Sure, they’re merry, bright, and joyous, but the holidays can be difficult and stressful. I’ve written here before about a time when winter was downright terrifying. It’s no wonder our Pagan ancestors created folkloric characters and traditions that feel positively mystical. We need magic in our lives, especially when it’s darker and colder outside, money is tight, and the holidays put the “fun” into family dysfunction. 🙄 Even when your lovable bunch of a**holes are the jolliest, the anxiety around such gatherings can be a little humbug.
“He’s gonna find the jolliest bunch of a-holes this side of the nuthouse.” —Clark Griswold | Tenor GIF
This week, we experienced the longest night of the year with the Winter Solstice. It’s all going to get brighter from here. Yet, as a modern society, we’re also dealing with a lot of hustle in these last-minute shopping days and the week leading up to the New Year. To-do lists, ingredient lists, and last-minute gift lists abound. Hustle is healthy in small doses, but hustle has practically become a “virtue” that is stealing our magic. Let’s take a moment to reclaim that magic with three Yule rituals that will turn the holiday tides from harrowing to heartwarming.
Yule Candle Magic | Created by Jaye with Midjourney AI; Animated with Runway
Ritual 1: Candle Lighting for Peace
You don’t need to be Pagan to feel the magic in candlelight’s soft, warm glow and hypnotic flicker. All the better if that candle smells like winter’s most heavenly and Earthly essences!
This week, infuse more intention into your holiday candle lighting. Visualize the light of the flame, banishing whatever darkness and difficulties bring you down. As you set the flame to the wick, welcome that simple candle’s light and peace into your home and your holidays.
If you want to go even deeper, choose a quiet evening and gather many candles of various sizes, colors, and scents together in one place. Whether in the quiet or with a calming, beautiful playlist filling the space, light each candle with a focus on peace—for yourself, your loved ones, and the world.
Does it sound like a Christmas carol cliché to wish for world peace while lighting holiday candles? Maybe. But maybe a return to those childlike wishes is exactly the magic we need.
This simple ritual is literal candle magic: it’s powerful to use the element of fire to remind yourself that even during the darkest days, there is always light, and we can wish for that light to be with everyone—joy to the world!
The Witch of Yule | Created by Jaye in Midjourney AI
Ritual 2: Nature Walk to Connect with the Earth
As a Midwesterner who’s experienced extreme winters, some of my favorite nature walks have happened during blustery blizzards. There’s something magically primal about getting outside during a season when our bodies want to be nothing but inside under a blanket and sipping warm beverages.
Maybe it’s because just as the season of Yule is deeply connected to the rhythms of the Earth, our human bodies long for this connection, too. A walk outside in weather you don’t particularly enjoy can become one of life’s most surprising sources of joy. Add some mindfulness to that walk; you guessed it: it’s magic.
It can be as simple as a neighborhood walk, a little jaunt in your backyard, or a full-on day at a park, forest, or nature trail. The point is to get your feet planted and breathe fresh air. Welcome to the simple practice of Earth and air magic—walking and breathing with an intention behind it! 😉
This may be difficult for some, but I challenge you not to do “hustle-y” things like listen to podcasts, playlists, or audiobooks on this walk. 🤯 Instead, deeply tune in to the natural sounds, sights, and smells around you. Even in an urban setting, there’s something about the white noise of vehicles and daily activity that can be powerfully grounding.
To make this walk something to remember symbolically, and as a token of your ritual, collect a small natural item or few as keepsakes, like pinecones, branches, leaves, or stones, every time you do this. When you get home, add those pieces to your new Yule altar. (That’s up next)!
The practical magic of a ritual outdoor walk is that it’s a grounding technique. Just as the candle was about the element of fire, your call to nature is about Earth and air. If there’s snow on the ground, or it’s raining, or you’re near a body of water (or ice), lucky you! Mother Nature has decided to infuse the magical element of water into your ritual walk. Water is the element of emotions. Tune in to your emotions as you ground yourself and connect with the power of elemental magic.
The difference between a functional and ritual walk is the intention: you’re here to connect to nature’s tranquility. You’re taking this walk to remember that the Earth is alive no matter the weather, the cold, or the dark. She’s always there for you. This intention takes a walk to the next level—it’s magic.
Make a Yule Altar | Art Created by Jaye in Midjourney AI
Ritual 3: Creating a Yule Altar
You may recognize a Yule Altar in the humble, holiday-decorated fireplace mantle. That’s likely where we came up with the idea: our Pagan roots don’t forget! So yes, you can magically level up your holiday mantles by turning them into Yule altars. And if you don’t have a mantle to decorate, you can do this on a simple table, too! Where do you think Christians came up with the idea of creating manger scenes? It’s their version of a Yule altar.
The act of building a Yule altar is your time to create a personal space that you can revisit throughout the winter to reflect and find peace. You don’t need to buy anything fancy from an occult bookstore or an Etsy shop with the name Raven in the title for this altar. You only need intention, simple, natural items, and household spaces. Along with a small table or mantle, you could choose an area on a bookshelf or your dresser—even in a corner on the floor (if safe from kiddos and fur babies). Preferably, the altar should reside in an area of your living space that makes you feel cozy and comfortable.
Cottagecore Wheel of the Year | Art Created by Jaye in Midjourney AI
For Yule, decorate this space with evergreen branches, candles, seasonal fruits, glasses of mead or wine, mulled spices, and the outdoor items you picked up on your ritual walk. You can also include photos of loved ones who have passed on and whom you wish to spend time with during the season. Fill a beautiful glass or jar regularly with snow or ice and watch it slowly melt into water over time—a symbol of checking in with your emotions during the season. Add anything else to this altar that holds special meaning to you.
Voila! You now have a ritual Yule altar. Your sacred space for meditation, reflection, or a peaceful moment to make you feel happy and calm during such a busy season. This altar can also change to reflect each Sabbat and Esbat in the Wheel of the Year. There’s no reason to take it down at winter’s end, especially if it brings you peace and joy.
The Reason for the Season… and These Rituals
Practicing these three simple but powerful Yule rituals is something you can do at any time in the winter and as often as you would like. Be it in the candles you light, the wintry walks you take, or the sacred spaces you create in your home, each will bring the magic of Yule into your life.
I hope this post reconnects you with what’s most important during the holiday season: connection. To yourself, nature, and everyone around you—even the most annoying and abrasive strangers you encounter at a crowded Best Buy. Start up some friendly conversation. Smile at people with true warmth. Make that employee in the checkout aisle feel appreciated. It’s all a part of the magic.
May these three magickal Yule practices bring you peace, comfort, joy, and a touch of enchantment this season and beyond.
Happy Yule!
🖤✨❄️
~Jaye
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