Celebrating Yule For The First Time

[Thomas]

Well, I've never celebrated Yule before and it is coming up very soon. I am not sure what sort of Blots I should carry out, when and how to do them. I have ordered "the book of blotar of the odinic rite" but I have no idea if that will contain anything regarding Yule.

Are there any resources I should read from? I have read about Yule on the Odinist Library and found it quite helpful but I would like to see what sort of Blots I could/should perform and what I should do etc...any suggestions?

[Zelda]

I can tell you some of the things we do for our Yule blot. We do a blot to honor Thor, who has smitten winter and is associated with feast and drink. We also focus on honoring our ancestors. We have a Yule log (since we don't have a fireplace, I split a log lengthwise, drilled a hole in it, and we have a Yule candle that it lit from the remains of the previous year's candle). We have the oldest child light the Yule candle. One person explains to the children the meaning of Yule and the solstice. We pass a meadhorn and give honor to Thor and other gods. Then we pass the meadhorn a second time, and each person toasts an ancestor. Then we pass the meadhorn a third time and give a toast for the new year. We have the youngest child (who ends up accompanied by all the other children) take the remainder of the mead in the horn outside and return it to the earth next to a tree. We then drink and feast throughout the evening. Zelda

[Torquil]

[QUOTE=Thomas]I have ordered "the book of blotar of the odinic rite" but I have no idea if that will contain anything regarding Yule.[QUOTE]

It does in great detail! As well as containing information on all other monthly blots. My only problem is how to modify these into solitary blots. :(

[Star of the North]

That yule-log candle holder reminds me greatly of something my mom has upstairs near our fireplace, to her probably just for decoration. In this picture, there's hardly any (if any) christian iconography, which I found interesting in her choice of decor. This seems almost like a shrine, there are lots of family pictures near it that aren't in the picture. Our house is full of live plants and red candles and holly-ivy things everywhere, it feels very "outside."

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v662/blackopethorchid/DCP_0199edit.jpg


I can tell you some of the things we do for our Yule blot. We do a blot to honor Thor, who has smitten winter and is associated with feast and drink. We also focus on honoring our ancestors. We have a Yule log (since we don't have a fireplace, I split a log lengthwise, drilled a hole in it, and we have a Yule candle that it lit from the remains of the previous year's candle). We have the oldest child light the Yule candle. One person explains to the children the meaning of Yule and the solstice. We pass a meadhorn and give honor to Thor and other gods. Then we pass the meadhorn a second time, and each person toasts an ancestor. Then we pass the meadhorn a third time and give a toast for the new year. We have the youngest child (who ends up accompanied by all the other children) take the remainder of the mead in the horn outside and return it to the earth next to a tree. We then drink and feast throughout the evening. Zelda