Litha, also known as Midsummer or the Summer Solstice is an ancient festival that is celebrated by various cultures around the world, including Pagans. This festival lands on the Summer Solstice, usually celebrated sometime around June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere. The date will change each year, as it’s based on the Summer Solstice. This year (2024), we will see this day fall on June 20th. It is the longest day and shortest night of the year, and it marks the official start of summer.
If you choose to reference this day as Litha, pronunciation can vary. The pronunciation is “LEE-thuh”, with the emphasis on the first syllable. You may also hear it referred to as “Lye-thuh” in some places. It’s believed the word “Litha” originated from the Anglo-Saxon word for Midsummer or light.
In most Pagan traditions, Litha is one of the four “lesser sabbats”. It’s a time to celebrate the sun and brightness, growth of nature and honoring your deities (especially if they are sun deities).
Solstice is a day of balance, both literally and figuratively. Today, you can stand a broom on its bristles or stand an egg on its thinnest point! It is the balance of light and dark, and a turning point in the year where the days are shorter and the nights grow longer. This particular holiday is a spiritual holiday. It’s a time for rituals or ceremonies that embrace the summer season and honor the sun. It’s the perfect time to connect with nature and celebrate the beauty and diversity of life. Midsummer is the time to reflect on your personal growth and a time to set intentions for the rest of the year. This particular Midsummer is also a Strawberry full moon in Capricorn, making the connection between us and nature even stronger.
How to Celebrate?
You can opt for a simple way of honoring this day, or you can go as elaborate as you’d like. Feasts and bonfires, flower crowns and garlands…. Here are some ideas for you!
To celebrate simply:
Go outside! Take your shoes off and touch grass, if possible. Go for a swim and allow the sun to warm you (wear sunscreen!).
Make (or order) a simple meal like a lemony pasta, have a salad filled with strawberries, bake some muffins (like lemon poppy seed), or just enjoy some strawberries in the sun.
As for Witchery, writing your intentions for the rest of the year and outlining the things you’d like to manifest are simple but powerful ways to celebrate. If you have an altar or magickal space, take some time to clean it and reset it with new energy and decor. Take your journal outside and spend some time making a game plan for self care, or express your gratitude for the first half of the year. If you don’t have a journal, now is a great time to start one!
To celebrate more elaborately:
This is a great time to write your own spell or ritual. Take the things you have learned here and create a manifestation spell or an honor ritual. Here are some ideas:
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Give an offering to the land. Thank all of the spirits and ancestors of the land you’re on and leave them an offering. This could be a spirit (usually whiskey or rum), food, a thank you on a piece of paper, coins, or even flowers.
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Write down what you are manifesting. Speak it into the universe.
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Create a sigil for your manifestation and carve into a green, silver or gold candle. Don’t have any of those? White or red will do too!
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Make and wear a flower crown
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Petition the energy of the Solstice and the Strawberry full moon in Capricorn to help you tune into the frequency needed to match your manifestation.
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Speak to the spirits and ask how to focus yourself to align with the path needed to achieve your goals. You can also ask for guidance on how to focus your energy to move into the new season.
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Create a wand or divining rod!
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Create a list of gratitude and achievements and speak it into the universe, bury it as a thank you, burn it in your cauldron or in a bonfire, or add it to your Book of Shadows. Don’t be shy. Shout your wins, big or small!
Correspondences:
Elements: Fire and Earth are the most common elements engaged during Midsummer. Bonfires were lit to assist the sun as it journeyed across the sky, changing course and shortening the days.
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“Pageantry and feasting took place by the village bonfire and torch lit processions through the villages after dark. People believed that the Litha fires possessed great power, and that prosperity and protection for oneself and one’s clan could be earned merely by jumping over the Litha bonfire. It was also common for courting couples to join hands and jump over the embers of the fire three times to ensure a long and happy marriage, financial prosperity and many children. The charred embers from the Litha bonfire possessed protective powers as well, they were charms against injury and bad weather in harvest time. Embers were commonly placed around fields of grain and orchards to protect the crops and ensure an abundant reaping. Other Litha customs included carrying an ember of the ceremonial fire home and placing it on one’s hearth” (noted from paganpages.org) |
