Hitting Send

Delicious Autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive Autumns.”

Last week the fog rolled in and brought with it a crisp Fall feel! It was lovely, and I found myself so ready for the drawing down and in of energy which occurs this time of year. Granted, the temps may have gone back up to 88 degrees here today, but, as the Autumnal Equinox quickly approaches, I find myself making soup and decorating with the gloriously beautiful fallen leaves. This ‘changes of the seasons’ is an important time-honoured tradition of giving thanks, and as always, I was curious to learn more about the lore and celebrations surrounding it.

The Autumnal Equinox signals the end of the Summer months and the beginning of Winter. At this time of year, days have been shortening since the Summer Solstice some three months earlier, and the Equinox (Latin “equal night”) is the point where nights reach the same length as days. After this point, the Sun will shine lower and lower on the horizon until the Winter Solstice. In the northern hemisphere, the Autumn Equinox occurs on September 22, at 11:44 a.m. EDT.

Formerly known as “Harvest”, until our more industrialized lifestyles lost touch with the reference, this time of year is now known as “Fall” or “Autumn”. Harvest festivals evolved out of agrarian society, and have been celebrated for millennia, all around the world. In ancient Greece, Oschophoria was a festival held in the fall to celebrate the harvesting of grapes for wine. In the 1700’s, the Bavarians came up with Oktoberfest, which actually begins in the last week of September, and it was a time of great feasting and merriment, still in existence today. China’s Mid-Autumn festival is celebrated on the night of the Harvest Moon, and is a festival of honoring family unity. Japan’s Higan (“other shore”) is observed for three days prior to and following the equinox, and the ritual includes repentance of past sins and prayers for enlightenment in the next life. It also includes remembrance of the dead and visits to the family graves.

In Celtic/Welsh mythology, the equinox is known as Mabon (MAY-bon, MAY-bun, MAH-boon and more) for the Welsh God, Mabon, which means “Great Son of the Great Mother”. The story goes that he was kidnapped from the Great Mother, Modron, when he was but three days old (although I’ve seen references to its being three years) and is taken to the Underworld to prevent his light from shining upon the land. He was much smarter than the Lord of the Underworld thought. During his stay within the Earth he gathered his personal strength and momentum necessary to become new seed. He knew his rescue was at hand, and when the time came, he had the power to fertilize the barren Earth and green it once more.

This has many similarities to the Greek mythology surrounding this time of year. Mabon is, in many ways, the male counterpart of the Roman Goddess Persephone. Demeter’s daughter Kore was out picking flowers when Hades pulled her into the Underworld to become his bride. Kore’s name became Persephone when she married Hades. For nine straight days, Demeter searched for her daughter Kore, with no success. When she learned of where her daughter was being held captive, she put a curse upon Earth so that it could no longer yield crops. Eventually an arrangement was made whereby Persephone lived with her mother for the half of the year when light dominated, and went to live with her husband during the half of the year when darkness reigned the Earth.

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”

As the energies shift, the harvest is not only agricultural, but personal as well. As with Lammas, it is a time to celebrate the Earth’s bounty and thank Her for the Blessings She brings forth, on this second harvest. For this, we are grateful. It is also time to look at what seeds we have planted within. If we planted negative thoughts in our head, well, the harvest may not be so nice. We are farmers with our thoughts, ideas and emotions as much as a farmer who uses soil as his medium. That is why it is so important to put our attention on what we truly want to experience, and then create the correct atmosphere (attitude or medium) for that to manifest. How successful would a farmer be if he planted watermelon seeds but then never watered, fed, or weeded that area? It isn’t enough to want to experience something. We must create the receptive environment for it to show up so that our harvest is a successful one! The Autumn Equinox symbolizes harvest time outwardly and inwardly.

But there is more to it than that. Because of Mabon’s association with the Underworld, it’s also a great time to remember our ancestors, and those who have gone before us. A time to give thanks for the beautiful gifts they’ve left behind in its many forms. Because of this, Mabon is a time of total thanksgiving-a time when we give thanks for all that we have, for all that we are, and for all that the future holds, not only for us personally, but for those yet unborn. It is a time to reflect on the joys of community, personal freedom, and the wonders of the human species as a whole. Communally counting our many blessings, and giving thanks to everyone who’s made them happen.
Autumnal Equinox/Mabon Blessings to all! Blessed Harvest!