As the holiday eve begins, religious ties to landmark holidays become more and more apparent. For some, this is a blessing— others, a curse. One of the biggest holidays during the winter season is Christmas, with heavy ties to Christianity and the birth of Jesus Christ. Historians, however, disagree: most concur that Jesus was born during the spring.
Historians believe that Christmas’ tradition to celebrate Jesus Christ ties back to the Roman Empire. In the empire’s switch to Christianity, pagan rituals had to be replaced— the winter solstice just happened to be replaced with the birth of Christ.
Christmas trees are also far from originating in Christian beliefs. The evergreen stands for a symbol of life returning after harsh winters, as well as for light— the elongation of days in the soon-to-come summer. Mistletoe is another tradition society has pagans to thank for. The Druids started these acts, believing the shrub was all-healing, as well as a symbol of peace towards those they came across.
The tradition of gift-giving during the holidays can lead back to the Roman Empire, where the Romans exchanged gifts for the sake of good luck, and hope for a bountiful harvest in the following year. These rituals have evolved over the years, and giving gifts for good fortune can now be shown through giving gifts of content from a loved one’s favorite piece of media.
Quarantine, with help from the social media platform TikTok, has expanded everyone’s range of interests. Smaller subcultures, such as the ‘alt’ community, have become a normal presence amongst other videos on the app.
Even smaller subcultures have come into view of the public eye as well. Pagan and witch-ly TikToks began to appear more and more frequently on individual’s For You pages, not to mention an influx of Avatar: The Last Airbender videos.
When Netflix released Avatar: The Last Airbender on their platform, older fans of the show reveled. With their new creative outlets, they began to use them and connect it to the show for TikTok videos. This influx in people watching more Western animation started a movement for people to begin watching Japanese animation— anime.
Both anime and wicca have largely expanded over the course of this year, and many fans are excited to rewatch past holiday specials and watch new ones come out. After all, they’re just like any other show. However, one thing both of these things have in common is the little acceptance they get from family members due to so little Western attention.
In these unfortunate times, anime has brought many people happiness and comfort— especially when family relations are rough. Anime Christmas specials, as well as the starting and revival of anime in the winter, is looking to make people more excited than traditional winter holiday events.
Many people look forward to holidays to have time to engage in the things that comfort them, and the winter holidays offer times to get fans of anime a physical reminder of the shows that brings them happiness. Oftentimes, finding suitable gifts relating to the genre is hard in the West, but giving a gift relating to a friend’s most active interest does not have to be sacrificed for a gift they wouldn’t enjoy.
Stores such as Hot Topic and BoxLunch are well known for offering a wide variety of merchandise related to popular animes, but options aren’t limited to these two stores. Online stores such Atsuko offer many apparel items, and Etsy makes finding merchandise for loved ones as easy as searching up the name of the show. An added plus to using Etsy is the knowledge that one is supporting a small business, especially in the hard times that COVID-19 has provided for the public.
Spencer’s and Etsy are often good places to find items for one’s pagan friends. Essentials such as herbs, crystals, and candles are often appreciated by those getting into wicca, especially if creating an altar. Finding a shop on Etsy with both pagan and anime targeted gifts should be fairly easy, as the subcultures often find themselves connecting to each other.
Wicca, and often anime, are both topics that are often looked down upon by older, very religious family members— but Christmas would not be the same without them. From the pagan traditions that Wicca has provided the winter holiday with, to the joy on a friend’s face when receiving gifts relating to the anime that they continuously talk about, the holiday is made by smaller subcultures.
Celebrating Christmas one’s own way, whether it be practicing pagan traditions or watching anime holiday specials, should be something to look forward to. Every aspect of these holidays are important, not just the religious aspect of most celebrations.
