Hello. I live in Australia and summer is during December to the end of February. Do I have to celebrate any holidays like Yule differently and when would I celebrate the solstices do I just celebrate them at different times?
I've seen posts by a lot of southern hemisphere witches talking about how they basically celebrate the season-appropriate feast day, rather than the same one the northern hemisphere witches celebrate according to the calendar.
Re: Summer during Yule? By: Lark Moderator / Adept
Post # 4 Dec 24, 2020
In the Southern Hemisphere most Pagans celebrate the Wheel of the Year in the reverse of what we celebrate in the Northern Hemisphere in order to keep the Sabbats in tune with the actual seasons. So for you it would fall like this.
Yule - June 21-23
Imbolc - August 1
Oestara - September 21-23
Beltane - October 31
Midsummer/Litha - December 21-23
Lammas/Lugnassad - February 1
Mabon - March 21-23
Samhain - May 1
Yule - June 21-23
Note that I give a range of dates for the Solstices and Equinoxes. That is because the actual date varies from year to year. This year your Midsummer (my Yule) fell on December 21)
I have a good friend who runs a large coven in Sydney. Her group has an excellent website with a ton of information geared toward practices in the Southern Hemisphere. You might want to check out the site at
In particular check out their Articles section which has information on the Wheel of the Year, setting up an Altar, casting the circle and other things which differ in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere.
I personally think it's best if you try to align the Wheel of the Year with the Seasons. Magick is basically about connecting to the natural world and using that connection to bring change to your life and others. Which is why celebrating sabbats at times when they're not meant to be can hinder that connection. This is just my opinion. As Lark said, there are plenty of sites on Sabbats on the site for both hemispheres. Feel free to do what you want, ultimately, no one's stopping you