Dies Natalis Solis Invicti – Birthday of the Invincible Sun
We are part of nature and what happens in it necessarily affects us humans. Nature expresses its laws through phenomena that are both events and symbols. Many myths, legends, and still living customs of the people speak about them and explain how humans are connected to this great mystery of nature, which hides the fate of everything, including us humans…
For the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice is the first day of winter. From an astronomical point of view, it is the moment in the year when the night is longest and the day is shortest. The sunlight is then weakest, and the Earth is enveloped in cold.
The word solstice comes from the Latin words sol (Sun) and sistere (to stand still). The winter solstice is the time when the Sun’s rays illuminate the Earth at the smallest angle, which is why the day is shortest and the night is longest in the northern hemisphere, and the Sun astrologically enters the sign of Capricorn under the rule of the planet Saturn.
Mythologies and religions of many ancient cultures record
In this era, the birth of sons of gods, the gods themselves, great teachers who brought the world the flame of light, a spark of hope, the strength of rebirth and renewal. Examples of such figures include Greek Bacchus, Phoenician Adonis, Phrygian Attis, Jesus, Mithra, Horus, Agni, and so on.
In Egypt, the winter solstice is the time of celebration of the birth of Horus, who according to the Coptic calendar was born in the month of Mesiru. According to tradition, the Nile Delta received the newborn, wrapping him in mud to hide him from the dangerous Set, the god of darkness. This celebration took place on December 25th.
In India, ancient records speak of the birth of Agni, the god of fire. Like Christ, he was born on straw in a cave, lying between a cow and a donkey, which is Saturn’s animal, and his birth was accompanied by the appearance of a bright shooting star.
Characteristics of solar myths
The sun always symbolizes the law, the logos, the abstract supreme god. In myths, it can also represent his embodiment on Earth in the form of a messenger, a son of god who represents him in the human form. ordered historical time.
The solar or sun myth has two aspects: during the winter solstice, it represents the apparent death of nature, the destruction and transformation of matter, while in the other aspect, it embodies the life of the son of God himself, who is born on the winter solstice, dies on the spring equinox, and rising above death ascends to the sky.
The son of God is always born after the shortest day of the year at midnight on December 24th when the sign of Virgo rises above the horizon; he is always born of a virgin, and she remains a virgin after giving birth to her child, the Sun, just as the heavenly Virgo remains unchanged after the Sun leaves her constellation in the sky.
The son of God, who is born at dawn on December 25th, is always crucified on the spring equinox.
The fixed date of birth and the variability of the date of death are significant. The position of the Sun on Easter is a movable event calculated using the relative positions of the Sun and the Moon, which is an impossible way to fix a historical event, but a Very natural way of calculating a solar celebration. Therefore, these dates do not indicate the historicity of a person, but rather the hero of a solar myth.
In India, the goat is the animal of Vedic sacrifice, identified with the god of fire, Agni, the earthly reflection of the celestial spiritual Sun. It is a symbol of the fire of creation and the sacrificial fire from which new and sacred life is born.
In ancient Persia and the Roman Empire, the cult of Mithras was spread by Zoroastrians. He is also a solar deity. Like Apollo, he is a symbol of light, and like Cronus or Saturn, he is a symbol of time. He represents the invisible inner power of the Sun.
Mithras is an ancient Iranian deity, whose name is derived from the root mithr’, which according to some sources means “contract” or “alliance”. He is the protector of justice and oaths. His dwellings are underground temples or natural caves.
He usually wears a cloak with stars and a halo with rays around his head; beside him, two young men are depicted, one holding a raised torch, and the other a lowered torch. One personifies the ascent, the other the descent of the Sun. And the rising Sun, growing in strength through the manifestation of spring and fertilizing nature with the victorious warmth of summer, and the other setting Sun, descending and announcing the return of winter.
Mithra is born on December 25th, and his Roman name is Invincible Sun (Latin Sol Invictus).
He is depicted as triumphing over a bull. In the myth, the bull is a sacred animal, symbolizing the perfect creation of material nature. Mithra defeats the bull in battle, and from its blood on the ground, a new cycle of life emerges in spring. The soul of the bull then ascends to the heavens, where it continues to protect earthly nature.
During the sacred feast with the god of the Sun, Mithra, the celestial mediator, seals the reconciliation of opposing forces (light and darkness, spirit and matter) in the universe.
On one hand, this myth speaks of the destruction of old forms in order for new ones to arise, and on the other hand, of the alliance between the Sun and humans, with Mithra as the mediator.
The deities of the ancient Slavs are also connected to beings of nature and their manifestations. There is a supreme deity In the beginning, there was the general law of the whole nature, Svarog. In the realm of light, the law and order are represented by Bjelbog, while in the realm of darkness, everything is reversed and ruled by Crnbog. The role of the Lightbringer is to bravely fight against the darkness and defeat it in a knightly battle. The son of Svarog, Svarožić or Koledo, symbolizes warmth and kindness.
Slavic myths say that the Young Sun (Koledo, Svarožić) complained to his mother about how people on Earth do not worship him and how sinful they are. In response, the “High God” got angry and struck the Earth with lightning. He would have destroyed it if not for Bjelbog calming him down, and Koledo accepted that his mother would give birth to him on Earth every year so that he could teach people good and show them how to celebrate him.
Thus, Svarog arranged the seasons so that when evil spirits grow stronger, they block the Sun and cover the Earth with darkness and ice until the god of lightning, Perun, frees the Sun.
The most joyful day of the year was celebrated around Christmas. That’s when Koledo – the rejuvenated Sun is born. It is the day when the rejuvenated Sun grows stronger, illuminating the Earth more and more. The Sun fights to overcome Morana (winter) and her demons. From then on, the days become longer and the Sun always wins the battles, reaching its peak at the summer solstice. Today, these ancient Slavic customs are strongly intertwined with Christian tradition and more modern European folk customs, which include purification, decoration, yule log, and caroling.
Purification is an integral part of the solstice event. The ancient Slavs prepared for it through physical and spiritual cleansing. In many regions, women would weave new clothes by Christmas Eve, and they would wash and store their most festive outfit for that occasion. The whole household, including the barn and the courtyard, had to be tidy before Christmas Eve.
Meatless food, fruits from the fields and orchards, a clean body, clothing, and house, are all part of the ritual through which a person liberates themselves from mistakes and burdens of the old year, and enters the new one clean and renewed, with hope that it will be better than the previous one.
The home would be decorated with candles, and with foliage, green branches (ivy, evergreen, holly, oak, maple, pine), green wheat (the custom of sowing wheat for the Christmas table), seeds, Christmas bread… The Christmas tree is a relatively young custom that was first recorded in Germany in the 16th century. Nativity scenes have been made in homes since the 17th century. Saint Francis made the first outdoor life-size nativity scene in 1223.
By bringing straw into the house, on the table and hearth, a good harvest and abundance were invoked for the household. A bouquet of straw was often tied around fruit trees and scattered in the field. The procession with a candle around the sheaves represented the power of the new sun that will ensure a good crop and harmony in the house.
Christmas Eve and Vigil
The word “badnjak” has a double meaning. It comes from a Slavic word that means “to stay awake” and also refers to a log.
The vigil next to the burning “badnjak” took place on the night of December 24th to 25th, which was believed to be the moment of the birth the young Sun. By performing the ceremony of bringing and lighting the yule log, people symbolically represented the invisible events in nature and also helped them happen. Namely, ancient peoples believed that by maintaining the fire throughout the night, they preserved the heavenly impulse of new birth in nature within themselves, thus assisting in the triumph of light over darkness. The yule log was typically made from oak wood, which, due to its hardness and longevity, personified the strength of life, its ability to regenerate and its indestructibility.
The yule log was believed to represent the body in which divinity descended. It was connected to the human being in whom there is also a divine spark. Just as the yule log burns in the fire, a person’s life should be imbued and dedicated to the virtues of the soul – honesty, nobility, and justice.
The three candles that were lit on the yule log fire represented the dead and the past, the living and the present, and the unborn or the future. They were connected with a ribbon symbolizing tradition and continuity. Every individual’s respect towards their ancestors, or descendants.
Caroling
Caroling is a form of congratulation, a procession in which multiple people participate. It takes place on Christmas and during the ceremonial twelve-day period after Christmas, leading up to New Year’s and Epiphany. Carolers go from house to house, singing appropriate songs to express good wishes to the hosts.
During those days, people stayed within the family circle, only leaving the house for ritual cleansing.
Between December 25th and January 6th, dreams come true, and the so-called “frost flowers” on the window, morning wind, and rain promise a fruitful year. The day after Christmas, December 26th (Saint Stephen’s Day or Stephen’s Day), household members go to the well and wash themselves for health and beauty; in some villages in Međimurje, girls throw an apple into the well.
Advent and the days after Christmas
This is a time of helping and giving to the poor, sick, and displaced. Traditional gifts are prepared for friends, m To boys and girls, with decorated green branches, dried fruit, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, cakes, handicrafts, or money. It is an ancient custom to give a Christmas gift, a gift in money, food, or fuel.
What does Christmas or Sol Invictus teach us?
Tradition tells us that it is necessary to renew enthusiasm every year and be reborn like the Sun every year!
It is a time of the birth of teachers of humanity and a new spiritual impulse that leads to the regeneration of the soul. It is also a time of grace and blessings in which we all have the opportunity to participate.
It is a time of deepest darkness from which the light is born and begins to grow stronger. Let us find and awaken our own inner light, our invincible Sun, Sol Invictus.