A Very Pagan Christmas

While many of us are eagerly looking forward to Christmas, now that all the lights are starting to appear and gift shopping has reached its full potential. Few of us realize how this annual tradition that we have come to associate with the church, baby Jesus, and, more recently, our beloved but slightly overweight friend in a red suit. Actually has much of its most recognizable trademarks set in times far before Santa, and even baby Jesus were first mentioned.

It is through the many beliefs and rituals which we call paganism in the modern world, that we find the origins of practices such as Christmas trees, dinners and angels as well as the original Christian ways being far less joyous and focused more on piety and reflection of oneself. What we commonly refer to as Paganism covers a stretch of time in humanity much longer then the two thousand years or so of Christian tradition and it is sometimes hard, especially for a place as central as current Bohemia to pinpoint how, and when, precisely a custom became part of local custom.

A long time ago, before we could grasp an understanding of physics, chemistry, and astronomy, the rise and set of the sun represented the battle for light between Good and Evil. The consequence of a lost battle meant the end of light and with it harvest, food, and life. Version of this myth can be traced back as far as ancient Egypt, with the story of “Ra and the Sun Boat”, but has variations all over European mythology.

Even though not exactly related to Christmas, the first tradition is also one of the oldest and originates in Proto-Indo European belief, when man was equal to beast and was more in harmony with his natural environment. Before the winter solstice, excess cattle were slaughtered and this sudden abundance of fresh food led to celebrations. Around a fire, dressed with the horns and hides of the hunted, men would feast, dance and sing loudly, some accounts even mention the drinking of blood and eating of raw organs such as the heart. Later due to technological and agricultural advances the sacrifices ceased and wooden masks were used to celebrate.

Misunderstood and exaggerated these practices were quickly assumed to be human sacrifices and devil worship by historians, and have since been strongly condemned by the Church. It is interesting to notice that through a number of transformations, the custom of dressing up and the celebration of death has remained in many cultures worldwide and is a returning event during winter solstice.

After the autumnal sacrifices, days gradually became shorter and colder, until the shortest day of the year around December 21st. This day meant that the separation between the dead and living was a thin crossable veil, and thus it comes as no surprise that to appease spirits, good or evil, a multitude of practices were held over the course of seven days, starting a little before the 21st and lasting until around December 24th. On the Roman Pagan calendar this celebratory week was called ‘The Feast of Saturnalia’ or Yule, the slavic faith named it “Koleda” after the Goddess “Kolaida”, bringer of the sun. Giving birth to the current Czech word ‘Koleda’, which has gained the meaning of caroling during the winter festivities.

Photo by Mallory Johndrow

During these days of celebration, a multitude of practices were held, many of which can be found back in our current holidays. To fend off evil spirits from entering, Romans brought inside branches and wreaths, to guide returning relatives back and forth from the spirit world, lights were placed alongside doors, roads and waypoints to ensure they would find their way.

On Koleda, masked, costumed and cross dressing groups, often accompanied with effigies or actual goats heads on sticks would go door to door for Koleda ( caroling ) invoking the goddes Kolaida for praises and good wishes in return for handouts, small treats in the shapes of animals, often baked by the elderly members of a household.

In most Pagan beliefs the last day of ‘Koleda’ or ‘Yule’ would culminate in a feast. According to Roman traditions, on this day boundaries between masters and slaves were forgotten and they would eat, play and often gamble together. Even allowing slaves to cuss and mock their owners without repercussions.

Archeological finds have revealed rules for Yule, forbidding work, anger, and describing gifting customs in detail. Alcohol, music, singing and dancing often led, much like today to some occasional form of nudity, later much condemned by the Church. Slavic traditions mention lone men begging farmers for a scoop of oats, but often more than a single scoop was needed to avoid them from stealing more, the oats were then sold to finance the later pre-spring festivities.

The last custom of winter is New Year’s Eve. For many pagan cultures this day was special in that it made for an unusual power of divination. Many divination practices and fortune tellers led this date to become one of the most significant winter holidays we still celebrate today.

Rituals such as cutting an apple in half to tell the future through its seeds were common. It was customary for a girl on New Year’s Eve to back up to the bathhouse door with her rear-end exposed and ask a question to the Bannik. If a cold touch or scratch from his claw was felt, it meant no. If a warm touch or caress was felt, it meant yes. This same divination could be used if one put their hand in-between the wood of the bathhouse. Small clay dolls and plaques were bought and given as gifts, accompanied with blessings and good omens for the coming months.

All together the winter solstice celebrations seemed to have been a joyous occasion of feasting and celebration for all our pagan ancestors, as a passage by Caesarius of Arles in southern Gaul, serves testimony to how opposing this seemed to early Christian values :

“On those days,” says the preacher, speaking of the Kalends of January, “the heathen, reversing the order of all things, dress themselves up in indecent deformities.... These miserable men, and what is worse, some who have been baptized, put on counterfeit forms and monstrous faces, at which one should rather be ashamed and sad. For what reasonable man would believe that any men in their senses would by making a stag (Cervulum) turn themselves into the appearance of animals? Some are clothed in the hides of cattle; others put on the heads of beasts, rejoicing and exulting that they have so transformed themselves into the shapes of animals that they no longer appear to be men.... How vile, further, it is that those who have been born men are clothed in women’s dresses, and by the vilest change effeminate their manly strength by taking on the forms of girls, blushing not to clothe their warlike arms in women’s

garments; they have bearded faces, and yet they wish to appear women.... There are some who on the Kalends of January practise auguries, and do not allow fire out of their houses or any other favour to anyone who asks.

Also they both receive and give diabolical presents. Some country people, moreover, lay tables with plenty of things necessary for eating ... thinking that thus the Kalends of January will be a warranty that all through the year their feasting will be in like measure abundant.”

The text goes on to condemn these practices, but as with most of these customs, the Church, not able to part people with them, decided to adopt and adapt them to facilitate later adoption of their doctrine, which, ‘spoiler alert’ was a success.

Paganism is a part of our past that has so clearly left its marks on our present. So this Christmas while opening your gifts and sipping on your hot wine, be sure to thank your ancestors for making these cold winter days a little more jolly for all of us.

By Benny Water