Once again we are coming to the end of a season as we see out the Autumn, the season of Lughnasadh, and prepare for winter, or Samhain, which begins on the first of November. During Lughnasadh we have contemplated our harvest, both practical and spiritual, and this has been a wonderful opportunity to practice gratitude. Throughout Lughnasadh we have contemplated those whom in Celtic language are termed our soul-friends; those who have shared parts of our journey with us, who may be known or unknown, and felt gratitude for the support we have received from those around us. Focusing on gratitude for others’ kindness is well known to improve our mood and general well-being and this is probably why it is central to all spiritual and philosophical traditions.
In a study published this year in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology the researchers concluded that showing gratitude to a partner improved the relationship for both people, creating a sense of commitment and security which enhanced their satisfaction of the relationship as a whole. And if we broaden this out further there is evidence that gratitude fosters bonds generally within groups of people which helps to cement social groups and create a sense of belonging and safety (Fredrickson, 2004). This is probably a fairly obvious link to make however, it fits into a much wider body of evidence which shows that having what is sometimes termed ‘an attitude of gratitude’ improves our general well-being to such an extent that current research is now focusing on how we can increase our sense of gratitude using simple techniques such as making a daily list of things we can be thankful for. Interestingly, it is not just those things we can attribute to another person which improves well-being, thoughts such as ‘I am grateful to wake up each morning’ have also been shown to have such a positive effect that science is now investigating what the internal mechanisms are for explaining this relationship. As A. M. Wood et al., (2010), point out, when we move from investigating whether something works, to investigating how it works, we can assume it is effective (see below for references).
My own focus for Lughnasadh has been thanksgiving for people: family and friends, tutors, teachers and guides, as well as for new opportunities and the abundance which is all too easy to take for granted. I think back to the early Celtic people who had to work physically hard for water, shelter, food, clothing, heat and safety and who took nothing for granted. We can see this in the wealth of prayers and blessings for every action throughout the day, blessings for work, for food, water, animals, journeys, homecomings, resting; we have moved so far away from the source of everything we have that it is easy to assume we will have hot and cold running water inside the house every morning and a choice of food for breakfast, a choice of clothes to wear and so on.
It is also a time for letting go and this is beautifully demonstrated as we watch the leaves gently fall from the trees. A lovely walking meditation for this time of year involves contemplating the freedom of letting go whilst standing before a tree and noticing each leaf flutter through the air. It can also be beneficial to stop and observe the leaves on the ground and become aware of the cycle of the year as each individual leaf slowly becomes part of the earth and sustains a different form of life.
Bringing this mindfulness to a yearly occurrence is another way of appreciating what is happening around us rather than missing it all and suddenly realising it is Christmas again. It slows us down, keeps us in the present, and, as we know, that is where we are happiest.
On the thirty-first of October we let go of Autumn, the season of the Irish Hero Lugh whose Welsh counterpart, Llew Llaw Gyffes, is also recognised at this time of year. My favourite tale from the Mabinogion as a child was the tale of Blodeuwedd, Llew’s wife. Having been made from flowers in order to be a wife for Llew, she is forced to live against her nature until eventually she takes a magical lover and together they kill Llew. In revenge, Llew’s family turn her from a flower maiden into an owl. I was obviously always going to be a feminist as although I felt sorry for Llew, he was rather controlling, and I felt that being an owl was a far happier alternative. Blodeuwedd represents the harvest at this time of year, the cornucopia of plenty in a female form as the fertility of spring is brought into the abundance of harvest.
The first of November is the bridge into Samhain, where, if we choose to let go of the outside world and all its attractions and diversions long enough, we can take our harvest, our abundance of love, friendship, knowledge and sustenance, into the darkness where we will rest like a seed until called upon to grow once more. Winter is a time of healing and a great opportunity to meditate on impermanence.
Look, the trees are turning their own bodies into pillars
of light, are giving off the rich fragrance of cinnamon and fulfillment,
the long tapers of cattails are bursting and floating away over the blue shoulders
of the ponds, and every pond, no matter what its name is, is
nameless now. Every year everything I have ever learned
in my lifetime leads back to this: the fires and the black river of loss whose other side
is salvation, whose meaning none of us will ever know. To live in this world
you must be able to do three things: to love what is mortal; to hold it
against your bones knowing your own life depends on it; and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.
In Blackwater Woods ―Mary Oliver
Mindful activities for the next few weeks: • Have a long soak in the bath and enjoy the warmth and comfort • Sit or stand by a fire and watch the flames dance, remembering your own ancestors and how many fires have been watched in this way • Read a book just because you want to • Make time for fun and laughter as well as time for aloneness • Contemplate your own ‘nakedness’, your vulnerability, as you are stripped free of leaves and stand tall, strong and beautiful, and wonder whether there might be burdens you can let fall gently to the ground.
Go with thanks and blessings, as we search for our winter hoard, the hidden jewel in the depths of our darkness.
References:
Fredrickson, B. L. (2004). Gratitude, like other positive emotions, broadens and builds. The psychology of gratitude, 145, 166.
Fredrickson, B. L. (2004). The broaden–and–build theory of positive emotions. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences, 359(1449), 1367-1377.
Park, Y., Impett, E. A., MacDonald, G., & Lemay Jr, E. P. (2019). Saying “thank you”: Partners’ expressions of gratitude protect relationship satisfaction and commitment from the harmful effects of attachment insecurity. Journal of personality and social psychology.
Watkins, P. C., Woodward, K., Stone, T., & Kolts, R. L. (2003). Gratitude and happiness: Development of a measure of gratitude, and relationships with subjective well-being. Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal, 31(5), 431-451. Wood, A. M., Froh, J. J., & Geraghty, A. W. (2010). Gratitude and well-being: A review and theoretical integration. Clinical psychology review, 30(7), 890-905.
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