Solstice blessings to you!

Today is the Winter Solstice in the northern hemisphere. In the Tribe, this is a day of two layers of precious mythos, both centered around the concept of birth.

The solstice, of course, is an important point in the solar year. So you probably won't be surprised to discover that our Sun Goddess Therasia is at the center of the older layer of mythos. Patricia Monaghan's research tells us that across Eurasia, the Sun Goddess has a deep and storied past, with her calendar hinging around the Winter Solstice.

In the Tribe, we've been celebrating Therasia's Labor these past few weeks, preparing ourselves for the celebration of the solstice. During this time, Therasia retreats to her sacred cave as she dwindles in power and light.

Now the time has come. The sacred moment of Winter Solstice sunrise is the hinge around which the solar year pivots. In the infinitesimally brief moment before the sunrise, Therasia dies, the phoenix burning herself to ashes. Then the first rays of sunshine slip over the horizon, and she is reborn, flaming forth from her cave with the fresh fire of a new solar year.

Therasia is with us!

I would be remiss if I didn't include the second layer of mythos, one that came later in human history, though both are of course timeless.

This second layer is a closely related story, also involving labor and birth in a cave. As the sun sets on Midwinter Eve, the Earth Mother Goddess Rhea retreats to her sacred cave, spending the Longest Night in labor.

Then, as the Sun crests the horizon, the Divine Child is born, new life from the oldest of the old. The infant Dionysus remains safe and secure in his mother's cave, fed milk by the goat-goddess Amalthea and honey by the Melissae (so ancient Crete was a land of milk and honey!).

 May you find the peace of the season and the joy of rebirth on this sacred day!