Autumn Equinox Ritual
“The purpose of human beings is to pour blessings on the earth from cradle to grave.”
Norma Meyers
The Autumn Equinox marks a balancing point between summer and winter, when day and night are of equal length. Here in Southern California, we near the end of the dry season, when the waters of the Los Angeles basin rest at their low point. As we tip into the season of long nights, we will gather in community to work an experimental, multi-year spell intended to deepen our relationship with the land we call home, and to pour out blessings for the place that sustains us. Because this particular Autumn Equinox ritual will also mark the first in-person public ritual that Reclaiming LA has hosted in over a year and a half, it will be a particularly potent occasion to reconnect with the spirits of the land we live on, and with one another.
RITUAL INTENTION
Feather, leaf, web: pour blessings on the land.
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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2021
4:00 PM: Gather and Drum Jam
4:30 PM: Ritual Begins
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LOCATION
Park at: Merry Go Round Lot One, Los Angeles, CA 90027
We’ll be gathering on the grassy part visible from the road as one drives up from Griffith Park Road to Lot One.
NOTE: This is the same area in which we have held other Griffith Park rituals, but is not the Old Zoo location, where we held our Ostara and Beltane in 2019.
For mapping, the geo coordinates are: 34.132157, -118.281742, and the Plus Code is: 4PJ9+V8 Los Angeles, California.
$0 – $20 suggested donation
COVID PRECAUTIONS
This is the first in-person public ritual we have held since Brigid 2020, and we are grateful for the ways we know our community will support one another as we come back together in physical space. In planning our precautions for this ritual, we have considered the Los Angeles County health department guidelines, feedback from our own community members, and our charge–in alignment with the Principles of Unity–to “make our public rituals and events accessible and safe.”
This is a fully masked ritual. By joining us, participants are agreeing to wear a mask over their mouth and nose through the entire event.
Please be aware that some participants may wish to maintain physical distance from others. Be prepared to respect the distancing needs of other participants, and to maintain your own social distance should you require it.
Hand sanitizer will be made available. Please plan to bring any food or water you will require; there will be no sharing of food during or after the ritual. The ritual is fully outdoors.
Many community members have requested that we limit our rituals to vaccinated individuals. While we are a volunteer group and do not have the capacity to check the vaccine status of our participants, we ask you to carefully weigh the potential impact on vulnerable community members before you choose to attend, if you are unvaccinated against COVID-19.
ACCESSIBILITY
The ritual space is approximately 100-120 yards from the parking lot, with a shallow downhill grade. There is a well-packed dirt trail leading from the lot, as well as a fully-paved street. There is a curb-cut near the ritual site. Street parking may be available directly across from, and level with the ritual space, but street parking can be limited. Organizers are happy to help folks get to the site as best we can. The ritual will be held grassy area that is relatively level, but does have small dips and divets. There are very few sound reflective elements near the ritual space that would reflect sound back to attendees. We are likely to complete the ritual around dusk, and there is no street lighting.
We have written this to be as inclusive as possible so that people with accessibility concerns do not have to do the labor of asking. If we have overlooked some aspect, please email us at info@reclaimingla.org, and we will do our utmost to answer – your question will help us to improve our accessibility statements on future rituals.
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WHAT TO BRING/WEAR
- Please bring water and food for yourself. No food will be shared during this ritual.
- Camp chairs! There are no seats at the ritual location. If you plan to stand or sit on the ground, another witch may still appreciate a chair!
- Bring percussion instruments for the drum jam if you are called!
- Wear comfortable shoes for walking.
- Wear clothes you feel comfortable wearing in a public park (e.g., this may mean shorts and a t-shirt instead of your usual ritual wear)
- Wear a mask that will fit comfortably over your mouth and nose for the duration of the ritual.
All Genders Welcome! Children welcome with adult supervision.
To support those in recovery, this ritual is clean and sober.
2021 Ritual Calendar
Brigid: February 6 online via RLA Zoom
Ostara: March 20 online via RLA Zoom
Beltane: May 1 online via Zoom
Summer Solstice: June 12
Lughnasadh: July 31 online via Zoom
Autumn Equinox: September 18 in-person at Griffith Park
Samhain: November 6 online via Zoom
Yule: December 11 at Nicholas Canyon Beach
We are making decisions on whether rituals will take place online or in-person based on local health guidelines and the accessibility needs of our community. For the remainder of 2021, we intend to follow a hybrid format where rituals that have been highly attended in past years will take place via Zoom, and rituals that have tended to be more sparsely attended in the past will take place in public outdoor locations that accommodate social distancing. Participants may be asked to wear masks for in-person rituals.
Ritual plans may be subject to change based on local health guidelines and the needs of our community. For up-to-date information on upcoming rituals and events, subscribe to the Reclaiming LA mailing list!
