Midsummer Day: Date, Traditions and Rites. Summer solstice - programming day of the future Longest summer day of the year

Solstice is one of two days of the year when the Sun is at its greatest angular distance from the celestial equator, i.e. when the height of the star above the horizon at noon is minimum or maximum. This results in the longest day and shortest night (summer solstice) in one hemisphere of the Earth and the shortest day and longest night (winter solstice) in the other.

Longest day of the year

The summer solstice is the day of the beginning of summer in the northern hemisphere of the Earth and the beginning of winter in the southern hemisphere, that is, if the inhabitants of the northern part of the Earth are at the beginning of the astronomical summer from that moment, then the astronomical winter will begin for the inhabitants of the southern hemisphere at the same time.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs on June 20, 21 or 22. In the southern hemisphere, these dates are the winter solstice. Due to various inequalities in the movement of the Earth, the epochs of the solstices fluctuate by 1-2 days.

In 2017, the astronomical summer in the northern hemisphere will begin on June 21 at 7.34 am Moscow time.

On the day of the summer solstice at the latitude of Moscow, the Sun rises above the horizon to an altitude of more than 57 degrees, and in territories located above the latitude of 66.5 degrees (the Arctic Circle), it does not go beyond the horizon at all, and the day lasts around the clock. At the North Pole of the Earth, the Sun moves across the sky at the same height around the clock. There is a polar night at the South Pole at this time.

During several adjacent solstice days, the Sun's noon heights in the sky are almost unchanged; hence the name of the solstice. After the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere, the day decreases and the night gradually begins to increase. In the southern hemisphere, the opposite is true. For millennia, the day of the summer solstice was of great importance to our ancient ancestors, subject to natural cycles.

How the Slavs celebrated the solstice

In the old days, even before the advent of Christianity, the Kupala holiday dedicated to the ancient pagan god Kupala was timed to coincide with the summer solstice.

On this day and night, they wove wreaths, drank surya (honey drink), jumped over fires, made sacrifices to water and fire, collected medicinal herbs, performed rituals invoking the harvest, and "cleansing the soul and body" of bathing in rivers, lakes and streams. The fern occupied the central place among the vegetation that night. It was believed that a fern flower, blooming only for a moment at midnight, would indicate exactly where the treasure was buried.

The people said: "On Kupala - the Sun for the winter, and summer for the heat", "Whoever does not go to the Baths will be a stump, and whoever goes to the Baths will be white birch."

The holiday has many names. Depending on the area and time, it was called Kupala, Kres (old Russian), Ivan the good, love, Ivan-Kupala, Ivan the herbalist, Yarilin's day (in the Yaroslavl and Tver provinces), Soncekres (Ukrainian), Dukhov-day (Bulgarian) and others. In Ukraine it is also known as Kupailo, in Belarus - Kupalye.

Participants of the Novgorodskoe Kupalye holiday in Veliky Novgorod

With the adoption of Christianity, people did not reject the holiday of Kupala, but, on the contrary, timed this day to the day of John the Baptist, which, according to the old style, falls on June 24. But according to the new calendar style, the day of John the Baptist falls on July 7th. To date, the celebration does not correspond to the astronomical solar equinox.

How the solstice is celebrated in the West

The celebration of the summer solstice was present in all ancient pagan systems, many peoples still celebrate it, some in their original form, and some in a simplified one, leaving only the basic rituals and translating the ancient rituals of their ancestors into a bright holiday.

The summer solstice was considered by all Celtic peoples to be the time of fairies, elves and other supernatural beings. Among the Celtic peoples of Britain, the holiday was called Lita and was closely associated with the pagan cult of the sun.

The Scandinavian and Baltic peoples celebrated the day and night of the summer solstice magnificently. Subsequently, these holidays in different countries were called Midsummer's Day or Midsummer's Night (from the national version of the name Ivan).

In Latvia, the holiday is called Ligo or Jan's Day, it has state status and is celebrated on June 23 and 24, which are official days off. In Estonia it is also called Janov's Day, in Lithuania - Jonines or Rasos (dew holiday). In both countries, it is celebrated on June 24 and is a public holiday and day off.

In Norway, the holiday named after John the Baptist is called Jonsok (Midsummer's Night). Another name for the holiday - Jonsvaka (Jonsvoko) - is formed from the name of Johan and the verb vake - "to be awake". It was believed that on Midsummer's night one should not sleep until dawn - not only because one can hear the singing of elves, but above all for the purpose of a talisman for the whole coming year. Another name for the holiday, more "official" - Sankthansnatt or Sankthansaften (St. Hans night).

Sputnik

Sailing yacht from Finland "Svanhild" at the festival "Days of the Sea" in the Tallinn port of Vanasadam

In Sweden, the holiday is called Midsummer. Until 1953, it was celebrated on the same day that the Christian church celebrated the day of John the Baptist. But now the holiday usually falls on the penultimate Saturday of June, that is, it is usually celebrated from 20 to 26 June. In Sweden, the celebration begins the day before, on Friday, which is also a non-working holiday.

In Finland, during pagan times, the holiday was called in honor of the God of Fire - Ukon juhla, but now it is called Juhannus - an outdated pronunciation of the name of John the Baptist. Since 1954, Johannus has been celebrated on Saturday, which falls between 20 and 26 June. Since 1934, this day has been an official holiday - the Day of the National Flag of the country.

Folk omens on the summer solstice

On this day, it is customary to follow the signs, this is what the people paid attention to.

Bad weather on the summer solstice predicted a poor harvest and a poor year. It is believed that if the Sun hid behind the clouds, the summer will be bad.

If there is a lot of dew in the morning, a rich harvest. This dew was collected and poured into one vessel, it was considered healing. Water drawn from wells and springs in the morning had the same power. They washed themselves with her on the same day and drank.

If there are many stars in the sky, this is a mushroom summer.

It is also believed that if you climb over 12 fences on this day, your wish will come true within a year.

And in order to get rid of all diseases, you need to take a steam bath with a broom collected on that day.

The material was compiled from open sources.

The longest day in 2019 (as in other years) falls in the middle of natural summer - on the day of the summer solstice. Its date, depending on the shifts in the calendar caused by leap years, falls on June 21-22. In 2019, the longest day will be 21st of June and will last 17.5 hours, and the night will be the shortest of the year.

What happens on the summer solstice?

The solstice was known for a very long time. Even in ancient Egypt, the construction of the pyramids took place taking into account the location of the sun. So what happens on Earth on the summer solstice? In mid-latitudes, from the beginning of spring, the Sun begins its heavenly ascent, rising higher and higher, adding more and more daytime hours to us. The day when the luminary reaches its highest point is called the day of the summer solstice. During several days of this astronomical event, the Sun is practically located in one place, being at noon at the same height.

Therefore, the duration of daylight hours does not change for some time. Scientists called this phenomenon the solstice. At this time, the sun does not set above the horizon above 66.6 degrees, which results in the longest daylight hours and the shortest night in the northern hemisphere of the planet. At the same time, the southern hemisphere is experiencing the longest night and shortest day, and the astronomical winter begins. After the Day of the Summer Solstice in our latitudes, the sun begins to gradually decrease lower and lower, the days become shorter and the nights are longer until the moment of the winter solstice. So, every year due to a change in the altitude of the sun, the seasons change.

As the day of the summer solstice was celebrated in Russia

In the old days, when people worshiped pagan gods, the Sun was considered the most powerful God, having power over all living things on earth. On Solstice Day, nature began to flourish in our hemisphere, so people believed that this day was endowed with special magical powers. Long before the adoption of Christianity in Russia, this day was considered the beginning of summer and the holiday of Ivan Kupala was celebrated.

The longest day in Ancient Russia began to be celebrated even a week before its onset by commemorating ancestors and honoring spirits. People fluttered the ashes of the dead and dead soldiers over the rivers and asked the spirits for a good harvest this year and a prosperous life. On the eve of the solstice, girls and women went to the forests and meadows to collect medicinal herbs. At a time when the day was the longest of the year, and the night was the shortest, it was customary not to sleep all night. People believed that by falling asleep, they would bring on themselves all sorts of troubles and misfortunes.

Before dusk, the girls wove wreaths and let them go through the water, wondering their share. People swam in the river, washing away all the sins that had accumulated over the year. After that, they had fun, sang songs, played round dances, lit fires, on which they burned a scarecrow and jumped over the fire, cleansing themselves from sins. According to the new style, the day of Ivan Kupala is now celebrated from 6 to 7 July, but all the rituals and traditions of the holiday have gone from the day of the summer solstice. When the solstice ended, the ancient Slavs celebrated the solstice and paid homage to the god Perun, who was one of the main Slavic gods.

Rites and traditions of the summer solstice

From ancient times, the rituals and traditions of the Midsummer Day have survived to this day. Many of our contemporaries believe that they have not lost their vitality and magic. They believe that these days the energy of the sun reaches its enormous strength and gives a powerful charge for divination and programming of fate for happy events, prosperity and good luck.

A rite of passage for the fulfillment of a wish. Make a wish on June 21st. To do this, go to the field and weave a wreath of wildflowers. Weaving it, you are in a good mood and think about your desire. The wreath has long been considered a symbol of life, so put it on your head. Try to kindle a fire in nature and donate something of your own to it - a scarf, wallet, any piece of clothing. Throwing a thing into the fire, say the word: "Paid!" - so you paid to make your wish come true.
Rite of passage for money. To attract cash flow into your life and achieve abundance, you should take all the small change from your wallet on the solstice day and hide it under the threshold of the house or the doorway of the front door. You will see how, after a while, money will begin to come to you from the most unexpected sources.

Rite of passage for life changes. If you want to radically change your life, for this on the night of June 21, you need to turn over all possible objects in the apartment. Turn over light pieces of furniture: chairs, ottomans, coffee table. Place dishes upside down: cups, glasses, wine glasses, plates, pots and pans. When performing this ceremony, think that all life is in your hands, therefore, with the overturning of objects, life begins to change. After completing the ceremony, say: "The house is upside down, another life will begin with a new day!" After that, go to sleep peacefully and in the morning return all things to the correct position.
Rite of passage to create a talisman. Amulets and talismans created on the day of the summer solstice have great energy and magical power. The most powerful amulet, which in ancient times was made on this day, was called the Witch's Ladder. They made it like this: they took a ribbon of golden or yellow color and nine multi-colored beads and then weaved a charm, stringing beads on the ribbon. They started with a knot, then there was a bead, then a knot, after it a piece of ribbon and again a knot, and so on, until all the beads were strung together, and the end of the amulet was fixed with a knot. As each bead was strung, a new wish was made. This amulet was carried with them or hung near the door.

Midsummer day for modern man

In our time, the day of the summer solstice is not perceived as something divine. We accept it as an astronomical phenomenon associated with the determination of the seasons. Nevertheless, we feel that the longest day of the year gives us a good boost of energy and optimism. Maybe that's why many peoples of the world celebrate the summer solstice in our century as the peak of summer and is celebrated using ancient pagan rituals that praise nature and fortitude.

In order to meet the solar solstice, and therefore the astronomical summer itself, you must read this article carefully. In it, we tried to collect the maximum number of necessary rituals and traditions with which from ancient times we met the longest daylight hours. For Russians, this day will come at 6:24 Moscow time on June 22.

The ritual for properly meeting the summer solstice is pretty simple. To do this, you need to wake up before dawn, which, as we said, will come at 6:24 Moscow time. You should also prepare your home by opening all the windows to the morning sun to let in its first rays.

As soon as the entire solar disk appears over the horizon, you need to stand at the open window on the east side with open arms and greet him with tender words.

Magic, customs, fortune telling and rituals

Among the Slavs, the summer solstice was considered the most powerful day of the year, when the gods fulfill any desires, and plants are endowed with the power to heal any disease. Healers and herbalists were stocking up on this day with medicinal herbs for the whole next year.

In popular belief, fern occupied a special place among all plants. It was believed that on this day, at the moments of the solstice, the fern blooms and blooms - and everyone who can pick a fern flower will be endowed with mighty power.

But, as the legends say, it is extremely difficult and dangerous to find a fern flower, because it is reliably guarded by the spirits of the forest, capable of confusing daredevils in the wilds and taking away the gift of speech. So they went to look for a magic flower on the Kupala night not only because of its magical properties, but also in order to test courage.

In addition to herbs on the day of the solstice, the elements of fire and water also had a special power. It was believed that bathing on the day of Semiyarila heals a person from diseases and charges him with the energy of the Sun. According to legend, the magical power begins to grow after 11 pm on the eve of the Kupala night, reaches its peak at the moment of the solstice and lasts until noon on June 22.

In order to direct the magical power of magical time for their own good, our ancestors performed special rituals. They collected spicy herbs: mint, angelica, thyme - slightly dried them at sunset, and then, at midnight, kindled fires, alternately threw herbs into the fire and wondered.

If the smoke spread along the ground - in the near future, the threat of illness and failure arose in front of a person, it rose up - happiness and health awaited him. Then the fire was covered with birch branches to protect from demons, and they made a sacrifice to the goddess Dana - they lowered flowers into the water and, stripping naked, jumped into the river.

The summer solstice was considered the most successful day for a wedding. The family unions that were concluded on this day turned out to be the strongest and most faithful. Children in such families grew up healthy and beautiful.

Modern astrologers confirm this popular belief - after all, the Sun on the night of June 21-22, the Sun passes into the zodiac sign Cancer, which symbolizes family, procreation and preservation of traditions.

Many customs and traditions of the Slavic holiday Kupala have something in common with the Christian day of the Holy Trinity. So, on this holiday, it was customary for the Slavs to decorate their home with birch branches and medicinal herbs - St. John's wort, elecampane, Ivan da Marya. Our ancestors believed that these plants attract good spirits to the house.

On the night of the summer solstice, young boys and girls walked in the forest, lit fires and jumped over them. It was believed that this ritual protects against disease, hunger and war. The cooled coals were collected and stored throughout the year, healing ulcers and wounds with them.

Signs

The water collected in the morning of June 21 is considered healing. Water was taken from wells and springs, washed with it on the same day and drank.
The girl who danced all night on Ivan Kupala at nine bonfires will certainly get married this year.
If on the day of the solstice a bouquet of Ivan da Marya is hung at the entrance to the house, then all the sorrows and misfortunes will bypass the house.
Rain on the Solstice holiday was considered a bad omen. They thought that the gods were angry and did not allow to kindle fires and conduct rituals for well-being.
To prevent evil spirits from entering the house on the night of Kupala, it is necessary to put or stick a thorny or burning plant under the threshold, nettles, branches of rose hips, raspberries, blackberries, etc.

Abundant dew on the morning of June 21 promised a rich harvest. They collected it and watered sick children for a year.
The clear starry sky on Ivan Kupala foreshadows a warm, but rainy autumn.
In the evening of Midsummer’s day, we must go to the bathhouse and steamed with a herbal broom collected that day.

Even seriously ill people were cured after such steaming.
Those who have a birthday on the summer solstice, June 21 or 22, have magical powers and can heal people.
If on a Kupala night some man accidentally or deliberately pours water on you, you should be a husband and wife with him.
A couple in love must hold hands to jump over the Kupala bonfire on the summer solstice, then they will definitely live a long and happy life together.
Coals from the Kupala bonfires are collected and laid out around the house, around the garden, and put on the roofs. They are believed to protect the farm from pests, thieves and fires.

Summer solstice divination

The summer solstice is celebrated annually on June 22nd. On the night of June 21-22, we can observe the longest day and the shortest night of the year. Since ancient times, this day was considered magical and was of great importance for people.

On the day of the summer solstice, it is customary to guess, perform customs and rituals.
Fortune telling on the summer solstice

They wondered on this day exclusively on the street. Girls and young people learned their fate and wondered about love. The most common fortune-telling was fortune-telling at the stake. Boys and girls, holding hands, jumped over the fire.

If the arms are separated in a jump, the pair will not be together.

If the hands are together during the jump, marriage awaits the young.

If sparks flew after, passionate love awaits.

If the fire goes out during the jump - do not be a couple together.

Fortune telling at the stake and one by one. Whoever jumps higher over the fire will be happy this year. Anyone who touches the flame of the fire with his foot or hand will suffer the whole year.

Modern magic and divination

For those who work on self-development, this day is very important, it is best suited for programming the future. On the day of the summer solstice, solar energy increases and the potential for magic, ritual and meditation increases dramatically.

This is one of the most powerful days of the year, when it is possible to "dream" of your happiness and "program" yourself for positive and joyfulness, it reports. Therefore, the minimum program for this day is to tune oneself to a positive wave from the very morning and not to miss it right up to sunset.

So, what opportunities does this day present to us, and what can we do to improve our well-being, personal life, career, health. Fortune telling on the day and night of the summer solstice is much more accurate. Divination with Runes and Tarot cards are especially suitable.

On the eve of the summer solstice, love magic spells work much better. Collect seven different herbs, flowers and sew into an amulet. Flowers of calendula, lavender, rosemary, sunflower, fern, verbena, oak and mountain ash have the ability to attract love on this day. The traditional magical colors of the day are yellow and red.

This day is a good place to start your healing work, because the Sun is an esoteric healer. It is on this day that herbs for magic should be collected, especially those used for solar magic, fire magic, and for healing.

Wormwood, burdock, St. John's wort, mistletoe, dill, parsley, green onions, thyme, honeysuckle, nettle collected on this day have powerful healing powers. For example, nettle, burdock, and dill are used at home to ward off evil.

On the summer solstice, you can perform a ritual to protect your home. To do this, you will need: a rowan branch, red cloth and red threads. You can also use stones that have protective properties, such as agate or turquoise, protective herbs: St. John's wort, honeysuckle, anise. Put it all in red cloth, wrap it up and tie it with red thread.

In this case, you need to say the following words:

"As a mountain ash is tied in red, so protection surrounds my home"

Each time you say these words, add one knot on the red thread. Place your protective amulet anywhere in or around the home safely. The same amulet can be made to protect your vehicle.

In the modern world, the days of the solstices have lost the importance that they had for people in the past, and today they do not attract much attention. The only ones who really follow this are the farmers and some modern pagans for whom these days are important.

Longest day of the year

In 2017, the astronomical summer in the northern hemisphere will begin on June 21 at 7.34 am Moscow time.

Dawn in Moscow

How the Slavs celebrated the solstice

In the old days, even before the advent of Christianity, the Kupala holiday dedicated to the ancient pagan god Kupala was timed to coincide with the summer solstice.

On this day and night, they wove wreaths, drank surya (honey drink), jumped over fires, made sacrifices to water and fire, collected medicinal herbs, performed rituals invoking the harvest, and “cleansing the soul and body” of bathing in rivers, lakes and streams. The fern occupied the central place among the vegetation that night. It was believed that a fern flower, blooming only for a moment at midnight, would indicate exactly where the treasure was buried.

The people said: "On Kupala - the Sun for the winter, and summer for the heat", "Whoever does not go to the Baths will be a stump, and whoever goes to the Baths will be white birch."

The holiday has many names. Depending on the area and time, it was called Kupala, Kres (old Russian), Ivan the good, love, Ivan-Kupala, Ivan the herbalist, Yarilin's day (in the Yaroslavl and Tver provinces), Soncekres (Ukrainian), Dukhov-day (Bulgarian) and etc. In Ukraine it is also known as Kupailo, in Belarus - Kupalye.

Participants of the Novgorodskoe Kupalye holiday in Veliky Novgorod

How the solstice is celebrated in the West

The celebration of the summer solstice was present in all ancient pagan systems, many peoples still celebrate it, some in its original form, and some in a simplified one, leaving only the basic rituals and translating the ancient rituals of ancestors into a bright holiday.

Summer solstice festival

In Latvia, the holiday is called Ligo or Jan's Day, it has state status and is celebrated on June 23 and 24, which are official days off. In Estonia it is also called Janov's Day, in Lithuania - Jonines or Rasos (dew festival). In both countries, it is celebrated on June 24 and is a public holiday and day off.

In Norway, the holiday named after John the Baptist is called Jonsok (Midsummer's Night). Another name for the holiday - Jonsvaka (Jonsvoko) - is formed from the name of Johan and the verb vake - "to stay awake." It was believed that on Midsummer's night one should not sleep until dawn - not only because one can hear the singing of elves, but above all for the purpose of a talisman for the whole coming year. Another name for the holiday, more "official" - Sankthansnatt or Sankthansaften (St. Hans's night).

Sailing yacht from Finland "Svanhild" at the festival "Days of the Sea" in the Tallinn port of Vanasadam

Solstice is one of two days in a year when the Sun is at its greatest angular distance from the celestial equator, i.e. when the Sun's height above the horizon at noon is minimum or maximum. This results in the longest day and shortest night (summer solstice) in one hemisphere of the Earth and the shortest day and longest night (winter solstice) in the other.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs on June 20, 21 or 22. In the southern hemisphere, these dates fall on the winter solstice. Due to various inequalities in the movement of the Earth, the epochs of the solstices fluctuate by 1-2 days.

In 2017, the astronomical summer in the northern hemisphere will begin on June 21 at 7.34 am Moscow time.

For millennia, the day of the summer solstice was of great importance to our ancient ancestors, subject to natural cycles. In the days of the pagans, the sun had divine power over all living things, and the summer solstice meant the highest flowering of all forces of nature.

In the old days, even before the advent of Christianity, the Kupala holiday dedicated to the ancient pagan god Kupala was timed to coincide with the summer solstice.

The people said: "On Kupala - the Sun for the winter, and summer for the heat", "Whoever does not go to the Baths will be a stump, and whoever goes to the Baths will be white birch."

The holiday has many names. Depending on the location and time, it was called Kupala, Kres (old Russian), Ivan the good, love, Ivan-Kupala, Ivan the herbalist, Yarilin's day (in the Yaroslavl and Tver provinces), Sontsekres (Ukrainian), Spirit-day (Bulgarian) and others. In Ukraine it is also known as Kupailo, in Belarus - Kupalye.

The celebration of the summer solstice was present in all ancient pagan systems, many peoples still celebrate it, some in its original form, and some in a simplified one, leaving only the basic ritual and translating the ancient rituals of the ancestors into a bright holiday.

In Latvia, the holiday is called Ligo, or Jan's Day, it has state status and is celebrated on June 23 and 24, which are official days off. In Estonia, it is also called Janov's day, in Lithuania - Jonines or Rasos (dew holiday). In both countries, it is celebrated on June 24 and is a public holiday and day off.

In Norway, the holiday named after John the Baptist is called Jonsok ("Midsummer's Night"). Another name for the holiday - Jonsvaka (Jonsvoko) - is formed from the name of Johan and the verb vake - "to stay awake." It was believed that on Midsummer's night one should not sleep until dawn - not only because one can hear the singing of elves, but above all for the purpose of a talisman for the whole coming year. Another name for the holiday, more "official" - Sankthansnatt or Sankthansaften (St. Hans's night).

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