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September Magick!

August 31, 2024 0 By Saranne Mallinson

Harvest Moon Magick

The Harvest Moon falls on 18th September this year at 0334 am BST. At this time of year, the moon appears bright and rises early in the evening, and the tradition is that it gave farmers enough light to continue harvesting crops into the night. It is also known as the Barley Moon or Corn Moon, and is the nearest full moon to the autumnal equinox. This equinox is special because the time between one moonrise to the next around this period becomes shorter.  This is known as the Harvest Moon Effect, and occurs due to the low angle the Moon’s orbit around Earth makes with the horizon during this time of year.
Did you know that bathing Tarot cards in the light of a full moon cleanses and charges them with energy? This is great if you have a new or gifted deck, or if you want to reconnect with a deck that you haven’t used for a while. You can choose a specific zodiac in which to charge your cards under, or for example if you want to amplify your intentions. We are currently in the zodiac of Virgo, which brings worker energy to get things done. Virgo is organised, modest, hardworking and thinks critically.
During a full moon, you can prepare and drink a restorative elixir to energise your mind, body and spirit. Make a tea with spearmint (I grow lots of this in my garden) and jasmine flowers. For the more experienced, you can add mugwort to the tea. Mugwort is a mild hallucinogen, which may help clear the mind. Mugwort aids dream recall and can help with lucid dreaming. Drink the tea during the enchanted hour, outside in the glow of moonlight. You should feel more focused immediately.
In your work, try the following correspondences:

Colors: You could use brown and green candles, and decorate your altar with earthy tones to represent the changing of the landscape during the harvest season.

Gemstones: Anything that is red, yellow, green, brown and orange to represent the earth and the changing of the season. E.g. peridot, citrine, orange calcite, garnet, red or yellow jasper, picture jasper or amazonite.

Herbs: Do magick with sacred seasonal plants. The Harvest Moon is also good time to blend incenses using harvest plants and resins such as amber or frankincense, and then burn it in the evening. You will need a mortar and pestle, and burn your incense on a charcoal disc.

Element: Earth. The zodiac of Virgo is also an Earth sign, so the Harvest Moon in Virgo this is a powerful time to use Earth as an element.

Autumn Equinox

This year’s autumn equinox falls on 22nd September at 13:43 BST.  The term equinox refers to the night of equal length, and is the point when the
Some people refer to the autumn equinox as Mabon, which falls around September 21 in the northern hemisphere. Mabon is a pre-Christian Welsh deity, however you may see posts interchanging Mabon with the autumn equinox, and it may appear on some wheels of the year.
This is a time to celebrate the season of the second harvest. You may have celebrated this as a child with the school ‘harvest festival’. We used to bring in donations of seasonal food that was given to older people in the community as a symbol of being thankful for plenty and sharing it with those who were more vulnerable.
Things you can do during this time:
  • Go fruit picking! Apples, pears and plums will be ready for picking. Also, many bushes may still have late blackberries on them for that yummy apple and blackberry crumble.
  • Baking. Picking fruit of often followed in my kitchen with baking of crumbles and pies, but also making preserves and jams.
  • Go for a walk in the woods. Reconnect with nature and enjoy the changing season.
  • Make a besom. You can collect things on walks that you can make a besom from. We have an array of brooms in the shop, from miniature altar ones to bigger ones for your home. These are basic, so you can decorate them in any way you would like that reflects your practice and how you would like to celebrate the season.
  • Decorate your altar for season. Collect acorns and give them back to nature in the spring, and have your intentions grow with the next growing season. Use altumn colours like browns, golds, yellows and oranges in your crystal and candle correspondences.
  • Simmer pots. These are a great way to bring in those autumnal smells into the house. Use apples, cinnamon, and other seasonal fruits and vegetables. You could always drink the results as a tea and charge it up under the Harvest Moon.
There is also an outdoor ritual you can you if you have at least three other magickally inclined friends to do this with!  You will need to ask each friend to bring a candle (one brings green, one brings yellow, one brings red, one brings blue), and an item to place on the altar, preferably something that represents the second harvest. These items can include:
A cup plus either wine or cider, apples that you have picked yourself, squashes, or small pumpkins, fallen leaves, and other fruit or grain that you have foraged this season.

Assign each friend a quarter to call. Each person should stand at their assigned quarter holding their unlit candle, and facing the altar. If there are more than four of you present, then form a circle.

The person in the north quarter lights their green candle, holds it to the sky, and says:  ‘We call upon the powers of Earth, and welcome you to this circle. May the fertile soil of the land bring us prosperity, abundance, and the bounty of the land in this time of harvest.’ They then place their lit candle on the altar.

The person to the east lights the yellow candle, holds it to the sky, and says: ‘We call upon the powers of Air, and welcome you to this circle. May the winds of change bring us wisdom and knowledge in this season of abundance and bounty. They then place their lit candle on the altar.

The person to the south, lights the red candle and holds it to the sky, and says: ‘We call upon the powers of Fire, and welcome you to this circle. May the shining light of this season’s moon illuminate our way through the coming winter.’ They place their lit candle onto the altar.

The person to the west lights the blue candle, holds it to the sky, and says: ‘We call upon the powers of Water, and welcome you to this circle. May the cool autumn rains wash away the last comforts of summer, and prepare us for the chill that is to come.’ They then place their lit candle on the altar.

Now ask everyone to join hands and say: ‘We gather tonight by the light of the moon, to celebrate nature’s bounty and and rejoice. May the next turn of the Wheel bring us love and compassion, kindness, and generosity. As the moon above, so the earth below.’

Go around the circle, passing the wine or cider. As each person takes a sip, they should share with intention one thing they are looking forward to in the coming month.

Take a moment to reflect on the bounty of the season. When everyone is ready, end the ritual simply and quietly, and leave the food for nature.

CategoryPagan Blog
TagsAutumn Equinox harvest Harvest Festival harvest moon Mabon

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