Yule is the remnant of early rituals celebrated to hurry the end of winter and bounty of spring, when food was once again readily available. To contemporary Wiccans it is a reminder that the ultimate product of death is rebirth, a comforting thought in these days of unrest. The lengthening periods of light awaken Her. The God is a young, lusty boy, but His power is felt in the longer days. This is a Sabbat of purification after the shut-in life of winter, of fertility, once marked in Europe with huge blazes, torches and fire in every form.
Fire here represents our own illumination and inspiration as much as light and warmth.
Imbolc is also known as Feast of Torches, Oimelc, Lupercalia, Feast of Pan, snowdrop Festival, Feast of the Waxing Light, Brigid's day and probably by many other names. Some female Wiccans follow the old Scandinavian customs of wearing crowns of lit candles, but many more carry tapers during their invocations. This is one of the traditional times for initiations into covens, and so self-dedication rituals can be performed or renewed at this time. The energies of nature subtly shift from the sluggishness of winter or the exhuberant expansion of spring. The Goddess blankets the Earth with fertility, bursting forth from Her sleep, as the God stretches and grows to maturity.