Merry meet all,
It never rains but it pours. The rain is pouring hard here. Today’s post is about herb and gemstone correspondences for Mabon, a magical time of year. I love Mabon, the second harvest Sabbat of three powerful Sabbats. The Crone prepares for her long cold rest and drawing back her power of abundance and fertility. This is a good time to be grateful for the abundance we receive from the earth.
The History of Mabon:
‘History
To start, Mabon is one of the eight sabbats of the Wheel of the Year that marks the transition out of summer into the autumn season. Named after the God of Welsh and Celebrated on September 21st, this is a time that celebrates the balance of the equal light and dark as we slowly begin to prepare for shorter days and longer nights as winter approaches.
Symbolically, this is the time when the Goddess moves into her crone stage as she grows older and begins to lie down and withdraw her power from the land, leaving it cold and still. However, many also choose to celebrate this festival by honoring the goddess Demeter, as well as Persephone, as it is said that Demeter’s grief in losing her daughter to the underworld is also what caused the earth to transition from its warm and abundant peak into a long and stagnant winter.
Aside from this, energetically speaking, Mabon is a beautiful time of reflection and movement. It is a time to complete goals, cleanse away old energies, and let go of what is no longer serving you. Not to mention, it is also a good time for making changes in our lives and planting seeds of intention that will grow and rise in the spring. Therefore, it is a great time to reflect on your path and your goals and begin taking larger steps towards bringing them to fruition. ‘
Herbs, flowers and berries:
September is a month of abundance and harvesting the earthy goodness all around us. You can use the herbs you gathered to decorate your Mabon altar and your home. Gather herbs in the morning on a dry day. Always cut the stems and stalks on an angle. Use a good pair of clean sharp scissors or a boline. Give thanks to the plant spirit and only harvest what you need. Wash off any dirt or bugs and dry your herbs by dehydrating them in a dehydrator or on a mesh screen. Take a plant identification book with your or an app to help you identify and harvest the correct plant. Don’t get anything that is poisonous. An app such as Seek is good. Take a magnifying glass, a bag to store the snipped herbs in and wear good walking shoes, also bring insect repellent and don’t harvest from a diseased plant. Don’t harvest anything that has been sprayed, or is at risk of being endangered.
Sunflowers, corn husks, any flowers growing in your garden or in your area such as goldenrod, red clover, St. John’s wort, rose petals, Chinese lanterns, yarrow, blue cornflower, thyme, lavender, sage, basil, burdock, elderberries, or rosemary. All these herbs, flowers and berries are potent. Pumpkins, gourds, potatoes, onions, wheat, acorns, dandelion roots, burdock roots add a rich healthy earthiness to a Mabon harvest. Feel free to add bones, pomegranates, cider.
Gemstones:
Gemstones have been used to heal people and empower their lives since time immemorial. Black tourmaline, hematite, sunstone, citrine, amber, quartz, agates and petrified wood are ideal. Match the colours of the gemstones to the shades of Mabon. Leave a few gemstones in your garden as an offering to the nature spirits for protecting and nurturing your garden. They can decorate your altar. Use browns, gold, reds and orange colours.
The next post will focus on the ways to celebrate Mabon. This is sure to inspire you!
Blessings, Spiderwitch
