The autumn equinox marks a pivotal moment in the year, when the hours of daylight and darkness fall into perfect symmetry, offering a moment of cosmic balance. In 2025, it falls on September 22 in the northern hemisphere, ushering in a time of harvest, reflection, and preparation for the cozier months ahead.
While many cultures around the world have long celebrated this threshold with unique rituals that honor both abundance and release in the days leading up to winter, today’s rituals capture a more contemporary perspective on the seasonal shift. From preserving parties to capture the flavors of autumn, to creating a sacred home altar as a grounding practice, these rituals will help you bring the sacred into this seasonal shift.
Here, find Vogue’s guide to unique ways to celebrate the autumn equinox.
Host a Pickling and Preserving Party
The equinox is a moment to savor abundance while preparing for leaner days ahead. Celebrate by inviting friends to join a pickling and preserving party, where you can bottle jams, pickle produce, or ferment seasonal greens around a table lined with autumnal fruits and vegetables like figs, squash, apples, and wild mushrooms. Beyond sustainability, this ritual is reminiscent of ancient customs of preserving food to carry communities through winter.
Originally from Mexico and now based in Denmark, Noma’s head chef Pablo Soto suggests setting the table with glass jars, brine or sugar, and a spread of peak-season produce to turn preserving into a communal feast. “You can pickle chilies, mushrooms, berries, or herbs, and the best part is opening one of those jars later in the season,” he says. “It’s like rediscovering the moment you picked them, a way of sharing a little bite of the past in the present.”
Build Your Equinox Altar
Balance is at the heart of all equinox traditions. At home, style a surface with candles framed by foraged leaves, nuts, or berries. This altar honors the equilibrium of light and dark, offering both a symbolic centerpiece and a grounding daily ritual. Place intentions, notes, or personal tokens on the altar to remind yourself of what you’re releasing and what you’re inviting in.
For Sofía Rivera García Granados, founder of Mexico City-based floral brand Artistería, the autumn equinox is a moment to turn walks into rituals. “I love gathering small treasures like fallen petals, seeds, wild grasses, or pebbles and weaving them into an altar,” she says. “I often include flowers with meaning: cempasúchil for light and remembrance, chrysanthemums for resilience, and lots of roses for love and renewal. Placing these seasonal findings around candles feels like creating a personal garden of balance: a space where nature, intention, and the shifting light of the season converge.”
Visit Your Ancestors’ Graves with Seasonal Offerings
For many cultures, the equinox is a traditional time to visit the graves of loved ones. For those who observe this tradition, many will bring along offerings of flowers, fruits, or candles, symbols of continuity between past and present, but Paige Curtin, spell specialist at HausWitch Home + Healing in Salem, Massachusetts, suggests a way to make this ritual even more personal.
