The Wheel of the Year — The Fall Equinox and Its Lore

Often called Mabon or the Fall Equinox, the Autumnal Equinox falls in the second half of September, usually around September 21st. It is often marked on calendars as the “first day of fall.” It is a time when day and night are equal, the last day in the season where the hours of darkness do not overwhelm the hours of light. This is the height of the harvest, the culmination of what began at Lughnasadh. It is a time to think about what we have and to be grateful for it. The Autumnal Equinox is often seen as the Pagan equivalent of Thanksgiving.

As a part of the Wheel of the Year, the Autumnal Equinox sees the Goddess’s pregnancy advancing. She is still the Mother, but She grows wiser and is the Crone as well. The God becomes the Sorcerer and is poised to leave His physical body. It is not His end, but His beginning. The Goddess mourns Him, but She knows that She carries His child within Her. He will never truly be gone, but will reappear as the Wheel of the Year continues to turn.

The Themes and Practices of Mabon

As this Sabbat is a time of preparation for the resting period that follows Samhain, this is a good time to rid yourself of anything unnecessary and unwanted, a time to lay to rest the quarrels and arguments that have plagued you during the season. Get rid of your guilt, envy, and unwanted feelings, banish those things that are holding you back, keeping you from your true potential. This is the time of year to put your own life back into balance, just as the year is in balance as day and night are equal.

This is the season of balance, healing, and justice. It is common to celebrate these themes with festivals and celebration. It is a time of self-expression, of reclaiming the self before the cold of winter arrives. There are many symbols of the Autumnal Equinox, including:

• Cornucopia
• Dried leaves
• Gourds
• Grains
• Turkeys
• Wheel

The Feast of the Autumn Equinox
 
Lughnasadh and the Autumnal Equinox are very similar, both being harvest festivals, but the Equinox is truly a time of plenty. The foods of Lughnasadh are still available, as are many others that have finally come into season. Fish, oysters, game birds, and various meats are traditional. Vegetables such as turnip, zucchini, and cauliflower are also easily available. If you have wild foods in your area, this is the time to collect them.
 
If you’re looking for a truly traditional feast, serve goose. This goose should be smaller and less fatty than a goose served at Yule. Try serving the goose with cranberries, raspberries, or even rowan for an interesting alternative. Roast your small goose on a rack in your oven with a variety of herbs and spices for flavor.
 
There are many other foods you might try, including:

• Fish or shellfish cooked in tinfoil with seasonal herbs
• Fresh vegetables just barely cooked so that they are still crisp
• Boiled potatoes
• Turkey
• Duck
• Fruit Cobbler
• Fruit preserves

Beverages for the Autumnal Equinox
 
Fruit wines are a popular choice for the Autumnal Equinox, but they do take a few weeks to mature. If you’re making your own fruit wine, start it no later than Lughnasadh to enjoy it by late September. For a quicker alternative, mush some fruit and strain. Add the juice to a chilled sweet wine just before serving. For the non-alcoholic crowd, try chilled fruit juice mixed with sparkling water.
 
If you prefer liqueurs, make a fruit liqueur by adding vodka and fine caster sugar to some chilled fruit juice. Shake this mixture three times a day for eight days and serve chilled. Substitute sparking water for the vodka if your celebration includes children or those who prefer not to drink alcohol. Harvest Mead, both in its alcoholic and non-alcoholic forms, is also an appropriate choice
 
Celebrating Mabon
 
When thinking about September, we tend to associate it with the beginning of fall. But it’s important to remember that this month is also the end of summer. The weather is still usually warm enough to host a celebration outside, even if you do have to put on a sweater before heading out.
 
It’s always fun to go out and look for edible plants, nuts, and berries in your area. However, there are always a few poisonous plants hanging around that look like they might be edible. Take a field guide with you and don’t eat anything you’re unsure of. If you’re involving children in this, don’t let them eat anything until you’ve checked it out. If you’re lucky, you have a berry-picking farm nearby that you can visit. This takes most of the risk out of your little hunt.
 
Conker fighting is a traditional way to pass the time in the fall. Take a horse chestnut and skewer it. Suspend the horse chestnut from a knotted string at least three feet long. Face off with an opponent and try to smash each other’s conkers. The person whose conker breaks first is the loser. This game invites a great deal of hilarity, but you’ll also end up with occasional scraped knuckles from flying conkers. Consider wearing heavy gloves to protect delicate fingers if you’re worried.
 
Remember that you’re about to say goodbye to the warm days of the lighter half of the year. Hold a spiral dance, having all participants dance counterclockwise, in honor the dark half the year that is about to begin. Keep in mind that dances take practice, so you might want to have your dancers rehearse once or twice before the actual day.
 
A ritual is always nice, but not strictly necessary. If you do decide on a ritual, keep in mind that you should focus on the themes of the day and not of performing magick for yourself.
 
Dressing for Mabon
 
Dressing for the Autumnal Equinox is much like dressing for any other Sabbat. Pick something special in colors that both represent and honor the season. For this Equinox, choose clothing in the rich fall colors of yellow, orange, and brown. You could wear ritual robes in these colors or choose something more meaningful to you. Alternatively, you could dress in the God’s color of bright gold or the Goddess’s color of deep autumn red. You might also choose to use these colors to decorate your ritual space.
 
The Autumnal Equinox is a time of balance. It is a time to reflect on the abundance that nature provides and offer up thanks for what we have.

The Wheel of the Year — Lughnasadh and Its Lore

Lughnasadh, often called Lammas or Loafmas, falls on August 1st. It marks the first harvest of the season and is a time to give thanks. It is the festival of Lugh, Celtic Sun God, and in honor of this one man would often be chosen as King for the day. In ancient times, this King would be given the best foods and would later lead the villagers to the fields to begin the harvest.

As a part of the Wheel of the Year, Lughnasadh is the time when the God, in His aspect as King, watches as the Goddess continues to grow with his child. He watches this with sorrow, sensing that his death will not be long in coming. And yet, Lughnasadh is the season of transformation, when grain becomes bread, and so he knows that he will only be changing form, not vanishing forever.

Themes and Practices of Lughnasadh

Lughnasadh celebrates the death and rebirth of Lugh. It is a time of sacrifice and thanksgiving, and in ancient times true sacrifice often happened at this festival. Today, Wiccans celebrate by sacrificing those things that are inappropriate in life, such as hatred, fear, or illness. Lughnasadh is also about making sure we have given enough for what we have received. It is often easier to think about what we have and what we can get than it is to think about what we have given. Therefore, many Wiccans make it a point to give back on this day in whatever manner they feel is appropriate for them.

There are many symbols that are associated with Lughnasadh. Some of these include:

• Transformation
• Bread
• Corn dollies
• Gingerbread men representing the Sacrificial King
• Sheaves of grain
• Dark green plants such as ferns

The Feast of Lughnasadh
 
The central part of your meal should revolve around grains. Breads, pastries, cookies, and pies are all good ideas. Breads in the shape of men that can be sacrificed (eaten or even thrown into the fire) are especially appropriate.
 
Any game meat can be served at Lughnasadh. Rabbit is traditional, as rabbits would be chased from the fields as the harvest began, but you can use anything you like. Chicken and pork both work well. Vegetables and fruits of the season can be served alongside your meat and bread for a full meal.
 
There are many options for creating a full Lughnasadh feast, including:

• Meat pies
• Cornish-style pasties
• Apples
• Blackberries
• Cherries
• Gooseberries
• Pears
• Plums
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Salads made with dark green vegetables and light olive oil dressing

Beverages for Lughnasadh
 
When choosing beverages for this Sabbat, keep in mind the colors of the harvest and the various grains, fruits, and vegetables naturally available. Yellow ales and ciders are popular, as are fruit juices and lemonade. If you want to get a little more festive, consider making Harvest Mead. You’ll have to plan for this in advance, since a good Harvest Mead can’t be made in an hour. If you’re hosting games or other physical activities, have sparkling water on hand to quench thirst.
 
Celebrating Lughnasadh
 
One of the most traditional ways to celebrate Lughnasadh is to make your own Sacrificial King out of cornhusks, straw, or sheaves of grain. Take your straw (or whatever you happen to be using) and gather it together. Fold the entire thing in half and tie off the top so you have a head. Add another tie about midway down the body for a waist. Divide the straw below the waist into two and tie off for legs. Use another bundle of straw to make arms and tie this to the body. To be really traditional, you should use straw to tie the bundle, but I use thread in a matching color. It’s easier to work with and thin enough that you don’t even see it.
 
Once you have your Sacrificial King, use him to decorate your ritual space. Later, make a game out of slaying the Sacrificial King. Stand him up or tie him to a tree and fire arrows at him. Whoever gets closest to the head or heart wins. Or assign points to certain areas of the body and give everyone three tries. If you can’t fire an arrow, use darts. Just make sure you’re careful with this. You don’t want one of your guests or family members to be hit with an arrow or dart!
 
This Sacrificial King can be used again when the bonfire is lit. Throw him into the fire and see your negative emotions or bad habits burning with him. Keep watching him until he is reduced to ash.
 
Games that honor Lugh are common for a Lughnasadh celebration. Anything that tests a skill can be used as a game. Try archery contests, wrestling, games of chess, poetry readings, or anything else that’s fun and inspires competition. Award prizes for the winners.
 
You will probably also celebrate Lughnasadh with a ritual or ceremony. However, magick not in keeping with the themes of the Sabbat should be avoided. Try to use the Sabbats as a way to honor the Goddess and the God, not practicing magick for your own ends.
 
Dressing for Lughnasadh
 
Get into the spirit of the season by dressing for Lughnasadh. Pick clothing in the traditional colors of yellow and dark green. You might wish to wear ritual robes or something even fancier. Whatever you choose should be comfortable, functional, and possibly even decorated with the symbols of Lughnasadh. You could also choose the colors of the Goddess and the God. The God is often associated with gold, yellow, and orange during this festival while dark green or even red is for the Goddess.
 
Lughnasadh represents the beginning of the harvest season. It is a time to be thankful for what we have and an acknowledgement that everything we are given must be paid for.

The Faery Lineage and Irish Mythology — The Flower Fairy

As society changes, so does its mythology. This rule applies equally to the continuous development of the Faery Lineage. With the arrival of the 18th century, the Jacobean Fairy of the previous century changed and adapted, splitting into the Flower Fairy and the Folk Tale Fairy. Both of these forms have endured into modern times, but it is the Flower Fairy that most people envision when they hear the term ‘fairy.’

The Nature of the Flower Fairy

Above all, the tiny Flower Fairy was said to be gentle and generous. Flower Fairies were the gentle spirits of the earth. They were thought to exist wherever nature flourished. They lived in the hills and the mountains, the lakes and the oceans, and they would flit from flower to flower in every garden.

Flower Fairies were passionate in their pursuits. They admired love and beauty, but abhorred ugliness and greed. They held in contempt those who were tightfisted with their time or wealth.

Those humans who left a bit of food or drink for them at night earned their love. They were said to wander the physical realm at night, collecting the last bit of grain from the field, the last fruit off the tree, and the last drop of milk from the pail. They also enjoyed a bit of wine, but Flower Fairies never became intoxicated.

Superstitions Surrounding the Flower Fairy

In 18th century Europe, including Ireland, superstition was still very much a part of daily life. Common knowledge of the era held that the blessings of the Flower Fairy could be brought into a household with a few simple actions.

Those households wishing to draw the Flower Fairies into their homes were advised not to sit up too late, as the fairies might wish to come into their home after dark. They would leave some food or milk for the fairies to dine, and a vessel of clear water for them to bathe. Those who made the effort to provide the fairies with these small comforts were said to be rewarded quite richly in the form of luck and protection.

This charming fairy would endure into the modern era, and continues to be a part of popular mythology. With the rise of Wicca and other Pagan movements in the 20th century, the Flower Fairy was reinvented, slowly becoming the Elemental Fairy.

The Faery Lineage and Irish Mythology — The Heroic Faery

In the centuries before the Middle Ages, the Daoine Sidhe began to dwindle and diminish. As this happened, they changed form once again. In time, they became the Heroic Faeries of myth and legend.

The Heroic Faery and the Fenian Heroes

Though they existed during different era, from a mythological standpoint, the Heroic Faeries had much in common with the legendary Fenian Heroes. They both were a form of diminished or fallen gods, descendants of the Tuatha De Danann. Cut lose from what they once were, they became closer to humans than their predecessors ever were. Sometimes, they even became close enough to mate, resulting in human children with faery gifts.

However, there were some key differences between the Fenian Heroes and the Heroic Faery. The Fenian Heroes were true warriors, ready to die for kind and country. The Heroic Faery, on the other hand, could be more accurately describes as aristocrats. They were more likely to spend the day hunting or riding than defending the kingdom, much like the human nobles of the era. They were lovers of the arts, prone to spending the evening indulging in music and dance. The Heroic Faery was a reflection of the nobles of the time, while the Fenian Heroes were the reflection of the warriors of the past.

The Heroic Faery and the Medieval Fairy

By the 11th and 12th centuries, the Heroic Faery had developed to include characters who were fine warriors and champions of the people, as well as patrons of the arts and lovers of cultures. As human culture evolved, so did the Heroic Faery, and the line between warrior and poet began to disappear. It is at this point in time where the Faery Lineage begins to converge.

The Medieval Fairy, a descendant of the Fenian Heroes, had grown to encompass newer legends, such as that of Avalon. However, the characters, while well-versed in the arts of magick, lacked the feel of nobility and aristocracy that the Heroic Faery possessed. The two lines merged, for a time, before they both began to diminish further, changing form once more.

With the passage of time and the changing of the people, the faery changed as well. They slowly dwindled, becoming the Diminutive Fairy.