SOLSTICE – Sun enters Cancer
Saturday 21 June (03:42 GMT+1)
This is the Solstice week when the Sun moves into Cancer, one of the cardinal star signs, beginning a new three month season.
The Solstice and Equinox dates are markers in western astrology as the zodiac is aligned with these four points in the astrological calendar. They are the foundations and cornerstones of western astrology. They correspond to the Sun’s move into each of the four cardinal signs, Aries, Cancer, Libra & Capricorn.
Sun Standing Still
This is the mid-point in the year which brings a change of season. In the northern hemisphere, this coincides with the longest day of the year and the official start of summer. In the southern hemisphere, it’s reversed with the shortest day of the year as the nights grow longer.
Solstice means ‘sun (sol) standing still’ i.e. the Sun is at its highest or lowest point before it changes into a new season.
Traditionally, the Solstice is the time of the year to honour the Sun. Many traditions include building bonfires as fire and heat are associated with the Sun. You could have a fire pit or light candles if the sun’s not blazing down wherever you are.
In our endlessly, celestially revolving world, the solstice beckons for a moment of stillness and reflection. Its etymology – from the Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still) – indicates that almost miraculous point of transition, sandwiched between cycles of movement.
Looking from earth, the Sun has reached its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator and then, after “standing still”, reverses course.
It is the longest day, the triumph of the sun, a celebration of midsummer and a marker that the balance of day and night will begin to shift. For a fleeting moment the entire year is on hold, a moment of flux and suspense.
Solstice Rituals
- Use this moment in the year to stop and deeply connect with yourself and the universe. You might plan a sunrise walk or sit in contemplation as the sun sets.
- Perhaps, you want to find some time in the day to be quiet and listen to your inner voice.
- You might write in a journal, explore what you’re grateful for and what your intentions are moving into this next three month chapter between the Solstice and the Equinox on September 22.
- We are almost at the halfway point in the year. Therefore, you could reflect on how far you’ve come in 2025 and what you want moving forward.
Ancient Times
The summer solstice has always been an important event to honour the Sun and celebrate the midpoint of the year. In today’s less rural world, for many people that connection with the cycle of nature has been lost. Yet our fascination with the solstice remains curiously undimmed, as though deeply embedded in our ancestral memory.
There is something so hopeful about the Solstice. The ancient tradition of honouring the Sun connects us to the distant past and the comforting repetition of the Sun’s movement is a dependable anchor in our lives day in, day out.
Sunrise represents the symbolism of the promise of a new day, a new dawn. The quality of the moment when the sun rises and the light returns brings with it hope and a feeling of peace that the dark hours are behind you.
Many ancient cultures honoured the Sun and built temples in alignment with the Sun’s passage through the sky. One of the most famous is Stonehenge – see photo above – where people will gather once again to welcome this awe-inspiring sight.
How will you honour the Sun? I’m hoping to head to the West Hill here in Hastings to welcome in the Solstice at sunrise. Some people are taking on the challenge of 108 yoga Sun Salutations. 108 is a special number. According to Vedic cosmology, 108 is the basis of creation, representing the universe and all our existence.
Solstice Gift
As a Solstice gift, here’s one of my favourite poems by Hafiz, a reminder to be eternally grateful for the stars, the Sun, Moon and planets as they tirelessly and ceaselessly continue their dance with our earth.
The Sun Never Says
Even after all this time
The sun never says to the earth,
“You owe Me.”
Look what happens with
A love like that,
It lights the Whole Sky.
Hafiz
May you have a blessed & enlightening Solstice experience.
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