Merry Mabon & A Candle Ritual!

Mabon is one of my very favorite times of year! Autumn has arrived, bringing with it sweet relief from our Texas heat. The season of pumpkins and fall leaves is rushing in like a fragrant dream. And the holiday season is only a breath away--a wonderful time for enjoying the company of family and friends. This "quiet" half of the year often feels like anything but. And yet, it is a time to take stock, connect with gratitude, and sing the earth a lullaby as it drifts into its seasonal slumber.

Harvest Season

For those of us who follow a magickal path, this is a wonderful time of year. The first of the harvests is in (Lughnassadh), and two more harvest festivals lie ahead (Mabon & Samhain). It is a season for focusing on reaping all we've sown in the past year, drawing in our bounty as we wind down and prepare for the period of rest and renewal that begins at Samhain and carries on through Yule.

Ritual

Today I want to talk about ritual. It seems there is a lot of unnecessary fear surrounding that word in our modern western culture. On the one hand, I understand why. Ritual is a gate into the Mystery— capital M intended. The Mystery, as in the universal experience of life and the universe that confounds our knowledge and understanding.