Open Be Our Hands to All – Rejoice at this Great Turning

Hail! Journeyer of the Heavens,
Queen of Brightness, King of Beauty!
Gifts of gladness richly bringing,
Autumn sheaves and red leaves’ fall.
Generous be the heart within us,
Open be our hands to all,
Justice to be in equal measure,
Harvest thankfulness our call.
Greeting to the Autumn Equinox,
from A Celtic Devotional by Caitlín Matthews

Blessed Mabon! Happy Equinox!

Hail and welcome on this celebration day of the great turning!

Today, at 8:05pm Eastern Daylight Time, the Sun moves into the sign of Libra and will be directly above the Earth’s equator.

That means that today is the Equinox, taken from the Latin for “equal night.” It is the Autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, and the Spring (Vernal) equinox below the equator.

For a brief day or so, the hours of light and dark are in balance. But from this day on, until March in the northern lands, the night will outlast the daylight hours.

With the diminishing sunlight hours, we move from the seasons of planting and growth to the time of harvest and rest. Our roots reach deep, and the Underworld calls. This is the seasonal transition for the Northern Hemisphere from warmth into cold.

Today, we Witches and Pagans celebrate the sabbat of the second harvest, the midpoint of the harvest season.

With urgency now, we in the north gather in the remaining bounty of summer, and prepare for Winter. The final harvest at Samhain is only six weeks away.

And below the equator, our brothers and sisters are looking for signs of Spring, as their days will now stretch beyond the nighttime hours, and they will be preparing to plant seeds of real and metaphorical crops for their fertile season.

Let us wish them a most merry Ostara today!

Traditions of Mabon

Many Druid traditions know this festival as Alban Elfed (“Light of the Sea”), and other traditions call it Harvest Home. Many celebrate it as the Witches’ Thanksgiving and may call it by its Celtic-rooted name of Mabon. Some lore says this is for Queen Mab of the Faeries, or maybe the Celtic heroine Queen Maeve.

But the name Mabon actually has links to the Mabinogion, the ancient stories of Gods and Humans in Welsh mythology.

The tales of the Mabon are the “tales of the hero.” They derive this meaning from “mabon” or “meibon” — meaning a young man or youth. It is also the name of the God named Mabon ap Modron (Mabon in Welsh means “son”). So this is a reference to the son of the Welsh Goddess Madron. She is the Divine Mother and He is, simply, the Divine Son.

Most scholars agree that the Celts did not call the Autumn Equinox by the name Mabon. However, it seems to me that the invention of this newer adaptation is in keeping with the fine ancient Celtic practice of adopting festivals, myths, and Deities from other cultures.

At this time, the Mother Goddess of the Harvest becomes the Old One, the wise grandmother who teaches us to rest after our labors.

We also honor the Goddess Demeter, who presides over all growing things, and Her daughter Persephone, who becomes Queen of the Underworld now.

Demeter covers Her face in grief as Persephone descends into the Underworld, resulting in the killing frosts and bare landscapes of Winter. The world remains barren until Persephone returns at Ostara. 

As mentioned, this is the second of the three harvests. The first harvest was at Lughnasadh which traditionally centers on the grains and garden veggies. The third and final harvest at Samhain is the culling of the livestock.

At Autumn Equinox, traditional harvest foods include apples, pomegranates, root vegetables, and pumpkins. And because this time is sacred to the God Dionysus, we celebrate with wine and other fermented beverages.

The Balance

Everything in Nature is constantly giving to and receiving from everything else. Consider, however, that balance is almost never a 50-50 equality.

Only at Spring and Autumn Equinox, two days of the year, are light and dark exactly equal. A fifty-fifty equality is not necessarily the ideal, nor is it the natural way of things. In fact, it seems to me such a notion is a simplistic concept that can bear bitter fruit, like “an eye for an eye.”

Consider how the perfect balance that professional journalism is supposed to maintain has given equal time to every side of the issues, regardless of its actual relevance. As a result, much of the news has degenerated into an impenetrable hodgepodge of information overload and lack of nuance, hobbling the possibility of clear discernment for the citizenry.

And I encounter so many well-meaning people struggling to manage their lives, their families, their work, their passions, and their leisure — so they can be “in balance.” Yet — no surprise — this is a rare, temporary exception and nearly impossible to even briefly achieve, much less maintain.

But a harmonious give and take is the natural way. This can be true in our lives as well if we would only have the patience and perspective.

Giving Thanks — Paying It Forward

There are blessings our loved ones and Life Herself have given us that we can never repay equally, starting with the gift of our very lives from our mothers and fathers.

Yet we can give thanks and be grateful for our blessings. And we repay them by making the most of all that is given to us; we pay our thankfulness forward by our deeds and how we live. Thus, it is fitting that at this time the Mother Goddess gives way to the Crone aspect of the Goddess and our hearts turn towards our Ancestors—both of blood and of spirit.

So today, as we give thanks for all the gifts and blessings of the Goddess, let us remember to give something back, to make an offering, and to express our gratitude by doing good for others at every opportunity.

This is a time to look back at all the things and people we are grateful for. It is also a time to take stock of ourselves and see how much we have grown and changed throughout the year.

And I would suggest that we see with clear eyes and demand with forceful voices true speaking, honest dealings, and honorable deeds. Let this be a day to weave our strongest magic for justice, righteousness, and equilibrium.

This year especially, there is a hunger crisis underway in the United States, as well as across the globe. This includes two instances of confirmed famines for the first time in the 10-year history of the Global Report Against Food Crises.

The face of hunger may not always be what you expect. Learn more and help if you are able.

Warmest Wishes

To you and all your beloveds, I wish a splendid harvest of those qualities and blessings that nurture what is best and most precious to you. May you reap sweet abundance and goodness of every kind.

May your rites be rich, magical, and divine. May balance prevail. Blessed be!

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