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Jul

Yule is a strange holiday to me, loaded with many emotions (mainly joy) and conflicting beliefs and traditions. I’ve celebrated it for the parts of my life I can remember, despite living in a non-christian family, and being a pagan leaning atheist myself. However, I believe this makes some sense. I am Swedish, and our Jul is an ancient tradition, after all, that I cherish. However, so much of it is partially christian or heavily capitalist that I find myself questioning whether this tradition is something I ought to participate in, and if so how. So, let’s look backwards and inwards, to find where some of my favourite traditions come from, and what they mean to me.

History

Up here, in the north, we have celebrated jul as far as anyone knows. It’s a sacred time, with plenty of food and drinks, namely mead and beer, as well as a blot. A blot is a sacrifice to please the gods. The main gods to please during this time were Oden and Frej. Frej for a good year to come, and Oden since he was the god of the season. Some claim that it’s always been around midwinter, though some who worship the norse gods say otherwise. I have been told that it’s always been a very long holiday, stretching over one or two months of winter.

Santa

Supposedly (take this with a heavy pinch of salt, since I’m unsure how much of this is sensationalised romanticism of norse history) this long night would be one where Odin went out to hunt with his great wolves, to protect us from the dark powers that be. This does make some sense, seeing as the darkness of midwinter is quite overwhelming (above the pole light the sun stops shining entirely). However, I somewhat doubt that we’d put out a boot with hay for a potential gift. Most other sources claim the gift giving aspect (in sweden) comes from wandering from door to door and either giving treats or mean rhymes to each other.

After this (supposed) version of Santa we have another, more well-documented: Julbocken. This somewhat scary creature leads me to believe that Santa has some norse backing, though it may just be a symbol of the devil from christian traditions. There are records of a tradition of dressing up as a goat being heavily frowned upon from the 1500s in Denmark - the punishment for participating in the tradition could be death. No matter where it comes from it’s heavily connected to the tradition of dressing up and wandering around having fun, nowadays mostly during Lucia (a quite fun tradition!) For more information about this phenomenon this site was very informative.

There is yet another traditional belief connected to Santa, though perhaps not as closely. This is, of course, Tomten (not to be confused with jultomten, Santa). This small… man? Creature? Being? lives in farms around sweden. He’s a little bit grumpy, but as long as you please him he’ll help you out and generally be beneficial to your life. It’s important to be careful in your treatment of him, though - there are reports of him being slighted and beating the best milk cow to death in his rage. Though it traditionally isn’t the only time he wants gifts, there is a tradition that still lives on to put out oatmeal with butter on top for him on Yule. Though he may not be that related to Santa, he’s got a nickname (Nisse) that may come from St:Nick, and the swedish word for Santa comes from him. Why, I do not know.

Lastly, the guy who did most of the footwork for our modern santa is obviously St:Nick, with a touch of good ole’ american capitalism.

Food

The food traditions of our age may also have old roots. Eating ham may be tradition since butchering the animals of the farm was a winter activity, and the pig was especially important. This may or may not also be related to Särimner, the ever-regenerating swine of Valhall. Apples, fish and nuts are easy to access or store for midwinter, and a great feast is something we know was tradition. Good food is important in the cold, and some say that there was a belief that the actions of Jul would decide how the coming year went.

[beer, boken där nere]

Blot

We’ve already touched on the blot in the introduction, but it deserves some more attention. Most sources claim that the blot was during midwinter - specifically the longest, darkest night of the year - but I’ve seen some who worship the old gods say that it was on the first full moon after the first new moon after midwinter. Both sound plausible, and the celebrations may even have gone on for the duration between midwinter and that time, seeing as jul always seems to have been a very long holiday (in modern times it’s officially happening four sundays before julafton, until January 13th, iirc).

No matter when it is, it’s sure that it's been an important holiday since ages past. Oden himself may have set it in stone that it’s to be celebrated, according to Ynglingasagan. A blot is an active way to communicate with the gods, according to modern religious orders, and can be highly personal to the participants. I don’t have the authority to say how blot were performed in the old ages, but i can highlight what I view as the most common iteration of this ancient tradition

Gävlebocken

You’ve probably all seen the overarching belief that if the goat burns it’ll be a lucky year - or rather that when it does not, the year to come will bring grief. In my humble opinion, this is a great example of an offering for luck. What else would it be described as?

The burning is a tradition that I genuinely believe should be embraced, and made into a kind of spectacle, rather than outright stopped. There ought to be protections for it, although not too strong ones, to keep a kind of challenge, and there ought to be a punishment for those who succeed, albeit a symbolic one (and none for those who fail). I think that being imprisoned until the 25th may be appropriate, or until Jul ends (the 13th of january). This is less than the three months that currently make the punishment, but still enough to make it interesting.

Again, I must emphasise that I am 100% serious. It’s a beloved tradition already, and I think that leaning into it is much more fun, and minimises the risk of actual harm being done, since it is an expected fire that can be controlled properly. It’s also a tradition that can be sold to Christians, Norse beliefs and Atheists alike: The goat may symbolise Satan, it may be a kind of blot, or it may just be a fun time (you’ll be hard pressed to find a swede that doesn’t have some pyromaniac tendencies)

I do think that the birds eating the goat this year is a suitable way for it to go (though slightly boring). Seeing as it’s due to environmental causes the goat is full of seeds it’s fitting that it goes back to nature. It may symbolise the way that nature wins out in the end, and also is a fun little nod to sädeskärven, which was put out to feed the birds during jul.

In order to do a small blot that references this tradition, you can burn a little halmget yourself. They are very easy to get in varying sizes (in Sweden, at least), and it’s a fun thing I may add to my holiday as a symbolic blot. I also have spoken to a friend about putting names of disliked people in there, as a warding kind of spell (or just to see them burn!), though I’m not fully convinced on that part. Just a goat may be enough.

Other blot-like traditions

There are some other traditions I either believe are related to blot or just reminds me of this tradition. This is just a quick run-down of the most fun/interesting ones.

Såkaka is a traditional bread that was made of the last oats harvested in the year. Nowadays it usually has saffron in it, but it was just a general bread in the past. This was laid out during jul (potentially to be “charged” by the magic of the season), was put in the oat storage (whatever that’s called), and was then used to get a good harvest the next year. It could be buried in the field, eaten by the farmers or broken down and spread over the fields.

Julölet (nämns ovan, också)

Gift giving is really what most of us view as the most important aspect of jul or christmas. There are many ideas of where this tradition comes from, as I talked about in the Santa-part of this page. What we do know is that gift giving is an old tradition, potentially related to the gods or just being grateful. The lords of olden days would give gifts to their peasants around jultide, and gave them good food, too. This was the time of year everyone was likely to eat until they were full, and so it stands even today, to some extent.

Lucia

Lucia is a very popular tradition in sweden, that seems awfully underutilised elsewhere. It’s a choir (usually children or teens) that goes around in a train, singing julvisor. The main one is “Sankta Lucia”, which has many versions and nearly infinite verses. The kids have little candles, and Lucia herself has a crown of candles and a red belt on top of her white shroud. She leads the train.

The holiday celebrates the saint that names the holiday, Lucia. She’s an old Catholic saint (from the 200s) who, according to legend, was meant to be wed to a non-christian man. She’d already promised herself to god, however, and her mother obliged to let her remain unwed after her beliefs saved her mother from a fatal illness. She either plucked her own eyes and sent her to the man she was meant to wed (who had loved her eyes), or had them plucked out during torture after he told authorities she was christian. Either way, him telling the authorities led to her death. Supposedly, the red band around the stomach symbolises her bleeding after being stabbed, and the crown her subsequent burning (though some say it’s because the saint needed both hands free to carry food for those in need).

Today it is a holiday of light on the 13th of december - a night that supposedly is very dangerous, with vaesen and other ill-meaning creatures out and about, but the history of the singing train has it originating on many different dates and with different reasons. There are many characters which have different origins attributed to themselves, just as the songs and the holiday itself. Some claim many of the holidays are pagan or norse in origin, some claim it’s mostly christian. I do not have the will or ability to find conclusive enough materials to actually make any claims about the origins, but I will say it’s a pretty holiday. I like the theme of it being about the return to light, and believe this to fit in with my own thoughts on what jul may be to me.

Maybe it can be viewed as a celebration of Sunna?

Other traditions

One of my personal favourite beliefs about jul is that time stands still for a short time around midnight. This rings true to me - especially on a snowy julnatt. It’s one of the things I’m most likely to keep with me forever. No matter what you believe it’s likely to be able to find its place.

There is another belief that deceased family members celebrate their own jul at night, as well as the magical creatures of the world. A related tradition is to sleep on the floor at night, to let your dead family members sleep in the beds.

Jul was one of the only times that you’d get a full bath in some periods, namely the 16- and 1700s. This tradition doesn’t date back to the vikings - who lately have begun having an image of cleanliness - but it’s still nice to make jul a time of tidiness.

[more?]

Consumerism

Ah, the elephant in the room. You’ve probably had this qualm about jul, as have I. This is a time of giving, which sounds great in theory, but ends up being a weak front for a capitalist holiday of mass consumption. You can’t escape the messaging, that it’s necessary to buy, buy, buy. This seems like a gross misinterpretation of the mindset of gift giving i spoke about above, and if nothing else it really rings false when we look at the current state of the climate. Yikes.

So, how do we even get around it? Honestly, I’m not sure. I’m just some random 20 year old, I don’t know what works for you. However, I do know what I am trying to do. Firstly, I give one gift per person, that I really think about, rather than many small things that I don’t know if they want or not. Giving because it’s something I know they want, rather than because I ought to. This is easy to do for me, someone who loves the art of finding the perfect gift, and is young enough to reliably get away with it, but doesn’t solve it for everyone. I know that.

Some of my family members have the deal that they give the kids old (though not worn-out) toys from their kids rather than buying something new. This is a great idea, especially for parents of smaller children. It’s still new for the child, giving it that particular feeling that only a gift comes with, but still lets the parents refrain from additional consumption. It’s also cheap! Similarly, there’s a rise in buying 2nd hand stuff for jul. This is also great, for the same reasons, but may work better on older family members than the aforementioned.

I’ve also found that I get the most joy out of gifts that are used up in time. A cheese I wouldn’t buy for myself normally, a fun wine or spirit (keeping in touch with old traditions of getting really drunk!), art materials for those interested, maybe a nice skincare product that they normally wouldn’t splurge on, a day out… The list goes on! This particularly resonates with me, and is in line with what I usually do, since it also really fits with all the other staples of jul: Good food, alcohol and a nice bath!

Lastly, changing your relationship with consumption entirely may be the real solution. If you usually don’t buy much you may not mind waiting for that one gift you wished for, and the impact may be smaller than it would be otherwise. It may also result in a higher appreciation for a smaller amount of gifts, especially if a child is raised with a less consumption-centric life.

My traditions

So, what will Jul be for me, a person who really doesn’t appreciate christianity but also is somewhat pagan and swedish, meaning that I do have some stakes in this game? It’s a complicated question, that probably will grow and change over the course of my life, but I can summarise what I think right in this very moment.

Jul has some central themes to me. It’s about good food and alcohol, spending time with family (living or dead, chosen or given), starting a new year right, giving, and making light in the darkness of winter. I do not know what traditions are historically accurate ways to celebrate this, and it’s unlikely that I ever will. However, that’s not my goal, either. My life has been shaped by modern times, and that’s not something to shun. No, my goal is to make something I am comfortable with, and that is slightly less christian, at least.

I do believe that people both under- and overestimate how long jul is meant to last. I personally would like to be the full time from first advent - a holiday I like and will keep, although maybe the new tradition of årsväntan may be more interesting in the future, seeing as it’s not christian - to sometime in january. I am still undecided on when in January, though. The traditional ending in Sweden is January 13th, I think. However, I’ve found some pagan movements end their jul on the 12th, with Toreblot. This is a final celebration once the jultide has ended, and the food has run out. I love the idea of also ending it in a celebration, since it feels as though the ending of such a holiday should be valued. I think the traditional way of doing so is dancing around the tree, and then throwing it out, something I may mirror.

Furthermore, I think that there is space for multiple celebrations during the jultide. In fact, there already are plenty! We have jul, new year’s, lucia, all the advents and possibly more. For me personally, jul is the most obviously important, but I also find new year’s to be a solid contender. Within norse mysticism (idk about other religions) Jul is a holiday of awaiting the sun, which I haven’t spoken about in this text, but permeates my view of the season. New years, I think, is a great celebration of the new start to come. The darkest times are over, so now a new circle may start. Aside from that, or on top of that, I find we should take the time to do a celebration with friends. They are important, too!

The days between jul (or midwinter) and new year’s seem most important to me, with the days before and after mostly being additions that are lovely but not strictly for celebration. I don’t know what to do with that, but yk. There is talk of a three day celebration of jul, maybe there’s something there? I am unsure.

Good food and alcohol

I honestly think we do this well already, in my family at least. We have good food all season, and prioritise the food we love, rather than what may be most traditional. It’s lovely to have some of these foods be bound to this particular season, as it makes them all that more exciting.I do have some personal favourites:

• Fudge!!! (Literally the food of the gods)
• Breaded brussel sprouts
• Gingerbread
• Gingerbread dough
• Glögg
• Juleskum
• Gingerbread cheesecake
• Nougat
• Nuts of all kinds
• Duck breast
• Kale of different kinds
• Saffron buns
• Candy cane

There’s probably much more, but those are off the top of my head. I also have gingerbread coffee this year, which is absolutely lovely. I think that one great addition to this holiday tradition may be to serve up a plate extra (or make a small portion of something specific, like gröt), to put at the end of the table (or outside), both for family that has passed, as a minor blot and - of course - for tomtarna. This plays nicely on established traditions, but makes a bit more sense to me personally. However, I don’t know what one would do with the food afterwards. It may be better to simply put a plate out as a welcome to those passed.

Loved ones

This is very straightforward, I think. You spend time with those you love, be that chosen family or the one given to you. I find the main point to be to show clearly that you love them, with words and actions. Jul ought to be a time when you put a little extra thought into how you act. Not because it’s unimportant otherwise, mind you, but because the winter is hard for us all, making us grumpier and worse for wear when someone gets upset at us.

Every week leading up to jul, be it on a sunday or a thursday (or both, with different circles) I like to spend some time with those I love, usually having glögg and snacks, as is tradition. It’s a nice tradition that reminds us that we’re loved - well needed in the gloomy dark - and the candles also help us remember the light.

I think there is space for another celebration that resembles julafton, but with friends rather than family. They are important, too! Whether gifts are given, or it starts and ends with good food (or just a wild party!) is up to the individual. This year I’m hosting a party with some friends and just hanging out with others. The time for this celebration could probably also vary. Maybe new year’s is the only necessary time (it fulfils the idea that I have of this holiday, at least), maybe on midwinter eve, or the days between jul and new year’s, since they are of extra value to me.

Giving

As mentioned in the section about consumerism, this part has some issues. Let’s not dwell on that right now. Honestly, I’m not sure if i have a good motivation for keeping the gifts in jul, aside from the fact that I love them. Is that not enough?

I’d like to have julbocken be my gift bearer, when I have children, if anyone is. I think the idea is more in line with what I want than Santa is, mainly because it doesn’t have the christian connotations. Also, every kid learns that santa isn’t real, but what kid knows that julbocken isn’t? I’m pretty certain I could get my little brother to go along with it, too.

An important thing I’d love to incorporate into my jul is to give to charities, since it is in line with my beliefs about what is right to do, and goes well with the idea of jul as a rite to bring the light back to the darkness. What better way to do that than by helping someone in need? I don’t have the financial means to do so right this very moment, but hopefully I do the days after jul. It’d be a tradition to be proud of. It’s also something I’d like to have my children participate in, in some way, though how is something for future me to ponder.

Finally, I found an interesting tradition when I was looking around, where you take the time to consider your enemies. This is interesting to me, since the common view that has shaped the culture I grew up in essentially says that having enemies is something to be frowned upon. The idea of it is to consider those we do not want to have a gift, and think about how it may feel to give them a gift, or a simple letter. If that may help you get less mad, do so, and if not to bury it. I may take this a step differently, and write the letter and add it to the goat, to burn. The idea of letting go of the anger still carries through.

Light in the darkness

December gets incredibly dark this far from the equator. Seasonal depression is a very common illness in sweden, I’ve been told, and if you don’t take your vitamin D in the winter we have personal beef. This is the main reason I deeply resonate with the fact that jul is a holiday of light in practice. We have lights, candles and the christians even worship stars. My insistence that it’s a holiday of light made me feel very validated when I realised that some norse pagans do celebrate it as a way to worship the sun. How validating!

Seeing as this is the generally accepted view, my personal view and the view of the religion I’m most closely in line with, it’s safe to say I’m going to keep this view of the season. To cherish this, I’m obviously going to keep having lights up and lighting extra many candles (oh, the cosiness!). It’s also a somewhat accepted practice to have suns in your windows (rather than the christian stars), something I am willing to take after.

Generally incorporating sun imagery into jul decor may be a nice touch. It’s close enough to a star not to get too many questions, is a nice shade of gold (which is a lovely colour for the season) and is in line with many of the preexisting traditions. I’m considering looking for (or making) a sun to put at the top of my tree. Maybe papers with little suns on them? Who knows. Point is that I appreciate the idea of worshipping Sunna.

Fire is the obvious way to celebrate light and ask it to return. Much like we do on valborg, I believe lighting some fire may be the way to go. Why not grill some apples, even? This doesn’t have to be on julafton - it may actually be more well-suited for when we take the tree out on the 12th. This may also be when we burn the goat, though that may be better to do right before jul, sometime. Hm. Well, my point stands - fire is fun, and it suits the themes of the season.

Såkakan also fits this idea, for the record.

Music

The musical aspect of jul is also important, singing together is a central aspect of the holiday. Honestly, I may just keep the songs we already have (while trying to emphasise the ones about non-christian matters haha), and just be happy there. They’re good, and I’m no songwriter. I also stand by the fact that Swedish julmusik is for singing, while English and American is for listening.

Starting a new year right

As mentioned before, it’s believed that the actions during jul will be mirrored in the year to come. I think this is closely related to the idea of starting new habits around new year’s. Honestly, that may just be something that can be taken into account. After all the partying of jul we can take the twelve first day of our year to do those habits we want to develop during the year. It’s not much different to what we do already, just a bit less pressure. It’s a set period of time when we do it all - afterwards the goal is to build them, not necessarily sustain them. Having the best habits right after a season of parties and such is also probably a bit healthier than not.

Lastly, the part of jul I may like the most is the rune reading. The 21st is the darkest night of the year, and as such filled with strange powers. While I (unfortunately) can’t move all my celebrations to this date, I can sit down with my runes and discuss what the year has in store for me. I’m still not all that good at it, but I hope to get better, and the tradition of it is very nice.

That is all for my (not so) little thought dump on this topic - for now. God Jul och gott nytt år!