The Summer Solstice is the longest day and shortest night of the year. In this post, you’ll learn:
- What is the Summer Solstice
- The metaphysical properties of the Sun
- How to work with the energy of the Sun
- 5 ways to celebrate the Summer Solstice
What is the Summer Solstice?
The Summer Solstice is also known as Midsummer and Litha. It’s the longest day and shortest night of the year, and falls on June 20th or 21st every year in the Northern Hemisphere. “Solstice” comes from the Latin “solstitium,” which means “the sun stands still.”
After the Summer solstice, the daylight hours begin to get shorter and shorter, until the Winter Solstice (the shortest day of the year) rolls around in December, when they start to lengthen again.
Nearly every agricultural society has acknowledged the Solstices. Probably most well known, the mighty stones of Stonehenge are oriented toward the rising Sun on the morning of the Summer Solstice.
Many cultures have celebrated Midsummer with great, blazing hilltop bonfires that represented the power of the sun. Some European cultures traditionally set giant wheels ablaze and roll them down a hill to a body of water.
Metaphysical properties of the Sun
So, solar energy has many attributes, including:
- Bright
- Warming
- Light
- Golden
- Expansive
- Energizing
- Vital
- Strong
- Radiant
- Portal
- Dependable
- Life-giving and revitalizing
- Rhythmic
- Yang
How to work with the energy of the Sun
You can work with the metaphysical power and energy of the Sun in a number of ways, including for:
- Success
- Empowerment
- Achieving goals
- Manifestation
- Fertility
- Passion
- Abundance and prosperity
- Acceleration and amplification
- Expansion
- Physical health and healing
- Direction and purpose
- Focus
- Vitality
- Growth of all types
- Freedom
- Leadership
- Power
5 ways to celebrate Summer Solstice
There are a ton of ways for how to celebrate the Summer Solstice. Here are five of my favorites.
1. Hold a fire ceremony
This can be as simple or elaborate as you want to make it. Have a bonfire in your yard or on the beach. Light a candle and meditate by its flickering light. Cook over an open flame with friends — that could mean a Dionysian feast, or some simple s’mores and tea around a campfire. Remember, almost anything can become a ceremony when performed with focus and intention.
2. Harvest herbs while the power of the Sun is at its peak
The Summer Solstice is a great time to harvest and/or work with herbs and plant spirit medicine that are traditionally associated with the Sun, including: Cinnamon, St. John’s Wort, Turmeric, Calendula, Chamomile, Sunflower, and Marigold.
3. Enjoy fresh fruits and honey to honor the sweetness of the season
The Summer Solstice falls during the height of the growing season, when gardens are bursting with life and plants are starting to bear their fruit. Depending on where you live, hit your farmers market and look for strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, as well as watermelon, cherries, apricots, and plums.
I love to pair fresh berries with a drizzle of local, raw honey to connect to the magical spirit medicine of the bee totem. If you love honey, this is a great time to set up some garlic or chili fermented honey. Preserve fresh chilis from the garden in raw honey to use during the winter season. Get my recipe and technique for Dragon’s Breath Fermented Chili Honey here. IT’S SO, SO GOOD!
4. Weave a wreath or crown with local flowers and greenery
This is a super traditional and very simple way to honor the Summer Solstice. Weave a floral crown out of fresh flowers, greens, and maybe a few gold ribbons. Or create a larger wreath to adorn your door, fence, or tabletop for the day.
5. Tap into the energy of fertility and abundance
Grab a fresh notebook, a good pen, and write down a handful of goals you want to accomplish for the second half of the year. Small or big, list your goal, and the steps you need to take to make it happen.
Draw your own Sun mandala on the first page of the notebook, to bless your endeavors, and represent the power of the fertility and abundance of the Sun and summer. Work your way down the list in the weeks and months to come.
How do you celebrate the Summer Solstice?
Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear what you’re up to!