The Autumn Equinox: Finding Balance in the Turning of the Seasons
The Autumn Equinox arrives as a threshold moment: a sacred pause between light and dark, day and night, growth and rest. On this day, the hours of daylight and darkness are almost perfectly balanced, a cosmic reminder that equilibrium is not only possible but deeply natural.
The wheel of the year keeps turning, and with it, our inner lives are called to shift, soften, and reorient.
For those of us who walk in rhythm with the seasons, the Autumn Equinox is not simply a date on the calendar. It is a living invitation to return to balance, to harvest the fruits of our efforts, and to prepare—gently, wisely—for the inward journey of the colder months ahead. It is a time to gather what we’ve grown, to honour what has flourished, and to release what no longer serves.
The Autumn Equinox brings a different energy and set of themes into our lives, these shifts asks us to make changes so we can align with this seasonal turning on every level—mindset, body, emotions, and soul.
The Energy of the Autumn Equinox
At its essence, the Autumn Equinox is about balance. The natural world shows us how day and night come into harmony, and we are invited to seek the same within ourselves. It’s a time of duality, where opposites meet in equal measure:
Light and dark coexist without struggle.
Harvest and release walk hand in hand.
Inner and outer life are both acknowledged.
This energy is subtle yet powerful. While spring’s equinox carries the energy of beginnings and renewal, autumn’s equinox holds the wisdom of culmination and surrender. It reminds us that we cannot endlessly expand and produce; we must also rest, reflect, and restore.
In ancient traditions, this was the second harvest festival, often celebrated as Mabon in the Pagan Wheel of the Year. Communities would gather the abundance of the fields, giving thanks for sustenance and sharing in gratitude before the long winter. Even if we no longer live in agricultural societies, the symbolism still resonates: this is a time to harvest the fruits of our own labour—whether they are projects, relationships, growth, or lessons—and to prepare for the inward season of rest.
The Autumn Equinox offers us gifts, if we are willing to slow down and receive them.
First, it offers us a moment of stillness and reflection. There is something rare and precious about this balance point in the year. It acts like a natural pause, a threshold between seasons, and invites us to take stock. We can notice how far we have come since the year began, remember the intentions we set months ago, and ask ourselves what truly matters as we move forward.
It also brings the energy of harvest. This is a time to acknowledge and celebrate the fruits of our labour, whether they appear in the form of tangible achievements, moments of joy, deepened relationships, or new self-understanding. Harvest is not only about physical abundance but about the richness of emotional, creative, and spiritual life.
The equinox reminds us of the wisdom of release. Just as the trees release their leaves in order to conserve energy for the winter, we too are called to let go. The equinox whispers that clinging to what no longer nourishes us will only drain our vitality. Release is not loss but preparation. By clearing space, we make room for rest, renewal, and new growth to emerge when the time is right.
Finally, the equinox brings with it a gentle return to inner life. As the nights grow longer and the days shorten, we are invited to slow down, to listen more deeply, and to create space for contemplation. While summer may have been a time of outward expression and activity, autumn encourages self-reflection, slower rhythms, and more intimate creative practices.
Eclipse Season and the Autumn Equinox
What makes the Autumn Equinox particularly potent in some years is its closeness to eclipse season. Eclipses occur when the Sun, Moon, and Earth align in such a way that light is temporarily obscured, and they always come in pairs of solar and lunar eclipses. These celestial events mark times of accelerated change, endings, and beginnings. They act as cosmic turning points, reshaping our path in ways that feel fated or deeply transformative.
When eclipse season overlaps with the equinox, the energy of balance is magnified and intensified. The equinox itself offers us a pause, a moment of reflection and recalibration. Eclipses, by contrast, act like catalysts, shaking us out of complacency and illuminating what is hidden. Together they create a dynamic interplay between stillness and movement, between the choice to consciously find equilibrium and the inevitability of change that arrives regardless of our readiness.
During such times, we may feel pulled more dramatically toward release, as eclipses often close doors that are no longer meant for us. These closures can feel sudden or surprising, but when held through the lens of equinox energy, they can be seen as part of the natural rhythm of surrender. Just as the trees do not resist the falling of their leaves, we too are asked to trust the wisdom of endings.
At the same time, eclipses plant seeds of new beginnings, often in places where we least expect them. This mirrors the deeper truth of the equinox: that every ending carries within it the potential for renewal. As we turn toward the darker half of the year, eclipses may reveal what inner work is most necessary, what balance must be restored, and what path is most aligned with our soul’s unfolding.
Eclipse energy can feel destabilising, yet the equinox provides an anchor. When life feels in flux, the equinox reminds us to return to centre, to seek harmony even in uncertainty, and to trust that balance is always possible, even if it looks different than before. In this way, the equinox and eclipse season together invite us into a deeper surrender. They teach us that balance is not about clinging to sameness, but about finding steadiness amidst inevitable change.
What the Equinox Asks of Us
If we listen deeply, the Autumn Equinox whispers guidance for our path forward. It asks us to reassess our priorities, to take a clear look at where we are giving too much energy and where we may need to refocus. Balance requires us to notice what is consuming us unnecessarily and to bring our commitments back into harmony.
It also asks us to nourish our bodies with the rhythms of the season. As the weather cools, our bodies crave grounding, warming, and nourishing foods. The equinox is a reminder to care for ourselves in tangible, physical ways, so that we remain resilient as the light shifts.
Another teaching of this moment is the importance of honouring cycles. The equinox shows us that life moves in rhythms of growth, harvest, and rest. We are not meant to be in perpetual summer, always producing, always striving. Accepting the cyclical nature of life helps us release resistance and live more gracefully.
The equinox calls us to integrate lessons. This is not just a time of harvest but of inner weaving. We are asked to gather the wisdom we have gained in the past six months and carry it consciously into the darker half of the year. It is a time to recognise not only what we achieved but what we learned, how we grew, and how we have changed.
Above all, the equinox asks us to create sacred balance. Balance is not static or perfect; it is a living dance, an ongoing recalibration. The equinox reminds us that we can always return to centre, adjusting when life tips too far in one direction.
Aligning with the Equinox in Mindset, Body, Emotions, and Soul
To truly live in harmony with the equinox, we can align with its teachings on every level of our being.
Mind
On the level of mindset, autumn encourages us to slow our pace and think differently. In a culture that glorifies constant productivity, this shift in mindset can feel radical, even uncomfortable, yet it is profoundly healing. One way to work with this energy is to cultivate gratitude, beginning and ending the day with an acknowledgment of what is already present and good. Another way is to redefine productivity so that rest, reflection, and integration are valued just as highly as outward achievement. The equinox also invites us to clarify our focus, identifying the few priorities that matter most this season and letting go of unnecessary busyness. We can also learn directly from the natural world, observing how trees surrender their leaves without resistance and allowing that wisdom to guide our own process of letting go. Each morning we might ask ourselves what it would look like to live in balance today, and then carry that awareness through our choices.
Body
On the level of the body, our physical selves feel the shift of the season with clarity. The equinox reminds us to support our health as the days cool and the light wanes. Seasonal eating is one of the most grounding practices at this time, turning to root vegetables, pumpkins, apples, pears, grains, and warming stews that nourish us from within. Our movement practices may also shift. While summer may have been a time for higher intensity activities, autumn calls for grounding practices such as yoga, pilates, stretching, or long walks in the crisp air. Rest becomes sacred at this time of year, and honouring natural circadian rhythms is especially important. As the nights lengthen, it may feel right to go to bed earlier, to nap when necessary, and to welcome sleep as an ally. Herbal support can also nourish the body, whether in the form of teas made from elderberry, nettle, or echinacea, or other seasonal remedies. Preparing and sharing a seasonal meal can become a ritual in itself, a way of thanking the Earth for her abundance while also tending to our physical well-being.
Emotions
On the emotional level, autumn often brings tenderness. The longer nights and the atmosphere of release can stir feelings we may have kept at bay during the brighter months. The equinox encourages us to allow grief to move through us, just as trees allow their leaves to fall. We may need to honour endings, to mourn what is passing, and to sit with feelings of transition without rushing to move beyond them. This is also a season to explore balance in our emotional lives, noticing whether we give too much without receiving or whether we withhold when our hearts long to share more freely. Instead of analysing our emotions or trying to control them, the equinox asks us simply to sit with them, breathing into their presence and recognising them as teachers. A powerful practice is to write down what we no longer wish to carry into the darker season ahead. This list of letting go can then be released through ritual, perhaps by burning it safely, burying it in the earth, or scattering it to the wind, symbolising trust in the cycles of release and renewal.
Soul
On the level of the soul, the equinox is one of the most potent thresholds of the year. It opens a doorway to inner wisdom and deeper alignment with the cycles of nature. Meditation can be especially powerful at this time, particularly meditations that centre on balance—visualising oneself standing in equal light and dark, steady at the centre of opposites, with harmony rooted in the soul. Creating a seasonal altar can be another soulful practice, decorated with autumn leaves, acorns, apples, candles, or any items that evoke the essence of harvest and balance. Rituals of light can also honour the season, such as lighting a candle at both sunrise and sunset to acknowledge the equality of day and night. This is also an auspicious time to deepen practices that help us listen inwardly, whether through journaling, dreamwork, tarot, or quiet contemplation. Simply sitting in silence each evening and asking the higher self what wisdom should be carried into the new season can yield profound insight.
Ways to Celebrate the Autumn Equinox
There are many ways to honour the equinox, both in quiet solitude and in community. Some may feel called to share a seasonal meal with loved ones, offering thanks for the blessings of the year and savouring the nourishment of harvest foods.
Others may choose to walk in nature, paying attention to the shifting colours, the crispness of the air, and the small treasures that fall to the ground—perhaps gathering leaves, acorns, or seeds to carry home as symbols of the season.
Many people create rituals of gratitude and release, sitting in quiet reflection to acknowledge what has flourished and then consciously letting go of what is ready to fall away.
Celebrations can also take the form of embodiment, such as practising yoga postures that cultivate balance and strength, or engaging in mindful movement that connects the body to the energy of equilibrium.
Beginning a seasonal journal can deepen the experience, allowing space to record reflections, intentions, and inner shifts as autumn unfolds.
What matters most is that the act of celebration honours both the outer season and the inner turning that accompanies it.
Living in Balance Beyond the Equinox
The equinox itself lasts for only a day, but its lessons extend far beyond. It is not about finding perfect balance in a single moment but about cultivating awareness of cycles and rhythms. When we align ourselves with these natural patterns, life becomes less of a struggle and more of a dance. We begin to see that rest is not weakness but wisdom, that letting go is not loss but the preparation for renewal, and that balance is not a fixed destination but a way of walking.
The Autumn Equinox invites us to root ourselves in gratitude, to honour both abundance and loss, and to step into the darker season not with fear but with reverence. It reminds us that we, too, are cyclical beings, and that in finding harmony with the Earth we rediscover harmony within ourselves.
Journal Prompts for the Autumn Equinox
What am I most grateful for in my life right now, and how can I hold that gratitude in the months to come?
What have I harvested in the past season—physically, emotionally, spiritually—and how can I celebrate those gifts?
What am I being called to release in order to find greater balance in my life?
Where in my daily rhythms do I need to restore equilibrium between giving and receiving, doing and resting, speaking and listening?
What wisdom do I want to carry with me into the darker season, and how can I honour it as a guiding light?
The Autumn Equinox is a sacred pause, a moment to breathe between seasons. It brings us the gift of balance, the richness of harvest, and the wisdom of release. It asks us to realign our lives with the rhythm of the Earth and to honour both the light and the dark within ourselves.
As you move through this season, may you find harmony in your days, nourishment in your body, presence in your emotions, and deep wisdom in your soul. May you trust the beauty of letting go and step into the darker months with a heart full of gratitude and balance.
xo Emily
