As the Wheel of the Year turns, the days get shorter, the skies become gray, and it seems as though the sun is dying. In this time of darkness, the winter Solstice, the ancients would pause as the sun stops its decline into the south. For a few days, it seems as though it’s rising in exactly the same place… and then the amazing, the wonderful, the miraculous happens...

The sun begins its journey back to the north, and once again we are reminded that we have something worth celebrating. In families of all different spiritual paths, the return of the light is celebrated, with Menorahs, Kwanzaa candles, bonfires, yule logs, and brightly lit Christmas trees.

Long before the holidays of today, the ancients went to great lengths to identify and honor the day of the winter Solstice. They built complex Mounds, Temples, Pyramids, Stone (and wood) Circles, and created a variety solar calendars.

Stone circles large and small

Incredible passage tombs...
Newgrange in Ireland – a National Geo clip (2.5 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVXWZkwV0RQ
and a poetic take on Newgrange - A Dream of Angus Oge by George Russell (3.5 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VZdTnmZSwE

Maeshowe passage tomb tour on Orkney (3 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DX-OBFdUTE

Here's a sun calendar in Mancos Canyon near four corners

The sun dagger calendar at Chaco Canyon in NM (23 sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1qdhU5Lw2A

A window in Tulum's temple creates a calendar

From Solstice to Christmas is a journey of gods and cultures...

Whatever your preferred holiday, chances are you are carrying on some traditions from the Roman holiday Saturnalia. a harvest festival that marked the winter solstice—the return of the sun—and honoring Saturn, the god of agriculture. (The planet Saturn has been lovely this month currently rising in the early morning. If you're up before dawn on Dec. 27th , look to the SE and Saturn will be shining bright near the waxing crescent moon.)

In the Roman world, Saturnalia was a time of merrymaking and exchanging of gifts. The houses were decorated with greenery and lights, and gifts were given to children and the poor. This week-long bacchanal also included lots of food and wine, dancing and music. Slaves got the week off work, courts were closed, and all kinds of debauchery took place. One of the highlights of Saturnalia was the switching of traditional roles, particularly between a master and his slave. Everyone got to wear the red pileus, or freedman's hat, and slaves were free to be as impertinent as they wished to their owners. However, despite the appearance of a reversal of social order, there were actually some fairly strict boundaries. A master might serve his slaves dinner, but the slaves were the ones who prepared it -- this kept Roman society in order, but still allowed everyone to have a good time.

Businesses and court proceedings closed up for the entire celebration, and food and drink were everywhere to be had. Elaborate feasts and banquets were held, and it wasn't unusual to exchange small gifts at these parties. A typical Saturnalia gift might be something like a writing tablet or tool, cups and spoons, clothing items, or food. Citizens decked their halls and even hung small tin ornaments on bushes and trees. Bands of naked revelers often roamed the streets, singing and carousing - a sort of naughty precursor to today's Christmas caroling tradition.

The Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger wrote, "It is now the month of December, when the greatest part of the city is in a bustle. Loose reins are given to public dissipation; everywhere you may hear the sound of great preparations, as if there were some real difference between the days devoted to Saturn and those for transacting business....Were you here, I would willingly confer with you as to the plan of our conduct; whether we should eve in our usual way, or, to avoid singularity, both take a better supper and throw off the toga."

This festival honored Saturn, and he was an agricultural god. To keep him happy, fertility rituals took place under the mistletoe. During the Saturnalia branches of holly were exchanged as tokens of friendship. Female holly plants cannot have berries unless a nearby male plant pollinates them. So, the holly wreath is a token of friendship and fertility.

To honor the god Saturn, homes and hearths were decorated with boughs of greenery – vines, ivy, and the like. The ancient Egyptians didn't have evergreen trees, but they had palms -- and the palm tree was the symbol of resurrection and rebirth. They often brought the fronds into their homes during the time of the winter solstice. Among the Druids the oak was sacred, among the Egyptians it was the palm, and in Rome it was the fir, which was decorated with red berries during the Saturnalia.

An old tale from Babylon told of an evergreen tree which sprang out of a dead tree stump. The old stump symbolized the dead Nimrod, the new evergreen tree symbolized that Nimrod had come to life again in Tammuz. “Santa” was a common name for Nimrod throughout Asia Minor. This was also the same fire god who came down the chimneys of the ancient pagans.

Among early Germanic tribes, one of the major deities was Odin, the ruler of Asgard. A number of similarities exist between some of Odin's escapades and those of the figure who would become Santa Claus. Odin was often depicted as leading a hunting party through the skies, during which he rode his eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. In the 13th-century Poetic Edda, Sleipnir is described as being able to leap great distances, which some scholars have compared to the legends of Santa's reindeer. Odin was typically portrayed as an old man with a long, white beard -- much like St. Nicholas himself.

The German and Celtic Yule rites merged with the Roman traditions when the Teutonic tribes penetrated into Gaul, Britain and central Europe. To the food and good fellowship, greenery, gifts and greetings they added the Yule log. Fires and lights, symbols of warmth and lasting life, have always been associated with the winter festival, both pagan and Christian.

Because each type of wood is associated with various magical and spiritual properties, logs from different types of trees might be burned to get a variety of effects. Aspen is the wood of choice for spiritual understanding, while the mighty oak is symbolic of strength and wisdom. A family hoping for a year of prosperity might burn a log of pine, while a couple hoping to be blessed with fertility would drag a bough of birch to their hearth.

season's greens

In legend, at the Winter Solstice or Yule, the Oak King conquers the Holly King, and then reigns until Midsummer or Litha. Once the Summer Solstice arrives, the Holly King returns to do battle with the old king, and defeats him. In some traditions, the Oak King and the Holly King are seen as dual aspects of the Horned God. Each of these twin aspects rules for half the year, battles for the favor of the Goddess, and then retires to nurse his wounds for the next six months, until it is time for him to reign once more.

Often, these two entities are portrayed in familiar ways - the Holly King frequently appears as a woodsy version of Santa Claus. He dresses in red, wears a sprig of holly in his tangled hair, and is sometimes depicted driving a team of eight stags. The Oak King is portrayed as a fertility god and occasionally appears as the Green Man or other lord of the forest.

The name for the festival of the Winter Solstice in Druidry is Alban Arthan, which means 'The Light of Arthur'. Some Druid Orders believe this means the Light of the hero King Arthur Pendragon who is symbolically reborn as the Sun Child (The Mabon) at the time of the Solstice. Others see the Light belonging to the star constellation known as the Great Bear (or the Plough) - Arthur, or Art, being Gaelic for Bear. This constellation shines out in the sky and can symbolize the rebirth of the Sun.

This time of year is very cold and bleak, which is why so many celebrations are needed to help people get through the Winter months. It is significant that many civilizations welcomed their Solar Gods at the time of greatest darkness - including Mithras (the bull-headed Warrior God), the Egyptian God Horus and, more recently, Jesus Christ.
Somehow, I missed out on Mithra. I wonder if he is neglected because of his similarity to the Christ figure.

"Mithra or Mitra is...worshipped as Itu (Mitra-Mitu-Itu) in every house of the Hindus in India. This Mithra or Mitra (Sun-God) is believed to be a Mediator between God and man, between the Sky and the Earth. It is said that Mithra or [the] Sun took birth in the Cave on December 25th. It is also the belief of the Christian world that Mithra or the Sun-God was born of [a] Virgin. He traveled far and wide. He has twelve satellites, which are taken as the Sun's disciples.... [The Sun's] great festivals are observed in the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox—Christmas and Easter. His symbol is the Lamb...."
Swami Prajnanananda

The Romans attributed Mithraism to Persians or Zoroastrians. Mithra is a judicial figure, an all-seeing Protector of Truth, and the Guardian of Cattle, the Harvest and of The Waters. Some claim Mithra represents the Sun itself, but the Khorda Avesta refers to the Sun as a separate entity – as it does with the Moon, with which the Sun has "the Best of Friendships," Mithraism has sometimes been viewed as a rival of early Christianity

In Rome, the worship of Mithra reached a peak during the second and third centuries, before largely expiring at the end of the fourth/beginning of fifth centuries. Among its members during this period were emperors, politicians and businessmen. Indeed, before its usurpation by Christianity Mithraism enjoyed the patronage of some of the most important individuals in the Roman Empire. In the fifth century, the emperor Julian, having rejected his birth-religion of Christianity, adopted Mithraism and "introduced the practice of the worship at Constantinople."

For the first three centuries of Christianity’s existence, Christ’s birth wasn’t celebrated at all. The religion’s most significant holidays were Epiphany on January 6, which commemorated the arrival of the Magi after Jesus’ birth, and Easter, which celebrated Jesus’ resurrection. In 325AD, Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emperor, introduced Christmas as an immovable feast on December 25th. He also introduced Sunday as a holy day in a new 7-day week, and introduced movable feasts (Easter). In 354AD, Bishop Liberius of Rome officially ordered his members to celebrate the birth of Jesus on 25 December.

Here's the History Channel's take on how Christmas evolved. (3 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wmp0HPCOxk

So, to wrap up this longer than expected look at how we ended up with Christmas (which started with wiki and branched all over till I lost track of what I got where which is why I didn't source this piece). These December holidays are all about the return of light. Celebrations are found across most cultures. December 21st is also the festival of the Japanese sun goddess Amaterasu, and represents her "coming out of the cave," a typical solar myth... Light and Darkness.

Our star, a fusion engine, revealed with amazing high-res images from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory. (3.5 min)
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2U3ucaVzRqQ]

Here Comes the Sun
George Harrison (3 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwmVfewqu7I

We expect the U.S. solar industry to install 13.9 GW of capacity by the end of 2016, which is nearly double the amount installed in a record-breaking 2015
http://www.seia.org/research-resources/solar-industry-data

Two-fold increase in India's rooftop solar capacity in the last year (40 sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88XwICDtdnk&spfreload=10

Rooftop solar energy is becoming a financially viable way for millions of U.S. consumers to generate their own electricity. So far, voters have fought and beaten the efforts to squash solar energy.
http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/11/29/utilities-are-losing-the-battle...

Is there good news in the modern world?

I've been encouraged by new sources of information. Here in a series of interviews are two of my favorites...
Glenn Greenwald and Jimmy Dore explore the state of journalism in the US. (be sure to catch the last clip about tribalism).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKVzB1UMsn8 (8 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWD3jvO8SXY (6 min) The dems are insane
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcSzj8yuXTU (11 min) The ME mess
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jd6iz43Or-8 (8 min) What T-rump means
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qofqmWXNkYA (10 min) Media, parties, and tribalism

Lee Camp on the failure of capitalism (10 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlU8cZ079zE
and another clip on how media exalts capitalism (9 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb-7JkxVg2A

Jimmy Dore on the economy (22 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qy769seSU0

And another of my favorites, Chris Hedges with Professor Ellen Schreckeron on the new McCarthyism (26 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo9y76D2VfY

How about peace on earth?

Hope even in war...Two weeks since the liberation of the Alshaar neighborhood in eastern Aleppo by the Syrian army, life is gradually resuming its course. More locals are returning to breathe life into devastated streets as heavy machinery clears the rubble. (4 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYPDSuNljUY

The Syrian Arab Army has secured control of Aleppo, promising “stability and security.” (3 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihrnEEp4688

Residents of the Syrian city of Aleppo have flooded the streets, celebrating the city's liberation from rebels. Yet Yemen continues (3 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU0a79sKGFE

Cuba helps Syria by sending 300,000 meningitis vaccines (30 sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMOnXw-dmnw

How we cover the Syrian conflict? Jimmy blasts the press (8 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WO6aL7q4Lyg

Maybe a little peace for the Earth?
The Obama administration finalized its plans for offshore drilling on Friday, protecting much of the Arctic Ocean and all of the Atlantic coast, but staying the course on Gulf of Mexico drilling.
https://thinkprogress.org/boem-five-year-plan-2022-499a160847f8#.vnk2b4c8u
Obama used an obscure 63-year-old law, in a move that incoming President Donald Trump may not be able to reverse. Comments from Green Peace director. (7.5 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NQ1DC4gZyc

When conventional public input like voting and attending hearings is inadequate—and on climate change, it has been profoundly inadequate—we can be effective, creative, demanding, and inspiring. We can refuse to give our consent.
http://www.commondreams.org/views/2016/12/24/fossil-fuel-industry-needs-...

For years there have been first nations people standing for the Earth and against big oil in Peru (3 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW9pLeZp44M

Will there be good will toward men and women?

Obama has now commuted the sentences of 1,176 people during his presidency, and has pardoned 148.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/obama-commutation-pardon-clemency_us...

The Obama administration has told congress that it intends to transfer 18 of the 22 recommended Guantanamo detainees (7 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KM45DYsfQw

How about some mercy mild?
We can hope Obama will pardon:
Oscar Rivera (15 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdmToHyLZ2Y
Marcus Garvey (12 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aa-u1_BaZl8
Chelsea Manning (6 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sieLmtuMwN8
Leonard Peltier (12 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVpiGnmY6hE
Don Seigelman http://donsiegelman.net/
Assange and Snowden too!

What about the gifts????

For readers -
Those of you who enjoy the season, here's a collection of online books, stories, and poems good for reading to kids or having them read to you. Happy Christmas reading https://americanliterature.com/christmas

For film lovers -

H. G. Wells' Things to Come 1936 (1.5 hours)
The story shows the destructive nature of war and how it will catapult us back to a state of barbarism, warlords, and another plague called the "Wandering Sickness." However, science lift humans above all this and creates a new, modern society free of warfare. ...Well it is Christmas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atwfWEKz00U

And a couple of my favorite silent films

Here's a nicely restored version of Metropolis, a 1927 German expressionist epic science-fiction drama film directed by Fritz Lang. Set in a futuristic urban dystopia, the story is about trying to overcome the vast gulf separating the classes of their city. (2.5 hours)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tK29Y2clHw

A story from my neck of the woods, filmed in 1927, with one of my favorite actors, Buster Keaton.
The General (1.3 hours)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2X58JcO9G4

Music
Sugar plum fairy on glasses (2.5 min) hat tip to henry wallace
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdoTdG_VNV4

Tommy Jarrell and string band - Mount Airy, North Carolina 1983 – Breaking Up Christmas (4 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fGg2gUgkT0

Christmas in the Trenches by John McCutcheon a lovely WWI song with scenes from Mr. Cutler's grade 6 class (7 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTXhZ4uR6rs

Take a look at a 1950's Christmas ...Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men (5 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYqgjrtluzQ

Christmas around the World – kinda shmaltzy, but great xmas photos from around the world (4 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwlhgNcGss8

I'll finish up with views of Earth while Frankie sings “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” (3.5 min)
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp092lzF61I]

Sorry I won't be around today for comments. We're off to Birmingham to see family and share some cheer.

Those of you who are around, please fill in for me. As always this is an open thread and any and all comments are welcome. Next Sunday I would like to do a year in review issue. What were (are) the big stories of the past year?