History of Autumn Equinox from 2016 Celebration-by Jen (Click link (title) for complete text.)
"Two days a year, in mid-March and mid-September, the Northern and Southern hemispheres receive the same amount of sunlight as they do dark -- the earth is tilted at a right angle to the sun, and the sun is directly over the equator. In Latin, the word equinox translates to "equal night.” The days after autumn equinox will grow shorter, and the nights longer. We are right now in a time of balance, “equal night,” before this shift into darkness begins. It is traditionally a time to celebrate the harvest..."
"Two days a year, in mid-March and mid-September, the Northern and Southern hemispheres receive the same amount of sunlight as they do dark -- the earth is tilted at a right angle to the sun, and the sun is directly over the equator. In Latin, the word equinox translates to "equal night.” The days after autumn equinox will grow shorter, and the nights longer. We are right now in a time of balance, “equal night,” before this shift into darkness begins. It is traditionally a time to celebrate the harvest..."
Link to the History of Brooms: "I believe brooms have been around as long as cave dwellers. We like our comfort. Sweeping is even mentioned in the Bible in both old and new testament. Early traditional brooms were called besom brooms and made of..."
The Twelve Knights This activity/document explores the legend of King Arthur as an avenue to balance positive masculine energy, through the attributes of the Twelve Knights. Below are some excerpts. Click the link (title) for the complete text. "Who is Mabon? He is a hero from the King Arthur tales..." "In the legend, Arthur has 12 battles he must fight and win. Each Knight represents a different moral quality...Honor, Loyalty, Nobility, Virtue, Grace, Truth, Courage, Courtesy, Gallantry, Authority, Service, and Humility..." "The goal of King Arthur's quest is the divine marriage of the positive feminine energy and the positive masculine energy in each person. But to achieve this goal we each must complete tasks set before us. The true story of King Arthur has nothing to do with Lancelot and Gwenevere..."
The Autumnal Equinox: (September 21) (Copied from an unknown source.)
"The Autumnal Equinox is also a harvest festival and a preparation for the cooler, darker times ahead, when days are "drawing in," as the old saying goes. As for the Vernal Equinox, prepare the Antiphonal Chant:
N: What is this night?
s: It is the night of the Autumnal Equinox..."
"The Autumnal Equinox is also a harvest festival and a preparation for the cooler, darker times ahead, when days are "drawing in," as the old saying goes. As for the Vernal Equinox, prepare the Antiphonal Chant:
N: What is this night?
s: It is the night of the Autumnal Equinox..."
Persephone (Autumn Equinox): "...And She dances and spins toward darkness all dressed in autumn fire / To descend to the time of shadow, and rest from the world's desire..." This article speaks about Persephone but also includes a ritual. The focus is to allow a space to grieve that which has died so that we can "reach rebirth".
September 21-23-28 (from a chapter in a book called The Holidays, author unknown): What I like about this group of articles is that it tells of rituals performed long ago.
The articles below are not in our binder.
There are differing opinions about how Autumn Equinox got the name "Mabon". To learn one of the opinions about the origins of the word"Mabon" plus much more about the celebration, click "here". This is an excerpt:
"Interestingly, it appears that the tradition of calling the Autumn Equinox by the name Mabon goes back only to around 1970, when author Aidan Kelley wrote was gathering information for his 1991 book, Crafting the Art of Magic, and assigned new names to the Sabbats, most of which were rooted in Celtic lore..."
Click "here" for a link to a website that is an excellent resource for getting a glimpse of celebrations/rituals around the world.