Other pagan traditions have different names for the holiday: Midsummer, Summer Solstice, Sun Blessing, Gathering Day, turning-of-the-season day (Old European/Neo-Pagan/Wiccan), Whit Sunday, Whitsuntide, St. John’s Day/Eve (Christian), Day of Cerridwen and her Cauldron (English/Welsh), Day of the Green Man (Northern Europe), The Great Mother (British), Feast of the Great Spirit, and Alban Hefin/ Alban Heruin (Druid).
The Summer Solstice marks the beginning of summer when the sun is at its highest point in the sky resulting in the longest day and shortest night of the year. There is often around 14 hours of sunlight on this day. This is the turning point from spring to summer. Litha lies directly across from Yule, the shortest day of the calendar year. The Summer Solstice is the point at which the life giving sun is at its strongest over the power of darkness. When the sun is at its peak in the sky at Summer Solstice, Earth is as close as possible to the sun. Solstice comes from solstitium meaning sun stands still. Litha is the ancient Germanic name for summer and the time to celebrate its warmth.
The joyous rituals of Litha celebrate the verdant earth in high summer, abundance, fertility, and all the riches of nature in full bloom. At midsummer, the Sun God has reached the moment of his greatest strength. Seated on his greenwood throne, he is also Lord of the Forests, and his face is seen in church architecture peering from countless foliate masks. The Christian religion converted this day to the Feast of St. John the Baptist, often portraying him in rustic attire, sometimes with horns and cloven feet (like the Greek Demi God Pan). This important time in the solar year is when the Oak King, God of Light, hands over reign to the Holly King, God of Darkness, who rules from this point forward for the second half of the year.
The solstices are celebrated mainly in Northern European temperate countries where the difference between light and dark gives marked seasonal alternation. Celebrations would start the evening before and people would stay awake all night, usually reciting poetry and stories to keep themselves amused, until the moment the sun rose. The sun would then be welcomed in with drumming.
England: In England, the Summer Solstice is marked by the Glastonbury Festival. Stonehenge has special alignment with the sunrise at solstice. The stones were aligned to the Summer Solstice sun about 4,000 year ago. The Heel Stone and the Slaughter Stone align with the rising sun. Each year thousands of modern Pagans and Witches gather at Stonehenge in celebration of the Summer Solstice. Many other stone works are aligned to the Summer Solstice, attesting to the widespread importance of this day in cultures around the world. There are more than 37,000 people who gather at the ancient stones to watch the sunrise each year.
Celebrations are generally held on 21 June, although the solstice covers a period of about four days on either side. Summer Solstice Midsummer/Litha is celebrated with the lighting of bonfires, feasting and merrymaking. Litha, is one of the eight solar holidays or sabbats of Neopaganism, especially Wicca, though the New Forest traditions (those referred to as British Traditional Wicca) tend to use the traditional name Midsummer. It is celebrated on the Summer Solstice or close to it.
By Summer Solstice, all the seeds have been planted. It is the pause between the early crops of leaves, such as lettuce and nettles, and the harvest of fruit, root vegetables, and grain. In agricultural communities, the Summer Solstice is a time for people to get together and celebrate life. The holiday is considered the turning point at which summer reaches its height and the sun shines longest, but at the same time it is said we are reminded that the days will soon begin to shorten.
Midsummer or the Summer Solstice is the most powerful day of the year for the Sun God. Because this Sabbat glorifies the Sun God and the Sun, fire plays a very prominent role in this festival. Honor sun gods, complete fertility rites, and celebrate with bonfires to remember and honor the sun. The element of Fire is the most easily seen and immediately felt element of transformation. It can burn, consume, cook, shed light or purify and balefires still figure prominently at modern Midsummer rites. The date of the Solstice can vary – in some traditions, it always falls on the 21st, in others, the astrological date is used, which can vary from the 20th to the 22nd. After Litha, the days will become shorter and nights longer.
Midsummer Night’s Eve is also special for those that adhere to the Faerie faith. This time of year is considered a time of a great magical power. It is one of the best times to perform magic of any kind. Spells pertain to love, healing, and prosperity are very effective now. Giving away fire, sleeping away from home, and neglecting animals are taboos on this holiday.
From our altar to yours, with love from the sea,
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