A Visit from Saint Nicholas 
‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
“Now, DASHER! now, DANCER! now, PRANCER and VIXEN!
On, COMET! on CUPID! on, DONNER and BLITZEN!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”
As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes — how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!
– Clement Clarke Moore, 1823
This may be regarded as the most defining and identifiable Christmas poem. There are others, belonging to the canon of literature in English, which are among the most critically acclaimed and of the greatest literary merit that may be defined as Christmas poems. But those outstanding verses have other agendas and are not joyous and celebratory. They use Christmas to explore themes and statements of graver import and significance.
This one, “A Visit from Saint Nicholas”, also called “The Night Before Christmas”, by Clement Clarke Moore has very little critical acclaim; it is popular literature. But it actually defines Christmas and is the signature poem of the season and its most popular traditions.
Among the canon of American literature is “Christmas Bells” (1863) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. No poem is more identifiable – with its descriptions and echoes of the seasonal atmosphere and ring of “peace on earth”. This was so strong that it was set to music and became a very well-known and acclaimed Christmas carol, “I Heard The Bells on Christmas Day”. But it is deceiving. Its themes and interests are about things that are inimical to the Christmas spirit and the echo of the bells. It rings of war, the cannon fire of the American Civil War and the tragic side of human existence. Its “peace on earth, goodwill to men” is a mockery.
T S Eliot’s “Journey of The Magi” is famous and of the most profound literary worth and meaning. It is based on the story of the Magi – the three wise kings from the east – who visited and took gifts for the newborn Jesus. It even hints that the Nativity changed the world. But it is not definitive; it is sometimes debated and is a Christmas poem only in a very profound and complex way, with its more critical confusion of the birth with the crucifixion. There is little of joy, even in the final declaration of the Magus who narrates the poem that nothing was the same after the journey to Bethlehem.
Moore’s “The Night Before Christmas”, otherwise known as “Twas The Night Before Christmas”, was first published anonymously as “A Visit From Saint Nicholas” in a newspaper – The Sentinel, of Troy, New York on December 23, 1823. Authorship was afterwards attributed to Moore, who published it under his own name in 1837, and again among a collection of his verse in 1844. He was reluctant to attach his name to it because he was a scholar – a professor who wanted to be known for his more serious literary work. This one was regarded as unscholarly work written to amuse his children. Ironically, this is the poem for which he became known to the world. It earned the distinction of “arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American” (Burrowes and Wallace, 1999).
This is the seminal text, the very ‘bible’ of secular, popular Christmas belief and mythology. Its wide reputation is that it is the first real description of Santa Claus. All that is known today is attributed to what is described in that poem. It actually narrates the mythology for the first time, detailing what has since come to be what Santa Claus looks like, about the flying reindeer and other mythical beliefs. It is also exceedingly striking in the way it sets the atmosphere of Christmas Eve night.
But how can such a poem be accepted as defining the season? It says nothing of the Christian beliefs, of the Nativity, of the religious Christian festival that Christmas is. To fathom this, one has to understand fundamental elements of the festival.
We have previously referred to the characteristics of religious festivals. They express faith. They belong to a religion and are cultural expressions of the spiritual beliefs and principles of the religion. They practice private or exclusive worship and rituals among the believers but also have a large public outreach which demonstrates in a public way what the religion is about. These are manifested in a festival that may include/involve the general population including non-believers.
Christmas is that way. Like others, such as Diwali, Phagwah or Easter, it evolved as a cultural festival and a traditional one because of several associated traditions and customs that developed along with its evolution. Although Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Christ, it has grown into the world’s largest popular and commercial festival. It is the world’s largest festival of any kind.
Its popular and secular elements were there even from its origins and formative years. It originated in Rome among followers of Christ who were at first persecuted by Roman authority. But, ironically, it was that same authority that became converted and that was responsible for the real growth of the religion and the creation of Christmas Day. That is why the first church was the Roman Catholic, which became literally the most powerful government around Europe – by the time of the Renaissance, more powerful than even the king (as Henry VIII of England found out when he decided to split from it and imposed the Church of England – Anglican).
Christmas was formed out of a number of secular (pagan) festivals, including the Roman Saturnalia, which the priests worked to change and transform. While the day itself was the birthday of Jesus, it evolved along with a number of popular traditions including Yule. Another factor was that it also evolved around a series of sacred feast days – such as the Feast of Stephen and the traditional 12 days of Christmas (December 25 – January 6).
The mediaeval feasts had their popular side with literal feasting and drinking. The “Wassail Song” is a drinking song celebrating a popular tradition. Christmas then, evolved along with a great popular appeal dating as far back as mediaeval times. Growing up as it did among popular secular beliefs and traditions such as Yule, the popular influence of Christmas developed its own mythology. This escalated in modern times, expanding tremendously in the nineteenth century. This mythology multiplied and became expressed in literature. Among these myths was Santa Claus.
It is said that Saint Nick was real. A number of different sources agree that the original Santa was St Nicholas of Myra, a Greek who lived in the Roman Empire in the Third and Fourth centuries, first persecuted for being a Christian, but then rescued when the Romans embraced the church, and revered for his charitable deeds and reputation as a worker of miracles. St Nicholas Day was first celebrated on December 6, and then shifted to Christmas. He became legend and then mythical around Europe.
As it is with these festivals, even many popular offshoots still reflect the religious beliefs and principles. In this case, Santa is associated with the giving of gifts. This was a Christian custom established with Christ himself as a gift from God to save mankind. This was further symbolised in the gifts brought by the Magi for Jesus, and the spirit of goodwill. St Nick was a charitable figure.
Eventually this spread to America and the mythical beliefs multiplied. There is quite a matrix of myths around this festival and they extend around and beyond Santa. A great literature was generated around them, and this poem by Moore is perhaps the most defining piece. Nowhere before were these details of Santa set down, and it set the tone for what is now popular belief.
