Thursday, December 2, 2010

A Yuletide Carol

We've been listening to holiday music this week at work. I find it soothing, uplifting, inspiring... but it also causes me a bit of melancholy. I want Pagan songs for what I feel is a very strongly Pagan holiday. Shades of Paganism live in carols like "The Holly and the Ivy" and "Deck the Halls", but what about the miracle of Solstice? Isn't Solstice the real reason for the season?

With that in mind, I listened admiringly to the sweeping carol "O Holy Night". It is a beautiful, grand, and celebratory song of praise and wonder. I felt, well... jealous. And then something wonderful came over me, whole and pleasing. The muse brought me this filk of that carol today, and now I share it with you.

O Solstice Night
(to the tune of O Holy Night)

O Solstice night,
The stars are brightly shining.
It is the night of the Sun God's rebirth.

Long lay the world,
In cold and darkness pining,
Till He was born and His light warmed the Earth.

O thrill of hope!
The weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Lift up your hearts!
O hear the ancient voices!
O night divine!
O night the Sun is born.

O night divine!
O night, O night divine!

5 comments:

  1. Beautiful. I have been searching all week for Pagan carols, and found a few. Dolmen and Jaiya have a couple of beautiful Yule CDs. I made a playlist for my interfaith women's group celebration we are having this weekend. Combining the two really adds to the spirit and meaning of the Solstice/Christmas intermingling.

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  2. @Linda: Thank you! I will have to look for the Dolmen and Jaiya CD's. Best of luck with your interfaith celebration! It sounds wonderful!

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  3. Beautiful song thank you for sharing it :D
    I rewrote, narrated and filmed an alternate version of The Night Before Christmas poem that you might enjoy,
    The Night Before Christmas Or Yuletide or such...
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJLiLa7G5Ig

    bright blessings
    celestial elf ~

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  4. Lovely version. I am partial to Jackson Browne's "The Rebel Jesus" which can be found on The Chieftians holiday album "The Bells Of Dublin"
    Jethro Tull's "Ring out Solstice Bells" is also a favorite. It appears on "Songs from the Wood" and "The Jethro Tull Holiday(Christmas? I forget which)Album.

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  5. Very nice. I like older songs because of what those songs might really mean, instead of the dominate group's interpretation.

    I like that Jethro Tull song too :)

    I'd love for you to blog more about what this season means to the Pagans as I don't know much, Only some smattering I've picked up from books and I admit, it's not much.

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