Today is the Autumnal Equinox (09:51 UT) and signals the beginning of Fall in the northern hemisphere. On this day there will be an equal amount of light and darkness, and after this day the nights grow longer and we head towards Winter. In many modern Pagan traditions this is the second of three harvest festivals (the first being Lughnasadh, the third being Samhain).
The holiday is also known as “Harvest Home” or “Mabon” by Wiccans and Witches, “Mid-Harvest” and “Alban Elfed” by some Druidic and Celtic-oriented groups, and “Winter Finding” by modern-day Asatru. Most modern Pagans simply call it the Autumn Equinox. Here are some media quotes and excerpts from modern Pagans on the holiday.
“An equinox in astronomy is the event when the Sun can be observed to be directly above the Earth’s equator, occurring around March 20 and September 22 each year. As a general rule, it is thought to be on the 21st of every quarter that the equinox changes. On these dates, night and day are nearly of the same length and the Sun crosses the celestial equator. In a wider sense, the equinoxes are the two days each year when the centre of the Sun spends an equal amount of time above and below the horizon at every location on Earth.” – Pretoria News
“Cultures throughout time have used the cycles of the sun to mark important events. The equinox itself holds less meaning in our modern society, and truly the change that comes to the season happens by degrees over time. But the notion of a balance between light and dark falling on a moment in time is a powerful, and useful, idea to dwell on long after the equinox has given way to the slow march of winter.” – The Daily Green
“Although the specific date of the Autumn Equinox was not marked by any ritual in Celtic tradition, there is evidence that, at some point roughly halfway between Lughnasadh and Samhain, communities would involve themselves with a ceremony that reflected the processes then at work in the Year. This was usually a conclusion to ritual themes invoked at Lughnasadh, and focused on the end of the main harvest activities (i.e., the grain harvest), although it did not imply the end of the entire Harvest season, which continued until Samhain” – Alexei Kondratiev, The Apple Branch
“In the rhythm of the year, Harvest Home marks a time of rest after hard work. The crops are gathered in, and winter is still a month and a half away! Although the nights are getting cooler, the days are still warm, and there is something magical in the sunlight, for it seems silvery and indirect. As we pursue our gentle hobbies of making corn dollies (those tiny vegetation spirits) and wheat weaving, our attention is suddenly arrested by the sound of baying from the skies (the ‘Hounds of Annwn’ passing?), as lines of geese cut silhouettes across a harvest moon. And we move closer to the hearth, the longer evening hours giving us time to catch up on our reading, munching on popcorn balls and caramel apples and sipping home-brewed mead or ale. What a wonderful time Harvest Home is! And how lucky we are to live in a part of the country where the season’s changes are so dramatic and majestic!” – Mike Nichols, “Harvest Home”
“Autumn Equinox (also known as Mabon or Harvest Home) is celebrated when day and night are of equal duration before the descent into increasing darkness and is the final festival of the season of harvest. In nature, the activity of the summer months slows down to the hibernation for the winter. For many Pagans, now is time to reflect on the past season. It is also a time to recoginse that the balance of the year has changed, the wheel has turned and summer is now over.” – BBC, Religion and Ethics
“However you celebrate this festival, I urge you all to get outside and enjoy the sensual delights of late summer as it gives way to early autumn. Visit a local farm. It is important to support small farms as often as possible; farming is a dying way of life in this country and your health (not to mention your local economy) will benefit when you buy local and eat fresh. Farmer’s markets are abundant this time of year; find one near you. Go apple picking. Support your local orchards! There is no substitute for fruit freshly picked from the tree; bring your children or make a day of it with friends. Have a harvest dinner made with fresh local vegetables or locally-raised poultry or meat. Make a pie or tart from apples or peaches. Buy wine or beer from a local winery or brewery. Remember your ancestors, who lived close by one another, who worked the fields together, who shared food and drink and fellowship together. Celebrate your own harvests: acknowledge your work, goals or other accomplishments.” – Peg Aloi, The Witches’ Voice
May you all enjoy the fruits of your harvest this season.
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