full Moon
The spiritual meaning of December’s Cold Full Moon is an awareness that this is a powerful time for reflection, magic, and meditation. Consider these spiritual intentions if you are interested in participating in a Cold Moon Ritual:
Reflection
Development
Change
Peace
Growth
Reawakening
Shadow work Source
Connect with the full moon on December 26th and enjoy its ethereal beauty and presence. Take some deep breaths and reflect on the things you are grateful for.
Celebrating the Winter Solstice and the Cold Moon are meaningful rituals that force you to stop and just be. They provide us with opportunities for illumination and hope during a cold and dreary month. They are also a beautiful way to remember and acknowledge that our lives are part of a larger cosmic order that is constantly changing and renewing, like ourselves. Creating simple rituals with personal meaning can slow us down in a jam-packed season and help us appreciate what we have and reflect on 2023.
Find ways to light up your life at the darkest time of the year. We’ve completed an entire trip around the sun, and now is the perfect time to focus on all the good things headed your way!
Happy Holidays. Love and light.
Anita
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