Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Mabon-Fall Equinox -

"I'm one with the Goddess
and open to Her Wisdom."

15th Day of the 10th Lunar Cycle
Ruled by Gaia
Lunar Tree Cycle of Muin/Vine
21st Day of the Celtic Tree
Month of Muin/Vine
Moon Phase: waxing Gibbous
Moon sets: 6:26AM EDST
Moon rises: 6:30PM EDST
Moon in the Mutable Water
Sign of Pisces
Rhiannon's Cycle of the Moon
Lunar Meditation: The harvest
of your soul.
Sun enters Libra at 11:09PM EDST
Sunrise: 7:07AM EDST
Sunset: 7:18PM EDST
Solar Question for the Day: "Are you appropriating
someone else's resources or time?"
Lughnasadh (Gwyl Awst) Quarter
of the Year
September 22nd., 2010

  Today is Mabon or the Fall/Autumn Equinox.  Another name it is known by is Harvest Home. Depending on the calendar this can fall on September 20th, 21st or the 22nd or the 23rd.  The Sun enters Libra tonight at 11:09PM and that is when it is considered to be the time of the Equinox.  The primary focus is on the Second Harvest, offerings of vegetables and fruit harvest are appropriate. The Age of this holiday is at least 3,000 B.C. or older. The Astrological sign for the Autumn Equinox is 1 degree Libra; air; cardinal.  It's planetary ruler is Venus.  Also known as Mabon, it is the second harvest concentrating on the fruits and vegetables (as opposed to the grains of the first harvest at Lughnasadh).
So here we are again at the time of when day and night are equal and therefore it is another time of balance as it was at the Spring Equinox.  This time the emphasis is on thanks and repayment, rather than on clearing and starting anew. In keeping with the balance of the season, the energies can be used for magick working on inner balance. It's a time for preparing for the dark months of the winter's season by ensuring that debts are paid, both literally and spiritually.
   It is not always possible to celebrate a seasonal festival on its day(s) because of work or travel commitments. Wherever you are though, do try to take a few minutes to acknowledge the change points in your own life, however hectic it may be. You can celebrate at the weekend or on the next free day afterward and by this time the energies will be settled. For the powers of the new season start to build up in the days before it and remain strong for at least a week afterward. This celebration is a quarter day and lasts for three days from sunset around September 22nd.
    Some of the focus is on abundance, the fruition of long-term goals, for mending quarrels and forgiving yourself for your mistakes, for reaping the benefits of earlier efforts, for assessing gain and loss, for family relationships and friendships and for material security in the months ahead.

This is Woden's Day - Mercury Day - the day of Communication and Connection.  There are Major magickal energies for Psychic Development - probably because the moon is still in Pisces.

Autumn Equinox by Kate West
in her book "The Real Witches' Year"....

   Autumn is well-named Fall, as it is the time when greens give way to glorious array of yellows, golds, oranges and reds before the wind takes the leaves to the ground. Autumn is the season of winds, the harbingers of the storms of Winter. It is the time of harvest and plenty, when the crops ripen, before the hardship of Winter.
   Even if we do not tend the land to produce our own food it is a time of harvest. This is the time when we should look to what we have achieved: the tasks and projects we have completed, the successes we have had. Even where not all has turned out as hoped for, there is often much which has been achieved. As the farmer is setting aside seed for next year, so we too can sort out the seeds of ideas for new things to begin. Much like we did in the Spring, this is the time for sorting through our lives, discarding that which is finished and preparing to start afresh.
   Take time to consider and sort through your life. Celebrate your own harvest, whether it is a sprig of herb grown on the windowsill or a friend you have helped through a bad time, and mark every achievement great and small. For each collect a seed or a nut and create a string of them. Sunflower seeds are good for this. Paint each in a color which reminds you of the good things of your year and place it in a prominent place where it can remind yourself of the positive aspect of life.

The Harvest painting is by Jeanne Mackenzie.

1 comment:

Bluezy said...

oh that painting is beautiful. Someone inadvertently gave us a box of veggies from their garden just before Mabon. I am not Pagan, but I spy on it and have a bit of Earth Mother in me....
Your post was well written and very informative.