10 replies to this topic

[applesnail]

"Although most people see Christmas as a Christian holiday, many of the symbols and icons we associate with Christmas celebrations are actually derived from the shamanistic traditions of the tribal peoples of pre-Christian Northern Europe.
The sacred mushroom of these people was the red and white amanita muscaria mushroom, also known as "fly agaric." These mushrooms are now commonly seen in books of fairy tales, and are usually associated with magic and fairies. This is because they contain potent hallucinogenic compounds, and were used by ancient peoples for insight and transcendental experiences.
Most of the major elements of the modern Christmas celebration, such as Santa Claus, Christmas trees, magical reindeer and the giving of gifts, are originally based upon the traditions surrounding the harvest and consumption of these most sacred mushroom"

http://www.cannabisc...icles/3136.html

[whitewind]

Santa is an anagram of Satan. Santa takes the necessity of worldly goods and magnifies it into need, turning what was once a thanksgiving ceremony into a festival of greed, twisting the whole indigenous spirituality and warping it into the desperate follies of uber-capitalism, blackening the souls of once-kindly people and turning them into parasitic vampires of nature.

Edited by whitewind, 28 July 2012 - 06:40 PM.

[∂an]

^ lol don't bother putting your stocking out this year whitewind

Everything can be distorted into darkness, or brought into the light. I don't think Santa is necessarily bad, its just that capitalism has latched on to it as a way to peddle more junk. In fact many childrens first taste of the 'other world' is through Santa Claus, a mystical figure that can fly and generously gives to the children of the world.

It is interesting that the colours of red and white and the amanita mushroom motif are also used extensively to represent pharmacies in europe. Also I have found amanita to be more medicinal than psychedelic in the classic sense, so maybe this mushroom was quite important as a medicine in centuries gone by.

Also I think their is some truth to the notion that the amanita mushroom was used a 'red herring' to hide knowledge of the psilocybe mushrooms from the general population. It suits this roll as it is certainly psychoactive, but nothing like the psilocybes (although there is some anecdotal evidence that amanitas can contain tryptamines), and gives enough of a stomach ache that most people would quickly lose their interest in the idea of 'magic mushrooms'.

[incognito]

Whitewind has been a bad bad boy ;)
Would hate to be in your shoes mate.

[chnt]

worship santa

[etherealdrifter]

lol don't bother putting your stocking out this year whitewind
haahaa good one kalika.

[sethomopod]

not too sure about that article linked in the OP.. not very thorough.

Im sure there are loads of people out there that would've heard of Santa being invented by Coca Cola

This is partially true.. The modern Santa we all know was invented by Thomas Nast in 1862. The round, jolly and ruddy faced giver of gifts, dressed in red and white. Previously, Santa was forest coloured, Brown and Green..

Then in the 1930's Coca Cola decided to advertise Santa, getting thirsty from his long haul around the world, which luckily included their corporate colours..

A man named Haddon Sundblom is responsible for how every child perceives Santa Claus in the modern day..

So, the whole idea that Santa somehow embodies Amanitas, based mainly upon his garb is a little silly,,,

It's not hidden transcendence, it's corporate greed. pure and simple.. Coca Cola wanted to increase sales in winter times!

DEATH TO SANTA!!!

Edited by sethomopod, 29 July 2012 - 10:29 AM.

[Zen Peddler BlueGreenie]

So every pre-christian northern-european culture consumed amanita muscara?

[whitewind]

If Santa goes near my stockings he's in for a shock, I tell you. Why's he want to put his mandarins and shit in them for anyway?

[shruman]

"Then in the 1930's Coca Cola decided to advertise Santa, getting thirsty from his long haul around the world, which luckily included their corporate colours.."

This was a rip off of the White Rock Beverage company's ad campaign that used Santa to sell mineral water & later ginger ale from 1915.

Its interesting to note Nast's 1863 depiction of Santa that featured in Harpers Weekly was propaghanda with Santa wearing an american flag (two of the three colours of which being red & white) while making a puppet named Jeff dance, Jeff being Jefferson Davis who was the leader of the confederates at the time.

[whitewind]

"A wink of his eye, and a twist of his head,
soon led me to know I had nothing to dread."
—Twas' the Night Before Christmas, Clement C. Moore

http://www.av1611.or...ubls/santa.html

Nearly all Santa researchers agree that some traits of Santa was borrowed from Norse [Scandinavian] mythology.

Encyclopedia Britannica describes the role of Nordic mythology in the life of Santa:

Sinterklaas was adopted by the country's English-speaking majority under the name Santa Claus, and his legend of a kindly old man was united with old Nordic folktales of a magician who punished naughty children and rewarded good children with presents. ("Santa Claus" Encyclopaedia Britannica 99)

Some Santa researchers associate Santa with the Norse "god" of Odin or Woden. Crichton describes Odin as riding through the sky on an eight-legged, white horse name Sleipnir. (Santa originally had eight reindeers, Rudolph was nine). Odin lived in Valhalla (the North) and had a long white beard. Odin would fly through the sky during the winter solstice (December 21-25) rewarding the good children and punishing the naughty. (Crichton, Robin. Who is Santa Claus? The Truth Behind a Living Legend. Bath: The Bath Press, 1987, pp. 55-56)

Mythologist Helene Adeline Guerber presents a very convincing case tracing Santa to the Norse god Thor in Myths of Northern Lands:

Thor was the god of the peasants and the common people. He was represented as an elderly man, jovial and friendly, of heavy build, with a long white beard. His element was the fire, his color red. The rumble and roar of thunder were said to be caused by the rolling of his chariot, for he alone among the gods never rode on horseback but drove in a chariot drawn by two white goats (called Cracker and Gnasher). He was fighting the giants of ice and snow, and thus became the Yule-god. He was said to live in the "Northland" where he had his palace among icebergs. By our pagan forefathers he was considered as the cheerful and friendly god, never harming the humans but rather helping and protecting them. The fireplace in every home was especially sacred to him, and he was said to come down through the chimney into his element, the fire. (Guerber, H.A. Myths of Northern Lands. New York: American Book Company, 1895, p. 61)

The unusual and common characteristics of Santa and Thor are too close to ignore.

• An elderly man, jovial and friendly and of heavy build.
• With a long white beard.
• His element was the fire and his color red.
• Drove a chariot drawn by two white goats, named called Cracker and Gnasher.
• He was the Yule-god. (Yule is Christmas time).
• He lived in the Northland (North Pole).
• He was considered the cheerful and friendly god.
• He was benevolent to humans.
• The fireplace was especially sacred to him.
• He came down through the chimney into his element, the fire.

Even today in Sweden, Thor represents Santa Claus. The book, The Story of the Christmas Symbols, records:

Swedish children wait eagerly for Jultomten, a gnome whose sleigh is drawn by the Julbocker, the goats of the thunder god Thor. With his red suit and cap, and a bulging sack on his back, he looks much like the American Santa Claus. (Barth, Edna. Holly, Reindeer, and Colored Lights, The Story of the Christmas Symbols. New York: Clarion Books, 1971, p. 49)

Thor was probably history’s most celebrated and worshipped pagan god. His widespread influence is particularly obvious in the fifth day of the week, which is named after him – Thursday (a.k.a. Thor’s Day).

It is ironic that Thor’s symbol was a hammer. A hammer is also the symbolic tool of the carpenter – Santa Claus. It is also worth mentioning that Thor’s helpers were elves and like Santa’s elves, Thor’s elves were skilled craftsman. It was the elves who created Thor’s magic hammer.

In the Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs, author Francis Weiser traces the origin of Santa to Thor: "Behind the name Santa Claus actually stands the figure of the pagan Germanic god Thor." (Weiser, Francis X. Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1952, p. 113)

After listing some the common attributes of Thor and Santa, Weiser concludes:

Here, [Thor] then, is the true origin of our "Santa Claus." . . . With the Christian saint whose name he still bears, however, this Santa Claus has really nothing to do. (Weiser, Francis X. Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1952, p. 114)

Another interesting trait of Thor is recorded by H.R. Ellis Davidson in Scandinavian Mythology, "It was Thor who in the last days of heathenism was regarded as the chief antagonist of Christ." (Davidson, H.R. Ellis. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1982, p. 133) In case you are not aware, an "antagonist" is an enemy, adversary or replacement.

The bizarre and mutual attributes of Thor and Santa are no accident.

While the pagan brush strokes of Norse mythology has painted some of the traits of Santa Claus, there exists another brush stroke coloring Santa that bids our inspection.
There is a little-known piece in the life of Santa that time and tradition has silently erased. Few people are aware that for most of his life, St. Nicholas (Sinter Klaas, Christkind, et. al.) had an unusual helper or companion. This mysterious sidekick had many names or aliases. He was known as Knecht Rupprecht; Pelznickle; Ru-Klas;Swarthy; Dark One; Dark Helper; Black Peter; Hans Trapp; Krampus; Grampus; Zwarte Piets; Furry Nicholas; Rough Nicholas; Schimmelreiter; Klapperbock; Julebuk; et. al.

The startling fact is, Santa Claus is not the Bishop St. Nicholas – but his Dark Helper!

In certain German children’s games, the Saint Nicholas figure itself is the Dark Helper, a devil who wants to punish children, but is stopped from doing so by Christ. (Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 105)
Black Pete, the ‘grandfather’ of our modern Santa Claus. Known in Holland as Zwarte Piet, this eighteenth-century German version, is—like his ancient shamanic ancestor—still horned, fur-clad, scary, and less than kind to children. Although portrayed as the slave helper of Saint Nicholas, the two are, in many villages, blended into one character. This figure often has the name Nikolass or Klaus, but has the swarthy appearance of the Dark Helper. (Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 98)

Artist Thomas Nast is rightfully credited for conceiving the image of our modern day Santa, but Nast’s model for Santa was not the Bishop St. Nicholas but his dark companion, the evil Pelznickle.

The Christmas demon Knecht Rupprecht first appeared in a play in 1668 and was condemned by the Roman Catholic as being a devil in 1680. . . To the Pennsylvania Dutch, he is known as Belsnickel. Other names for the same character are Pelznickle, "Furry Nicholas," and Ru-Klas, "Rough Nicholas." From these names, it is easy to see that he is looked upon as not merely a companion to St. Nicholas, but almost another version of him. (Del Re, Gerard and Patricia. The Christmas Almanack. New York: Random House, 2004, pp. 93,94)

In Thomas Nast: His Period and His Pictures, biographer Albert Bigelow Paine, documents that Nast’s Santa was Pelznickle.

But on Christmas Eve, to Protestant and Catholic alike, came the German Santa Claus, Pelze-Nicol, leading a child dressed as the Christkind, and distributing toys and cakes, or switches, according as the parents made report. It was this Pelze-Nicol – a fat, fur-clad, bearded old fellow, at whose hands he doubtless received many benefits – that the boy in later years was to present to us as his conception of the true Santa Claus – a pictorial type which shall lone endure. (Paine, Albert Bigelow. Thomas Nast: His Period and His Pictures. New York: Chelsea House, 1980, p. 6)