Mike Nichols has a more explicitly pagan view of this festivity, so check out his article Imbolc.NOTE: in southern latitudes, of course, the equinoxes and solstices are reversed, so that the wintry character of the Yule Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere becomes a midsummer celebration of Litha in Australia, South Africa, South America, New Zealand and other places south of the equator.