June 20, 2025

The Solstice Is Here!

(Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere, Winter Solstice in the Southern hemisphere.)

🌞 Summer Solstice: Gathering, Nourishing, Resting, Remembering

Hello beautiful human,

Today, we arrive at the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, when the sun appears to stand still, suspended at its highest point.

Today marks a powerful threshold: maximum solar energy, the apex of light before the slow descent into darkness begins again.

In Ayurveda, this is Grishma Ritu, a time of:

Fire

Dryness

Intensity

It’s a season where pitta dosha (fire + water) can surge out of balance, making the body and mind more prone to:

Irritation

Heat

Burnout

To stay in harmony, classical Ayurveda calls us to:

Favor cooling, hydrating foods -- like melons (without mixing them with other foods), cucumbers, mint, coconut, and rose water
Avoid excessive exercise and spicy, fried foods
Wake early -- but allow the afternoons for a rest/ nap
Seek shade -- cool water, and gentle movement
Drop in with loved ones -- classical literature tells us one of the best remedies for pitta is gathering with loved ones, surrounded by sweet-smelling flowers and water, speaking of joyful things, and adorning with cooling pearls.

In Mexican and Native American traditions, the Summer Solstice is a sacred fire portal, a time to

Gather

Dance

Grieve

Give thanks

Plant prayers

Food is prepared with intention: corn, squash, beans, the ancestral “three sisters,” and fresh herbs, are offered communally.

Fire is kept throughout the night as a living elder. Offerings are made to the sun, to the land, and to the lineages that hold us.

Whether your feet are on desert soil, mountain moss, or city streets, this is a moment to pause, feast, listen, and gather with your people to sweat, hydrate, rest, sing, and remember that we are part of something ancient and ongoing.

🌑 In the South - A Winter Solstice Blessing

While the North is bathed in sun, we also bow to the deep stillness of the South, where today marks the Winter Solstice, the longest night, the great exhale.

In the Southern Hemisphere, this is a time for

Inward turning

For tending the hearth of the heart

For dreaming the roots of what's to come

In Ayurveda, this is the season of kapha and vata, cold, dry, and heavy energies. The call is to nourish, to oil the body, to favor warm, cooked foods like stews and root vegetables. Wrap in warmth, rise with intention, and honor the slow, sacred pace of winter.

For many South American traditions, this is a dreamtime, when the spirit walks closely. It’s a time to listen to the ancestors, to burn sweet herbs, and to gather in quiet ceremony. Not to do more, but to feel more.

To hold the seed.

💬 And just in time for the solstice...

We released a back-to-back episode drop of the Sort of Sattva show to feature my powerful conversation with Briana Lynn.

Also available on Spotify

We speak about longing, belonging, cultural appropriation vs. appreciation, nervous system truth, and the erotic power of right relationship.

It's the kind of conversation that feels exactly right to carry in these times with the transmutation this sun-drenched and community-centered moment brings.

☀️Application to join the Liberation Mystery School is open for the solstice until June 22

Apply to join LMS

Whether you're in sun or shadow, we meet in sacred rhythm, in reciprocity with the Earth.

In fire, water, and truth,

xxo,

Veronica