Rituals For Mabon -

Can you smell the scent of autumn in the air? It’s a sign that Mabon is almost here! What a special day it is.

I guess you want to know about the rituals for Mabon to celebrate this festival. But before that, it’s better to know everything about this special occasion.

Today I will talk about Mabon, how to celebrate this day, and perform various rituals.

Let’s start!

What is the Mabon holiday?

Mabon holiday is one of the eight Wiccan sabbats. It is a pagan holiday that is celebrated during the Autumn Equinox.

Mabon is a time of balance when the day and the night are of equal length.

With every day, the night and the darkness start to take dominion.

Related to the harvest, people celebrate Mabon as a festival of sacrifice and the dying God, and tribute is paid to the sun and the fertile earth.

The holiday marks the start of autumn when farmers harvest. People also prepare for the winter with food while celebrating the Mabon holiday.

What is the meaning of Mabon? Where does the term Mabon come from?

According to Diana Rajchel, the story of the name of Mabon is quite interesting:

“It is Aidan Kelly, by his own account, who christened the modern Pagan Autumn Equinox celebration as Mabon.
Before this, practitioners of Pagan religions called this seasonal holiday the Fall or Autumnal Equinox. The early Wiccans celebrated major fire festivals with the quarter sabbats observed at the nearest full moon.
When Kelly initiated into Wicca, sabbat celebrations involved a ritual followed by a feast during each of the four major fire festivals (Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnasadh, and Samhain).
Since the four fire festivals had Celtic names, Kelly attempted to balance them with Saxon names for the solar quarter festivals of equinoxes and solstices.
Unfortunately, he could not find an ancient Saxon holiday name that reasonably fit the themes of the Wiccan Autumn Equinox.
Kelly did find that the Eleusinian Mysteries fit the emotional role desired, but he did not want to throw a Greek name into the already established Celtic-Saxon scheme.
Since he could not find a Saxon name, he resorted to neighboring Celtic sources.
Kelly looked to the tale of Mabon ap Modron, the word meaning “son of the mother,” for what he saw as a thematic parallel to Kore, which meant “daughter of the mother.”
He saw a spiritual link in the quintessential mother goddess having her child stolen.
While Kelly drew spiritual inspiration for the holiday from the Eleusinian Mysteries, he used the name Mabon from the Celts for at least partial naming consistency in the sabbats.”

Mabon what language

The Celts spoke a dialect that would later evolve into Welsh, so this language is now considered a treasured part of Welsh identity.

So we can say that Mabon is the Welsh language.

What does Mabon mean in Welsh?

Mabon is the name of a God in Welsh mythology. In Welsh mythology, he is famous as “Mabon ap Modron.”

Mabon is the son of mother earth goddess Modron. Modron is a prominent supernatural mother figure in Welsh mythology.

The mythology is about a kidnapped kid from his Mother, similar to Persephone and Tammuz’s stories.

When is Mabon celebrated?

Mabon dates vary from the Northern hemisphere to the Southern hemisphere. Therefore, they celebrate the day at different times of the year.

Besides, Mabon starts at different dates every year. It is a long celebration that stays for a few days before ending.

Let’s have a closer look at the Mabon dates:

When does Mabon begin?

Mabon begins on one of the dates between the 21st to 24th of September in the Northern hemisphere.

However, most people start celebrating the previous evening, which is called Mabon eve.

How long does Mabon last, and when does Mabon end?

Mabon lasts nine days from the day it starts. That means if the Mabon begins on September 21, it will end on September 29.

People participate in various activities and rituals during this time. Later in this article, I will discuss what you can do to celebrate this day.

Where did Mabon originate?

People from many cultures worldwide have been celebrating Mabon for a long time. However, there isn’t any particular origin of the Mabon.

Bavarians (currently a part of Germany) used to celebrate the autumn equinox on the first day of the last week in September.

Besides, Americans celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November. All of these holidays have more or less the same purpose.

Moreover, different Jewish holidays in September (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, and Shemini Atzeret) remind us of Mabon.

How old is Mabon?

The name Mabon was given to the autumn equinox in the 1970s.

However, different communities celebrated these special days of balance with other terms long ago.

What does Mabon celebrate, and Why is Mabon celebrated?

Mabon is a time of balance and knowing that soon darkness is coming, gratitude for being alive and the capacity for the coming winter, celebrating the harvest, honoring all those sacrifices made to survive, and humility.

Diana Rajchel, in her book Mabon, explained the reason for Mabon celebrations beautifully:

“Harvest festivals celebrated more than finished work for the season; they celebrated the capacity to survive the winter.
The best known of these harvest festivals was the Eleusinian Mysteries, a weeklong celebration in ancient Greece that fell close to the Autumn Equinox.
Mabon is a modern addition to harvest, sacrifice, and survival celebrations. While Wiccans often think of Mabon as “Pagan Thanksgiving,” those who recognize the dying god myths inherent to the holiday may also acknowledge it as a sort of “Pagan Easter.”
Mabon gives thanks not just for our food but for the sacrifices necessary for us to survive.”

Who celebrates Mabon?

Some Pagan traditions celebrate Mabon, but others celebrate other holidays on the Autumn Equinox.

For example, Modern Druids celebrate the Autumn Equinox, calling it Alban Elfed. Alban Elfed means “the Light of the Water.”

Neopagans are Pagans but prefer not to affiliate with an organized form such as Wicca. Instead, they celebrate Mabon by designing their rituals.

What does Mabon represent?

Mabon represents God’s blessings with a tremendous amount of crop harvest. It means people’s honor to God for everything he has blessed us with.

Mabon is an occasion to express gratitude, reflect on our physical and spiritual harvest, feel humility and honor sacrifices, and decide what to let go of after reflection.

How to worship Mabon?

The Mabon holiday is a great occasion to worship the God Mabon if this is what your belief is. You can make an altar and pray to God.

Add flowers and fruits to the altar and say your prayers. For example, you can say something like,

“The land is dying, and the soil is freezing; I thank you for the good harvesting.”

You also can make your prayer to worship Mabon.

How to celebrate Mabon?

Mabon is a time of balance of the day and night and still knowing that dark days are coming.

I like to design my rituals, which feel natural to me. This way, I can go deep inside a practice. So I am sharing with you a quote about Mabon that inspired me. It can also help you feel the best way to celebrate Mabon for you.

“The night of the fall equinox is perfect for saying goodbye to situations, attachments, or anything that has run its course, just like the summer is. However, endings aren’t always bad.
Any tarot reader will tell you that pulling the death card doesn’t herald a tragedy or physical death but rather a new beginning.
One thing must end for something new to begin, so death and rebirth are the same.
For this reason, it makes sense that endings can be embraced and viewed as hopeful.
Just as we appreciate the sun as it recedes, we can also see the beauty in the things we choose to release.”
Llewellyn’s 2022 Sabbats Almanac, Natalie Zaman

Spiritual Rituals to do on Mabon

After feeling the spirit of this particular time of the year, continue scrolling if you still need some inspiration around the spiritual rituals.

Mabon spiritual rituals are the best way to honor the Autumn equinox. So let’s have a look at some of the spiritual rituals:

Mabon Reflection Ritual

First of all, starting with creating your sacred space can be as simple as lighting a candle and incense.

Then relax; this will help you to ground and come here and now. You can meditate or make a shamanic journey. Ask for support from your spiritual guides.

Put on a piece of pleasant music and maybe prepare your favorite tea. Show care for this special moment and yourself.

Now you are grounded, here and now, and feeling nice, it is time to journal around these questions:

What are the accomplishments that you are celebrating?
What sacrifices have you made that you want to honor?
What are you grateful for?
What are those you feel it is time to let go, as the trees are leaving their not serving leaves and branches?
What fruits would you like to have in the new harvest season, and what would you like to have/do/be for this?

Mabon offerings ritual

For this, you would need to be outside, close to a tree with which you feel friendly energy.

Now re-read from your journal what you have written for this question: What sacrifices have you made that you want to honor?

Make an offering for a tree with your answers in your mind and heart.

You can say these words:

“To the keepers of the land, spirits of the earth.
Please accept this offering that I give forth.”

Mabon gratitude ritual

Now re-read from your journal what you have written for this question: What are you grateful for?

While reading, really feel it. Embrace all these feelings and express your gratitude to the Divine.

Mabon letting go and candle ritual

Now re-read from your journal what you have written for this question: What are those you feel it is time to let go, as the trees are leaving their not serving leaves and branches?

Say thank you for all those things you want to let go of, for the lessons you have learned. Now let it go and invite freedom instead.

Mabon praying ritual

Now re-read from your journal what you have written for this question: What fruits would you like to have in the new harvest season, and what would you like to have/do/be for this?

Pray for these wishes. Vision yourself while accomplishing all those wishes and stay with the emotion for a while. Do not attach to the results. Surrender and wander with awe to see the universe’s plans for you.

Mabon celebration

Remember that you do not need to stick to a particular Mabon celebration method. Keep in mind the real meaning of this day, then set your intention and celebrate

Invite those people that you want to celebrate with.

Show care while preparing the celebration with all details. Let the love appear during the celebration.

Mabon ritual kit

You can use various Mabon ritual kits to celebrate Mabon. Some of the typical Mabon ritual kits are candles and cauldrons.

Besides, you also can use apples or several other fruits from the harvest.

Flowers are also excellent for such purposes.

Do you need more suggestions? Keep reading!

Mabon herbs

Some popular Mabon herbs are mugwort, rose hips, rosemary, sage, and yarrow. Besides, corn, beans, cider, pumpkins, and pomegranate are some of the common Mabon herbs.

Mabon gift ideas

Mabon is also a great occasion to gift your loved ones. For example, you can give candles or Mabon books to signify the festival.

Besides, a wooden altar table can also be an excellent gift for Mabon. In short, it’s better to give something that signifies the Mabon or help someone to perform Mabon rituals.