The Vernal Equinox is one of the two points where the Ecliptic crosses the Celestial Equator. At the Vernal Equinox the sun appears to be moving across the equator from the Southern Celestial Hemisphere to the Northern Celestial Hemisphere. The other point where the sun crosses the Celestial Equator is the Autumnal Equinox.

Recall that it is the apparent motion of the sun eastwards around the Ecliptic that creates the seasons that we experience at different times of the year. The arrival of the sun at the Vernal Equinox on or about March 21 marks the beginning of Spring.

Solstices The Sun is at its lowest path in the sky on the Winter Solstice. After that day the Sun follows a higher and higher path through the sky each day until it is in the sky for exactly 12 hours. On the Spring Equinox the Sun rises exactly in the east travels through the sky for 12 hours and sets exactly in the west. On the Equinox this is the motion of the Sun through the sky for everyone on earth. Every place on earth experiences a 12 hours day twice a year on the Spring and Fall Equinox.

The Autumn Equinox associated with harvest time is also closely associated with the dead. In many cultures around the world human sacrifices have been offered. The sacrifices were offered with the belief they would insure a good crop, a future plentiful harvest. Corn, also associated with Autumn and the harvest, comes from under the Earth where the dead reside. But corn really had more to do with fertility and new life. In Germany, peasants used to break the first straws of hay brought into the barns, saying, "This food is for the dead." Many people throughout the world hold festivals at this time of year honoring the departed.

The Autumn Equinox is the counterpoint to the Spring Equinox. Whereas the Spring season is the time when life seems to be renewing itself and coming to the surface, Autumn is when things begin to shed, and the growth which was young in spring is now matured. Springtime energy speeds up, in the fall it slows down. The energy of Spring is upward, plants pushing upwards towards the bright sun, in Fall the energy moves downward, leaves falling away from the trees.

Native Americans have created countless stone structures linked to equinoxes and solstices. Many are still standing. One was called Calendar One by its modern-day finder. It is in a natural amphitheatre of about 20 acres in size in Vermont. From a stone enclosure in the center of the bowl, one can see a number of vertical rocks and other markers around the edge of the bowl "At the summer solstice, the sun rose at the southern peak of the east ridge and set at a notch at the southern end of the west ridge." The winter solstice and the equinoxes were similarly marked.

The Equinoxes are the two days out of the whole year when the northern and southern hemispheres receive the same amount of sunlight, and the days and nights are the same length. The tilt of the Earth's axis is not toward the Sun, but lies at a right angle to an imaginary Earth-Sun line. At the equator, the sun is directly overhead. These days are the Equinoxes (Equinox means "equal night").

The Equinoxes are times of balance, and also times of intense change; the solar rising and setting points are moving quickly from day to day - southward during Autumn, northward during Spring. The Autumn Equinox was the time of the harvest festival.

Why in Autumn do we want to match the animals in nature and hibernate? The energy on the planet changes. This energy is called life-force energy, Christ-force energy, Universal energy, Supreme Being's energy. In the Autumn this energy is drawn down into the Earth. Outwardly, the leaves are drawn off the trees. Inwardly, we experience feeling drained. But the good news is that the energy that is draining is most likely not our own anyway. We took on someone's energy (thoughts, emotions) and obligingly, or in most cases, ignorantly carried it around, until the fall season draws our attention back to ourselves where we experience a change in energy within and around us. That is one of the purposes of the seasons, to be different from all the others so that we notice changes we might not have if everything stayed the same. Each season prompts us to reflect (go inward). It makes us pause to review our lives.

With Autumn equating to the harvest time of year, what have we harvested in our lives? Well, it depends what type of seeds we have planted. If tomato seeds were planted, we would expect tomatoes. If we planted negative thoughts, guess what will be reaped during harvest time? Positive thoughts and ideas? Guess again! We are farmers with our thoughts, ideas and emotions as much as a farmer who uses soil as his medium. That is why it is so important to put our attention on what we truly want to experience, and then create the correct atmosphere (attitude or medium) for that to manifest (your mock-ups). How successful would a farmer be if he planted tomato seeds but then never watered, fed, or weeded that area? It isn't enough to want to experience something. We must create the receptive environment for it to show up so that our harvest is a successful one! The Autumn Equinox symbolizes harvest time outwardly and inwardly.