E ach time of year has its own particular energy, and the sabbats reflect that energy. For instance, at Imbolc, the energy is quiet and preparatory—waiting for the land to reawaken. At the Spring Equinox, the energy is bubbly and hopeful as new life springs forth. Midsummer energy is just that—energetic. The sun is energy, after all, and the earth is bursting with growth and vitality.
This seasonal energy dictates the general themes of the holiday as well as the kinds of magickal work usually done on or around that day. At Midsummer, the primary themes are abundance, growth, fertility, and increase of every kind. This means that the Summer Solstice is a good time for working on prosperity or anything positive that you want to continue to grow.
The mother goddesses and pregnant goddesses are honored, which can mean a ritual celebrating the goddess in her Mother aspect, or actual celebrations of mothers, family, and/or pregnancy.
This sabbat is a good time to connect with the earth, growing things in general, and the faerie folk (with all due respect and caution, of course). Green magick of every kind is practiced on this day. Traditionally, it has also been connected with healing, especially in conjunction with sacred wells and other bodies of water.
Love is often a focus, whether it is the love of mother for child, our love for our Mother the earth and our Father the sun, or romantic love. Love goddesses are often called upon for their blessings and assistance, and weddings and handfastings may take place as part of the Summer Solstice celebration.
Of course, the major theme of Midsummer has always been a celebration of the sun. This can manifest as a fire or sun ritual, honoring the God at his peak, bidding farewell to the light half of the year, or simply reveling in the light and energy of the season.
Empowerment, increase, abundance, love, and joy are the themes of Midsummer, and they have been through the centuries in many cultures around the world. It is the longest day of the year, and the sun fills the sky with light and energy. Our ancestors used the Summer Solstice to celebrate these things, and so do we.
Ancient Energies in a Modern World
Most of the Pagan holidays that have been passed on to us are based on an agricultural calendar. They honored a lifestyle lived without electricity or indoor plumbing, at the mercy of the weather, and completely dependent on whatever food could be raised or hunted locally.
Very few modern witches and Pagans have lives that remotely resemble those of our ancestors. (For which most of us are sincerely grateful. Did I mention indoor plumbing?) We have artificial lighting and don’t need to confine the majority of our activities to the hours when the sun is in the sky. This means we tend to lose track of much of the seasonal restrictions that so influenced earlier Pagans. Does it matter that the sun rises or sets earlier, or that the days are shorter, if all we have to do is turn on a lamp to extend the day?
We also get all or most of our food from a grocery store, some of it coming from countries far away. Our meat is prepackaged and wrapped in plastic, distancing our connection to the animals it came from. We are no longer limited to eating only those items that are in season or that grow in the area of the country where we live. A drought or an early freeze might drive up the prices of that food, but most of us will never be at risk of starving because bad weather ruined our crops. (Although those who garden extensively will certainly curse the loss of time and effort we’ve put into the endeavor.)
Considering that most of the holidays we celebrate were based on conditions very different from the ones we live in, are they even still relevant? How do we continue to make a connection between our world and the world of our ancestors while also making sure that we are creating a holiday that applies to our own, modern reality? Thankfully, it is not as difficult as it might seem.
The sabbats, after all, are based not just on changing circumstances and environments, but also on the energies of the earth below, the seasonal cycle, and the sun overhead. These things have stayed more or less the same over the centuries, and still apply to us as they did to much earlier cultures. We just have to find ways to make that connection meaningful within the context of our own lives and our own personal approaches to a spiritual practice.
Midsummer and the Wheel of the Year
It is easy to ignore the ebb and flow of the seasonal energy when we are immersed in an artificial world. And frankly, most people don’t have the option to retreat inside during the winter, huddling by the warmth of the fire and telling stories, getting up later and going to bed early because of the shorter days. Trying to do so would probably just get you fired!
But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pay attention to the shifts and changes of the natural energies altogether; they affect us in ways we are barely aware of. Trying to fight the natural flow of things can lead to stress, depression, and frustration, causing physical and psychological issues that reduce the enjoyment of our lives.
The Wheel of the Year gives us one way to tune in to those natural cycles, helping us to remember that our environment is artificial, and a different reality surrounds us, if we just take the time to connect with it. The sabbats are not only times for celebration, as they were for our ancestors, but also an opportunity to reestablish our relationship to the innate rhythms of the universe.
If you follow the Wheel as it turns, you will see that the energy of the planet moves through a predictable cycle of slow, quiet restfulness in the darker, colder months, through a rising awakening as the warmth and light increase and new life returns, into an exuberant burst of growth and abundance, before slowing back down again as the harvest is upon us and things begin to settle down, shut down, or die off as the darkness and cold return. And then the Wheel turns once more, and it all begins again.
When each of these parts of the cycle occurs, and how dramatic the changes are, depends on where you live. In some places, there are four drastically different seasons—when it is cold it is cold, when it is dark it is dark, and the shifting moods of nature are fairly difficult to ignore. In other places, the seasonal changes are moderate, and while the light still changes, the temperatures may not fluctuate all that much, and cold might mean sixty degrees Fahrenheit, instead of seventy-five. Nonetheless, the Wheel of the Year applies to everyone, in one way or another.
Midsummer falls midway between the Spring Equinox and the Fall Equinox, when the power of the cycle is at its peak. There is more light than there will be at any other time along the Wheel, and the energy will never be higher. This is the time for activity and forward movement. Unlike Imbolc, when we planned out the things we wished to work on during the course of the year—whether practical or spiritual—or Ostara (the Spring Equinox), when we planted the seeds for those things to come to pass, now is the time to be doing instead of thinking.
If you’ve been mulling over goals or laying the groundwork for future possibilities, Midsummer is your signal to go, go, go. Set out your plan of action and get it into motion. Use the power of the energy around you to help you be more motivated so you can achieve the things you set out to do. It’s okay to stay up a little later, or get up a little earlier, as long as that feels right to you.
Midsummer is a good time to check in on your level of physicality, too. If you’re like most people, you may spend much of your day inside, behind a desk—sitting. As the sun rises on Midsummer, it reminds us to get up and move—take a walk, go for a swim if you are lucky enough to have a body of water nearby, throw a stick for the dog, or simply dance around a bonfire. And keep moving, even after this day is over, as long as the light is strong in the sky. (It is best to keep active all year round, but the energy of the summer sun makes it easier for many of us.)
Use the light of the season to help you tune in to the internal light we all carry inside ourselves. Let the glow of the sun overhead remind you to look on the bright side, and to let your own inner light shine out for the rest of the world to see.
Midsummer is in some ways the most powerful holiday on the Wheel (although it could be argued that Samhain has some pretty amazing energy of a different type). Whether you use this power to move yourself forward, or simply channel it into a joyful celebration, it is clear why so many cultures observed this day in one form or another.
Country, City, or In-Between
How you honor these themes in your life and celebrate Midsummer will vary depending on where you live and what path you follow. Not everyone lives in the country with a large garden full of magickal herbs and a forest at their back door. It is a source of frustration for some Pagan and witchy folks when all the instructions for observing a holiday seem to start with “light a bonfire” or “dig a hole in the ground.” It can be tough for city witches to stay in touch with nature, but on the other hand, they often have access to covens or open group festivals, which may not be true of those who live in more isolated rural areas. Folks who live in the suburbs may have space for a garden, but their yards are often out in full view of their neighbors, which can make dancing around in their magickal garb a little tricky, unless they are completely out of the broom closet. (Or simply don’t care what the neighbors think.)
But not to worry—you can still enjoy your favorite Midsummer traditions, no matter where you live. It is all about being flexible and working with what you have available to you.
You can always find some way to celebrate Midsummer. If all else fails, you can work with the energies of love. After all, love is not limited by where you live, or whether or not you have a garden or can light a bonfire; it is universal, and available to us all. Call on goddesses of love, such as Aphrodite or Venus, or do a ritual focusing on your love for a significant other, your children, your pets, or even yourself. Send love out into the universe, and remember to open yourself up to receiving it back. It is Midsummer, and love is in the air, just like the rays of the sun high overhead.
Different Paths, Different Approaches
Although many Pagans and witches share common beliefs, we don’t all celebrate the holidays in the same way. Midsummer celebrations tend to vary less than some of the other sabbats because the themes tend to be quite basic and universal. Nonetheless, there may be variations in approaches, and you will have to decide which one appeals most to you and works the best with your own practice.
For instance, Druids or Neodruids may try to celebrate Midsummer in ways that reproduce those hypothetically based on earlier Druid practices. They may wear white robes, use stone circles or wooded groves, and say invocations of Celtic gods and goddesses.
These same deities would be worshipped by Celtic (or Celtic Reconstructionist) Pagans, who would probably also focus on such traditional elements as bonfires, dancing, singing, divination, and other traditional Celtic practices.
Heathens, modern Pagans whose worship practice is taken from the pre-Christian traditions of Germany, Scandinavia, and Northern Europe, would be more likely to call on Germanic gods such as Balder. They also celebrate with bonfires, singing, and dancing. In the Heathen tradition, Midsummer is the second most important holiday of the year after Yule. Particularly Heathen additions to Midsummer rituals might include the making of wreaths and building small model Viking ships that will be used as burned offerings. They might refer to Midsummer by the name Midsumarblot.
Traditional Witchcraft is the name sometimes given to the form of Witchcraft practiced by those who do not label themselves as Wiccans or Neopagans. While this can cover a wide range of styles and approaches, those who consider themselves to be Traditional Witches usually follow a polytheistic or goddess-centered path based on traditional folk magick. The cultural background of the practitioner may be a major influence on exactly the type of magick that is practiced. Many Traditional Witches observe either the solstices and equinoxes or the quarter-cross holidays (such as Imbolc and Samhain), but not both. They tend to be solitary, so that any Midsummer celebration is likely to be a matter of magickal work, communing with nature, and whatever other traditions have been handed down.
Wiccans are a more modern type of Witchcraft/Pagan practice, based on earlier traditions but added to in numerous different ways. Wiccans can also vary greatly in their practices, but in general, they follow the Wheel of the Year and worship the Goddess in her changing forms as Maiden/Mother/Crone and a Horned God of some sort. Wiccans may be solitary or belong to covens, but many like to gather together for major sabbats such as Midsummer. A Wiccan Midsummer celebration might include honoring the goddess in her aspect as Mother, bonfires, drumming, and chanting. Divination, offerings for the faeries, and handfastings might also occur, as well as general salutations to the sun and an appreciation for summer’s glories.
Many modern Pagans consider themselves to be Eclectic Witches, a form of Neopaganism that draws on the traditions and practices of many different cultures and paths. Eclectic Witches, who may or may not consider themselves to be Wiccans, tend to follow a nature-based path that focuses on the Wheel of the Year and the accompanying natural energies, worship some form of god and goddess (often numerous), and may practice on their own or in groups. As their name suggests, there is no one kind of Eclectic Witch, so their practices can vary widely. However, their Midsummer celebrations are likely to resemble those of Wiccans or Traditional Witches.
There is no right or wrong way to celebrate the Summer Solstice. Pagans base their celebrations on a combination of cultural traditions, historical practices, and their own personal inclinations.
Yearly Summer Solstice Festivals
While we no longer live in an era where Midsummer is celebrated in every village and town, if you really want to go to a major festival in honor of the Summer Solstice, there are a few places around the world that people flock to every year to do just that. You might want to consider looking to see if one of these is located anywhere near you, or you could combine your regular vacation plans with a chance to be someplace truly magickal on the longest day of the year.
The most well-known festival is probably held at Stonehenge, on the Salisbury Plain, located about eighty miles from London. More than 20,000 people have been known to gather at the mysterious standing stones that many associate with the Druids. If you want to visit Stonehenge, this is the day to do it; it is the only time that the public is allowed inside the circle of stones. Druids (or Neodruids, as the modern religion is sometimes referred to), also observe Midsummer at Glastonbury, England, as well as other lesser-known locations.
Across the country in Cornwall, the people of Penzance have revived the ancient Golowan (“Midsummer” in the Cornish language) celebration. The festival consists of Mazey Day and Quay Fair Day, and it includes musicians, artists, market stalls, and a large fireworks display. The town is adorned with greenery, much as it would have been in days gone by.
Elsewhere in Europe, the Summer Solstice is celebrated in a variety of ways. In Austria, a processional of ships sail down the Danube River past hilltop bonfires, fireworks, and glowing castle ruins. In Poland, a festival known as Wianki (wreaths) takes place in Krakow. There are live performances, prizes for the most beautiful wreath, and fireworks, among other entertainments.
In Bergen, Norway, the bonfire is something special. Known as the world’s largest keg fire, it is created using kegs piled together by young people from a local music corps, which are then burned in celebration of the Norwegian Midsummer known as Sankthansaften.
Externsteine, Germany, is home to a natural outcropping of five limestone pillars that have been altered over time by man. Considered a sacred site both in ancient times and now, it draws numerous modern Pagans to its Summer Solstice celebrations.
In the United States, there are also a number of yearly festivals to celebrate Midsummer. In Santa Barbara, California, they hold a three-day party in honor of the holiday, including a parade, musicians and other entertainers, and much more. In Portland, Oregon, the large Lithuanian community uses the Solstice as an opportunity to get back to their roots, with a festival where people sing and dance until the sun sets. People make wreaths (flowers for the women and oak leaves for the men), jump over bonfires, and wash their faces in the morning dew as they greet the rising sun.
For something completely different, you can join in at the Solstice in Times Square celebration, where every year more than 8,000 people gather to practice yoga all day. This event started in 2002, and it has been steadily growing in popularity since then.
There are a few other celebrations that fall around the same time of year as the solstice, although they aren’t actually linked to the holiday. For instance, there is the Fête de la Musique, which is held every year on June 21. It began in France, but now occurs in more than one hundred countries in Europe and across the world, and features all kinds of music.
How to Celebrate—Some Basic Suggestions
Obviously, how you choose to celebrate Midsummer will be based on which path you follow, your personal circumstances (whether you live in the city or the country, practice as a solitary or in a group, are in or out of the broom closet), as well as your needs or inclinations in any given year. It may even depend on whether or not it is raining that day.
If you are trying to decide what to do, however, here are a few basic suggestions for ways to observe the Summer Solstice. You can integrate as many or as few of these elements as you like into your own Midsummer ritual.
The Sun
Since Midsummer is traditionally focused on the sun, you can hold your ritual at noon, include representations of the sun (including the color yellow, sun disks or wheels, flowers that are associated with the sun, etc.), and offer up your appreciation to the sun god/goddess of your choice. You might also want to hold your ritual at dawn and greet the rising sun.
Obviously, on a day that celebrates the sun, it is good to find a way to go outside! (If it is raining, you may want to focus your attention on the rain/thunder gods associated with the holiday, rather than the sun god.) But if you can’t have your ritual out under the open sky, there are other ways to keep the sun front and center. Try getting up with the first light of dawn on Midsummer Day and greeting the sun as it rises. You can also bid it farewell when it sets, too. If you have to have an indoor ritual, try to find a sunny space to do it in. Most Midsummer rituals are held either at noon or at dawn, but if the best sun of the day falls in the middle of your altar at two in the afternoon, you may want to observe the holiday then, just so you can stand in the light.
Fire
Bonfires are traditional at Midsummer, and you can have one that is as large or as small as you want. If you can’t have an actual fire, candles or fire images will work as well. You can place candles around the outside boundary of your circle or use a fire pit to burn offerings. If you have a bonfire, you can throw in offerings of herbs, prayers written on pieces of paper, or simply dance around it in celebration.
Since Midsummer is a fire festival, it is nice to have a bonfire if you can. But if you don’t have a good place to dig a fire pit, there are a number of other options. If you live in the city, check to see if there are any public rituals going on (or even non-Pagan solstice festivals, some of which happen every year); sometimes these folks can get permits or find places where a bonfire would be allowed. Bonfires, although traditional, aren’t the only form of fire, either. If you have a barbecue grill that uses charcoal, that will work. If you have limited space, but have a balcony or outside spot, you can use a small, cast iron hibachi. Those who live near public parks may be able to find one that provides fire pits for campers or barbecue grills for picnickers. [Note: keep in mind that if you live in a part of the country that is at risk for forest fires at this time of the year, you may want to skip the outdoor fires during dry years, and be extra careful the rest of the time.]
If you can’t make a large fire, try substituting candles. A cauldron or a fire-safe bowl can be filled with either sand or salt with a circle of small candles placed inside. If you can use beeswax candles, that’s even better, since bees are one of the sacred creatures on Midsummer. For those who can’t have an open flame at all (in a dorm room, for instance), you can purchase small cauldrons with fake flames made of ribbon; a battery-powered fan makes the ribbons move as if they were alive. There are also battery-powered LED tea lights that look almost like the real thing.
Water
Pilgrimages to sacred wells or other bodies of water played a part in many early rituals. Since the sacred water was usually associated with healing, try taking a bath with healing herbs before starting your formal ritual, or pass a bowl of water around your circle if you are celebrating with others. If you are fortunate enough to live near the ocean, a river, a stream, a lake, or a pond, you may want to make a pilgrimage of your own to thank the water for its gifts. Don’t forget to bring a small offering for the guardians of the water.
For those who can’t get to a natural source of water, you can still invoke the spirit of water in your own home. Try using a tabletop fountain or a bowl full of rainwater you collected ahead of time. Don’t worry if you are limited to the water that comes out of your tap—after all, all water is connected, and at one point in time the water in your pipes may have been a drop in the ocean or the dew on a morning leaf. Bless and consecrate a bowl of water on your altar, and maybe leave it out in the light of the full moon preceding the holiday for some extra oomph. If it is a hot day, you can even try running through the sprinkler, if you have one.
Faeries
Midsummer is considered a powerful day to commune with the faery folk. Many traditions use this day to make offerings or gestures of good will to the Fae. If you will be celebrating outside, you can integrate an element of this into your ritual. Try placing flowers known to attract the faeries around the outside of your circle, or put out a bowl of milk. Do a ritual that includes asking for the blessings of the faeries. It is true that you are probably more likely to find faerie folk in the country; they’re said to be uncomfortable around too much metal, especially cold iron, and are drawn to flowers, birds, and bees. But who can say that there aren’t faeries in the city, too? Try putting out a bird feeder or placing a few colorful flowers in an open window. It may help to place a few small offering bowls out where they can find them: faeries like mead, it is said, and honey (which mead is made from), as well as small sweet treats. Some tales say they like milk, too. Pretty sparkly things may attract their attention. Remember when dealing with the Fae to always be respectful and polite. They can be quite tricky if annoyed.
Vigils
Numerous cultures hold vigils on Midsummer, either from dawn to dawn (Midsummer morning until the morning after) or sundown on Midsummer Eve to sundown on Midsummer Day. Try getting up with the sun on Midsummer Day and offering a formal greeting to it and to the sun god and/or goddess of your choice. If you can, stay in a spiritual focus through the day, and then give a formal thanks to the sun either at sundown or at dawn the next morning. A vigil can be a powerful spiritual experience.
Handfastings
Midsummer is a traditional day for weddings and handfastings. If you are planning on having a Pagan wedding, you might want to hold it on Midsummer. (If you are including non-Pagans, you can explain the traditions to them.) A handfasting can be the ritual itself or part of a greater ritual. You may want to include elements of Midsummer traditions, such as holding your handfasting at noon to be out under the sun or having a bonfire either during or after the ritual. The chalice can hold sacred water to represent the holy wells that pilgrims might have gone to, or it can hold mead, which you can also share with the faeries. If you have a cute flower girl taking part, you might even want to dress her as a faery, and have her scatter rose petals around the outside of the ritual space as an enchanting way to cast the circle.
Light Half/Dark Half of the Year
In many cultures, Midsummer marks the point where the light half of the year gives way to the dark half of the year. Stage a mock battle between the Holly King and the Oak King, or give formal thanks to the light before acknowledging the coming darkness. If you are celebrating as a group, you can crown someone king for the next half of the year.
Celebrate Growth and Abundance
The natural world is in full blossom at Midsummer. Decorate your home or ritual circle with flowers, oak leaves, and/or harvest from your garden or local growers. Have a feast featuring food that is readily available at this time of year, with fresh fruit and vegetables, freshly baked bread, and traditional drinks such as mead or fruit juice. Do rituals that focus on abundance, growth, prosperity, and appreciation for nature.
In a perfect world, we would all be able to spend Midsummer in the middle of a meadow full of beautiful flowers, wandering through a garden, or looking over a countryside where greenery was bursting out all around us. But if you can’t manage that, there are still plenty of ways to capture the feeling of the natural world’s abundance and energy. Have a picnic in a park or your backyard with fruits and vegetables of the season (preferably grown as locally as possible). If you don’t have a garden, buy some beautiful flowers and put them on your altar or in the middle of a table. Go for a walk and admire everything that is at its peak. Find an oak and pick up a few fallen leaves to take home with you. You can even hug it and pull some of its wonderful earthy strength deep inside. If you live in the city, you can try planting some flowers or herbs in a window box or tabletop container, timing a few of them to blossom or come to fruition as close to the day of the Summer Solstice as possible. And you can have a feast, no matter where you live.
Dance and Sing
Many early celebrations of Midsummer included circle dancing, singing, and general revelry. Try to include these elements in whatever ritual you do, whether it is solitary or with a group. Go online to find some chants you like and integrate them into your rites. Dancing, especially in a group around a bonfire, is a traditional part of many Midsummer celebrations. But you don’t have to go to a large public festival in order to bring the magickal energy of dance into your ritual. If you have a bonfire, you can dance around it all by yourself. You can even dance around a candle in the middle of your living room. Or just put on a CD of some cool drumming or chanting that seems to you to capture the feeling of Midsummer, and dance wherever you are. It is more about the joyful movement than anything else, so don’t worry about how you look—or “getting it right”—just dance.
Divination
You can include some form of divination in your celebration, using rune stones, tarot cards, or one of the many types of divination used traditionally in the various cultures. Divination to discover your true love was probably most practiced at this time.
Magick
Some traditions hold that Midsummer should only be used for celebration, while others believe it is one of the most powerful days of the year for magickal work. If you wish to practice some form of magick, Midsummer energies are perfect for prosperity, healing, love, power, creativity, fertility, and joy.
Harvest Herbs
Midsummer was often considered the best time to harvest herbs that would be used for magick and/or healing. If you have an herb garden, try mindfully harvesting some plants as part of your celebration of the holiday. As you clip them, focus on the sun’s energy and power that are stored within their leaves and your intentions for their use later on. Give thanks to the elements that helped them grow. You may particularly want to harvest herbs and flowers associated with the Summer Solstice, such as yarrow, lavender, and St. John’s Wort. Herbal charms and divinations will be covered in the next chapter, along with other varieties of spells and magickal work, a common way for Pagans to mark nearly any sabbat.