The Neptunalia, A Roman Festival

The Neptunalia is a two day Roman festival thrown in honor of Neptune, the god of waters.
Neptunalia was said to begin on July 23rd, which was right in the middle of the HOT summer in Italy, when water was desperately needed to stay hydrated and alive.
Neptune is the god of the sea and of all waters for Romans, but he was not among Rome’s most revered and powerful gods. Little is known of his origin: when he was first introduced in Rome, he already had acquired all the characteristics of the Greek Poseidon. Despite the fact that his cult grew after his equation with Poseidon, Neptune was far less popular among Roman sailors than Poseidon was with Greek mariners.

My Personal Connection With Neptune

The photo I used in this post is of my personal statue of Neptune/Poseidon. He stands approximately 9 feet tall and weighs about 500 pounds. I purchased him over 20 years ago to stand guard by my pool and he has moved everywhere with me. Today he stands guard right inside the front gates of our island home in SW Florida.
What’s interesting is that growing up on Long Island (which had beaches all around it), I never wanted to go to the beach or in the ocean… and I really despised the heat and humidity of summer too. And then a few years ago, palm trees started calling me, which sparked my move to SW Florida. My husband Shannon is a water baby, so going to the beach and swimming in the ocean has become a common pastime in our relationship. We recently purchased a boat and that has opened up to us a new world of private islands and private beaches that can only be accessed by boat.  I have to admit, it’s pretty awesome and totally goddess!

Ways You Can Celebrate Neptunalia

The little that is documented about Neptunalia states that it was a pretty crazy couple of days – lots of drinking, eating and games.
Those ancient Greeks and Romans sure knew how to party!
Personally, I keep things a little more tame. Public debauchery is not something I participate in, so I’m including some toned down suggestions on how to celebrate Neptunalia.
Create An Altar
Place an image or statue of Neptune on a flat surface and then add any or all of the following suggestions: a candle in a color that feels like the ocean to you (think of shades of blue or green that make you think “ocean”), sand, shells, coral, sea glass, sea salt, aquamarine or pearls, a vase or chalice filled with water, fresh flowers of your choosing.
Visit The Ocean
Go to the beach or out on a boat and invoke Neptune’s support with any intentions that correspond to the element of water – such as healthy emotional flow, emotional cleansing, abundance, intuition, divination, etc.
Give Thanks
Give thanks to Neptune for protecting our beautiful rivers, oceans, waterways and sea creatures.