The Summer Solstice marks the longest day of the year. In the Northern Hemisphere the Summer Solstice falls on June 20 when the sun reaches its northern most point in the sky. The pagan sabbat for this Wheel of the Year is called Litha or Midsummer.
Seasonally the harvest planted in the Spring is starting to grow. The Summer Solstice marks the midpoint of the Summer season, though it is also considered the beginning of Summertime. Greeting the sunrise on morning of Litha is a powerful way to celebrate and give gratitude to the solar energy. The sun gives us the most light on this day. After the days will slowly begin to get shorter and darker as the Wheel of the Years turns toward the Autumn season. The element of Fire is powerful for ritual on this sabbat. Explore color and candle magick burning yellow, red, orange, or old candles to represent the sun. A bonfire to celebrate Midsummer is also a celebratory way to connect with fire. Midsummer eve is also a traditional time for bonfires. The water element is also connected to Litha, and connecting to water in any way is also healing and purifying. You can visit the beach or a local lake or river. Cleanse your crystals with water then charge them in the sunlight of Summer Solstice. Carnelian, Sunstone, Citrine, Amber, and Tiger's Eye are some stones connected to this sabbat. For connecting to the Divine Feminine you can work with any sun, water, and fire Goddesses. Some Goddesses include Aine, Amaterasu, Brighid, Sulis, Sedna, Vesta, Aphrodite, Freya, Olwen, Coventina, and Sekhmet. An outdoor magickal picnic of local seasonal fruits and vegetables of the Summer season is a lovely way to celebrate. Add seasonal herbs such as lavender, sage, rosemary, basil, mint, thyme, ginger, and cinnamon to anything you cook or bake. Citrus fruits such as zesty lemon and orange add solar energy to your Midsummer Feast. Honey honoring the bees is also a sweet addition. The night before Litha, often called Midsummer's Eve, is a powerful time for magickal workings especially abundance, prosperity, and love magick including connecting to self love. This eve is also auspicious for divination, gathering herbs, and connecting with the faery realm. Midsummer's Eve is also great for prophetic dreams. Place mugwort beneath your pillow before you go to sleep. Write down your dreams in the morning at sunrise and reflect on the messages they bring you. To connect to creatively to the Summer Solstice make a flower crown with local wildflowers to wear with a festive outfit. A sun catcher is a lovely craft to make and hang in your window. Paint or draw a sun wheel while connecting to the energies of Midsummer. Sew a dream pillow filled with lavender and mugwort for dreamtime. Create a love sachet with dried rose petals and rose quartz to place on your altar. The Summer Solstice is a time to reflect on what we have planted and started to grow this year. It is a time to feel thankful for the sun and the light, even as the days will be waning and growing darker now. We can connect to our own personal power and internal light. There is hope for the upcoming harvest that will nourish us later this Summer and Autumn. Bright Litha Summer Solstice Blessings.
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February 1 celebrates the cross quarter day Imbolc. We are halfway to Spring at this time on the Wheel of the Year. The days are growing slightly longer, even as Winter is still blanketing the landscape with snow and the winds blow cold air. The promise of Spring coming starts to blossom in our hearts, like the purple crocuses and white snow drop flowers start peaking out from under the snow.
The Goddess Brighid is celebrated on Imbolc. She is an Irish Celtic Triple Goddess of Healing, Smithcraft, and Poetry. You can honor her with writing or reading poetry, lighting red and white candles, and connecting to your creativity. You can also call on her for blessings of healing and to guide you on creative projects. We can work with the energies of cleansing and purification during this sabbat. Cleansing our home, ritual tools, crystals, and taking a purifying bath with candlelight are ways to honor this time of year. Candle magick is also wonderful to work with this time of year, as they symbolize the promise of returning sunlight and warmth at the halfway mark of Winter. Light a candle to focus on the hope of Winter's end. Making a delicious meal also to celebrate Imbolc with breads, grains, and vegetables you would have had from Autumn storage such as potatoes. onions, and cabbage. Dairy is also traditional to eat such as custards. You can make an offering of some of your meal to Goddess Brighid. Imbolc is an auspicious time for Divination using Tarot, Oracle cards, or Runes. You can also do Bibliomancy. Pick a book of poetry in honor of Brighid and ask a question. Then open the book and intuitively pick a line from the poems in the book. This line of poetry will be of guidance for you to reflect on from now until the Spring Equinox. May you have a bright, blessed Imbolc. |
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