Great to see people out at sites of the ancient religion of the sun at the solstice, but sad to see a sacred place treated like a fairground. What do gyrating women, African drumming, and people in costumes have to do with Stonehenge? Absolutely nothing. No one would consider doing this at other ancient sites or sacred places. Will some of the British remember their roots enough to restore dignity and meaning to the solstice at Stonehenge?
Until such time, the stones stand like mute sentinels, waiting for the time the descendants of their builders return for the great ceremonies of sun and spirit. This was the great temple of the first Celtic speakers of Western Europe (the Atlantic culture stretching from the Mediterranean, North Africa, up the Western seaboard of Europe), the Sons of May (the “sons of summer/the sun”), and the Indo-European sun worshipers of the Bronze Age. During the Bronze Age it drew people from across Europe, and it lies on the same latitude (used for specific astronomical observations) as the ancient solar temples of Goseck Circle in Germany, and Arkaim in Russia. Wake up and remember, people of Europe.
I found this Guardian article about the solstices from June last year, which I thought was interesting overall https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/jun/18/beyond-stonehenge-the-cities-built-to-celebrate-the-sun.
My first impression was quite good, but there is a negative tone towards people who wish to celebrate these times of the year, in respects to how the ancients might have. In the article unfortunately they are designated to nothing more than riff raff, even by placing certain images together like the image of the Druids along side the new age ‘hippies’ as though they are part of some strange side show to avoid. It’s not hard to see that in the West the Solstices have lost much of their meaning and significance, but I wonder how much of industrialization has contributed to that hardening of our hearts and the wiping out of our memory?
Nevertheless the article mentions a website by a Ukrainian data engineer, Demeter Sztanko, who has mapped out streets that are aligned to either winter or summer solstices in 694 cities in the world https://sztanko.github.io/solsticestreets/ Interesting to see that in some cities the main alignment is predominately a winter solstice or summer solstice? It made me wonder if the original city planners may have been people who knew about the spiritual meaning of these times of year and designed them purposely that way?
The image at the top of the article is quite extraordinary too, of what they call the Manhattanhenge. it shows how somethings may have been hidden in plain sight?
What about the general knowledge that Stonehenge has undergone a complete restoration since 1901 – until the 1950s. Each stone was removed from its original position, sometimes even exchanged and re-anchored with concrete bases.
I do not question that Stonehenge had a religious meaning – but this place was already so much changed and reinterpreted more than a hundred years ago – that the Original Image can only be found in legends
It felt both odd and awkward to watch this video snippet…as though something doesn’t quite fit. There may be crowds that are drawn to such ancient sites but there seems to be a lack of understanding about their significance, relevance and sacredness – lost in time.
I have been visiting a lot of sites in South America and a couple of times people have been playing loud music on radios. We asked them to turn them off and they willingly did. It seems that at least some people are willing to change their behavior when asked, so if enough people treat these sites with reverence, I think it’s possible to influence others to follow suit.
Thank you for bringing attention to this, Lara. It’s so important how we treat these special sacred sites. Some years ago we lived a few hours away from a particular sacred site and we used to go there now and again because it felt so nourishing to spend time there. That place was also not very far away from a big city, so on the weekends there were often people visiting. While it was nice to see people being interested in that place – some went there to meditate, it was also very saddening to see how most were behaving, talking loudly or using inappropriate language, smoking and littering the area…
I wonder if people in the UK doing revival work, had to step away from popular sites like Stonehenge, as there were too many people who go there for a completely different type of experience.
In the video it seemed like a big part of the crowd were regular families with children though, which may mean there is a genuine interest, but like all of us they would need to understand the basics of how to attend a sacred space at a meaningful time in order to be able to appreciate it better and get more out of it.
Some years ago we visited a spring equinox ceremony at a megalithic sacred site (here: https://www.spiritualsun.com/events/europe/threskeia-summer-solstice ) by a local revival group. Besides the people performing the ceremony, there were also people who were there just to observe. In the end everyone could join in by giving their offering of fruit/bread/wine to the deities and jump over a small lit fire (old tradition still practised by a lot of people in Bulgaria around the time of autumn equinox).
I remember that it felt a bit difficult to focus on the ceremony in the beginning as there were people around me who were talking with each other about mundane things and weren’t really paying attention to what was happening. On the contrary, however, the people performing the ceremony looked very dedicated and sincere about what they were doing. At a point I remembered being surprised to feel spiritual energy around me, almost like the ringing of a bell. Their ceremony was alive and I could feel it.
After the ceremony I spoke with a lady who was there together with her family and she told me that she’s had strong experiences joining these ceremonies, so it was a confirmation that others felt it too. This makes me think that the stones may be silent, but they are also alive and willing to give, to those who know how to approach them.
Thanks again.
Thanks for sharing this video Lara. It’s a pity that the understanding of the sacred principles encoded in the design of Stonehenge have become largely lost to modern society, so that it is now seen more as a fairground than a sacred site.
On a postive note, I’ve been looking into some of the thousands of ancient sacred sites throughout Britain and have seen there is still quite an interest among people who wish to learn more about the purpose behind these sites and understand their meaning. I’ve also been inspired to find examples of some of the symbols and principles of The Religion of the Sun encoded in these sites. Although Stonehenge is the best known in the UK, I’ve found a number of less famous or smaller sites that are also aligned to solstices or equinoxes, along with some that feature sacred symbols such as concentric circles, spirals and crosses.
I’m very grateful for the work that you and Mark have done in painstakingly piecing together the evidence behind the practice of The Religion of the Sun throughout the world. Putting our spiritual ancestry into its true context is very much needed, as well as providing a huge inspiration and encouragement to find out more. I’m thankful that despite the degeneration of society in general, this information is now becoming increasingly available to those that wish to find it, and I hope that many will seek beyond the confines of mainstream society and history, in order to find true meaning and purpose in their lives.
I’ve seen this before and your post make a lot of sense. I would be amazing to see big changes and treat this amazing sacred site with total respect.
These people seem more hippies than real pagan/heathen revivalists, and I see from some YouTube comments I’m not the first to notice that.
I think this is sadly as much a reflection on the general state of western civilization, where respect for and a sense of the sacred is so much eroded. When that happens even with dominant established religion (look at what’s happened to Christmas for example) then it seems it would be an even bigger step for people to bring real reverence to a solstice celebration which, in the angloshpere at least, is far less defined with clear traditions, values and principles to draw upon like Christianity has in society. And that means that while Christianity gets increasingly trashed in wider society and popular media, there is still respect and reverence in their sacred places (churches and cathedrals).
That is why the revival of Religion of the Sun is so important I feel, as it brings those values back, if people want them that is. Otherwise you get this. I was going to call it wishy washy but it doesn’t even really reach that level. More like a popular musical festival with Stonehenge as a backdrop. It actually reminds me very much of some music festivals I used to go to: one big party.
But I can’t be too judgemental myself, because I was once not that different, and would once upon a time not have understood what the big deal is with this occasion in the sense of seeing anything wrong with it. I would have probably have thought, “oh look at that, a bunch of hippies doing their thing” and not given it a second thought. I can understand the mindset some of these people are in. It took time and learning to come out of the mindset and conditioning I had, and acquire a genuine respect for the sacred, and I needed access to the right information to do that. And from there to get an understanding and respect for my own heritage. Shows again why this revival is really needed.
I agree Matthew, and like your point about how nobody would think about doing this kind of thing in a church or a cathedral. The point is, as you have said, that people don’t realise the immense sacredness of these places, because the general understanding of the sacred principles of the religion of the Sun is lacking. Also a thought comes to my mind that these places aren’t really protected like churches or temples, and so people just take it as a kind of gathering place for anyone. Spreading the knowledge about the principles and history of the Religion of the Sun therefore seems to be really vital in this time and age.
I also liked the point you raised about ancestry. As a European, or to be more exact Slavic, I also didn’t think much about my ancestry before, as I thought that its more like for indigenous people of America, etc., people whom we call “native”. But it makes sense to figure out what kind of “native” I am as well! :-)
It’s a shame to see such disrespect for such a sacred place.
I had the same feeling when I watched this video. It’s nice that people wanted to celebrate the solstice at a sacred site, but it seems more like a lark and a fun outing rather than an observance worthy of the dignity of the event and the place. It seems to be lacking any real connection with the roots of the site and what it was meant for, and so the event turns into a free-for-all.
I have been to another sacred site on the solstice where a group of local people did celebrate the event according to more traditional customs. It felt dignified and appropriate, and they very naturally included other visitors who were interested into their ceremony, which enabled everyone to celebrate in an appropriate way
It would be amazing if groups of British people did something similar – reconnected with their ancient heritage and took the lead in celebrating these events in a way that honoured and preserved that heritage, with the deeper meaning of the events at the forefront. Then anyone who turned up could observe or participate in something meaningful and have a chance to better understand the deeper meaning of the place and time.
That was awkward to watch. The overwhelming feeling I got from this video this is that people seem quite lost at the site somehow. The strange costumes and inappropriate outfits, the zagareet sounds, the style of drumming and dancing are definitely out of sync.
Would have been amazing if instead the ancient celebrations were maintained (or revived) at this site, similar to how the solstice is still celebrated today in places like Tiwanaku, so that the sun would be greeted with honor and deep meaning.
‘Awkward’ is a good word to describe the feeling of observing this revelry Jenny, I think you hit the nail on the head that people seem quite lost – quite possibly it’s the end of a long night of drinking and possibly drug-taking. The group seems disjointed and the whole thing haphazard.
I was at the summer solstice in Stonehenge for 2006 & 2007. I definitely felt something sublime and special, as I went twice! But like I’ve said elsewhere, it was a confusing experience, a really odd mix of the spiritual and degenerate – and the summer is a bigger event. I remember sitting at a distance from it all where I could hear the skylarks as well as the drumming and being elated at seeing the stones ‘come alive’ with celebration at this time, as though viewing something so ancient it was impossible to fathom, but also heartbroken that the stones were surrounded by a writhing mass of people partying mindlessly. Saying that, I can understand how people get carried away in the ‘euphoria’ of the atmosphere and just join in – this is what I was like then. Many people there are searching for something truely spiritual I believe, but alas it’s nowhere to be found – not even at one of the most holy sites to our ancestors on one of the most spiritual potent days of the year.
It is sad to see so many frivolous activities done at such a sacred site. But on the bright side, I think such a large crowd of people gathered to see the sun rising must indicate that many people want a connection with the Sun and with these ancient sites, even if they don’t know how to do it in the proper way.
Hopefully those interested can learn about the religion of the sun, such as through the books you and Mark have written, and celebrations in future times will be in lines with how the ancients originally intended.
I couldn’t hear what they were singing, but I thought that was kind of nice, too :)
I watched other videos that included more of the group chanting. The woman leading the chant wore revealing clothes and was moving in a sexually provocative way. So no matter how nice the chanting sounded, she was no priestess worthy to enter the temple.
I agree that magic of this ancient sacred site and the special time of winter solstice was lost, because of allowing for performances that seemed totally out of place. I actually felt saddened while watching this video, as it appeared to me that people present at the event were searching for a meaning, for inspiration, but due to the lack of direction were left emptyhanded.
It’s very sad to see the lack of respect. Even a small moment of reflection on the age of the stones themselves should cause a certain level of reverence to the site, I would have thought. It was good to see some people trying to sing as a group, despite the mayhem around it.
The only thing sadder would be for no-one to be there at all.
Hopefully things will improve in the future, rather than this decadent menagerie, people will be more harmonious with their environment. The site deserves so much more.