Fall, The Most Spiritual Season

Here, at the beginning of September, we begin the most spiritual season of all. As the leaves fall from the trees and the foliage turns color, the harvest season comes to its conclusion and our thoughts turn to deep inner yearnings as the seasons turn from fall into winter.

September-December brings a concentrated number of holidays and holy days that are invested with significant meanings and social traditions. From Fall Equinox to Winter Solstice, the days grow darker and colder. This is the time of the year when we celebrate our bounty and all the good things we have in life.

It is the season when some cultures and spiritual traditions take time to remember those who have died during the past year and wish them well on their journey into the next world. It is the time of year when we stock up to prepare for winter with extra supplies in the house in case of a severe storm.

It is the time of the year when a cluster of the most popular holidays of the entire year form a constellation of social events where we literally and figuratively invite light into our lives and our homes by not only lighting our fireplaces and candles and turning the heat on, but also bringing light into our lives by inviting our friends and family over to share in laughter, music, singing, dancing, storytelling, food and drink. Our hearts are opened as our homes and our selves are opened.

This is a time of year when there seems to be a great stirring in the soul, when we contemplate at least for a moment our own adulthood and our own mortality. As we gather to pay tribute to those who have gone, we gather to give thanks for what we have, we gather with traditional melodies calling forth memories, and costume parties that let us display aspects of ourselves that are liberated with costumes and masks, we gather with those we care about, we pause in these times to reflect on who we are, where we are, and how we got here.

After celebrating and showing our appreciation for others, we look forward to the increasing sunlight and the ideas about what we want to do differently from now on.

It is during this part of the year that I crave sitting by the fire with a glass of red wine, classical music that features the violin, and plenty of night to do the inner work that presents itself between the celebrations.

When the flames reflecting in our eyes reflect the stirring in our soul, this is the time to explore the mysteries, and savor the season.