By Kevin Red Patrick
Happy Mabon!! The Wheel of the Year turns another spoke
continually taking us forward along our path. We all know this as the Autumn
Equinox or the Second Harvest, but few of us know why we call it Mabon
(May-bawn, Mah-bone) or how it relates to our personal tradition. What we do
know is that this is the time of year that fall seems to begin and the
“holidays” will soon be upon us.
The name Mabon for this pagan Sabbat was coined by Aidan
Kelly, founder of The New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn, sometime
around 1970. He derived the name from the Welsh Celtic hero Mabon ap Modron.
This hero’s name is interpreted as “son of the divine mother.” Modron is
derived from the Gaulish goddess Matrona, the divine mother goddess. Mabon was
taken from his mother’s arms three days after his birth and locked away in a
dark watery prison. While imprisoned, Mabon learns various skills associated
with hunting and battle. He is rescued by the legendary King Arthur and his
knights on their quest to fulfill forty impossible demands of the giant
Ysbaddaden and win the hand of his daughter Olwen for Arthur’s cousin Culhwch.
Mabon is the only one who has the skill to hunt the dog Drudwyn, the only dog
that can track the boar Twrch Trywth. The giant is slain after only a few of
the tasks are completed allowing the two to marry.
So you might be wondering, what this has to do with the
second harvest. The coinage of this sabbat’s name appears to be quite
arbitrary. Kelly has seemingly taken the name of a Celtic God of a favorite
myth and applied it to the holiday just so it would have a specific name like
the other modern pagan Sabbats instead of the mundane description of autumn
equinox. This is what makes the name of this Sabbat controversial, however it
has been accepted by the majority of the pagan community and has become the
traditional name.
The second harvest is the time to gather the fruits from the
vine. The Roman festival of Dionysus, God of Wine, which is celebrated on this
day is more closely related to the meaning of this holiday than is the tale of
Mabon ap Modron whose story is about freedom, love, quests, and marriage. The
myth of Persephone and Demeter is more symbolic of the turning of the Wheel of
the Year. This marks the time when Persephone descends into the Underworld and
the bounty of the earth begins to diminish due to Demeter’s anguish. All of these deities give us reason to
celebrate this day. We thank Dionysus for the bounty of fruits. We honor
Demeter for her gifts of the harvest and support Her as she mourns, and we
honor Persephone’s sacrifice to willingly go back to the Underworld each year.
“But I’m not Greek or Roman!” you exclaim.
One might wonder how they can celebrate this Sabbat because
none of the myths associated with it include the culture that inspires their
own personal path. Some may simply accept it as a “traditional” neo-pagan
holiday and wonder why anyone wouldn’t celebrate an equinox; it has astrological
significance. Either way I find it a more personable experience if I can relate
it to My tradition through the myths of my chosen cultural influence, the Celts
and my Gods. This is why it is important to learn the myths and legends of your
personal path as well as those of others.
My Celtic inspired path marks Mabon as an extension of
Lughnasadh. For me, Lughnasadh marks the time when the Sun God Lugh, as the
Great King of the Tuatha de Danann, defeated the king of the Fomorians, Balor
and secured the grains of the harvest for his people. In addition to this, Lugh
established the celebration of his adopted mother Tailtu on this day, who died
as a result of her tireless work making the land good for planting, on this.
This is why I honor Lugh as the God of Light (knowledge and skill), God of the
Sun (as the King of the divine race is typically equated to the Sun), and the
god of the harvest. But it is the legend
of Lugh’s sacrificial death that lends itself to my relation of the Sun God to
the celebration of Mabon.
My journey of research, meditation, and journey with Lugh
has led me to the following description of the death of Lugh.
Lugh, known by the Welsh as Llew, was cursed by his birth
mother to never have a wife of the people who now inhabit the earth. The magicians
Gwydion and Math, both protectors of Llew, used great sorcery to create the
most beautiful and fairest and graceful
maiden that man ever saw, Blodeuwedd. A woman made of magic, oak, broom, and
meadowsweet, her name mean “flower face.” Lugh loved Blodeuwedd. But many years after their marriage,
Blodeuwedd fell in love with another. Lugh was told of Blodeuwedd’s adultery
but his love for her kept him from taking actions against her. The two lovers
plotted to kill Lugh but the god could not be killed in any ordinary fashion.
Blodeuwedd betrayed Lugh a second time and revealed to her lover Gronw the
secret to killing her husband. Lugh could not be killed on either on land or
water, neither clothed nor naked, neither indoors or out, neither in the day or
night, and neither in the summer or winter. Blodeuwedd lured her husband into a garden
pavilion at dusk for a bath on the autumn equinox. When Lugh was in place half
in the bath with a wrap about his waist as the sun set, she called for her
lover who struck Lugh with a spear. Lugh let out a screech when he received the
fatal blow and immediately transformed into a raven and flew away. Gwydion
searches for Lugh finally finding him at Samhain perched in an oak tree. He
sings the bird down, restores Lugh to his human form and retreats to the
underworld to care for his wounds. Lugh, Gwydion, and Math return to take back
the kingdom form Blodeuwedd and Gronw. A battle ensues. Lugh refuses to allow
Blodeuwedd to be killed. In the end Gwydion turns Blodeuwedd into an owl so she
would never again have the light of the sun upon her face and Gronw escapes to
the land of his people. Gronw appeals to Lugh for forgiveness but is denied.
Lugh demands that Gronw stand on the bank of the river Cynfael and receive a
blow from his spear. Gronw agrees after all others refuse to take his place and
he secures the condition that he can place a stone between him and Lugh. Lugh
of the long arm throws the spear with such force it pierces the stone and his
enemy.
This is my interpretation of the myth as I have come to know
it. You may not agree with my willingness to adapt the legend but I assure you
that this tale has come to me through study, meditation, and divine influence.
The tales of the Celtic people, and many cultures throughout history, have been
lost either in part or in entirety. There is no way to prove this true or
false. But as pagans we know that each person’s journey is personal. How do you
incorporate this Sabbat into your own personal belief system? Do you have a
myth that you equate to this spoke in the wheel? Is it from the culture that
inspires your spirituality?
Having a myth that ties your beliefs and your gods to each
Sabbat makes each Sabbat a personal holy day. As we walk the Wheel of the Year,
we are encouraged to be in tune with its cyclic turning. What better way than
to find a personal connection through the myths and legends as we come to know
them.
Happy Mabon!
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