Today is March 20th, the Spring Equinox and for me it is one of the happiest days of the year. We don’t have the greatest weather here in the UK (understatement of the century) and for an annoyingly large portion of the year our days are cold, grey and grim. Winter lasts for approximately twenty-seven years. However, today is the Spring Equinox, also called the Vernal Equinox and often Ostara by many in the Pagan community and it is a cause for celebration!
What is the Spring Equinox? This day marks the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. It is also the day when the light finally begins to beat the darkness; from now on our days will be longer than our nights and our days will continue to grow, bringing more light into our lives! Today the amount of light and dark is roughly (but not exactly) equal. In fact, the word equinox comes from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night).
However, for many of us, this day has far more meaning than the scientific explanation. (Don’t get me wrong, I love Science. In fact, I have a Science degree and am often one of those people explaining why chemtrails have no scientific basis and why I don’t actually believe in feng shui). Nevertheless, I do believe in the very real effects of the world around us on our state of mind. Winter depresses me. In fact, for much of it you’ll find me hibernating in my flat inside my duvet cocoon. Many of us head off to work in the dark and return home in the dark.
However, once spring arrives, I start to become a different person. After months of grey skies, the beautiful blue unfolds above our heads and the life-giving sun shines down on our grateful faces. Silent streets are replaced with bursting birdsong. Blossom and buds begin to bloom on trees and bushes. People start to smile more! Strangers will smile at each other on the street (and not in a creepy way). Just this morning I popped into my local coffee shop and what did the person serving me my coffee and I talk about? The weather, of course. “Such a nice day out!” she said. “I know, winter is finally over!” I replied. (Our national pastime here in in the UK is of course talking about the weather). We both smiled. Spring is a time of the sunshine of the heart.
So, how can we celebrate this truly divine day? The easiest way is to just get outside. Many of us have stayed cooped up inside for months. Time to head outdoors. Go outside, turn your face up to the sun and feel her life-giving warmth. Breathe in that fresh, spring air. (I live in London and so here we are mainly breathing in lungfuls of delicious carbon monoxide, but I still appreciate that springtime air). Look up at the blue sky and know that summer is coming. Listen to the birdsong. Smile.
However, if you want to do more than that to celebrate the Spring Equinox then here are a few little ideas:
1. Grab an egg (not too hard!) Write down an intention on the egg. Something you want to achieve this year. This might be a promotion, a project or just a new state of mind. Then head outside and bury the egg in the ground. Ask Mother Earth to take your offering and make it grow.
2. Plant seeds. There are many flowers, fruits and vegetables than can be planted in March. Strawberries, raspberries, onions, chillies, peas, sunflowers, poppies and many more. There are few things more satisfying the planting and tending something with your own fair hands and watching it grow (or in my case, sometimes forgetting to tend it and watching it wither!)
3. Make a Spring Equinox altar. You can use a yellow or green cloth and place on it candles, an egg, fresh flowers, seeds, bulbs and anything that represents springtime. I like to write my intention on a piece of paper, roll it into a little scroll and ‘plant’ it in a small tub of soil which I then place on my altar.
4. Spring Cleaning! No, I’m not mad. And yes, I hate cleaning as much as most people. But at this time, we can make our mundane cleaning into a magical act. Open your windows to let in some fresh spring air and clean with a purpose. While you clean, you are cleaning away the old stagnant energy and sweeping away those winter blues. Declutter – grab all those clothes you know you’ll never wear and donate them. Make way for the new in your life.
5. Honour goddesses of springtime – Ostara, Flora and Persephone. Give thanks to them for the blessings of spring. If you have any oracle decks, find a card that represents one of these goddesses and pop it on a windowsill so that she can sit in the sunshine.
However, you don’t need to do any of these things to celebrate the spring. Just look around you and see the signs of new life bursting forth. The world may be bleak in many ways but hope is always here.
Happy Spring Equinox and may we all be blessed today.
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