Oh holy Mother!

Enchanted Mothers' Night

We are in the womb of winter and soon to be reborn with the sun on Winter Solstice.

But as with every birth, the baby is still dependent on the mother and so it only makes sense that the return of the light does not fall into spring or summer but the midst of winter - whilst we are still suckling on the great goddess’ breasts.

I believe there used to be great respect towards this season, still traceable in winter goddesses such as the Cailleach and Perchta (more about them below) which are the great giver and taker of life and therefore highly honoured. Their favour would have been asked for because it was crucial for surviving.

The winter solstice is a celebration because the longest night of the year, also known as Mother Night, marked the beginning of the rebirth of the new light and the return of new life despite the still ongoing harsh season of winter.

Symbolically, the new sunlight emerged from the womb of Mother Earth.

The Mothers’ Night could potentially be linked to the dísablót: The religious ceremony mentioned in Old Norse and Old High German texts, which involves desire, supernatural and highly respected women, seems to have taken place in autumn, the traditional beginning of winter. Some commentators have noted that the terms mother and dis are essentially synonymous. Wolf Dieter Storl is of the opinion that Mother Night is celebrated at the winter solstice, as the sun is reborn and a possible new year began. So here again the Samhain/November period and the beginning of winter overlap with the winter solstice and both seasons, Samhain and Yule, are connected with the notion of a New Year.

Nordic ethnic groups painted the image of a large dark wolf swallowing the sun around the time of the winter solstice. This is why this period of the year is still known to many people today as the time of the wolf moon. These are the long nights in which the god Odin and his wife Frigg hold the Wild Hunt, which was led by Frau Holle (also known as Percht) before these Norse deities were known. Even today, myths and fairy tales surround Holle, who is said to live under a lake in which all children's souls find a home and are redistributed by her if they are reborn into this world.

Her alter ego Percht or Berchta reminds me a lot of the Gaelic Cailleach with her ugly, even scary face and warnings of winter.

Another relative is the Russian Baba Yaga. Remember the tale of Vasilisa the Beautiful and the many tests she had to pass? Vasilisa was given a doll by her dead mother which she had to feed and in turn helped her with any challenge. Her reward was the ember of Baba Yaga that she carried home in a skull.

In the Grimm’s fairytale Cinderella the daughter of the house is forced to serve her stepmother and only through the help of her dead mother’s enchanted hazel tree who fulfils her wishes can she restore justice.
Now think about the German folktale of Frau Holle in which she has two girls named Marie undergo several tasks and only the hard-working Marie was rewarded in gold. The other Marie who was lazy and avoided her tasks was covered in pitch.

All these tales point towards a matrilineal Mother Culture, a culture in which the hearth fire was tended to diligently and the whole family was living with the Mother Line which passed great wisdom down to their descendants. Thanks to

Sylvia V. Linsteadt

dedicated work¹ these small pieces in stories that are usually overlooked point to a much greater picture, which in itself changes our whole narrative. The narrative of the women being mere housewives. When actually they trace back to matrifocal matrilineal pre-patriarchic cultures and our inherited longing for connection, peace and a natural way so unlike the one we have been conditioned in.

Let’s stay with the name Marie - Mary - for a moment. A holy mother revered by Christianity for her purity and chastity as well as motherly love. Compared to her counterpart Mary Magdalene, who practiced and preached the Way of Love as an equal partner on Jesus’ side, possibly a rich priestess and embodied mystic - got shamed as a prostitute and diminished as a seductive sinner. Both lovers, both underestimated and put into boxes.

I believe their popularity results of a much older story tradition in which women were the peaceweavers and sacred leaders of community. As with so many of these strong characters and hidden matrilineal roots they got distorted and made use of to serve the patriarchal oppressive dominance culture. Until today. The strength and endurance of women was impossible to completely negate as it is on our blood and bones and latest when we grow and birth a child, do we become aware of this natural and divine force within us. Yet what the oppresive systems were able to do was to make us believe we are dependent on them and that our power was only valuable when it was put in their hands. Think about it, what do they say at childbirth? The doctor delivered the babe. In German we literally say “the doctor brought the child to this world”. How far have we come away from our origin?
This is not to say that men have no place in birth, on the contrary. My beloved Sean was my anchor and protector, my carer and lover, my ceremonialist and strong shoulder to rest on. I love men and I want them to shine in their power and I believe they rise to their full potential only through supporting ours. It’s reciprocity written in the land.

The name Mary goes back to many meanings connected to the ocean and salt water. And here we are reminded of the cosmic womb, the creator goddess of all, the life giving waters of the mother. The sea is also a popular metaphor for our subconscious depth, the Under- and Otherworld and the Unknown. In which we dive into during the liminal time between the years.

The void before the new beginning, the black night, the womb of the goddess

20.12. The Threshold of Mothers’ Night: This night is characterised by preparation, purification and silence.

As part of my Sacred Nights Guide you receive today:

• Incense Suggestions and how to create healing smoke

• Mother Night Ritual

• Dream Work

• Herbal Allies and alphabetical list of incense

Tomorrow you receive:

• Information about the Winter Solstice

• Yule origins

• The first Sacred Night theme and archetype

• Journalling questions

• Plant spirit companion