What is Litha?

Litha marks the Summer Solstice and the longest day of the year. Litha takes place in the Northern Hemisphere between June 20th and June 23rd depending on the solar cycle for that year. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is celebrated December 21st through December 24th, again depending on that year’s solar cycle. This is a time we celebrate and acknowledge the power of the Sun, and the bounty it’s warmth will provide in the harvest. The health of the sun and the harvest, ensure future life.

The Goddess is becoming a mother, she is at the height of her pregnancy. This is the high time for the God, he is at the peak of his power, before the harvest.

Symbolically, Litha represents the height of summer, and the celebration of the harvest to come. We observe this with fire rituals, and a celebration of the fertility and growth the Earth is abundant with.

Also known as: Summer Solstice, Midsommar, Midsummer, Midsummer’s Eve, Gathering Day, St. John’s Day, St. John’s Eve, Summer Solstice, Alban Hefin, Feill-Sheathain

Offerings- All Early Summer Fruits, Ale and Mead, Honeycakes, Redwine, Light Beers, Strawberries, Sun Teas, Herbal Teas, Solar Symbols, Candles, Sunflowers

Herbs- Mugwort, Vervain, Chamomile, Rose, Honeysuckle, Lily, Oak, Lavender, Lily, Ivy, Yarrow, Fern, Elder, Wild Thyme, Daisy, Carnation

Deities-  all Father Gods and Mother Goddesses, Pregnant Goddesses and Sun Deities, Aphrodite, Astarte, Freya, Hathor, Ishtar, Venus and other Goddesses who preside over love, passion and beauty

Colors- Yellow, Orange, Gold, Red-Orange

Incense- Sage, Cedar, Frankincense, Lemon, Myrrh, Pine, Rose, Lavender

Trees- Beech, Elder, Holly, Laurel, Linden, Oak

Stones- Amber, Tiger’s Eye, Jade, Emerald, Lapis, Diamond, and other Green Stones

Zodiac- Gemini