#Litha celebrations

[enchantedwitchling]

Celebrating the Summer Solstice: A Witch's Guide to Litha

🌞🔥🌿

As the wheel of the year turns to the height of summer, we embrace the vibrant energy of Litha, also known as the Summer Solstice. This magical festival marks the longest day and shortest night of the year, a time when the sun stands still and the Earth is bathed in its fullest light. Let's dive into the essence of Litha, explore how witches celebrate this sun-drenched festival, and discover rituals, spells, and traditions to honor this radiant time.

What is Litha?

Litha, celebrated on or around June 21st, is a festival of light, abundance, and the peak of the sun's power. It symbolizes the triumph of light over darkness and is a time of joy, growth, and the bountiful gifts of the Earth.

How Do Witches Celebrate Litha?

Witches celebrate Litha with outdoor rituals, bonfires, feasts, and a deep connection to nature. It’s a time to honor the sun, embrace its energy, and celebrate the fertility of the Earth.

Rituals and Spells for Litha

🔥 Bonfire Rituals: Lighting bonfires or candles symbolizes the sun’s energy and power. Jump over the fire (safely) or a candle to bring good luck and cleanse yourself of negative energies.

🌿 Flower Crowns and Herb Gatherings: Create flower crowns and gather herbs like St. John’s Wort, lavender, and rosemary, which are potent at this time.

💧 Sun Water: Collect water in a clear jar and leave it in the sun to absorb its energy. Use this sun-charged water in rituals and spells for vitality and empowerment.

✨ Sun Meditation: Meditate outdoors, focusing on the warmth and light of the sun. Visualize its energy filling you with strength and positivity.

Litha and Sacred Symbols

🌞 The Sun: The central symbol of Litha, representing life, energy, and power. Honor the sun with sun-shaped symbols, colors like gold, yellow, and orange, and sunflowers.

🔥 Fire: Symbolizing transformation and purification. Incorporate fire into your rituals through candles, bonfires, or even a simple flame.

🌸 Flowers and Herbs: Representing the Earth’s abundance and fertility. Decorate your altar with fresh flowers and use herbs in your spells and rituals.

Other Litha Traditions

🥗 Feasting: Celebrate with a feast of summer fruits, vegetables, and dishes cooked on an open fire. Share your bounty with loved ones, embracing the spirit of abundance.

🎁 Gift-Giving: Exchange small, sun-themed tokens of appreciation and blessings with friends and family.

🏞️ Nature Walks and Outdoor Activities: Spend time in nature, appreciating the beauty and energy of the season. Collect natural items for your altar or as offerings.

Litha is a time to celebrate the peak of solar energy, embrace the fullness of life, and set intentions for growth and abundance. Whether through rituals, spells, or simply basking in the sun’s glory, Litha offers a moment to connect deeply with the natural world and its rhythms. As we honor the longest day of the year, may the light of the sun fill your heart with joy, your mind with clarity, and your spirit with boundless energy.

Blessed Litha to all!

🌞🔥🌿

[iridescent-witch-life]

Peaflowertea

[piscesseer]

Honor the Sun: Summer Solstice ☀️

As the warm rays of the sun envelope us, we find ourselves at the Summer Solstice, also known as Litha or Midsummer. This holiday celebrates the sun’s power. 

Summer Solstice is observed on June 21, 2023. This is the longest day of the year, and the shortest night. Litha is about the power of the sun. Before we welcome the dark side of the year, we acknowledge the peak of the solar year. 

Many see Litha as a time of balance between light and dark, masculine and feminine energies, and our realm and the other. It’s a time to connect with nature, and enjoy the company of others.

The sun is shining the brightest on this day, symbolizing the peak of light and the triumph of the sun over darkness. The warmth of the sun gives us a sense of renewed strength and inspiration. It’s a reminder to embrace the abundance of beauty and nature surrounding us.

The Anglo-Saxons brought Litha with them to the British Isles when they settled in the 5th and 6th centuries. The Celts celebrated Litha, with the planting season just passing and wanting to call in a great harvest. It was essential to appease the solar Gods in some way. They would have hilltop bonfires and dancing. Many people would jump over the bonfires for good luck.

Many cultures have honored Gods and Goddesses of the Sun. These deities can be worshiped during Litha.

Some traditions believe in the battle of light and dark, where the Oak King and Holly King fight for control. During each Solstice, they battle for power and the balance shifts. The Oak King, who represents daylight, rules from the Winter Solstice to Litha. During this time, the day steadily gets longer. During Litha, when the Holly King wins, the days get darker until Yule.

Litha Correspondences:

Key Words: Warmth, Manifestation, Love, Light, Fertility, Unity, Success, Strength

Symbols: Sun, Flowers, Trees, Mushrooms, Honey, Bees

Herbs & Plants: Chamomile, Lavender, St. John’s Wort, Rosemary, Sunflowers, Daisy, Oranges

Colors: Gold, Green, Light Blue, Orange, Pink

Animals: Bees, Cows, Horses, Dragonfly, Songbirds

How to Celebrate Litha:

For most modern-day Pagans, Litha is a day of inner power and brightness. Fire rituals and barbecues are a common way to celebrate. This holiday celebrates Earth’s abundance and personal power. 

Decorate the House and your altar. Adorn your altar with symbols of the sun, flowers, herbs and items that represent Litha. Some ideas: gold objects or coins, yellow and white flowers, lavender, circular items, symbols of the sun, seasonal flowers, fruits or crops (strawberries, sunflowers), citrus fruits.

Gather loved ones for a Litha feast, abundant with seasonal fruits, vegetables and herbs. Having a summer barbecue counts! Savor the flavors of the Earth’s bounty and share in the joy of community. As you dine, express gratitude to the land for the nourishment.

Kindling a bonfire is a time-honored tradition of Litha. Traditionally, people stayed up all night on Midsummer’s Eve to welcome and watch the sunrises. Bonfires were lit on tops of hills and at sacred places to honor the Sun. A bonfire represents the Sun at the peak of its strength. People danced and leaped around them. Coals from the Midsummer fire were scattered on the fields to ensure good harvest. Today, you can gather friends and family to hold a Midsummer Night’s Fire Ritual. Celebrate the season with a big bonfire and form a circle around the dancing flames. As the fire crackles, offer gratitude for the sun’s life-giving energy. Release any burdens of negativity into the fire, allowing the power of flames to cleanse or renew your spirit. In addition, you can write these things down and burn them in the fire to symbolically let go of what is no longer serving you.

If you prefer spending your time alone this Summer Solstice, there are plenty of small ways you can celebrate.

Craft a beautiful flower crown using vibrant blossoms or herbs that correlate to the holiday. Wear it as a symbol of your connection to nature.

Take a stroll through a blooming garden, a lush forest, or a sunkissed meadow. Listen to the melody of a birdsong, breathe in the fresh air, and take in the majesty of nature. Allow yourself to be in the present moment, embracing the interconnectedness of all beings. Gather flowers, herbs, or stones that resonate with you to use in rituals or as decoration.

Meditate about the light and dark forces in the world or in yourself. Find ways that you can bring more lightness into your life and get in touch with the joyful parts of life. Journal, do yoga, practice self-care or take a walk. Stargazing is another way to reflect on yourself.

Focus on your goals and nurture your intentions. You should see results in the harvest season. 

Find a natural body of water such as a river, lake or ocean and immerse yourself in the waters, or at least a part of your body. As you do this, visualize negative energies or emotions being washed away. Offer a prayer of gratitude to the water element for its purifying properties. 

Cast spells of fruition. It’s a great time for spells of success, abundance, love, purification, protection and parenthood.

This celebration beckons us to embrace the power of the sun and revel in the abundance of the summer season. Celebrate life, growth, and the eternal cycle of nature. May the blessings of Litha fill our hearts with warmth and inspiration through the year!

For more detail on this celebration, visit this post!

[elvthron]

St. John’s night 🧡

🌞 Happy midsummer 🌞

[ogrody-ilangory]

Przed Sabat

Sabat wypada 20 - 22.06 a w tym czasie będę na urlopie i nie wiem czy uda mi się odpowiednio świętować. Niektóre osoby świętują tydzień i ja postanowiłam zacząć w tym roku wcześniej.  Litha jest poświęcona światłu, ziołom i kwiatom.  Jak pisałam wcześniej trzymam się pewnych standardów, ale każdy sabat obchodzę zgodnie z tym jak na dany moment się czuję. Tak szczerze to moje świętowanie wygląda raczej podobnie.  W tym roku mam sporo lawendy i to ona będzie królową.  Stworzyłam z niej wraz z kocimiętką i lebiodką (oregano) wieniec. Pierwszy raz w życiu i bardzo mi się spodobał ten proces. Powstały też bukieciki i podstawy do miotełek i ziołowych smugowych bacików. Upiekłam ciasteczka lawendowe.  Pierwszy dzień powitałam pyszną kawą z kociołkowego kubka oraz medytacją.  Mimo niepewnej pogody przygotowałam wszystko co potrzebne na piknik, ubrałam moje sabatowe ciuszki, okadziłam dom. (Tym razem był to cedr - uziemienie, ochrona, oczyszczanie, dodanie sił. ) I wyruszyłam. W drodze do mojego drzewa nazrywałam kwiatów i traw. Zrobiłam kolejny wieniec i bukiet, poleżałam na słońcu i użyłam kart tarota. W drodze powrotnej znalazłam dwa pióra.( Pióra mają dla mnie ważne symboliczne znaczenie.)

Czy ktoś może wie co z tego wyrośnie?

[greenwitchcrafts]

I had SO much fun celebrating the summer solstice with my community & @next_millennium_mystical_gifts

I feel so blessed to have met so many amazing people & to be able to put something like this together because of how generous Next Millennium is by making all this happen with so much of their wonderful staff's help. Also people like @wanderthewheel to help me set up & tear all this down after a very hot day. I couldn't ask for a better outcome...well aside from me forgetting sunscreen 😅🤣

[smudgingpumpkins]

LITHA

Also known as Midsummer

When is Litha?

It is celebrated on the summer solstice, which is the 20th of June in 2024. However, it can be celebrated between June 20th-24th, depending on when the solstice is or how it may have traditionally been celebrated.

What does Litha mean?

“Litha” is the celebration of the longest day and the shortest night of the year, welcoming the light, warmth, vitality, and power of the summer sun. The summer solstice offers the longest amount of daylight hours of any day in the calendar year.

Who does Litha celebrate?

Any gods and goddesses in relation to fertility, beauty, and the sun are worshipped, including Lugh, Celtic God of sun and light, Helios, Greek God of the sun, and Freya, Norse Goddess of summer, love, and fertility. Modern pagan practices include honoring the “Oat King” or the personification of summer, who is said to be at his peak strength around Midsummer.

—————

LITHA TRADITIONS

Work with stones that inspire creativity, abundance, and renewed strength, like citrine, sunstone, tiger’s eye, amber, and carnelian.

Utilize mood-boosting, aromatic herbs and flowers such as orange blossoms, sunflowers, ferns, thyme, sage, and St. John’s wart. These plants blossom beautifully in the summertime and symbolize vigor, love, and happiness. The herbs may ease stress, and reduce inflammation; St. John’s wart has been traditionally consumed for relieving symptoms of depression.

Eat an assortment of fruits, like early summer peaches, plums, cherries, and blackberries. These fruits are round like the sun, and are plump and plentiful, symbolizing the wish for abundance and fertility.

Decorate and dress yourself with bright, summery yellows, oranges, golds, and whites.

Incorporate animal imagery (e.g., figurines, photographs, drawings, et cetera) of eagles, sparrows, horses, and bulls, all magnificently free-spirited, powerful, and protective animals.

LITHA ACTIVITIES

Cleanse your face and body. Fill a water basin and leave it under the summer moonlight, mixed with at least one of the seven herbs of St. John (fern, rose, fennel, lemon verbena, rosemary, mallow, gorse, or whatever is available to use). Use this holy water to cleanse yourself.

Write a letter to the fairies. It is said that the veil between the human world and the world of the fae remains thin at this time. Ask for a wish and add gemstones and plants as an offering, and hope that the fairies will grant your wish true.

Take a ritual bath. Add sea salt, sugar, citrus slices and/or essential oils for a calm, refreshing bath time.

Drink refreshing beverages. Lemonade of any flavor, like raspberry or lavender, is a great summer-inspired choice. A traditional Litha tea recipe includes brewed black tea, fresh raspberries, sugar, and mint leaves.

Light a bonfire. Assist the sun with its offerings of warmth and light and safely dance and sing around the fire.

Prepare a Queimada. There is a popular tradition from Galicia where participants would read an incantation whilst preparing the alcoholic "Galicia Fire Drink": made with aguardiente or orujo (or any brandy you can obtain), coffee beans, sugar, and lemon and orange peels. The drink is mixed and prepared in an earthenware pot or hollowed-out pumpkin, kind of like a cauldron.

Here is a link for more information on the Conxuro da Queimada, as well as the English translation for the incantation:

Make a Litha altar. Add an icon or figurine of your preferred Litha God/Goddess in the center of your altar, and surround it with white and yellow candles, abundance crystals, herbs and sunflowers, bird feathers, and gold-colored decorations.

Get creative with recipes! Carlota Santos, who is the author of Magicka, recommends a savory vegetable coca. Here is the recipe below!

[enchantedbeingscircle]

Litha is also known as Midsummer, or the summer solstice.  It is the longest day of the year, and when the sun is most powerful!  During this time, we celebrate the power of the sun! We celebrate the abundance, growth, and life the sun brings. The sun infuses us with such great energy, life, and power!  Without our sun, we would cease to exist!  

This is also a time to celebrate agriculture, change, divination, endings, fertility, life, light, manifestation, power and strength, purpose, success, unity (let go of little grudges, forgive, come together)!

This is a time for you to draw down the sun! Harness its powers!

Some believe that the Oak King (remember, June 10th marked the beginning of the Celtic Tree Month of Oak) and the Holly King fight. The Holly King wins and this is why the days gradually grow darker until Yule.  If you’re looking for a good read, look them up!

During this time, it is said that the veil is thin and you can be more likely to encounter the Fae, so make use of this especially charged time and leave offerings for them!  There are also many deities you can celebrate as well.  

Some things to represent Litha are sun wheels, fire, oak leaves and acorns, honey and bees, sunflowers, the fae, sacred wells, flowers, cattle, horses, crab, octopus, birds (goldfinch, kingfisher, meadowlark, owls, robins, wrens).

The element of Litha is fire!

Colors that correspond with Litha are Gold for power, prosperity, and success; yellow for joy, vitality, and clarity; orange for creativity and energy; green for growth, fertility, and flourishing; red for strength and courage; blue for water, cooling energy, and tranquility.

In our Facebook group, I’ll talk more about Litha and its correspondences, and how to celebrate. I’ll also post feast ideas and recipes!!

[vanilla-cigarillos]

Litha Info Post

Litha is a time of celebration and rituals that have been observed since prehistory, as it marks the summer solstice. On the Wheel of the Year, it highlights the time when seeds have been sown and grow abundantly until Lughnasadh.

History

Litha (also known as Midsummer) occurs on the summer solstice, and celebrates the true beginning of summer. Celts celebrated Litha with hilltop bonfires and dancing. Many people attempted to jump over or through the bonfires for good luck. Other European traditions included setting large wheels on fire, and rolling them down a hill into a body of water.

The summer solstice is the longest day of the year, and in some traditions, Litha is believed to be when a battle between light and dark takes place. During this battle, the Oak King and the Holly King are in combat for control. Throughout each solstice they battle for power, and the balance shifts. The Oak King, who represents daylight, rules from the winter solstice (Yule) to Litha. During this time, the days steadily get longer. However, during Litha the Holly King wins this battle, and the days get increasingly darker until Yule.

Celebrations

In the Northern Hemisphere, Litha is observed during June 20–22; while in the Southern Hemisphere it is celebrated December 21–22.

Common Litha Symbols -

Colors: Green, yellow, purple, baby blue

Foods: Homemade bread, rhubarb, lemon and other citrus fruits

Herbs: Nettle, St. John’s wart, fennel, chamomile 

Flowers: Chamomile, sunflowers, 

For those who practice the Wiccan religion, Litha is the fifth Sabbat of the Wheel of the Year. As such, the holiday is marked with rituals to celebrate the longest day of sunlight in the year as well as the warmth it brings. 

Common traditions include baking your own breads, going swimming, worshipping sun deities, creating sun water.

[incorporeal-altar]

[faeriebitescreations]

ENERGY AROUND ME 🌞🌻🌱

The suns at its finest allowing everything to grow & bloom faster! Tons and tons of abundance, positive energy thrown out, and love spread all around… aiding in growth, prosperity, and protection!

NOW AVAILABLE TO CLAIM

[wherekizzialives]

Working with the Wheel: Midsummer, or Summer Solstice

[kelleah-meah]

How I spent my 2023 Summer Solstice celebration

As expected, my plans for celebrating midsummer didn't pan out as I thought they might. But that doesn't mean that I didn't have a good summer solstice.

I'm technically still celebrating, but I have to balance it with a substantial to-do list over the next 3 days. Sooooo ... business as usual. 😉

On a slightly serious note, part of my physical recovery journey has been to learn to let go and let things flow as they may. So if my plans don't develop as I hoped, I've learned that they will develop at a pace that is meant for me. #slowliving

Anyway, back to what I got up to for June 21st:

Now to be fair, this photo was from Tuesday, when I made honey cakes for the holiday. The cakes didn't turn out as sweet as I would've liked, but it was still nice to take a moment and bake something from scratch.

So I made the honey cakes the day before, which left my schedule open a bit for Wednesday morning. With that in mind, I was lucky enough to catch the sunrise on the East Coast at 5:25am. And it was glorious! Seriously, my photos don't do it any justice.

After I finished oohing and aahing, I took my butt back to bed since I'm still on short-term medical leave and I didn't have to go into work this week.

That extra hour or two of sleep coupled with the hour or so of reading fanfiction (it was Leverage fanfic, in case you were wondering), gave me a wonderfully even tempered morning that I really appreciated. Then, it was off to getting ready for the day, chatting with my mom on the phone, and preparing for a work-related Zoom call.

Before my call, I managed to have just enough time to cook a mushroom omelette to pair with my toast and morning tea. After the call, I gave myself the space to sit down, meditate, read from the Tao, and do an annual Summer Solstice tarot reading. I thought the messaging was quite honest.

Here's what it told me:

What should I leave in the darkness with this solstice? 7 of Wands

What new beginning is waiting for me this summer? Page of Cups

What can I find joy in this season? 4 of Cups

What is the general theme of this season for me? The Hermit

How can I celebrate and enjoy this solstice? Temperance

A message from my guides and mother earth. 7 of Cups

Afterwards, I did a little housecleaning and took care of a few bills, because getting my finances and house more in order were a part of my new year's resolutions.

Then came lunch ...

It was nothing fancy, but I liked it and it was homemade.

I enjoyed a fresh spinach salad with tomatoes and mushrooms, pasta with basil and diced tomatoes, a honey cake, and fresh lavender lemonade.

Afterwards, I took a much-needed nap. And followed that up with a walk to the park as the sun was slowly setting.

Then came cooking dinner and watching a much-maligned film while I ate it. The film was Supernova starring James Spader and Angela Bassett. And yes, it was indeed ... not good. Solid cast though. Robert Forster, Lou Diamond Phillips, Wilson Cruz and Robin Tunney. But yeah, it wasn't good. James Spader looked really hot though. And of course, Ms. Bassett looked amazing.

Anyway, for dessert, I also enjoyed another honey cake, but this time I mixed it with chopped pineapple to help sweeten the confection. I think it turned out pretty well. Or at least, it's how I'm going to eat the rest of them going forward.

The pineapple also corresponds with the colors of the solstice, I think. So yay me for staying on theme. 🤗

By then, I was pretty tired and decided to call it a night. I didn't have the energy to read, dance or paint, but that's ok. As I said before, let it go and let it flow.

And that's how I celebrated the summer solstice. 🌻

[notdelusionalatall]

Had a Litha bonfire in my yard and made some wishes while I watched it burn and also thanked the Sun. (Also burned my hand because this is my first ever bonfire). 🌞🫣

Blessed Litha!

Did this at around 02:30 AM and I am sure I heard someone of the neighbours outside but oh well ... They know I am not that much of a stable person anyway. 🫣🕯️🔥🌞🌤️♌

[itsjustfire4]

Happy litha to my my lovely pagen friends out there! What are you guys doing to celebrate?

Im not pagen but i do celebrate the summer solstice and am making some summer related foods and drinks! As well as a fire element ritual thanking the element. :)