Learn how you can observe the sacred Winter and Summer Solstice celebrations and how some people throughout history have celebrated the shortest and longest day of the year.
The Winter and Summer Solstices happen once a year and are times when the sun changes and begins to move things toward different seasons. The Solstices have been celebrated since ancient times and continue to be celebrated as sacred days in modern times. Join SpiritualBlossom to learn about the Solstices. Find out what a Solstice is, when they happen, and reasons why people celebrate them. Find out what different groups of people have done throughout history to celebrate the Solstices and find out some simple ways that you and your loved ones can celebrate the Solstices today.
What’s a Solstice?
The Solstices are solar events, and they actually both happen at the same time. Which solstice you observe depends on where you are on the planet. The word Solstice comes from Latin and means “sun to stand still” because the sun actually looks like it's standing still right before it reverses the direction that it's taking. The Solstices occur around June 21st and December the 21st. In the Northern Hemisphere, the Summer Solstice is in June and the Winter Solstice is in December. In the Southern Hemisphere, it's exactly the opposite. So, when the Summer Solstice is happening in the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice will be happening in the Southern Hemisphere.
When it is the Winter Solstice, it is the longest night and the shortest amount of sunlight for the entire year. After that, the daylight will slowly increase and night time will slowly decrease. The Summer Solstice marks the longest day and the shortest night of the year, and after that, the days will begin to gradually shorten and the nights will lengthen. From the Winter Solstice, since the daylight is increasing, the movement towards Spring and the growing season happens. By the time Summer Solstice happens, the hottest days and the most sunlight available will have made vegetation grow. Once the Summer Solstice happens, the days will shorten, and move toward fall, and the harvest season. Read about the magic of the Sun here: Making Magic with the Sun
Why Celebrate the Solstices?
Not everybody celebrates the Solstices. In modern times, a lot of people believe that it's unnecessary to do anything when there is a solar or lunar event, because science tells us that the sun and moon will do what they're going to do regardless of human events or participation. In our modern times, electricity and factory farming have made life easier for us, and we've lost touch with how much we rely upon the sun and the earth to survive.
Some people throughout history have celebrated the Winter Solstice because they believed that giving strength to the sun would help ensure that it would gain power again after the cold dark months. The Winter Solstice is sometimes celebrated as a time of renewal both physically and spiritually. Some people also celebrated the Winter Solstice to ensure a good harvest. The Summer Solstice has been celebrated by some people to symbolize the power of the sun and how light triumphs over darkness. Some people celebrate the Solstices to observe the change of seasons. Some people celebrate the Solstices as a matter of honoring traditions. You can celebrate the Solstices for any reason you want to, even just because the Solstices are magical. Read about the magic of the seasons here: Magic with the Seasons
Ancient Solstice Celebrations
Most cultures of people have had their own Winter Solstice celebrations throughout history. Some ancient ones are still celebrated today, or their observations have been adapted into newer holidays. Some big historic celebrations include Germanic Yule celebrations, Roman Saturnalia, and ancient British Midsummer celebrations.
Yule
Yule is believed to be one of the oldest Winter Solstice celebrations and could go back thousands of years. It is a pre-Christian Winter Solstice holiday celebrated throughout Germanic places and the name Yule was a form of the god Odin’s name. The holiday was celebrated for differing periods of time- sometimes for one day, sometimes, three days, and sometimes twelve days or longer. Many modern Christmas traditions like Yule Logs, Christmas Trees in the house, reindeer, and celebrating for twelve days come from Yule.
Boars were sacrificed and their bodies were used to swear sacred oaths during Yule. The blood from sacrificial animals was offered to gods in temples and the people were blessed with this blood. Increased supernatural activity and the presence of the dead was felt more strongly during Yule and mothers, fertility, and spirits were honored during this time. People gathered for great feasts as well. Winter Solstice holidays are often considered times to gather with family, but is family worth it? Find out here: Are Relationships with Your Relatives Worth It?
Saturnalia
Like Yule, Saturnalia is ancient and some of today’s modern Christmas observances come from Saturnalia. It was an ancient Roman celebration honoring the god Saturn. It was a time of merriment, and a carnival atmosphere reigned for up to a week. Servants were served by their masters, and public sacrifice to the god Saturn was held and a great banquet followed. Small gifts were exchanged, and evergreen boughs were brought into the home. The evergreens symbolized bringing eternal life into the house and all the greenery had to be removed from the home and ritually burned at the temples by a certain day or it was considered bad luck.
A ”King “ of Saturnalia was decided by lot, and this “King” was tasked with being as outrageous as possible, keeping merriment going. Things like telling people to sing naked were orders this “King” would give, and it is written that the emperor Nero played as this “King” years before he was crowned as a real king. Things that were taboo or at least frowned upon were permitted during Saturnalia like gambling, and overuse of alcohol. Some people said Saturnalia was the best of days, and years later, in the British Isles, things like use of evergreens and having a “King” of merriment were adopted.
Nata e Buzmit
Ancient Albanians celebrated the Winter Solstice and modern Albanians have a holiday called Nata e Buzmit. Worship of the sun took on special importance to them in ancient times, and their celebration included lighting fires at home, doing an animal sacrifice, and doing divination. Sacred foods were eaten and rituals for livestock and in fields to ensure a good harvest and healthy animals were carried out. Rituals to bless the home, fields, and animals are still done in parts of Albania to this day. Other gods and goddesses worshipped in ancient times were sea deities and you can read about some of them here; The Folklore, Myths, and Gods of the Sea
Midsummer
In the British Isles, the Midsummer Solstice has been observed for countless generations. Some of today’s Christians keep a lot of the pre-Christian observances alive. Bonfires are lit and kept burning all night long in some places just as they were hundreds and perhaps thousands of years ago. This was originally done to give the sun strength and symbolize the sun lighting the world and driving out darkness. Many of today’s celebrants observe St. John’s Day instead of worshipping pre Christian gods with feasting, and even welcoming perceived enemies to their table in peace for the holiday. In honor of St. John, some people baptize babies and others visit holy springs and wells to pray for healing.
Geshi
The Summer Solstice is also observed by some people in Japan. A purifying bath is had at Futami Okitama Shrine where observers bathe in the bay after the sun rises between two sacred rocks there. Other shrines throughout Japan erect ritual baths where people can purify themselves from any sins they believe they have committed. The Japanese also focus on warding off any bad luck from that time so they can plant rice, a very important crop for them. Some of today’s Japanese people turn off all their electricity for two hours for the Solstice in efforts to reduce emissions and conserve the earth. Read more about some of the foods for Geshi here: Summer Solstice in Japan 2024: Special Foods, Events, and Spirituality - Japan Travel Guide MATCHA
Kronia
This Ancient Greek festival is believed to have heavily influenced Roman Saturnalia. This was held in honor of the god Cronus, and the observances were designed to emulate what the world was believed to be like when he ruled. It was held at the end of the cereal harvest and Cronus is the Greek patron god of the harvest and youngest of the Titans, or pre-Olympian gods. Rich, poor, masters, and servants dined and celebrated side by side and like at Saturanila, taboos were disregarded. Merriment and joyous shouts while running through the streets with unbridled enthusiasm was done by many. Interestingly, although Cronus and the other Titans were believed to be overthrown and imprisoned by his son, Zeus, eventually, some of the lore said Zeus freed Cronus who now rules in a mystical land of happiness where human heroes go for eternity.
How to Celebrate the Solstices
To celebrate the Solstices, you can do what ancient people have done, or you can create your own celebrations. Celebratory meals have always been a big part of gatherings and you can have a feast and invite all your friends and family. You can light fires to emulate the sun or give the sun some strength. In modern times, especially at Winter Solstice time, a lot of people like to exchange gifts.
Feast
Feasts have always been a part of special celebrations. For the Winter or Summer Solstice, have a potluck feast where all of your loved ones who attend bring a special dish. For the Winter Solstice, instead of having a special feast with loved ones, a lot of people food drives to help battle hunger. This can be done for the Summer Solstice too. Plan a Summer Solstice picnic feast and gather the people you love at your favorite outdoor space. Make sure to leave a small gift like some bird seed or a couple of apples in the forest for wildlife as a way of thanking the earth for its bounty during your Solstice feast. Food is magical and you can read about doing magic with herbs here: Using Magical Spices and Herbs
Light Fires
In ancient times, bonfires, torchlit processions in the night, fires in the hearth, and candles all symbolized the power of the sun emerging from the darkness. After cold winter months, when the sun arose on the Winter Solstice, some ancient people celebrated, believing that this heralded a time of new hope because they knew that they would move from the cold months toward the warmer months and that spring would come again. Bonfires were traditionally lit on hillsides, at worship centers, and in homes to feed the sun and welcome it back.
You can have your own candlelight ceremony and the night. During the Summer Solstice, light a festive fire in your garden or at a worship center, and dance merrily around it with friends. For the Winter Solstice, light candles the night before and stay up until the sun rises, keeping the lights flickering until the sun itself lights the world and all its glory. Vigils across the miles can be kept going by having people you love light a single candle in unison at the same time to celebrate the Solstice. We know now that the sun does not need to be fed by human beings, but it will strengthen as it always has. Lighting the candles just connects you to it.
Give Gifts
Everybody loves to get gifts, and a lot of people love to give gifts too. It's true that you don't need a special time of year or an excuse to give the people who you love gifts, but gift exchanges have been a part of the Winter Solstice dating back to at least ancient Roman times if not earlier. Some people consider Winter Solstice time the season of giving, and will do a lot of charitable works during that time of year also. One way to do a gift exchange without going into debt is a well-kept secret.
Find out how many people want to be involved in the gift exchange and write each person's name on a piece of paper. Fold the pieces of paper up so the names can't be seen and put all of the folded up names together in a bowl. Have each participant draw a name and that will be the name of the person who they give a gift to. You can set a spending limit and say for example nobody can spend more than $30.00 on a gift, or you can have a theme like everybody gives a handmade gift. Giving gifts during the Winter and Summer Solstices can be a part of your celebrations if you would like it to. Flowers make wonderful gifts and you can read about the magic of flowers here: All About the Magic of Flowers
The Solstices happen twice a year and have been celebrated all around the world for as long as anybody can remember. People have always understood that the sun lights our world and without it, we would have no life on this planet. Celebrations include feasting, giving gifts, lighting fires to empower the sun. Today's people can celebrate like the people of history did, but today's celebrations can be as simple as lighting a candle to give strength to the sun. May the Solstices be sacred times for you and may they bless you with hope and good times with loved ones. So Be It.
If you’re looking for the perfect gift to give in observation of the Solstices, consider giving yourself or someone you love the gift of psychic readings with SpiritualBlossom. Our readers are available all day every day.
About the Author: Lady Saoirse has studied magic and lore for most of her life but started walking her own Magical Path after being spiritually reborn in the desert. Today she is a High Priestess for The Temple of the Goddess, she is a psychic advisor and spiritual counselor, she shares her gifts as a Psychic and Content Writer for Mysticsense and SpiritualBlossom, and she writes for The Green Egg Magazine and PaganPages.Org emag.
