Mabon: Preparing the Celebration

Here in the mountains the mists of these first early autumn mornings seep through the hollows and seem to send out chilly fingers which reach to drag summer away. The sun grows lazy and makes its appearance over the hilltops a little later each morning, slipping out of sight more quickly as evening comes. Being my favorite time of year, autumn always seems all too brief – all the more reason to begin planning now so that we can enjoy and experience it in all its glory!

September's sabbat, Mabon, has its roots in the old Anglo-Celtic festival of Harvest Home when the bringing in of crops was much cause for celebration. It was actually the Norse invaders who placed this as the “second harvest” between Lughnassadh and Samhain – the time at the autumnal equinox when all things are equal for one brief moment.

Today we still mark the occasion with many of the same activities as our ancient ancestors – the time of year when grain is threshed, fruits and berries are turned into cider and wine, we harvest late summer crops and adorn our homes with the bounty of nature.

Mabon is a time for joy, but also one in which to pause and give reverence to that which is passing – to give thanks for abundance, but also for the experiences of the year and lessons learned from them. As the wheel turns, endings are always new beginnings!

As days begin to cool down, the much anticipated and appreciated relief from the scorching days of summer begins to turn our thoughts more inward. Suddenly, the idea of turning on the stove and pulling out the old familiar recipes for slow simmering soups and stews, root vegetables and squashes roasting in the oven, and golden loaves of bread baking, seems much more appealing! The Earth whispers to us in the voices of the autumn winds – words unheard by human ears, but which our Spirit remembers well – ones which call us ever closer to home and hearth.

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