BellaOnline Forums Religion and Spirituality Pagan Happy Litha!!

Wishing everyone a very happy Summer Solstice. Typical British one here - driving rain and cold for the time of year. Had to have a bath and a snuggle to warm up after the ritual!!

Happy Litha to you as well! What are your plans for the day?

Did you go to Stonehenge Ian? Lots of my friends went this year. What does Litha mean?

Blessed Litha to you, Ian. Our summer starts at 10:16 AM tomorrow morning our time in Nevada, USA.

I am so ready for summer. I can remember as a young girl my father telling me about Celtic goddesses of the sun. I would go outside on the Solstice and look up in the sky to see if they were anywhere up there. My father was Irish/Norwegian and prayed a lot, often to the old Celtic gods and goddesses.

Happy Litha to you Ian, even though not much sunshine around to celebrate.

And Happy Litha to all!! Bright Blessings of love and healing to you

Happy Summer Solstice!

(1:16PM, EDT)

Thanks everyone. Avoided Stonehenge as the sight of all the drunk/stoned idiots dancing on the stones annoys me. The weather brightened up later so enjoyed it at lunchtime and during the travel between the safety jobs I do for Portsmouth city council. Looking forward to ending the day with Ninjutsu training tonight.

Happy Summer Solstice to all! Our day dawned with clear skies and very warm sunshine. It is to get up to 94 today.

At 10:16 this morning, I filled my little clay pot with sage and tobacco and burned the sacred herbs and said prayers of thanks for all Creator has blessed me with.

One of these blessings is friends like all of you. Thank you.

Thank You for counting us as blessed entities in your life.

It saddens my heart that people would show disrespect to such a sacred place. It is pleasing to hear that you were able to spend time over lunch without disruption.

Is the art of Ninjutsu similar to Taekwondo or Jeet Kune Do? How long you studied the art?

I study the arts of Taekwondo, Jeet Kune Do, Judo, Kumdo, and various stick fighting methods. I'd enjoy learning another one to add to my arsenal!

There are no Angel smiley faces. Friends are quiet Angels...

Ian, I thought that Stonehenge was off limits to the public. It is so sad to know this still happens. It is like the rock climbers over here who deface Devils Tower, even during the sacred ceremonies of the Native American tribes who have seen the area as Sacred Lands for centuries.

I think it is wonderful that people are granted access. I would expect there to be guards to remove those who are not respectful to the area.

I think that those who love and cherish such blessings should not be punished for the actions of those who do not. Which I believe is the result of disallowing them access.

I believe it is incumbent on a society to teach others that respect is a cornerstone trait of humans. Community service to clean up and maintain the area that was defiled would teach that lesson in a productive manner.

Very well said, Deb.

One of my dreams is to get to visit Stonehenge. I'm sorry to hear that it has to be protected from the drunk and disorderly

Hi Phyllis

Yes, Stonehenge is off limits to the public for most of the year. However, due to a series of events - such as the Battle of the Beanfield - they allow people to move among them at the solstices with this sort of result . People can also obtain permission to enter the stones at other times of the year for personal rituals, just to have a respectful look or, as in the last time I was there Pagan memorials and funerals.

In other areas such as Avebury people do climb over the standing stones. I once took a Witch friend from Leeds to see them and had to restrain her from physically ripping people off the rocks. I did't stop her from using PK and psychic influence to 'assist' people from falling off them though as three people did while we were there. She also called upon the 'wee folk' to do the same thing after she had left so I'd be interested in any first aid/accident records to see if it's had any effect.

I could not get access to the video, Ian. It said not available. That is funny about your wiccan friend.

Let us know if anyone else fell off the stones. I do not understand the lack of respect for sacred places. I just do not get it.

Thanks for sharing that story.

Hi Deb

Ninjutsu is currently practiced in two main styles; Gebukan and Bujinkan, both of which you can probably look up in your local area. I belong to the Shinobi kai which is recognised by both of them as are our instructors.

As these videos show , we don't take ourselves too seriously. For example last nights training featured unarmed taijutsu, counter-knife, rolled-up magazine, and hula hoop as a defensive tool (a new one to me!)

[quoteI could not get access to the video, Ian. It said not available.][/quote]

Drat! There must be some sort of regional 'block' on it. I understand there is a way 'round this by something called "peer to peer" sharing, but will have to ask my more computer-savvy friends about it.

Wow that was one big turnout. Why is the government no longer funding the area?

For video feed go into youtube and type in Stonehenge summer solstice 2011 - there are many videos uploaded. Thankfully, the videos I reviewed the people seemed reasonable and respectful. *whew*

I assume the practical fighting is but one aspect of what you learn. I find it one of the most practical tools in the art of self defense. It's always perplexed me how it's typically the shortest of the training courses. I put quite a premium on that part of the learning. You are basically learning to defend yourself with nearly any object.

Hi Deb

The UK government is no longer funding National Trust sites as the NT is a charity that fundraises by itself in addition to having some taxpayer money from the government coffers. With all the spending cuts on the surface this makes sense in the short term but the NT may feel it if the grant is permanently suspended.

On the Ninjutsu front all the combat training is self-defence oriented and there are no 'sporting' Ninja contests that I know of. Mark Lutman, the instructor for Portsmouth and Basingstoke often jokes that he began to train in the art to improve his Karate competition skills and lost the last competition he was ever in - even though the 'winner' was lying unconscious on the floor at the time!

I'm not into competitive martial arts, so all the ones I trained in before Ninjutsu were also non-competitive. I trained in Aikido and was able to use it for self defence as I explained here . Sadly the esoteric side of the art in the UK is not practised as thoroughly as the combat side, but I have managed to explore all angles through travelling to the places it still is, such as Japan, and by following the Pagan Path.