The Summer Solstice. 4:14 AM, CST. June 21, 2022.

Jun 20

Midsommar (Sweden), Litha (Celtic), National Indigenous People’s Day (Canada)

(Special Liturgy length: 30 minutes)

The Eight Solar Holidays are special occasions, marked with heightened joy and higher ceremony. You are welcome to participate in this liturgy without any supplies, and you are welcome to add or omit any elements according to your present enthusiasm, comfort, and lifestyle. If you have the time and the means, review the supply list beforehand to participate in this liturgy as written:

Supplies:

A sunny location
A bouquet of flowers to make a flower crown
Scissors
10-20 twist ties or string
Incense or scented candle
A match or a lighter
A blank sheet of paper
A pen

Go to a place in the sun, either indoors or outdoors, that instills you with spiritual contemplation. Bring the supplies as listed above, and prepare the space around you as you like.

Place the incense/candle at arm’s length in front of you, and light it. Find a comfortable place to sit down, and begin reading.

Opening

“Both the Winter and the Summer Solstices are expressions of love. They show us the opposition of light and dark, expansion and contraction, that characterize our experiences in the Earth school so that we can recognize our options as we move through our lives.”
— Gary Zukav

Read the following out loud:

“The Summer Solstice is here. A special, spiritual space has been created to honor this moment. We choose to celebrate the cycles of nature, delighting in the lightest day of the year by focusing on the light in us and all around us.”

Action: Clap twice

Welcome! With your act of creation and participation, the Liturgy has begun.

Breathwork

The world around you is full of life, soaking up the energy given freely by the Sun above. Join the celebration of the world with 5 deep, full breaths.

Sit up straight, and cup both of your hands in front of you. Breathe inward slowly through your nose, feeling the sun warming the palms of your hands. Breathe outward slowly through your mouth, exhaling in an even, controlled manner.

As you repeat this pattern, focus your mind on your cupped hands. You are receiving heat and light together with the world around you on this day of abundant Sun. As you inhale, feel it gather in the space your hands are holding. As you exhale, feel the heat and light in your hands seep into your body, intermingling with the heat and light within you.

Gratitude

It is a powerful act of love to be appreciative of all of the good things that exist and bring joy and meaning to life.

Take your pen and sheet of paper. Briefly write down three positive things you’ve seen/experienced recently and how they have impacted your life for the better; one from your private life, relating to family and friends; one from your community, relating to social groups you are a part of; and one from the globe, relating to a large-scale circumstance that has filled you with hope.

Once you are done writing, read each of your three things to yourself, then read the bolded responses out loud:

For [this good thing in my private life and how it has brought me joy],
”I share my gratitude with the universe.”

For [this good thing in my community and how it has brought me joy],
”I share my gratitude with the universe.”

For [this good thing in the world and how it has brought me joy],
”I share my gratitude with the universe.”

(Out Loud): “My gratitude has been expressed and my experiences have been made known. Just as the sun radiates life and heat, I radiate the warmth that joy brings. Though order is not guaranteed, I delight in the positivity and alignments that bring me hope.”

Action: Bow for a moment, meditating on these things. Raise your head when you are ready, and continue the Liturgy.

Make a Flower Crown

Take two flowers from your bouquet. Hold them in your hand side-by-side, blossom side up. Pull the flower to the left a few inches lower than the flower to the right, creating a pretty overlap. Twist tie the flower to the left at the base of its blossom to the stalk of the right flower.

Take another flower from your bouquet, and place it to the left of your two twist-tied blossoms. Pull that flower a few inches lower than the blossom next to it, then twist tie the base of that blossom to the stalks of the other flower stems. Repeat this process until you have a string of flowers long enough to wrap around your head.

Once the string of flowers is long enough, take the flower at the top and loop it around to the stem of the bottom flower, placing the top flower’s blossom along its stem, overlapping just behind the bottom flower’s blossom. Test this loop around your head, making sure it fits. Add more flowers if it’s too short, and take flowers away if it’s too long.

Once it fits correctly, twist tie the top flower at the base of its blossom to the stalk of the bottom flower. Reinforce the link between these two flowers with more twist ties if necessary, and use the scissors to trim any excess stalks to make the crown more comfortable.

Congratulations! You’ve made a flower crown in honor of the Summer Solstice! Place it on your head. Once you are ready, continue reading the liturgy.

Seasonal Contemplation

Read this short meditation and consider it:

The Summer Solstice is one of the most exciting and joy-filled times of the year. The Sun’s extended presence in the sky makes one feel unstoppable, every portion of nature reveling in the extra daylight granted by this station of the Earth.

Not only that, because it takes so long for the Sun to warm the Earth, the temperature fluctuates at a staggered rate, about a month and a half behind the great solar movements. The Sun may have peaked, but the peak of Summer’s heat lies ahead of the northern hemisphere.

Warmth has finally returned and it’s here to stay… at least for a little while.

Celtic mythology places a strong emphasis on the relationship between the Summer Solstice and the Winter Solstice, and traditionally celebrates one in light of the other. According to their myths, the Oak King and the Holly King are in a constant cycle of victory and defeat.

The Holly King rises to power as the weather grows cold, but just as he achieves it, he is defeated by the Oak King on the Winter Solstice. The Oak King then prepares his kingdom as the Sun rises and warmth returns, but just as he comes to his full power on this day, the Summer Solstice, he is defeated by the Holly King once again, and the Sun must now wane in the sky just as it has millennia before.

The Summer Solstice is joyous because it’s the brightest day of the year. It also has a speck of mourning because it’s the brightest day of the year.

Celebrate today for the brightness and the sweetness it brings, allowing the bitterness of the Sun’s inevitable waning to make Summer’s fruits taste even sweeter.

Personal Contemplation

You may either journal your thoughts on your sheet of paper or consider them in your mind, whichever is more natural for you.

What most excites you about this upcoming Summertime?

The Oak King has been preparing his Summery kingdom for the last six months. What in the last six months has prepared you the most for the Summer of 2022?

The waning of the Sun begins immediately after the Summer Solstice. What part of this season of warmth would you most like to carry with you into the upcoming colder months?

Today’s recognition of the Sun’s highest point calls for presence, the soaking in of life and warmth while it is here. Apart from this reading, what act of presence will you take today to soak in the Summer Solstice?

Singing/Humming

Singing and/or humming connects our breath with our ears and our heartbeat. It’s a powerful tool to help regulate mood and actively engage with ourselves and the physical world around us.

Stand up as you are able. This is a moment to have fun and let go a little. Don’t overthink it. It should feel similar to when you sing a song to yourself in the shower.

All you have to do is pick a song that you like. It doesn’t have to be wintery or holiday focused, but it would be thematic if it was. Sing or hum, whichever feels more comfortable for you, as much of that song to yourself as you like. Move or motion with the song as you like. Whatever feels easy and relaxing and fun.

Closing Ceremony

As you are standing, take one deep breath in, and let it go. Without looking directly at the sun, turn your face toward the sunlight beaming down on you. Soak in the warmth and the light.

When you are ready, close your eyes and place your palms together over your heart pointing upwards. Read the following out loud:

“As I stand on the brightest of days, I will also delight in the joy of Summertime. The universe does not question the necessity of joy and life, even as the Sun reaches its bittersweet peak. So as a part of that universe, neither will I. Here are blessings for myself and for all that binds us together.”