The Autumnal Equinox occurs in September every year, and in the Northern Hemisphere marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. The earth is tilted on its axis, meaning that as it orbits the Sun, the Sun illuminates the Northern or Southern hemisphere more depending on where the Earth is along its orbit. At two points in the year the Sun will illuminate the Northern and Southern hemispheres equally. These are known as the equinoxes.
Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we call the full moon closest to the autumn equinox the Harvest Moon. These Autumn moons have special characteristics around the time of moonrise when the moon appears brighter than normal. According to the website EarthSky:
“Nature is particularly cooperative in giving us dusk-till-dawn moonlight, for several evenings in a row, around the time of the Harvest Moon.”
Equinoxes, like the solstices, occur because of the Earth’s tilting in its orbit around the Sun. This was observed by ancient cultures who saw the Sun rising and setting in different positions in the sky throughout the year. This had differing significances to different people. I have an abiding interest in cultures, traditions and legends across place and time. Here are a few examples of those associated with the Autumn Equinox.
For those located in the Northern Hemisphere latitudes, the autumnal equinox brings increased chances to see the Aurora Borealis. The Aurora Borealis – or Northern Lights - have inspired some of the most dramatic tales in Norse mythology.
The Vikings believed that their chief god Odin lived in Valhalla, where he was preparing for his greatest battle, Ragnarok. Odin would pick his bravest warriors who would die and join him in Valhalla. The Valkyries were female warriors on horseback, who wore armour and carried spears and shields, and whose task was to bring Odin’s warriors to Valhalla. The Vikings believed that the Aurora Borealis which illuminated the sky were the reflections of the Valkyries’ armour as they led the warriors to Odin.
The indigenous Sami people saw the lights as a bad omen. It was dangerous to wave, sing, or otherwise tease the lights for if you caught their attention, they would reach down for you and carry you off into the sky – or even slice off your head!! To this day, many Sami people stay indoors when the lights are in the sky. In Icelandic folklore, the Northern Lights were believed to ease the pain of childbirth, but pregnant women were not to look directly at them, or their child would be born cross-eyed!
In Finland, the name for the lights is” revontulet”, meaning “firefox”. The name comes from the lovely myth that arctic foxes produced the Aurora. The firefoxes would run so fast through the sky that when their large, furry tails brushed against the mountains, they created sparks that lit up the sky.
As you can see, the Aurora Borealis were awarded great significance to the ancient Nordic societies, and whether a harbinger of good or evil, they were as magical as they are today.
To the ancient Greeks, the Autumn Equinox marked the return of the goddess Persephone to her husband Hades in the Underworld. According to legend, the god Hades fell in love with Persephone as she picked flowers in a meadow. He called upon his brother Zeus and the two planned to kidnap her. They caused the ground beneath her to split, and as she fell, Hades carried her off in his chariot to be his bride in the Underworld. Her mother Demeter begged for her return to the world above, but she had eaten pomegranate seeds which tied her to Hades. (according to the myth, if one eats the food of the captor, one must remain there.) A compromise was reached between Demeter, Zeus and Hades, who agreed that Persephone should spend half the year upon the earth but had to return to Hades in the Underworld at the Autumn Equinox.
The marble statue of “The Rape of Proserpina” by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Made 1621-1622 Galleria Borghese, Rome.
Another Autumnal Equinox tradition is the Chinese Mooncake Festival which takes place in China and Hong Kong and has roots in harvest celebrations. The following line from a Song dynasty poem by Su Shi captures the spirit of the festival:
“May we live long and share the beauty of the moon together, even if we are a hundred miles apart.”
The family theme of the festival is widely observed, especially in Hong Kong, as children carry lanterns, the dragon dance is performed, and mooncakes are made and given as gifts.
The Legend of the goddess Chang’e
This legend is associated with the above festival and tells how, long ago, the Earth had ten suns, the heat of which ravaged the world with a terrible drought.
At the request of the Emperor of Heaven, the great archer Hou Yi shot down nine of the suns, saving life on Earth. As a reward, Hou Yi was given the elixir of immortality, which he hid in the home he shared with his beautiful wife, Chang’e, who kept the elixir safe for him.
A villain named Pengmeng found out about the existence of the elixir and demanded it from Chang’e one day when Hou Yi was away from home. In desperation Chang’e drank the elixir. As she flew heavenward, she was reluctant to leave her husband and flew to the nearest place to earth in heaven, which was the moon. Hou Yi missed his beautiful wife and on days of the full moon he would place her favourite foods on tables for her to look down on. People prayed to Chang’e for good luck and over time the legend developed into the Mooncake Festival.
Illustrated Myths and Legends of China. E.T.C. Werner, 1922
In Mexico, tourists flock to the pyramid at Chich’en Itza every Equinox. It was built in dedication to Kukulkan, or Quetzalcoatl, a feathered serpent god who returns to Earth on the Equinoxes to provide blessings for harvests. The pyramid was built in order to cast a shadow representing a snake crawling down the temple. Symbolically, the feathered serpent joins the heavens, earth and the underworld, day and night.
Thousands of people from around the world gather here each year to admire this astronomical spectacle. The day has a carnival atmosphere, with folk music and dance competing with rock bands!
For some Japanese Buddhists, the Autumn Equinox coincides with the Higan holiday in which people return to their hometowns to pay respects to their ancestors. In the past, the Autumnal Equinox was called Shuki-koureisai, the autumn festival of the emperor’s spirits, when the Emperor worshipped his ancestors alone. Today it is a national holiday known as Shubun-no-hi, the middle day of Higan, a seven-day period when the Japanese commemorate their ancestors. Memorial services take place at Buddhist temples and families visit their ancestors’ graves with offerings of rice cakes, flowers and incense sticks. During Higan (which means “the other side of the river of death”) families honour and pray for the dead. During this time, they focus on the six perfections: Dana (generosity), Sila (virtue), Ksanti (patience), Virya (effort), Dhyana (meditation), and Prajna (wisdom).
Just as the worlds of death and life are separated by a river, so the Buddhists believe the six perfections will be the bridge to cross from this life to Nirvana.
A Japanese Buddhist family honour their ancestors
The Autumn Equinox and the Pagan Festival of Mabon
Mabon is the second of three harvest festivals (Lammas, Mabon, and Samhain). Mabon is held to thank Mother Earth for providing a good harvest to last through the winter, with animals traditionally slaughtered and preserved at the equinox. According to modern pagan tradition, Mabon was named after a Welsh god of light and the son of Mother Earth.
Many pagan groups hold a huge feast to mark the autumn equinox with family and friends using seasonal foods – apples, grapes root vegetables and hedgerow fruits. Communities often gather outdoors in forests but some ancient sites such as Stonehenge hold a particular significance. Druids still gather at Stonehenge today to mark the equinox, watching the sun above the stones.
Another common ritual is to set up an altar with symbols of the season. The Cornucopia, or Horn of Plenty is a tradition for Mabon, giving thanks for the wealth of the season.
The Cornucopia or Horn of Plenty
Druid celebrating the Equinox at Stonehenge
“Mabon is a celebration and also a time of rest after the labour of harvest. It is a moment of reaping what you have sown, reflecting on past hopes and aspirations. It is also a time to plant seeds of new ideas and hopes which will lie dormant but nourished in the dark, until the return of Spring.”
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