Winter Magick Day 18

 Mother Berchta’s Coming To Town

You better watch out when winter comes night 
You better not doubt, I’m telling you why.
Mother Berchta’s coming to town! 
She carries a sack made out of a skin
She dumps the toys out and stuffs the kids in,
Mother Berchta’s coming to town! 
She rides on Ashurskeggi
A goat whose back is strong. 
Her beard is long and scraggly
And her tail is ten feet long! 
With six or eight horns, a moustache or two, 
Make no mistake, she’s coming for you!
Mother Berchta’s coming to town! 
She knows with whom you’re sleeping, 
She knows with whom you wake,
She knows each thought you’re thinking 
So don’t think, for Goddess sake!
So when the winds howl way up in the sky 
Listen as she and Skeggi pass by.
Mother Berchta’s coming, 
Mother Berchta’s coming,
Yes, Mother Berchta’s coming to town!

Sung to the tune of Santa Clause is Coming to Town
Lyrics rewritten by The Greenwood Singers, a Seattle based Pagan Chorus.

Blessings dark and deep!

December Magick Day 17

 

The Wild Horde 

The Frauen are the leaders of the Wild Horde, the band of wandering souls, especially children’s souls, who fly through the winter night skies (perhaps disguised as swans, or wild geese, or the wind). 
This is even true for St Lucy. In Norway, she is considered a loose woman, even a goblin, and is said to lead the Wild Hunt. 
The Wild Horde itself was a complex phenomenon whose origins lose themselves partly in the prehistoric past. There was the assembly of ghosts under the leadership of a female divinity—Hecate or Artemis in ancient Greece; in the Latin West, Diana or Herodias, the mother of Salome. This gathering of female spirits, which later swelled into the crowd of evil hags at the witches’ sabbath, was well known to theologians of the first millennium who in vain flung their anathema against it: As usual the effort was in vain.

- Celebrating Winter Solstice, Customs and Crafts, Recipes and Rituals for 
 Festivals of Light, Hanukkah, Yule, and Other Midwinter Holidays; Compiled by Waverly Fitzgerald

Blessings dark and deep!

Winter Magick Day 16

 Bring Back The Light

Bring back the Light, 

Light never ending.

Through dark of night, 

This call we are sending,

With all our might, 

Bring back the Light,

Bring back the Light! 

Our hearts are open.

On Solstice night, We are invoking!

The Life of Light, Bring back the Light!

Queen of the Stars, Queen of the Moon 

Queen of the Horns and Queen of Fire 

Light of Life, Seed of Light, 

Flame that warms the darkest night 

Queen of the Stars, Queen of the Moon 

Queen of the Horns and Queen of Fire 

Be with us on Solstice night.

To earth tonight, Bring back the light 

Bring back the light. 

(The original song was recorded many years ago by a gal named Gypsy. She recorded an album of wonderful Pagan and Goddess songs. I took some poetic license with a couple of lines.)

Blessings dark and deep!

Here is a link to a YouTube video of Gypsy singing Bring Back the Light

https://youtu.be/vfZCBzzjft4?si=mjW3Swi3Z2oEnUCF

Winter Magick Day 15

 

Winter Blessing

As winter weaves its silver spell 
across the dreaming, starlit land, 
may every snowflake's shining fall 
place quiet wonder in your hand
May frostlight shimmer where you walk, 
and night skies bloom in crystal hue, 
a season spun of whispered magic, glimmering paths and skies anew.
Let joy awaken in the cold; 
let bright enchantment find you near.
And may the winter's gentle spark 
bring warmth and wonder through the year.

- Yasmine Galenorn

Winter Magick Day 14

 

Night of Lussi

In Norway, December 13th use to be known as Lussinatten and thought to be a magical night. Before the calendar changed around 1700 in Norway, December 13 was the longest night.

Lussi, thought to be a feared fairy enchantress, demoness, or witch, traveled about with ghosts and other mysterious spirits on this night. She would, it was said, snatch up and carry away anyone She encountered wandering outside. Hence, people stayed inside and no work was done. It was also said that farm animals talked to each other on this night.

Be sure to keep the lights on and stay inside!
Blessings dark and deep!

Winter Magick Day 13

 

A Candle Ritual For A December Night

Gather these items: 
Two chime candles or other small candles, one red, one green
A slice of bread with honey and cinnamon
Incense of pine, balsam, or rosemary 

At some quiet time during the evening, perform this small ritual to give thanks and ask for blessings through the winter.
At your altar or some other place that you like, set your candles in holders. Have a plate with the bread and honey next to them. Gather your thoughts and focus your energies. Light the incense. Think about the Goddesses you revere and the spirit guardians of your home. Consider how They have assisted you and your family throughout the year. Hold your hands over the candles and send your thanks into Them. Now light the candles and blow gently over the bread. Chant this or something similar:

Great Ones of Winter, 
Guardians of hearth and home, 
Mothers of the Hidden Light, 
You who are ever present in this home. 
Bless my work. 
Bless and guard this family.
Guide our steps as the sun is born again. 
I offer this 7flame, this food, this breath of thanks for all that has been done,
For all You continue to do.
May goodwill grow and may wisdom lead us 

through the cold into the returning dawn.
So mote it be!

Let the candles burn until finished, leave the offering at your ritual place. When the candles have finished, eat the offering as a way to give it to the goddesses and home guardians.
Blessings dark and deep!

Note: the chant is adapted from the book Witch’s Yuletide by Lilly Ryan

Winter Magick Day 12

 

 A Visit From The Yule Spirits

'Twas the night before Yule, 

when all 'cross the hearth,not a being was stirring; Pagan, faerie, or beast.
Wassail was left out & the altar adorned,
to rejoice that the Sun would soon be reborn.
The children lay sleeping by the warmth of the hearth,
their dreams filled with visions of belov'd Mother Earth.
M'lady & I beneath blankets piled deep,
had just settled down to our own Solstice sleep.
Then a noise in the night that would leave us no peace,
Awakened us both to the honking of geese.
Eager to see such a boisterous flock,
When we raced to the window, our mouths dropped in shock!
On the west wind flew a gaggle of geese white & gray,
With Frau Holda behind them in her giftladen dray.
The figure on her broomstick in the north sky made it clear,
La Befana was approaching to bestow Yuletide cheer.
From the south came a comet more bright than the moon,
And we knew that Lucia would be with us soon.
As these spirits sailed earthward o'er hilltops & trees,
Frau Holda serenaded her feathery steeds:
"Fly Isolde! Fly Tristan! Fly Odin & Freya! 

Fly Morgaine! Fly Merlin! Fly Uranus & Gaea!
May the God & the Goddess inside you soar,
From the clouds in the heavens to yon cottage door."
As soft & silent as snowflakes they fell:
Their arrival announced by a faint chiming bell.
They landed like angels, their bodies aglow.
Their feet left no marks in the new fallen snow.
Before we could ponder what next lay in store,
There came a slow creaking from our threshold door.
We crept from our bedroom & were spellbound to see...
There in our parlor stood the Yule Trinity!
Lucia, the Maiden, with her head wreathed in flame,
Shown with the radiance for which she was named.
The Lightbringer's eyes held the joy of a child,
And she spoke with a voice that was gentle, yet wild:
"May the warmth of this household ne'er fade away."
Then she lit our Yule log which still burns to this day.
Frau Holda in her down cloak stood regal & tall;
The Matron of Solstice, the Mother of all.
Under her gaze we felt safe & secure.
Her voice was commanding, yet almost demure:
“May the love of this family enrich young & old."
And from the folds of her cloak showered coins of pure gold.
Le Befana wore a kerchief on her silvery hair;
The veil of the Crone who has secrets to share.
In her eyes gleamed a wisdom only gained by spent youth.
Her voice was a whisper but her words rung with truth:
"May health, glad tidings, and peace fill these rooms."
And she banished misfortune with a sweep of her broom.
They then left a gift by each sleeping child's head,
Took a drink of our wassail, & away they sped.
While we watched them fly off through the night sky we laughed,
At the wondrous magick we had found in the Craft.
As they departed, the spirits decreed...
Merry Yule To You All & May All Blessed Be!

Copyright (c) by Richard De Angelis

Blessings dark and deep!

Winter Magick Day 11

 

A Solstice Blessing

May you find peace 
in the promise of the solstice night, 
that each day forward is blessed 
with more light.
That the cycle of nature,

unbroken and true, 

brings faith to your soul 

and well-being to you.

Rejoice in the darkness, 

in the silence find rest.

And may the days that follow 

be abundantly blessed 

(Unknown author)

Winter Magick Day 10

 

Winter Magick Day 10: 

A Prayer to the Lady Sun at the Winter Solstice

Great Lady who is the Sun, 

The  wheel of fire, radiant in Your glory,

Hear me as I honor You on this, 

The shortest day of the year.

Summer has gone, passed us by,

the fields are dead and cold,

all of earth sleeps in Persephone's absence.

But even in the darkest times,

You light the way for those who  

need a beacon of hope, 

of brightness, shining in the night.

Winter is here, and colder days coming,

the fields are bare, seemingly empty.

Demeter mourns Her Daughter, 

She journeys within, as do we,

In reflection, introspection, rest.

We light these candles in Your honor,

that You might gather Your strength

and bring life and warmth back to the world.

Mighty Lady Who is the Sun above us,

Lady Bright, Lady Light,

we ask You to return, 

to bring back to us

the light and the warmth of Your fire.

Bring life back to earth,

Bring light back to earth.

Hail the Lady, the Golden Sun!

The original version of this prayer was written by Patti Wigington, About.com. As a Dianic Feminist witch, I took certain liberties with it and created a Dianic version to merge with my practice. 

This version was created in 2008.