Christmas is arguably the most important holiday in the U.S., as well as in many other parts of the world. It is celebrated by young and old alike, and by people who are both religious and non-religious. After 56 years on Earth, however, I've learned that Christmas isn't all it's wrapped up to be...
Backstory
I grew up as a Christian in an LDS family (aka as a Mormon), and although I exited Mormonism and Christianity upon adulthood, I still carry much of what I learned from that period with me (in the form of esoteric spirituality, aka mysticism). Mormons have a fairly normal view about Jesus – very similar to adherents of almost all other Christian religions around the world. They believe that Jesus was born on Christmas, died on the cross 33 years later (3 days before Easter), was resurrected on Easter Sunday, and is the savior of the entire world.
But since Christmas coincides with the winter solstice and the ancient pagan Yule tide celebrations – both of which have been traditional with multiple cultures since long before the Christian era – it begs a few questions: 1) does Christmas have a deeper meaning than just the birth of Jesus, and the giving and receiving of gifts between family and friends? 2) is there a connection between Jesus and the winter solstice? 3) was Jesus really born on December 25th?
The answers to these questions appear to be well-known amongst mystics and historians (at least amongst those historians who aren’t easily swayed by propaganda). Multiple writers have discussed all these questions, and have answered them to my satisfaction. And as I have gone through my own life as a budding mystic, I have not only learned a great deal from a multitude of writings on these subjects, but have also received quite a bit of personal revelation which I believe will help shed some much-needed light upon the extremely important subject of Christmas.
Of course, I realize that this article will step on the toes of pretty much all Christians. I do not apologize for this, as everything I write is presented in the spirit of good will and discovery, and can be accepted or rejected by anyone at will. And the fact that Christian theology is well-known in the world, while mysticism is not, should provide any reader with a clear justification for why this information should be publicized rather than hidden from view (it has been hidden for millennia). Furthermore, I submit that all information (including my own writing) is both theoretical and provisional, due to the simple fact that the human brain knows nothing about reality directly, only indirectly (based on input from our five senses). We're all basically stumbling around in the dark~
Jesus’ Birthday
In regard to the holy birth of Jesus, it helps to remember that the historical Jesus was not only Jewish, but (according to tradition) was of Jewish nobility (the “king of the Jews”). This means that he couldn’t have been born in December, because the rules of ancient Jewish nobility mandated a birth much later in the year (around March/April, which represents the sacred lamb in astrology under the sign of Aries (a baby ram is a lamb…)). Laurence Gardner provides many alternative - and fascinating - ideas about the birth and life of Jesus in his book Bloodline of the Holy Grail).
It’s extremely important to note that the Christian church fathers purposefully ‘set’ the birth of Jesus on December 25th, and for many reasons (including political). It’s even more important to understand the esoteric reasons for them having done so.
The Christian Allegory
Before going into those details, I’ll go ahead and let the cat out of the bag by submitting that the esoteric meaning of Christmas (and of the entire New Testament story, IMHO) can be summarized as being an allegory with three layers: 1) our daystar, the Sun, and its astronomical/astrological journey through the sky, is of pivotal importance to humanity; 2) the ascension mysteries of Christ are applicable to all people (specifically, that anyone can be perfected if they’re ready, and if they follow ‘the way’ that has been referenced cryptically in the Bible and elsewhere); and, 3) the human body is an amazing system which makes allowance for the eventual acquisition of superpowers!
(to be clear, I'm saying that the 'historical Jesus' is most likely a fabrication, although also very likely based (loosely) on the legends of real individuals from the deep past who had acquired metahuman abilities. I don't refute the possibility that Jesus was a real person, although the huge combination of coincidences in connection with these allegories severely strains the limits of credulity, IMHO...)
The Sun
The first of these allegorical layers references the Sun; and once you consider the various astronomical and astrological connections, you’ll be quite surprised – as I was – and awakened to a whole new way of seeing our wintry holiday. This has all to do with the winter solstice, which falls on December 22nd every year: that’s the day the Sun stops ‘moving southward’ in the sky (it’s really the Earth that does most of the moving, as we race ever-onward around the Sun. And the tilt of the Earth, together with its motion around the Sun, provides the apparent motion of the Sun north-to-south in the fall/winter, and south-to-north in the spring/summer).
Whereas spring/summer represents the ‘positive’ half of the year, fall/winter represents the ‘negative’ half. As the Sun ‘travels’ southward across the sky following the Summer solstice, days become shorter, nights become longer, the weather gets much colder, etc. As the Sun stops its southward motion on December 22nd each year, it conjuncts with the Southern Cross (aka the Crux): this is a cross-shaped constellation in the southern sky. The Sun’s temporary ‘death’ on the Southern Cross on that date represents the crucifixion of Jesus (or vice versa, depending upon how you look at it). During this 'crucifixion of the Sun', the Sun stops moving for 3 days (associated with Jesus’ 3 days in the tomb). Then, on December 25th (Christmas day), the Sun starts moving again – but this time northward (the opposite direction). For the first time in 6 long months, the Sun is now moving toward the northern hemisphere, which is where the vast majority of humans live. Because of this, most of humanity sees this as the ‘coming of the light’: the time when the Sun returns to mankind. And since the Sun is the giver of life (literally!), heralding and celebrating its triumphant return is natural (hence, an ancient, global activity).
As you can see, the idea that the Sun is born (again) on Christmas day is most certainly connected with the idea that the Son of God was born on Christmas day. And since the Sun obviously existed long before the Christian era, the debate about which came first need not ever arise.
It takes no great intellectual labor to see how closely this sequence and iconography follows the story of Jesus (The Sun/Son, the cross, etc.). But when one also considers the idea that many spiritualists associate the Sun with Jesus via the Christic Consciousness which is latent within all people (as a spiritual energy-field contained within and emitted by the Sun), the triple-allegory takes on a whole new level of vastly important meaning and richness. This vast importance directly references the 'ascension process' (as a method of gaining superpowers).
The Ascension
According to the Bible, Jesus ascended (was resurrected) after 3 days of darkness (his entombment). With his resurrection, Jesus was said to have attained godlike status, which of course super-powered his body, and his ministry in turn. But the story of Jesus is steeped in mystery, with many biblical statements making a great deal more sense only with the added layers of allegorical understanding.
For instance, Jesus’ ministry references not only twelve apostles, but also twelve separate episodes in time, each of which is associated with one of the twelve houses of the Zodiac. A few examples include Jesus as the fisher of men (Pisces), Jesus as the holy, fiery lamb of God (Aries), Jesus referencing a water-bearer heralding the coming of the new age (Aquarius), etc.
The general idea of this layer of the Christian allegory is that, after each soul on Earth has endured the constant cycling of the wheel of time long enough (mankind has been travelling through the zodiac every year, for eons) each soul becomes more and more in need/want of perfection, and each mind and spirit becomes more and more prepared for enlightenment.
Such perfection and enlightenment can be actively pursued by following ‘the way’ of Jesus (or in other ways according to the esoteric traditions of other religions/groups, such as those of Buddha, Taoist monks, American Indians, Peruvian shamans, aboriginal Australians, Polynesian Kahunas, etc.). Nearly every culture on Earth has at least one story of a perfected human who received godlike powers, no longer needing to eat, sleep, or be subject to sickness or early death.
The Human Body
Modern man understands that the human body is a miracle of incredible complexity. Every single moment, a hundred-thousand different processes are taking place with thousands of different chemicals, substances and energies, all of which appear to be orchestrated for our survival and – if we treat our bodies with great care – for our prosperity.
But there’s much more to it than that; the stories of Jesus, Buddha, and many other great personalities over the millennia (some real and some representative) have shown us that the perfection of the human body is not only possible, but has occurred many times over the long ages of history.
Much has come to light over just these last few years about this, and can be researched under the heading the sacred secretion. This refers to an oily secretion from the brain, which scientists today call the cerebral spinal fluid. This fluid is fascinating, and when nurtured properly can supposedly take on some amazing properties.
The word for oil in Greek is Christos – cognate of course with the word Christ. This is where the story of the anointing of Jesus comes in, which is itself simply an allegory for the anointing of the human body with the Christic oil. More specifically, the 'version' of the Christic oil that is charged with special qualities during certain times of our lives (for those who follow the very special advice provided by mystics of all ages).
If we do things correctly, and for long enough (by living righteously, eating healthfully, doing the proper energy work, etc.), we are taught that we can eventually achieve perfection and enlightenment, after which our lives will be enjoyed in a state of pure grace.
Christmas and the Christic Oil
According to Christmas tradition, Santa comes down the chimney on Christmas Eve to deliver gifts to those children who have been good. In tandem with this, the mystical tradition teaches us that – for those who have readied themselves (with the greatest level of diligence) - the claustrum within the brain (aka Santa Clause) releases the greatest of all gifts – the highly-charged Christic oil (‘Christ’), which is sent by God (via our Higher Self, which is the real ‘St. Nick’) down our spinal column (our ‘chimney’).
At around the same time, a Christic seed (the ‘Christ child’) is born within our solar plexus (‘Bethlehem’, the ‘house of bread’); this seed – if properly nourished (by the Christic oil, which must be kept absolutely pure and energized) – then begins making its way up our spinal column.
The Crucifixion
When the Christic seed reaches the base of our brain at the top of the neck (‘Golgotha’, 'the place of the skull'), the seed is crucified. Interestingly, a cross can be represented by a ‘+’ sign or a ‘x’ sign, which signify addition and multiplication respectively. The author George W. Carrey (in his 1920 book on the subject) wrote that the crucifixion represents a multiplication of the power of the Christic seed by a factor of 2000 (making it glow with a divine radiance).
The crucifixion of the seed is followed by ‘3 days of darkness’ (2 ½ days, according to Carey), within which the soul is tested. This is when the seed, after having crossed the base of the skull, rises further to be placed within the midbrain (the ‘tomb’). This phase in the sequence affects a temporary separation of the soul from the Light of God/Christ, making it impossible to receive spiritual revelation (or spiritual comfort) during those 2 ½ days (this is why Jesus was said to have cried out ‘why hast thou forsaken me?’ to God while upon the cross).
Then, after the ‘3 days of darkness’, the seed continues its journey upward, and eventually enters into the pineal gland, which sits within the optic thalamus. Assuming that the seed has been properly nurtured all this time (which is an energetic process), the seed – having been enlightened by those energies – thus energizes the pineal gland and the optic thalamus. This phase is what is known in the East as the awakening of the 3rd eye (optic = eye), and generally as one’s enlightenment (which, according to some authors, provides one with a ‘face-to-face meeting with God’).
The enlightenment of the pineal gland and the optic thalamus has been said to bring with it Christic consciousness (aka cosmic consciousness), which awakens every single cell of the brain to provide not only expanded consciousness but also perfect recall, and a greatly enhanced intellect. This spurs forward certain processes in the brain which, over what I would assume to be a relatively short period of time (40 days?), affords the eventual perfection of the entire human body.
And because of the awakening of the 3rd eye via the enlightenment of the pineal gland, certain god-like powers are said to be bestowed to such an individual (who, having communed with God, has also accessed certain elements of vital knowledge and wisdom concerning the Tree of Life, which opens the door to an understanding of how to do magic...).
Other Aspects of Christmas
One night many years ago, as I was silently admiring our Christmas tree, it suddenly dawned upon me that the tree represents the human body; the lights throughout the tree represent our chakras (and other smaller energy centers); and the shining star at the top of the tree represents a pineal gland which has been enlightened via the ascension process.
The many gifts under the tree represent the wonderful morsels of knowledge and wisdom that we gain on our spiritual sojourn (on Earth and 'abroad'), as well as actual spiritual gifts provided by the mystical journey. The Christmas gifts that we give to others provide a very meaningful metaphor for the vast importance of service to others (providing material, emotional and/or spiritual assistance to family members, friends – and even to strangers (a simple smile to a stranger has immense worth – so if we’re doing this every day we’re actively helping to bring Heaven down to Earth, making of the Earth a Heaven)).
Conclusion
There is much more that could be (and has been) said on all these subjects, and I would suggest anyone who is interested in these things to fully peruse the literary references I’ve provided here. I also suggest you read my own book Qabalah: A Universal Blueprint (free for those who have my coupon code), which provides a deep dive into mysticism from the Hebrew perspective (the Jewish prophets apparently received much of their wisdom from much earlier prophets of the East (represented by the ‘three kings’: Zoroastrian magi from Persia), and also referenced in ancient writings from India, Kashmir and elsewhere).
It’s important to note that this information doesn't negate or invalidate the standard Christian theology, but rather supplements and revitalizes it, providing even greater hope for each person at the deeply personal level of their own salvation via Christic consciousness, from direct communion with God. Every person can become a healer, a prophet and a world-teacher, as the Christian story relates. The world needs each and every one of us to at least attempt to become perfect. And if enough people reach that pivotal level, the entire world will be irreversibly changed into a blissful utopia a thousand times more splendid than any tropical paradise…
Of course I realize that all this talk of actual reincarnation sounds crazy, but as I've wandered through life I've stumbled across many, many references to immortals over the long history of mankind. The first list I found contained around 10 individuals, mostly from the Middle and Far East, from the local legends of different areas. The second list I found was the Sumerian King List (written c. 2000 BCE), which shows an account of ancient kings going back hundreds of thousands of years who apparently lived for 30,000 years each. Other Sumerian writings say that there were 900 immortals in ancient times (the Anunnaki). The legends of the Himalayan mountains speak of the legendary cities of Shambala and Agartha, each of which is peopled by perhaps thousands - or even tens of thousands - of immortals. And the Bible itself (Revelation 7 and 14) alludes to a 'nation of prophets', suggesting that there were, are, or will be 144,000 people immortalized by the ascension process.
As you can see, the list goes on and on, providing more than just a vague indication that maybe there's something more here than meets the eye. My books discuss all this in more detail, so please do peruse my works (stubrich.com) if you're interested in learning more. You can also contact me with any specific questions.