The Christmas Spirit

Today is the Winter Solstice, also known as "Midwinter."
Today marks the shortest day, and the longest night of
the year,and the sun's daily maximum position in the
sky is at it's lowest.

Winter Solstice celebrations can be found across many
ancient cultures...

The ancient Egyptians decorated their homes with palm
fronds on the shortest day of the year and celebrated
for twelve days. Hence the popular song, "On the 12Th
Day of Christmas"... Similar traditions can be found
among the Hebrews and in Asia.

It was the Scandinavians that gave us Yule logs and
Christmas trees from their ancient celebrations.
There, Evergreens were seen as a promise of the return
of Spring. In Celtic culture holly and mistletoe were
significant,as they symbolized fertility. In ancient
Rome the celebration was called Saturnalia, and from
the Pagan Romans we get the decorating of trees with
lights and ornaments. The history of Santa Claus
traces back to the pre-Christian times of Northern
Europe.

(PER WIKIPEDIA) In 46 BCE,Julius Caesar established
December 25 in his Julian calendar as the date of the
Winter Solstice of Europe. Since then, the difference
between the calendar year (365.2500 days) and the
tropical year (365.2422 days) moved the day associated
with the actual astronomical solstice forward
approximately three days every four centuries, Christmas
or Christ's Mass is one of the most popular Christian
celebrations as well as one of the most globally
recognized midwinter celebrations. Christmas is the
celebration of the birth of the Christian Deity God
Incarnate or Messiah, Jesus Christ. The birth is
observed on December 25Th, which was the Roman winter
solstice upon establishment of the Julian Calendar.

However, it is interesting to note that Christ was by most
accounts not actually born on December 25Th. In the Fourth
Century Christianity was adopted as the official religion
by the Roman Emperor Constantine, the first Christian
Emperor. Constantine was eager to pacify his people, many
who were still steeped in their old Pagan ways and
celebrations. So rather than upset them by taking away
their Solstice party, Constantine declared Christmas an
"immovable feast" to be celebrated on December 25Th. Over
time, the Church would co-opt many Pagan festivals and
customs, reassigning them Christian meaning. For example,
the Christmas Tree, was proclaimed, because of its
triangular shape, to symbolize the Holy Trinity. The Winter
Solstice Festival, the celebration of the birth of the Sun,
was changed to celebrate the birth of the Son.

As is the case with most traditions, CHRISTMAS was
not an overnight sensation... In fact, the Protestant regime
of Oliver Cromwell in England actually banned Christmas
celebrations, and Christmas as we know it today did not
begin to really take shape until the 19Th Century.

SOTD: PAN
KEY NOTES: This Sexy Unisex Perfume Oil is made with key
notes of Fir Balsam Absolute, Patchouli, Oakmoss, Vetiver,
Mushroom Cepes absolute, Violet Leaf Absolute, and Wild
Orange


WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT PAN:

Kezbekistan says, "Pagan sex-inna-bottle. If you've seen the movie 'Mists of Avalon', where the Stag King is running
through the forest, and finds his Goddess/Bride in the
bower and claims her? Well, that's what this fragrance
smells like. Pagan sex-inna-bottle."
(http://www.fragrantica.com/perfume/Opus-Oils/Divine-Pan-5708.html)

Justine Crane, Rebel Perfumer says, "Well, it smells dead sexy, baby! It smells... like a man, yeeaaahhh. It's firey, smokey,
earthy ~ has a pencil-shavings timbre to it that reminds me
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something a thousand times hotter? Leave it up to your
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(http://ohtrueapothecary.blogspot.com/search?q=Opus+Oils)

TASTY TID-BIT: The Pine family includes the Pines, the
Larches, the Spruces, the Hemlocks,the Firs, Cypresses,
Sequoias, Cedars, Arbor-Vitae, and Junipers. They are all
commonly referred to as Evergreens because, with the
exception of the Larch and the Bald Cypress, their leaves
do not fall all at once as do those of most trees. Within
the United States, there are thirty-nine species of Pines.
Our European ancestors used to decorate their homes with
the branches of the Evergreens in winter as a refuge for
the spirits of the woods from the bitter weather.