Pagan Festival Shout Out: Mabon/Autumnal Equinox

Happy Autumn Equinox or for all the Wiccans of the world- Blessed Mabon!  The holiday of the autumnal equinox, Mabon, is a Pagan ritual of thanksgiving for the fruits of the earth and a recognition of the need to share them to secure the blessings of the Goddess and the God during the coming winter months. Among the sabbats, it is the second of the three Pagan harvest festivals, preceded by Lammas / Lughnasadh and followed by Samhain. Mabon is considered a time of the Mysteries. It is a time to honor Aging Deities and the Spirit World. - Read more this link.

For Mabon this year I have made a gods’ eye, a corn doll, dressed my altar and I have a (small) bonfire planned. For my gods’ eye, (I know that is not the typical way to type “gods’ eye but I don’t do the other spelling unless speaking of a specific god), I chose a hearty berry bush that the birds love for most of the year because the foliage doesn’t die out until almost late December. I cut the branch, then stripped the bark. I used thread material I already had and made the pattern accordingly. I chose to make the center with some rainbow ribbon that I have before working in the Autumn Equinox colors.


Mabon is the time of the second harvest, and the dying of the fields. Use corn, sheaves of wheat, squash and root vegetables on your altar. Add some tools of agriculture if you have them - scythes, sickles, and baskets. The equinoxes are the two nights of the year when the amount of light and darkness are equal. Decorate your altar to symbolize the aspect of the season. Try a small set of scales, a yin-yang symbol, a white candle paired up with a black one -- all are things which represent the concept of balance.

Mabon is one of those times of year that affect people in different ways. For some, it's a season to honor the darker aspects of the goddess, calling upon that which is devoid of light. For others, it's a time of thankfulness, of gratitude for the abundance we have at the season of harvest. No matter how you see it, Mabon is traditionally a time of balance. After all, it's one of the two times each year that has equal amounts of darkness and daytime.

This is, for many people, a time of high energy, there is sometimes a feeling of restlessness in the air, a sense that something is just a bit "off". If you're feeling a bit spiritually lopsided, with this simple meditation you can restore a little balance into your life. (Religion about.com) I choose the latter, I focus on giving thanks, honoring the gods and goddesses’ with symbolic offerings and meditation.