A Simple Ritual to Celebrate the Winter Solstice

The first official day of Winter has arrived with today's solstice. It's the longest night of the year, and tis' the season to slow down and rest so that our spirits can recharge. It's a good time for dreaming and setting new intentions for the new season and new year. The Winter Solstice also celebrates the return of the sun, the return of the light, and bringing light to the darkness ~ as after today, the daylight will become progressively longer while the nights and dark are shorter. To honor this return of the sun, I invite you to perform this simple yet powerful ritual. Building an Altar of Light Building a Yule Altar, or an Altar of Light, is a simple ritual intended to honor the return of the light. The most important element in this Altar of Light is, of course, light! So gather as many candles as you'd like, in a range of sizes.

You may also choose to gather any special stones, crystals or elements from nature, such as branches, pinecones, feathers or anything else calling to you, as this Solstice also celebrates the gifts that nature brings to us. (If you've never built an altar before and would like a little more guidance, check out my blog post: How to Create an Altar in 5 Easy Steps, for inspiration.) Once you've gathered all your items for your Altar of Light, arrange them in a place where you can sit and reflect. You can make your altar as small or large as you'd like. Once your items are arranged in a way that feels good, cleanse the space with some palo santo, sage or even a simple prayer.

Turning Karma into Dharma

Take a quiet moment to sit in front of your "dark" altar and reflect on the following:

What ideas, beliefs, thoughts and patterns are holding you back from where you want to be? What areas of your life are you ready to let go of? Bring bright golden light to the spaces you feel blocked.

Light the candles on your altar to bring light to the darkness in your own life. Now reflect on where you want to go and who you want to be. Tune into your intuition and begin to access what your most authentic self and life look and feel like. As you take time this winter to recharge your spirit, what are the first two words that come to mind when thinking about what you need to move toward carrying out your dharma (our true self)? When you have these two words, write them down and put them on your altar. You can choose to leave this altar up all winter long with your words (intentions) growing brighter with the sun, or you may choose to take your words and plant them in the next week in a small pot or in your garden along with your choice of seeds. Water them regularly and watch them grow with the sun. If you feel called to share your words with me, I'd love to hear them. Feel free to reply to this email and share. Wishing you endless Blessings during this season.