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Celebrated at the 21st or 22nd of December this marks the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemipshere while Litha is celebrated as the Summer Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.

Yule for many modern pagans is about the recognition of the return of the light, of new beginnings, a time of reflection on the past and a time to celebrate another year over and the hope of spring to come.

Holly, ivy, mistletoe and evergreens are in plentiful supply for Christmas and make great decorations, as do star and gingerbread themed ornaments. I love combining as many facets of Yule and Christmas as possible. Red, green, gold and white are great colours to use at this time of year.

Some people like to try divination at this time, although it isn't as powerful a time as Samhain; some like to wait until the New Year. It's a good time to think about the things you're thankful for and the things you want in your life over the next year.

The Fire Bucket

The fire is one of my favourite parts of Yule. I don't usually keep the Yule log, the last piece of wood from the previous year's fire, but if you do, this is a time to burn it. Some mulled wine and home made cookies in front of the outdoor fire pit, fire bucket, chimenea or whatever else you can find is a great way to celebrate Yule. The best cookie and a small portion of the wine as libation are a suitable offering to the gods and the libation is a form of wassailing – if you have fruit trees pour it near them. The wassailing tradition honours the apple trees with singing and cider from their fruit in the hope of a good harvest next year.

While the fire burns, you might want to burn a copy of the list of thanks and goals you've written down. Some cultures believe this is the way to send a message to the gods or even to send a letter to Santa.

The Oak King and the Holly King

In many Celtic-based traditions of neopaganism, there is the enduring legend of the battle between the Oak King and the Holly King. These two mighty rulers fight for supremacy as the Wheel of the Year turns each season. At the Winter Solstice, or Yule, the Oak King kills the Holly King, and then reigns until Midsummer, or Litha. Once the Summer Solstice arrives, the Holly King returns to do battle with the old king, and defeats him. The Holly King them rules until Yule.

In some Wiccan traditions, the Oak King and the Holly King are seen as dual aspects of the Horned God…Often, these two entities are portrayed in familiar ways - the Holly King frequently appears as a woodsy version of Santa Claus.

Source: http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/yulethelongestnight/p/Holly_KIng_Yule.htm

Pagan secrets of the festive season

Around 730 AD the Venerable Bede recorded a custom of the Anglo-Saxons, from whom many modern Britons and Americans are descended. “They began the year,” he wrote, “with 25 December, designated by the heathen term módraniht, that is, the mothers' night.”

The Anglo-Saxons had another word for it: Geol from Jol in Old Norse, the language of the Vikings, and the origin of our word Yule.

At this time the Vikings would honor the gods Odin, Niord and Freya, as well as departed friends. As the leader of the Wild Hunt, Odin would fly over the countryside bestowing favors on those who honored him best and food would be left out for him. Think of Santa's elves, sleigh and reindeer.

Today's decorations derive from these old festivals. One of the most popular customs used to be the Yule Log. A large log was placed on the hearth and lit with the previous year's log to symbolize the renewal of light and warmth, and ensure good luck. Open fireplaces are scarce today and the Yule Log survives as a simple decoration and a cake. The same symbolism is behind bringing evergreens into the home: Holly and ivy tied in wreaths or decorated fir trees.

Arriving in the English-speaking world in the nineteenth century, the Christmas Tree was formerly a pole erected in the street and festooned with evergreens as a focus for dancing.

Another evergreen, Mistletoe, was sacred to Thor among the Vikings and used in fertility rites by the Celts, which is why we still kiss under it today. As Thor's plant, it was believed to protect the home from lightning and fire.

But why this time of year? In 46 B.C., Julius Caesar reformed the calendar, creating a 365 day year in 12 months with regular leap years and the winter solstice on Dec. 25. The winter solstice is an astronomical event when the sun appears to stand still before turning back in its (really the earth's) orbit. It marks the moment when those lengthening winter nights start to get shorter again and so was seen as the return or ‘rebirth' of the sun. The Romans celebrated their own festivals — Saturnalia and Dies Natalis Solis Invicti — at this time of year.

The Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian and the winter solstice was moved back. The exact moment of solstice can occur between the 20th and the 23rd due to a number of factors. It was only in 354 A.D. that it was decided that Jesus was born on Dec. 25.
So as you hang a bauble on the tree, steal a kiss under the mistletoe and sit down to “Christmas” dinner, drink a toast to Odin and the festival's real meaning: the return of the sun.