Do You Know the Origin Story?

“Don’t become a mere recorder of facts, but try to penetrate the mystery of their origin.”  — Ivan Pavlov

Everything starts somewhere. Traditions, especially, are formed over centuries of human and civilization evolution. With this in mind, it is no surprise modern holidays and their respective traditions have deep roots in the past. Many people perform the motions of celebration, but are unaware of their history. This is a pity as it keeps people from recognizing the many similarities between cultures and their traditions.

Knowledge of the past helps us understand our ancestors, as well as how our celebrations formed, grew, and changed over time. Recently, the holiday of Diwali occurred, which is a festival of lights stretching back 2,500 years. This ancient celebration is linked to multiple stories in religious texts, but many of these stories have the common theme of the triumph of good over evil¹. Although there are different modern interpretations, Diwali links back to ancient harvest festivals and symbolizes the victory of light over darkness, new beginnings, and the supremacy of knowledge over ignorance². Celebrations rooted to harvest festivals and involving multitudes of lights are a common theme across cultures.

Along a similar origin is the upcoming holiday of Christmas. Its roots go back to the ancient midwinter solstice festivals with multiple historical peoples contributing to what it is today³. The oldest archaeological discoveries are the celebrations of the Neolithic people who built Stonehenge. Midwinter festival popularity grew through the influence of the ancient Romans, who observed it with five days of feasting called Saturnalia⁴. Many Christmas traditions we see today stem from the Germanic pagan festival of Yule, timed during the winter solstice with practices recognizing the return of the sun⁵. This is another example of a holiday based on harvest festivals and the victory of light over darkness. Obviously, also celebrated with lights.

In history, it is often challenging to exactly pinpoint the start of something, but that is not always the goal. Adopt the perspective of wanting to understand the context of what we know and how we know it. Understand the ‘why’ of your traditions, then put your own spin on them. Look for the similarities across cultures, of which there are many, and celebrate them. Remember, there is no such thing as a wrong way to observe a holiday. Deck out the lights, grab your beverage of choice, and celebrate the plentiful harvest of the year.

Action: Pick a celebration or tradition, research its origin. Note the similarities across cultures.

Further Reading:

1. The Ancient Origins of Diwali
2. What Is the History and Significance of Diwali?
3. What is the Winter Solstice?
4. HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS
5. History of Christmas