September illustrated almanac

moon, mare and virgo woman

This is an illustrated digital almanac of the internal emotional climate, as influenced by the external natural and astronomical events. I wanted to capture visually the shared experience of how it feels to be alive as a tiny human, enveloped in the greater cyclical movement of this planet, throughout one calendar year. Welcome to September!

• The origin of the name

  September gets its name after Latin word for seven called “septum”. In the old calendar system, September used to be the seventh month of the year as the winter months were not counted for (war and farming break!).

• Autumn Equinox

  September 22nd is the start of Autumn, falling on the autumnal Equinox, which means there is approximately equal hours of daylight and darkness. In the Northern hemisphere this event marks the last harvest of the year and the beginning of preparation for the slower, dormant month to follow.

• Other festivities

  The Autumn Equinox was (and still is) a part of the celebration in many cultures. In Egypt, the Ceremony of lightning the fire was a festival of lights for all gods and goddesses. In the old Incan Empire, the “Citua” was held on the new moon nearest the Autumn Equinox. It was a ritual of cleansing followed by feasting, to honour the Moon goddess. In ancient Greece there was an annual celebration this time of the year, for which events the participants had to take a vow of silence. And in China the annual festival of “Yue-ping” was held from the New Moon to the Full Moon. People made round cakes called Moon Cakes, and painted figures of women or a hare and trees on them.

• Sun in Virgo (August 23d to September 22nd)

  For the majority of September, the sun is in Virgo. Virgo is an earthy element, and it represents prosperity and abundance, balanced by sensibility and a little frugality. Those with Virgo in their sun placement are said to be practical, hardworking, sophisticated and kind. They are advice givers and planners, that love to be of service to others, and are sometimes plagued by overanalysing and being critical. Like Gemini, they are ruled by the messenger planet of Mercury. In mythology, Mercury carried out requests and tasks at the command of other gods, even adopting multiple personas in order to fulfill his missions. In Virgo this shows up as working hard to stay on top of their overflowing to-do’s. Virgo folks are also said to appear a bit shy at first and prefer to stay at home and tend to their inner lives.

• Harvest Full Moon

  September’s full moon is called the Harvest Moon.