Autumn

The equinox is a special phenomenon: it applies regardless of where you are on earth. While the days at the equator are the same length as the nights all year round, the differences north and south of the equator increase in the direction of the solstices. In the summer months the days are longer than the nights, in winter it is the other way round. On the day of the equinox, the northern and southern hemispheres virtually exchange their differences. On this day, day and night are exactly the same length, regardless of where you are on earth.

As the light and warmth fade, the life forces of nature retreat. In October, the leaves of the trees turn colourful, the mist hangs in swathes over meadows, forests and lakes. The last blackberries, now somewhat sour, can be picked, the apples are ripe and fall almost by themselves into the harvest baskets. The pumpkins glow orange and the last potatoes can be harvested and made into a feast over the fire in a delicious harvest soup. And then we say goodbye to the abundance of summer. A time of inner contemplation and a search for the inner light begins.

The creatures of nature

The dwarves cavort on the seasonal table. Just as we can turn more to the inner self after the joy of life in summer, so too the elemental beings retreat into the earth.

Rudolf Steiner writes about this: