The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
on St. Stephen's Day was caught in the furze;
Although he is little, his family is great,
I pray you good lady, give us a treat
It is the midnight of the year and the bells are tolling the passage of the Holly King, monarch of the waning year. He has been vanquished, in his guise as the wren by the Oak King, ruler of the waxing year.
The eternal duel of the light and dark brothers personifies the winter solstice which is occurring deep in space as the star that lights our world reaches the southernmost post of its journey.
The bright Oak King rules the world at the same time the sun is growing in strength, from the winter solstice on about December 21 to the summer solstice. At the summer solstice in June, the Oak King, as a robin, is slain again by the dark Holly King and the dark lord of the waning year then accompanies the sun to the winter solstice to meet his doom again as the sun is reborn.
These twins, forever in pursuit of one another, are each what the other is not but without which neither can exist. The tension created by their rivalry fuels our world and the psychological processes which drive each of us through torment and joy.
The creative element paired with each of these forces is the Goddess and it is she that gives birth to the sun-god at the winter solstice. The birth of this bright god was the basis for the December festivals of the ancient world.
Known by different names, the sun-child was celebrated throughout Mesopotamia, Persia and Europe, including the druidic Alban Arthan and the Roman Saturnalia. The Christian reinterpretation of the goddess' birth of the sun-child is the Christmas nativity.
Deep in the forest heart, the Holly King shudders as the days of his dark reign draw to an end, for it is nature's promise that the darkest days always beget light. The Oak King grows in strength, yet he too waits for the divine sun-child of the goddess to shine upon our world. Welcome the solstice, may it bring light and peace to our lives.