Autumn Equinox: A Celebration

Lord, it is time. The summer was very big. Lay thy shadow on the sundials,and on the meadows let the winds go loose. Command the last fruits that
they shall be full; give them another two more southerly days, press them
on to fulfillment and drive the last sweetness into the heavenly wine.
Rainer Maria Rilke


The Druids call this celebration, Mea'n Fo'mhair, and honor the Green Man, the God of the Forest, by offering libations to trees. Offerings of ciders, wines, herbs and fertilizer are appropriate at this time.... Mabon is considered a time of the Mysteries. It is a time to honor Aging Deities and the Spirit World....


Smoke hangs like haze over harvested fields,
The gold of stubble, the brown of turned earth
And you walk under the red light of fall
The scent of fallen apples, the dust of threshed grain
The sharp, gentle chill of fall.
Here as we move into the shadows of autumn
The night that brings the morning of spring
Come to us, Lord of Harvest
Teach us to be thankful for the gifts you bring us ...


To many ancient people, the waning of the light signaled death.
For example, in Welsh mythology, this is the day of the year when
the God of Darkness, Goronwy, defeats the God of Light, Llew, and
takes his place as King of the world. To this day in Japan, the equinox
is celebrated by visits to the graves of family members, at which time
offerings of flowers and food are made and incense is burned. The
three days preceding and following the equinox are called "higan,"
or the "Other side of the River of Death."


The Far Field
I have come to a still, but not a deep center,
A point outside the glittering current;
My eyes stare at the bottom of a river,
At the irregular stones, iridescent sandgrains,
My mind moves in more than one place,
In a country half-land, half-water.
I am renewed by death, thought of my death,
The dry scent of a dying garden in September,
The wind fanning the ash of a low fire.
What I love is near at hand,
Always, in earth and air.




Leaves fall,
the days grow cold.
The Goddess pulls her mantle of Earth around Her
as You, O Great Sun God, sail toward the West
to the land of eternal enchantment,
wrapped in the coolness of night.
Fruits ripen,
seeds drip,
the hours of day and night are balanced.






There comes a time when autumn asks,
"What have you been doing all summer?"