The Will of Litha/Summer Solstice

The Will of Litha/Summer Solstice

Litha is the peak of the annual solar cycle. We call it the full Moon of the Sun in our coven. It is the 6^th Sabbat & corresponds to the 6^th Chakra, the throat, which manages our Will Power. Because it is midway through the Wheel of the Year, it stands to reason that the intentions we set at Yule/ Winter Solstice 6 months ago, have either grown from their seeds or we have amended our intentions since Yule.

So it goes with the planting/agricultural archetype of the Witch’s Wheel. We have to tend our fields, weed, fertilize, water, etc. Since Litha is linked to the Throat Chakra, there are going to be a lot of choices & life changing decisions in this coming 3- 6 month season. This will take a growing & strengthening of our individual Will.

Growing up, Will Power was a phrase I connected to hard work, giving up stuff & just being a hard ass in general . It was always linked to losing weight or giving up smoking or some such. But as I have grown I have learned that Will really means Choice. Your last will & testament is a list of your final choices about what you want done after you croak. So if you can look at Will Power as Choice Power, you’ll get the connection to the Throat Chakra.

I call the Throat the ‘Spit or Swallow Chakra.’ Of course I would. Not for any sexual innuendo alone, though that makes it fun for me, but more in that it illustrates how we either speak up or shut up in life symbolically. We know sometimes what we say might wound another. We may choose to chew on it for awhile to soften the blow, or just let them have it between the eyes. This is doubly so, especially if it is truth we mean to speak. However, truth without compassion is brutality. Often we are challenged to speak up or just ‘spit it out.’ 

But how do we know the when of which?

Here’s my guideline. Is it empowering? The Throat Chakra has an interesting relationship with the Saboteur Archetype, which governs our decisions. This archetype is always helpings us to learn how to make empowering decisions. It does this by highlighting the subtle & not so subtle ways in which we empower or dis-empower ourselves & others via our daily decisions. It makes sense then that during Litha, being such a powerful solar sabbat, that we must not only choose wisely, we must learn to make wise decisions.

Is there a difference between decisions & choices? I believe so. All choices have consequences, but the voltage of the choice implies the voltage of the consequence. For example, choosing a latte over a cappuccino is probably not going to change the direction of your life. But a decision to stop drinking caffeine will have immediate & long term effects in our lives. (Gods forbid)

Knowing that, look at Litha as a very fast moving season, like a car going at 100 mph. The slightest turn of the wheel makes a huge change in direction. For the next 3 – 6 months we will be traveling very fast, unless we decide to slow things down via meditation, prayer, contemplation or just plain chilling out. Even slowing down a bit is a wise choice that leads to more empowering decisions.

In my life as of late I have really learned a lot  about  the whole Heart Chakra thing of Beltane. I had an amazing Beltane. I gained great big huge momentum since May 1^st & now I’m traveling at very high speed, moving forward & creating my life as I will. WILL, yeah, there’s that word. But because my velocity is so fast, I really have to watch what I choose & decide.

 

The 2 Kabalistic spheres associated with Litha & the Throat Chakra are Gevurah/Judgment & Hesed/Mercy. When you are traveling at high speed, an unmerciful judgment can throw you off the road & into a ditch. Look at it this way, to paraphrase from the Teachings of Abraham. “If you hit a tree going 5 miles an hour it’s not such a big deal. If you hit that same tree at 100 miles an hour, it is a really big deal.” Do you slow down, or evade the tree? A little of both is necessary I find.

In other words, we have to watch what we decide to focus on if our momentum is going really fast. We can either keep the power high, choosing mercifully or downgrade it all at once, which causes an energetic crash or disempowerment. It’s not like unmerciful judgments aren't daily decisions we make. Try to go a full day without one any day of the year. But it is certainly highlighted for those of us who are magically inclined & working with the solar cycles of nature during Litha.

If you find yourself moving into irritating emotional territory, you can go there, but it is a decision that will change your life for a time. Instead use a spiritual practice to calm down, decelerate, chill out & decide yet again. Sure, vent, get it out of your system. Confession is the Symbolic Sacrament associated with the Throat Chakra. It is a way in which we call back the power lost through unmerciful judgment.

But after the toxins are out, as ever, forgive, forgive, forgive. Because that’s the only way we’re ever going to maintain the kind of high vibration we seek as spiritual pilgrims. It is essential if we want to be happy in this life, as the Course in Miracle states clearly, “Happiness is a decision I must make.” It also states "There is no healing without Forgiveness."

I strongly suggest that you take a few days & look over the decisions & choices you have in front of you short & long term. Then decide to do your best to keep your momentum high & your judgments merciful. For example: Everyone is doing the best they can. No one is perfect & we're all learning as we go. It's OK, I/we/they will get through this...  Implement what feels good & remember you can always ‘choose yet again’ if needed.

That said, I have a wild Witchcraft Weekend ahead of me & I’m going to do my best to live it Happy, Healthy, Wealthy & Wise, the very 4-fold intention I cast for at Yule/Winter Solstice. 

From my Yule 2012 Blog:

Yule Spell 2012:

Happy, Healthy, Wealthy & Wise

Ingredients:

Happy - Catnip, Lavender, Witchgrass, Blue Lace Agate

Healthy - Spikenard, Galangal, Nutmeg,

Wealthy - Basil, Cedar, Cinnamon Oil, Mint, Aventurine

Wise - Sage

As the Yuletide Sun does rise,

With all the power it implies,

Waxing Sun with full surprise

Now manifest before my eyes.

All the good that does comprise

Happy, Healthy, Wealthy & Wise.

For the Highest Good & Harming none,

as I will it, so let it be done.

So Mote it Be!

Yes indeed, I am seeing those seeds more than sprout; they are flowering & will soon be ready for the harvest season come Lammas/Lughnasadh around the beginning of August.

I wish you all the very best of the season & that this message finds you all happy, healthy, wealth, wise or willing to be so.

Blessed Litha,

Rev. Mark A. Lyons, President
Drawing the Circle Productions, INC
Drawingthecircle@aol.com
www.drawingthecircle.com
631-968-8307