Summer Solstice

Litha or Midsummer, Summer Solstice, Mittsommer, Midsommar (Asatru), Alban Hefin (Celtic), Johanni (Christian), Midsummer Night's Celebration occurs around June 22nd, and is the longest day of the year.

Litha represents the Sun King in all his glory and power. It is a celebration of passion and of ensuring the success of the crop. The Goddess is heavy with pregnancy and so is the earth. Again, this ritual is full of the symbols of fertility. It also celebrates the Mother and Father aspects of the Goddess and God, although this particular Sabbat leans more heavily on the God aspect of diety, rather on the Goddess. The Oak King and Holly King are at it again, only this time the Oak King is slain and the Holly King now reigns, gaining in power and strength until Yule.

Animal blessings are popular at Litha Celebrations, especially those designed for protection of familiars. Because this is a Sabbat which glorifies the God, it is a good time to make protective amulets. Ashes from a Midsummer Night's balefire were often scattered over fields for fertility. Midsummer Night is when the Druids gathered their sacred and magickal plants, especially mistletoe, and dried and stored them for winter.

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