Litha/Midsummer 2024
This marks Whimsy & WooWoo’s second blog post!
Woohoo!
And being grateful for where you are and how far you’ve come is the name-of-the-game for celebrating the summer solstice this year.
Throughout history, civilizations all around the world have celebrated the summer solstice and the precious gifts coaxed from the earth this time of year. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice falls around June 21, and is a celebration of fire, fertility, and bounty. These energies are intensified this year, as Litha and the Strawberry Full Moon coincide - a synchronicity that occurs about every 20 years!
To read more about the Strawberry Moon Cycle check out our last blog post!
The main archetypes of Litha are females, mother goddesses, fertility and love goddesses, as well as sun and fire gods. Midsummer marks the end of the planting season and the peak of the sun’s strength, and represents a time to stand back and admire the blessings of these deities’ energies in our lives.
Though most of us probably don’t identify as farmers or gardeners, we’re all constantly “planting” some thing or another - be it a project at work, a romantic pursuit, or a hobby. The summer solstice asks us to not only bask in the sun’s brilliant light while it’s at its zenith, but to also bask in our own light.
Give yourself credit where credit is due! Pat yourself on the back for your efforts, and don’t forget to be grateful for the success you’ve achieved so far.
With the dazzling strength of the solstice combined with the full moon, success, , and prosperity are high. Gratitude amplifies and multiplies the blessings of this season.
Check out our Litha Grimoire Page with correspondences, altar tips, and a midsummer invocation!
Altar Setup
For me, an altar can be any sort of space that has been set with intention.
Think about it: our ancient ancestors didn’t have Etsy or a craft store.
They honored their beliefs with what they had.
To me, that’s where the real magick comes from.
I connect with the seasons, cycles, and everything else in whatever ways are accessible to me.
If I have the candles, great. If I have herbs that resonate with what I’m doing, awesome.
Don’t get me wrong: I looooove a good altar kit.
But spending money on every sabbat, full moon, or ceremony just isn’t for me. So we’re decorating with what we have!
For the solstice, I’ll be setting up three altars throughout my home:
An offering on my primary altar
A small offering in the kitchen
A small offering outside
To keep things from getting too overwhelming, the three setups will be very similar, and will just be using ingredients I’ve found around my home - crystals, candles, herbs, essential oils; I didn’t buy anything fancy. It doesn’t matter that my altar cloths are old scarves, or that the containers are actually the top and bottom of a recently burnt-out candle.
My kitchen altar was arranged with offerings of honey, incense, herbs, fresh flowers, and citrine!
What matters is the intention, and my intention is to show gratitude for all the good in my life, and to celebrate!
In my bedroom I have my large standing altar that remains in place year-round. For the most part it doesn’t change around too much - its occupants have settled into a familiar setup that they prefer, and don’t particularly care for change. I can roll with that.
For this reason, I have a smaller altar space next to it that I use for spellwork, divination, and for special occasions!
I’m so thrilled with how this came together!
I also wanted to include a small faerie altar outside because the Celtic goddess Aine - Queen of the Faeries - is commonly associated with Litha. I am not very well versed in working with faeries - something I will one day remedy - but wanted to honor their queen on her holy day!
This small offering included flowers gifted by my husband’s grandma, as well a candle, shiny golden beads, fresh picked flowers, herbs, and hawthorn berries, which are considered sacred to faeries!
Here are some components to my altars!
Golden scarves for altar cloths
Candles engraved with wishes, spirals, and sun symbols, anointed in rose otto, lemon, and sage essential oils
Herbs: sage leaves, hawthorn berries, cinnamon flakes, dried elderberries, lavender, rose, and mugwort
Honey & white wine (in place of mead or ale)
Incense to carry my prayers and invocations up to the sun
Crystals: amber, carnelian, citrine, diamond, jade, lapis lazuli, tiger’s eye
Flowers gathered from my neighborhood
For more altar ideas and Litha correspondences
Check out the Litha Grimoire Page!
Celebrating the Summer Solstice
In addition to bringing the summer solstice inside, another (free!) easy way to connect with Midsummer is to spend some time outside.
In preparation for this post, and to simply figure out what I want to do to celebrate, I did a bunch of research and found all sorts of appropriate activities for the season - bonfires, feasting, dancing - but like I said earlier: not very accessible for me.
I work inside. I live in Los Angeles. Try as I might to maintain a well-rounded spiritual practice, I couldn’t tell you the last time I walked barefoot through some grass.
So that's what I did in celebration! I walked down to a local park, sat outside and enjoyed nature for a few minutes!
The more I pursue my craft, the more consistently I find that it’s intention, not grandeur, that makes the magick most potent and leaves me feeling the most fulfilled.
I brought crystals to charge in the sun, and read some beautiful prayers from my copy of “Llewellyn’s Sabbat Essentials: Midsummer”
(This series is invaluable for elevating my practice! Love!)
Basking in the Sun Meditation & Affirmation
Sit outside
Shoes off
Feet flat on the earth
Palms and face up towards the sky
Close your eyes (if you like)
Feel the the sun's rays. As your skin begins to warm, imagine that warmth seeping through your pores and all the way through you. It travels through your face, down your body, filling your limbs, and travels through the soles of your feet to the earth as the earth’s energy travels up through your feet.
You are fully grounded and connected to the divine.
Take deep, centering breaths and notice the surrounding nature - what do you hear, see, smell, and feel?
Regardless of the lives we live, we are all connected to the earth and the seasons, and are blessed to be able to honor them.
While channeling this brilliant energy, connect with your spiritual crew in whatever way feels most authentic to you: pray, talk with your ancestors, guides, or angels. Reflect on whatever you’ve been going through recently, and commend yourself for your progress. Give thanks for your growth, and speak positivity into your continued plans moving forward.
I am radiant like the sun. I am love and light and walk with purpose towards my goals. I honor my light as I honor the light of the summer solstice, and shine brightly for the good of all.
Add to your own practice!
Check out the Litha Grimoire Page!
Happy summer solstice, and may the bounty of the season favor us all!
