Litha, The Triumph of the Sun.

The 21st June is the day when the Sun reaches its maximum declination along its elliptical; being perpendicular on the Tropic of Cancer, it scores for the northern hemisphere the longest day of the year. After the solstice, the days will be shorter and shorter again until we will reach the longest night (Winter Solstice) and the start of a new cycle ...

In the Arctic Circle, the phenomenon of the midnight sun can be observed, characterized by the unusual position that the sun keeps on the horizon: an endless sunset, with the star visible even at midnight.


From the pagan point of view, Litha marks the triumph of the divine on the darkness - often identified with the solar star, in many traditions. A triumph celebrated since the dawn of time, as evidenced by Stonehenge: built circa 5000 years ago, the famous stone circle is in fact oriented toward where the sun rises on the horizon, the day of the summer solstice.



Even today, after thousands of years, pagans from around the world join the Druids to celebrate the event in this sacred space.

According to the Wicca, Litha is one of the minor Sabbath: the Goddess, who we saw as wife to the God at Beltane, is now pregnant; as it is the land around us. The vegetation is flourishing, the soil is warm, the days are long, the fields are full of fruits, waiting for the first harvest of the year. The God is the energy, the sun's heat, the force at the peak of its power ... Waiting to die and be reborn. 

In European countries, people used to celebrate with games and bonfires, setting large wheels of wood on fire;  which they were then made to roll in a stretch of water.

According to some interpretations, it was a way to prevent droughts in the fields - symbolized by the water, turning off the fire. Water is another star of this festival, as we will see later. 



In Ancient Rome, June was the month dedicated to the goddess Juno, wife to Zeus, who was protecting women, motherhood and marriage. In fact, the Romans used to get married during this month, in order to have the protection of the goddess. The Vestalia was also celebrated between the 7th and the 15th of the month, the festival dedicated to Vesta.

During this period, the temple of Vesta was momentarily opened and made accessible to women; who had to go barefoot, with no make-up and bearing gifts to the goddess, in exchange for a blessing for their home. In conjunction with Vesta, the guardian spirits of the household were also celebrated (Penates), which were usually living in the pantry (penitus) - the most hidden corner of the house and also one of the most important where the food supplies were stored.


The opening of the temple and the celebration of Penates opened a passage beyond the veil too, an opening observed with cautiousness by the Romans as it could be dangerous if not accessed in the right way.


Not only according to the Romans the solstice was a time of transition between the worlds; in many traditions, it is a time when it is easy to have supernatural experiences.

In rural England, it was believed that, since the veil was thin, you could see fairies sitting inside a circle of stones at Midsummer. Even Shakespeare wrote one of his famous works, "A Midsummer Night's Dream", about this topic.

It was traditional to light bonfires to ward off spirits, jumping over them was believed also to bring  good luck:  often lovers, sprinkled with flowers, were jumping together seeking a good omen.

Litha so is a great time to celebrate life, the power of the sacred  masculine, dancing, being outdoors. 

It 's a time to purify our magical tools, using the solar energy, or blessing our household or marriage or even focusing on our spiritual path.

The night of Litha is a good time to gather herbs to dry and be used in our spells, as most of the herbs reached their peak of energy and effectiveness in June. An herb particularly bound to the summer solstice is the Hypericum, also known as St. John's wort. Its flower recalls a solar cross, highlighting the fact that it is a plant influenced by the Sun.
Apart from the countless healing properties, it is a plant magically linked to protection and fire; the name in fact comes from the words hyper (above) and eikon (picture), in reference to the tradition of hanging plants over religious icons in the home during St John's Day, to ward off evil. Which is quite fitting, considering the thin veil that characterizes this festival.

The Hypericum, traditionally, was burned with eight other herbs: Rue, Verbena, Mistletoe, Lavender, Thyme, Fennel, Plantain and Mugwort; the ashes were then used to bless the cattle and the house. 


Despite being Litha a purely solar celebration, it is also linked to water: the Sun enters the sign of Cancer, a water sign. So it's a good time to practice magic associated with this element: Litha is an ideal sabbat for divination, so consequently hydromancy is particularly indicated. 

Another midsummer tradition is collecting dew, with its considerable magical properties: it seems to aid fertility, grow hair faster and rejuvenate the skin. Many young naked women used to collect dew in the fields, in order to preserve its beauty. The dew was also used to consecrate the magical herbs, collected during the shortest night. 

Divination with water

• Fill a bowl with water, add a few drops of dew collected on the morning of the 21st June.
•  Light a red candle, think of any situation that is not clear or a question we want to ask the spirits, then drip the wax in the water.
• The wax will then take forms that can be interpreted as an answer to our questions.

Blessings

♃Ludna

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