Summer Solstice Write-Up

//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.jsShrine set up for the Solstice ritual, taken after the end of the rite. Lower shrine is a working space as much as a shrine. New additions to the druidic shrine on the upper level include the (Christmas) trees, and a statue of Gaia that’s hiding behind the bottle on the left.

How did the rite go in terms of structure?
It went pretty well. I had to deal with 40C/104F temperatures during the day (this seemed appropriate for the summer solstice), so I wanted something simple that didn’t involve candles and incense and fire and hot things. And that wasn’t very long. I took inspiration from some of the simpler, short rituals I’ve done in the past, and simplified the liturgy I used for the past two High Days into something short and portable that only really needed four things: water (or some other liquid for libations), a bell, a divination tool, and something to drink from. I designed it so I could perform it outside, and simply pour the water into the earth, but it’s flexible enough I could use it inside at my own shrine and include a libation bowl, and a purification with salt water and frankincense oil, rather than khernips.

My initial plan had been to do a non-COoR rite, but in simplifying my current one, I kept it as COoR as it needed to be to suit my purpose. Some things got ditched, and when you’re designing a rite that doesn’t involve candles or incense, some things just have to go. But I think it worked very well, and apart from a few minor tweaks, it’s good to go.

Summer Solstice High Day Essay

I am way behind on a lot of things this month, my High Day essays and my reading included. But I did manage to bodge up a ritual, even if I did it on the 23rd. Better late than never. Anyway. This is mostly a draft essay at this stage. I’m going away on the 26th, and I want to post these before I go away, or I’ll forget, so. This will be fleshed out later when I’m closer to submitting. Post-ritual write-up to come, then bed.