The vernal equinox will occur tomorrow, Thursday 23 September at 5.21am, astronomically marking the first day of spring here in the Southern Hemisphere.
In Australia, we know spring’s arrival is near when wattles start to paint the town bright yellow, reptiles emerge from their winter sleep, native wildflowers and Jacarandas are abundant, and magpies start their swooping season.
Scientifically, the equinox occurs when the sun is exactly above the Equator and sunrise and sunset are exactly 12 hours apart.
We see the equinox due to the Earth’s tilt, and the Southern Hemisphere’s equinox is known as the Southward equinox due the position of the celestial line’s position in the tilt.
The turn of the season has been celebrated by many cultures and religions for centuries, including the local Ngunnawal Indigenous people who trek to the top of southern mountains to gather and feast on bogong moths.
In Paganism, the spring equinox is known as Ostara, where believers gather to celebrate the land waking up from winter, renewal, rebirth and the beginning of the stirrings of life. Â
The Norse Goddess of Fertility, Freya, is believed in Paganism to abandon Earth during the cold months, returning to restore nature’s beauty in spring.
Egg rituals, flowers and greenery, a broom for spring cleaning, and a refreshing, bountiful feast are all different ways people celebrate the spring equinox.
Crystals believed to be aligned with the spring equinox are green aventurine for new growth, sunstone for warmth, peridot for new patterns and life cycles, moss agate for new beginnings, ocean jasper for peace and calm, and tree agate for stability.
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