Autumn Equinox
Harvest feasts, rebalancing rituals and thanksgiving
Hello,
Well it’s been a strange few months of weather hasn't it. First we had a really Autumnal-feeling Summer. Then it turned into a really hot and Summery Autumn. As I write this, the weather outside keeps switching between torrential rain and bright sun. I’m a little bit seasonally confused. Anyone else?
It can take a while to properly shift from one season into the next at the best of times, but this year it seems even trickier than usual.
Which is why I think the Autumn Equinox is such a lovely festival to celebrate.
Taking place this Saturday, on the 23rd September, the Equinox is a festival of balance - a quiet mid-point between the big celebrations of Midsummer and Midwinter. And celebrating it can also help us to draw a line in the sand and mark the change into Autumn.
Harvest festivals are closely linked to the Autumn Equinox, as they have traditionally been held on, or near, the Harvest Moon (this is the full moon that happens closest to the Autumn Equinox.) As such, celebrations associated with the equinox have a focus on abundance and gratitude.
Modern celebrations also tend to focus on rebalance and rest which feels much needed after a busy summer and back-to-school period.
In this newsletter we’ll look at the origins of Autumn Equinox celebrations, dig into some Harvest Festival traditions and end with a rebalancing ritual to set you up for the new season ahead.
It’s a bumper edition this week, so feel free to just skim down to the bits that interest you most (the rebalancing ritual and harvest festival guide are at the end!) or bookmark it to come back for a proper read later.
Right, off we go!
What is the Autumn Equinox?
The word Equinox means ‘equal night’ from the Latin ‘equi’ (equal) and ‘nox’ (night)’ and there are two equinoxes each year, one in Spring and one in Autumn. They fall in between the Solstices and each Equinox is a moment of perfect balance in the year, when light and dark are equal. This means that on this day there will be approximately 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night. Directly after each Equinox we then start to turn either towards the light or the dark.
In direct contrast to the Spring Equinox which celebrates the sun’s returning strength, the Autumn Equinox marks the diminishing strength of the sun. From this point on each day will become shorter as we head towards the shortest day of the year at the Winter Solstice. (If you need it, here’s a quick refresher on the Wheel of the Year.)
Equinox Folklore and Mythology
We don’t know for sure how our ancestors celebrated the Equinoxes as, like a lot of pre-Christian rituals, there are no written records so much of it is guesswork.
We know that the Solstices were clearly marked thanks to evidence at Stonehenge and other monuments, but the quieter Equinox mid-points don’t seem to have had so much ritual celebration.
That said, there are a few little clues that this time of year was considered important and sacred to our ancestors. Loughcrew in Ireland is one Neolithic monument that appears to have been designed with the Equinox in mind. Twice a year at sunrise, on each Equinox, a beam of sunlight shines directly onto the Stone Age symbols carved on the back of the stone. Which seems a bit too coincidental to have just happened by accident. So it seems a good guess that it was used as a gathering point for celebrations or worship at the Equinoxes. You can find out more here.
In more recent history, Harvest festivals have become closely linked to the Autumn Equinox, as they have traditionally been held on, or near, the Harvest Moon; this is the full moon that happens closest to the Autumn Equinox. These harvest festivals marked the end of the agricultural year, with thanks being given for safe gathering of food for the winter.
As such, many celebrations associated with the Equinox have a focus on abundance, gratitude and thanksgiving.
How to celebrate the Autumn Equinox
This is a good occasion to give thanks for the summer and also to take a moment to rebalance ahead of the darker half of the year. Here are a few rituals to try:
1. Make an Autumn wreath
A wreath or garland around your front door in autumnal colours is the perfect way to signal a new season has begun. This year I’m going to make decorations for indoors too and keep them up right through until the Halloween / Samhain festival at the end of October. The more colour the better at this time of year I think.
For my door wreath I’m starting with the pre-bought base that I used earlier in the year for Beltaine, and I’m going to add leaves and berries and some autumn-coloured ribbons in reds, golds and oranges. If it turns out well, I’ll pop a photo of it over on Notes. (If it looks rubbish I’ll just quietly forget to do that!)
2. Give thanks
Thanksgiving for a successful summer and harvest is the main theme at this time of year, but this doesn't just mean a literal harvest, it can relate to anything in your life.
Friendships, hobbies, family, work; now is the time to acknowledge whatever it is that you feel grateful about and are thankful for. You can write these down or just spend a moment thinking about them and offering up a thank you.
3. Watch a sunrise or sunset
As with all of the Solstices and Equinoxes, taking a quiet moment to observe the sun rise or sun set on this day can help to connect you to the solar year and to notice subtle shifts in the length of the days and the waxing or waning power of the sun. A sunrise can feel like a magical moment in the day, full of energy and optimism, but a sunset also has its own magic and stillness at the end of the day.
Stonehenge usually attracts visitors on the Autumn Equinox, offering a place for people to gather and mark the sunrise on this moment of perfect balance in the year.
4. Take a nature walk
There is so much to see outdoors right now; dew-soaked spiderwebs, leaves that are just starting to turn, mushrooms, nuts and berries, as well as the last of the summer garden flowers. This is the time to enjoy the outdoors in that lovely early-autumn stage, while everything is gently starting to shift and turn, but the weather is still mild enough to not really need a coat or scarf just yet.
Have some Harvest Festival fun
Harvest suppers and celebrations are usually held on the closest weekend to the Harvest Moon. If you fancy hosting your own Harvest supper, here are a few key elements to consider:
Celebrate seasonal food and drink. They key to a harvest supper is to choose hearty, warming food that’s linked to the season. Shepherds pie and apple crumble are the classics.
Keep it casual and social. Ask everyone to bring what they can to create a pot-luck dinner and keep the focus on the company rather than worrying about a fancy dinner. That said, you do need someone organised in charge of planning this bit so you don’t end up with four apple crumbles and no main course.
Eat outdoors if possible.
Decorate your table with autumnal foliage and flowers. Rustic is the name of the game here, so jugs of dahlias, branches of foliage and berries are ideal, as are tealights in jam jars.
Have some sort of harvest-based entertainment while you eat. This doesn't have to be anything too adventurous; a harvest-themed music playlist would be an excellent idea. Or try some outdoor games.
Make a Harvest donation box and ask everyone to bring a tin, jar or packet of food if they can spare it. You can then take it a food bank or charity afterwards to pass on the abundance of this time of year.
Try an Equinox ‘rebalancing’ ritual
This time of equal night and day is the perfect moment to take stock of what is in balance in your life and what might need a little adjustment. Modern equinox celebrations tend to focus on rituals like this to help settle and reset before launching into a new season.
This is my take on a rebalancing ritual that can be repeated at each of the Equinoxes.
Start by taking two pieces of paper.
On one piece of paper write a list of all the things you’d like to invite more of in your life. Think about what you would spend more time doing in an ideal world. Things that would help you to feel more balanced. Maybe more time to read and write, more time for friends, more time for yourself, more cake, more outdoor swimming… whatever it is that springs to mind, write it all down.
Now take the list and place it somewhere you can see it every day. You can decorate it or add images if you like, to make it into a mini mood-board or vision board. I’m a visual person so I love an excuse to get creative, but a simple list also works.
On the second piece of paper, list all the things you want to let go of. These could be big things like letting go of guilt, or stress. Or small things like letting go of checking work emails on the weekend.
Now you can either literally let this second list go, by tearing it up or putting it into the fire, or you can just tuck it away somewhere for reference later on.
That’s it. Now there’s nothing more to do, or worry about. By writing down things you want to let go of, you’ve already taken the first step to doing this. And by acknowledging all the things you want to invite more of you are taking gentle steps towards bringing those into your life.
We’ll all check in again with both our lists at the Spring Equinox and see if they have pulled a bit more into balance.
Ok, that’s all for now, I hope you enjoyed your Equinox newsletter and I hope you have a wonderful day filled with cosy rituals, colourful harvest decor and feasts with friends.
Now it’s over to you! Tell me about your favourite Autumn Equinox rituals in the Comments below. I love how this has become a space for us all to have a nice seasonal chat once a month. I really look forward to reading all your ideas and suggestions.
I’ll see you again on the 1st for a spooky October edition of the Monthly Notebook. October is officially witchy season so we’ll be diving into pumpkin recipes, bonfires, autumn-colour walks, and - as always - a sprinkling of weird and wonderful folklore. Look forward to seeing you there. If you haven’t already Subscribed then just click below to make sure that post arrives safely in your inbox.
Funny I was just reading “If Women Rose Rooted” last night and author Sharon Blackie describes Loghcrew "mountain of the Cailleach, the divine hag of Irish mythology” In vivid detail. As for rituals, I love making an unusual wreath out of whatever is on hand, usually dried leaves, or seed pods.
I’ve just been for a walk and it was wet, windy and warm! Definitely feeling the change of season and the need to cosy up! I did make that apple crumble at the weekend and it was very well received with lashings of custard.