The arrival of Autumn is always a special time of year in the Northern Hemisphere and although most Nordic traditions center around the harvest celebrations, it’s also a beautiful time for reflection, preparation, and celebration. In this blog, I will touch on all these aspects and also share some of my favorite things to do in order to mark the Autumn Equinox.
If you live in the southern hemisphere, you will obviously be heading into the Spring Equinox now. A blog post will be added about this soon.
Living in different geographical locations and climates, your experience of the equinox may be different from mine, as I was raised in Denmark and now live, only a tiny bit further south, in England. But feel free to adapt my suggestions to fit the natural environment where you live.
What is the Equinox?
There are two Equinoxes every year; one in the Spring and one in the Autumn.
The word ‘Equinox’ is derived from Latin, and means ‘equal night’, as these are the two times in the year when the amount of daylight equals the amount of darkness. Something that is very important if you live in a hostile natural environment where daylight and sunshine are scarce.
The equinoxes are considered solar festivals in the Wheel of the Year, which is celebrated by many across the world, from pagans and Wiccans to nature lovers who don’t subscribe to any specific spiritual traditions.
The autumn equinox normally falls on the 21st of September and is also known as Mabon.
Why mark the Equinox?
The autumn equinox is linked with ancient harvest celebrations. There are in fact 2 festivals around this time: Lughnasadh and Samain, and the autumn equinox falls in the middle of these.
From ancient times, this has been a key moment in time to give thanks for all that has been harvested and to celebrate with the wider community before the onset of the colder months ahead. The Vikings would often have their weddings at this time of year and also celebrate both a harvest festival called Haustblot, as well as ceremonies known as Alfablot to honor their ancestors.
It’s the time of year to stock up for the winter and also to take stock of how far you’ve come over the past 6 months. The Spring and Summer will have given us energy and long days with plenty of sunshine to help us move on with our dreams and do the work that’s needed to realize them. Now that the balance of day/night and light/darkness is starting to shift, it’s the perfect time to reflect on how far you’ve come, celebrate your achievements and give thanks, before possibly reworking intentions and plans for the seasons ahead.
Any harvest festival is still essentially about this pause in order to give thanks and celebrate. Yes, some things may not have worked out. Some crops may have failed metaphorically speaking or not. But it is important that we take the time to reflect so we can both learn from the experience, but also process it before moving forward. Maybe we need to change certain things to avoid it happening again. Other times it may not have been within our control and we just need to let it go, so we can move on.
How to mark the Equinox
There are many ways to utilize the special energy of the autumn equinox, and here are a few of my personal favorites, that may appeal to you too.
Finding Balance
As this time of year is all about the balance between sunlight and darkness, it is also the perfect time to look at how our own lives are balanced. Do you feel happy and content, or are there areas that you would like to improve on? This is again all about reflection as mentioned before, but also about gratitude for what works and the ability to focus your attention on what can still be improved. You may want to dedicate a bit of time to journal on this. Whether it is 5 or 50 minutes is up to you. See below for some journaling prompts.
A Happy Home
This is also a key time to prepare your home for the darker months ahead. After a Summer of living more outside, it is important to look at how the home can get tweaked and reorganized for the colder months ahead, where you most likely will be spending a lot more time.
For some it may be a case of having a clear-out and a clean, for others, it can go much deeper and become a springboard for better physical as well as mental health.
Our homes are natural reflections of who we are, and they should be our sanctuary where we can go to nurture our body, mind and soul. This also means that our homes never remain the same. They are constantly evolving just like we are, and sometimes we need to update, tweak, or reorganize so our home can become aligned with us and our dreams and desires. If we don’t take the time to do this, we may feel drained, restricted or simply unhappy, in our homes as well as in our own skin. I am currently focussing on the practical steps to achieve this in my free private Facebook community group Happiness Health and Hygge. Feel free to join if you are not already a member.
Rituals and Celebrations
Harvest feast
Create a harvest feast for your loved ones. Use homegrown, locally produced, or simply seasonal foods to create a beautiful meal and experience. Or you can invite people to bring a dish so the workload is shared and also enjoyed. Decorate with seasonal finds from nature: beautifully colored leaves, pine cones, conkers, pumpkins or other colorful foods are great too.
Create an alter or focal point of gratitude
I love creating a space within my home that focuses my attention on gratitude but also intentions for the future. I call this my altar, but others may call it a visual reminder. You can decorate it with whatever is meaningful to you and that may symbolize being grateful for what you have (for example photos of family, or a card from a loved one), as well as your hopes and dreams for the future (a candle to remind you to shine your light or a representation of something you want to achieve). Finally, add some seasonal elements such as leaves, flowers, apples, berries, etc.
Make sure not to clutter your space, just a few well-selected pieces are all you need. But you must remember to look after and nurture your special space for at least a few days, or ideally a whole week. Make sure it remains fresh and inspires you whenever you look at it. When you feel it’s time you can take it down or refresh it.
Journal for Reflection
This is such a powerful practice and I recommend you give it a try, even if you have never tried journaling. Even a few minutes can have a big impact. Here is a way to get started:
If possible, allow yourself some quiet time for this journaling exercise. You don’t need to spend hours, as long as you can allow yourself to fully relax and engage yourself in the process of writing. Don’t worry about what comes up. Just let the words flow from your pen or pencil (yes pen on paper is best if you can), and don’t try to think ahead or sensor yourself.
Consider this a ‘writing mediation’ where the words simply come to you. You can reflect on it for a few minutes afterward.
Start by asking yourself:
What are you most grateful for right now?
What areas of your life feel like it is in perfect balance right now?
What areas would you like to work on to improve the balance?
How can nature inspire you to create a better balance in your life as the darker months arrive? Is there something you can let go of, like the trees their leaves?
I hope this has given you some inspiration for making the most of the beautiful Autumn Equinox. I would love to hear what spoke to you the most.
If you would like more practical inspiration then please join my free online community Happiness Health and Hygge. Or follow me on Instagram or Facebook.
All the best for a beautiful Atumn and beyond,
Dorte x
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