Since ancient times there has always been the need to celebrate the Winter Solstice.

For today’s Pagans, the festival of Yule starts in December, with celebrations usually heightening around the Winter Solstice, the longest night and the shortest day, which falls around December 21. This is when we are said to be closest to both the spirit worlds and our ancestors.

The roots of Christmas itself lie in Paganism, as the Romans decided to impose the supposed date of December 25 as the birth of Christ upon their empires to absorb the Saxon, Celtic and Mithraic traditions that were already taking place at this time of year.

Midwinter’s day was considered to be the re-birth of the Sun with the word “Yule” being a derivative of the Anglo Saxon word Yula, meaning “wheel” of the year. The festival began the night before the Solstice itself and ran into January, coinciding with what Christians now term Twelfth Night.

One festive tradition that is still popular today is the burning of the Yule Log. Traditionally a log from a sacred tree, often an ash or oak, would be burned for twelve hours. The ashes of the Yule Log were thought to bring good luck and offer protection to the home.

The symbolism of the winter evergreen tree also has its roots in ancient tradition. Hardy evergreens that last throughout the cold winter represent the continuation of life through this dark time. It was in Germany that a tree or branch was brought into the home and decorated with offerings, thanking Spirit for fertility, prosperity and luck.

Traditional Yule feasts consisted of roast boar, lamb and goose together with apples and sweet meats. Toasts and oaths to the ancestors and to good health were drunk with Wassail, a rich ale based drink fortified with fruits and spices.

Yule has always been a time for merriment, celebration and unity within families and community groups. So take some time out from the commercialism of today’s Christmas and enjoy some precious time with your loved ones, and as the longest night approaches, give thanks for the cycle of nature and the gifts it brings.

Yuletide blessings!

Swedish scientists have conducted body swapping experiments which enabled subjects to perceive the bodies of mannequins and other people as their own.

The head of a mannequin was fitted with two cameras connected to two small screens placed in front of a subject’s eyes, so that they had the same view as the mannequin. This meant that when the subject looked down at his body he actually saw that of the mannequin in its place.

When the scientists touched both the mannequin’s and the subject’s stomachs with sticks, the subject saw the mannequin’s stomach being touched while feeling a similar sensation on their own stomach. As a result, the person developed a strong belief that the mannequin’s body was actually their own.

“This shows how easy it is to change the brain’s perception of the physical self. By manipulating sensory impressions, it’s possible to fool the self not only out of its body but into other bodies, too,” project leader Henrik Ehrsson, of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, said in a news release.

Comment: These body swapping experiments directly demonstrate the power of our belief systems. The scientists involved were able to change the subjects’ beliefs to the extent that they actually thought the mannequins’ bodies were their own through clever manipulation of the senses.

On a wider scale, perhaps our senses have been manipulated in many ways without our knowledge, and with the intention of limiting our belief systems. Imagine, then, what might be possible if we begin to see through the illusion…

As we move towards Yule and the Winter Solstice and the traditional Christmas celebrations begin, the last thing we want is negative energy clogging up our homes and personal spaces as visitors begin to come and go during the festive season.

Negative energy can accumulate in the home when things have felt a little stagnant, where there are major life changes, when there have been some disagreements or tensions between family members, or when people are simply offloading their “stuff”. It often lurks in corners but can be absorbed by the very bricks and mortar of the home if left for a long period of time.

More serious problems can occur due to the residual energy of a home’s previous occupants and through further negativity being attracted to already negative spaces, and in this case engaging the services of an experienced space clearer is recommended.

Feng Shui experts claim that space clearing is as essential as our annual spring clean. They use the four elements in ceremony to purify spaces.

If you’ll be opening your door to more visitors than usual at this time of year, it’s a good idea to use some simple space clearing techniques, both after everyone has left and before future callers arrive.

The smell of cinnamon is always a familiar one at this time of year, but did you know that you can use a cinnamon infused broom to literally sweep the negativity out of your home? Cinnamon brooms can be purchased in specialist stores or you can make your own by soaking a broom in a solution of cinnamon powder and water. It will leave a delightful festive aroma behind it, and has to be a better option than hanging out bunches of garlic to ward off negative energies.

Lighting candles and burning incense and herbs will always help to keep a space clear. Sage is traditionally used for purification and has a wonderful, rich aroma.

Sound is also extremely effective. Walk through the house, ringing a pair of Tibetan cymbals or banging a natural skinned drum to get the energies moving.

Play some beautiful, positive music or, if you have the voice for it, try some toning, which will clear your own energies as well as those of your home.

Several recent reports of sightings of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) in the UK have been linked to power cuts that have affected large numbers of people.

The first UFO was spotted in Chorley, Lancashire, in November, where 14,000 residents were affected by a loss of power for a few minutes. The power failure was confirmed by the local utility company, but an exact cause was not confirmed.

Eyewitnesses reported bright, metallic lights in the sky, which coincided with the power cut, and disappeared after several minutes.

The second sighting took place over Bury St Edmunds Cathedral in Suffolk on December 1st and also coincided with a power cut. The Police confirmed that they had received reports of the grey UFO being in the sky for up to 12 minutes, according to the local press.

It has been suggested that UFOs are linked to power cuts for many years – in 1965 30 million people in the USA were affected by a widespread blackout that started near Niagara Falls which coincided with hundreds of sightings. It has been suggested that UFOs may actually drain our power sources, probably unintentionally.

Earlier this year, Virgin Media conducted research to identify the UK’s UFO hotspots. Lancashire came third on this list, and Suffolk followed in sixth place. Virgin Media’s research documented 609 sightings in the UK since 1961.

However, the true figures are likely to be much higher, since most sightings go unreported. One thing is for certain – the instances of power failure certainly outnumber the recorded instances of UFO sightings, but who knows for sure what’s really going on out there in our skies?

Rhian Gibbings