Crossing The Autumn Mabon Threshold

We are lucky here in the mountains to have picturesque autumn’s. 

The air is cool and crisp, damp and chill. The trees soon will paint themselves in a beautiful canvas of a palette of flames one last time before nature turns inward and settles in for the dark months of the year. And it seems, no matter where I am, on this day, the earth noticeably begins to be quiet and still once again. 

This Saturday marks the next turn of the wheel as we celebrate the Autumn Equinox, and I am fortunate to be celebrating it with a group of students coming up to the land here in the Berkshires. Everything is in balance, light and dark are again equal and the final harvest is upon us. It is a time of transition, the oceans churn with storms, roots begin to be harvested, symbolically representing the dark cool waters of winter and the deep internal work that lies ahead. 

The northeastern deciduous trees seem to glow bright with the sacred fires of the light we need to soon carry within. The goddess becomes the Old One, or the Crone, at Mabon. She is the wise grandmother that teaches us to rest. 

At Mabon we reflect on all of the things we are grateful for in our lives. It is the witches “thanksgiving”, and we reflect upon the balance within our own lives and our connection to all that is. 

We sow seeds and tend to the land to harvest our nourishment, the sky rains down to feed the soil and plants and the earth filters the waters through its soil and stones to become the rushing creeks, streams, rivers, lakes and oceans. The bees drink nectar and carry pollen from flowers for the plants to make seeds. We are in constant exchange of life with the trees and plants, when we breathe out, they breathe in. When they breathe out, we are able to breathe in. “Nothing exists separately from the whole”, (Starhawk). 

This is all part of keeping balance. The sun begins to decend, and we follow the light into the darkness. It is this light, warmth of love and gratitude that sparks our internal fire and illuminates the way through the shadows ahead. 

Fire and Water are the elemental themes that rule the Autumn Equinox. Below are some herbs of the Autumn Equinox and some suggestions for building an altar and rituals to consider.

Herbs of Mabon:
- Elderflower
- Hawthorn
- Rowan
- Marigold 
- Sage
- Grains 
- Acorns
- Rose
- Thistle

The Mabon Altar:
- Think fall! Pine cones, colorful leaves, seasonal flowers, grains, fruits of the season
- Water symbols - blue and green cloth, merfolk, seashells, 
- Candle colors - green, brown, orange, yellow, blue, white (for the center, creator, goddess, spirit, all that is) 

Ritual
- Bake special breads with corn, pumpkin, squashes, raisins and/or honey

- Sow seeds for plants that need winter germination. 

- Symbolically plant seeds for the hopes, dreams and desires you wish to nurture in the dark within space to be born in the coming spring. Make offerings of grain and seasonal harvest, giving thanks for all you’ve been given, and for that you wish to dream upon and tend to through the winter ahead. 

- You may wish to build a sacred fire to bring the spark of life into your dreams and release patterns not serving you or holding you back. 

- Craft a corn maiden out of corn husks for the altar!
Check out this adorable craft! septembershearth.com/corn-husk-witch



Whatever you do, I hope this Autumn season continues to shout the recurrent themes of this year of flow, slow, and balance. 

 And so it is.