Yule is a 12 day historic pagan festival celebrated in conjunction with the Winter Solstice on December 21st in the Northern Hemisphere. There is much to discuss when it comes to the history of yule and the wild hunt. It’s no mistake that Yule is celebrated on the longest night of the year. For the Germanic people, Yule was a time to worship the gods. Odin actually translates to Yule Father.
This day is seen as the day the pendulum swings back, going forward every day will be lighter for a bit longer. It’s the perfect transition between the dark and light half of the year. Yule represents catharsis and new beginnings. The return of the sun, the return of light and the return of heat. Historically, solar celebrations can be traced back thousands of years and across hundreds of cultures.
For those who celebrate the Wiccan Tradition, this is the time when the Holly King gives up his throne to the Oak King. It’s believed that at this time the Holly King and Oak King fight, and the Holly king gives up his throne so the Oak King can reign during the light half of the year. Some historians believe that sacrifice was a part of Yule for ancient peoples.
It’s no surprise that on the darkest, coldest day of the year, people would turn to call upon something greater than themselves. It was believed, similar to Samhain, that the veil between the living and the dead was thin on Yule. Making Yule a bit of a spooky festival.
Odin actually translates to Yule Father. Odin was believed to lead a pack of ghostly huntsmen on black horses, bucks, and demon-like hounds with haunted eyes raced through the night sky. Those who kept watch at night for this spectacle would claim to see 20 or 30 huntsmen on the prowl.
In the old Germanic times, Odin’s role was God of the Dead. And he led the hunt across the sky on his 8 legged horse. The leader of this hunt shifts and changes over time, it’s not always Odin. Sometimes it was claimed that the Devil was at the helm of the Wild Hunt. As Christianity was spreading across Europe, the hunt started to take a darker spin. Even a horrifying one, it started to inspire visions of the undead and mass deaths.
It’s almost mind blowing to think that this brutal hunt, led by a Death God is what has turned into the modern story of Santa Claus and his friendly reindeer. Jacob Grimm re-popularized the hunt in 1835, when he wrote about it in a chronicle of German Mythology.
Listen to episode 148 of the Lunatics Radio Hour podcast for more on the history of Holiday Horror.
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