Introduction and Brief Commentary
I originally wrote this for a local Pagan newsletter called The Hearth in December 2005. The theme for that edition was “Light and Darkness” and much of the content in this article was written with that angle in mind. The idea was to serve as a general introduction to the festival and to generate discussion about ways in which it might be celebrated today. I hope this article will serve this same function for people today.
On Saturnalia and the Festival Day of Sol Invictus
by Michael Small (2005)
Saturnalia and the cult day for Sol Invictus are two Roman holiday celebrations held in the days leading up to and preceding the modern Winter Solstice. The Saturnalia itself was originally held on the 17th of December, but the festival eventually extended from the 17th of December until the 23rd, and Romans honoured the birthday of Sol Invictus on the 25th of December. In this article I will endeavour to provide an overview of these two important festivals in antiquity and consider how they might be celebrated today. Also, as the theme for this edition of The Hearth is light and darkness I will also consider some possible interpretations of these festivals as they relate to the shortest day, the agricultural cycle, and the whole notion of hidden potential for growth expressed through the Roman holiday season. I believe it is important to consider both holidays together, since they are not only closely tied together in date and theme, but are also both part of the larger season the Roman’s called ‘Bruma’ or Midwinter.
Glimpses of what was . . .
Just as Christmas, Hanukah, or by its more secular convention “The Holiday Season” is celebrated today, both Saturnalia and the celebration of Sol Invictus were times of merriment, goodwill, feasting, and gift giving among family and friends. Saturnalia was a boisterous, lively occasion bending social norms for religious (or at least festive) purposes. Slaves became the Master and were treated to fine wine and service at the hand of their owners; public banquets were held in which everyone regardless of status was invited to fine dining and there were also private parties galore; public gambling was allowed in the streets; and people who were normally expected to keep a certain level composure were allowed to dress down (sometimes in the garb of slaves or freedmen) giving them a much needed break from their otherwise rigid social obligations. And so it was that almost everyone seemed to agree that, in the words of Catullus, Saturnalia was truly “[t]he best of days.”[1]
Saturnalia as it came to be celebrated during the Imperial period was actually a series of seven important days in honour of several different deities with overlapping or complementary spheres of influence. It started on the December 17th, which is the original day for the festival, with festivities and sacrifices in honour of Saturn, Roman god of sowing. This day was conventionally marked the last sowing of the year and it was thus important to offer sacrifice and give honour to the God of grain at this time – no doubt a symbolic act aimed at insuring his continued cooperation for a successful grain harvest. At this time the cult statue of Saturn, which was normally held fast with woollen bonds, was loosened or untied. This is perhaps indicative of both the desire to ensure a successful harvest and a result of his syncretisation with the Greek Kronos who was, like the other Titans, imprisoned in some fashion by the Olympians and made to serve. The loosening of the bonds might also be viewed as analogous to releasing the hidden fertility of the seed during germination, or as Macrobious explained it “as symbolizing the seed which had lain hidden in the womb bursting into the light in the tenth month”[2]
On the 19th of December the Romans honoured the goddess Ops, wife of Saturn and goddess of plenty. The pairing and the order of these events are telling: first we have honours accorded to Saturn, god of sowing, and a few days later offerings to his wife Ops who guarantees plentiful harvest. The two might also be paired in more human terms as offering good fortune in the coming year – perhaps a new child, or success in business, or merely having enough food to eat through their combined blessings. This was also a time for collectively honouring the coming of age of young men in the community – whose individual rites of passage were conducted privately throughout the year. Thus in all respects, the first three days of Saturnalia remind us that even though December is a dark, and perhaps at times gloomy month, it is nevertheless a time for celebration for it out of darkness that all good things in time are born.
The next major junction in the holiday period was in honour of Angerona an obscure but important guardian of Rome. Her feast day was held on the 21st of December. Her name seems to be related to the word ‘angina’, which is indicative of her ability to stave off heart attacks and other kinds of physical ailment or misfortune. Angerona seemed to serve a protective function for the Romans, – i.e. staving off angina or, two ancient sources indicate ‘pain’ and ‘worry’ – and so on this day she was given offerings in order to ensure her continued loyalty to the people of Rome. Sacrifices to Ceres, goddess of grain, and Hercules, the great Hero, were also offered on this day. Giving offerings to Ceres and Hercules was most likely closely tied in with the prevalent themes of the season – namely fertility, prosperity, good health, and abundance, especially since they were traditionally offered a “pregnant sow, loaves or cakes (panes) and a drink made from honey and wine (mulsum).”[3]
The last two days of the Saturnalia were held in honour of the Lares and the Mother of the Lares respectively. The 22nd was dedicated to the Lares who guard sailors (the Lares of the Sea or Lares Permarini); while the 23rd consisted of “funeral rites before the tomb of the goddess Larentina. Here priests made offerings to the Di Manes. Larentina may have been the mother of the Lares, the protective deities of Rome, yet her background is uncertain.” [4] Some interpretations as to the origin of the name Larentina consider her to be a variant to the goddess Lara found in the works of Ovid – this is where the argument that she is in fact the mother of the Lares stems most prominently. Others stories make her the foster mother of Romulus and Remus (who would both eventually became Lares), which also strengthens the argument that she was the ‘Mother of the Lares.’ The exact reason behind the ceremony at the tomb mentioned above cannot be known, but it was surely some form of recognition or veneration toward ‘the ancestral spirits and protectors’ of the people – perhaps some sort of ritual cleansing or propitiation to the Lares (both of land and sea) in preparation for the coming year.
The cult of Sol Invictus (the Unconquered Sun) was dedicated on the 25 December 273 C.E. in honour of the birthday of the Sol. Although this took place two days after the completion of Saturnalia, it is nevertheless thematically linked to the earlier festival for the 25th marked not only the birthday of Sol Invictus, but also the Winter Solstice in the Julian Calendar. The implications behind this are clear, for on the shortest day of the year the sun is born into the world and will spread his light and fertility throughout the hemisphere as the days grow progressively longer. Although we cannot know for certain, it seems likely that this sort of thinking would have occurred to the ancients – perhaps going so far as to see the events of the Saturnalia as almost or paving the way for this important event to occur. It is also interesting to note that Sol Invictus was often conflated with both the god Helios and Mithras, the latter whose cult was considered the largest Pagan rival to Christianity in Antiquity. It is surely no coincidence that his birthday, or at least the season surrounding his day, was chosen by Christians as an appropriate time to celebrate their own religious mysteries (absorbing and adapting many of the seasonal traditions along the way).
Thoughts for today . . .
Saturnalia, and the important rites in honour of Sol Invictus both had elements of family, fertility, change, blessing, and protection associated with them. This is a time of revelry, of celebration, of thanks, and of hope. Much of these themes survived in Christmas, but as Pagans we can revive and celebrate the spirit of Saturnalia side by side with our Christian neighbours in keeping with the spirit of toleration and good will that was so much a part of this holiday. There are two things to consider, the spirit of giving, friendship, and fellowship brought out by the ‘world upside down’ aspects of the season; and the more abstract, but nevertheless extremely important reverence and honouring of the sacred potential held in darkness that is released into the light at this powerful time. Sol is born during the Solstice, seeds are sown and begin to germinate thanks to Saturn, Ops, and both Ceres and also Hercules, and homes are kept safe by the protecting hands of the Lares.
The spirit of goodwill, role reversal, and universal friendship can be easily celebrated today in pretty much the same way most people celebrate Christmas. By exchanging gifts, going to parties, visiting and spending time with friends and family, forgetting about one’s troubles (even if its just for a little while). Role reversals can be easily accomplished perhaps by switching places for the day (ideally on December 17) with children, employees, pets or whoever you like so long as you “[s]hake things up a bit! Do the unexpected! [Because these] small acts recall the spirit of Saturnalia and are of religious significance, connecting directly with the natural world [and with the supernatural].”[5]
Some ways in which you could practice Saturnalia in a more overtly religious way is by giving reverence to Saturn and Ops, perhaps setting up a shrine or laying out offerings in their honour in the hope of seeing the seeds of your endeavours come to fruition and for prosperity and plenty. You might also wish to pray to Angerona asking for good health and to keep you and yours free from undue pain or suffering. You could also pray to Hercules and Ceres as well asking for continued fortitude, fertility, and abundance. Also, if you haven’t done so already, this would be an excellent time to build a Lararium honouring your ancestors and personally Lares who will help keep you and your family safe in the coming year. Finally you might want to make an offering in honour of Sol Invictus, the unconquered sun, by giving thanks for his birth safe in the knowledge that form this day forward the days will get longer ensuring warmth and fertility will return to the world.
Whatever you decide to do this holiday season, remember that Saturnalia and the cult day in honour of Sol Invictus is all about the hidden potential of the seed, new ideas, the sun, even pregnancy, and it is from this shortest and darkest time of the year that all these things start and will continue growing until the cycle is complete. This is not a time of sorrow, but of great joy. It is a celebration of life, of potential, of new beginnings, and a reaffirmation of family ties.
Io Saturnalia! Ave Sol Invictus!
SOURCES
H. H. Scullard. Festivals and Ceremonies of the Roman Republic. London: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 1981. This book is my primary source; therefore unless otherwise specified historical information about Saturnalia and to some extent Sol Invictus come from this book.
Frances Bernstein. Classical Living: Reconnecting with the Rituals of Ancient Rome. New York: Harper Collins, 2000. This was also an important source, especially on modern practices and for some additional insights on the ancient practices.
NOTES
[1] H. H. Scullard, Festivals and Ceremonies of the Roman Republic, (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 1981), 205-206.
[2] Scullard, 206. Also note that that December was originally the 10th month in the Roman calendar before July and August were added in honour of Julius Caesar and Augustus respectively.
[3] Scullard, 210.
[4] Frances Bernstein, Classical Living: Reconnecting with the Rituals of
Ancient Rome, (New York: Harper Collins, 2000), 255.
[5] Bernstein, 226.
