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VII Ides June was the first day of the Vestalia: the celebration of Vesta.
During this period, the round temple of Vesta in the Roman Forum (called the *penus* = storehouse) was opened to the women of rome. Women entered the temple barefoot.
Vesta was known as the "living flame" (*vivam flammam*), and her temple housed a sacred fire (tended to by the Vestal virgins) that the Romans strongly believed must never go out. All rituals were begun by lighting a sacrificial flame on the alter, so Vesta was involved in all rituals of the Roman religion.
Vesta is crucial for conducting ritual. No sacrifice or ritual can be conducted without fire. She must first be invoked at all ritual. (Servius, _Aeneid_ I.292)
In Roman homes, prayers and sacrifices were given to Vesta at the household altar (*lararium*)
The Latin for for heart is *focus*. An offering placed on the hearth was therefore said to be *in focus*. Vesta was also known as the *domina focorum*, the "master of the hearths".
Fire has the power to draw our gaze and lead us to quiet contemplation. The quiet inner strength of Vesta was described by the Romans as *vi stando*, "standing-by power".
📕 Bernstein, Frances, _Classical Living: Reconnecting with the Rituals of Ancient Rome_. HarperCollins, 2000.
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✍️ Last Updated: 2021-06-18