Grian-stad an-tSamhradh / Summer Solstice
Welcome to the time of Sacred Fire.
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Muireannâs Sacred Fire Teaching
The Summer Solstice is the time of greatest sun, moving into the hottest time of year in the Northern hemisphere. This is the time of the alchemy of transformation &/or the energy/fuel for creating - which is kind of the same thing really. Everything we create and grow transforms and changes us and our lives in some way. This is the time of Sacred Fire.
But first aâŠ
Our Celtic ancestors did not celebrate sun festivals.
Surprise. Our ancestors inherited Brú na Bóinne and Stonehenge and other celestial place markers from the mysterious Neolithic cultures of people that were already inhabiting the Pretani and Eireann islands well before âCeltsâ arrived. These peoples were absorbed into Celtic cultures and their knowledge became our knowledge - they are us - but there is no mention of celebrating solstices in our known ancient mythologies and cultural tales.
Relevant to Time and Place
The seasonal teachings and ceremonies that I share occur at different times of year than is traditional in the Celtic calendar because Pretani and Eireann are at a different latitude than we are. Turtle Island sees the changing of seasons happen later in the year and we (me and my Spirit Crew) choose to follow the Anishinaabe observance of seasonal changes.
Itâs important for us to make teachings and ceremony relevant to our Time and Place and not unconsciously replicate patterns of the past or ancestral habits. We are consciously connecting with Land + Spirit here and now, to connect to and build Spiritual relationship with the Land where we are today. None of us on Turtle Island are rooting into Ireland, Scotland, England or Wales.
We belong to Turtle Island.
(If youâre not living on Turtle Island, work with rooting on your Land.)
The Fullness of Action
The Summer Solstice is the fullness of sun, light, action and doing. This is the time of bringing to fruition the seeds that we planted during the Time of Darkness. During the Winter Solstice, we went inside, into the dark and carried out 3 seeds to plant (or whatever practices you chose to participate in), you went inside to bring out your Soul Sovereignty into the world. Inner guidance is directing your outer world.
Are you on track?
Now is the time of great sacred fire Creative energy. Samhain is âputting the world to sleepâ. It is a time of grief and gratitude. The Winter Solstice is inner directed attention and listening for the plan that you are setting in motion guided by Spirit. Earrach (Imbolg) is the spring when you plant the seeds of motion.
If you havenât already noticed, of course all of the cycles of our life are resonant with the cycles of the Earth. Itâs beneficial, healthy and good for us to align with the Place where we are and become rooted to the Land that we stand upon.
Are you on track? Where have you forgotten your spirit-directed path? Where are you nailing it? This is one of the gifts of the Summer Solstice - the course correcting energy and gratitude for whatâs to come.
In this time of full sun, full fire, full force, full energy, we ask ourselves if we are grounded and prepared to make real the dream that Spirit has given us? In the fullness of Sun we ask for the fullness of support, we ask for road clearing, we ask for what we need to finish our Creation and we commit to doing all that we can to stay true to the direction of Spirit.
Immersed in the Celtic Field of Meaning
A weird thing that happened while I was recording for this Teaching and I think itâs important to share.
The Season of Fruit and Fullness
The Summer Solstice marks the beginning of the season of Fruits and Fullness. Strawberries and cherries are the earliest fruit in Ontario and are symbols of the Landâs abundance and the sweetness Spirit promises. The Anishinaabe have a rich relationship with strawberries, and my experience with the start of the fruiting season is with my abundant cherries.
Summer / Niibin / Samhradh
Strawberry / Odeâimin / Suibheag
Cherry / Ookwemin / Sirist
Abundance requires gratitude.
The fruit of the blooms are the result of wisdom and experience. Wisdom fruit takes time and patience and nurturing and support for the energy of Creation to do what They do. Fruits require trust in a process that we donât consciously understand but participate in, every moment.
How can you support your fruiting? How are you living in trust with a loving universe? How can you nurture the process of Creation in your own life? How can you support the process of Creation for others and for the Land?
What are you resisting? In what ways are you not living in gratitude? This can be a hard one because weâre often getting stuff we donât want and itâs hard to be grateful for it when shit shows up. Thatâs where trust comes in - you canât trust your own small, seemingly separate little self. You can trust in Land + Spirit to bring exactly what you need. Love, trust and belief are the cosmic juice of Creation.
When you believe, you will see. When you trust, what you need arrives. Your expectation of receiving what you need opens the road for what you need to arrive.
Allow all feelings - even the ones that are pissed off about whatâs happening. Feel the feelings and let them go. Let the empty space be filled with love and trust in a Creation that knows you and loves you and supports your Soul Sovereignty.
The Sun is the Hawk of the day. The Moon is the Owl of the night. Together they guide the motion of Creation, holding inner and outer vision and action required to bring Spirit dreams into the being of Land.
We are grateful to the sun for the life-bringing warmth and energy needed for abundance on Earth. We are grateful for the fires of the Sun to burn through resistance and the stagnant emotional and mental debris that are the fuel for transformation.
The time of Fire is at the Solstice is the opportunity to realign with the powers of action, doing, accomplishing, energy, Creation, purpose, drive directed by Spirit.
Have you forgotten your dream?
Now is the time to reconnect.
It is never too late. It is never the wrong time to be guided by the Great Mystery.
Now is the time to refocus/redirect/realign where we have gotten off track.
Now is the time to ask the Fires of source to support you. Now is the time to ask for the cleansing Fire of Spirit to burn through anything in the way of your Soul Sovereignty and use that resistance as fuel for expansion. Now is the time to ask the Sacred Fires to support you.
Are you walking in Soul Sovereignty?
If you are in connection with Spirit guidance and continue to hold your spirit vision as the guiding light of your life - this is the time of gratitude for the energy and passion and sacred fire you have, and a re-commitment to follow Spirit guidance and act and speak your Soul Sovereignty in the world. Now is the time to direct and pour out the energies, actions and intentions of your vision into the manifestation of rooted Land.
Affirm your dedication to your Soul Sovereignty path progress and Creation. The Sun is the sacred fire that lights the way.
The Practice
Soooo, thereâs kind of a lot going on here because we have to reach back and connect vision and reflection from The Winter Solstice to where we are now. Hopefully you recorded what you learned in some way and have the ability to access those teachings now. If you donât have access to those teachings, or have joined the community after the Winter Solstice - check in with the Great Spirit before the Summer Solstice to gain a directional focus.
None of these exercises are âonly during festival/only during ceremonyâ. They are exercises for clarity that are used when you need them. Doing them during heightened energy times on Earth just gives them more âoomphâ.
Reflection is so important in the spiritual path. We can (and almost certainly will) lose the valuable threads of wisdom given to us while in conscious communication with Spirit; unless we record the teachings somehow AND regularly refer back to what we learned. In communication during ceremony (or anytime weâre in conscious communication with the Great Spirit) we take with us only the loudest, most emotional response and resonate connections. We easily miss the beautiful small seeds that need our attention and affection to take root.
All of the exercises below are suggestions and guides. Nothing is written in stone and you are not expected to do everything. Do only what feels good and right for you.
Grian-stad an-tSamhradh Practice from Muireann:
My Solstice Ceremony Reflection