What is the Spring Equinox
The spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere is the time when the sun’s subsolar point is leaving the Southern Hemisphere and reaches the equator. At this point, the day and night are about the same length – Equilux actually usually comes a few days earlier, depending on the latitude. This time is commonly associated with Easter, eggs, bunnies, fertility, growth, nature waking up, etc. It usually happens around 20-21st March in the Northern Hemisphere.Spring Equinox in Neo-pagan religions
Spring equinox is usually celebrated as the Ostara holiday in Neo-pagan religions. Ostara should be derived from the Germanic dawn and fertility goddess, Ëostre. Ostara is celebrated with traditional gemstones, incense, and colorful flowers. An Ostara ceremony includes the cleansing and decorating of homes, meditations on the message of renewal, and an appreciation for the days getting longer after the winter.Spring Equinox in Mesopotamia
In Mesopotamia, the Spring Equinox was associated with the return of Inanna from the underworld. With her, Inanna brings warmth and fertility. It coincides with the spring harvest and the annual flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Spring Equinox was also associated with the triumph of the gods over the primordial chaos and the creation of the universe.Simple ritual for the Spring Equinox
Ingredients
• White candle• Black candle
• A pink candle (or any spring-related color, or use white as a universal color)
• A needle, or some tool to carve into the Spring candle
• A vegetable oil
Preparation of the Spring candle
Carve the following symbol into the candle:As you do so, recite the following:
“May the arms of Chaos reach down and embed this candle with the powers of Spring. May you wake up as Nature wakes up”.
After that is done, rub vegetable oil on the candle. As you do so, recite the following:
“I bless you with the power to wake up what is sleeping, to strengthen what is weak, to manifest what is unspoken”.
Do what was described above either one day before the Spring Equinox, or on the same day as the ritual.
The Spring ritual
Place the 3 candles on your altar in a triangular pattern. The triangle should point at you, with the Spring candle being right in front of you. The black candle should go to the left far corner and the white candle at the right far corner. If you want to use any incense, put it at the center of the triangle, if the space permits.1. Close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths.
2. Say: “As above, so below”.
3. Light the black candle.
4. Say: “As within”.
5. Light the white candle.
6. Say: “So without”.
7. Stay silent for a while to get a feeling for the moment.
8. Say: “Just like Inanna returned from the underworld, and just like life returns to Nature”
9. Light the Spring candle.
10. Say: “May my powers grow and mature. May be visible what is hidden and may be reachable what is beyond”.
11. Close your eyes.
12. Say: “May the star of Chaos bless me with powers beyond the natural”.
13. Open your eyes and say “As above, so below”
14. Take the black candle with your left hand; as you blow it, say “As within," but keep holding it.
15. Take the white candle from the right side with your right hand; as you blow it, say "As without," but keep holding it.
16. Say: “As below, so above”; now you can put the candles aside.
17. You can let the Spring candle be lit, or you can blow it out and store it for the next year; this concludes the Spring ritual.