Winter Solstice Ritual: An Intro to Wheel of the Year Healing Circles with Lake Anama
by Emma Givens
On the darkest night of the year, a winter solstice ritual is sure to shine a light on your spirit. At least, I felt it shine a light on mine.
Through our cowriting group, I found out that Sydney (the founder of Lake Anama) was hosting events that she calls “healing circles” for each holiday on the Wheel of the Year. Now, while Sydney doesn’t identify as Wiccan, which is the religion that the Wheel is commonly associated with, she embraces its helpful structure to reconnect with ourselves and nature through the changing of the seasons.
I love exploring different spiritual traditions in the pursuit of understanding, from the Catholicism that I grew up with to the Buddhist tradition where I learned to meditate, and even to the Toronto Quaker community which showed me a totally inclusive perspective on faith based on inner knowing. And I realized that as a seeker, the Wheel of the Year appealed to me too. It was time to explore!
The Wheel of the Year
The Wheel of the Year was created by the founder of Wicca, Gerald Gardner, by combining the two solstices and two equinoxes, and the four Celtic fire festivals. It also emerges in other religions and spiritual traditions around the world, especially in observance of the equinoxes and solstices. It consists of 8 sabbats or holidays. The 8 sabbats are:
Yule/Winter Solstice (December 21st)
Imbolc (February 1st)
Ostara/Spring Equinox (March 21st)
Beltane (May 1st)
Litha/Summer Solstice (June 21st)
Lughnasadh (also called Lammas) (August 1st)
Mabon/Autumn Equinox (September 21st)
Samhain (October 31st)
Yule or the winter solstice is the darkest night of the year, and across cultures often symbolizes a time of death, rest, and renewal before rebirth in spring. This feels like the natural place to start sharing with you my exploration of the Wheel of the Year in a healing circle with Sydney.
The Winter Solstice Ritual
Setting the Space
Sydney always creates the safest, most connected spaces, even when we’re connecting virtually over the computer. Before the healing circle, she sent an email letting us know what to expect, asking if we had any accessibility needs not previously accounted for, and gave us some beautiful suggestions for setting up our spaces to fully enjoy the ritual.
When we’d all logged on live, Sydney reminded us of something we already knew in our hearts: while we’re sharing our energy and space, it’s always okay to honor your own wisdom and ask questions.
This is something that personally drew me to Sydney - she never positions herself as a guru sitting on a mountain top. Instead, she’s a facilitator, a fellow explorer, and a friend. It’s empowering to learn from someone who could just as easily be you, should you want to dive so deeply into the practice. This is what makes Sydney’s healing circles so enjoyable and special.
After each member of the group introduced ourselves, we opened the experience with a few cool, soothing breaths to settle in, grounding in place. Next, Sydney read a poem called opening ceremony from The She Book, which has stayed with me ever since. It invoked the 7 directions (North, West, South, East, Above, Below, and Spirit) in a sort of prayer. This was a lovely opening that set the spiritual tone for the rest of the night.
The History of Yule
I grabbed my notebook and fully absorbed Sydney’s dive into the history of how different cultures have celebrated the winter solstice throughout time. She included the Norse pagan tradition which explains the origins for the name commonly interchanged with “winter solstice” in English: Yule.
I could see others listening intently, content to be in the present moment and reflect in their minds rather than on paper. We each were able to connect with the symbolism of the winter solstice and interpret its significance for us in different ways.
For me, it resonated as a time of rest because it lined up with the first vacation I’d ever taken since starting my business. Taking this perspective of intentional, seasonal rest allowed me to ease into the healing circle experience and refresh my overstressed body with the next activity: a chakra cleansing meditation.
Chakra Cleansing Meditation
You might be like me, unsure of the relevance of the chakra system to your experience and perspective on life. But what I can say is that in the context of Sydney’s meditation, I was able to create an experience for myself by being open to the symbolism of the chakras, connecting them to the meaning that resonated with me for Yule.
After the meditation, I felt refreshed and dove into the quiet journal prompts. Here are a few prompts that stood out for me:
What do you sense coming to a close?
What can you let go of to make space for more?
How can you make space for rest and renewal this season?
What seeds are you planting during this time?
Moving the Energy
Sydney invited us to take gentle movement after journaling, always making space for our own inner wisdom to shine, even on this darkest night of the year.
I felt most comfortable with my camera off, doing a few yoga-inspired stretches in bed. Others turned on all the lights and followed Sydney’s guidance on the mat (she’s also a yoga instructor!). This really allowed me to continue the meaning-making experience of letting energy and old thoughts flow through and out of me so I could make space for more, just like the journal prompt suggested.
Candle Magick
Next, we came to my favorite part of the winter solstice healing circle - a candle ritual. Sydney teaches an introduction class to these rituals so I won’t go into too much detail here - but she gave us exactly the information we needed so any beginners (like me, at that time) could enjoy it.
Essentially a candle ritual can be seen as a prayer, as magick, or as a manifestation ritual. Variations of the practice appear in many religions and even non-religious contexts. It’s truly open to everyone.
I reflected on the restoration I wanted to embrace at this time of year and wrote down a little petition before completing the ritual and lighting a candle, sharing my intention with the universe.
Closing Meditation
Finally, already feeling so calm and restored, I came back to the group and Sydney guided us through a closing meditation. With gentle music in the background, I closed my eyes and focused on visualizing the journey she was taking us through, full of shapes and eventually, an envelope. In the envelope were seeds - the seeds of my intention. It was the intention I’d set forth in my candle ritual.
Following Sydney’s voice, I walked through a forest, past the holly bushes, and found a small clearing. With my bare hands, I buried my seeds in the cold earth on the darkest night of the year. I could feel them taking deep roots in the soil, trusting that with a little nourishment, my intention would grow strong from here.
Then I returned to my inner sanctuary to rest and embrace the gentle quiet of this first winter’s night.
As Sydney drew our meditation to a close, I opened my eyes, smiled at the group, and left refreshed for the season ahead. It was truly a healing winter solstice ritual.
You’re Invited
Would you like to join a Wheel of the Year healing circle? Join the Lake Anama mailing list to be the first to know. All healing circles are pay-what-you-can, starting as low as $1, to make sure this beautiful community experience is available to anyone who’ll benefit.
I’ll be there - I look forward to joining you and Sydney next time!
