When December comes and stars descend upon the earth to perch atop houses, churches and the Christmas Trees and when the mellow warmth from these stars ooze into your heart, then you know that it’s Christmas time again!

The Christmas story is essentially the story about the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. But, just as nobody knows when exactly life is conceived in the womb, likewise, nobody knows since when exactly Christmas came to be celebrated on December 25. Historically, there has been no evidence of the Christ’s birth on December 25. However, there have been age-old mid-winter and winter festivals, both pagan and Christian, honouring various Gods, giving gifts and signifying hope and life in the cold, bare winter months. And these joint events gradually came to be celebrated on December 25.

According to a Roman calendar, Christmas was celebrated in Rome by AD 336. But in Eastern Rome, a festival on January 6 was celebrated, both as the birth and the baptism of Christ. In Jerusalem, however, only the birth was celebrated. Even in the Armenian Church, Christ’s birth was celebrated on January 6, which coincided with Epiphany. It was only during the 4th century that the Eastern Churches adopted the celebrations of Christ’s birth on December 25. Legends and theories abound as to how Christmas came to be celebrated on December 25. According to one, early Christians probably wished Christ’s birth date to coincide with the pagan Roman festival to mark the Natalis Solis Invicti (birthday of the unconquered sun). In Rome, Saturnalia was celebrated on December 17, with exchange of gifts and merry-making. Then again, the birthday of the Iranian mystery God Mithra, the Sun of righteousness, was celebrated on December 25. And January 1 was celebrated as the Roman New Year. On this day, they decorated their houses with lights, and exchanged gifts. German and Celtic Yule rites were added to these observations when the Teutonic tribes entered Britain and Central Europe. Thus, such customs as are observed today during Christmas, like the Yule log and Yule cakes, greenery and fir trees, feasting and exchange of gifts, all commemorated this festive season. All these merged into one Christian celebration, and thus Christmas, derived from the old English words Cristes Maesse, meaning Christ’s Mass, came to be celebrated on December 25 with merry-making, carolling and the exchange of gifts.

Now, what then are the Twelve Days of Christmas? These are the twelve days starting from December 25, celebrated as the birth of Jesus Christ, to the Epiphany, celebrated on January 6, as the day of revelation of Jesus Christ as the Saviour and the Son of God. Others view the twelve days of Christmas as the period taken by the three Magi or Wise Men to travel to Bethlehem to present gifts to the infant Jesus. Some places have the tradition of giving Christmas gifts for each of the twelve days of Christmas. The twelfth night, which is the night of January 5, is the last day of Christmas and this night includes feasting and the removal of the Christmas decorations. And going by the Christmas spirit of carols and hymns, the Christmas carol The Twelve Days of Christmas is seen by many as a catechism song for Catholics, to learn the teachings of their belief through a coded hymn during the time when Catholicism was banned in England between 1558 and 1829. The “True Love” mentioned in the carol refers to God Himself and the “me” who receives the presents refers to every baptised person of Christianity. The carol begins On the First Day of Christmas my true love gave to me, and goes on to specify the gifts the Lord gives on each of the twelve days of Christmas. These gifts, along with their symbolisms are:

• A Partridge in a Pear Tree-Jesus Christ

• Two Turtle Doves-The Old and New Testaments

• Three French Hens-The Three Theological Virtues gifts.

• Four Calling Birds-The Four Gospels

• Five Golden Rings-First Five Books of the Old Testament.

• Six Geese A-Laying-Six days of creation before God’s rest on the seventh day.

• Seven Swans A-Swimming-Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.

• Eight Maids A-Milking-The Eight Beatitudes.

• Nine Ladies Dancing-Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit.

• Ten Lords A-Leading-The Ten Commandments.

• Eleven Pipers Piping-The Eleven Faithful Apostles

• Twelve Drummers Drumming-The Twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles’ Creed.

However, the historical accuracy of this Christmas song is a subject of speculation among Church historians. Like many of the other symbols of Christmas and Christianity, this may not have its origin in religion as legends hold them to be. However, there are other such symbols which have, over the years, become an invariable part of Christmas.

The Star: Normally placed atop the Christmas Tree, the Star symbolises the astronomical/astrological phenomenon which leads to the journey of the three Magi who came with gifts for the Christ Child.

Bells: One of the many legends about Christmas bells tells us of a village in England where the villagers worked hard to earn enough money to buy church bells. Then, on Christmas Eve, they gathered at church to ring their bells. Once, however, an earthquake buried all their bells and the church, too. And yet even now, legends say, if on Christmas Eve you put your ear to the ground where the church was buried, you still hear the bells ringing!

The Christmas Tree: It is usually a Douglas fir decorated with lights and candy sticks. The story goes that one evening, when Martin Luther was returning home, the beauty of the stars twinkling through the branch of a fir tree fascinated him, and he recreated the magic of the stars inside his home by placing lit candles on the branches of a small fir tree. Some believe that in the mediaeval days, Bible lessons were taught through plays. And on every December 24, the play Paradise Tree was enacted, depicting Adam’s and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden. In this play, apples were hung on a fir tree to symbolise the Garden of Eden. This led to the tradition of the Christmas Tree.

Christmas stockings: The story of the stockings coincides, with a slight variation, with the story of St. Nicholas, the legendary figure behind Santa Claus. It is said that a nobleman could not marry off his three daughters for he had no money for their dowry. It was then that Nicholas showed up and threw small pouches of money down the chimney into the house. And it so happened that the young women had washed their stockings and hung them up to dry by the fire place. And the pouches fell into these stockings. This started the tradition of putting up stockings by the fireplace on the eve of Christmas, for Santa to drop gifts into them.

The Wreath: This is a garland joined at both ends and is generally made of pinecones, nuts, holly and evergreens. In the US, Canada and in northern Europe, the wreath is hung on the door.

Pointsettias: These plants are a native of Mexico. Legend has it that a poor, young Mexican boy named Mario wept outside the church for he had no money to buy flowers to place near the Christ Child at a village Nativity Scene. Just then, a voice from the stone angel near the church told him to pick up some weeds and take them to Jesus. Because, the voice said, the simplest gift when given with love, is the most beautiful. Mario did accordingly and behold! Beautiful, star shaped, scarlet flowers appeared on each branch of the weeds.

Candles: Candles always symbolised warmth and lasting life in both Christian and pagan festivals.

Christmas cards: The tradition of sending cards on Christmas started in 1840 in Britain, when the first ‘Penny Post’ public deliveries began. But, the first real Christmas card was created by Sir Henry Cole, the first director of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. In the Christmas season of 1843, Sir Cole got too busy to write individual greetings for friends, and so hired artist Johan Calcott Horeley for the illustrations. The card featured three panels, with the centre panel showing a family celebrating Christmas.

Holly: Holly was the sacred plant of Saturn and the Romans decorated images of Saturn with it. Centuries later, while other Romans continued their pagan worship in December, Christians celebrated the birth of Christ. And to avoid persecution, they did up their homes in Saturnalia holly. Gradually, holly lost its pagan origin and became a Christian symbol. In Northern Europe, people placed boughs of holly over their doors to ward off evil because holly was believed to have magical powers. Another legend goes that when Christ walked on the Earth, holly sprang from His footsteps. The pointed leaves symbolised Christ’s crown of thorns and the red berries symbolised the blood He shed.

Mistletoe: The legend goes that Mistletoe was the sacred plant of Frigga, the Goddess of Love and the mother of Balder, the God of the Summer Sun. Now, Balder once dreamt of death, which greatly alarmed Frigga because without Balder, all life on Earth would perish. So, to prevent this, Frigga requested every element, every plant and animal not to harm her son. Frigga, however, overlooked the mistletoe. And when Balder’s enemy Loki, the God of Evil, heard of this, he made an arrow-tip of mistletoe and gave it to the blind God of Winter. He shot it, striking Balder dead. And the Sun was no more. Each element tried to restore Balder, but in vain. Eventually, after three pale days, Frigga managed to restore her son to life and her tears turned into the berries on the mistletoe plant. And the joyous Frigga kissed everyone passing beneath the tree on which the mistletoe, an aerial parasite, grew. Thus, it came to be said that whoever stood under the mistletoe had a promise of happiness, love and good health coming his way.

Carols: These are songs of religious joy generally created in the Catholic Church. St. Francis of Assisi initiated carols into the Church prayers during a Christmas Midnight Mass in a cave in Greccio, in the province of Umbria, in 1223. Early carols were in Latin. The oldest carol was Jesus Refulsit Omnium by Hillary Poitiers. Later on, Handel’s and Mendelssohn’s music was also adapted and used as Christmas carols.

Santa Claus: He, probably, is the most adorable Christmas symbol ever. Santa Claus has been traced back to the legendary doer of good deeds of the 4th century, St. Nicholas of Myra, whose Feast Day is on December 6. St. Nicholas’s Feast Day was widely celebrated in Europe and the Germans adopted the gift giving tradition after the saint was popularised there in the 10th century. The English moved the gift-giving celebrations to the English holiday of Christmas and called the saintly figure Santa Claus, which is a variation of the Saint’s Dutch name Sinterklass. And that’s how Santa Claus came to be associated with Christmas. The French called him Pere Noel, the Germans, Weihnachtsmann (meaning Christmas Man) and the Russians, Grandfather Frost. In Britain, he was called Father Christmas.

This much said, now with Christmas in the air, it’s time once again to bring out the Nicholas within each one of us, to light the candles and ring the bells, to put up the stockings and to sing along,

Mary’s boy child, Jesus Christ, was born on Christmas Day.

And Man will live for ever more because of Christmas Day.

Rashmi Narzary