December 12

The Perchten have been telling me that they want IN to our Winter Solstice festivities:

Perchten and Krampusses in many different styles and shapes can be seen throughout the Bavarian and Austrian alpine region during the winter season. They are frightening and not very appealing to the eye.

"Krampus" is the untamed, shaggy spirit that accompanies St. Nicholas. Krampusses usually roam in larger groups. Their traditional costumes and masks are elaborately handcrafted. Krampusses can usually be encountered on and a few days before December 6.

"Perchten" are wild pagan spirits widespread throughout the Austrian and Bavarian region. The appear alone or in groups, especially on three specific winter nights, called the "rough nights," i.e. the night before St. Nicholas (December 6), before the winter solstice (December 22) and before Epiphany (January 6). They carry bells and other loud instruments to dispel the winter.

My shaman friend Patricia explained to me that the mysterious perchten, which did not travel to these American shores with Saint Nicholas, are nature spirits. They are neither good nor bad, like nature itself. The mountain spirits of a land where winter is dark and long and blizzards a frequent occurrence—the perchten are powerful, capable of mischief and destruction but also of great beauty.

It makes sense to me that they did not travel to this country, because they are nature spirits. They belong to a particular place. We are not so familiar with our nature spirits here, because we've never been properly introduced. The Kachinas live in New Mexico. I have been privileged to meet them, but here I do not know the names of the spirits of the land, nor do I know their shrines and holy places.

Wait, that isn't true. Horn Dancers Hill in Tarrywile Park is a holy place and a shrine. The spirit of the deer and of the winter sun dwell there. Bride's bear can be seen there in the shape of a rock and the whisper of the horn dancers still echoes on the hill each year, fresh in the memory of all who saw us there. We were drawn to it and it to us, one day long ago.

Perhaps, in this week of long nights, we should ask, every day to meet the spirits of our land and to be led to the places where people once went to meet them.

I am a follower of Christ and I do believe in Saint Nicholas, but I am also deeply drawn to the spirits of the land. One without the other ring hollow and empty for me. I believe the old earth religions are all beautiful and true. They celebrate the power of the land, and of the heavens and the seasons. But like the perchten, the power of the land is neutral—capable of mischief and beauty. This is the landscape we are born in to in our human bodies. In Old Europe, Saint Nicholas travels with Black Peter—he is the spirit of "something else" which exists beyond the powers of nature, but in our lives on earth these two are intertwined. But in this country he walks alone, and has lost some of his power because he has become detached from the nature spirits. He is a gentle gift bearer, but the mystery is gone—the story we need to hear over and over again each year as we grow, so each time a different layer of meaning is revealed.

My belief as a Celtic Christian—and a Druid—is that Christ was born to carry the message that there is more to our lives than the power of nature. These are magnificent and we should never forget the ancient yearly rites which connect us to the seasons and to the earth, but we needed to know that, unlike nature, which can be unpredictable and unforgiving, there is a presence at the heart of the universe which is deeply forgiving and predictably loving.

This  said, I really like the perchten too! I need  Christ and Saint NIcholas, the kachinas and the perchten, Herne and Saint Francis in my life and in my spirit. They are all a part of me and there is no contradiction.