Summer Solstice

Alban Heruin

This is the time when the Sun casts three rays of light to the world.  

Awen spreads its influence over our lives in its warm embrace.

Casting no shadow we stand still to witness and praise it's glow.

Mark the time of the sun at its peak. 

Dedicate yourself as a warrior and host a feast of summer at your back.

Revel in the zenith of warmth at your face.

Call forth the time when strong is your force.

~21 June~
The Prayer of Midsummer

Sun-stone's kiss, midsummer pleasure,
Welcome all and some.
At the hele-stone sing and gather,
Every blessed one.
-Caitlin Matthews, "Midsummer Blessing"

On this, the longest day of the year, an annual miracle occurs. At
dawn, the first rays of the sun touch the hele-stone, the solitary
sighting stone that stands outside the great circle of Stonehenge.
The miracle of the longest day is celebrated by peoples all over the
world as the time of the time of greatest light and blessedness.
Tonight we will have the shortest night, the least darkness of the
year, as the sun climbs to its zenith in the heavens.

At midday, stand in the sunlight, which (unless you are very far
north or very far south of the equator) will be directly overhead.
Check to see where, if anywhere, your shadow is. Most people will
find that there is is scant shadow at all. All living creatures cast
shadows; it is only spirits who have none. This is the nearest we
can come to resembling spirits in this reality. Become attuned to
the midsummer sun. Absorb the warmth and blessedness, and in return
hold in your heart those changed one way or another; just hold these
places and beings in you're heart and let the sun shine upon them.
Come back to awareness of your own time and place, and give thanks
for the longest day.

It is traditional to make a bonfire at twilight and stay up late
dancing, singing, and making merry with the community. If you
cannot do this, light a candle and make your own blessing for all
beings on this happy day.

Commune with the longest day and shortest night, adapting the
suggestions above to your own needs and those of your community.

~The Celtic Spirit, Daily Meditations for the Turning Year

Sample Ritual:

Rededication to the Great Goddess and Great God.  To prepare ritual use incense; burner; chalice of water; salt; pentacle; dagger or sword; 4 Element candles; chalice of wine; wand.  A red candle (set to the right of the cauldron); a cup of fresh water set in the cauldron with a green or blue candle on the left.  Sometime morning dew is collected on this sacred day, said to bring healing and strength.  It is also a time for gathering fresh summer flowers for our altar bringing the spirit and growth of this time to our ceremony.  Fasting and or cleansing is also preformed to bring on visions, while the consumption of mead is also known.  Mead is made from honey and brings us closer to the ancient site at Tara where the Triple Goddess blesses us and honors us with the bee medicine associated with honey.  To taste of this nectar we draw in the divine sweetness of the Goddess and God in their cycles of fertility, the healing aspect of foods associated with this time is widely observed as we offer them a draught of the bounty we have gained from the growing sun-time.  To be blessed by the earth and the season of summer, it is customary to spend much time outdoors and connecting with nature.  On this day to observe the solstice make time to visit a special stone or place that marks your personal journey and changing of the season.

Cast your basic circle and begin your magic when all is in place.

Light the Green Candle to the left of the cauldron and say:

Green forest Mother, bless this water, I ask thee.  Great Center of the Stars, Spinner of fates, I honor you, and call upon your ancient names, known and unknown.

Light the Red Candle to the right of the cauldron and say:

Mighty Sun God, god of fertility and plenty, be with me now, I ask thee.  I honor you, and call upon your ancient names, known and unknown.

Raise your arms over the cauldron, say;

This is the sacred cauldron of the Triple Goddess.  The touch of its consecrated water blesses and renews, even as the rays of the Sun nourish and bless all life.

Pass your hands and arms between the two candles, making wishes as you do so.  Or set the candles on the floor and carefully, slowly walk between them.

Dip the forefinger of your power hand into the cauldron water and trace a pentagram on your forehead.  Kneel before the altar to rededicate your life to the Old Gods.  Say:

I serve the Great Goddess and give devotion to the Great God.  I am a pagan, a stone of the ancient circle, standing firmly balanced upon the Earth, yet my soul is open to the heaven's wind, and enduring through all times.  May those I honor witness my words and song!

Place the wine chalice on the pentacle for a few moments then lift it high, saying:

Honor to the Old Gods!  Merry Meet and Merry Part and Merry Meet again.

Drink the wine (or mead), saving some to be put outside for the faerie. 

Complete any added elements to your personal ritual and close the circle.

(sample ritual by D.J. Conway, Celtic Magic)

Summer Thoughts

The weather has been magnificent and I find the
Sun's warmth and golden glow seduces me out into the
embrace of Nature. I am a willing and eager pupil to
these abundant blessings. 

Walking down this
country road I gather wildflowers and berries to make an
arrangement in an old enamel pitcher. Queen Anne's Lace,
chicory, red clover, dock, mullein, buttercups, cinquefoil
and the dark rich berries and green leaves of wild
raspberry. The Sun feels good and for some moments cares
seem so distant as to no longer exist. I feel like a
child reveling in the first day of summer
vacation.

Above me and all around me the trees have reached their
apex of beauty. Shades of green in more colours than I
can count blend and shape the hillside and the
meadow. There is a wonderful sense of true oneness here
in nature and we find ourselves drifting away from
being 'in' nature to being 'of' nature. 

Perhaps
the greatest beauty of summer comes as the Sun folds
itself below the horizon and darkness seeps upwards from
the earth in shades of violet, turquoise and amber.
There is a magick found in a summer night. The
harmonious chaos of crickets, frogs and toads blending and
weaving with the humming and droning of countless
insects. The cry of night birds is soulful and moving.
They speak and the soul of any who hear long to
answer. 

Fireflies or Lightening bugs, whichever
you prefer to call them, bring more wonder than
perhaps any other summer blessing. They fly us into the
night sky to run among the stars! How young at heart
are we when we join the "faerie hunters" to chase the
illusive wee folk who dash away at our approach?? Why
everybody knows that plain old fireflies blink in white or
yellow. Now faeries, that is something else entirely,
they blink in shades of green, blue, lavender, orange
and the rare and most prized red. Cupped carefully in
our hands the wee ones blink with dignity before our
wondering eyes and then are released with our gratitude to
freedom.

Night beckons us to be still in our souls and in our
minds. We sit quietly reflecting or talking softly. What
is it that urges us to speak in hushed tones? We
respect the wildness of night and feel ourselves more
acutely. When our vision is most restricted do we see with
most clarity.

Our spirits turn in balance with
the wheel of seasons. We too know the ebb and flow of
this circle. Our energies ride the waves of the Earth
and Her consort. In perfect trust we find perfect
love and the flow of seasons, the tide of change and
the wheel of time are our kin.

With the
Abundant Blessings of the Daghdha,

~Inion

Gathering Solstice Stones

Piling high the earth to greet,

Fall on my knees,

Kneel low to the ground scooping soil to surround,

The beautiful life that soon will become a mound,

Above me wheels the sun overhead,

Solstice time soon will thread,

Wind its way from earths far ends,

Lighting the snake rivers from their stead,

Silver backs of translucent life,

Filled with summer fish of flashing light,

The time of youth closes near,

The honorable spirits pass by here,

From my small mound of a child's sand castle beginnings,

Is erected the pilgrims stones,

Round they rise to greet the sky,

And channel the sun's holy rise,

Of this sacred time,

Secret greetings of the druids neigh,

Worship the Goddess &  God of the wheel in the sky,

And ceremony honor the birth of the spiral dancers sun,

Starring deeply towards the One,

Blinded by the epiphany of the solar time,

Red is color of your blood,

Yellow is the feel of the love,

And orange is the glow of the aura so told,

Together makes the flame of heavenly light,

Celestial might welcome the birth of summer,

On the mounds that we deliver our souls to the sun.

~Happy solstice everyone!

Love and light,

Autumn

Summer Solstice (1)



The stone circle stands like a portal to the earth,
Civilizations worshipped inside it since their birth.
The stone circle with one side not quite right,
Was built that way for the angled light.

The stone circle, a place to perform rites,
A system that's lasted, a system that's right.
The stone circle, that's magically seen,
When you step inside it, it feels like a dream.

The stone circle, majestic at night,
Spirit of place, power and might.
The stone circle, temple of the god of sun,
Druids at Summer Solstice gather as one.

The stone circle witnessed all that was true.
It captured the light and the facts that they knew.
The stone circle, life's regeneration,
Peace, health and meditation!



Alwyn

Pagan Poems: http://www10.brinkster.com/alwyn1/indexbri.htm