Autumnal Equinox 2026

The Autumn Equinox arrives at 8:04 PM this evening in the Northern Hemisphere as the sun reaches the celestial longitude of 180 degrees. This is the period in the Chinese farmer’s solar calendar when hours of daylight and night are nearly equal in length with Yin (night) and Yang (day) energy in perfect harmony for the first time since the Spring Equinox in March. Unlike expansive spring energy, autumn’s energy wanes and contracts inward as the joys of summer come to rest and restore and the business of survival takes center stage.

In Chinese Metaphysics, autumn is associated with the Metal element, the West direction and the evening hours when we return home to a setting sun and consolidate energy for the evening. Autumn represents the harvest and the painstaking job of collecting and distributing what is necessary to sustain us through winter. It’s a time for reflection and assessment that often yields a course correction. The emotion associated with Metal’s autumn is grief, a natural and necessary part of life that acknowledges past losses, lessons and all the comings, goings and endings that brought us to this point.

On this Equinox, honor your endings as well as your beginnings, for it is through them we celebrate the cycles of nature and the inevitable passage of time.

Wishing you a bountiful harvest, peaceful endings and always good chi,

Diane Gallin