Happy Krampusnacht!

A tarot take on Santa's (Evil?) Twin.

Hi Friends!

Thank you for being patient with me as I sat with post-election sadness. I needed to honor my pull to quiet the outside noise to focus on healing. Like all grief, it will stay with me, but it also feels good to peek above the clouds.

Because I love the mystery and the shadow of all things dark, I’m sure it doesn’t surprise you that I felt inspired to write on Krampusmnacht! (Krampus Night!) Krampus is a German folkloric creature that takes center stage on December 5th. It was initially said that he accompanied the jolly old elf the night before the Feast of Saint Nicholas, celebrated on December 6th. No surprise that this tradition ended when the Christians decided to merge the giving spirit of Saint Nick with Christmas Eve and give mean old Krampus the boot.

I get it…Krampus is known for taking a whip or birch branches to swat at naughty children before gathering them up in his sack to drown, eat, or send down to Hell.

Although the old “be good or else” tradition lives on, the harshness of the concept has been watered down with good ol’ Santa Claus. I have mixed feelings about this; whereas the whole idea of threatening children to be ‘good’ so they get presents is disturbing, erasing Krampus from the mix falls into the same old false promise that all things can be fixed with toxic positivity, there’s no need to face the cold slap of reality that life is pretty dark much of the time. (I’d say at this time of such darkness in the world, Krampus is gleefully in his element more than ever.)

In this way, Krampus gets a bad rap. Because I accept that we live in the liminal, I love exploring the concept of duality. This is a significant symbol of Krampus. As I mentioned above, he forces us to look at the realities of life, that not everything is sunshine and roses. Guess what, kids? Santa doesn’t go to everyone’s house if their parents can’t afford to buy gifts. This is a harsh and unpleasant reality, but what can we do with it? This can help us to be more grateful for what we have and become ‘Santa’ to someone who has never had that experience—whether that includes gifts or ‘simply’ a warm meal or cup of cocoa in a welcoming home.

Krampus is also full of mischief, and I love that about him. I like to think that Santa looks forward to the one night a year they get to hang out together, a break for him from the sugary-sweet falseness of the elves at the North Pole. After making their rounds, they slide into a red leather booth riddled with cigarette holes in the corner watering hole on the ‘bad’ side of town. Santa has someone he can finally complain to, and they joke darkly about the ‘naughty’ kids as they toast grimace-inducing swallows of Malört to their boldness and ingenuity.

Like those of us who look at the energy of the Devil or Baphomet as a symbol of rebellion, I admire Krampus for this same spirit and his willingness to embrace being ‘other.’ Always in Santa’s shadow, he’s comfortable there. He doesn’t follow anyone’s rules or feel he needs to conform to the ‘Christmas spirit.’

Krampus and the Tarot

It had not dawned on me before, but as I thought about Krampus today, I immediately thought of the Seven of Swords card of the tarot. When I initially started reading, I found this card to be one of the more difficult to interpret or fully understand. I mean, this guy in the card is stealing swords from a group as they sleep. If Krampus was a tarot card, I’m sure its keywords would include trickery and betrayal, just as the Seven of Swords.

But often, the phrase that comes to me when I get the Seven of Swords is '“thinking outside the box.” Being sneaky and cunning isn’t always bad. How do we know the people in this camp aren’t mortal enemies, doing atrocious things to this man’s people completely unprovoked?

A couple of other keywords for this card are resourcefulness and strategy, which, of course, are also important and needed in our lives, especially when we are met with an obstacle or barrier in our way. Krampus has these things in spades. It can’t be easy to have been cast so easily aside, but he didn’t let that keep him down…look how he gets increasingly popular every year. Have you seen the movie Krampus?? That’s a holiday favorite around here!

Write About It!

Have you ever given much thought to Krampus? Or the benefits of being resourceful and strategic? What could be the downfalls of those traits?

Of course, Krampus himself is a great character to include in a story. How may your character be using or being called to embrace the energy of the Seven of Swords now?