WHEEL OF THE YEAR
Autumn Equinox
What is Autumn Equinox?
Autumn Equinox is the mid-point between Summer and Winter Solstice. Just like during Spring Equinox, we experience equal hours of daylight and darkness, as the Sun crosses the exact midpoint of the Equator. After this rare moment of balanced light and darkness, we slide headlong into shorter days, less sunlight, cooler temperatures, and longer nights.
Traditionally, Autumn Equinox celebrations include giving thanks for abundance, taking inventory of our lives, planning for the coming Winter, and a recognition of the scales of time balancing.
Sometimes, erroneously referred to as Mabon, Autumn Equinox rituals include feasting, displays of harvest fruits and vegetables, bonfires, and dancing. In some agricultural societies, this is considered the second harvest–this one containing vegetables that keep well through the winter months. It is a time to begin turning within, preparing for the long winter ahead. We begin listening for the Ancestors, and move our labor from the garden to the household.
The Crone Herself honors these old, ancestral traditions, while encouraging us to understand the land, climate, and culture we currently live in. Developing a more personalized, hyper-local, and culturally relevant approach to marking the Wheel Year’s seasonal shifts helps us celebrate in meaningful ways during intersecting global crises. We honor the ancestors and become the bridge between them and our descendants.
Symbols of Autumn Equinox
The slanting golden-lit days grow shorter. Night temperatures drop. Sweater weather arrives, along with the harvest of winter and acorn squash, pumpkin, onion and hearty greens. Foliage shifts from tired green to yellow, peach, persimmon, crimson and orange. We let the bright days of summer go, and turn our faces–like the sun–toward the coming of Winter.
Pay attention to the natural world around you. What are the sights, sounds, and symbols of Autumn where you live? How do you honor this seasonal shift in your solitary practice, household, or community celebrations? What is coming to fruition and ripeness in your life? What do you give thanks for? What is being cut down, winnowed, released?
Colors of Autumn
The flower beds, once decked in hues of pink, blue, purple and bright green now lie dormant. In their place, a carpet of autumn leaves collects. We display pumpkins, harvest apples for cider, wear deeper jewel-toned hues that match our environment. The colors of Autumn include deep green, burnt orange and sienna, crimson red, gold, brown and black.
Meditations for the Equinox
In your meditations during this Season, notice how these themes from nature, and human activity, are relevant in your life. It’s always appropriate to meditate on gratitude, abundance, hope, and sweetness for your life. At this particular Sabbat, it’s also useful to examine what is “fall”ing away in your life, work, relationships, and goals. Give thanks for what came to fruition. And, come to peace so you can gracefully release what didn’t. Finally, this is a beautiful time to give attention to beautifying your home for the coming months when you’ll be spending the majority of your time indoors. A good house-keeping ritual clears out the old, and brings in the energies you want to spend time enjoying through the long months, ahead.
You can find my Guided Meditation for the Autumn Equinox, which includes all of the above-mentioned elements, in the link below.
Music for Lammas
I always have a free Play-list on Spotify for the Sabbats. Enjoy!
Autumn Equinox Recipes
However you celebrate, your Autumn feast should include the first soup of the season, and an excellent apple dessert! Click links for recipes
