:sun: Weekly Witchy CHALLENGE - Solstice Festivities of Light

[BryWisteria]

A warm welcome to all!

Thank you once again to everyone who joined in for last week’s Weekly Witchy Challenge - Ocean Magick

No perfect day by the sea is complete without the sun- and there’s no better time to celebrate light than at the solstice!

The theme for this week’s challenge is timed with the Sabbat this week, was suggested by the wonderful @Kasandra, and is…

The Solstice: Festivities of Light

Celebrate the sun’s journey and the light in your life with some magick honoring the solstice this week!

The summer solstice is approaching in the Northern Hemisphere- this coming Tuesday will be the longest and brightest day of the entire year. The occasion is celebrated by pagans and witches, and many celebrate the day as the Sabbat Litha

The entire world will embrace the solstice, but for friends in the Southern Hemisphere it is the winter solstice and the Sabbat Yule . There, this occasion marks the shortest day of the year, after which the days become longer.

The solstice and Sabbats are celebrations of light, the sun, and brightness within your life. They are a special occasion to look up from the mundane and embrace the magick all around you in a way that lights up your heart and stokes the fire within

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This week’s theme challenges you to embrace the light of the solstice - but as always, how you do so is up to you!

So are you ready? Because it’s…

CHALLENGE TIME!

Picture from Pixabay

STEP 1 : Bright Solstice Magick

There are many ways to celebrate the solstice and explore light magick- feel free to be creative with how you take on the theme!

Not sure where to begin?

To help you get started, the following list has a few ways in which a witch might approach this challenge!

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Solstice Celebrations

The solstice sun will shine upon the Earth on Tuesday, June 21st, although some traditions may begin celebrating early. If you haven’t already, now is the time to set up your altar, gather your ingredients, and prepare!

How To: Basic Altar Set-Up

Litha: Ideas for Celebrating the Summer Solstice

Litha: Summer Solstice Ritual

Click here for Yule/Winter Solstice resources!

Yule: Ideas for Celebrating the Winter Solstice

Yule: Winter Solstice Ritual

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Solar Magick

Solar Magick, much like its sister Lunar/Moon Magick, is magick that draws on and involves the magick of a celestial body- in this case, the sun. From charging to cleansing, channeling and more- there are many ways to use the sun in magick!

Take a peek at the entries shared for the previous Solar Magick Challenge for more solar magick ideas!

Sun Magick Discussion

The God Ra: Sun Devotional

Sunlight for Charging Magickal Tools

Spellwork for "Sun"Day: The Day of the Sun

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Light & Flame Magick

Although the light of the sun gives us life, the light we carry within is equally sacred. Whether the sun is at its peak or at its lowest point, your inner light will always be there to guide you. Consider celebrating the festival of light with some light magick!

Feel free to visit the previous Light Magick challenge and it’s entries for more light magick suggestions and spellwork

Pure Light: House & Spirit Cleansing Spell

Divine Light Meditation: Purple Candle Spell

White Candle Spell Collection

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…And more!

The solstice and changing of the seasons means something different to different witches- this is your celebration of the sun! Feel free to be creative with how you embrace the theme and explore the challenge this week

Picture from Watkins Publishing: The Magic of the Summer Solstice

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STEP 2 : Share Your Experience

Please click here for notes about challenge inclusivity

Everyone is welcome to join the challenge by practicing magick in line with the current theme. For those who don’t feel comfortable sharing, it is absolutely okay to follow along with the challenge but keep your entry personal. Feel free to join in spirit and do what feels most comfortable for you!

That being said, please know that if you would like to receive a prize and a public shout-out, it is required that you share your experience .

To participate in the challenge, please share:

1. How you used solar/light/solstice magick in your practice this week

For your entry to be counted, please write about your experience in the comments below and/or create a new thread in the forums.

Note : If you choose to create a new thread, please tag the challenge by adding a hyperlink back to this post so that I can easily find it- thank you!

This challenge will close in 6 DAYS

To join in, please share your experience by:

Tuesday, June 21st at 7:00 AM CET (Central European Time)
( 2022-06-21T05:00:00Z )

(Note that the time zone is CET- you can use this time zone calculator to switch into your time zone!)

For their efforts, all participants will receive a special shout-out and a small prize!

Acknowledgments will be given in a Props and Presents Post that will appear in the forums on Tuesday.

After the challenge closes, you are still very welcome to post but please be aware that no additional prizes will be given. This discussion will remain open for about a week after the challenge finishes.

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Picture from Mystic Elements: Summer Solstice

A warm reminder that all challenges are designed to be very open- everyone is encouraged to participate in a way that honors and reflects their unique practice

If you have any doubts about if something is acceptable to post or say, please double-check with the Forum FAQ and/or reach out to your friendly Moderator Team .

And for those new to challenges- welcome! Know that the goal of these activities is to help you further diversify and strengthen your abilities and to bring together the Spells8 forum family to inspire and support one another in creative ways

Blessing from Muse in the Mirror: Sacred Celebrations for Midsummer

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Solstice tidings to you and yours!
Feel the light both outside and within.
The season changes but much endures,
Let the sun celebrations begin!

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Blessed Be and Happy Solstice!

[Kasandra]

Woot woot! I have big plans for Midsummer. It’s that time of the year when dragon energy is at its strongest and with the current heat wave, I’m definitely feeling it more!
My ritual will include candles for each of the dragons I have worked with (I’m seriously having qualms about inviting Luqueas after what happened during my chaos magick ritual earlier this year ), singing (okay, more like humming; my neighbors hate my singing apparently because they bang loudly on the wall several times whenever I do it and it wasn’t late at night ) and dancing. Offerings of spicy food and wearing my necklace with the dragon salt that I made.
Afterward, I’ll spend some quiet time thinking about all the lessons the dragons have taught me this year (there are a lot).

[Amaris_Bane]

This is perfect! It is so hot here in Houston that I was planning on doing solar magick to celebrate Litha rather than a fire. I haven’t settled on what I am doing yet but will come back and add it once I do.

Thanks @Kasandra for another great suggestion!

[BrightBear]

Fun!! The last pic in this post reminded me of this song (for obvious reasons…) it’s one of my favorite songs to meditate and do yoga to. Early solstice blessings to all!

LONG TIME SUN - SNATAM KAUR ♥

[jessica72]

Seeing as I am backwards here in the Southern Hemisphere and it’s our winter solstice, I just had a looky loo in my witchy library and I found this for anyone of my beloved witchy family who are the right way up who may get some use out of it.

This comes from ‘Spells for a Magical Year: 100 Rituals and Enchantments for Prosperity, Power and Fortune’ by Sarah Bartlett.

June 20-22 ‘Midsummer’s Day/Solstice Spell for Happy Changes’

What you will need:

• An altar or table decorated with summer flowers on a white cloth
• Lemon Balm, Lavender and Elderflower essences/oils or perfume
• 5 pink candles
• An athame or wand
• A small bowl containing summer fruits you want to eat
• Silver rings, diamonds or white crystal jewellery
• Patchouli oil or white musk
• A metal goblet or bowl (preferably gold, silver, pewter or copper colured)
• A golden or sliver-colured string
• A golden or silver-coloured ring
• 5 white candles
• Rose petals
• 3 cloves

Midsummer is a time for purification and thanksgiving, as well as looking forward to the future. We can give thanks for the sunshine and fertility of the past few months and welcome the days where different magic harvests the rewards of spells sown earlier in the year. This midsummer spell is made up of a ritual to honour the energy, which is best done in the morning of Midsummer’s Day and another spell to perform in the afternoon.

Lay out all the magical ingredients on the altar.

Sprinkle a little of the herbal oils or essences onto the flowers on your altar, then light the pink candles. Take a few moments to enjoy the fragrances and the flickering flames.

Pick up the athame or wand, hold it firmly in both hands, and visualise all the energy of the sun concentrated along its blade. It may be helpful to imagine a warm, golden light emanating from the blade.

Hold the athame blade directly above the bowl of fruit, pointing downward toward the fruit. Visualise the sun’s energy passing from the blade into the fruit, which in turn becomes charged with golden energy.

Lay down the athame.

Eat the fruit slowly, giving thanks for the fertility of the sun, while visualising the fulfilment of all your desires over the coming months. Finally, extinguish the candles.

In the afternoon, wear sliver rings, diamonds or white crystal jewellery and take a bath or shower using patchouli oil or white musk. All these attribute will imbue you with midsummer magic and augment your success for the next six months.

‘Afternoon Charm Spell for happy Changes - continued’

After your ritual bath, take the metal goblet or bowl and the gold or silver ring. These represent Metal magic, the element needed to boost your charisma. Crate a magic circle of 5 white candles and place the bowl/goblet and ring in the centre. Next sprinkle some rose petals into the bowl, followed by 3 cloves (a magical talisman to represent love, harmony, and peace).

Now light the candles, and as you watch the candles flicker for a few minutes, repeat the spell:

“I am a creature of nature’s soul.
These talismans before me my only goal.
Let this midsummer joy my life unfold
And the days to come be bright as gold.”

Blow out the candles and look forward to the enriching months ahead.

[Artemisia]

So many choices… I have such trouble narrowing things down in the beginning!
Maybe charge some items in the sun, or do a devotional to Apollo brother to Artemis, but then again I always did love Egyptian mythology so maybe the devotional to Ra? Or the pure light house cleansing spell? Sheesh… I dunno

[Susurrus]

Honestly, I’m going to have to go back & seed what I did for the last Solar Challenge so I won’t repeat myself

I’m excited for this one, here’s hoping the Sun hangs around, I need to get outside a little more now that the weather isn’t so moody here Now it’s the keep the windows open overnight type of weather.

Edit: This is what I did for the Solar Magic Challenge & I was actually thinking of doing, just about the same thing for this challenge… so we are going to change it up a bit & maybe involve rejuvenation of my altar with something outside involving the fire pit. We just rearranged & cleaned up the patio it’s on & now it’s bigger because we had to take the top off of it.

[MeganB]

Hmm I know the Solstice is coming but I have no clue what I’m even doing for that. I’ll have to think about this one.

[BryWisteria]

@Kasandra Hooray for the powerful energy! If Luqueas can’t (or won’t) behave, you could always acknowledge Him but not invite Him to the ritual. Or perhaps the others would be able to keep Him calm, at least until it’s over?

Sorry about your neighbors being party poopers, especially during the day when you should be allowed to make some harmless noise. I’m sure you sing beautifully- it’s their loss!

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@Amaris_Bane Enjoy your solar magick for the solstice!

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@BrightBear That’s a really beautiful song, and a perfect one for the season! Thanks so much for sharing it, and wishing the same to you- bright solstice blessings!

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@Jessica72 The fun thing about the solstices and equinoxes is that, even if they relate to different seasons, they happen for all of us on the same day all over the world We’re all celebrating the light and the sun together!

That’s a lovely Midsummer Spell- you are very kind for sharing it, Jessica! Thanks for taking your “looky loo” in the library, you always find great things!

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@Artemisia So many great choices!!! Hahaha I’d share the “why not both” meme, but that’s a lot more than just two- no matter what you pick, I’m sure it will be perfect Enjoy your solstice spellwork, Kat!

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@Susurrus It’s been half a year and we’re at the next solstice- it’s totally fine to repeat a beloved spell/ritual/setup that you enjoyed doing in the past! There’s a lot to be said for making fun traditions

Whatever you choose, I hope you have fun with it- enjoy!

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@MeganB There’s still plenty of time until the solstice- no rush, and no worries! I hope you’re able to find something fun that you enjoy. Blessed Solstice, Megan!

[stavroula]

Ahh, summer is finally here! I am excited as this is going to be my first Litha celebration! I plan to decorate my altar with lots of sunflowers (my favorites) and cook a meal to share with some friends at a picnic. Let’s see how it will go.

[Susurrus]

I just planted all kinds of sunflowers around my garden. They are my daughter’s favorite & were my grandmother’s favorite too! The picnic sounds like a lovely idea too! You’d think that would cross my mind living so close to the water… but no… it doesn’t until it’s too late

[AileyGrey]

That sounds like so much fun @stavroula! This will be my first Litha too! I am so excited! Blessed Litha to you!

[BryWisteria]

@stavroula Congrats on your first Litha celebration, that is so exciting! May the sunflowers help brighten up your sacred space and wishing you a very fun time at the picnic with your friends- hope you all have a blast! Happy Litha!

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@Susurrus The sunflowers are going to be amazing in your garden- that is so much fun! May they grow well and bring many smiles to everyone who sees them

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T-4 days to the solstice! Goodness, it’s coming up fast!

Hope everyone who is preparing/doing prep spellwork has a good time with it this weekend Blessed be!

[Ostara]

I have a Book of Shadows that I bought about 15 years ago from Ebay. It’s handmade (no copy write) and has some things printed and a lot of blank pages to fill. I splurged on this book. It was $100 at the time, but now I am so happy I bought it because you can’t find it anymore. So, here are some ideas for Litha that I found in my BOS.

Collect morning dew, use in Midsummer ritual and impower for holy water.

Begin your ritual at dawn. Work magick for partnerships and unions.

Build you own circle of stones.
Tie a sprig of rowan, a sprig of rue, and three flowers of St. John’s Wort with red thread and hang it over your door.

Make amulets of protection out of herbs such as rue & rowan. If you make new amulets each year, you can dispose of the old in the midsummer fire.

Make a Solar Wheel as a terrific family project-everyone can make one for their bedroom. Wind palm or grapevine into a circle twisting it as you go. Cut 2 short lengths of stem to be just a bit larger than the diameter of the circle and place one across the back horizontally and the other vertically crossing in back of the horizontal one and coming forward to the front of the circle to secure both, then adorn with symbols of the elementals (stone, feathers, ashes in a pouch or a small candle and a shell) and festoon with green and yellow ribbon. Hang in a tree outside or indoors as a reminder of the God’s protection.

Create a pouch for psychic dreams (mug wort and bay leaves in a cloth of lavender, blue or yellow and sewn with red thread) and place it under your pillow.

Make a rue protection pouch out of white cotton. Add two or three sprigs of rue, bits of whole wheat bread, a pinch of salt, and two star anise seeds and hang indoors.

Burn the old Yule wreath in the Litha fire.

Tie vervain, rosemary, and hyssop with white thread and dip the tips into a bowl of spring water and sprinkle the water around the house to chase out negativity, or sprinkle your tools to cleanse and purify.

Soak thyme in olive oil, then lightly anoint your eyelids to see faery folk at night.

Tie a bunch of fennel with red ribbons and hang over the door for long life and protection of the home.

Look for the fairy folk under an elder tree, but don’t eat their food or you’ll have to remain with them for 7 years.

[Ostara]

Something else from my BOS

Midsummer Invocation

Gemini to Cancer
The Moon becomes the Queen
Mighty Herne pursues her
In the forests dark and green
Summer’s bright enchantment
Workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

Oceans glitter in the heat
As passions raise the tide
The Oak and Holly navigate
For the favors of the bride
Summer’s bright enchantment
Working’s of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

Faeries dance upon the air
Making circles round
Luring humans to the earth
Beneath the sacred mound
Summer’s bright enchantment
Workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

Roman Faunus plays the flute
The notes a binding spell
Of love and healing conjured
From the waters of the well
Summer’s bright enchantment
Workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

Shakespeare’s night of potions
Bright world of in between
Where gnomes hide buried treasure
And devas dance unseen
Summer’s bright enchantment
Workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

Crossroads vibrate open
The dead no longer rest
I am a Witch and I know how
To conjure up the best!
Summer’s bright enchantment
Workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
That turns the magick mill

[AileyGrey]

I love this so much! Going to add it to my own BOS!

[Ostara]

I love it too! It’s a beautiful way to start the summer.

[Torista]

I wasn’t originally planning on doing anything for this challenge but I had a dream of a deity in the form of a young man requesting that I finish a painting of a sunrise that I started several months ago after having a similar dream where a young boy asked my to paint the sunrise.

I’m planning on working on it in chucks over the weekend and I’m mostly done with the sky itself. I’m going to add mountains, then trees in front of those, then a person and a fire.

I’ll add a picture of what I have so far when its dry and I’ll add another after every session so y’all can follow my progress.

[Susurrus]

I’m looking forward to seeing your painting @Torista! I’m not exactly sure what I am going to do because of a weather change outlook for this weekend where I am… but that’s okay, I have another idea though. I just have to put it together now

[Susurrus]

Challenge Entry - Saturday, June 18, 2022

Festivities of Light

• Some festivities include using Solar Magic , for those who haven’t practiced Solar Magic regularly or are new to it, I found some interesting information.

Image Source

Magic & Rituals involving the Sun , much like involving the Moon , has phases that correspond to different things.

• Sunrise: new beginnings, changes, health, employment, renewal, resurrection, and finding the right direction. It can also be very cleansing.
• Morning: magical power for growth, positive energy, resolutions, courage, harmony, happiness, strength, activity, building projects and plans, prosperity, and expansion of ideas.
• High Noon: magic for health, physical energy, wisdom, and knowledge. It is also a good time to pop your tools or crystals out that need charging.
• Afternoon: energy now is good for working on business matters, communication, clarity, travel, exploring and anything professional.
• Sunset: magic for removing depression, stress and confusion, letting go, releasing or finding out the truth of a situation.
• • Sun Magic: Patheos

Unfortunately, we don’t have much sun in the forecast this weekend, so I had to change what I was doing for the challenge. I may look into this further for my own practice, the sun has a very cleansing & calming & centering effect on me. I love to sit in the sun with my eyes closed & feel the breeze go through my hair & around my skin while listening to the sounds in my neighborhood from the local wildlife. Ie: birds, squirrels, chipmunks, bunnies, dogs, and cats either their vocal sounds or the sounds of them moving through or over leaves, grass, brush, and fences.

I had never thought to look into doing magic according to the phases but it makes sense that there would be the same idea for the sun phases as the moon phases although the sun phases are a lot quicker

I will add the picture of my altar once everyone in the house is awake