Summer Solstice
By Anne S.
The Summer Solstice, along with its counterpart in winter, is one of the oldest continuously celebrated festivals. Many ancient monuments charting the course of the sun still stand testimony to our race's ongoing fascination with astronomy and the journey of various bodies across our skies. Paintings and rocks show the precision with which our primitive forebears marked time, the changing seasons, the path of the sun.
We know nothing of what they thought, spiritually, about the solstice, but from the carvings and paintings, the jewellry and weapons that depict solar images, we know the sun and its realtionship to the earth and life was of great interest and importance. Legends, whisps of stories - this is all we have to go on in understanding one of the greatest love affairs of humanity. But what legends and traditions! Flaming bonfires that stain the night sky brilliant with their reds and oranges. Chains of fire circling countries as tribes everywhere pay homage to the longest day - the pinnacle of the Sun God's power. Feasts and games, songs and music that throbs in the blood. A rich, if somewhat tattered, collection of legends.
The cycle of life and death, of renewal, was observed by our ancestors as they honoured Gods and Goddesses of fertility and rebirth. The Summer Solstice marks the middle of Summer's reign. The King is at the peak of his power, about to begin the journey towards winter, death, and ultimately rebirth. It is a time to celebrate and enjoy the fruits of labour, as the First Harvest is brought in.
For many modern Pagans, the solstice is celebrated as an important festival - as it was by the ancients. Despite the diversity of faith within the Pagan religion, there is a unity in celebrating this festival. Except for the Equator, where there is no noticeable difference to the lengths of day and night, the solstices and equinoxes are world-wide observable phenomena that coincide with seasonal change. The longest day and shortest night, the time when the sun stands still, is acknowledged in some fashion by most paths as they honour the Goddess of the Earth and her Consort, the Sun.
Throughout Europe there is an amazing similarity in folk custom when it comes to the celebration of Midsummer, whether in Ireland, the Ukraine, Greece, or Greenland. Even with the great differences in religious belief and practice, the children of the Earth unite on this day to honour her with the same customs. Bonfires, ash sprinkling, dew bathing, ritual cleansing, feasting, and stories of Sun-Gods and their (often) pregnant Earth-Goddesses prevail.
So, in the manifold names of the King, great in his glory, and his Queen, bountiful and gracious, Solstice Blessings to us all.
After the bonfire festivities, girls often carried home a partially burned peat which would be completely extinguished in a tub of "strang bing" (urine) and placed on the door lintel.
The peat would be taken down the next day, broken in two and the colour of the peat within would foretell the colour of the girl's future husband.
Orcadian Midsummer ritual |
A Morning Sun Song & Ritual
from The Foundation for Shamanic Studies - Basic Workshop
This is a ritual to release pain and discomfit from the body. Find a place by the water and spend some time in trancework using a drum, tamborine, maracas, or the like while you focus upon absorbing the sun's golden energy filling your body. See it washing the pain away into the water. When you are ready, chant the following verses (repeat each verse four times):
Morning sun, morning sun
Come my way, come my way
Come my way, come my way
Take my pain, take my pain
Take my pain, take my pain
Down below, down below
Down below, down below
Cool waters, down below
Feel the sun as it soaks into you and washes you clean of pain. Feel the heat and energy fill your body. Visualise the pain washed away and cleansed by the water into pure energy. Throughout the day as you feel the sun, concentrate upon its healing touch. |
Summer Solstice
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Ritual Sun Object
Holy Day - Personal Reflections of the Festivals We Celebrate
Midsummer Reflection
Submitted by: Diancecht Goibniu
Midsummer, also known as Summer Solstice is my favorite sabbat. Not because it is a celebration of masculine energy, but because it is the time of year when I truly take notice of the amazing transformations my children have gone through over the past year.
My oldest daughter seems to have grown two feet over the past year. She is becoming quite the young lady, full of sassy attitude and an amazing compassion that has the ability to humble anyone. She's recently learned how to tie her own shoes and skip bars on the monkey bars, not to mention her ability to finally able to swing by herself on the swing - much to the delight of her mother and I.
Our younger daughter, conceived at Bealtaine, is truly a gift from the faery folk; we call her our little pixie. Every day she never ceases to amaze me with the pure joy that she radiates, infecting everyone with her smile. Her curiosity and innocent spirit remind me to look at life a little less seriously, and to find the joy in the little things that so many of us take for granted.
I mention my children because though I always have the desire to nurture and protect them, I am reminded more so of this desire that aches in the depths of my soul every summer. Fathers are honoured at Midsummer for they plant the seeds of life. Their desire to lovingly protect and nurture their children runs deep. At Midsummer Fathers are the messengers of their childrens dreams, carefully carrying their hopes and prayers to the great spirits.
This year I am also reminded to give a special thanks to the Goddess, as she is manifest in my wife. The Great Mother gives life to all that lives, and when she doesn't need to give any more, she continues to be fruitful and offer more than she needs to. Through hardships, struggles and triumphs the Mother continues to give more and more of herself, even when there may not be anymore to give. My partner has been challenged this year by the great spirits, and she has gracefully continued to nurture our children and me, even when she has had nothing left for herself. Truly a gift from the Gods, my children and I are truly blessed to have such strength in our family.
Summer is a time when our family relishes the long days and the warm evenings, for we know that they wont last for much longer. Lazy afternoons at the beach turn into evening strolls to get ice cream. Walking along the beach under starry skies, we listen to the waves break along the shore while the bioluminescent phytoplankton make them glow from within as the surf crashes agains the shore. Our daughters thrive in the warm sun of Lugh, dancing and laughing and growing strong under the watchful eye of the ancient Keeper.
Our Midsummer celebration is a family one. We create beautiful dream pillows and dream catchers to capture positive energy, drawing it down promoting good dreams. We go to the beach to warm ourselves under the sun and then cool off in the ocean, the sacred waters of life, death and rebirth. In the evening when it is dark we light candles to represent the ancient powers of life and we feast upon foods that remind us of the brightness and sweetness of life. Sweet smells of roses from the altar drift through the air and our children grow sleepy after a long day.
These joyful days of summer are bittersweet in a way. Midsummer reminds me that nothing lasts forever. My children are growing up before my eyes and like everything else, my wife and I must learn to let go of them, bit by bit, year by year. Letting go isn't easy; with every summer solstice we learn to let go, allowing our children and each other to grow and evolve as we continue on this journey of life. |
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