Yule Ritual from Dorothy Morrison's book "The Craft, A Witches Book of Shadows"

Yule Circle Notes
Use a white altar cloth, and decorate with evergreens, poinsettias, rosemary, holly, mistletoe, and ivy. Use red, white, and green candles to symbolize the bloodshed of birth, the innocence of new life, and the growth process, respectively. Burn Yule Incense - a mixture of chamomile, ginger, pine, and sage. Mark the Circle perimeter with evergreen boughs, and use tiny, living, decorated trees at the Quarters. Decorations should relate to the appropriate Element. Cast the Circle using the athame. Release it using the wand.

Yule Celebration Ideas
Start your celebration well before dawn, so you can be a part of the Sun's birthing process. Kick off the ritual with an apple juice toast to the Holly King, saying something like:

Winter Day of longest night
Step aside now for the light
Thank you for the things you've brought
That only darkness could have wrought

Then name all the gifts of darkness you can think of-regeneration, peace, dreams, organization, quietude, and so on-before drinking the juice.


To ensure good luck and prosperity in the coming year, anoint a bayberry candle with vegetable oil and roll it in dried chamomile. Light the candle and allow it to burn down completely.


Make a Yule log from a piece of oak and decorate it with evergreens. Light it, saying something like:

Old King, we thank You for all You've done
For lessons learned, and victories won
We must, however, bid You adieu
For Your reign is finished-'tis over and through
Come forth, Young King of newest light
Be born with ease; grow strong and bright
Gain strength and stature in the sky
Shed Your warmth on us now from on high

Be sure to save an unburned piece to start next year's log. Save some of the ashes, too. They make terrific boosters for every type of magic. End the ritual with an orange juice toast to the Sun, saying something like:

O Newborn Sun of love and light
Rise quickly now, rise high and bright
Gain power in the sky above
We grant you our support and love

After ritual, collect all the evergreen decorations you used there and put them away. You'll need them at Imbolc.