Mabon

 Sorry for the late upload guys, things have been a little hectic. My kitty passed away during our celebrations. I hope you understand. As such I'm afraid this posting won't be as detailed compared to as before. But to give you a rough idea...

Today we are talking about Mabon ( pronounce as Mah-bohn) which is the Autumnal Equinox as the first harvest of the year. It is the twin to Ostara. Whilst Ostara is the rebirth, Mabon Mabon is a God who was stolen as an infant and rescued by woodland animals/spirits before being returned to his mother Modron (Moh-Drohn). In other legends, he was rescued by King Arthur. He is used and celebrated as a symbol of the waning of life and the suns light. Darkness and light are now at the balance before the tip towards the dark and cold associated with death...and the second harvest of fruits and vegetables are occurring.

A cornucopia basket is often used to depict Mabon with its phallic masculine shape and hollow feminine interior. Altars are usually dressed with non-perishable (or continually replaced or dried) harvest produce and outdoor shrines with othering to nature, spirits are built to honour those who have helped create the bountiful harvest. Traditionally buttermilk bread, Apple pies, crumble and cakes are baked and feasted upon alongside other seasonal foods. Corn dolls and grain crafts are also traditional. The colours that are often associated are typical autumnal colours and green. There are also rituals to celebrate other deities like ones of Harvest, Hunting and even winemaking. Persephone, in particular, has her own celebration at this time of year in Greece where Parsley is left as an offering to the goddess. I mention this because I had a dream about her shortly before my Cat's passing which was a little too coincidental and I believe she may have been trying to reach me. I'll mention deity work later on one of my pages for you. I hope this post has helped inspire you to do some research of your own. The next posting shall be about familiars and then Samhain. Thank you to anyone who has stuck around to read this blog and its posts.