As summertime draws to a close, a cool breeze may soon be felt upon the air that signals autumn is fast approaching, and with that the wheel shifts once again. This time, the changing season leads us towards darker, cooler days, from summer’s warmth to autumn’s calm, and finally, winter’s chill.
In this time of transition, two great festivals mark the next phases on our journey: Mabon and Samhain. Together, they represent the autumnal season, a time of balance, reflection and the eventual end to the year.
Mabon
The Second Harvest (September 22 or 23)
As the strength of the sun wanes, and the leaves start to change from green to brown, Mabon arrives, bringing perfect balance to the wheel once more. Celebrated on the autumn equinox, Mabon is the final solar festival on the Wheel of the Year, a moment when day and night are of equal length. But unlike its spring counterpart Ostara, Mabon marks the tipping point, signalling the slow descent into darkness. Days will grow shorter, nights longer, as preparations for the winter months take hold.
Though Mabon is a more modern addition to the Wheel of the Year, the themes it celebrates have ancient roots: it is a time for reflection, introspection and preparation. Feasts are held with rewards reaped from the second great harvest, and bonfires are lit in this time of balance and thanksgiving.
Samhain
When the Veil Grows Thin (October 31)
As the final crops are harvested, and the days continue to grow ever shorter, Samhain, (pronounced “sow-en”), marks the Celtic New Year. Thought by the Celts to be the most sacred festival on the Wheel of the Year, a time when the veil between worlds was at its thinnest, and spirits could pass more easily between them.
Samhain is a time for great reflection, remembrance and looking ahead to the future. In ancient Celtic practices, ancestors were honoured with gatherings around great bonfires, and food from the final harvest would be offered to both the living and the dead, with disguises also worn as protection from these wandering spirits, a tradition that can also be seen in modern celebrations of Halloween.
Balance and Pause
Together, Mabon and Samhain invite us to pause and reflect on the year, to honour the shifting balance between light and dark, the rewards of harvest, and the mysteries that lie just beyond the veil. As the Wheel of the Year winds towards its close, these festivals offer a space for stillness, remembrance and a look ahead towards the longest night of the year: Yule.
- The Avalon Marshes is a magical wetland landscape, nationally important for its rich cultural heritage. At Avalon Archaeology a programme of year-round events and workshops explore the heritage and seasonal traditions of this unique place and its people. See What’s On.
- At Somerset Rural Life Museum, Glastonbury, you can explore landscape, creativity, rural traditions and beliefs, and more. Discover the former Abbey Farm, the magnificent 14th century Abbey Barn and a traditional cider orchard.