Today is the Shortest Day of the Year
In the northern hemisphere December the 21st is the darkest day. Where I live the sun will rise today at 08:26, and it will set just over seven hours later at 15:39. As there will be some cloud today I’m not likely to see much sunshine at all. Today will not be the longest night in all history ~ most respectable scientists think that was December 21st 1912. The rotation of the earth is generally slowing down over time, but it’s speeded up a little recently due to the melting of the glaciers.
Officially today is the first day of winter. The coldest months are yet to come, normally it’s much colder in England in late January and early February.
If you are a pagan, or a witch, today is a big day for you. In ancient times December the 21st was called Yule, probably from the Anglo-Saxon word Iul, meaning wheel. This symbolises the stars and the Earth turning like a wheel, the wheel of the year, and the wheel of life. Today the Goddess once again becomes the Great Mother and gives birth to the Sun King. It’s unsurprising that Christians chose around now to be the time of the birth of Christ, even if they did get they day wrong by 4 days. Although the ancient Persian Mithraists always regarded December 25th as the time of the victory of light over darkness.
If you can get to Salisbury in Wiltshire, perhaps you should be at Stonehenge for dawn and dusk today. Nobody really knows why Stonehenge was built some 5,000 years ago, but the great stones are aligned in such a way so as to mark the rising and setting of the sun on Midsummer’s day and Midwinter’s day. A hell of a lot of work to make a clock / calendar.
Personally, I will go down to the sea today and watch the dawn. For many of us, today is the rebirth of the year and of the world.
Have a happy Yuletide.