THE GODDESS AND MAGICK
LITHA - Summer Solstice (June 20-23)
Alternate Names- Midsummer, Celtic 'Oak Festival'
Druidic Name - Alban Hefin or Alban Heruin (Light of the Shore)
Christian Equivalent- Saint John the Baptist's Day (24th June)
Place in the Natural Cycle
Litha is the solar festival that marks the longest day of the year, with the sun rising and setting at its most northerly points. The summer quarter of the year runs from Beltane to Lughnassadh, so Litha stands at the midpoint of summer.
Further Details
Litha celebrates the height of the sun's power and the abundance of summer. Nature is alive, and fields and fruits are growing towards harvest, but the blessing is mixed, for once light reaches its apogee it can only decline. Litha is a fairly modern term for the summer solstice, and it may be derived from an Anglo-Saxon word for 'moon' that referred to the sixth and seventh months of the year. The Druidic name for the festival, Alban Heruin or 'Light of the Shore', is very appropriate for this turning point of the year, lying at the midpoint between Light of the Earth and Light of the Water (the Druidic terms for the equinoctial celebrations).
In the past, midsummer fires were lit for purification, protection and in the hope that the sun could be kept powerful for long enough to ensure a good harvest. People would leap over these fires in the belief that the crops would grow as high as they could jump. Drumming, dancing and singing were common, making this festival a noisy and social time. The full moon in June is known as the Mead or Honey Moon, and mead is a traditional drink for Litha, just as June is a popular time for weddings and hence honeymoons.
Litha honors the apex of Light, sometimes symbolized in the crowning of the Oak King, God of the waxing year. At his crowning, the Oak King falls to his darker aspect, the Holly King, God of the waning year (days grow shorter after Litha). In terms of the God and Goddess cycle, the God is made King through his marriage to the Queen at Litha.
Just as the winter solstice festival was appropriated by the Christian church to celebrate Christ's birth, so the popular summer solstice festival was taken to mark the birth of one of the church's most important saints: the cousin and baptizer of Jesus, John the Baptist. Other saints' days correspond to the supposed dates of their deaths, but John's is unusual in marking his birth. Saint John's Wort is a flower of traditional importance to midsummer celebrations.
Litha is a time to consolidate your strengths and clear away negative thoughts and energies. It is a time to be joyful and full of life, while at the same time mindful of the waning of the light from now until Yule.
LITHA RITUAL
Preparations
Add summer flowers to your ritual bath, and anoint yourself with their oils before the ritual. For the ritual itself, you will need a fir source, your favorite divination tool, some dew or rainwater from the night before, one stick of protective incense for every room in your house, a white candle, and a sun wheel.
Fashion the latter from grapevines or rose briers so the branches form a circle with an equidistant cross in the center. Decorate this with golden ribbons and symbols of the four elements. Gather together nine dried herbs in a bowl, each of which represents a personal (or group) need or goal. Nine is the number of completion.
The Altar
Cover the altar with a red or orange cloth to honor the sun. Decorate the top with daisy blossoms. The daisy takes its name from day's-eye, because it turns to follow the sun in its path. Use gold, red, or yellow candles to represent divine Fire. Place your fire source at the center of the altar with your divination tool in front of it, the sun wheel and water at one side, and the bowl of herbs, white candle, and incense on the other.
Invocation
If possible, this ritual should begin at noon, when the un is highest in the sly. A nice additional touch for this invocation is to have candles at all four compass points to represent the dominance of the fire element.
South~Fires of creation, within me burn, for the Wheel of Life has turned. Keep safe the sun's dynamic spark; throughout the world, ignite the dark.
West~Waters of Creation, within me flow, 'round again the Wheel must go. Keep safe the dew of dusk and dawn: let magick prance upon the lawn.
North~Loam of fertility, nourish me; the Wheel's lessons I wish to see. Keep safe the soil where roost can grow, while round the circle, magick sows!
East~Air of Insight, breathe in this place; the Wheel of Time shall guide your pace. Keep safe the winds of muse and mind; within this circle, the magick bind.
Center~Spirit of Truth, and psychic power, the Wheel has turned again this hour. Keep safe the light that warms the land; birth the magick where I stand.
If your fire source is not already burning, light it now along with the God and Goddess candles.
Meditation and Visualization
At the altar, take your divination tool in your weak hand. Dip the pointer finger of your strong hand into the water and draw an invoking pentagram in the air above the tool, saying:
"Powers of Insight, I invoke you. Let the power of light this day grant me sight beyond sight. Reveal the patterns of the Wheel as it turns, and the lessons I must learn."
Repeat this procedure on your forehead with the water and the invocation, then sit down with your tool.
Hold the divination tool in your hands and close your eyes. Open your senses and breathe deeply. Visualize the light in your aura filling the tool, and the energy of the tool filling your aura. This attunes your auric energy to that of the tool, and vice versa. Continue the visualization until the tool feels warm and welcoming in your hands.
Open your eyes and proceed with a reading. If possible, draw out six emblems to represent the rends over the next six months. Make notes of this reading in your journal and return to it at Yule and see how accurate it was.
The Ritual
Stand before the altar and take the bowl of herbs in hand, saying:
"Fires of Fertility, sun of creation, I welcome you. As these herbs burn, let their smoke carry the message of my needs swiftly to your hearth, and gather there the light of magick."
Begin sprinkling the nine herbs on the fire source, one at a time, saying:
On a count of one, the spell's begun.
On the count of two, my wishes come true.
On the count of three, the magick's freed.
On the count of four, I open the door.
On the count of five, the magick's alive.
On the count of six, the magick, afix!
On the count of seven, it reaches the heavens.
On the count of eight, no more to wait.
On the count of nine, what I wish is mine!
Afterward, move yourself through the smoke created by these herbs three times for mental, physical, and spiritual health throughout the rest of the year.
Next, light a white candle from the flames before you take it to a room in your house. From this fire, ignite a stick of protective incense, raise it before you, and invoke your household god's and/or goddess's blessing. Leave the incense burning (in a proper container); repeat this in every room of your house. This cleanses the home and safeguards it against negativity, especially malintentioned magick.
At the end of your ritual, pick up the sun wheel and hold it to your heart. Close your eyes and make a wish. Make this wish as specific as possible, and visualize it in completed form. Then release the energy to your fire source by tossing in the sun wheel. The fire inspires manifestation. Let this burn itself out naturally, or douse it with the divination water.
Alternatively, make your wish and hang the sun wheel in a visually predominant place in your home. Each time you see it, repeat your wish, until it manifests. Then take down the wheel and keep it safely put away for next year's ritual.
Other Activities
This is an excellent time of year to make protective charms for your home or pets. For this, gather together a piece of rowan wood, red fabric, and red thread. If you wish, add other warding herbs, such as St. John's wort, woodbine, vervain, anise, or salt to the mixture. Bundle the herbs in the cloth. Gather it at the top, saying:
"Where rowan and red are bound, protection surrounds."
Each time you say this, make one knot in the red thread. Put the charm in any safe place around your home; it can also be kept in the glove compartment in your car.
Traditionally, this is also an excellent day to cast spells to attract a lover, or refresh a relationship. My favorite spell for either purpose begins by gathering rose petals at dawn, the time of hope. Whisper your desire into the petals, then release them to the winds during your ritual. Their fragrance carries your wish to the intended person.
Closing the Circle
Stand in the center of your circle, facing east. Turn slowly counterclockwise saying,
"Turn, turn, turn, the Wheel must turn. As dawn to day, as day to night, so the Wheel turns, filled with might."
End in the east and start dismissing the quarters.
East~Wind of Change, move on, move on. With the ever-turning Wheel, go from this place carrying the air of magick.
North~Loam of the Earth, move on, move on. With the ever-turning Wheel, go from this place planting the seeds of magick.
West~Water of Birth, move on, move on. With the ever-turning Wheel, go from this place, cresting with waves of magick.
South~Fires of Creation, move on, move on. With the ever-turning Wheel, go from this place, burning with the embers of magic.
Center~Spirit of Light, move on, move on. With the ever-turning Wheel, go from this place, empowering the energy of magick.
Post Ritual Foods
Try any hot-flavored foods - such as Curry dishes, stuffed onions, or stuffed peppers - and items baked in the oven (the hearth fire) to which solar spices are added.
Also consider having a barbecue to honor the Fire element.