Pagan aspects of the Solstice

Last updated on: June 22, 2011 at 4:03 pm by Lynn Hayes

Pagan aspects of the Solstice 2011-06-22T16:03:34-04:00 Lynn Hayes

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Astrologer Gary Caton has a nice article today about the pagan symbolism in the Wheel of the Year and also connects the Solstices and Equinoxes to the Tarot:

there are 4 cards in the Tarot which tell the story of these 4 cardinal points that begin the 4 seasons. The first of these cards is The Sun. This is the card of the Winter Solstice and it speaks of the re-birth of the Sun at mid-winter as the days begin to grow longer again. It is followed by The Emperor (Spring Equinox), which speaks of the triumph of Light over Darkness as the days become longer than the nights. The Hanged Man (Summer Solstice) follows, and speaks of the surrender of Light to the growing Darkness as the days begin to shorten in length. Finally we have The Devil, who is sort of an anti-Emperor and speaks of the triumph of Darkness over Light as the nights become longer than the days. …

The Horned God, who is the consort of the Goddess, takes two forms which alternate much like the yin/yang of the Taoists -the Holly King and the Oak King. This can be seen to reflect the declination cycle of the Sun through the seasons as outlined above. At Winter solstice two kings are born -the Light King and the Dark King. The Light King rules the first half of the year. At midsummer he is sacrificed (in effigy) and the Dark King rules the 2nd half of the year. The Dark King can be thought of as Bacchus or Dionysus instead of the “Devil.” He represents chaos and catharsis whereas the Light King represents order and stability.

read more here…

For a vivid description of how the pagan imagery from the Cross of Matter that is the Equinoxes and Solstices turned into Christianity, you might enjoy this clip from the first Zeitgeist Movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNf-P_5u_Hw

Previous Post

June 21, 2011

Chart for the Summer Solstice, June 21 2011

Next Post

June 24, 2011 Preparing for the upcoming Solar Eclipse on July 1

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 2012 Age of Aquarius Astrology Astrology in my world Astrology in the news Astronomy Business Celebrities Consciousness Conspiracy Crime Death Ecology Events Fate Favorite posts Featured posts Financial Markets Future Shock Generations Health & Healing Holidays Inspiration Jupiter in Leo Lessons Life Lynn's favorite posts Mercury retrograde Miscellany Money and markets Moon Mysteries People Planetary cycles Planets Podcast Politics Popular Culture Predictions Psychology Relationships Religion Saturn in Scorpio Saturn Return Science Signs Skywatch Sports Sun Sun signs Technology Uncategorized Uranus square Pluto Wonders of the universe

Select a Month September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 August 2000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Solomon David Job Elijah