Greetings! Oh wow I realize I am not posting a lot these days, I was almost about to write “as I should”, but trying to get rid of those, so no “shoulds” here. Is it just me or has time sped up? And is it Fall already? The weather in The Netherlands is still unusually warm and sunny (we even saw 30 degrees Celcius temperatures last week and now it is a comfortable sunny 21 degrees) though there is chill in the air and the leaves are turning color. Next week we are promised proper Fall weather with chilly temperatures and lots of rain…yay 😉 The berries and apples are here in abundance and slowly I am feeling ready to go more inward (and indoors) and slow down. Though I dread the cold of Winter, I know Springtime will be here again as the wheel is turning. And Winter has it’s perks and I do feel like resting and letting go.
I will post some updates about what I have been up to in another post, such as day trips and a workshop working with wild herbs.
New Moon in Virgo
So we have just experienced a New Moon in Virgo. The Sun is also still in Virgo, so double the oomph to move from ideas, to intention and start making a plan, a list with actionable steps and then really do them. Virgo deals with practicality, sensitivity, and physical health. New moons are a time for setting new focus and new possibilities. This Moon brings a connection with the earth and it is a time to enjoy what we have created. This is a good time to take note of how and where you are taking action and if this is (still) working for you. Ask yourself questions such as “are you embodying your authentic self, and how you are not?”
This New Moon in Virgo is the precursor to the Autumn Equinox when traditionally, we honor the harvest and the fruits of our labors. On September 22nd (in The Netherlands), the Sun moves into Libra marking the Autumn Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere; the day of equal light and dark. This is a time for restoring balance, harmony and peace within ourselves, with all our relations, and with the Earth Mother herself. We then move into the dark half of the year and the end of astrological Summer and the beginning of Fall. Mabon marks the beginning of Autumn and celebrates Mother Earth for her grand abundance.
This is the time when Persephone returns to the underworld, which Zeus decided she must do because she had eaten six pomegranate seeds. In Ancient Greek mythology, the onset of fall is closely linked to the story of the abduction of Persephone, also called Kore or Cora. She was a goddess who was abducted from her mother, harvest goddess Demeter, and taken to the underworld to become the wife of Hades, the god-king of the underworld. After a period of mourning and struggle, Demeter eventually got her daughter back from Hades, but only for nine months of the year. Every fall, Persephone would return to the underworld to spend three months with Hades. During these months, Demeter refused to use her divine skills to make plants grow, explaining why we have three months of winter every year.
Mabon
Did you know that Mabon is a very modern name for this ancient festival? In the 1970s, American author Aidan Kelley assigned new names to the six Sabbats rooted in ancient Celtic lore and added two new celebrations of his own around the September and March equnioxes. The Sabbats are celebrations based on the cycles of the sun. The story of Mabon (which means son or boy) can be found in book versions, such as the Welsh Mabinogi translated by Patrick K. Ford from 1977. There’s also a public domain version of Lady Charlotte Guest’s 1877 translation on-line at Sacred-Texts.com. The tale says that “He (Mabon) was taken from his mother when three nights old, and it is not known where he now is, nor whether he is living or dead.” Finding him is part of the list of seemingly impossible tasks Culhwch must complete in order to win the hand of Olwen from her father.”
Mabon appears only once, in the Mabinogi, in the story Culhwch and Olwen. He was taken from his mother when he was only three nights old, and rescuing him is part of the list of seemingly impossible tasks Culhwch must complete in order to win the hand of Olwen from her father. In 1974 Aiden Kelly told the full story of why he connected Mabon to the Fall Equinox in a post on Patheos. Since Spring is associated with Kore (Persephone), Aidan wanted a similar myth to associate with Fall. Here’s an excerpt:
“I began looking for a similar sort of myth in northern Europe. I could not find one in Germanic or Gaelic literature, but there was one in the Welsh, in the Mabinogion collection, the story of Mabon ap Modron (which translates as “Son of the Mother,” just as Kore simply meant “girl”), whom Gwydion rescues from the underworld, much as Theseus rescued Helen. It would have been aesthetically better to have found a Saxon name, but [there wasn’t one] so I picked “Mabon” as the name for the holiday in my calendar. It was not an arbitrary choice. I sent a copy of the calendar to Oberon (then still Tim), who liked these new names and began using them in Green Egg, whence they passed into the national Pagan vocabulary.” Like it or not, after 40 years of usage Aidan Kelly’s name has stuck.
So enough about the name – there are numerous names to be used for this day such as the Feast of the Ingathering, Meán Fómhair, An Clabhsúr, Alban Elfed, Gleichentag, Harvest Home, Cornucopia, the Feast of Avalon or just Autumn Equinox- what is this festival about. Well on the modern Pagan Wheel of the Year, Mabon is the second of three harvest festivals.
Balance
During this feast of harvest, we look backwards, rejoicing in what we have harvested, and plan ahead for the autumn and winter moths ahead. It is a reminder that we still have quite a few days left in the year to make plans, focus on our intentions, and make changes if needed. This is a perfect time for a balance ritual, you can find many online, so please gift yourself time and space to celebrate your harmony, balance and abundance.
Mabon is about balance, as we experience an equal amount of daylight and nighttime at the equinox. It is a challenge living on Earth at this time as we are challenged daily in unprecedented ways. In order to stay healthy and sane we need to find our balance within ourselves so we can also deal with others and the world in a balanced manner. To have inner stability is also the essential foundation for our successes in the outer world. By celebrating the Wheel of the Year we can regain our balance for we follow the natural flow of life. The Sun moves into Libra and her medicine is about balance and weaving beauty through relationship and community. Venus is the planet that rules Libra so there is a manifestation of love as she supports the tending and cultivating of relationships. This theme of balancing and connecting is dear to me as my Sun and Rising sign are in Libra. The themes throughout my life are about walking that shadow path between dark and light and healing what is found there.
May your Autumn Equinox be happy and fruitful!
