Yule Blessings

In researching what I want to include in my Yule ritual this year, I have been finding some really good prayers, blessings and ideas to include. Here are a few of my favorites.

I identify with the Celtic and Norse pagans of old, so I am drawn to the Celtic prayers when I find them,

Celtic Yule Blessing
The food is put away for the winter,
the crops are set aside to feed us,
the cattle are come down from their fields,
and the sheep are in from the pasture.
The land is cold, the sea is stormy, the sky is gray,
the nights are dark, but we have our family.
kin and clan around the hearth,
staying warm in the midst of darkness,
our spirit and love, a flame
a beacon burning brightly
in the night.

Yule Sunset Prayer
The longest night has come once more,'
the sun has set and darkness fallen.
The trees are bare, the earth asleep, and the skies are cold and black.
Yet tonight we rejoice in this longest night,
embracing the darkness that enfolds us.
We welcome the night and all that it holds,
as the light of the stars shines down.