Standing in the Light:
Reflections on the June Solstice
by Paul Robear

From a young age, I found myself inspired by the rhythm of the seasons. Growing up in the Northeast, in Maine, the changes were dramatic—the hush of winter giving way to the awakening of spring, then the long, golden days of summer at our family cottage in the Belgrade lakes. The solstice, especially, always felt like a kind of turning point—a subtle invitation to retreat, even subconsciously, with nature’s flow.

The June Solstice is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere, the peak of the sun’s journey before it begins its gradual return. But more than a celestial event, the solstice is, for me, a symbolic threshold—one of both celebration and contemplation.

Across cultures and back through time—from the pyramids of ancient Egypt to the stone circles of the British Isles to the sacred mesas of the Hopi—people have honored this time with rituals of renewal, gratitude, and connection. It’s no wonder this moment feels charged, as though the world is lit from within, revealing not only the outer abundance of nature, but also our own inner light.

Another area of research I’ve been fascinated to follow is the growing body of evidence that our ancestors not only celebrated the solstice but used it to mark celestial alignments—laying stone markers, building ceremonial sites, and crafting calendars that reflected a profound relationship with the cosmos.

This season invites us to pause, take stock, and ask: Where am I now? What do I choose to release? And perhaps most importantly—what am I ready to embrace?

The Solstice is also known as a time of fire—of passion, vitality, and creativity. It reminds us of the flame within, the part of us that dreams, that risks, that shines. Just as the earth is now bursting with life, we too can feel a surge of energy—a call to live more fully and with intention.

And yet, this is also a time of stillness. A breath. A sacred pause in the dance of the year. In that stillness, something ancient stirs. We may find our intuition heightened, our sense of connection deepened—not only to nature but to the unseen world. Many speak of this as a time when the veil is thin, when guidance from ancestors, spirit, or the inner self becomes more accessible.

At the Cuyamungue Institute, we honor these seasonal thresholds not only with reflection or recognizing stone alignments, but through embodied practice. Our work with Ritual Body Postures offers a direct path to deeper connection. These postures—rooted in ancient wisdom and sacred art—serve as potent tools for entering expanded states of consciousness. They invite us into a lived experience of alignment, where insight rises from within and the voice of the ancestors can be heard.

My hope is, by standing still with the sun, we remember who we are, where we’ve been, and what we are here to become.