Reset Password
Reset Link Sent
| Blogs > OakKing421 > The Oak King's Redoubt |
It's Midsummer AND a full moon!
|
It's Midsummer AND a full moon! Today was the longest day of the year. It has been reduced to that. In Medieval times what most might associate with "pagan" times This day was recognized as the Birth of Night and the absolute Peak of the Sun's power. in Celtic and European lands the Sun was associated with several Gods (for instance in Ireland and Scotland the Sun Deity was Lord Lugh). He with his wife the various Earth Goddess representations ruled over (among other things) the length of daylight. Lugh had a twin brother who was his eternal Rival for the affections of his wife and for power over the daylight world ---this brother was named Goronwy. In Egyptian lore Set was Goronwy's equivalent ---with Set's Rival being the God of Life Osiris and in India Lugh transforms into Brahma with his Rival being Shiva The two gods perform an ancient (4.5 billion years ancient) dance with one another swapping wives and roles over the year. At Midsummer the Earth Goddess wife of Lugh gives birth to Goronwy and herself transforms into the ancient Gaelic goddess Blodwedd . At first Goronwy is weak (as a baby should be) and exerts little influence but over the three months that follow he grows into a powerful young man and is loved by his Woman the now Goddess Blodwedd. Midsummer however is the point however of the Sun's greatest power the longest day where Winter 's chill and death seems banished to a dim memory and the long warm days and burgeoning crops in the fields are celebrated. The Early Catholics co-opted this holiday calling it the Feast of St. John the Baptist ---which is the only feast on the entire Catholic calendar celebrating the BIRTH of a given saint (in reflection of the Birth aspect of the early pagan traditions) ---all other Catholic feasts commemorate a DEATH date. What is special about this Solstice is that the Moon is full for it. Anciently the moon was a symbol for several goddesses in its own right and in the modern Pagan communities is seen as the symbol for or avatar of the Earth Goddess in Her many forms and a symbol for the Feminine Principle in all of Nature itself. its Full aspect was a special time as its light was seen to give power to mortals and influence both their biorhythms and life itself (Hospitals---especially psychiatric ones--- report surges in admissions during a full moon and police report a surge in bizarre activity at this time). Therefore the Sun and the Moon are both at the peak of their respective powers this night. it won't happen again until the year 2094... this is literally a once in a lifetime event for most |
|||
|
Fascinating stuff! Some of it I've learned in the past from friends who celebrate the Solstice but I wasn't as familiar with the Egyptian mythos. The Catholic Church co-opted as many as the local pagan celebrations as possible. This is pretty much the same thing the Romans did as they conquered lands. Saint John's birth is remembered for a couple of reasons. In the Catholic mythos, St John is the last prophet, his birth is the end of an important phase of the pre-Messianic saga . He holds a very special place in that saga. Another reason is that St John's conception and birth is special because, like Isaac, his parent's were (considered) too old to have children and his mother Elizabeth was called barren. His conception and birth were considered a sign that this child was marked for significant things by god. And of course, there is the idea of claiming this date from the Solstice. Great post!
|
Become a member to create a blog
