Wintry Tales

Cold winter nights in Maine with wild winds and unrelenting snow can cause the mind to wander amidst old tales of mysterious spirits and ancient folklore.

There is an ancient tale rooted in Slavic Pagan beliefs about Snegurka. She is a Snow Maiden with deep blue eyes, red lips and snow-white skin. Her hair is often braided or curly and she wears garments dripping with silver embroidery and white pearls. She is the perpetually young daughter of the Snow Queen and Father Frost.

By contrast we have the ancient Japanese folktale about a Snow spirit named Yukionna who is the spirit of a woman who dies from the cold. Regretfully, she becomes a demon who steals the souls of those she has bewitched on Winter nights.

In Scottish folklore we have the Goddess of Winter Beira also known as the Cailleach, meaning “veiled one”.  Not only a Goddess of Winter, she was thought to be the “mother” of all the Goddesses and Gods in Scotland. She is sometimes portrayed as an old hag in possession of only one eye symbolizing her ability to see beyond duality. As Queen of Winter, she needs to secure the love of a hero in order to be transformed into a beautiful young maiden. This transformation symbolizes the seeds that lay dormant within the earth during winter. Seeds that will begin to sprout with the arrival of Spring. 

Close one’s eyes and become spellbound within these tales of old. Visualize how soon the season will change as the Wheel of the Year turns again and again.

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