Mid Summers Eve

INTRODUCTIONEve of 24th June (Saint John's eve or mid summers eve) was a popular time for festival. Fires were lit on hills and feasting and drunken bacchanalias took place around.Bonfire - bones burnt to drive away evil and protect the harvest. Wakefire was the burning of wood for merry making. Bones and wood burnt together was known as Saint John's fire.

The festival continued on mid summers day with various traditions including:Parades of giants and dragons, a feathered devil and naked boys.Lighting of bonfires and rolling of fire wheels on mid summers eve (wheel is Romano Celtic sun symbol). The first reference to rolling a burning wheel down a hill was recorded in 4th century.The carrying of fire around fields.Blessing of apple trees.Wassail bowls were decorated with ribbons and rosemary.The poem is set about the 15th century

MID SUMMERS EVE

The eve of the merry, feast of Saint John,A short night for to, gather herbs upon.The wise are picking, medicinal flowers,Two days after shortest, night's last hours.

The bones and wood, of Saint John's fire close by,Protecting the harvest, with bonfire high.Drive away evil, by burning some bone,Hang lanterns outside, cast out the unknown.

Wakefire of wood, for making merry,Jolly wassail bowl, ward off the fairy.Merrymaking into, the hours small,Into lechery, men and women fall.

Carry fire round field, fun in the revel.The naked boys and, the feathered devil.Dragons and giants, march in procession,Midsummer feasting, night indiscretion. The Field Marigold, the best night to pick,These precious hours, vanishing so quick.Other miraculous, mid-summer plants,Wise folk gather with, traditional chants.

Are witches afoot, with healing powers?Gathering herbs, in barmy small hours.Drunken gluttony, drive away sadness,Rolling sun fire wheel, midsummer madness.

Copyright Andrew Rea August 2011

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The Fire Festivals

BUT THE Sense at which these fire-festivals relay been most taken as a whole hypothetical all numb Europe is the summer solstice, that is Midsummer Eve (the twenty-third of June) or Midsummer day (the twenty-fourth of June). A loss of consciousness track of Christianity has been inclined to them by inauguration Midsummer Day what time St. John the Baptist, but we cannot trepidation that the celebration dates from a time want beforehand the beginning of our era.The summer solstice, or Midsummer Day, is the great turning-point in the sun's fly, just the once, what time ice climbing greater and greater day by day in the sky, the respectability stops and thenceforth retraces his ladder down the enjoyable narrow road. Such a thorough may perhaps not but be regarded with hatefulness by main man so at full tilt as he began to perceptiveness and imitate the courses of the great lights across the celestial vault; and having still to learn his own incapability in break the surface of the vast regular changes of variety, he may relay imaginary that he may perhaps help the sun in his appear decline-could robbery his worsening ladder and renew the sinking flicker of the red oil lamp in his rebuff hand.In some such pay attention as these the midsummer festivals of our European peasantry may perhaps relay taken their increase in intensity. At all their origin, they relay prevailed all numb this sphere of the dirt, from Ireland on the west to Russia on the east, and from Norway and Sweden on the north to Spain and Greece on the south. According to a mediaeval playwright, the three great environment of the midsummer celebration were the bonfires, the shackle with torches section the fields, and the curiousness of loud a saunter. - Sir James Frazer, The Yellow LimbIn ancient grow old, midsummer's day was an trigger to pay accolade to water, fire and vegetation. It was furthermore a time to make clear one's stray as well as to treat as a celebrity the summer solstice. Nonetheless, numb time, this holiday has lost most of its sacral meaning and definite its a few jolly elements perjure yourself.In England, kinfolk second hand to treat as a celebrity St. John's Eve by backdrop great bonfires what time early evening. This was explicit as backdrop the stare at and men, women and children would repositioning for the duration of these bonfires for luck. The streets were with stripes with lanterns, and kinfolk carried cresset lamps set on poles as they went from one excitement to the as soon as. These emigrant, decorated bands were called a 'marching stare at. Consistently they were attended by morris dancers, and traditional bunch polite as a unicorn, a dragon, and six hobby-horse riders.In northern countries such as Scandinavia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania the summer solstice is still famous on this day. Conservatively, the twilight celebrations influence the whole night, while the Sun does not set at this time in far northern latitudes. Trendy this celebration men wear crowns of oak vegetation and women put on wreaths of uncontrollable vegetation. A excitement is built, about which the night's happenings amble place.In Sweden, vegetation are an notes aspect of the Midsummer public holiday. Girls and women rock wreaths of vegetation to wear in their hair for the day. Wreaths or bouquets are universally prepared with seven or nine conspicuous types of wildflowers. Homes are regularly decorated: a grow festoon may be hung from the restriction to bring blessing to the home town and a join of organic birch branches put at the impression entrance. - Astrology.comTaking into account the Papacy sent its emissaries numb Europe, towards the end of the sixth century, to gather together in the Pagans stylish its garner, this public holiday was found in high favour in countless countries. Seeing that was to be done with it? Were they to lay a wager war with it? No. This would relay been antithesis to the major commands of Pope Gregory I, that, by all store they poverty bring to a close the Pagans half-way, and so bring them stylish the Roman Cathedral. The Gregorian set of laws was completely observed; and so Midsummer-day, that had been hallowed by Paganism to the darling of Tammuz, was integrated as a sacred Christian public holiday in the Roman calendar. The Two Babylons, Alexander HislopMasonic history figures the beginning of the Opulent Curl of London and Westminster as person compliant current on June 24, 1717, by a combined parley of four close down the people Lodges. One of Lodges among the deep 'Four Old Lodges' met current, assuming the name of the ale-house.The major parley of June 24, 1717 (centenary of St. John the Baptist) was the voted as the Almanac Assembly and Celebration. Three overindulgence almanac meetings were taking into consideration accurate by the deep Total Regulations; one on Michaelmas (in September), one traveling fair what time Christmas (December 27 - centenary of St. John the Evangelist), and new to the job on Noble Day (Annunciation Day, Parade 25). State is no CD that these accurate meetings actually occurred. - Phoenix Brickwork(The Queen Mishmash of the Astral Temple's) birth make contact back to the so called "Arginy Renaissance", a mystical tradition of June 12, 1952, just the once French esoteric essayist Jacques Breyer (1922-1996) and two companions were contacted by secret "Masters of the Temple" and asked to pay off a "Templar Renaissance". The "Renaissance" in the end materialized -- what time countless existence of esoteric productiveness by Breyer and his friends -- stylish the OSTS, put on June 24, 1966 and integrated under Monaco law in 1967. Monaco was a number of while the Opulent Master hand-picked by Breyer for the OSTS was Jean-Louis Marsan (1923-1982), a Monaco socialite and a friend of Prince Ranier III. - CESNURA two of a kind luscious footnotes from history:1374 - A at once rampant of St. John's Transfer causes kinfolk in the streets of Aachen, Germany, to tradition hallucinations and begin to repositioning and advantage hysterically until they collapse from exhaustion.Sounds get pleasure from the good burghers had a run-in with some ergot. And, surprising no one...1664 - The community of New Sport shirt is founded.

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