Mabon is the celebration of the autumn equinox, which this year falls on September 22nd, although celebrations start on the 21st and some people celebrate all the way up to the 29th. It's the second harvest festival of the year (first being Lammas, third and final being Samhain), when nuts, apples, pumpkins, and all sorts of hearty crops have come in, making us feel all cozy as the weather slowly turns cooler. Like the spring equinox, emphasis is put on balance in our lives, and a move into a decrease or banishing phase to achieve that -- banishing things like bad habits and relationships, negative thinking, and other things that aren't serving us positively. This is also a time to look at budgeting -- time, money, resources, etc. to ensure there's balance in your life in other ways, and to prepare for the future. In agricultural communities, this is the time when people would look at the amount of harvest and start to plan how much food to put aside for the long winter months.
Mabon is also a celebration of gratitude, of what came before and will come after the equinox, both physically and spiritually. It's a time of giving thanks and appreciating what we have and what we're working towards. It's a holiday that is community and harmony focused-- contributing to common goals, supporting each other, finding each others' strengths (and weaknesses) to balance the community. Pagan Pride festivals often happen around this time, which are also a celebration of community, and many collect food donations for local pantries in lieu of money for admission. This is just one more way that sharing the harvest continues in our communities today.
Mythologically, the autumn equinox is associated with the descent of Persephone into the underworld. She is the daughter of Demeter, goddess of harvest and agriculture, who mourns her absence by draining the land of its fertility and greenery until Persephone returns in the spring.
In China, this is also the time of the Harvest Moon Festival. It's a separate holiday, not pagan, but has many of the same themes. It goes back to before 1,000 BCE and is the second largest celebration in the Chinese calendar; the only one larger is the Chinese New Year. It's a time of visiting and celebrating with family, making peace if there was a falling out, and just generally gathering together with good vibes. On the basic level, it shares a lot of the same themes as our autumn equinox! But, let's be honest, I mostly just wanted to mention it because of the game Harvest Moon, since I'm a big nerd. It's also the folk lore name of this month's full moon, which is much more relevant.
Ways to Celebrate:
- community dinner/gathering to give thanks and enjoy the fruits (both literal and metaphorical) of your labors
- toast to each others' health and to gratitude
- moon festival
- food blessing spell for a happy and harmonious home
- apple picking with friends and family
Foods:
- pumpkin spice (and pumpkins too)
- apples! cider, pie, baked, candied, etc.
- corn
- squash
