The Summer Solstice is a day especially marked on the calendar for those of us who work with universal energies and planetary forces. It is a moment wrapped in magic, rituals and traditions that make it very special and powerful, which is why it has been celebrated since ancient times.
The observation of the Sun and the cult of fire are as old as humanity. In prehistory they soon began to realize that after a certain moment, the Sun lost its strength and the days began to get shorter. When this happened, they feared that the Sun would not rise again, night and perpetual cold would come. At this time of solar force, Sun worship rituals began to be performed in different cultures and places simultaneously. Bonfires and fire rites were made during the Summer Solstice to help the Sun to prolong its light. These also consisted of purification rituals that sought to ensure the power of the sun.
Shamans and healers waited for the Summer Solstice to collect the herbs, prepare them and ritualize them. Why right on the solstice? At this time there is a greater amount of light, which is absorbed by plants and trees. This solar energy enhances the healing properties of the plants they used for their remedies. Some of these powerful herbs were hypericum, sage, vervain or mugwort, among many others. One of the main rituals that were performed was to put these herbs in a bag and ritualize them throughout the night in the fire of the bonfires. Later, this bag was kept throughout the year as a protection and cleaning amulet.
The druids, for their part, made their cattle pass through these bonfires in order to purify them and protect them from diseases. They considered that, during that night, gods and fairies were present in nature, therefore, they made different requests to them so that the year would be fruitful, both in crops and in fertility. b>.
Today, many cultures continue to celebrate this planetary phenomenon with rituals that have become traditions. The closest are the classic bonfires of San Juan on the beach. In Eastern Europe, rituals of fertility and love are celebrated during the solstice, where girls deposit crowns of flowers and candles in the water of the rivers, and their movement determines their luck during the solstice. year.
Another example is the United Kingdom, specifically in the Stonehenge monument, where thousands of people gather every year to dance to the rhythm of drums and perform rituals of the ancient druids . This is the oldest known temple to the Sun, and during the summer solstice its rays pass right through the middle of the monument.
There are thousands of traditions related to the Summer Solstice and the strength of the Sun. It is a moment of powerful energies that we cannot let escape to work petitions with our Ritual of Saint John.
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