What do autumn leaves symbolize

There are a few symbols that represent autumn, most of them centered on color. However, the first and most significant symbol of autumn is this Germanic symbol.

Firstly, the downward-facing cross in the middle is an indicator of life and crops going back to rest for the winter. Secondly, the characteristic m resembles the astrological sign Scorpio, which is prevalent from late October to late November, which lies in the Northern hemisphere autumn period. Being a season that contains both abundance and solemnity, autumn has recorded a number of myths, legends, and festivities over the years.

According to Greek mythology , Persephone, the daughter of Demeter the goddess of the harvest, returns to the underworld during the September equinox every year. During the time that Persephone is in the underworld, Demeter is so sad that she deprives the earth of crops until spring when her daughter returns to her. The Romans honored the harvest festival in a celebration known as Cerelia. This festival dedicated to Ceres the goddess of corn was marked with offerings of pigs and first fruits of harvest, music, parades, games, sports, and a thanksgiving feast.

This Roman festival follows a story similar to the Greek origin of seasons, with Persephone being known as Cerelia, Demeter being known as Ceres, and Hades being known as Pluto. The Chinese and the Vietnamese associate the full moon of the equinox with a good harvest. Its spiritual significance, of course, connects to the number one.

The number one represents the beginning of a new cycle in your life. It stands for rebirth, especially. Perhaps the most famous three-lobed leaf is that of the maple. The number three is an important number in spirituality. Of course, to Christians, three is associated with the Holy Trinity. While, in a broader spiritual sense, three has other meanings. A falling leaf in the autumntime signifies the end of a cycle, and a leaf with three points lets you know that you will grow to meet the challenge and, not only that, but you are already three steps into your journey.

This is because its leaf has five perfectly defined points or lobes. Finding a fall leaf with five lobes could well be a sign of guidance from your angels, specifically conveying the number five. Quite the contrary, you are in for uncertain times. Fall leaves signify the near completion of a phase or cycle in your life. Of that there can be no doubt. But, that is a very broad meaning.

There are various ways we can decode messages and find nuance in their meaning. For example, above we focused on the number of lobes or points on a leaf. Color also plays a very important role. When we think of autumn leaves, we immediately imagine the beautiful palette of red, orange, and yellow! Together, these colors paint the forest in profound and meaningful ways. But, in isolation, the color of each leaf can convey a particular message.

Yellow is a vibrant, positive, and hopeful color. In the spring it symbolizes hope for a bountiful summer and it represents all the fertility that comes with the renewed world. However, such representation is, naturally, misplaced in September, October, and November.

So, instead we should take another message from the falling yellow leaf. That message is one of intellect and creativity. If you find a period of creativity in your life is coming to an end, be ready to receive a new and enthusiastic experience to fill the void. Keep an eye out for artistic opportunities. Perhaps we should have started with red.

And red is a very symbolic color no matter where you are in the world. In the West, we connect the meaning of red with all things passionate. Red is used a symbol of passionate and physical love, and also used as a symbol of passionate and physical hatred. Whereas, in the East, especially China, red is a profound and powerful symbol of good fortune, good luck, and unlimited abundance.

In fact, the color red is used in decoration to cultivate good luck. So, what does that mean for our falling red leaf? Well, it really depends on which side of the coin resonates with you. A falling red leaf could suggest the end of a period of excessive and unbridled passion in your life. An end of passionate love might feel like a bummer, but it could be that a feud with a neighbor is finally coming to a peaceful conclusion.

Alternatively, the red leaf might predict an end to a period of abundance and good fortune. To get orange, you take a dab of red and a splash of yellow and mix it all up. This is pretty representative of its meaning. It brings the passion of red, to the creativity, intelligence and hope of yellow. So, what you get is a color that represents a great deal of warmth. It also symbolizes successful endeavors.

Yellow might be the bright spark of a great idea, but without the passion of red to drive action the idea is more-or-less useless to you. So, what does this mean for an orange falling leaf? One of the best words I have to describe the season of autumn is bittersweet.

It is a time of many moods, some sad and some inspirational. How can we not be moved by the dramatic changes of color, the cooler weather, the descending darkness, and the barren branches contrasted against the stark sky. As we see time and again during the fall, the trees shed their leaves as part of the cycle of renewal.

This is a universal principle — in order to grow, we must release something. However, there is a more subtle process at hand in our psyche. Here, too, if we want to grow—to continue to evolve into better human beings in every way possible—something needs to be let go of.

In fact, we are in a constant process of integrating new information, aspects of ourselves, perceptions, and ideas, as we realize that old ways of doing things no longer work. In computer science, what was a cutting-edge programming language 10 years ago may be completely out-dated today, and we need to constantly update our knowledge and skills to keep up with the evolution of technology.

Fall season reminds us that we all have out-moded parts of ourselves that we need to let go of. This allows us to sprout new ideas, improve skills, deepen our relationships, and grow on the spiritual path. On the contrary, like the leaves that drop from the trees, they can serve as the foundation for new growth and fuel for renewal. In a forest, the soil becomes rich and continues to feed the flora indigenous to the area largely by the compost of the dead plant matter that has fallen to the forest floor.

Many of us are able to compost the leaves and twigs we rake up at this time in order to have a rich and natural fertilizer with which to nurture our gardens. You have an inner garden that needs the same compost. The self-absorbed and ego-centric world view of a toddler, though meant to be grown out of, is intended to be the foundation for a healthy self-image.

We still must take care of our own needs, but we evolve to expand beyond solely that. Although old programming languages may not be in use any more, the skills we used to learn and implement them can be applied to new ones. So it is with our lives. This process may require you to practice forgiving yourself or someone else. It may bring you new opportunities that necessitate making changes to accommodate them.

Although we must all let go of our past, we also integrate those experiences into our psyches as wisdom. The leaves that fall lose their form, but as they break down into compost, their transformed substance continues to serve the growth and well-being of the tree. For others, it is the holidays that allow us to be whoever we want to be and eat whatever we want. Fall is almost the perfect season because it has everything we want and need to end happily and begin again.

Embrace the change and embrace Fall! Close menu. Order Today! How It Works. Key Advantages. Customer Testimonials. Family Program. Memory Forest. Pet Version. Memorial Stone.