In the Solstice Hollow
dear darkness
Witches believe in the darkness. Darkness is an elder, an ancient ancestor. The darkness is the beginning and end of things. It is fertile and void, unknowable, and where we most intimately find ourselves.
The darkness is an ally for witches, wyrd ones, pagans and animists. During this time of year, between Samhain and the Winter Solstice, darkness is our teacher, instructing us in the arts of dreaming, resting, and protecting. This is a period for ancestral connection, both with our practices of honoring our beloved dead, as well as in our studies of cycles. When we dance with the Earth in ways our ancestors may have moved through the wheel of year, (through eating traditional foods, telling stories and myths, and practicing winter rituals) we enact an ancient form of participation with the Earth, long before capitalism and climate collapse. Ritual, magic, and prayer are practices that affirmed our ancestors' participation with the Earth’s natural cycles. To continue celebrating these cycles is a radical act of reconnection with something both ancient and urgent in our collective consciousness.
Dreaming:
Winter Solstice is when the Earth is in hibernation - she too is also dreaming. Dreaming with the Earth at the Solstice is an opportunity to tune into what is subtly becoming in the deepest corners of our psyches, and our collective. Spend time in the darkness consciously feeling into what your deepest desires are. What do you truly wish to gain more certainty or clarity about? Incubate a dream in which you ask the darkness: How can I gain more certainty about x?
Resting:
On the shortest day we have the least amount of light to work with. Our bodies ache for sleep. Listen to your energetic needs. What is your body craving? How can you give yourself space to embody rest. Restful activities include: reading, listening to music, day dreaming, bathing, and anything that allows you to move at your own natural pace.
Protecting:
This darkest time of year is an excellent time to clear your mind and spaces of clutter and beliefs that no longer serve you. Sweep your home of the debris of the year. Reset your altar spaces. Give away what you have excess of, paying attention to what your kin, neighbors, and community may be in need of. The darkness has a way of making clear what is important to you, and what is superfluous. When we practice clearing work we also must be conscious of where we are placing our attention. Fill your time and space with activities that nourish and reminders of care. The practice of bringing evergreens (solar ruled plants) and decorating the home with lights is an important way of activating this practice.
Winter Solstice is an excellent time for honoring and attuning to your sacred guidance, whether that be your ancestors, your spirit guides, earth spirits, or any deities you work with. Make offerings, commune with them, and practice divination to increase your intimate connections.
Here is a short tarot/divination spread for you to activate the wisdom of this cyclical moment.
Winter Solstice Spread:
What is the darkness teaching you?
What seeds are you planting in the fertile dark?
How can you activate HOPE?
The shortest day is the hollow, the deepest darkest moment in the year. It is the time when we must face the return of the Sun, calling back solar wisdom and mustering up all the magic possible to recall the dawn. We may feel at our lowest energetically, physically, mentally, and spiritually, but our ancestors are here to remind us that we have greater capacity than we know. Gather with friends, family, and community, and sing the Sun back into our lives. Let us each conjure up a sliver of hope to see us through the rest of the Winter, as we work our way back to Spring’s renewal.
Solstice blessings ~
Casey
I’d love to hear your intentions, dreams, visions, and seeds for this Solstice. Please feel welcomed to share your petitions in the comments. Intentions find joy in being witnessed.