An around-the-world tour of ancient Christmas celebrations, Pagan Solstice customs, and magical seasonal plants
• Explores in depth the medicinal and magical properties of the many herbs, barks, and berries associated with the Christmas and Yuletide season
• Looks at the origins of the Christmas tree and Santa Claus, as well as female gift bringers, holiday Spirits, and Yuletide animals
• Shares crafts such as how to make a Yule Log, practices such as Winter Solstice divinations, and recipes for traditional foods and drinks
For millennia cultures have taken time out to honor the darkest days of the year with lights, foods, and festivities.
In ancient Egypt, people decorated their homes with greenery at the festival of the rebirth of the God Horus. The ancient Romans shared gifts, especially candles, at the midwinter festival of Saturnalia. In Scandinavian and Germanic cultures, the Yule Log was burned in the hearth, fruit orchards were wassailed, and sheaves of wheat were displayed to carry luck into the New Year. In Celtic cultures, mummers and guisers went door to door, and European mistletoe (Viscum album) was gathered by Druids as a medicinal and magical aid.
Ellen Evert Hopman shares folklore, recipes, rituals, and crafts to enliven your Yuletide observance. She explores the origins of the Christmas tree and Santa Claus as well as holiday Spirits and Yuletide animals. She explains how to perform Winter Solstice divinations and make traditional foods and drinks such as Elizabethan gingerbread cookies and Wassail. And she looks in depth at the medicinal and magical properties of the many herbs, barks, and berries associated with the Christmas and Yuletide season such as Frankincense and Myrrh, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Hibiscus, Bayberry, and many more. This guide offers practical and magical ways to celebrate and honor the darkest days of the year.
“This is so much more than an herbal book. Ellen has covered origins and meanings for this most wonderful time of year as well as including practical workings. Packed full with fascinating myth busters and a festive hamper brimming over with magical and medicinal herbs found and used at Yule. A comprehensive guide to working magic and connecting with the energy of the season. Highly recommended.”
“Amid the swirl of seasonal tastes, smells, and colors, Ellen Evert Hopman sprinkles elves and international lore in abundance. This is a delightful culinary and medicinal reference with Pagan sensibilities. Hopman’s culinary recipes call for unusual herbs blended with humor and cautions in equal measure. My personal favorite is Fallen Oak Leaf Broth. What a treat!”
“Winter Solstice, Yule, the longest night, shortest day; it has for centuries been held by many as a central sacred point in time. Within it is the shared experience of coming together to share in the warmth of family and community, all yearning for the return of the light. Ellen’s book The Sacred Herbs of Yule and Christmas is stuffed full with bits of seasonal wisdom. It is a delightful gift to take with you into the dark and cold, to help warm the heart with stories and traditions, garnishing the anticipation and participation in the joy of the holiday.”
“A mystical journey through a magical time of year, delving into traditions of old and magical rituals and rites to enrich the wonders of the winter season. The Sacred Herbs of Yule and Christmas is a highly recommended book that adds an extra sprinkling of magic and a depth of meaning to any Yuletide celebration, gathering, or personal observance.”
