Returning the Soul to the Solstice

I first discovered the 13 Sacred Nights practice the year my (now 16-year-old) daughter was born. It was the scratch to an inner itch, an intuition telling me there had to be something more meaningful to the winter holidays than shopping, sugar, and plastic tinsel. The shift wasn’t abrupt. I didn’t leap cold turkey from the cacophony of mainstream traditions straight into the cave of winter stillness. But over the years, the holiday mayhem that once consumed me slowly faded into the background while this nourishing, profound ritual took its place at the center of my season. Now, as the days shorten and the nights grow long and deep, my attention turns eagerly toward the radiant darkness, the potent stillness and the quiet magic of the approaching solstice. I still participate in many of the usual holiday activities, like exchanging gifts and decorating the Christmas tree, but I hold them more lightly now. A deeper part of me is anchored in quiet reflection, intention setting, and attunement to the felt presence of the Divine permeating the sacred darkness.

The 13 Sacred Nights practice invites us to attune to the cosmic patterns and seasonal rhythms, especially the deep stillness surrounding the Winter Solstice. We enter what I call the womb of winter, a sacred space of gestation and dreaming for the cycle of seasons to come. We plant our seeds of intention in the fertile soil of the darkness so that they may sprout in the spring and bloom into the full expansiveness of summer. In the fall we harvest the fruits of our labor before diving back into the depths of winter for a new cycle. 

This new cycle begins yearly on the Winter Solstice, the longest, darkest night of the year. After the Winter Solstice, which usually falls on December 21 in the northern hemisphere, the sun appears to stand still on the horizon for three days. Then, on December 24 the sun begins to shift again, quietly initiating the return of the light. Ancient sites such as Stonehenge, Newgrange, Chaco Canyon, Nabta Playa, and Goseck Circle remind us that our ancestors, across cultures and continents, revered this return of the light with deep awe. As above, so below; as without, so within. Just as the light begins to return on the horizon, we too experience the rebirth of our inner light, our divinely creative spark.

For me personally, attuning to nature’s divine intelligence through the 13 Sacred Nights practice has been profoundly and utterly life-altering. Every year, for 13 days and nights, supported by the stillness, the quiet and the darkness, this inward dive has shown me how to walk through every moment of my daily life aware of—and in conversation with—the Divine. It has taught me to wake up to the divine dialogue that we are always taking part in whether we recognize it or not. For me, the 13 Sacred Nights have been a kind of yearly spiritual boot camp: an exercise in being present, listening deeply, and awakening to my own divinely creative consciousness.

After the 13 nights are over and throughout the remainder of the year, as priceless guidance and synchronicities tumble out my 13 Sacred Nights journal, I am repeatedly reminded that a greater magic and mystery are unfolding beyond my ordinary comprehension. This delightful holiday practice, more than any other, has brought me closer to God (Spirit, Source, The Mystery, etc.). 

The feedback I have received from others who have taken the dive into the 13 Sacred Nights has filled my heart to overflowing with love, gratitude, and awe. One woman described to me how when she was a child she could feelthe magic in the air during the holiday season. She admitted that the tree, hot apple cider, and presents were of course fun, but beyond all that, she could look up at the Christmas Eve night sky as a child and actually feel the magic. She lamented that somewhere along the way as an adult she had lost that feeling. The 13 Sacred Nights Oracle and practice returned that magic to her. 

Countless others have confided in me their disillusionment with the holiday season and all the stress, commercial excess, and social pressure that so often accompany it. Through the 13 Sacred Nights, they’ve found something quieter, deeper, and more real. They’ve discovered a sense of reconnection with the living Earth, their own inner being and that something greater. Some have shared that they have formed Sacred Nights groups or pods, gathering with friends or loved ones and moving through the practice together in a way that fosters deep bonding and shared reflection. Others have told me that this practice has become a lifeline, a much-needed light to hold onto through the heaviness of a long, bitter stretch of winter. 

In a world where the holidays have been hollowed out by hyper-commercialism, overconsumption, and performative cheer, something timeless within us knows it’s time for a reboot—one that recenters meaning, magic, and soul. The 13 Sacred Nights practice offers just that: a modern ritual inspired by ancient wisdom. It provides just enough structure to guide us inward, and just enough spaciousness to allow for a truly personal experience. With this practice we are returning the Soul to the Solstice, one night, one dream seed, one reflection at a time. 

Lara J. Day is the author of the 13 Sacred Nights Oracle and creator of Neurogenic Qigong. Her unique healing method interweaves Chinese energy medicine with tension and trauma releasing neurogenic tremor work. She has been teaching energy arts since 2003 and is unspeakably grateful for her teachers, for the practices themselves and for the chance to view this absurd and perfectly magnificent life from the energetic perspective. Learn more at www.larajday.com.