September 2014 Three Meanings of MabonThe Wheel of the Year
The Oak and Holly KingLike the God and Goddess, the Oak King and Holly King experience seasonal cycles of light and darkness, and of life, death, and rebirth. Each king rules for half the year. At Mabon, the Holly King’s strength surpasses the Oak King’s. His power will peak at Midwinter. Mabon ap MadronMabon ap Madron means “divine son of the divine mother.” In 2013 I journeyed through Wales to discover the goddess in the landscape. The Mabinogion, a thirteenth century tome of ancient Welsh tales, was my literary map. The Mabinogion captures a heroic age when King Arthur, giants, and Celtic gods and goddesses populated the land. Like the Wiccan Wheel of the Year and the battle between the Holly King and Oak King, segments of the Mabinogion focus on “the advent or absence of [a] regenerative force. Summer is often personified by a young hero who defeats an older, feebler opponent.”1 Mabon ap Madron appears in different Divine Son guises throughout the Mabinogion. Born at Beltaine, Mabon later performed impossible feats to prove his manhood, win the hand of the maiden, and attain kingship. In the essay “Mabon ap Modron, the story of the Divine Son” (http://caeraustralis.com.au/mabonapmodron.htm), Caer Australis asserts that the Divine Son “is a theme of the continuation of the Divine lineage, with kingship passing matrilineally through the tripartite Goddess, at the time of rebirth in the Celtic world - the start of Summer. Here we find the true celebration of Mabon - far from the autumn equinox as suggested by some - and with his birth, the power of rebirth provided by the Divine Mother, the Goddess of the Celts.” Choose your Mabon magic from the themes outlined above. Here are two suggestions: Photo Credit: Scales of Justice by Pearson Scott Foresman, Wikimedia Mabon Magic
Decorate your altar with fall foliage and colors. Include the Justice card from the tarot, or draw a scale. Add marigolds, sunflowers, and/or roses. For stones, amber, citrine, and/or tiger-eye. Acorns, apples, and Indian corn can be placed on the altar then later left outdoors for the local wildlife. Include a pomegranate in honor of the maiden goddess Persephone. The full moon closest to Mabon is associated with the story of Persephone, a maiden goddess who was kidnapped by Hades and later bound to stay in the underworld for six months out of the year because she ate three pomegranate seeds.
You will need one white and one black candle of equal size, olive oil, a small bowl or plate for the oil, paper towels, a mortar and pestle, pomegranate seeds or juice, fresh or dried gardenia petals, and/or lavender blossoms. Add flowers and crushed pomegranate seeds (with juice) to a small amount of oil. Rub the mixture onto the candles working from the ends to the center. As you anoint the candles, envision harmony. Picture whatever you must discard or diminish as you rub the mixture onto the black candle. Imagine what needs to increase as you anoint the white candle. Then burn both candles at the same time, starting when you have enough time for them to completely burn down. Watch my blog for facts and magic regarding the upcoming Harvest Moon.Spell For Sophia by Ariella Moon The Mabinogion can be found at http://www.amazon.com/The-Mabinogion ©2014 Ariella Moon 1 Anonymous. The Mabinogion. Trans. Jeffrey Gantz. New York: Dorset Press, 1976. |