Pagan Forest Magazine July/August 2014 | Page 26

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symbol to us pagans, the pentagram with the seeds of life. The five pointed star within the apple represents both the elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Spirit,) and the directions (North, South, East, West, Within). The circumference of the apple represents the circle around the star and the eternal circle/cycle of life and nature and of wholeness.

Some common and uncommon ways of celebrating Mabon are to:

Find some balance. Mabon is a time for balancing your energies and your life.

Hold a food drive. Since Mabon is a time of blessings, thankfulness, and abundance, sharing the blessing with others is also giving and receiving blessings.

Pick some apples. Apples being the perfect symbol for Mabon will not only connect you with the earth, magick, and energies, but are usable to eat in many ways.

Count your blessings. Since Mabon is a time to be thankful, make a list of the things for which you are thankful, and it will remind you of blessings about which you have forgotten.

Honor the Darkness. There is no light without dark, no day without night.

Get back to Nature. The world is a beautiful place. Go outside and take a walk. Take your camera with you. Enjoy the colors, smells, and vibrations going on around you. Enjoy the animals. Listen to the birds and crickets. Feel the crisp night air on your skin. Look up at the moon and stars.

Tell timeless stories. Start a campfire, make some s’mores, and tell the stories of old. Learn about your ancestors and the stories of ancient times about the Autumn Equinox.

Raise some energy. Grab a bell, some drums, or even two sticks. Start in a slow rhythm and gradually get faster. It will raise the energy around you… and it’s fun!

Celebrate your hearth and home. Since a lot of us northerners will be living indoors for a few months, cleanse the energies in your home. Do a “top to bottom” fall cleaning, and, then, smudge your home with sweetgrass or sage. Don’t forget to use your blessed water. Decorate if you feel like being festive.

Welcome the Gods of the Vine. Grapes are in full swing at Mabon. Pick some grapes. Make a pan of stuffed grape leaves. Try your hand at winemaking, or, better yet, drink a glass or two. You can use wines for cooking if you like; it doesn’t have to have alcohol.

Make up your own traditions and pass them through your family so that your great, great grandkids can pass them down to their great, great grandkids.

There are many different things that you can learn and incorporate into your own traditions, whether in books or on the internet.

Along with some of my own beliefs, I personally referenced:

Earth Witchery at http://www.earthwitchery.com/mabon.html

Jones’s Celtic Encyclopedia at http://www.maryjones.us/jce/mabon.html

The Goddess and Green Man at http://www.goddessandgreenman.co.uk/mabon

Belsebuub.com at http://belsebuub.com/articles/ancient-sacred-sites-aligned-to-the-autumn-equinox

About.com at http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/mabontheautumnequinox/tp/TenMabonIdeas.htm