Autumn Equinox
The cool down of Autumn have finally arrived and so has the peak of the harvest season. Fat pumpkins lay in fields, apple branches bend low with heavy yield and the Earth’s bounty overflows the garden and farm. This harvest begs to be enjoyed, but also preserved. Winter’s icy days draw near.
Technically speaking an equinox is a day when the Sun will spend an equal amount of time above and below the horizon. This happens twice a year, in Autumn and Spring. Autumn Equinox is the tipping point into the dark half of the year. Today we are also entering into the sunsign of Libra, her scales are a perfect echo of the light/dark balance of this equinox. Historically speaking, nearly every culture has some form of harvest festival, many celebrated still today.
Megalithic people of ancient Britain and Ireland obviously placed some kind of importance on both the solstices and equinoxes. Otherwise they would not have build stone structures like Stonehenge and Loughcrew Cairn to determine their dates. Their methods of celebrating these days has been long lost to history though.
The ancient Celts constructed a wickerman around this time of the year as well. It was ritually burned to represent the plant spirits returning to the earth to rest until Spring. An incarnation of this ancient idea has been reborn in recent years in the Burning Man Project, a yearly festival celebrated in the Autumn in Nevada. A giant wickerman is constructed and burned at the height of the week long festival.
The Mayans constructed a sacred pyramid called Chichen Itza, which acted in a similar way to the stone structures of the Megalithic people of Britain and Ireland. On the day of the Autumn Equinox a “serpent of light” descends the pyramid until it joins this a huge stone rattlesnake head at its base. (This serpent is actually seven isosceles triangles that are formed from the sunlight hitting the pyramid stairs.)
The Chumash, a Native American tribe from Southern California, celebrate the Autumn Equinox in a ceremony that takes place after the harvest is picked, processed and stored. After this day the spiritual thoughts of the tribe become focused on unity in the face of Winter.
Teutonic tribes called the period from the Autumn Equinox until approximately October 15th “Winter Finding.” October 15th was Winter Night and their new years. Besoms were constructed to symbolize the man/woman duality. A Harvest Lord was made from straw and burned, his ashes scattered over the fields. A Harvest Queen was woven from the last sheaf of wheat of the harvest. It was dressed in Spring colors and hung from a pole (it also was sometimes called the Kern Baby.)
In Neopaganism, many different rituals are preformed on this day, often echoing ancient traditions. Most of these rites are based on the balance found in nature as well as within ourselves. Some refer the Autumn Equinox as the Witches Thanksgiving as it is a celebration of the harvest and a time to give thanks for the bounty that the Earth has provided.. Wiccans, the most common variety of Neopagans, celebrate the Autumn Equinox as Mabon. The day honors the Sacrificial King who dies and passes into the harvest to be reborn through the Goddess come Springtime.
In my practice, I personify the Earth as Mother and Sun as Father. Now is the time for Father Sun to pass into darkness so that Mother Earth might rest as she nurtures the spirit of Spring within her. Without Winter’s rest many plants could not come forth in the Spring. Autumn Equinox is a time to come together as a community and give thanks for the harvest as well as find peace within ourselves to face the coming darker days. It is a time of year when the goals that summer’s fun kept me from, return to the forefront of my mind. Balances is a powerful force which I invite into my life so that all my workings might come from a place of wholeness and love. Balance is needed in all things from the spiritual to the mundane as it keeps us from the pointlessness excess and the dullness of laziness.
Autumn Equinox: in our home
(This is from a page in my BoS where I list family activities, crafts, home and altar decorations and other miscellaneous ideas.)
Activities:
- Acorn Gathering for Winter Solstice ornaments
- Harvest Festival in Greenbluff
- Thanksgiving Ritual
Crafts:
- Apple Dolls
- Autumn Leaves Stained Glass
- Besom Making
- Bread Making
- Pine Cone Bird Feeders
- Harvesting and Preserving: canning, dehydrating, freezing
- Equinox Candles
Decorations:
- Acorns, Maple Keys, Pinecones
- Autumn Leaves
- Burial Cairns
- Cornucopias
- Dried Herbs
- Indian Corn Bundles
- Scythe, Bolline
- Seasonal flowers and foods
Autumn Equinox: feast
This is a a time when the Earth’s bounty is at her peak, why not make the table groan with your favorite seasonal dishes? Since we go to the apple festival each year fresh apple cider and local wines fill out goblets and we raise them for a blessing a toast.
Eternal Spirits we welcome you into our home on this day of balance.
You who are the wind, water, fire and earth at the soul of our world.The Autumn Equinox is here and we give thee thanks for the harvest,
and its bounty that nourishes us, sustains us and inspires us.We give thee thanks for the times we spend together in love and peace,
and all those who have fought so that we may enjoy this freedom.We give thee thanks for this good green Earth and the kinship of our friends and family,
and for all we have overlooked or taken for granted in our life.We give thanks for the blessings you whisper into our lives each and every day.
Eternal Spirits we welcome you to our table. Blessed be.(You can go around the table now and have everyone share what they are thankful for.)
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BREAD: Roasted Potato and Onion Bread
This must be started the night before your feast. It is well worth the effort though!
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MAIN DISH: Layered Vegetarian Crockpot
Layer in crockpot:
- 6 potatoes, sliced
- 1 onion, sliced
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 1 green pepper, sliced
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 cup corn
- 1 cup peas
Any vegetable mixture really works. I didn’t have a zucchini today so I used green beans. If you have a garden, even better! Wander around and see what’s fresh.
Pour over top:
- 2 cans tomato sauce
- 1 can stewed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- Salt & Pepper
Cook 8 to 12 hours.
- Spread 1 cup shredded cheese over top and serve once melted.
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DESSERT: Apple Pie
I think everyone has their preferred family recipe for this one, mine seems to change from year to year as I seek to find one that is truly special. Since we did not go apple picking this weekend (Michael was sick) we will be going next Sunday. So the apple pie is on the backburner so to speak, until then. If anyone has a tried and true apple pie recipe that they don’t mind me sharing through my blog if we like it, I would be more then willing to try it! (The crust cannot contain shortening, I am allergic to cottonseed oil.)
I hope you all have a most blessed and joyful Autumn Equinox, Mabon, Harvest Home, or whatever you celebrate. And if you celebrate none, I still hope you get outside rain or shine (rain for us this year!) and enjoy the beauty of Autumn.
After 38 years of living in the tropics I still miss the change of seasons. Our only change is of crops from fleshy fruits like yucca, papaya, mango, guanabana, avocado to all the miriads of citrus which will last until may or June - oranges= varieties, grapefruit, cumquats, tangerines, mandarins etc.
We miss Canadian Thanksgiving with all it means but celebrate here with our Mexican Canadian (Canmex) family.
Love you, Nana
Thank you for posting this simple, yet wonderful info on Autumn Equinox. Every year I celebrate with some friends far away - the solstices and the equinoxes - over the phone. Sometimes our lives are so hectic we end up looking up something to share over the phone at the last minute, and tonite this fit. So thank you - we shared it together and hope you have a bountiful harvest!