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Happy New Year!! Janus returns...

 First, Happy New Year Dear Reader!

So, in keeping with my evolving subject matter, let’s raise  a glass of champagne to the new year, and be grateful that Donald baby is no longer in the White House! Let us also be thankful to be living in such an exciting time!

And, I mean excitement in not always a pleasant sense!

And, so let us investigate a bit of the holiday known as New Years, shall we? 

Here's a nice quote from a fairly reputable source:

Caesar instituted January 1 as the first day of the year, partly to honor the month's namesake: Janus, the Roman god of beginnings, whose two faces allowed him to look back into the past and forward into the future.

https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/new-years#:~:text=January%201%20Becomes%20New%20Year's%20Day,-The%20early%20Roman&text=As%20part%20of%20his%20reform,and%20forward%20into%20the%20future.

So, who exactly was this god named Janus?  He was also known as the god of two faces, one perhaps facing the past, and the other the future  He is also incorrectly and currently known as the god of the modern theater.  Honestly, it amazes me how these ancient deities and traditions are usurped by modern institutions, it almost seems to me a matter of convenience--oooh! I like that statue, let's make it our logo!  Honestly, I wonder at our modern age and sensibilities, sometimes.

Here is a representation of the classical image of the god:


And this passage is a more correct definition of the god:

Janus has no parallel in the Greek pantheon, making him an exclusively Roman god. A duel headed  god, with one head looking forward and the other behind, he marked actual and metaphorical thresholds in time and space. Janus guarded crossing places and thresholds, beginnings and endings and acted as an intermediary between the gods and mortals.

https://historyandarchaeologyonline.com/the-god-janus/

 Kind of interesting, eh? 

In this century, we celebrate New Year's Day, mainly watching the Rose Parade, and looking at a huge and gaudy ball drop the night before--that is, if we're sober enough to be able to count.

So, what were the traditions that the Romans observed, regarding the New Year? Let's see.

The Romans observed this day as one of feasting, and also as a doorway to consider the past, and contemplate the future.  However, I think that you can pretty much guarantee the fact that the Romans celebrated the new year with one hell of a lot of feasting and drinking.  One custom that I always found rather interesting (in a repulsive way) was that Romans always made it a point to consume too much food and drink at a feast, and then vomit, so that they could partake of every dish and drink served.  But, what were Romans, if not architects of excess?

And, did you know that the celebration of the new year in January, is not the same for all cultures?  Indeed, many Celtic nations honored the transition of the old year into the new in March--why?  Well, this was the time of the vernal equinox.  To me, this seems to be much more appropriate, but I still like the practice of spending the night and following day with my family.  After all, what are we now, but ephemeral creatures in a world of changing traditions?

So, in closing, enjoy the New Year, and remember that not all traditions have been followed for thousands of years--it just goes to show you how influential the nineteenth century was in establishing the patterns of life in the West.

Happy New Year, Dear Reader, make it a good one!  



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