Gift-Giving, Saturnalia and Gratitude

In this interview I am joined by Dr Thomas Clough Daffern, philosopher, educator, peace activist, and peace officer for the Council of British Druid Orders. Dr Daffern explains the meaning of Christmas and the Winter Solstice, reflects on cyclic time and indigenous wisdom, and shares his own recent reckonings with death and loss. Dr Daffern reveals the esoteric and mythic symbolism of the Christmas tree, mistletoe, gift giving, and even Father Christmas himself. Dr Daffern also shares his thoughts on the current world situation, why he is an optimist about the future of civilisation, and why he believes it is the moral duty of those with knowledge and power to share it with the world. … Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep339-christmas-the-winter-solstice-dr-thomas-clough-daffern Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’. … Topics Include: 00:00 - Intro 00:50 - How Thomas spends this time of year 03:02 - The worst year of Thomas’ life 04:19 - Death of Thomas’ daughter 07:30 - Reckoning with death 10:14 - What the traditions say about the current world situation 12:14 - Druids and cyclical time 12:52 - Increasing wisdom in the world 13:18 - Sophia-phobia 15:11 - Why Thomas is an optimist about the future 18:07 - The meaning of Winter Solstice 18:12 - Christmas and Mithraism 19:34 - Megalithic civilisations and prehistorical religion 25:39 - The Golden Bough and indigenous European wisdom 26:54 - Death and rebirth 29:21 - Rituals and symbols of Christmas 31:23 - Symbolism of the Christmas tree 33:34 - The meaning of “Christmas” 34:31 - Symbolism of mistletoe 35:40 - Symbolism of present giving 36:37 - Thomas comments on peace in the Middle East 37:59 - Is symbolism and the esoteric only for an elite minority? 41:29 - The aristocratic hippy and sharing wisdom 42:37 - The moral duty to share knowledge and power 44:52 - Symbolism of Father Christmas / Santa Claus 46:15 - Concluding thoughts … Previous episodes with Dr Thomas Clough Daffern: - https://www.guruviking.com/search?q=daffern … To find our more about Dr Thomas Clough Daffern, visit: - https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-clough-daffern-phd-6a3463a - https://interfaithpeacetreaty.wordpress.com/ … For more interviews, videos, and more visit: - www.guruviking.com Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James