How was midsummer night celebrated?

Answer 1

Pan-European Midsummer traditions, according to Frazer's Golden Bough (62:5), include the casting of herbs, pebbles or effigies into a bonfire to ward off bad luck, leaping over or dancing around that fire to increase the fertility of the people and the land, and the igniting of hay bundles and wooden cartwheels, which were then rolled down a hill, as an oracular means of predicting the success of that summer's harvest. Midsummer, as the turning point of the year, represents a liminal period. It is a time where past actions are reflected upon and the fruit of their actions are considered and anticipated. It is a mid-point; a brief resting place where hope is at its highest and the results of ones past actions can equally go in or against ones favour. It is a beginning and an end at once, and is part of the ongoing cycle of death and life as represented by the death of Baldur, the myth of Ragnarök, or the cyclic feud between Arawn and Hafgan - the Holly King and the Oak King.

Answer 2

Midsummer Night was traditionally celebrated with bonfires, feasting, dancing, and music in many cultures. It is often associated with ancient pagan celebrations like the Scandinavian Midsummer festival or the English festival of Midsummer's Eve. People would gather to mark the summer solstice with rituals to welcome the longest day of the year.

Answer 3

The summer solstice, the shortest night of the year, sometime around June 21.