MIDSUMMER 2020 was an interesting, quiet day that left me wondering once again about Stonehenge. In modern times our ancient stone circle is an essential part of Druidic worship.
We have no idea who actually built this monument, though I suspect that human and animal slaves must have been involved given how heavy the stones are and the assumption that they were transported from many miles away. I hope those people freely chose to build the monument and that it was created with respect. My own suspicions about Stonehenge are regarding the stones themselves - why build a monument to the stars and the sun in that particular location? Were there some large stones nearby, maybe dragged there by an ancient glacier when an Ice Age melted new landscapes and carved valleys across England?
What did those people eat? They would have needed a lot of water and food to create such a massive henge. Was it created in stages over centuries? A final observation is our English weather - we often have rain and cloudy skies. As I write today, there have been storms for two days, before this, it was too hot to go outside. So I was not surprised when it was cloudy for the 2020 Summer Solstice when we have the longest day and the shortest night. How were ancient architects able to create a monument with such precision if it was cloudy so often? Surely the point of recording the stars in a giant stone calendar was so we could see them? Was it built to harness astral power, or as a space to give spiritual offerings? Regardless, it still draws intrigue today.
For the first time ever, English Heritage live streamed the sunset and sunrise from Stonehenge over their social networking sites. I watched the YouTube Livestream for a short time, noticing some lucky security guards and a cloudy English sky. For many, the whole point of being there is to see the stones lined up against the setting and rising sun at this time, yet for many Pagans, it is simply magical and an honour to see Stonehenge and to be there soaking up the energies of the moment.
As a Pagan I believe that I get on with most other Pagan paths. I had a connection to Druids years ago and have considered visiting Stonehenge but it has not been one of the places that automatically spring to mind when I think of a spiritual pilgrimage. The main road passing next to it is an eyesore and the proposal to build a tunnel underneath to replace it sounds like a nice aesthetic idea combined with an archaeological nightmare.
So for Midsummer this year I went for an afternoon walk and picked some wildflowers to tie upon our front door (as pictured in my cover photo).
I lit some candles later and enjoyed a peaceful evening. No mead, no alchohol, no fires. Some years I'd have a larger celebration; more often my solar festivals are noted with a few tealights and a meal. There are different names given to the Summer Solstice, such as the Longest Day, Midsummer, Midsummer Solstice and Litha. 'Midsummer' is also a name given to a day after the Summer Solstice, thought to be the 'middle of Summer' either June 24th or July 5th according to different calenders. This Midsommar festival originated in Sweden (link).
An article in The Telegraph claims that 'only fake Druids celebrate on the 21st of June' because the 'true' Solstice Pagan festival is the 24th. I say it doesn't matter. The weather may be bad, friends and family may not be able to meet up. We can choose to celebrate on the weekend near a festival, there are plenty who will combine a celebration with the nearest full moon.
Something that I've noticed about Pagans and other similar religions such as Wicca, is that Druids tend to be connected more to the Sun and Witches more to the Moon. In reality, a devoted Pagan will have a mixture of interests, many of us develop preferences as we age and learn more about our characters.
In the days before the Solstice I began to burn herbs to cleanse my home, things like rosemary and white sage, rue and favourite essential oils, some incense sticks. This is something that I do automatically at regular points throughout the year, it cleans the air and also serves as an unspoken catalyst for an extra cleaning out and general tidy of the room I'm smoking out/smudging.
Some Modern Pagan Festivals;
February; Immolc/Imbolc
March; Eostre/Easter Equinox
May; Beltane/May Day
June; Midsummer/Litha Solstice
August; Lughnasdah/Harvest
September; Modron/Equinox
November; Samhain/Halloween
December; Yuletide/Solstice
These festivals begin the eve before, so for example Immolc is celebrated from January 31st to February 1st although some celebrate on February 2nd. As I've written before, there are many Catholic and Christian holy days now linked together with the Old Religion. Each 'branch' of Paganism also has special days or slightly different and additional festivals. Two such festivals that I'm fond of are Saturnalia and Krampusnacht.
Some Modern Pagan Paths;
Druids; Solar and Earth Worship, traditionally connected to trees. A more scientific and mathematical path.
Witches; Pagan Witches can be similar to Druids with more of a connection and emphasis upon the moon, spells and in my opinion the more detailed practices. There seem to be more female witches than male. A male Witch is still called a Witch. Wicca is a religion separate to Paganism Time and Date website; Seasons.
Asatru/Odinism/Norse Path/Heathen; centered around Norse Runes and sacred poems called Edda. The raiders/Vikings had a strong influence in Britain when they settled here. This path can feel highly familier to us along with Italian practice, many places take names from the Viking settlers. For example, the suffix of 'by' is Old Norse for a farmstead or village, such as 'Aylesby'. In old English this would be 'ham' as found in 'Nottingham' key to English place names.
Strega/Italian/Roman Path; The Romans dominated large portions of England, leaving their language and naming places, leaving many Roman Forts and other remains scattered across our country. I mentioned Saturnalia, the Roman forerunner of our modern Yuletide and Christmas celebrations. Some people are still unhappy about the Roman invasion, although the old local gods were often combined with the 'New' Italian ones.
Greek Hellenism; Roman and Greek deities were also often combined and compared. I find it a little odd that I have some very strong connections to Greek deities yet do not practice any traditional Greek ritual.
Occult/Mystical Path; technically, someone who is simply 'Spiritual' or who studies the Occult arts such as ritual magic, witchcraft, chaos magick, aspects of Voodoo/Voudu or practice and belief from other religions is not following Paganism even when the practice is similar. Paganism has specific deity worship, the Earth is sacred, there is ancestor worship, the Goddess is always recognised, there is a belief in reincarnation. I add this group because those who begin their Pagan studies often fall into this description before reading enough books and meeting people who by comparison affirm what their correct path is. A 'correct path' is the one which best fits a person's lifestyle and character, or one which best expresses the soul and personal skills - it 'feels' right.
Shaman/Medicine People; the Shaman often has a solitary path. Modern UK understanding of this lifestyle seems to combine Native American practice with some influence from other cultures around the world who have records of medicine people. Misunderstood by the casual observer. A Shaman is a healer when in a healthy aspect, potentially a destroyer when broken. I have never encountered a non-pagan shaman. Some aspects are very alike witchcraft.
Other; While learning about Paganism, many aspects of worship are taken from history and what our ancestors did. A belief in reincarnation may mean that personal belief can be drawn from a past life or what we feel may have been a place we have lived and experienced before. Examples are ancient Egyptian belief, Aztec and Mexican, Indonesia, India, Chinese and Russian old religion. There are tales of Baba Yaga and Sedna, stories of Rain Gods, Royalty or rites of passage and sacrifice in all languages around the world throughout history. These bodies of inormation are of course easier to access if they have been translated into our own languages.
My own opinion is that if I have reincarnated a number of times as I believe that I have and if I feel a connection to one of the old gods then I will show my respects or pray to them either as a continuation of previous worship, or as a way to connect to their energy/archetype. Some of these deities can be found with different names in various religions. Because of my belief in reincarnation I've found it impossible to 'find' my specific deities in one singular religion. We know that some names of gods and goddesses have been lost, we don't know how many. The energy is still there.
Volk B June 2020
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