The Gods Behind the Church

The Gods Behind the Church

Slovenian Christmas songs, remembering the Sun and the Water, and holding on to old traditions.

From Vid Avdič Batista

Before World War II, in some families, old habits and traditions were still alive. One of those was the celebration of the Winter Solstice. As my grandfather told me, they went to Church every Sunday, and for Christmas too, but at home Christmas had a different meaning. They put a big piece of wood on the home fire, gave food and drink (I don't know what kind of food and drink but I think it was something with honey) and the adults stayed awake all night to keep the fire burning, because the fire would help the sun to rise again. As the day lasts longer in this period, it was believed that the sun was born again, and the goddess of death Morana, and the winter demons and spirits start to lose power. The name of the Young Sun changed from region to region. In south west Slovenia, it was called Koled or, as my grandfather told me, Svarožič, the son of Svarog (in some regions the main god), and Vida (goddess of marriage and love).

The derivation of the name could be from Hinduism Svarga- kind of a transition between death and reincarnation, because we refer to the sun with this name only in the moment of its birth on the day of Solstice.

On Christmas Eve, children went around houses to sing a song. Usually three or more girls singing and a boy with a double flute. They were singing in two groups, in turns, when the first group finished the phrase of the song, to breathe, the second group already starts to sing, so there is no place for silence. The lyrics of the song are kind of good wishes for the new year (The lyrics on the record are referring to Jesus because they changed it, but the way of double singing is still the same as it was).

Next morning, people went out before first light to wait for the sunrise and to help him rise.

https://abeautifulresis ... l8hwbqerpk7e

Originally the date of Christmas was the date the Sol Invictus was celebrated in ancient Rome, and emperor Constantine placed the Christmas celebrations on that day to make holidays less diverse.

So his people/workers had more or less the same days off.

But that is it.

Blessings.

The origin is even older than the Roman 'Sol Invictus' although that was borrowed from the birth of Mithras.

From Wikipedia:
25th of December. It is often stated that Mithras was thought to have been born on December 25.... Unusually amongst Roman mystery cults, the mysteries of Mithras had no 'public' face; worship of Mithras was confined to initiates, and they could only undertake such worship in the secrecy of the Mithraeum.

and
"Helios/Sol/Sol invictus
Mithras stock epithet is sol invictus, "invincible sun". However, Mithras is distinct from both Sol and Sol Invictus, and they are separate entitites on Mithraic statuary and artwork such as the tauroctony scenes, in Mithras hunting scenes, and in the Mithraic banquet scenes in which Mithras dines with Sol.[9] Other scenes feature Mithras ascending behind Sol in the latter's chariot, the deities shaking hands and the two gods at an altar with pieces of meat on a spit or spits.[9] One peculiar scene shows Sol kneeling before Mithras, who holds an object, interpreted either as a Phrygian cap or the haunch of the bull, in his hand.[9]

Different gods being each other is a feature of Hellenistic syncretism however and the distinct imagery sometimes is intended to convey such ideas. Mithras shaking hands with Helios affirms their identity as the same underlying deity.

Unlike Helios/Sol, who was part of the traditional state-sponsored Roman religious system, and also unlike the Sol Invictus cult, which became an official state-sponsored cult in 274 under Aurelian, the Mithraic cult (as all other mystery cults) did not receive state sanction. Under Commodus rule (r. 180–192 AD), the title invictus became a standard part of imperial titulature, but this was an adoption from Hercules Invictus, not from either Sol or Mithras."
https://en.wikipedia.or ... lief_systems

I have seen a number of Mithrae - the one in London is particularly interesting... as is the one at Aquincum, near to Budapest in Hungary.
Mithras is an ancient PERSIAN god... whose mother was Anahita.
More about that another time.

Morgana,
I honestly did not know that, though I do know they did not celebrate Yule.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sol_Invictus

???