Litha – Sunflowers, sunbathing and the solstice
It’s peak summertime here in Wales, and we want to bring you the best of the season with our special summertime celebration. Summer is a great time to spend outdoors, soaking up the sun and enjoying nature’s beauty. Whether gathering with friends to celebrate this magickal time of year or spending time alone in contemplation, summertime is a beautiful opportunity to connect with the spirit of nature.
At this special time of year, we take part in Solstice celebrations and offerings to honour the warmth and light of summer. We decorate with sunflowers, wear bright colours, explore our inner light through meditation practices, dance around the fire and make offerings of thanks for the gifts the Earth provides us. We hold sacred space to honour our ancestors and open ourselves to receive what the summer offers. Nature is in full bloom, giving us an abundance of nourishment and magick that we can take with us throughout the year. This is when witches gather to celebrate Litha.
What is Litha?
Litha is a summer solstice celebration, also known as Midsummer. It is celebrated by many Pagans and Wiccans around the world on the longest day of the year and marks the first day of summer. Traditionally it is a time to honour the sun, celebrate fertility, and give thanks for abundance. For secular witches like myself who don’t honour gods or goddesses, it’s a time to be grateful for the warmth of summer and to take a moment to appreciate the earth with all it provides us when the days are at their longest.
At this special time we also pay attention to our dreams and visions. We use meditation and tarot cards for guidance as we explore deeper connections with ourselves, our community, and the divine.
You’ll find that weddings and handfastings are typically planned around this time too – love magick definitely feels heightened in the light of summertime even into the late evenings. Following on from Beltane and Ostara, the wheel has turned and so has our journey.
Litha is a great opportunity to work with the fae, too, as you’ll remember from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Celebrate the abundance and magick of summer by making offerings to the fae folk, honouring their friendship and connection. A small bowl of milk & honey goes a long way!
Get creative with decorations, take part in rituals that feel right for you, and be sure to spend as much time outdoors as possible – it’s summer after all, and we don’t get a lot of this sunshine normally! There are so many ways to celebrate this special time of year, and so here is some additional inspiration.
Litha Correspondences
- Crystals: Rose Quartz, Jade, Emerald, Sunstone
- Colours: Red, Pink, Orange, Gold, Yellow, Bright Green
- Flowers: Elderflower, St Johns Wort, Lavender, Thyme, Mugwort, Sunflowers
- Foods: Honey cakes, Mead, Strawberries, Bread, Fresh Salads, Dandelions, Chickweed
- Activities: Sun-bathing (safely), Dancing around the fire or a bonfire, visiting sacred sites and ancient monuments, making offerings to the fae folk.
- Magick: Divination, Solar Magick, Fire Magick, Candle Magick, Charging tools and cleansings
- Deities: Aine, Fortuna, Juno, Cernunnos, Pan, Dionysus, Aphrodite, Bast, Ra, Helios, Apollo
About the writer
Lizzie Burgess, a secular divination Bosswitch, runs BackyardBanshee.com where you can learn more about divination methods, rituals and resources that help you with your growth spiritually and professionally. Lizzie is currently finishing the upcoming book “An A to Z of Modern Divination”, where they upcycle and modernize ancient divination methods for a more accessible divinatory practice.