Reindeer Flight on Midwinter Night

With my fingertip, I follow the winding path of the reindeer labyrinth. I enter through her neck, curve along the lower jaw, then make my way through the chin and around the mouth and nostril. From here, I journey upward toward the crown of the reindeer’s head and into her branching antlers. I then ascend to each pinnacle of her many-pointed rack. From there, I travel downward, back through the crown, around the ear, through the nape of the reindeer’s neck, and circle around her eye. I continue, meandering through the head, and down along her nose. Then, winding toward the center, I arrive in the curve of the reindeer’s cheek. Here, I pause to contemplate the meaning of Midwinter before I begin my outward journey along the path.

Reindeer belong to a family of mammals called cervids, which includes species of moose, deer, and elk. They inhabit the cold northern regions of the Arctic, such as Siberia and Scandinavia. They are herbivores, browsing on leafy plants, lichen, grass, and moss. They also consume the psychoactive fungus called fly agaric, a red-capped mushroom with white flecks, that is often found growing under coniferous trees, such as spruce and fir. Unlike other species of deer, both male and female reindeer sport antlers. After mating in autumn, males shed their antlers, while pregnant females retain them until they have given birth in springtime.

Perhaps the best-known reindeer from modern popular culture are those who help Santa Clause deliver gifts to children all over the world on Christmas Eve. Santa’s team of reindeer rise into the air, bounding across the night sky in flight, pulling him and his sleigh full of toys. Rudolph the reindeer leads the team, lighting the way with “his” glowing red nose. However, there is a much older story about a flying reindeer, Deer Mother, who flies south in Midwinter to find the sun and carry it northward in her antlers. Ancient mythology of the Sami suggests that Deer Mother is not a reindeer, per se, but a sun goddess with antlers. On Midwinter’s Eve, she travels in a sleigh, drawn by flying reindeer, on a journey to bring back the sun.

Indigenous people of the far north, such as the Sami and the Nenets, have a long history of hunting and herding reindeer, relying on them as a source of food, clothing, and shelter, as well as transportation by sleigh. Reindeer are an important part of their folklore and spirituality. In ancient times, female shamans, dressed in red and white attire, are thought to have consumed fly agaric on the winter solstice. This allowed them to fly with the spirit of Deer Mother and bring back the gifts of light and warmth from the sun, ensuring rebirth and new life in the months to come.

For all that is,