Autumn Equinox Festival
Foundation Centre - Ireland
September 20, 2025
By: Noeleen Watson
With a yellow weather warning for rain in place for today's ceremony, well, according to the weather app, there turned out to be not a drop of rain for our ceremony. We were so blessed with the weather today. Even though the skies were grey and there was certainly a light autumn breeze, today's celebration was hugely attended with new faces and returning faces. There were plenty of chats and a loud chorus of voices in the courtyard.
We started with our presiding Priestess welcoming everyone and thanking all for coming. Cait explained a little about the Autumn Equinox, the changes in the season, the importance of community and being there for each other.
We started our procession towards the Rose Garden, passing a group of hens having their morning meeting. Continuing on, we passed a trellis that was full to the brim with gorgeous, colourful and beautifully scented sweet pea. Walking over the little wooden bridge, I noticed the fast gush of the little stream underneath, probably due to all of the rain that has fallen here in Ireland of late. There were still some roses in the garden, which is amazing. One of our Priestesses invoked the Rosa Mundi by bringing us into a magical journey into our heart. She reminded us that the layers of the rose are like all the layers we have in our community.
We made our way towards the Sacred Grove dedicated to our Druid Clan of Danu, as I stood among the trees in the grove, all I kept noticing was how dark the bark on the trees looked. It was a spectacular sight, the contrast of the darkness and the lightness of the colours of the fallen leaves that covered the earth like a blanket. While standing under the canopy of the trees it sounded as though it was lashing rain, in fact the rainwater was just running down from the previous showers. The Goddess Danu was invoked here and then we were all invited to connect with a tree. 'Have a little chat.' Cait, our presiding Priestess showed everyone the tree that was planted for Olivia, our founder when she passed away. Even though it may not be as big as the grove, it has all the potential to be as big as them.
Moving towards the Abbey in quiet procession, you could hear all the sounds nature had to offer us. In the Abbey our circle was so big. Cait shared with us how this was Olivia favourite place, and she loved being there. The abbey is dedicated to our Sister Society, the Noble Order of Tara. One of our Priestesses invoked the Goddess Eriu, our sovereign Goddesses of Ireland.
Now we walked in procession towards the temple, the rain stayed away. Our Priest Tom knocked at the door, and we made our way into the heart of our temple. We gathered around the Sacred Brigid's Well. Here Cait read out an oracle to the Goddess Tiamat of Babylon, the oracle tells us that Tiamat is the 'Mother of all Creation' loss is a normal part of human life and to bring awareness and balance to our lives. All the different deities were invoked by attending Priestesses and Priest. Blessings were given to all who wanted them.
We made our way to the high altar where a Priestess was waiting to deliver an oracle; the Goddess Hecate had an important message for us all. The one thing that resonated with me was when she said, 'do you know who I am, I am Hecate, now do you know who you are?'
Various creative offerings where shared - poems from different participants. Olwen, one of our Priestesses shared a touching story and brought an offering that was made with Brigid's Well water, petals from the Rose Garden as well as the symbolism of the air and bees. It was truly beautiful. Our Priestess Katheriona brought us on a journey back to the Rose Garden. There was certainly a huge connection to the rose, the heart and love. Healing was sent out to all who needed it including the parts of the world in conflict.
Our ceremony today was so important to remind us that we are not alone, not to be afraid of the dark and the lack of sun in the coming weeks. The importance of reaching out to people within our community, that none of us are on our own.
All the deities were thanked as our ceremony ended, healing was offered to anyone who wanted to stay back and receive.
We all made our way over to the coffee shop for yummy cake and hot tea. I listened to everyone saying how beautiful today's ceremony was and the wonderful loving energy that was felt throughout the day. The biggest learning for me today was listening to how important it is to be our true self, to acknowledge our own light and allow what ever needs to be shed allow it to fall away like the autumn leaves.
Our next ceremony is Saturday, 8th November, 2025 at 11am. (Please note: Festivals are accessible by invitation only - to request one, please see this page: Events)
