MABON
It's Mabon Again !!


Autumnal Equinox (around 21st September)
Alternate Names
Celtic 'Festival of the Vine'
Druidic Name Alban Elfed or Alban Elued (Light of the Water)
Christian Equivalent Saint Matthew's Day Place
in the Natural Cycle Mabon is the solar festival that marks
the transition from the light to the dark half of the year:
day and night are of equal length.
On this day, the sun rises due east and sets due west.
The autumn quarter of the year runs from Lughnassadh to Samhain,
so Mabon marks the mid-point of autumn.
By Mabon, the land is showing clear signs
of the journey towards winter
- leaves are beginning to turn and birds are gathering for migration.
Further Details Mabon is the time of the second harvest,
when fruits are ready for collection.

In Celtic mythology, Mabon was the Young God,
abducted and imprisoned, only to return at a later date.
This is thus an appropriate title for the day on which darkness
gains the upper hand over light until the following equinox,
Ostara.
Mabon is the point at which, conceptually at least,
the Sun enters the sign of Libra, the Scales or Balance
- the most appropriate sign for this day of perfect balance
between darkness and light.
Mabon is a time to consider which aspects of your life
you wish to preserve and which you would prefer to discard.

It marks a time of thankfulness, equality and balance when
you should try to appreciate and enjoy the fruits of your labors.
The dark half of the year brings a greater emphasis on reflection,
rest and planning, and Mabon is the point at which
these influences begin to be felt.
The enchanting time of the year that Mabon celebrates
is perhaps most beautifully evoked by To Autumn,
by the English poet, John Keats.
Appropriately for this time of benevolence, the poem
first appeared in a lively letter to a friend, and even
more appositely, this letter was written
on the autumnal equinox of 1819.
It was published in 1820 in the volume that would make
Keats' reputation after his death: Lamia, Isabella,
The Eve of St. Agnes and other poems.
Further poems by Keats are available in the poetry section.
http://www.wmgreen.com/
(http://www.wmgreen.com/sabbat-mabon.htm)

To quote one source,
"This is the time of harvest, of thanksgiving and joy,
of leave-taking and sorrow.
Now day and night are equal, in perfect balance, and we give
thought to the balance and flow within our own lives.
The Sun King has become the Lord of Shadows, sailing west;
we follow Him into the dark.
Life declines; the season of barrenness is on us, yet we give
thanks for that which we have reaped and gathered.
We meet to turn the Wheel and weave the cord
of life that will sustain us through the dark."

Bright Blessings,
Jerry


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