Internet Book of Shadows

Internet Book of Shadows: Yule in Britain (Tana)

Book of ShadowsHouse Cleansing RitualNeopagan PracticeWiccan Ritual Instructions

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This is a short folkloric essay from the *Internet Book of Shadows* (1999), a Neopagan/Wiccan community reference collection, written from within the British-Celtic Pagan tradition. It surveys the pre-Christian origins of midwinter customs in Britain — the use of evergreens, mistletoe, holly and ivy, caroling, and wassailing — tracing the wassail tradition specifically to Viking-era England and the greeting *"Ves heill."* The piece broadens its scope to compare parallel solstice celebrations across cultures: Roman Saturnalia, Persian Mithraic rites on December 25th, the Swedish feast of Lucina, and Norse bonfires for Odin and Thor. Its central claim is explicitly polemical — that midwinter has "always been a Pagan holiday," a point it underscores by noting that Christmas was outlawed in 1600s England and colonial America precisely because its Pagan character was recognized. The text closes with practical content: a traditional "Monthly Rune" poem mapping agricultural tasks to each month, and full recipes for Wassail and Plum Pudding intended for use in Yule ritual observance. It reads as a practitioner's guide as much as a historical survey, blending scholarly-flavored history with instructions for actually celebrating the holiday.

Internet Book of Shadows: Yule in Britain (Tana)

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