Okay Moon Sistahs, let’s chat about the unusual celestial quadfecta of a full moon, blood moon, supermoon, and total lunar eclipse.
Whew, what a mouthful!
It occurs during sunrise in North America and Hawaii and after sunset for the Middle East, Asia, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand.
Let’s piece this pie together, shall we?
We’re going back to basics then layering this bee-atch up with a whole lotta symbolism. Allow me to geek out, cuz I’m going to anyway 😉
First and most importantly, what I refer to regarding symbolism is based on the old ways of Druidic and Celtic moon phase wisdom. I am not speaking to specific astrological aspects but the natural creative cycle of the Moon phase as observed by the ancient peoples.
FULL MOON
The Full Moon occurs when the moon has reached her zenith. She is at full illumination. This is a time when our energy longs for community and connection. With the moon at her peak, it is a time for pleasure and celebration. She symbolizes how we express ourselves in the world.
This is the manifestation phase of the creation process. It is also the most potent time to go back to your intention(s) set during the New moon. Then while looking at these intentions with the light of Full moon, ask yourself (and journal about):
☽ Does this intention need refinement?
☽ How do I need to reinvigorate my ability to birth this intention into being?
☽ What one step am I willing to take to bring this forward into my Life?
BLUE MOON
Not to be confused with the Blue Moon Detective Agency from the 1980’s TV show Moonlighting (starring Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis), the oldest definition of Blue Moon is the third of four full moons within one season (from Equinox to Solstice).
A newer definition is two full moons occurring in one calendar month which occurs today (Jan 31st) and occurred earlier in the month on January 1st. Now because we get a Blue Moon in January, February will have no Full Moon which will lead to yet another Blue Moon in March. This is just a result of how the Gregorian calendar is structured.
SUPERMOON
This beauty occurs when the moon is at its closest point to the Earth and appears 13% larger. It doesn’t occur every full moon because the Moon moves in an ellipse around the Earth (not a circle). Roughly 25% of all Full Moons are Supermoons.
Now, BLOOD MOON. Oh, my gothic heart!
What the lovely heck is that?
Well, that has to do with the total lunar eclipse (which only happens with a Full Moon and conversely solar eclipses only happen with a New Moon). During a lunar eclipse the moon rides into the Earth’s shadow and all three major celestial bodies line up like this: MOON – Earth – Sun (as opposed to a solar eclipse: Earth-Moon-Sun).
Why is it called a Blood Moon? The moon can appear red due to the dust in the Earth’s atmosphere causing light refraction bent on the red spectrum.
Soooo, ummm, ya, what does all of this mean?
Let’s dig a bit deeper into some of the meaning and symbols connected with this lunar event then explore how all of this can affect us on a practical level. Then…
I’ll suggest ways for you to bring this deeper meaning into your sacred everyday through suggestions on how to Create your own Full Moon Ritual.
Back to the eclipse for a moment…
Eclipses trigger high highs and low lows.
The decisions we make and the actions we take during an eclipse have the tendency to set things in motion and to put patterns in place.
This is a great time to clear old, stagnant ways of being that no longer serve you (typically reserved for the New Moon phase BUT because of the interplay of light and shadow with the lunar eclipse, it applies here) AND to make decisions that are more aligned with who you are and how you want to be.
The shadowing of the moon during a lunar eclipse is like a spiritual mulligan. It signifies an opportunity to press the reset button on everything so that you can come back to your centre and start again.
Think of it this way, eclipses symbolize closing a door and opening a new one.
Now…let’s pause the eclipse talk for a moment and turn our gaze back to the luscious Full Moon.
As already mentioned, symbolically, full moons are generally about abundance, celebration, bringing things to fruition, and appreciating the fullness of your life. It is also a time to step into your female Power and Brilliance.
This particular Full Moon is connected to LEO which is a fire sign.
When the moon is in Leo you are being called to bring forth your passions and to see how your unique gifts and the expression of those gifts can make a difference in the lives of others. The Lunar Eclipse with the moon (your deepest essence, your Soulful self) + the earth (your body) + the sun (yang, your mind) in this alignment is a time to get really real.
While the moon is all about intuition, sometimes we stay in the realm of the metaphysical without fully birthing or bringing forth what we’ve visioned.
The earth is about matter and manifesting. This is the result of birthing our vision.
The red of the blood moon symbolizes fortune in many cultures, and is the colour most associated with the Mother archetype and the sacred female. This is when the Mother gives the mid-wiving of the soul to the Crone who stands at the crossroads. She will only let you pass when you are ready to face ALL of you.
It’s time to deeply reflect on where and how you use your energy and the feelings, thoughts, emotions, and motivations behind that energy. The shadow cast during a lunar eclipse is about bringing forth that which is hidden, to illuminate the dark – NOT obliterate it because we need both light and dark.
Let’s chat for a moment about the shadow aspect that this eclipse brings.
Eastern medicine teaches that everything in existence is in polarity. To make light is to make shadow. One cannot exist without the other.
All of us have a shadow. It is an intrinsic part of who we are. As we grow up we learn to accept certain parts of ourselves and to push other parts into the dark corners of our being. These become our shadow – the often despised, hidden, secretive parts of who we are.
Our shadow isn’t necessarily bad or good. It represents the parts of ourselves we’ve disowned or separated from. Because everything exists in duality, so too do our shadows. It also has a light and dark side.
Some of our brightest parts are in shadow. This is called the Golden Shadow. The parts of ourselves deemed too much for others to handle, if we were “too smart”, “too brave”, “too creative”, “too charismatic”. Actually it is within your Golden Shadow that exists your deepest purpose, your calling, your dharma.
So, what do you do about that?
This is the time to know that you have the power to be your own healer. No one can do the work but you. Recognize what bones have been shaken up from your inner graveyard, bless them as teachers, heal them (and quit digging them up to look at!) and bury them allowing the compost to help feed those things you truly want to grow in your life.
NOW is the time to re-member who you are and to use this time to call back all of the scattered aspects of yourself, to reclaim the parts of you that have lain dormant, to reawaken this power, and to not just talk or vision about it but to LIVE like it while removing all that isn’t this version of you – all that doesn’t support it or is unlike it. Like Michelangelo said (and I paraphrase): once you remove all that isn’t the statue, what remains is the statue.
Use this time to prepare for the coming Spring (more on that in a few days with the Celtic fire festival of Imbolc)!
Purge what no longer serves and hold yourself in the highest light of being able to hold space for More. The heightened nature of the Supermoon will bring out what you are hiding from.
With the power of the Lioness, it is time to courageously love yourself so fully, so deeply that you transmute your pain like the alchemist you are into bravely and boldly believing in yourself.
Eclipses signify endings and beginnings. Full Moons illuminate the shadows.
Look at what arises with curiosity. Don’t hide. No more.
Unleash your power in your own life. THIS is your gift to your life, to others, to the world. THIS is the birthing of your purpose. No apologies. No hiding to make others comfortable with your gifts.
Pull forward the resilience, courage, and strength to boldly live this incredible life that is yours.
Create your own Full Moon Ritual
☽ Go outside and connect with the light of the Full Moon. Try to meditate outdoors in a place where you can see the moon. Remember, meditation doesn’t need to be seated. It can include walking as well as simply gazing at the moon. If being outside doesn’t work for you, find a cozy, serene spot inside near a window.
☽ Light a fire in your fireplace or outside in a safe firepit. If you have neither, light some candles.
☽ Have some paper and a pen and write a letter from the parts of yourself that have ever felt too much for others to handle. Do not censor or judge this part of you. Allow Her to have a voice. Then boldly (if ready) read the letter aloud and with gratitude to those lessons learned toss the letter into the fire while standing lovingly in your alchemist ability to transmute pain into bravely holding space for your female Power and Brilliance.
☽ Dance, dance, dance! Dance around the fire (safety first! Watch those candles if you are inside) as the part of you who believes in yourself. Totally and completely. Without apology. Without grandiosity. Just simply because you OWN your power in who you are.
☽ Gather with friends! The above ritual is so much more potent when done in a community of like-minded and hearted women.
Full Moon rituals can be done the day before, of, or after the actual full moon
as there is a 3-day potency window.
Full Blue Super Blood Moon and Lunar Eclipse Blessings to you!
Did you do the above ritual or one of your own? What’s your favourite moon ritual?
I’d love to know!
Leave your comment in the box below and share your experience with me.
If this post nudges you; if you are a woman who pulses with the Earth, the Moon, and the Seasons; if you hear the call howling for you, I invite you to consider answering this call and joining me and other like-minded and hearted women in the SHE Collective Moon Lodge either in-person or virtually.
There is a place for you here: shecollective.ca/moonlodge/
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Your Soul Sistah,