Litha | Summer Solstice
Celebrating nature and her cycles
Welcome to this edition of Liminal Walker Musings!
Thank you for reading, you are very much appreciated.
Dear ones,
Welcome to the Summer Solstice! Or if you are in the southern hemisphere, the Winter Solstice. We are going to be exploring the Solstice today as a celebration, as our innate connection with our environment and as her cycles we are immersed in. Summer to me is a magical time. Sunlit lengthened days, warm mystical nights and gardens abundantly sprouting, growing and flowering!
Litha | Summer Solstice
SOLSTICE
I am very passionate about the land, tracking the seasons, and following moon cycles. Feels natural, instinctive, primal. Especially when spending a lot of time in front of a computer which I do for my work. An important part of my day is to be outside, feeling the air, listening to birdsong and other life sounds, to tend the garden and go for a walk. Connecting with life around me, in me, as a coming home. A deeper embodiment with the earth and my physical form.
Today, here in the northern hemisphere, the longest day of the year has arrived. The sun has reached its apex and the earth’s tilt has brought us to our closest position relative to the sun. The word solstice originates from the Latin word solstitium, meaning the “sun stands still.” What this means is that the sun still rises and sets but does so in the same locations for a few days. And like all cycles, change is inevitable, for this also marks the decreasing span of sunlight we will see each day.
Having a garden brings the recognition of this demarcation deeply home. It is a blessing to have a place on this property to grow vegetables, herbs and flowers. Getting intimate with the soils, humbly caring for each plant. Reminding me, I am both witness to this amazing unfolding and part of this ongoing cyclic process. As caretaker of the plants, I listen, looking after any needs. Each encounter a rapport, a sacred bond. These various floras are teachers, guides and gurus for me as I learn their language. Everything integral, each hand, seed, ray of sunlight, pollinator, breeze and drop of water. Co-existence, interdependent, relational.
Oh, and how I love watching the pollinators! Observing the bees, butterfly’s, moths & flies’ flit about, maneuvering from flower to flower. Diving into the many flavors the nectar offer. Then because of their work, I get to perceive and enjoy the fruits & vegetables as they start to form, ripen and make their way to my table. There is nothing like recently harvested food from the garden. Not only fresh and full of flavor, but a pure life energy is directly transmitted from them into the body! Right now, it’s all about the arugula! I am in love!
AND THE LAVENDER….
Lately I have been feeling the seeds of creativity taking root and sprouting up in my life as poetry. These past 21 days I have been participating in a poem-a-day pen play culminating with this solstice. Thanks Jillian Joy of Joy Journeys for the wonderful container you created and all the delicious topics and various poem structures we all got to experiment with. One of the days the topic was Lavender, and I wrote a poem as a Haiku. An ode to the lavender in my garden, this aromatic purple wonder.
Blue-violet spikes sweet flowers liberating aromas to bees Drunk pollinators fluttering wings carrying them to honey nectar Lavender delights windblown fragrances meeting my welcoming nose
THE MOON
During this Solstice time, the phase of the moon is the waxing crescent. The new Moon was on June 17th, the start of a new waxing cycle that will continue till the arrival of next full moon on July 3rd. As a crescent, the moon is like a flower bud, just starting to open up. Potentiality is palpable. A wonderful time to plant, begin new creative projects. To not just think about it, but to take the action needed.
LITHA
I like to honor the wheel of the year with the eight sabbats, marking the solstices, equinoxes and the dates between them. Times of celebration honoring various stops upon this wheel. These natural cycles that we move through as our planet takes a full journey around the sun. The summer solstice brings us to the pagan, Celtic holiday of Litha…
The roots of Litha are uncertain, but points to originating from Ireland and Celtic traditions. Actually, according to these traditions this time of year is considered midsummer. Beltaine (May 1st) which occurred between the last equinox and this solstice was when summer began. Ancient Celts observed only two seasons, winter and summer. Winter is the dominion of the Cailleach, the wise old crone who shapes the land. When summer begins, she transforms into the maiden Brigid.
There are many ways to celebrate Litha. Some years I have participated with groups where we all gather around an evening fire. No matter with others or alone I always celebrate Litha by creating an altar, calling in the directions and doing a tarot reading. Diving more deeply into the mythos, archetypes, the gateways of this liminal time. This marginal space where the sun stands still. No longer an increasing light but it hasn’t quite begun to decrease yet. Living between polarities, these turning points as a right relationship with the earth.
AS A SIMPLE RITUAL (right now if you would like):
Light a candle, or use this one pictured here
Find a comfortable position
Bring your attention to the body and to your breathing. Staying attuned to your breath as the breath of life
Let your awareness also include your head, heart, belly and your feet
You may at this point listen to this recording of calling in the directions or recognize and contemplate the many elements that make up life, these forms, your body and this planet
Now shine light on three to five things that excite you and are passionate about at this time in your life
Honor them like tending a fire and gently hold them like a soft hug in your heart
Feel the vitality they bring
You may at this point just simply say thank you and blessed be. Or you may join with me in this prayer/blessing as we honor this time of Litha
May I humbly listen and pay attention to nature’s movements, like the sweet songs of the mockingbird, the bees in flight from flower to flower, moonbeams on my face, the trees as they gently dance with the breeze. My I heed this sacred call for a healthy caring co-existence with all life, as an integral part of it. Truly seeing and feeling this inherent connection. All of it as the forest floor, a stalking tiger, ocean tides, erupting volcanoes, crawl of a snail, bolt of lightning, algae on a pond, you and me. And may we serve each other and this planet with this understanding.
Blessed Be!
Would love to know your thoughts. How are you celebrating the solstice? Honoring nature and our planet? Lets have a conversation…
What is coming…
The journey continues, next issue is on embodiment. Come along with me for the journey...
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It's the shortest day of the year here in Queensland, happy Solstice.